Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has stated that his side will need to improve on poor European performances if they are to beat Athletic Bilbao at Old Trafford on Thursday night.
The Red Devils have been inconsistent on the continent this season, and face the San Mames side in the Europa League last 16.
Ferguson wants his team to show their worth, and is expected a difficult game against Marcelo Bielsa’s men.
“It’s a very difficult tie,” he admitted in a press conference, covered by The Guardian.
“From what we’ve seen, Bilbao are a very progressive team in Spain at the moment and it’s going to be a difficult game for us. It’s a game in which we need to waken up, there’s no question about that.
“Some of our European form this season has been disappointing but it’s an opportunity to progress and we have to take that opportunity. But it will need a very good performance.
“I don’t know if we’re making too many changes in these games. Certainly in the second leg against Ajax we did that, and in the Champions League group stage we made some changes.
“But we made mistakes in the group stage too, so it’s our own fault. But we’ll play a strong side against Bilbao and hopefully that makes a difference,” he concluded.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
When former Wednesday boss Danny Wilson was unveiled as the new United manager during the summer, the majority of blades fans disagreed with the decision.
We made our feelings felt through protest’s and radio phone-in shows but Kevin ‘tight pockets’ McCabe ensured us that he would bring success to Bramall lane in the coming seasons.
In the pre-season months Danny did well to keep on to key players like star youngster Maguire and Lowton while also keeping the highly-regarded Quinn at the club.
However it wasn’t all positive at Bramall Lane as even after agreeing a new contract with young prospect Jordan Slew, money at the top of the game showed its evil side with Slew departing to Premier League side Blackburn in a £1.1m deal
Despite this loss, Wilson didn’t panic bringing in Kevin McDonald and Lescinal Jean Francois who have both added an extra dimension to the team. Francois, who had already worked under Wilson at Swindon, knew how he liked see his teams play and really didn’t take long for his teammates to also learn Wilson’s ways.
After an opening day 2-0 victory away at Oldham, the Blades fans started to re-think the pre-season haste about Wilson. The fine start to the season continued with only a few slip-ups on the way and in January he was able to keep our key players at the club, which is truth was like a new signing in itself.
This help the supporters to get behind Danny and more believed he could be the man to take us straight back to the Championship.
A turning point was against Charlton in January when he got breakthrough with the fans who even started singing about him. Now he had the full backing of the fans and helped to strengthen this by bringing back James Beattie to the Lane, showing that he was preparing for the next level of football and the last promotion push.
With just two games left of the season, a sell-out home game against play-off chasing Stevenage, the teatime kick-off on sky, which has to be the perfect way for the fans to show their support and get behind the Blades.
Promotion is now in our sights, two wins and we are back in the Championship, an achievement we didn’t expect under Danny Wilson at the beginning of this season.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Remember Blades WE’RE ON THE MARCH WITH WILSON’S ARMY!
Everyone’s still talking about Papiss Cisse’s stunning second goal for Newcastle United against Chelsea in their Premier League clash at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday.
His first goal was good, but for his second the Senegalese striker used the outside of his right foot to hit a swerving, dipping shot into the far corner that left Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech with no chance.
Goal of the season? Well, Stoke’s Peter Crouch, Liverpool’s Luis Suarez and even Arsenal’s Robin van Persie might have something to say about that, but it is right up there.
It left many fans in the stadium in disbelief. Here is Cisse himself, and Chelsea defenders John Terry and Branislav Ivanovic watching as the ball is sailing over Cech’s head.
Can you come up with a funny caption for this picture?
Leave your suggestions below…
[divider]
This week you can win a Signed Chelsea Football!
This football has been signed by the 2011/12 Chelsea squad, a perfect gift for any Blue.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
For the FootballFanCast.com Caption Competition Terms and Conditions click here
Check out our Caption Competition Gallery for some inspiration and to see the winners so far.
Last week’s winner: Andy – click here to see all entries
England midfielder James Milner has sung the praises of new coach Roy Hodgson, stating that there is more to come as the players get acquainted with his effective methods according to Sky Sports.
Having only been appointed in May, expectations of Hodgson were low and many expected his team to face early elimination from the tournament. However, the former West Brom manager has guided England to the summit of a tricky looking group and the Three Lions are due to face Italy in Kiev on Sunday.
Milner, who has started every game of the tournament thus far, has paid tribute to Hodgson and his tactics.
“The gaffer hasn’t been in the job long and he plays a different style to the previous manager” said the 26-year old.
“He wants us tucked in, compact and tight and difficult to beat and it has worked so far.”
Milner has come under some criticism for his performances at this summer’s European Championships but stats show that the midfielder covers more ground than most other England players on the pitch. Regardless, the Manchester City star has promised even better performances from the whole squad in the next game.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
“There is still more to come from the team. The manager only came in just before the tournament and we had injuries during the build-up”, he stated.
“The lads have done a great job and, the longer we are together and with the manager, we will get better.”
As Spurs desperately tried to claw back their fading hopes of third place towards the tail end of last season, you would be hard pressed to pick out too many positives. But beneath the gloom and depression that Tottenham’s fate ultimately lured over White Hart Lane, there was one colourful figure that gave a timely reminder that the future isn’t written off just yet. There is a lot of talk that Sandro is the future of Harry Redknapp’s midfield. Forget that- the Brazilian needs to be the present.
It’d be fair to say that the 23-year-old defensive midfielder’s Spurs career is yet to really kick into gear. When the Brazilian first landed in England following his bargain £6.5million move from Internacional, it understandably took him time to adjust to the rigours of English football. A home debut in the 4-1 home defeat against North London rivals Arsenal in the League Cup had more than a touch of a baptism of fire and a well needed run of games was difficult to come by. Indeed, the now infamous incident that saw him turn up at Stansted to fly out for the Werder Bremen game, only to be told he wasn’t in Redknapp’s initial European squad, left the Brazilian, “really disappointed.”
But the dawn of 2011 saw Sandro’s luck change. The big watershed moment was his performance against Milan in the Champions League over two-legs. His relentless stamina, precision tackling and continuous haranguing of an esteemed Rossoneri midfield, saw Spurs fans, and the rest of Europe take notice. But it wasn’t just the display of defensive discipline and concentration that caught the eye. It was the touch of class and the effective distribution. Unlike so many Premier League ‘water-carriers’ who often seem to have a deficiency on the ball to compensate for being adept off of it, Sandro has both. It was now time to apply himself in the bread and butter of the Premier League.
And since then, the Brazilian has kicked on and impressed, even if he may not have completely solidified himself in the first XI at White Hart Lane. A superb, stinging 35-yard volley away at Chelsea, galvanized a decent run of games that showcased his defensive skills, even if he remained slightly inconsistent towards the end of his debut season.
But as so many foreign players do, Sandro hasn’t been riddled with it, but he most certainly had the symptoms of ‘second-season syndrome’. In parallel to Javier Hernandez’ fate at Manchester United, both had impressive showings in their debut season, but really needed a strong start and run of games in the season just gone. Injury bit both and as we’ve seen so many times, its always so, so difficult to regain match fitness through 20minute cameos. And in Sandro’s case, the looming figure of Scott Parker has proved a huge stumbling block.
This is where there is a sticking point for Harry Redknapp and Spurs. No one can deny the influence that Scott Parker, Sandro’s chief rival for a spot in the team, has had on Spurs this season. The England man was instrumental in their superb run that nearly took Tottenham to the Premier League summit and the fans have backed him to the hilt, voting him the members’ player of the season. But at 31, the ex-West Ham man isn’t getting any younger and as Spurs came off the boil, Parker began to show signs of fatigue which perhaps could have been avoided had Redknapp had more faith in Sandro. Everyone loves a local boy come good and it’s been refreshing to see Jake Livermore given game time. But this shouldn’t be at Sandro’s expense. The Brazilian is technically superior to both Parker and Livermore, but he is only going to succeed Parker if he is given game time. And that is what has to happen next season.
It is foolish to begin criticizing someone who, as previously mentioned, was voted player of the year and is set to start for England in the European Championships. But let’s not forget, Sandro has also been commanding a similar position in a far superior national team. Described by former national boss and defensive legend Dunga as a ‘future captain,’ Sandro has all the tools to succeed both internationally and in the Premier League. At face value it defies logic, but whilst Scott Parker is currently the better Premier League player, Sandro is the better footballer. If Redknapp altered formation to a 4-2-3-1 then both can co-exist with each other, but that doesn’t look particularly likely to happen at the moment.
But the only way Sandro is going to develop into the sort of player he most definitely has the potential to become, is through cold, hard, playing time. When Parker fell victim to an Achilles injury, Sandro was arguably Tottenham’s best player during their last four games. He ran the games against Blackburn and Bolton and gave everything for the shirt against Villa, even winning the subsequent penalty. He may not be as solid or rigid as Parker, but he showed a real dynamism in those final games and looked as if he didn’t want the season to end. He deserves the chance to find that sort of flow and form again next season.
Scott Parker is a superb player and fitness permitting, is likely to start from the off for Spurs next season. But if Redknapp is indeed still manager, he cannot afford to keep playing the 31-year-old for the sake of playing him. Especially not when there is player of the caliber of Sandro warming the bench. It’s a difficult decision to make. But Scott Parker isn’t getting younger and Sandro’s list of suitors definitely isn’t getting any shorter either.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Do you buy the Sandro hype? Would you rather Scotty P played on till his legs fell off? Or can you fit them both in the starting line-up? Tell me and follow me on Twitter for all things Spurs @samuel_antrobus
While it was in the September of 2008 that Sheikh Mansour took control of Manchester City Football Club, the 2008-09 campaign for the blues wasn’t the best on the pitch. In fact, it ended with the team outside all of the European places and had a Christmas Day in the relegation zone wedged into the middle of it. That was the last time that City met United just twice over the course of a season; every year since then, there has been more than the minimum two Manchester derbies.
Those two derbies of 2008-09 were bleak for City: Two defeats, no goals and barely a shot in either. There was so much between the two sides, you’d never have believed the gap had looked smaller the year earlier – when Sven’s side had twice beaten their local rivals. Fast forward to a new manager and throw in a few new players and progress had stalled somewhat.
But that’s when City got serious. In a manner, the club declared war on the team from across town. With a summer of additions – including the high profile signing of Carlos Tevez – the blues had suddenly gone from a team with no European football to one that was pushing to finish fourth in the Premier League. That transfer saga was the start of where the bad blood began to get worse between the two Manchester clubs. Previously, City’s mid-table woes and relegation battles had mattered little to United’s title challenges and European nights, and vice-versa. The sides met twice a year and battled it out, with the bragging rights at stake.
But that Tevez switch signalled the start of City’s rise; the now infamous poster being a cheap dig that got United’s back up and had those in charge of the reds foaming at the mouths. They were rattled. It added extra feeling to that first meeting between the two sides and it felt, for the first time in a long time, that City were somewhere near to pushing United all the way. It was the first step in the blues’ rise; they went in off the back of four wins. Of course, we all know how it ended: Michael Owen stole the points with a goal in added time to added time.
We might not have realised it at the time, but that game marked the beginning of a new era of Manchester derbies. This was no longer the haves against the have nots; this was the beginning of a fight for power. City were trying to wrestle it from United and it was no longer simply bragging rights at stake. This was league position and future success for City. For United, it was a battle to stay in poll position and to avoid being eclipsed by their nearest rivals.
Before that match in 2009-10, Sir Alex Ferguson uttered his famous “not in my lifetime” quote – in answer to the question of whether City would go into a derby match as favourites. Not only has he since been proven wrong on that front, as the blues have now gone into a derby with shorter odds than United, but he has himself passed comment on it, claiming the blues were where the money should be placed for last season’s FA Cup third round tie.
As much as us City fans don’t want it to be true, the fact of the matter is United aren’t going to just go away. They’ve had dominance over England for nigh on twenty years and, as is the case with any sort of evil, undemocratic Empire, the idea of giving up power isn’t one that is ever jumped at. The inconvenience of the matter is that, to become top dogs in this country, City are going to have to dismantle what United have built brick by brick. Mario Balotelli almost hit the nail on the head; he said ‘Why always me?’, when he should have asked ‘Why always them?’
Since the takeover and since City have been climbing the table in their quest for success, they have had to overcome United at every significant point. The coincidental and slightly queer fact that the reds have been constantly standing in the blues’ way for every little achievement is quite symbolic of the fight as a whole. They have what we want and we have to forcefully take it from them. To be a success, we have to stop them from stopping us.
Back in 2009-10, City had their best chance yet of picking up silverware and ending the barren spell, having just smashed three past Arsenal’s kids and made it to the semi-finals of the League Cup. Leaving the ground, fans were desperately trying to find out who the club had drawn. And then the news broke: Manchester United. To make matters worse, it was the most difficult draw, being the home leg first and the away leg second.
The reds, having played a weakened side all the way up to that point, signalled their intent to the competition and towards City. One could be forgiven for thinking United were more concerned from stopping the blues winning the cup than winning it themselves; the policy of playing fringe players stopped immediately when it became obvious City were serious about lifting the trophy that so many teams shun. United won that battle, but only just.
The progress for City took another dent later that season. The push for a Champions League place over Tottenham, Aston Villa and Liverpool appeared to be swinging into the blues’ favour, until one Manchester United rocked up at the City of Manchester Stadium. A last minute goal again won the game for the visitors, and that sparked a run of form that saw City lose out to Spurs in a penultimate match ‘playoff’. While City had clearly improved, they were still some way behind United.
Then came 2010-11. City managed to earn one more point in the Manchester derbies than the campaign previous, but that was a somewhat soul-destroying and wholly forgettable 0-0 draw at Eastlands. The undoubted highlight of which being the final whistle, when fans could finally go home and wonder how better they could have spent that ninety minutes. In fact, it’s the fixture in February that is more telling – City turned up at Old Trafford and were marginally the better side, a marked improvement on the year before. They only lost that game due to a freak, out-of-this-world, unbelievably good goal, that, on another day, would have landed somewhere on the M60.
But that wasn’t the half of it. With City looking to end a trophy drought of over three decades, it looked like the FA Cup was going well. The big sides were dropping out and the blues had been given favourable draws against lower league opposition and, on the one occasion they drew a Premier League side, it was at home. But then, just before the quarter final with Reading, the balls were pulled out of that strange bowl thing on ITV and, if they got through, City would be paired up with United. At Wembley. The reds were, once again, blocking the path of City’s progress.
This time, City came out on top – and deservedly so. Rooney was missing, as was Tevez, and both sides went toe-to-toe for the honour of being an FA Cup finalist. The banner at Old Trafford proudly displayed the years since the blues had won a major trophy (not that they care, obviously); it wasn’t officially sanctioned by the club, but clearly endorsed, as, had they wanted it gone, it could quite easily have been removed. Roberto Mancini had previously failed on his first attempt to fulfil his promise of tearing it down.
To do it, he was going to have to get the better of United. First it was the League Cup. And then the FA Cup. As we know now, he kept that promise. He went on to complete the cup run by seeing off Stoke in the final and lifting the trophy that May.
The next time the two sides would meet was the Community Shield: The opening game of the season; the curtain raiser. And, that August, nobody would have predicted just how significant the two teams that went head-to-head that match would be. It’s telling now that the showpiece for the English Premier League would be contested by the two teams vying to win it nine months on. City threw away a two-goal lead to lose that game and, from that point on, proceeded to smash records in the opening months of the season, as team after team were dispatched en route to October and a trip to Old Trafford.
A United win would see them leapfrog the blues into top spot. A City win would see them open up a five point gap at the table’s summit. It would turn out to be the blues’ biggest step yet in taking a wrecking ball to Sir Alex Palpatine’s Empire. Six huge hits were sustained that day and City inflicted United’s largest ever Premier League defeat at Old Trafford. Fans that had been arguing that the gap between the two clubs was getting shorter began to argue that it was actually getting wider: That blue had become more dominant than red.
Of course, that was too premature.
The FA Cup was next: The third round draw threw these teams together once again. But for an unjust red card, it could have been a different story; but a club mustn’t lament its bad luck. United made it into the pot for the fourth round, though City gave them a scare, with one man fewer for eighty of the ninety minutes and from three goals behind. That first cup might have gone in the trophy cabinet, but the second one after it was still not going to be an easy task.
But the season defining moment was still to come. Having spent many months of the season on the top of the league, City suddenly imploded. For a while, the blues had been five points ahead of the reds and with a better goal difference, but, with just six matches to play, it looked like they had mucked it up. After the first game in April – a defeat by a single goal at The Emirates – City trailed United by eight points. Worse, the goal difference advantage had gone too, as the blues found themselves two behind.
Once again, United appeared to have stood firm in City’s way.
But the blues hadn’t stored the wrecking ball away just yet. After the final whistle of City’s destruction of West Brom, the fans waited behind to hear confirmation that Wigan had given them a helping hand – United had lost. “Too little, too late,” was muttered by some. “You never know,” was the reply from others.
Indeed, the latter were right – City had their reprieve, in the shape of Everton. They fought back at Old Trafford to steal a point when all seemed lost, meaning City’s victory over Wolves later that Sunday afternoon left the blues three points behind. The next game was, of course, the Manchester derby. Win and City went back on top on goal difference. Draw and United would take a three point lead into the final two games. Defeat and it was all over, United would need a point to secure the league. It was do or die. All or nothing. Win or bust.
United, again, in City’s way of progress. While many of us had hoped that the title race would have been over well before this match, when the fixtures were announced it was always going to be inevitable that the final derby of the season would play a key role in the struggle for power.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
United have stood in City’s way in everything they have tried to do since the takeover. If City were to knock United into second place in this country, then they would have to do it both literally and metaphorically. In the wartime metaphor, the battles had been tight and close, and, for three years, City have been gradually gaining ground, while United had stagnated. But in the literal world, the reds had stopped the blues on several occasions in the past. Kept them at arm’s length.
But United ran scared. They came for a point. They got nothing.
United stood in City’s way for Champions League qualification and that was eventually overcome. They stood in the way of a trophy to break the duck and that was eventually overcome. They stood in the way of league progress and that was eventually overcome.
To exorcise the ghosts of the past, the torment of United’s league titles compared to the blues’ exploration of England’s lower divisions, City need a sustained period of success. They need to be raking in the trophies one by one. Year after year.
But United won’t go away. It’s symbolic that City have had to beat them to move up every rung on the ladder of firsts. The Champions League is the next big step and one that could take a while to crack.
And it wouldn’t surprise me to see United in City’s way for that, too.
David Mooney’s book, Typical City, is now available to pre-order in paperback from here – or the ebook is already available to download in the Amazon Kindle store here.
As I stood inside the Tesco in Dorchester, paying for the energy drink that I hoped would pull me out of the bewilderment that came with just watching Plymouth Argyle lose 5-0 in a pre-season friendly to Yeovil Town, I was tapped on the back. I turned around to see a middle-aged man dressed in Yeovil colours, he had not come to gloat though.
Instead he said “I reckon your (Argyle) mid-table at best this season mate”. I agreed with him before he continued to say “It’s funny, I was watching BBC South West the other day and your chairman was promising a big wage budget for you to spend, but it doesn’t look like you are using it!”.
And with that the man left, having just unknowingly echoed the feelings of many an Argyle fan.
There are now only 25 days until the 2012/13 season kicks off, and with each day that passes the Green Army are becoming increasingly worried. The signings we have made so far in Paris Cowan-Hall, Jamie Lowry and Rene Gilmartin point to little more than a season of mid-table obscurity, which would be fine with large parts of our fan base after the last few seasons. But why promise such things as ‘a competitive budget’ and ‘going for promotion’ when so far our actions in the transfer market have not mirrored what is being said by the Chairman? It is becoming increasingly frustrating to believe some of the statements coming out of the club.
What really worries me though is that we might actually have a weaker squad now than the one that we ended the 2011/12 season with. The loanees we had, Ashley Hemmings, Juvhel Tsoumou, Alex MacDonald and Steven Fletcher will not be returning to the club whilst captain Simon Walton was released by mutual consent to move back up to his native North of England to sign for Hartlepool. Controversy was never far from Walton in his time with Argyle and some fans will be glad to see the back of him, but he was a key cog in our survival in the football league last season, finishing as top goalscorer – a statistic which includes some dramatic last minute penalties to win us a couple of vital games.
The last thing that Argyle fans want in the coming season is another relegation battle, but with the performance against Yeovil being so poor and the decent striker that our squad is crying out for still not with us, some are already beginning to dread the approaching campaign. It is not as if Carl Fletcher is not trying though, he revealed a few weeks ago he had missed out on transfer targets as they have gone to clubs higher up the football pyramid who could offer bigger wages to the players in question.
Despite the dismal display against Yeovil I still think we are going to be a mid-table team. The Glovers already had two pre-season games under their belt before they faced us, whilst it was our first outing of the summer. They are of course also a division higher than us. Going on that showing they will not be involved in the League One relegation battle this season, something which they have seemed to taken part in every season now for what seems like forever.
If we want to lift ourselves away from mid-table and towards the play-offs this season then we are in dire need of a striker or two, and a winger. Our current main strikers, Warren Feeney and Nick Chadwick, work hard but won’t score more than 15 between them in a season. We will have to wait and see if Paris Cowan-Hall will find his feet at this level whilst young Matt Lecointe is unlikely to start more than a quarter of our games unless he becomes the next Nick Powell.
It’s just a shame that James Brent has been making noises about promotion because it looks unlikely. Had he said nothing about it then the majority of Argyle fans would be happy heading into a blissful, relaxing season of mid-table ‘mediocrity’. As it is there are parts of the fanbase that are, to put it politely, far from pleased.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
For more Argyle talk, you can follow me on Twitter.
The last few days has been tough for any Leeds fan, we had the news that the takeover had collapsed which sparked mass panic, anger and worry.
That was quickly followed by a club statement suggesting the takeover wasn’t off at all, but that the buyers exclusivity period was now over. In other words ‘Leeds are still for sale, but it’s now a free for all’
Unfortunately, by the time the fans had chance to digest the information some had already turned on the supporters trust, some still believed it was all made up by Bates’ to sell season tickets, but worryingly, fans started turning on each other.
As the thought of another season with Ken Bates in charge started to sink in, some fans made the decision to boycott Elland Road until his regime was over, stating that they could support the club without supporting Bates. This then sparked an angry reaction from the match attending fans, who claimed that any real fan wouldn’t boycott games at any cost.
Cue a ‘best fan’ contest, with both sides of the argument being expressed profusely on forums and twitter without any sign of reason or a middle ground, for a team with united in it’s name, we couldn’t be less so.
What fans need to realise, and realise quickly, is that there is no wrong or right way to handle this. If somebody wants to boycott games in a personal protest to Ken Bates then that doesn’t mean they support the club any less, they still cheer every goal and kick every ball, they just don’t want to put any money into the club while Bates is around.
At the same time, we mustn’t let ourselves believe that protesting about Bates at games always has a negative effect on the players, the players are professionals who, considering the level they play at, should be more than able to handle a few chants about our owner. This was backed up at the weekend as we cruised to a 4-0 win over Shrewsbury with ‘Bates out’ chants ringing out.
Now is the time for fans to stick together, we don’t have to agree to do the same things, but we have to understand that whatever action somebody takes is because of a love of the club. We cant start dividing a week before the season starts, especially considering there is a chance the takeover will still take place, we need to be united from the start as we all want the same thing, Bates out, and a return to the Premier League.
If we needed any more inspiration to put down our weapons it must surely be the thought of Ken Bates laughing away at the sight of us minions and morons turning on each other. Make no mistake, a disjointed fan base would please Bates no-end.
In the midst of all this, the takeover looks to be back on track, with reports claiming that talks over the weekend were ‘very positive’ and the LUST chairman Gary Cooper confirming on WACCOE that the buyers representative ‘”could see no other outcome’’. Considering the league season starts this weekend, it could not be better timed.
On the topic of LUST, fans need to remember their purpose. They are a supporters trust that have been the voice of the fans throughout, they are as frustrated as us at not being able to tell us more information than they have, but the criticism they are starting to receive is unfair. On the day that they confirmed the takeovers collapse they were only relaying information from the buyers, as at that point in the day, the deal was dead in the water. After LUSTs statement, there were frantic discussions to try and rescue the deal, this is where we appear to be at today.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
So at least for now, we need to keep the faith and be united again. Leeds are renowned for having one of the best fan bases in the world, but we can only justify being called that if we stick together through the ups and downs, at least until the word stops going round.
West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce admits he was disappointed with the lack of defensive quality his side showed in their 9-0 Capital One Cup Semi-Final aggregate loss to Manchester City.
The Hammers succumbed to a record League Cup Semi-Final loss at the hands of Manuel Pellegrini’s goal-hungry City after respective 6-0 and 3-0 defeats to heap more misery on their season.
And Allardyce admits believes his side didn’t give themselves much of a chance after some horror defending in both legs.
“City have scored 19 goals and conceded one to get to the final, which shows you the quality of their team, but I was a little disappointed with the way we conceded the goals,”Allardyce told whufc.com.
“We’ve got to protect our goal better and, while that might be harsh in this game, it’s about making sure we make teams work much harder for the goals that they score.
“Ultimately, if you give a team like this the chances we gave them, then they are going to punish you and they did.”
And Allardyce also bemoaned his side’s current shortage of luck after he felt Ravel Morrison should have been awarded a penalty in the second-half last night’s second leg at Upton Park.
“Of course, Rav should have had a penalty but the way it is for me, we aren’t going to get one even if one of their players punches one of our players in the face,” he added.
“Everything is conspiring against us, but we have to keep our heads up and play some of the football we played with an effective finish and be tighter at the back.”
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Sir Alex Ferguson insisted he is not worried by Manchester United’s defensive frailties at the start of the season, Sky Sports reports.
Manchester United secured a tense 3-2 victory at newly-promoted Southampton yesterday, thanks to a hat-trick from Robin van Persie.
But the win was not without its hairy moments, as United conceded two goals through headers from back-post crosses.
“Everything we did in preparation for the game has all been to deal with back-post crosses and they scored two goals off them so that was disappointing.
“But credit to Southampton they are good at it,” Ferguson admitted.
The Red Devils have had a number of key defensive personnel out through injury, with Johnny Evans, Rio Ferdinand, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones starting the season on the treatment table.
Ferguson was keen to highlight the problem after what was a tough game for his side: “This season we’ve had four centre-backs injured for the first game. Carrick has played centre-back at Everton and we’ve had Valencia at right-back.
“If we get the centre-backs back that’ll give us a really good chance.”
But the situation is improving for United with Ferdinand making his return to the side yesterday, while Evans is now available for selection.
The return of Ferdinand alongside Vidic would have been a welcome sight for United, although the way in which Rickie Lambert consistently caused problems for the duo means it will take some time for them to re-form their partnership.
The introduction of Paul Scholes was however, the difference. The influence of Scholes was evident, as he was given time and space to find the likes of van Persie and Javier Hernandez, create havoc in the Saints defence.
“His vision and consistency of passing gave us complete control of the game,” said Ferguson.
The performance of van Persie was also a major plus for United, with the Dutchman now scoring four goals in two starts for the club.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Although he could have easily ruined Sir Alex’s 1,000th League match in charge after taking a soft penalty at 2-1, which Kelvin Davies managed to save easily.
But his two goals in the final five minutes of the match showed his class and typified a classic United comeback.