1. I was fuming when I heard the line-up. I’ve tried to limit knee jerk reactions to the team news given the amount of times Sir Alex Ferguson has made me look a knob head for doing so but I couldn’t hold back today. I was furious. Hearing that Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher were now also injured allowed it to make more sense but I couldn’t understand having Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes on the bench when we were playing a midfield like that. At this rate, we were going out of the FA Cup and who was to say our players would then show up against Marseille. Fabio, who hardly ever plays, and when he does, has been put on the left wing maybe once. John O’Shea, who has been used mostly at right back was the better half of the central midfield alongside Darron Gibson. Then Rafael, who again, is not a winger. This was obviously before I knew that Wayne Rooney was going to be sitting back with the midfield. Still, to play that 4 against a passing team seemed to be like total suicide.
2. The Twins are good are getting forward from their full-back positions and today we saw their value as wingers. The two combined 15 minutes in when Fabio put it on a plate for Rafael to score, but his header was high. It was a taster of what was to come though. Fabio raced forward then played through a great ball to his brother with the outside of his boot. Rafael then passed it back to Fabio outside the box, who tapped it to Rooney, who played in a great ball to Chicharito. A fantastically placed header from the Mexican lead to a great save from Almunia, before Fabio tapped in the rebound. I love those twins.
3. Whilst those two lads were definitely a highlight, there are several positives to focus on today, most important of those, Antonio Valencia’s return. Wow. I was expecting when he did come back, whenever that might have been, it would take him a while to settle, and that would be fair enough. It was like he had never been away. The second goal was all about him. There were just 17 seconds between Van der Sar rolling the ball out to him and Rooney making it 2-0. We’ve got a winger again! Nani has done a great job down that flank this season and the idea of him and Valencia being available for our last few games should fill us all with massive hope. It was great to see him out there again.
4. Edwin Van der Sar was named Man of the Match. How can a player good enough to be named MOTM, when the best two teams in the country play, be retiring? The fans did our bit in trying to get him to change his mind though. “One more year” and “Fergie, sign him up!” as well as singing his name on repeat for large chunks of the second half. He applauded the Stretford End in the midst of this, which just increased the volume. There are suggestions that Fergie is trying to convince him to stay around. It’s nice to see the fans doing their bit too.
5. It’s great to have Vida back, who serves as a bring wall for any opposition team trying to cross the ball in, but then Chris Smalling was his match today. Great young player doing his bit to rob Chicharito of the best signing of last summer title. So composed and confident for a lad so young.
6. Whilst not wanting to spoil such a high-spirited reaction, the Arsenal fans singing over the Manchester United Foundation choir at half-time has to get a mention. This is a fucking charity and whether they’re United based or otherwise, you’ve got to show more respect than that. For a fanbase that seems to believe they ooze class, they exposed themselves for what they really are.
7. The Wayne Rooney we know and loved was great. His first touch reappeared, his passing was good and he looked up for it. The chance to make it 2-0 looked to have gone but Rooney managed to get his head to it to seal the result. With goals against Chelsea, City and now Arsenal, you have to applaud him for showing up in these games. If the press weren’t still aboard their anti-Rooney campaign, they would have praised his restraint at Anfield last week, with Scholes and Rafael squaring up to the vermin after Carragher ripped a hole in Nani’s leg. Rooney calmly walked around, not wanting to get involved, showing signs of supposed “maturity.” Fuck that, I want a player with fire in his belly. He looked more like Rooney of old today than we’ve probably seen all season, working hard going forward as well as in defence.
8. We showed a great fighting spirit and desire today, something which had missing at Anfield and the second half at Stamford Bridge. It was great to see. We had a strong defence which meant the rest of the team had the opportunity to go out there and prove themselves. They did. I’d hoped Arsenal would be ready to bottle it, facing the prospect of 3 cup exits in less than a fortnight, but when I saw that team I knew they’d be up for it. They all were, routinely going around hugging and kissing each other ahead of kick-off, patting each other on the bum. Soft southern fairies. Our lads save their hugs for celebrating goals. Fergie instilled that fight in them, he’s harboured the siege mentality well, and now is the time to unleash that as we chase the double (being realistic). Come on reds.
Quick Reactions To Victory Over Arsenal
March 12, 2011 176 Comments
Man Utd News 24/7
Keep the twins on the wing! DOUBLE TROUBLE!
Double Trouble will bring the treble, I told match before that I would love to test fabio on wings… I was so happy when he scored that goal, this may give us totally new options in midfield.
We do what we want!
I shall take point one and gladly say that I was happy when the twins were on the wing
And to back myself up – I said that before and just when the game started on the other blog where the match played out
Yes I know I predicted the future
Send me open cheques whatever you want
any news on Carrick and Fletcher for Tuesday?
I agree with all of this! But most important of all, we, the fans, MUST persuade Edwin van der Sar to stay. Once again he showed how much he means to our team today! Please spread that link and let’s get 10m fans! Let’s make it difficult for him, not to change his mind! http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Please-stay-for-another-season-Edwin-van-der-Sar/141845662547456
Da Silvas, MASSIVE !
Great win. Massive result. Good thing will hopefully come from now to the end of the season.
Congrats lads. Come on you Reds!
i have the feeling one of them will score, i swear !
Hate to disagree Scott, I was over the moon when I saw the team sheet. This was bold in the extream and said to the emerging talents “go and win this one for me boys, show us what youve got!”.
Two things happened on that pitch that some of us have been hoping to see for some time. The twins more as wingers in front of a very solid defensive 4 and WR10 as an attacking mid. Tactically as well, absorb pressure and counter attack with flair.
Was I convinced we could pull it off….. mmmmm kind of.
Was I pleased with the end result…….. OVER THE MOON!
is gerry the gooner about tonight?… lets hope hes having a rough night
..
Well done to United.. would rate 8/10.. 2 points deducted coz of sheer one-sided nature of the game..
Oh well blame the poor goooners!
Good post, everyone’s fired up now. Gotta mention Darron Gibson actually played alright as well to be fair to the lad. Just City stand in our way of the cup now. Be amazing to keep that banner ticking even longer. Possibly even get a banner for Arsenal now too?
On the VDS note. He’s outstanding, clearly. But his wife had an aneurysm for crying out loud. Let the guy retire and spend some quality time with his family. He’s given enough to the game, and wants to go out on top. I’m really not up for these website campaigns and chants to get him to stay for another year. Under different circumstances, yes, but it’s a matter of family/health, can’t believe how guilty he must be feeling, not to mention his wife at letting the fans/manager down.
It’s Fergie’s job to bring in a decent replacement, so let’s shift some of the responsibility on him.
http://www.theredevilspot.com/2011/03/fa-cup-6th-round-manchester-united-vs.html
Here’s my player ratings..
so arsene…hows your quadr…….sorry trebl………ermm doub……..ah fuck it!
great result, so good to have valencia back. Why is gibson still starting? 3 full backs showed him how to do his job today
I like the way that Hernandez and Ronny are playing up front. Hernandez hard work allows for Ronny to drop deep and create the plays. I don’t think he is abel to do this with Breva in line up. We all know that Breva is more technical then Chicha; however, his heart makes up for it. His runs open up the defense allowing Ronny to drop in.
I love the twins too. But everyone had a great game. Rememeber this is the same Arsenal team that were unfairly dumped out by Barcelona in midweek.
And welcome back Tony V. Don’t know if he can go for 90 minutes, but even he does little 30-45 minute cameos like this, he will be a difference maker.
well fletchTHEMAN, i was excited when i saw the twins but not confident with sheasy and gibbo partnership, and really felt confident seeing VIDA on the team sheet again !
And maybe nasri and wilshere will have to learn a bit about RESPECT ! maybe because theyre so used to it by not having a very good senior players, i was annoyed as fuck when i saw nasri telling scholesy right to his face fucking gooner. same goes to wilshere.
good game, Tony’s back, looking foward for Marseille .
Van der sar, legend ! and let him retire at the top of the food chain !
Spot on Scott. After Valencia looking like he’d never been away, the boss might be tempted to play him from the start on Tuesday. Give him 60 minutes and hopefully by that time, we’d be two nil up.
I like how we usually get unlikely scorers against the Arse. O’Shea, Park, Rafael and now Fabio. Wenger must be proud that 2 out of the twins’ 3 career goals have come against Arsenal.
Don’t forget Diaby Costas.
@Maheep no disrespect mate but you have 5 players rated higher than rooney,to me it was a toss up for mom between rooney and vds that was rooneys best display of the season
was a great game… all pointed out by scott… what was so great, in conrast to the point about arsenal fans singing over the foundation at half time, was our fans drowning out the paedo song about wenger. correct me if im wrong but im pretty sure i heard a minority start the song with the majority of the united faithful drown it out with other songs! im almost certain about it and if so then im proud coz it shows we are a class above the rest. i know we’ve done it in the past but we know its not right to do it and we’ve sorted that!! but anyway … CLASS!
@willie
True.
Don’t forget Bellion too. 
Was with you Scott when i saw the teamsheet. Momentum this time of year is key so couldn’t believe we were setting ourselves up for a fall. What followed tho was a much needed lift after last Sundays shambles. Utd playing with pace with heart and with Roo back to somethin like his old self . Magic. You gotta give it to the Boss picking Rafael and Fabio and cutting them loose. Smalling and Vida rock solid at the back and EVDS there when needed. To the think the Gooners were talking quadruples two weeks ago. Hopefully this tips them over the edge into freefall. Come on Utd!
I love those twins. Great finish from Fabio, just as easily could have put it over the bar. Great stuff. Those boys are the future. Great seeing Tony V back, we have missed him. He gave us some genuine width when he came on. Looking forward to seeing both him and Nani terrorise the opposition full-backs for the remainder of the season. City in the semi’s?
I’d like to mention Gibson:
He looked fantastic in the first half an hour or so. Pushing forward, cleverly dribbling past a few markers and distributing well. This is the prospect SAF sees and it was nice to see him at it. However, as the match wore on so did his influence. He’s got to keep up his level the entire 90. Still, it was encouraging.
ANALYSIS | Versatility Vital In Reds’ Victory Over Arsenal
http://www.theunitedreligion.com/2011/03/versatility-vital-in-reds-victory-over.html
@ Wayne
Sorry to have down-rated you in the first instance mate. Although I have amended my opinions based on what you’re saying and I actually thought hmm… his performance was slightly better than 8… well it wasn’t 10/10 in my opinion.. NO WAY… Rooney is much better than this.. see last season… each of his header was nothing but a goal.. more or less each shot was the same… his passing was 90% good… In the end Paul Scholes tee-d him up for a lovely 3-0 finish to the game and the lad just put it away… and that was a horrible miss…
So considering all that and being an analyst myself… I can’t afford to give him 10/10… Is any one with me on that? C’mon folks! That maybe Roo’s best seasonal performance but not his career best surely.
I was both excited and apprehensive when I saw the line-up. But SAF has pulled another one out of the hat, hasn’t he? Talk about necessity being the mother of invention and all that, but still, he has prepared these lads well.
There were too many aimless, long balls forward in the early stages, but I put that down to an unusual line-up not knowing quite what to do with each other.
The Twins? What can one say? Calls to keep them on the wings are, frankly, idiotic, given the quality of Nani and Tony V, and their fitness didn’t quite look at to scratch for that role, but what we saw today confirmed that we have yet another string in our bow: the Twins can play as fullbacks/wing-backs raiding forward, as wingers too if needed, and both have skill, as well as both attacking and defensive nous in spades.
Tony V was back and totally back, and what a difference he makes. Funny, because he doesn’t seem to do as much as Nani — he’s not a total box-of-tricks like Nani. He’s *just* a traditional winger who does what a traditional winger is supposed to, but does it oh-so exceptional well. From here to the end of the season, he could well make the difference between winning #19 or not. Would like to see him on Tuesday. Don’t know if he can play with whole 90 minutes today, but maybe he can start, and Rafael can always come on for the last 15 to 35 minutes — that’s one thing we learned today!
Smalling was out of this world. Good point about him going toe-to-toe with Chicharito for best young player this year. To think, we bought the pair of them for a combined (what?) half the price of an Andy Carroll? One third of the price of Ladyboy Torres? Gimme a break.
Loved Rooney in that midfield role. I know several of us have been urging this for some time now (most notably Denton Davey – cheers!). I wanna see more of it. Please keep Rooney in the middle, with Berbatov up top and Chicharito as a late sub, for Tuesday. Please!
And you know what? I could swear The Whinger was all red eyed and in tearing up at one point…
Rooney was the best midfielder by a mile tonght fletcher carrick out on tue please no fucking gibson for that game scholes and giggs please
I’d love to hear a full-throated Old Trafford sing (to the tune of “That’s why we’re champions”)
Which one is Fabio?
Which one is Raphael?
Which one is Fabio?
Which one is Raphael?
1- Smalling is sheer class. Really hope Evans can get his form back because those 2 could be a superb partnership for over a decade.
2- Big well done to the scout/scouts who descovered Fabio, Rafael and Chico. Those 3 would cost us 50 million in todays market, we got them for roughly 13 million. Quality the 3 of them.
3- Rooney, nice to see you again! Now if you can pull another dozen performances like that out your back pocket this season, the league and cup should be won, and the champions league isn’t that unrealistic.
4- If it was good to see the old Rooney, it was bloody fantastic to see Valencia come off the bench. Perhaps all the fans clammering for us to sign a new winger will remember that we have several, and this guy could be the catalyst to a title winning season. I urged fans not to exect too much from a player coming back after 6 months out with a snapped leg, but he looked like he’d missed a game with a stubbed toe. Energy and pace, so, so good to see, and Rooney, Berbatov and Chico must be relishing his crossing for the remainder of the season.
5- Edwin = legend.
6- Only sour note, Scholes needs a strong word in his ear, came very close to be sent off for 2 reckless tackles, with the game finished. Totally un-neccessary and why he felt the need to be like that is beyond me.
But anyway, we can flying on, and how good would a treble be after such a disappointing season, performance wise!
Great game and completely agree with all points. One thing would like to add is that twins seem to be better wingers then Bebe and Obertan. They looked very assured if not amazing.Ones again great win and good selection by SAF
Gotta love the Samba twins.
but to be honest I love Smalling more,the man who made me forgot how massive Rio is. 
Bienvenido de nuevo Valencia, I truly truly missed you.
@MANsuyUNITED … yes, this was Gibson’s best outing in some time. And with the much-maligned JOS as his midfield partner too. Not to mention the much-maligned WR10 in there with them. Gibson’s challenge is to do this more consistently. I hope he does, not because I am a fan of his in particular, but because I want to see all our lads succeed.
when i saw the team sheet i thought we were gonna get hammered 3-0 – down to 10 men and van persie hat trick!!! Ye of little faith.
What a fuggin great game we played like the United of old. Rooney was immense. Valencia is ace and weve missed him this season. The twins – Come on!!! More of them in midfield. We looked almost like Barca!
Fuck Arsenal! hahahahah COME ON UNITED!! Roooooooooooooooney!
i think scholes for whatever reason really hates nasri,haven’t seen him that fired up for along time.nasri is a little cunt hate him anyone know if there is any history there.
The man who made me forget how massive Rio is. That is a funny line, in so many ways lol.
Interesting fact – Rafael has scored vs Wigan at home and l’arse away.
Fabio has scored vs Wigan away and l’arse at home.
coming from a princess lol
@NotoriousRedDevil,they really are twins.
@willierednut , hahahahahahhahahahaha what can I say? He really did.
pritch which game were u watching ?
no gibson ?
Exactly how big is Rio’s? I heard it’s 30…
NRD … now that is weird.
One thing I have to say: how nice it is to come here FOR ONCE and NOT be bombarded by people preaching “sell that cunt and buy this guy instead” and “he’s a useless prick” and “we need a clean-out”. Amazing what a win and a good performance can do.
Edwin is THE best keeper in the world. Fucking superb. Smalling will at this rate keep rio out. The lad is excellent. So composed. Brave. And makes runs at the opposition. Well done chris. Rooney was top drawer and popped up everywhere. Wow. Valencia. How we have missed him. Such a difference when he came on. Gibbo and sheasy did well in the middle of the park. Couldn’t quite believe the line up myself. Eight defenders yet still beat the ponces. Chuffed for the twins. Wes did himself no harm. It was hilarious listening to the cockneys singing we won the league in manchester. Err yeah NINE year ago. Also tyhem singing shall we sing a song for you. No ta seeing as though you only have two.
So were fletch and carrick imnjured? Are they gonna be fit for tuesday? Great to see scholesy scything the cunts in two. His numerous give and gos with gibbo and the inch perfect ball over the top should have resulted in waynes second and would have been a right hgoal. Wayne looked like he was enjoying himself today and for me this was his best performance of this season.
Anyway I got so much pleasure in the lads proving me and so many others wrong. A battling performance today.
Loved the one more year somg to edwin and he even applauded the fans at one point.
Double is on. The mincers have had a shocking fortnight and will fall like a stone now. A great win today.
Oh and nasri is a fucking mincing cunt.
30 million pounds was it he cost us to get him from Leeds?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1365711/Barcelonas-reputation-scaring-teams-says-Sir-Alex-Ferguson.html
Fergie on the threat of Barcelona. Arsenal, certainly played like a scared cat!
Twas a good game. Rooney played well but could be better esp with the Scholes pass. Anyways I need the Giggs banner pics pls. Gracias
@Notorious
Doh, I forgot about Rafa scoring against Wigan. Boy, these two at twins at everything.
@King Eric
Hi mate. Sadly, according to Fergie, Carrick and Fletch are out of the Marseille game. But then again, Valencia was out of today’s.
@Costas, yep he is 30 hahaha
Arsenal where pretty good today, I called my dad on the way out of the ground to ask what was the news on the arsenal players injury and with that sorted he went on to say the game could easily have been 3-3 or 4-4 but for VDS, I couldnt disagree but something sprang to mind, this is what its all about, fighting ofr a result after two awful away results am I wrong in thinking that Fabregas apart this was a strong arsenal side. Apart from passing around our midifield, (which SAF must have expected which is why he dispensed with a proper central midfield pairing), preferring instead to rely on the rocks of Vida and VDS and the the pace of the twins combined with Rooney and chico.
Nasri will no doubt say we where scared of them again but they’re are out of a 3rd potential trophy and beaten by a bunch of defenders, they are just a crap barcelona!!!!
i’m really sick of those barca cunts what i hope if we play them and lose at least kick the fuck out of them and not stand back and watch them play football.
@mattbw7 hi mate just got a question do you still think tony v was not one of utds top players last year,he makes a big difference to the team
The thing with Arsenal is they are a good team, any strategy against them will face a chance that they might win. You go at them, they might counter, you play the counter, they might get something. But we clearly had the best approach with what we had and our record, especially for a cup game.
Arsenal had a lot of chances and a lot of the ball, but I’m not convinced that VDS even really deserved man of the match, insomuch as I don’t think he had to make too many serious stops, and to be honest the Arsenal keeper made nearly as many good stops as he did. What stopped Arsenal from scoring was not just the presence of Super Ed, but the fact that every chance they carved out had to be at an angle, or at distance, or taken with a defender right up in the strikers business. The chances Arsenal made would have needed excellent finishes to put past the keeper. Their best chance I think was the RvP header that missed entirely, that was easier than most.
Arsenal, in that situation, will create a lot of half chances, get a lot of shots on goal and on target, but they won’t score often, as we’ve shown, a lot, over recent games.
Meanwhile at the other end the Arsenal defence was shocking and we could have scored many more, there were a lot of times it was just our striker, their keeper, that was it. United never left the goalie exposed in that way, and we reaped the reward, two goals from the follow up.
Pritch for fuck sake lad lighten up. Can you EVER post without a negative comment? Gibbo didn’t put a foot wrong today and looked even better when paul came on.
Yeah forgot about those classless cunts singing over the top of the choir. Bastards. Ha. Long long journey back down sarf for those cunts. Quadruple my fucking arse. Tell ya summat. If I was a goon I would rapidly be getting impatient and disilusioned with wenger. No bottle or steel.
Fuck me though when ya think about it fergie has some serious balls. Two defeats on spin and we are playing a quarter final against arsenal and he picks THAT team. Could have backfired in his face. Imagine the shit then from fans and media alike. Doesn’t bare thinkling about. Kudos to him for that. Its time we had faith in some of these lads as fergie clearly has and they didn’t let us down today.
Hi Wayne, I marvelled at TV’s contribution, it didn’t even look as if he’d been injured, what a great 45 minutes from him and also the twins showed thier flexibilty they also have a long future at the club.
Valencia gave us back that directness we’ve been lacking and its what Arsenal fans can only dream of.
Great performance from the lads..lets continue this form till the end of the season..
p.s..How awesome are we going to be when we have Valencia and nani covering the wings??Can’t wait for Nani to come back..
Didn’t see a lot wrong with Gibbo today. You know, for someone that was surrounded with 3 defenders-turned-midfielders was facing the Arsenal midfield, he did quite well.
Of course he doesn’t compare to Xavi. Since he is the measuring stick nowdays…
Between Smalling, Chicharito, the twins and the return of Wellbeck and Cleverley, that’s one hell of a core of young talent next year.
And yes, Nasri is little bitch. So is Wilshere.
Costas. Hi mate. You well? Both out? Bastard. Like you say though tony was meant to be out today. Park ando and nani probably all fit for tuesday!! Anyway who cares when we can play sheasy and gibbo in there! Ha ha. Probably be gibbo scholesy and carrick or fletch. Although after today wayne is a possibilty in that midfield. He was quality today. Hernandez is a tough little cunt actually and never gets hurt. His pace is ridiculous. Really pleased to beat arsenal with that line up. Wenger is gonna get some serious grief this week in the press for his teams coming up short time and again.
Oh and alan keegan if ya happen to be reading giggsy has been tearing yteams apart since 91 not 99 as he announced.
Gerry gooney where for art thou?
agree on gibbo costas, the tool better keep it up though, even the guy who sits next to me and hates him with a passion applauded him, they all stepped up today, now that’s a team!
Today’s game was something to be happy about, but the implications of the lineup are a little frightening.
I’m afraid Fergie went with the high-speed-down-the-wings, long-ball attack precisely because our average midfield’s let us down as of late.
Kudos to him for making the adjustment and seeing it through, but it doesn’t necessarily fill me with hope for the Champion’s League. Our midfield is average at best (and far less than that at times if the Liverpool match was any indication), and I think it speaks to Fergie’s often-maligned tactical skill that he seems to have successfully shaken things up before the club slid any further in the void.
I do hope to see the DaSilva twins on the pitch together more in the future; they’ve had their fair share of mental lapses, but they’re fiery players seemingly unafraid of anything, and I like the way they appear to be everywhere on the pitch all at once. It has to be demoralizing for a defender to have to deal with a DaSilva, only to turn and find another one making a run behind him.
VDS is still one of the best keepers in the game and I hope he stays around, but with all that’s happened with his family, you can hardly blame him for going.
@mattbw7 … yeah, that’s the thing about Tony V, his directness. I like Nani, always pulling something from his never-empty box of tricks, so while they are both wingers, they are very different players. Like I said earlier, Tony V doesn’t do anything out of the ordinary — he just does exactly what you’d expect of a traditional winger — he just does it extremely fucking well. What totally surprised me today was his speed. Not back to his normal blistering yet, but a lot faster than what I had expected. And he will only improve from here. One big difference with him on the field (something we haven’t been getting even from Nani recently) was some good crosses. And amen to that.
@mattbw7 the shape he automatically gave the team was startling,fucking twins what can you say about them,told costas like a couple of pitbulls you let loose to cause havoc till they tire a joy to watch.
Oh, I keep forgetting to mention … how the hell did Chicharito get so much bloody power in that header to set up Fabio for the first goal? That was something special, that header. I can’t think of many players who could have got power on that ball, from that angle and all.
Yeah arsenal do not worry me when they get the ball. We let them play infront of us as when they do get near goal they have no penetration. They fuck about. All flicks and tricks. No didn’t worry me today in the slightest. Toothless they are.
Can’t see Nani making Tuesday. I think Fergie says, he’s a chance for the Bolton game.
@King Eric
Wenger is getting gried already. Arsenal fans were calling for his head on shows. I defilnitely think we are in for a surprise or two on Tuesday. I loved our display today, but it was a one off. We will need a different approach against Marseille. That’s why Scholes, Giggs and maybe Berb were rested. And it will be a blseeing if 2-3 of Carrick, Fletch, Ando and Park are back for Marseille and Bolton.
By the way, if you or anyone else at the stadium heard, was there a special introduction for Antonio today? What did it say?
I’m over the moon with the performances of the twins, Rooney in midfield and Tony V’s cameo, BUT it begs to wonder with injuries to our midfielders/wingers why didn’t SAF gamble with Obertan today, would have loved to have seen him play today…is it just me who share these thoughts? Costas, Willie? anyone?
By the way guys, I spoke of Berb. Is it me, or have we reached the point where he is becoming 3rd choice? For me, United’s needs always come first, but I do feel bad for the guy. He’s played well this season, but Rooney and Hernandez work very well together. Is till think we will need his touch and quality on Tuesday if Marseille come to defend.
@matt
Exactly that. It was a team performance. One I wish we could replicate away from home. Like waybe said, loved the system with the twins. Just threw them out there to get in Arsenal’s face and when they tired, we had class on hand to seal the win. Fantastic management. And many low key players being the heroes. Like Gibson or O’Shea or Brown. Or SMalling.
*wayne* I meant. Sorry. Making a lot of typos now.
@Jamaican Red devil
I was puzzled by that too. Maybe Fergie prefered to start with 2 wingers that would pile the pressure on Arsenal. Or maybe, he was saving Obi for Marseille. But I begin to doubt that. I admit that I was surprised and a bit sad he didn’t play.
ok settling down to watch the match on skyplus. gonna watch it all again cos im that sad, comment again later.
Stateside. Hello mate. Spot on about hernandez s header. To get that MUCH power from a standing start was excellent. He played ok as the lone striker today and he can hold the ball up well. Gonna be a superstar.
Wayne. Hi pal. Yeah good point about valencia. We seemed to get instant shape back that has been missing although nani done a great job. He cuts in whereas tony just hogs that touchlne and just beats men and puts ball after ball in. As fergie said before he can get the ball from our edge of box to theirs in seconds due to his pace and directness. Really really chuffed for the lad the reception he got. He looked in awe last year but now he knows he is a very vital cog in uniteds chain. Welcome back antonio.
Fergie said post match nani could be fit for sat. That could mean tuesday then.
Costas
If am not mistaken its something like “25 welcome back Antonio Valencia” or something. Gives me goosebumps.
Welcome back Tony Tony V!
I mean he’d have probably been the only “fit” winger on the day save Giggsy….
I agree about the Berb, he’s played fantastically well this season, but he understands the team needs comes first before his…sometimes the best players in the best players to play for a particular game…Fergie understands that more than anyone else. I expect to c him start on tuesday
I can’t see Nani playing on Tuesday either. They only got the wound closed a few days ago, didn’t they? Had to wait for the bruising and swelling to go down. But I reckon we’ll see Tony V, with maybe one of the twins on the other side, and the other as sub. It seems the Twins don’t quite have the stamina to pound up and down the touchline for a full 90 minutes. I’d really like to see WR10 in the middle of a 451 with either Scholes or Giggs for company, and Fletcher if he’s fit. Fabio, Giggs/Scholes, Rooney, Fletcher (if available), and Tony V would be nice across the park. One of Giggs or Scholes could start, with the other subbing them out. If we start them both, though, I think that makes it even more essential to have Rooney with them.
Up top, I would have Berba starting (with Rooney in the middle and running through), and then bring the Little Pea on late.
Rooney was absolutely brilliant today. Many here have been calling for him to play in the CAM role for some time and it was terrific to see. All the talk of NEEDING to buy an attacking midfielder in the summer may get quieter if we see him develop into this role. I’d say the need for some steel in there’s more of an urgency than anything else. If Ferguson continues to prefer his 3 man midfield in big matches and europe than a hard nosed CDM would compliment Rooney and Fletcher/Anderson/Carrick quite nicely. Anderson can provide the engine when we play 4-4-2 in the league.
Vidic and Smalling were rocks, absolute rocks. Smalling looks classier and classier every time he hits the pitch.
I can’t help but get irritated when I hear things like “someone should have a word with Scholes, he was almost sent off…” Darth Scholes has been playing on the edge for 2 decades and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Chamahk soiled his underwear when Scholes pushed him. Hilarious, Southern Softies is right!
The DaSilvas were terrific. Ful Stop.
VDS? Outstanding, legend, leader. Let’s hope, if this is his last season, he continues to provide us with vintage footage of his brilliance. Cheers Edwin and thank you.
I must say we probably uncovered new wingers in Fabio and Rafael, especially when Brown looks more at home again in RB position…
Hats off to Fergie again for his gamble in such a high profile game…
GREAT to see Valencia back.. he is just sheer class even compared to the average games of Nani’s.. Ease him back to Marseille’s game and see him cross till they die….
And, I hate to say this, but please, while Gibson said he doesn’t want to leave the club, I did not want to let him go at such “young age” but please Fergie, it’s clear he is not United’s level as midfield general…
Far from it, he is TOTALLY CLUELESS in the midfield for entire 90 minutes, wandering around with not a bit of sense of urgency
– United’s central midfield is a true cause for concern; why? compare our supposedly future : Gibson VS Wilshere… no fight at all…
Like him, or loathe him, Arsenal are nothing without Fabregas. He’s their Keane. I don’t think Nasri can step into his shoes. That’s twice he’s failed to turn up at OT, this season. Whilshere was their only bright spark yesterday.
Costas. Certainly was a one off. Edwin joked that he was guessing the team with patrice in the car and they had fabio down for left buit never imagined rafa on right wing. Said they have NEVER even trained in this formation. Like we say great management that will be completely overlooked by the wenger and mourinho bumboys. Genius to use the twins to get at arsenal and tirew them out. A masterstroke. Didn’t hear any announcement mate about tony v per se just said welcome back
Antonio valencia and he got a great reception. A standing ovation to a man. After anfield today was just thje tonic united needed. Any coincidence that antonios introduction coinciced with great counter attacking second half?
@King Eric hi mate i’m a big fan thought he made rooneys year last season,probably a coincidence but rooneys best game comes on his return.i’m excited in seeing tony v and nani playing together fucking scary proposition to most fullbacks.
@ididnotzeeit, well the thing about Rooney playing in the middle is that he’s not just an attacking midfielder, he makes a bigger contribution than that.
@zactaxe … “Hats off to Fergie again for his gamble in such a high profile game”. The thing is, it’s a gamble he wouldn’t have taken but for all the injuries, plus the Cl match coming up on Tuesday. To a large extent, it was a gamble forced upon him by circumstances. What is remarkable, tho, is the way these boys responded … which in turn is a tribute to the way they have been prepared, to their “upbringing” if you will. Today, they all showed that “something extra”, that “something” that’s not talent or skill but is beyond all that, that “something” that distinguishes a United player from all the rest. And that’s Fergie’s true genius — not only the ability to instill that in his players, but the ability also to spot the guys who have that in them, and his refusal to buy/keep players who don’t have it (no matter how much superficial talent they have).
Have to say when I heard the team news I did fear the worst but understood the managers decision with so many players out and a huge game on Tuesday. Having the twins on the wing wasn’t a risk but playing O Shea and Gibson together was. However football is often forgotten as a team game and Rooney was brilliant today. Selfless, especially as in the 1st half l’arse went through our midfield but then came across 4 centre backs and Evra with Brown shifting in and O Shea tracking back. It was excellent man management today by Sir Alex. Fabio got bullied a quite a bit on the left side but didn’t let his head drop. Highlight of the day Tony V. No question this guy will win us the league no he is back. Our medical team has been shite over the last few years but its like he hasn’t been away. Anyone know whats wrong with Carrick and Fletcher.
Zactaxe. I disagree with tour gibbo comment. Wilshire did fuck all today. It was gibson and o shea against a supposed great midfeild and they easily held their own. He had a decent game in my opinion. My old man was moaning about him before the game as he isn’t keen but even he admitted gibbo played well today. To say he wandered around cluelessly is a lie.
@Raizzen
Cheers. Me too. Can’t believe it’s been 6 months. And I can’t believe he is back already. That will be one of the highlights of the season. Kind of like how Smith made his comeback against Roma. Only he had played a game before that.
@King Eric
Thanks. Ok. Just because I heard he got a special introduction. We’ve certainly missed him. He is more direct as a winger than Nani I feel. More simple too. And we need in that in our side. It’s not always about the flashy stuff. Can’t wait to see him and Nani in the same side. It’s been too long.
@Jamaican Red devil
Hopefully Berbatov will still have a say this season. I know some will keep going on and on about the fact that he hasn’t scored since January, but the last 2 months he’s been in and out of the side.
The funniest part about today was that Rooney scored with his head again for the first time in a year. It’s not a councidence that he did it with Valencia on the pitch.
Sorry Costas you forgot Rooneys header vs West Brom.
Scott, you forgot to mention Rooney’s tackle on Sagna that flipped him up in the air like a rag doll. I thought that set the tone for the day that we’d be physical and fight them all day. Great tackle by Rooney
StateSideAussie @ 23:09: “Loved Rooney in that midfield role. I know several of us have been urging this for some time now (most notably Denton Davey – cheers!). I wanna see more of it. Please keep Rooney in the middle, with Berbatov up top and Chicharito as a late sub, for Tuesday. Please!”
I’d second that motion. Although I do wonder if WayneBoy dropping deep and Chicharito’s speed and movement stretching the defence isn’t a better alternative. But, hey, what an embarassment of riches !
I just hate to mention this but the formation that SAF set out today was very reminiscent of how the FastSpanishWaiter set up the KopSukkers a couple of years ago when he had Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano in the holding midfield roles and a line of three (Kuyt, StevieGBH, and Yossi Benayoun) behind the LadyBoy. They were devastating but couldn’t quite hit the finish line.
Anyhow, the resources that UTD have seem even better for that kind of formation with WayneBoy playing the “deep-lying attacking midfielder” flanked by two wingers (Nani/Valencia or the twins – and what about ThreeLungPark ?). This kind of formation would seem to get the most from WayneRooney while still maintainng width and having “defensive depth” with two holding midfielders.
Most gratifyingly, this kind of formation seems to also exude a bucanneering style of play which has been sadly lacking in way too many of UTD’s matches this year. And, let’s not forget that having the team set up in this way – with an attacking diamond – seems to be a way to come to grips with the impending departure of PaulScholes and SirRyanGiggs. It also lowers the average age of the attacking players to something like 23/24 so that there is lots to look forward to in the future.
Heard the notw, are saying United will sell Rooney in the summer. You have to pay read that paper on line, so can’t read the story. Probably bull shite anyway.
Was the “ONE MORE YEAR” chant for VDS or Arsenal having to wait another year for silverware?
@Notorious
Second mistake today. Not feeling well, lol. Thanks. Only the 2nd headed goal in a year then. Which doesn’t say a lot since he’s only scored about 8 goals the past 12 months.
Swear to God I will unleash a torrent of rage upon the next person to slander Gibson’s performance in this game. There he was, with wingbacks on both sides of him, up against Nasri and Wilshere, the great hopes of soft southern football and darlings of the media, and he was solid, he moved the ball, he won the ball, he made some runs, made some space, did his job. On paper this was without any doubt the weakest midfield four we have fielded in some years, hell it only had one full time midfielder in it, even if you include Rooney it was three wingbacks and a striker. And it beat Arsenal.
If he was that good in that position every game he played for us this season he would be our best central midfielder. He raised his game for us today. He showed what he can do.
I get the sense that people feel they have to moan about something, even when there is a great win, and they think they can get away with moaning about Gibson, because he’s not a star player, he’s just a hard working lad who hasn’t yet won his place in the affections of all. Well fuck that. Not on my watch gringos. As far as today is concerned Gibson is untouchable, he did us proud today. People who feel like they have to have a dig at our players for no good reason make me sick to my arse.
Remember kids, there’s a name for people who slag off United players regardless of how well they play, those people are called City Fans.
Stateside and notorious. Good posts.
Does anyone have any video for Scholes’ angry midair pass right after he tackled that snide cunt Nasri for the second time (and could have seriously gotten himself in trouble)?. He seemed to just lash at it in anger and yet it fell absolutely beautifully for, I think, Rooney and we almost scored from there. Absolute beauty.
@willie good way of peddling the website putting shit like that out,unless rooney intends to leave his wife and move to europe very ltd amount of clubs he can go to.
Nothing to add to Doghouse’s post. He covered me perfectly.
According to an article, Rio will pull out of the England friendly because he is not expected to return before the internationals. What’s the deal with him? Shouldn’t he have been back by then? Same for Michael Owen. There were reports before the Crawley game that he would be out for the season. Fergie said he’d be ready for the trip to Marseille. That was 3 weeks ago and we haven’t seen any of him.
@ Costas Its all good mate. I said to my mate at the game today what you said. Tony V + Rooney = Headed Goals. Then an elderly Irish gentleman sitting next to me corrected me. Just balancing the universe out, lol.
Hate to sound like a broken record but can understand how Carrick is out he’s rode quite a few rough challenges and got on with it but I thought Fletcher just had a cold? We need one of them in the next 2 games.
KingEric, everything you write is solid gold. Both accurate and funny as fuck, cheers!
@ Doghouse – Good post regarding Gibson, he actually got stuck in today which is what our midfield has been lacking IMO. The way you worded how our midfield dominated l’arsesnoods has given me great ammunition to take out on gooners that I know.
Wayne – Haven’t read the article, but from what I can gather, he’s supposedly had a disagreement with SAF. I think most of the jurnos from the notw, are banned from Fergie’s press conferences, so that might be the reason for the article. Then again, many didn’t believe that Rooney wanted out in October and that was true, so who knows, eh?
Doghouse. Absolutely spot on mate.
on behalf of Doghouse this is to all you fuckers who are slagging gibson
http://www.hark.com/clips/jndgllgpqh-the-path-of-righteous
Allow me to give a special mention to a player who always gives his all for the team. Can everyone who does, just cut out the John O’Shea bashing. I’m not saying he had a great game today or anything of the sort but the stick this lad gets, well I just think it’s shameful. I know he’s not the greatest player in the world but this guy does a job time and time again. Let’s forget about when he plays in midfield, he’s not a midfielder, but when he plays in defence (especially at right back) he’s as solid as a rock. OK he’s not the best going forward but personally I like my defenders to be able to defend first and foremost. Can someone tell me when he has been at fault for any goal we’ve conceded this season because I centainly can’t remember one. I guarantee you we would not have conceded the first goal against Liverpool last week if O’Shea was a right back. Ferguson clearly knows it but for some reason a large portion of our fan base like to pick him out as a scape goat when things go wrong. I know he gives the ball away alot but O’Shea is a defender and he knows how to defend
@willie today when rooney went over to get a drink of water,thought that was the happiest him and sir alex had looked together all year
Neil. Ha. That rooney tackle was outstanding.
Everyones leaving and Sir Alex is mental
Goodnight Reds
It’s brilliant to be Manchester United shit to be want to be wannabes
And you can print that me hearties lol
Not liking that story willierednut. After what happened in October we will always have to put up with stories like that until he leaves or he hits 30. Every summer same story. Like I said earlier I thought he was brilliant today the stuff he did may not be deemed world class but you wouldn’t see Messi doing that for the team. I think we’re seeing the old Rooney back now. He’s taken his sweet time but better late then never. Having said that I still he’s gone in the summer and we won’t get what we should for him either.
Some of the things I’ll remember from this game in no particular order, are Edwin Van des Sar’s impeccable performance – especially his double save in the second half – if he does go, he’ll be some act to follow. Rooney’s challenge on Sagna in the 1st half – I think Sagna travelled further than the ball, he certainly went higher! Great to see Rooney so fired up today, and Scholesey was definately on a mission today. Valencia looked like he’d never been away, and in general the work rate by the whole team today was outstanding.
Final thought is all about Arsenal’s fans – what a totally classless bunch of numpties. Trying to drown out a charity choir of bloody kids, booing their own player Arshavin when he was subbed, and then best of all was when Djourou was being stretchered off, obviously in a bad way, was applauded by united fans right round the ground, but the arsenal fans were just singing about winning the league in “Manchista”!
Top supporters!!
Right with you Scott saw that teamsheet wanted to cry. Oshea and gibson against Aresnals Finest?..The best footballing team in england and as the papers have us believe 2nd best on the planet! Bullshit.
1. VIDIC god do I have to say anything about the man. Best centreback on the planet bar none. He makes his partners look great.
2. Smalling – stunning again alongside VIDIC (God i love my CBs to be murders that would jill to defend our goal)
3. Tony v – Have you been away? Wouold not have known. Watch Rooneys Goal tally start to motor.
4. The twins – I think they could be great and Fabio has always supposed to have been the better of the two. Any time he has been on he has looked good but is always coming off injured.
5. Welcome back Wayne where have you been hiding all season?
Thought we rodfe our luck on occcassions today but the Arse did look powder puff in front of goal today.
Not enough credit to Chicharito!.. Allways creating danger!
@Doghouse: Beautifully put. Gibson has had some poor games, particularly because he seems to be expected to provide a lot more craft than what he usually does, when what would be fair to expect of him is a solid all round game alongside either a creative midfielder+ball winner or a more aggressive all rounder. I do think the criticism of him in previous instances has been unforgiving, but fair given how little he provided. Not today I’m afraid, there were a few genuine moments of class in which he made the space around him his own, much like when Scholes gets the ball and no one seems to be able to take it off of him before he either sets up a nearby team mate in a better position or unleashes a glorious 60 yarder to set up a goal. Very pleased with him today and alongside a sturdy and hardworking O’Shea as well as an eager Wayne Rooney (who I swear I saw picking up the ball in deeper positions to the other midfield two at times), and if anyone who criticises his performance today has no business talking about football in whatever form. Well done, Gibbo.
Thought it was a great performace.Rooney was excellent,looked like he could beat a player if he wanted
and was involved in everything.
Major plus point was Valencia who was so sharp it looked like he’d played all season.
Yeah VDS had a few good saves to make but most were pretty routine.
The back line was solid as fuck and Smalling looks like a natural
Decent,exciting game of football too,end to end
Arent some of you going overboard with Gibson performance? Sure it wasn’t his worst performance and he atleast went looking to win the ball but it’s hardly as if he set the game alight, he had a couple of spotlight moments going forward but when it came to the defensive duties he didn’t really impose himself and his positioning still saw him bypassed too often. Rooney (and then rafeal) basically playing as a centre midfielder did him alot of favours as Rooney had the energy and drive to cover him when he had been bypassed.
He did ok against a strong midfield but he needs more than ok to make it at United and needs alot more to his defensive and positioning in a short space of time.
@Denton … yeah, an embarrassment of riches, to be sure. Here’s why I prefer The Berb upfront, with Rooney in the midfield, and the Little Pea coming on as a sub for The Berb:
I genuinely believe The Berb is more effective when he has options, which is why he’s better with a partner than alone. With Rooney as an option, running in from the middle, allows The Berb to use the full range of his skills, including his ability to create for others, and including his ability to keep defenders guessing. With his movement off the ball, he can open up spaces for Rooney to run into. If he gets the ball in the box, he can strike himself (from the most unlikely positions), or he can control the ball instantly, hold it up while others run in, etc.
If defenders have to deal with that sort of threats described above, that wears them out. Bringing on the Little Pea, with his great turn and wonderful speed, when the defenders have been concentrating on the trickery of The Berb and all his options for 60-70 minutes, would be deadly and ideal.
Not sure if someone brought it up but my friend just helped me realized that Rafael has scored against Wigan at home and Arsenal away. Fabio has scored against Wigan away and Arsenal at home. Brilliant!
@musvn … yes, someone pointed it out already. interesting fact, eh?
http://www.theredevilspot.com/2011/03/manchester-united-2-0-arsenal-fabio.html
NUFF SAID, if you’re looking for HD goal highlights, then you got the link ^
Watch it before the suckers take it off!
PEACE
Fergie desperately wants to win the F.A cup which is great.Now lets win the F.A cup by beating city in finals in wembley.But we should not get carried away.We lost in semis against everton but i have a feeling F.A cup is in our bag.Now lets win the #19 and our season would be great.
As far as champsleague goes.I would love us to face barca and then give them a fight and i have faith in my team and fergie to beat the barca boys.
To conclude i will say valencia is the key for us now.He is really important player for us.
VDS=LEGEND OF LEGENDS
Love the twins, that’s an understatement! Brilliant lads. They together with Chicharito and Smalling are the future of Manchester United. And exactly the fact that Valencia seemed he was never ever was wonderful. Makes Nani’s absence more acceptable, but for the run in, with Valencia Nani and Park all fit and raring to go, that’ll be tremendous. And how did Chicharito not score i don’t know, brilliant movement played his part in both goals, and he challenges every single ball that comes into the box. VDS was magnificent and i’m keeping my fingers crossed, i really do hope he goes on for a year more. Like a miracle happens or something. Good combination of attack and brilliant defending at the same time from Vidic Smalling and VDS.
Rooney’s performance was splendid. Had it not been form, our midfield would have been totally by-passable as usual. He was everywhere, at the front, back middle, and his passing was great like the old days. Gosh, i think i only heard Gibson’s and O Shea’s name 5 times the entire game. Play with this same attitude midweek, and we’ll do what we have to do against Marseille.
am i the only one who thought that O Shea actually did a great job?
The thing is Arsenal hadn’t even reached the QF in CL and were talking about Quadruple, while United don’t talk shit, the commentators says and the Treble is on, but no one will come out from United and say, we can win this, we can win that, it’s that every game we want to win mentality that I love and Arsenal should stop being a poor man’s Barcelona,man up cockneys.Come to think of it, someday Rafael getting it all in your face to Tevez and then Fabio to join him, who the hell will know who’s who….
A great game.
a thought guys- Is it just me or has SAF always had a problem with buying mid’s? He has an excellent vision for GK’s, FWD’s and DEF’s, but when it comes to buying a mid, he gets it wrong 8/10.
Just a humble opinion…..
I was just going through the comments in the previous article and the reaction to the team lineup. Not saying the pre-match reaction was wrong, but still proves why Fergie is the master of the game and we are all his puppets. As someone said there, if we had lost the match, no big difference because it was a second-string side. Now that we have stuffed them with that lineup, Arsenal fans will be wondering where their team is at in comparison to the rest of Europe’s elite.
As for VDS, if the past few weeks is not enough for him to change his mind, then nothing will be. But he is in 40′s and very mature in life and football as well, so I don’t expect him to do that. People that age and of the maturity of VDS rarely make decisions without giving them a right mulling over. So as much as it pains me to say this, this is VDS’ last season in football.
Regarding the twins, I think Stuart made some great points on Sky commentary during the match. It is much different from playing as a fullback and making attacking runs than as a winger. I think they did wonderfully but it was definitely a one-off game. And they did not complete it as well. However, they are our future fullbacks, of that there is no doubt.
As for our future, I think once Scholesy retires and if Rooney is still playing for us (which I am sure he will be), I think our best formation would be with Berbatov and Hernandez up front and Rooney playing like he did today. As I said during the game, there is no need to look elsewhere for Scholesy’s replacement, just make Rooney that. Rooney has the range of passing and the ability as well as the desire to do that. Then all we need is someone in the Roy Keane mould in front of our defence and we are all set to dominate the League for years to come.
As for Tony V’s return, as I said during the match, I can guarantee that it is the turning point for our season. Especially with Nani’s injury, his return is critical, and his performance on his return, OMG, it was like he was never out. His physical fitness and endurance is second to none and that is the main reason why he can make it straight back into the team in a F.A. Cup quarterfinal and put in a shift like that. How much have we missed him? His performances during the next two months will show that to us.
All in all, I think yesterday’s match was arguably our best performance of the season barring the first 45 at Stamford Bridge. All our players were up for it and they put in performances that must have destroyed the Arsenal confidence.
I can definitely say Arsenal will slip up somewhere in the run-in. The amazing thing is that even with the weakest United team in history, we have a chance to win the treble. And yeah I am clutching at straws here, but even if we win the Double this season. That is another testament to just how important SAF is to the world of football. To make the best use of everything at his disposal and keep us fighting on 3 fronts is stunning. Come on United!
i dont think rooney has the tactical discipline to be in the middle of the park.
Pleased with that win and the return of Valencia. Now for Tuesday, although I don’t want us to go through as we may have the possibility of facing the Spuds in the Quarters and the thought of that frightens me!!!
@Kings
I would be happy if we face chelski and the reason i say that is we have a great chance of beating them even with this team.Spurs are more dangerous than chelski at the moment and i ma happy we have played them in the league.
But first we have to beat marseille and we will do that.
UNITED FOREVER
Good morning everyone. Very pleased with yesterdays performance. I wasn’t holding out much hope when i saw the line up, but they did the job, the DaSilva twins were brilliant, they got involved in the game and made things happen. Great to see Valencia back, was hoping he’d get 10-15 minutes, so to get 45 out of him was brilliant and he performed well too. Was disappointed with Scholes, he came on and showed LeArse how to pass a ball, then went and got a stupid booking (could have got 2 and been sent off) and will now miss the next 2 league games as he’s accumulated 10 cards for the season. That could be very costly, especially if it’s true that Carrick and Fletcher are injured and will miss tuesdays game, will they be fit for next weekend?
We all know VDS is retiring for family reasons which override any footballing concerns, good luck edwin you’ll be missed.
My thoughts on Gibson, well he definately came out on top against much better opposition (so we are constantly told),so lets cut him some slack. The saying goes your only as good as your last game, well he was good.
Valencia showed us exaclty we had been missing.
In my view not one player had a bad showing and the mockney fans of Arsenal embarrassed themselves in the ground and on the radio phone ins on the way home.
Hi Shebangsthedrum, any news on the baby front?
mattbw7 – No baby yet, might have to start playing tennis on the Wii, it worked last time.
yeah ….shebangsthedrums any news yet….hope the excitement didn’t set you off…. hope everything goes okay….
I don’t know whether you read this or not Scott, but honestly, this was the best line-up anyone could come up with 8 of our top players missing.
you wanted to see Scholes and Giggs in the line-up for what? to continue not getting any ball back at midfield? Scholes can not play under such pressure Arsenal has on a midfielder, his great passes only come against opponents like West Ham or Newcastle, both home.
with Giggs, you’d kill our counter attacks he is not that fast anymore, with him on the left side, we’d never scored our first goal.
Gibson and O’Shea in the midfield are not the most creative players, true, but honestly, would Fletcher and Carrick passed more balls forward yesterday? both of them are in a poor form. in fact, with Gibbo and JOS we finally managed to TACKLE on the midfield and gain balls. this was awesome. the twins on the two sides were brilliant by Ferguson, I just thought about that option yesterday morning, and he did too it seems.
it was a perfect lineup and mostly because Scholes and Giggs did not play. they are still fantastic in some situations, but yesterday would not have been their game at all.
TonyBee – Thanks, It might start me off if we draw the bitters today. I don’t fancy them, would rather someone else knock them out.
Someone mentioned Rooney+Valencia = Headed goals.
How about Valencia + Hernandez?
Imagine one manager is telling his player to man mark one of the twins when they both are on the field.
WOW. The twin terrors! Tony back! Rooney back! and Smalling! Speechless! And that wiley old man!! Which other manager would have had the balls to even try something like that?!! And the biggest prize of it all – that scum Mcmahon laughing and ridiculing SAF and his teamlist on Singapore’s MIO TV before the match and having it all forced down his throat again at the end of it!! The incredulity on his face – PRICELESS!!!
@gio..Mate, I don’t mean to nitpick through your comment but gotta disagree with you on a couple of things..
“his great passes only come against opponents like West Ham or Newcastle, both home”..Well zidane didn’t call scholesy the best MF he ever played against because he sprayed long balls against mediocre opponents..he did time and time again, against the best of opponents..give the gingerninja a fraction of a second and he will fucking slaughter you..
“with Giggs, you’d kill our counter attacks he is not that fast anymore, with him on the left side, we’d never scored our first goal”..Giggsy might be slower but he is a lot more shrewd than he was before..arsenal had all the pace in the world but they created fuck all on the counter attack..you do need speed to make a good break but you also need to be clever in you decision making..that is something Sir Giggs has in abundance..
But starting them together is something I do not recommend..
darren gibson had his first touch of the ball in the 9th minute !!! for a professional footballer that is a joke. he then proceeded to follow wilshire around for the next 81 minutes, i hate praising opposition players but wilshire had a great game and was everything gibson should be, dictating the play, always wanting the ball and even putting himself about. When scholes came on he did more in 15 minutes then gibson in 90.
user404 says: The position is made for him , just like when Norman Whitesde move back into midfield ,you have a chance of goals from midfield and with an other forward on the pitch more attacking options.When he does not get the ball he ends up there any way then we have no out let up front.
Some people are hell bent on slagging off Gibbo even if he has a decent game..
What Rooney has is vision which is rare as rocking horse shit, you might recall Scholes in the youth team he played up front . SAF moved him in to midfield and the rest is history. the midfield next year Nani Rooney Essien Valencia or some one like him we would have the best midfield around
@Utd4life
Of course. Otherwise they’d have to admit that maybe they were wrong and Darron isn’t completely rubbish.
@shebangsthedrums
I hope you get good news soon. I used to play wii myself. Didn’t know that (other than shoulder strains) it can help when someone’s pregnant.
I saw a bird flying with quadraple from Emirates and it accidently dropped one in Birmingham.There are reports that people saw it flying towards OT with the rest.Did anyone see that bird?
All women wee a lot when pregnant.
Ash – Hello mate, I was being sarcastic. That beetroot face cunt Redknapp was mouthing off about how he would fancy taking on anyone but Barcelona in the Quarter-Finals after his team scraped past what is a truly an appalling AC Milan side. He is becoming more annoying than Wenger, getting giddy and carried away after a victory. If we get passed Marseille, I would have no worries about playing them, because no matter what form we are in, we always do well against them. You’re right about Chelsea mate, because if we play them, then Atkinson will definitely not officiate, which would be an enourmous handicap for them.
ONE LOVE ONE UNITED.
Thank god real football isnt like a football manager game – too many think it is….
Anyway- Scott – would be interesting to compare the two teams fielded today (with subs) as to what they cost. Could it be that United had a less exspensive team than Arsenal – now that would be even harder to swallow for a biased press…..
I said when Fabio came on against Wigan he was worth a try while we’re short on wingers because he plays there for the reserves a lot!
Then seeing Rafael play central, he looked composed on the ball and looked to go FORWARD! Who knows sometimes you have to throw caution to the wind and just do something nobody expects!
Good Morning isn’t it a wonderful day today?
Now for the youth team to go to shitfield and make it a perfect weekend by beating the scum.
Really loooking forward to watching the game. Apparently they are expecting as many as 10,000 at the game. Heard somewhere that Pogba, Tuinnicliffe and Ravel were at the game last Sunday. Hope the injustice of that TACKLE inspires them to get the result.
Just watching Sunday Supplement and that Oliver Holt seems to have a agenda – anti Fergie.
RedHarry4Life – Hello mate. Yeah since the programme has started, all they have been talking about is Arsene and Arsenal. Oliver Holt just said what a massive fan of Wenger he is. They are so sympathetic towards him. Cunts the lot of them.
Hope they choke on the croissants and burn their insides with their lattes. Bastards.
@Kings
Hello mate.Yeah agree with you about redknapp.He is another knob but i still respect that guy for what he has done with spurs.Its not an easy job to knock ac milan out(Ask Ourself).
But i still would love to face A english club in the quarters.I want us to beat the living hell out of terry and co.I think we will draw shaktar or shcalke and for me both are tricky tie.But with valencias comeback i am quite confident that if we play well we will reach semis quite easily.
SELL THE TWINS!!!! – BUY THE JONAS BROTHERS
Fat bastard Shpehard reading the back pages of various newspapers – he just said about Fergie’s one match touchline referring to it as his ‘rant’ towards referee Martin Atkinson. Fucking cunt. Fuck off and die. Oliver Holt is the best of the lot – Wenger’s lickspittle. Now he’s championing CLLC’s right be re-instated as England’s captain.
Ash – Hello mate. Yeah he’s certainly turned them around in the last 2 and a half years, but he should learn to respect the teams left in the competition, rather than assuming that they will beat anyone but Barcelona. Real Madrid and Bayern are still there (both holding away leg leads from the 1st leg) and either one of them will take them to the cleaners.
TWINGERS!
Morning reds
Did not watch the game yesterday, just watched highlights and of course got the details from RoM.
Was Townsend a cunt as usual while co commentating?
Bloody brilliant twins and Smalling has covered with so much class for Rio. Now for Tuesday, lets do the business and give us Barca next, yes Barca… Lets beat them and shove it up the throat of every pundit who has an orgasm every time they even mention their name. As for the FA cup, would rather get shitty in the final (IF they make it) Beating them at Wembley in the final would be far more heartbreaking…
UNITED
im just glad rooney didnt celebrate his goal like when he scored against the dippers and chelsea
Wisdom doesn’t come with croissants.
I was excited when saw the line ups. Said after the liverpool game, no point playing def midfielder if we didn’t have anyone good enough to play that role, but o’shea played well in mid today. Wouldnlt play him there every week but did well today. Respect to gibson for not being over run. Thought we’d manage to fast forward on attack and so it proved, with fabio earning me a nice 170 pound courtesy of ladbrokes so nice one!! But overall yesterday, glad we played well for first time in an age, good result before european game, another nail in arsenal’s coffin for another season without silverware so happy happy
Ok, got to eat humble pie now but with a big smile on my face. i asked if SAF was trying to throw the match (& MG made his/her opinion known). so though it was a huge gamble, we came through it unscathed and am glad. i’ve learnt to trust in SAF.
overall i’ll say keep the fire burning…..its MAN UTD!
True, the Arsenal fans showed their lack of class by trying to drown the choir at half-time but they DID show appreciation for Evra, actually likening him to world-famous philosophers.
I know Paddy is always ready with a soundbite but singing “Evra is a Kant” puts him on a new level !
.. and another thing – is it a coincidence that Scholes has now managed to get his League suspension NOW and not just before the Arsenal or Chelsea games ?
Also, it was nice to have an out-and-out defensive midfielder for a change – someone who knows how to defend.
Plus, how is it that without Berbatov playing, we have no one in the team who can hold on to the ball. Without Berba, every clearance just comes straight back again.
I do have a lovely Feminine side but I am a He
@Utd4life
In your words though it was ‘Decent’. At United Decent isn’t good enough and the way some people are making bigging up his performance here is laughable. If you seriously take time to watch his play for a few minutes you will see a player who time and time again is in no mans land and has the ball played around him. Yesterday was no different and when he looked at his best was when he was on the ball moving forward, he seems like if we are to get good performances out of him regularry and in more than a few cameos he needs to be playing in an AMC role of a 3 man midfield and it just limits his usefulness imho
As i said on another post: This is all about Fergie showing why he runs the club and we don’t. The whole pub i was in was shocked to see the team line up. Me and my mate were the onlyones keeping the faith up, reminding the others about the last time we fielded a “reserve”optioned team against Arsenal.
Ferguson’s Flexible Formation Flusters Wenger
http://www.theunitedreligion.com/2011/03/fergusons-flexible-formation-flusters.html
Scholesy flying into tackles and showing the young ones what it’s all about was fucking priceless yesterday. Should’ve seen yellow or possibly red but was great to watch! Unlike Arsenal’s young talents.. ie Wilshire.. our twins, smalling, etc are being brought up by winners
MG
Lol, forgive my ignorance but i’m lad living in Accra, Ghana who is trying to support his darling club.
Surprised that you thought that STR, referring to point 1. I just had a go at some of those pessimistic ones who thought they knew better than SAF. Disappointed really, that people, especially you, would doubt SAF after all that he has done and he has no need to prove anything to anyone.
When I first saw the line-up, I was going “wow, that looks really interesting” and it never occurred to me one bit that we would go out. It really didn’t worry me at all… maybe I had as much confidence in SAF as I had in the suspicion that Arsenal would be crumbling right around this timeframe.
Shame on all those who doubted SAF, doubted our players, doubted our twins.
Good result versus probably the whiniest team on the planet.
Rooney showed himself well today – give him the ball, and let him play in a position where he sees the ball and he will not disappoint. Have to say he looked very good playing deep. Reckon he will be used more there and going forward.
Also have to say Gibson (who has never been a favourite of mine) had a decent game – looked like he was playing a holding midfield role. He covered a massive amount of ground, cut off channels they were looking to exploit, and more than once “made something happen” which he has rarrly done in previous games.
Raphael showed he can not only play wide but moved inside when Valencia came on and did great there too.
But problem is how do we replace VDS.
Great result – now let’s stuff the French on Tuesday.
COME ON YOU REDS
UNITED 194 – 2011
i was however, expecting man utd to win the match last night? know why? because everybody in that team has the passion to play. this is what we have been missing so much. everybody plays a good game. when sir alex says he;ll bring the strongest squad, he mean it. this is the best squad ive seen in this season, i can say. and why nobody mentions smalling? if its not edwin, smalling will definitely be motm
My reactions are slow, as I lost contact on Saturday, half an hour before kickoff. Only had snatches since then. Thank you RoM, for being my ‘delayed live’ experience.
Well done United!