Tuesday, 18 March 2014

UEFA Champions League: Man United v Olympiacos

UEFA Champions League: Man United v Olympiacos

UEFA Champions League: Man United v Olympiacos

Posted: 17 Mar 2014 09:54 AM PDT

The Premier League holders welcome the Greek club - who won their fourth straight league title on Saturday - to Old Trafford on Wednesday for the second leg of a last 16 tie, desperate to overturn a 2-0 deficit from the return match. United manager David Moyes has come increasing pressure at Old Trafford following a disappointing maiden campaign, and his misery was compounded by a hugely disappointing 3-0 loss at home to rivals Liverpool on Sunday. A brace of penalties from Steven Gerrard helped to inflict a fifth home league defeat of the campaign on United, but perhaps more worrying for Moyes was the way his side were outplayed by Brendan Rodgers' men. The Champions League can now provide some solace for Moyes, whose side trails Chelsea by 18 points in the English top flight, with Europe's premier competition providing United's last chance of silverware this season. To progress to the quarter-finals United will have to erase Olympiacos' two-goal cushion, gained through strikes from Alejandro Dominguez and on-loan Arsenal forward Joel Campbell. Moyes has vowed United will turn the tie on its head, acknowledging the need to start Wednesday's game well. "We have to go for the throat to get the win," he said. "We won't be gung-ho but we will certainly go with a mindset to overhaul the deficit as quickly as we can. "We won't be reckless as we could find ourselves with a bigger mountain to climb, but we can be forceful. We have to be if we're to keep ourselves in the Champions League." Olympiacos have lost on all of their previous 11 visits to England, but travel to Old Trafford on the back of lifting a 41st Greek title with five matches to spare, thanks to a 2-0 victory over Panthrakikos. Furthermore, Michel's men showed they are more than capable of competing against United in the first leg at the Karaiskakis Stadium, and they will look to pounce on any mental fragility the hosts show following the Liverpool defeat. United head into the match without Jonny Evans (calf), while Michael Olaitan has not played for Olympiacos since collapsing against Panathinaikos at the beginning of March. Ivan Marcano (groin) and Javier Saviola (quadriceps) are doubts for the visitors, while Dominguez, Kostas Manolas and Diego Fuster are all one booking away from a suspension that would rule them out of a quarter-final tie.

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Mata promises storm will pass for Man United

Posted: 17 Mar 2014 04:48 AM PDT

David Moyes has endured a disappointing first season at Old Trafford after being charged with the task of replacing the legendary Alex Ferguson, with the Premier League champions seventh in the table and facing up to the prospect of missing out on top-four finish. United's misery was compounded by a humbling 3-0 defeat to rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford, with a brace of Steven Gerrard penalties and a Luis Suarez strike condemning United to a fifth home defeat of the season in the top flight. Moyes has also seen his side exit the League Cup and FA Cup this season, and United must overturn a 2-0 first leg deficit against Greek championsOlympiacos if they are to reach the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals. Attacking midfielder Mata - who joined United for a record £37.1 million fee in January - was left to reflect on another frustrating performance, but the Spain international is confident United will come good. "The storm will pass and the sun will rise again. I have no doubt," said Mata wrote in his personal blog. "Besides, no one said this would be easy but this is football. It gives you fantastic moments but also very hard times you have to cope with, when you have to show pride and professionalism until the end. "There are no words to describe your (fans) support in the stadium. In games like yesterday it makes me mad not being able to give you what you deserve. "I know there is nothing I can say right now but at least I want you to know how I feel."

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Facts: Which side has broken its Premier League passing record with 8 games to spare?

Posted: 17 Mar 2014 04:30 AM PDT

Hull 0-2 Man City Man City have kept 3 successive clean sheets in the Premier League for the first time this season (May 2013 was the last time). Man City have now won the last 21 competitive matches that David Silva has scored in. Vincent Kompany's red card (10 mins) was the quickest that Man City have been reduced to 10 men in a Premier League game since October 2010 (Boyata, 5 mins vs Arsenal). Man City have won all 3 of the Premier League games that Kompany has been sent off in. Man City attempted fewer dribbles than any other side in the PL this weekend (7). Everton 2-1 Cardiff Cardiff have only scored 6 first-half goals in the Premier League this season (a league low). Cardiff have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last 8 away league games. Only Steven Gerrard (7) has more assists from set-pieces than Peter Whittingham this season (5). Seamus Coleman is the top-scoring defender in the top flight this season with 6 goals. Everton (88%) had the best pass-completion rate in the Premier League this weekend. Fulham 1-0 Newcastle Ashkan Dejagah has scored 2 goals in 4 league appearances under Felix Magath; he scored just once in 32 before this. Lewis Holtby has contributed to as many goals for Fulham in 7 games (3: 1 goal, 2 assists) as he did in 24 for Tottenham Hotspur. Newcastle conceded only 6 fouls, their joint-lowest total in a PL game this season. They were also the only side not to pick up a yellow card. Southampton 4-2 Norwich Daniel Sturridge (18) is the only Englishman to have scored more goals than Jay Rodriguez in the Premier League this season (12). Rickie Lambert scored just 1 minute and 6 seconds after coming off the bench; his goal was the fourth fastest by a sub in the PL this term. Norwich scored 2+ goals in only the fourth league game this season, and only the second away from home (2-0 vs West Brom in December). Stoke 3-1 West Ham 13 of Andy Carroll's 28 Premier League goals have been scored with a header (46%). West Ham conceded more goals in this match (3) than they had in their previous six combined (2). Stoke have completed more passes this season (8764) than in any of their previous 5 PL campaigns, despite them having 8 games left. Stoke had more shots on target than any other team in the PL this weekend (9). Sunderland 0-0 Crystal Palace Sunderland have scored a joint-low 13 home goals this season, and have attempted just 47 shots on target at the Stadium of Light (a league low). They only notched 2 shots on target in this game. Vito Mannone has kept a clean sheet in 8 of his 18 Premier League games for Sunderland this season – the same number as opposing keeper Julian Speroni has kept in 29 games. Swansea 1-2 West Brom Stéphane Sessegnon scored his first goal for 9 hours and 49 minutes in this match. Wilfried Bony has had a hand in 11 PL goals this season (9 goals, 2 assists) – 10 of which have been at the Liberty Stadium. West Brom came from behind to win in the PL for the first time in over a year (since March 9 2013). Youssouf Mulumbu made a league-high 6 interceptions this weekend. Aston Villa 1-0 Chelsea There have been 4 red cards given in the last two PL meetings between Chelsea and Aston Villa at Villa Park. Marc Albrighton assisted his first PL goal of the season with the 25th chance he'd created for his Aston Villa team-mates this season. Chris Foy is the only referee to give Chelsea two red cards in a single game on 2 separate occasions in the PL. Man United 0-3 Liverpool Liverpool have scored 48 first-half goals in the Premier League this season, 2 more than Man United have in total. Man United's only shot on target came in the 44th minute. This is the first time since May 2009 (vs Arsenal) that they've have registered fewer than 2 in a PL home game. Steven Gerrard has now scored more PL goals at Old Trafford than any other visiting player. Liverpool have now won 126 penalties in Premier League history, more than any other side. Man United conceded a penalty at Old Trafford in the PL for the first time since December 31 2011 (vs Blackburn). Liverpool took all three penalties awarded in the PL this weekend. Liverpool (90%) played a higher percentage of short passes than any other team in the PL this weekend. Liverpool made 37 tackles, more than any other side. Tottenham 0-1 Arsenal Tottenham have kept just 1 clean sheet in their last 31 Premier League north London derbies (February 2009). Arsenal had only 1 shot in the second half. Lukas Podolski has completed 90 minutes only 3 times in 31 Premier League starts. Arsenal's total of 248 successful passes is the fewest they have managed in a PL game since 232 vs Spurs in February 2009. Arsenal sent in a league-low 3 crosses this weekend. Per Mertesacker's total of 20 clearances is the most by an Arsenal player since the 2007/08 season. The Gunners made a PL-high 31 interceptions this weekend. Younes Kaboul played more unsuccessful passes than any other player in the PL this weekend (22). SEE ALSO Saturday's Premier League Stats Zone analysis • Debrief: Arsenal, Liverpool, Man City dig for victory

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Nolan seeks Hammers response after Stoke loss

Posted: 17 Mar 2014 03:02 AM PDT

West Ham suffered their second Premier League defeat in a row when they were beaten 3-1 at the Britannia Stadium, a result that leaves them just six points better off than third-bottom Sunderland - who have a game in hand. The match could have had a different outcome had the London club been awarded a penalty when trailing 2-1, as Marc Muniesa appeared to handle the ball in the area. Midfielder Nolan was disappointed to return south empty-handed and the 31-year-old midfielder is determined to get back on track by beating champions United on Saturday. He told the club's official website: "It was very disappointing, because I felt we deserved something at Stoke. "If we got the penalty, it goes to 2-2 and your back up and then who knows? "If we had come off the pitch with a 2-2 draw, then I think people would have probably said 'that's a fair enough result' and I think 3-1 flattered them a bit. "Two late sucker punches in the last two games have done us, but we have a big week leading up to what should be a fantastic game against Manchester United at home. "We did quite well against them at our place last year (a 2-2 draw) and I'm hoping we can capitalise on that and start another run going again. That is the aim and there is no reason why we can't do that."

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Moyes: Man United job tougher than expected

Posted: 17 Mar 2014 12:41 AM PDT

Moyes' disappointing start to his United reign continued on Sunday when rivals Liverpool coasted to a 3-0 victory at Old Trafford victory. The latest setback was another rude awakening for the Premier League champions, who could have lost by a greater margin as Brendan Rodgers' side showcased their title credentials with another impressive display. United are seventh in the table and look certain to miss out on a place in the UEFA Champions League, as they are 12 points behind Manchester City - who occupy fourth place - and their city rivals have two games in hand. Moyes' side also face a battle to reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League given they trail Olympiacos 2-0 ahead of Wednesday's second leg at Old Trafford. The task of succeeding Alex Ferguson was never going to be easy, but Moyes revealed after Sunday's defeat that the challenge is proving tougher than he had expected following his move from Everton. "The job was always going to be hard." he said. "Is it harder than I thought it would be? Yeah, I would say so." "The players are capable of turning it round. We're not playing as well as we should be, we have to play better. we're going to have to make ourselves harder to beat. "We''re also going to have make sure we're creating more and taking more opportunities - we've got a lot to do to do both those things. "We're all desperate to put things right and play better and give the supporters something to shout about - we haven't given them anything on the field (on Sunday)." Steven Gerrard scored two penalties and missed another before Luis Suarez added a third goal for Liverpool in a one-sided clash at Old Trafford. Departing captain Nemanja Vidic was also sent off for the second time this year on another miserable day for the champions.

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Rodgers has empathy for under-fire Moyes

Posted: 17 Mar 2014 12:12 AM PDT

United looked a shadow of the side that won last season's Premier League by 11 points as Liverpool dished out a comprehensive 3-0 beating at Old Trafford on Sunday. A transitional period was expected following the end of Alex Ferguson's exceptional 27 years at the helm, but the fall from grace under former Everton boss Moyes has been particularly severe. Liverpool are a sobering example to United of how a footballing giant can suffer a change in fortunes, although the club's stunning form under Rodgers has ignited hopes of a first English league title since 1990 for a team that finished last term in seventh place. "I have empathy in terms of the pressures," Rodgers said. "We're both at the two biggest clubs in British football that are world-renowned clubs. "It's incomparable where we were at. He's obviously come in when they were champions, with world-class players. "We were eighth when I came in so we had a lot of work to do - a hell of a lot of work to do. I've got outstanding owners, they have never buckled from when they offered me the job. "As a football club, we are restoring that solidity, and as a group both on and off the field. I have empathy for every manager because unless you've been a manager you never know the pressures. "Certainly I understand the pressure of a worldwide institution because Manchester United is a fantastic club."

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Gerrard warning for Liverpool title rivals

Posted: 16 Mar 2014 09:14 AM PDT

Gerrard scored twice from the penalty spot at Old Trafford on Sunday and missed the chance to become the first Premier League player to score a hat-trick of spot-kicks in the same game before Luis Suarez added a third late on. United finished with 10 men after Nemanja Vidic received his second yellow card for bringing down Daniel Sturridge during the third penalty incident and the result leaves David Moyes' men seventh. In contrast, Liverpool are second, four points off leaders Chelsea and with a game in hand on Jose Mourinho's side. Gerrard knows there is plenty of work to do for Brendan Rodgers' men, but warned the other sides at the top of the table that Liverpool will battle until the end of the season. "We've shown we're genuine contenders and we'll fight to the end," he told Sky Sports. "We believe it but the easy thing is to talk the talk. The rest of the people fighting with us have to believe we're going for it." The win was Liverpool's first at Old Trafford in seven attempts in all competitions and puts another major dent in Moyes' debut season at United. Gerrard feels the margin of victory could have been greater, but warned of dwelling on the result. "I've come here many times and this is one of the most difficult places to come. To come and dominate from start to finish, we're disappointed not to have scored more goals," he added. "It's a fantastic day personally but we came here to win the game. We'll enjoy it but we need to move on quickly. "We totally bossed the middle of park and I'm sure if you ask Manchester United defenders, I'm sure they'd tell you they've never had a more difficult day."

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