Saturday, 5 April 2014

Fellaini finding his feet, says Moyes

Fellaini finding his feet, says Moyes

Fellaini finding his feet, says Moyes

Posted: 04 Apr 2014 10:15 PM PDT

Fellaini has come in for heavy criticism since following Moyes from Everton to Old Trafford in a big-money deal worth 27million.The Belgian international has been targeted for a number of uninspiring performances, including Uniteds 1-1 draw at home to Bayern Munich in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final tie on Tuesday. Fellainis performance was deemed so poor that he failed to receive a mention by Spanish paper AS in their playing ratings. Moyes, however, is sticking by Fellaini as he slowly finds his feet in Manchester. I actually thought Marouane Fellaini got better as the game went on, Moyes said, when speaking about Fellainis performance against Bayern at Old Trafford. We needed him, and I thought he played very well. He did well in the Aston Villa game and I think hes getting much closer to scoring goals. Its not an easy move, as I can tell you, leaving a club and coming to Manchester United. And for Marouane, I think its proved equally as difficult, but I have to say I think hes done a lot of good things. We bought Marouane not to play every single game in the Premier League. He did a great job at West Ham and against Aston Villa. Weve had to use him because of what we have available at different times. I think hes improved.

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Moyes: Van Persie is getting better

Posted: 04 Apr 2014 06:41 PM PDT

Van Persie was ruled out for up to six weeks after spraining his knee during the closing stages of Uniteds 3-0 triumph over Olympiacos in their UEFA Champions League knockout tie last month. The Dutchman, who netted a hat-trick to lead United to the quarter-finals, has missed games against West Ham, Manchester City, Aston Villa and Bayern Munich. But Moyes told reporters on Friday that the 30-year-old was progressing well from injury. Robin is over in Holland having treatment and we get a daily update of exactly how he is, Moyes said. Hes getting better. Hes doing all of his recovery and rehab back there. Hes coming on, as far as we know. I was told four to six weeks by the doctors and there hasnt been any reason to tell me any more or any less time. We will monitor that. My hope was that we would get him back before the end of the season, thats for sure. The big thing is well be medically led. We wont push. If its not right, we certainly would not bring him back sooner. We will totally be led by the medical team and Robin. Robin is a good judge of how his own body feels. Its part of how weve tried to deal with Robin through the season and giving him the understanding that he tells us how he feels. Hell be the first one to tell us how he is. Despite enduring an injury interrupted campaign, van Persie has still managed to score 11 Premier League goals in 18 appearances for the defending champions.

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Injury concern for Rooney

Posted: 04 Apr 2014 06:39 PM PDT

Rooney will miss Uniteds trip to Newcastle on Saturday after manager David Moyes revealed the striker was struggling with a toe injury he sustained during last Tuesdays 1-1 draw against Bayern at Old Trafford. The 28-year-old, who injured his ankle at the Allianz Arena in 2010, is now a doubt for the trip to Munich for the clubs do-or-die clash with Bayern on Wednesday. Wayne is injured. He has a badly bruised toe so he wont be involved against Newcastle. It will be touch and go for Wayne for Wednesday, Moyes told reporters on Friday. Its a toe injury and theyre never easy when you get one. You could see him limping in the game - towards the end, quite badly. He has a bad toe. Theres not an awful lot you can do with a toe injury. Sometimes you can feel better quite quickly with them and sometimes you need an injection to play with it if its bruising. With a lot of toe injuries, you have to make sure there isnt a hairline fracture or crack in your toe. We will have all that checked. England manager Roy Hodgson will be sweating on the news, with there being a possibility of a hairline fracture, which could mean several weeks on the sidelines. That would severely hamper Hodgsons plans ahead of the FIFA World Cup in Brazil, which is just over two months away. Foot injuries have plagued Rooney throughout his career and played a significant part in his inability to perform for England in footballs showcase event. Just six weeks out from Englands 2006 World Cup Group B opener against Paraguay, Rooney fractured his metatarsal bone after an innocuous challenge by Chelseas Paulo Ferreira in Uniteds 3-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge. Rooney was expected to be sidelined for the group stages but featured in all but one game as England were eliminated by Portugal in the quarter-finals. He went goalless throughout the tournament. Fast forward four years and Rooney also went into the 2010 World Cup under an injury cloud after damaging his ankle during Uniteds 2-1 loss to Bayern in Munich. Rooney started all three Group C matches but failed to find the back of the net in another disappointing campaign for England.

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Moyes: Focus solely on Newcastle

Posted: 04 Apr 2014 09:06 AM PDT

The Scot oversaw a 1-1 draw against the German and European champions in the first leg of their quarter-final on Tuesday to leave them in with a fighting chance heading into Wednesdays return leg in Munich. However, the former Everton boss says his side are concentrating all of their efforts on their Premier League fixture at Newcastle on Saturday, where they are looking to avenge a 1-0 home defeat in December. The only thing we are thinking about is the Newcastle game, he said. The focus is all on Newcastle. We have to go up there and put on a good performance and get three points, trying to build a little bit of momentum towards the end of the season. We will go there and try to do that. Obviously I have got other things on the mind, but the focus is Newcastle and we will try to balance things out correctly. We have got an extra days recovery. Saturday to Wednesday is better than last week when it was Saturday to Tuesday. But the message to the players is that it is Newcastle United, this is the next game and it is the most important one. Moyes confirmed that defensive duo Chris Smalling and Jonny Evans could feature at St James Park after spells out injured, but that Ryan Giggs and Alex Buttner were both carrying knocks after being substituted on Tuesday. We have got Jonny Evans and Chris Smalling back in training, he added. That helps us. Ryan Giggs picked up a wee bit of an injury in the (Bayern) game and we are not quite so worried about Alex Buttner. He is not as bad as when he first came off. We have got Jonny and Chris on the way back, which is important for us because we have missed them through what has arguably been one of the most difficult times of the season for us. We could have done with their youth and enthusiasm.

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Guardiola has one eye on United

Posted: 04 Apr 2014 08:59 AM PDT

Bayern return to league action on Saturday with a trip to their local rivals, as they aim to end a two-match winless run. A 3-3 Bundesliga draw against Hoffenheim was followed by a 1-1 stalemate at Old Trafford in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday. Bayern have already won the Bundesliga title and with that in mind, Guardiola will rest some players ahead of the second leg against the Premier League champions. Augsburg is a very, very important game, but the match on Wednesday against Manchester is even more important, he said at a press conference on Friday. Im going to rotate the team and the squad a little bit, we can try out a few things ahead of the United match. (But) it has to be a fair competition and we must show respect to our opponents, so well try and win the game.

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The FourFourTwo Preview: Newcastle vs Man United

Posted: 04 Apr 2014 12:05 AM PDT

Billed as A mid-table meeting of two apparently disunited Uniteds. The lowdown What a difference a year makes.In May 2013, Newcastle boss Alan Pardew delivered his 'I Have A Dream' speech, talking of wanting to emulate Liverpool and be challenging the Reds hard this season. He said they were the blueprint for what his team could become, with sensible investment, team spirit and the type of "winning mentality" Pardew brings to the table. We can laugh about it now, as the Reds canter off towards the title, but Pardew had just witnessed Liverpool finish a modest seventh – something a team of Newcastle's size should really be aspiring to. Fast forward to now, almost a year on, and Pardew appears to have fallen short of his target. Mathematically, Newcastle could still finish as high as seventh – they sit eight points behind the team currently occupying that spot (Manchester United) with six games and 18 points still to play for. But they won't come close. Anyone unfortunate enough to witness their witless 'performance' at Southampton last Saturday would be hard pushed to predict them picking up another point this season. In their last 10 games, the Magpies have won three, drawn one and lost six. When they've lost, they've usually lost heavily: 3-0, 3-0, 4-0, 3-0 and 4-0. Very few of Newcastle's stars share Pardew's dream of seventh. With safety secured for another season, they appear to have become distracted by thoughts of the World Cup, a nice beach somewhere hot and/or a new team with loftier ambitions. Almost every member of the first team has been linked with a move away – the most recent speculation linking Mathieu Debuchy with a move to Newcastle's new parent club, PSG. Based on the 4-0 defeat at St Mary's, a mass cull would be the best bet for all involved. In what had been excitingly billed as the "race for eighth", Newcastle were abject from start to finish, with the sole exception of Rob Elliot. But for the athleticism of their overworked second-choice goalkeeper, the Saints could have easily reached double figures. "We certainly looked like we needed some freshening up," said master of the understatement Pardew. "We have to have a big response." Certain sections are calling for a return to 4-4-2, advocating a return to the twin pairing of Loic Remy and Papiss Cisse who between them have 17 goals in all competitions. Deprived of Remy's services through injury for the last four games, Newcastle have scored just once. His return would at least give the Toon a threat going forward, although that assumes the uninterested rabble behind him can provide him with the odd pass. Over in Lancashire, what a difference a single week makes. This time last week, the harbingers of doom were predicting the end was nigh for Manchester United and David Moyes. Coming off the back of derby destruction, the visit of Aston Villa appeared to offer nothing more than brief respite before Bayern Munich arrived to drive another nail into the coffin. But, as Gianluca Vialli once famously opined, football is an old, funny game. United duly beat Villa 4-1, then took a moral victory in the 1-1 draw against the European champions, producing a performance of unexpected vim and vigor, suggesting there is life in them yet. Of course, they may still lose in the second leg in Bavaria next week, and kiss goodbye to Champions League football for 18 months at least, but United's run-in now sees them face Newcastle, Norwich, Sunderland, Hull and Southampton (plus an interesting visit to Everton). They'll enter the final stretch feeling in far finer fettle, particularly with Rooney, Mata and Kagawa almost accidentally brought together and beginning to click. A run of results from here on in will allow Moyes to paper over the cracks and head for the summer feeling far more positive than he did only seven short days ago. Team news Pardew is praying Remy will be fit enough to return after missing the last four with an ankle injury. Tim Krul remains out, meaning Elliot retains his place between the posts, while Pardew may inject a little passion by bringing in Geordie youngster Adam Armstrong. For the visitors, Alexander Buttner may give way to Patrice Evra, who was suspended against Bayern. Fit-again pair Jonny Evans and Chris Smalling could replace the creaking Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand, while a more offensive approach is likely to see Shinji Kagawa preferred over Marouane Fellaini, if Moyes has any sense. Players to watch: Coloccini and Tiote Remy's goals will be key should he return, but Newcastle will need to actually get hold of the ball and retain it if they are to provide him with any service. To that end, the importance of captain Coloccini and Ivorian Tiote should not be underestimated. Against a rampant Southampton last Saturday, they at least offered some resistance. The pair topped Newcastle's stats on passes (Tiote 50/54, Coloccini 39/46), take-ons (Tiote 3/4), ball recoveries (both 8) and interceptions (Coloccini 5). Against Manchester United's likely triple-threat of Rooney, Mata and Kagawa, three players who'll look to dominate possession and create, the pair will again need to provide some kind of resistance. Largely because no one else will. The managers Having served his three-match stadium ban for being clinically unhinged, Pardew was free to return to the dressing room for the game at Southampton. After witnessing the 3-0 defeat at home to Everton, he predicted his return would galvanise the troops. "If you take a personality out of the dressing room," he said, talking about himself, "it's going to have an effect. (So) I'm looking forward to having some impact in there." They lost 4-0 in one of the very worst performances of Pardew's reign. Recognising he has little control over a collection of uninterested and demotivated footballers who'd rather be elsewhere, few are blaming Pardew for Newcastle's current malaise. If it keeps up much longer, however, their attention may turn. Having survived the darkest week of his United career – derby destruction followed by the ceremonial fly-by last Saturday, Moyes appears to have ridden the storm out. For now, at least. Facts and figures Newcastle have lost to nil in 5 of their last 7 home matches Man United have the best away record in the Premier League this season and haven't conceded in their last 4 away matches 7 of Man United's last 9 trips to middle-third teams have produced at least 3 goals Newcastle have scored first in 3 of their last 4 meetings with Man United Best Bet: Man United @ 1.97 More FFT Stats Zone facts • Find the best odds with Bet Butler FourFourTwo prediction Even if Pardew gets a positive reaction from his team, the visitors should be too strong: 0-2. Newcastle vs Man United LIVE ANALYSIS with Stats Zone

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