John O’Shea is calling for United to build on a first opening-day win for three seasons when the Reds travel to Turf Moor in midweek.

After a unfortunately-timed international break, domestic games are coming thick and fast now, giving the champions and the challengers a chance to rack up nine points in a week.

“You don’t want to be playing catch-up, even after only one game. Other teams are looking stronger now so it’s important we stamp our authority early on in the season,” said O’Shea in his post-match interview on MUTV.

“We’ve opened the last two league seasons with draws (against Reading and Newcastle) so we’re happy to have picked up three points against Birmingham. Now we move on with a tough game at Burnley to look forward to.”

O’Shea was an authority figure for United on Sunday, as he led the team out in the absence of the injured Gary Neville and Rio Ferdinand. Although he later handed the armband to half-time substitute Ryan Giggs, it was still an honour for the big Irishman.

“It was very special. I’ve done it in friendly matches which is also nice, but to do it in a Premier League game when it really matters, for the manager to have faith in me like that, is something special and something I’ll always cherish,” said O’Shea.

The Republic of Ireland international was the most experienced member of United’s back four, but he had no qualms about the relatively young defenders around him.

“I enjoyed

playing alongside Jonny Evans at centre-back, we know each other very well as we’re good friends off the pitch. So there wasn’t going to be a problem there and behind us Ben Foster showed he’s going to be a special keeper as well.”

Foster’s wonderful save to deny Birmingham substitute Christian Benitez was perhaps more vital than it should have been – O’Shea admits to being anxious after the Reds missed chances to gain a two-goal cushion.

“It would have been nice to get the second goal, particularly in the first half because I think then you would have seen a more confident second-half performance from us. I think we let the edginess creep into our game in the second half and that gave Birmingham encouragement.”

O’Shea didn’t find fault with United’s forwards for not killing the game; instead he backed match-winner Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen to score more as the season gets into full swing.

“Michael Owen was unlucky with a couple of chances but I’m sure he’ll get off the mark soon. I think he’ll be like Wayne in that he’ll get his goals in runs. The sooner the first one comes, the better.

“As for Wayne, I think pre-season was so important, for him to get that sharpness he needs. Once he gets that, he’s so hard to stop. I think that goal today will give him a lot of confidence and it’s only going to benefit us in the games to come.”

http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid={B4CEE8FA-9A47-47BC-B069-3F7A2F35DB70}&newsid=6637902&page=2 ]]> http://www.tailorevents.com/champions-league/we-need-to-assert-our-authority/feed/ 0 http://www.tailorevents.com/champions-league/the-future-is-with-the-young/ http://www.tailorevents.com/champions-league/the-future-is-with-the-young/#comments Sun, 16 Aug 2009 16:54:00 +0000 admin http://www.tailorevents.com/?p=643 Sir Alex Ferguson is prepared for change in the post-Ronaldo era, insisting that this is an exciting time at Old Trafford with a glut of talented, and he says underrated, young players bursting through the ranks.

While the press lingered somewhat on the potential effects of Ronaldo’s departure on the eve of the Barclays Premier League’s opening weekend, Sir Alex enthusiastically laid out his blueprint for continued success.

“It’s a fresh start, a new challenge for us,” he said. “We have a lot of young players that want to do well. That’s the area in which I am most encouraged. Our critics are misreading the situation with our young players developing and improving. There are good signs there. We have a very strong squad. We’re where we want to be.

“I think most of the players at some point expected Cristiano to leave, so it wasn’t such a great shock. That’s not a problem. The issue is how we progress as a team, in a different shape and a different way to when Cristiano was here. That is something I’m looking forward to and interested to see our progress and what this team can do. It will be different without Cristiano.”

Sir Alex feels Ronaldo’s replacement – collectively rather than from one individual – will come from within, and most likely from United’s emerging phalanx of young players.

“You hope the nucleus of experience we have helps those young players develop, passing on everything they’ve picked up over the years,” he added. “Whatever they have done in the past can be done by these players. They’re at the right club and have the right motivation to win, with the right platform to succeed. That’s the value of players like Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville. The transmits itself into these young players.

“In terms of numbers, we have a lot of young players. Danny Welbeck is back from the England games now and has trained this week which is good. Federico Macheda played for Italy’s Under-21s in midweek in Russia, so they are developing very well.

“Then we have Rafael and Fabio, and Darron Gibson we think will be a top player. He has come on fantastically well. He’s coming on fine, and then Anderson and Nani are 21 and 22. They’re only young players. I’m very happy with what I have got.”

United’s English, European and World football hasn’t lessened the established players’ determination to keep succeeding. And the influx of youth has perhaps only aided it.

“There is no decline [in our motivation to succeed],” added Sir Alex. “Our pre-season went well and our form is good. I think we should have won the Community Shield and we should have beaten Bayern Munich in the Audi Cup. But they’re the games we needed. They brought good edge to our game and Sunday is the acid test of whether we’re ready.”

http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid={B4CEE8FA-9A47-47BC-B069-3F7A2F35DB70}&newsid=6637851&page=2

The fans have been counting down the days until the big kick-off this weekend – are the players the same?
Yes, we’re all very excited and just want to get on with it. I don’t think any player likes pre-season because of the obvious hard work and running! The games are all about fitness really so we’re all looking forward to getting going on Sunday.

How will United approach the new campaign?
We’ll just approach it the same as any other really. We’re champions and we know everyone will be out to beat us, but we’re used to that. The challenges are there for us, both as individuals and as a team. You just have to prepare yourself properly, make sure you have that hunger and desire and enjoy yourself.

Are you starting the season with any pre-conceived ideas that this might be your last?
No, I’m just really excited. I take every season as it comes now. If I’m enjoying my football and I’m fit then I’ll carry on. I felt good last season and I’ve felt good during pre-season this time and I’ll just go out and try to enjoy myself. At 35, coming up to 36 in November, the last couple of years have been a bonus for me really. I’m still playing at a top club and enjoying it more than ever.

Do you think they’ll be a point where you’ll make a decision or will you just see how things go?
No, I’m just focused on the season. I don’t think you

can afford to spend time thinking about that because you’ve got to put all your energy into playing for United and performing to your best.

You’ve achieved so much in your career, but what would winning four titles in a row mean to you?
Well that’s the challenge for us. It’s never been done before and this club is pretty good at setting new records, hopefully we can do that. It’s such a tough league to win – the usual big four will be up there. Obviously no-one knows what’s going to happen at City so we’ll have to wait and see with them. They’ve obviously acquired some quality players, but it just depends whether they gel quickly or if it takes a little bit of time. We’re just focused on doing our best and and if we could do it, it would certainly be a great achievement.

How do you assess the strength of the squad?
We’ve certainly got a big squad and there’s been a good emergence of young talent in Kiko [Macheda], Welbeck, Fabio, Rafael and Darron Gibson which is very exciting to see. With the additions of Michael [Owen] and Antonio [Valencia] as well, I think the squad is really strong. Obviously everyone is looking at how we’re going to cope without Cristiano [Ronaldo] and Carlos [Tevez], but we’ve done alright in pre-season and things are looking good.

What have you made of Michael Owen’s performances so far?
I think you’ve seen during pre-season that Michael is a top goalscorer. You never lose that knack of getting into the right positions and putting the ball in the back of the net. It’s something you’re born with. He’s been our top scorer duringpre-season and that just proves his quality.

What impact will the departure of Ronaldo have on the team?
I’ve seen many great players come and go at this club, but that’s part and parcel of being a footballer. As a player you don’t think about it, it’s more the fans and the media who talk about it.

The manager has talked about playing Wayne Rooney in his favoured position up front this season – how much will he relish that opportunity?
A lot has been made of where his best position is, but I think he’s a centre-forward. He’s just that good a footballer than he can perform well elsewhere in the team and he did that last season. It seems now that he’ll play the majority of the games up front and he’ll be the person we’ll be looking at to score the goals because he’s such a great player.

http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid={B4CEE8FA-9A47-47BC-B069-3F7A2F35DB70}&newsid=6637841&page=3

Rooney’s goal – a simple tap-in after his header had come off the post – took his tally in a United shirt to 99 and gave the Reds an opening-day win for the first time in three years.

“Wayne took his goal well,” Sir Alex told MUTV. “The header was a good one and then he reacted the right way – he was quick to follow up. That gets him on the road to what we hope will be a very significant total for us this season.

“It’s good if you can get two or three of your players to score more than 20 goals. Wayne’s capable of that – we’re not asking him to do the impossible.”

United dazzled only in fits and starts against newly-promoted Birmingham City, although the manager was quick to highlight the visitors’ defensive qualities.

“The first game of the season is like that for us sometimes – Reading got a 0-0 here a couple of years ago – but three points is better than we’ve got from our first game in the last two years.

“Today, the way Birmingham set their stall out, they were always going to be very determined, resilient and hard to break down.

“That’s understandable – they’ve come out of the Championship and they’re desperate to stay in the top flight. They’ve got a lot of experience in their team and that was noticeable with the amount of shots they blocked – I think Scholesy alone had four shots blocked inside the box.”

Sir Alex’s men also defended resolutely, notching a clean sheet despite the absence of

regular centre-backs Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic.

“I think clean sheets are always an indication of your determination to defend well as a team. I’ll take eight 1-0 results every season.

“It’s not great on the nerves but this club’s famous for that – nobody gets an easy ride here, not the supporters, not the staff, the players nor myself. We always keep the fans on the edge of their seats – it’s exciting.

“Ben Foster made a fantastic save in the second half. He looked very comfortable and relaxed in his role today and I think he’s learnt from last week at Wembley.

“That was an unusually nervy performance from him last week. We know he has ability and he proved that again today.”

http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid={B4CEE8FA-9A47-47BC-B069-3F7A2F35DB70}&newsid=6637901&page=2

Ferdinand didn’t feature in Sir Alex’s squad on Sunday as the Reds welcomed newly-promoted Birmingham City to Old Trafford. And the manager has revealed he expects the defender to be out for “maybe two weeks”.

It’s bad news for the boss, who also saw Jonny Evans limp out of action on Sunday and is without fellow defenders Gary Neville (groin) and Rafael (shoulder). But it’s not all doom and gloom for the Reds.

“Nemanja Vidic is back training,” Sir Alex told MUTV. “Hopefully we’ll get him back for next Saturday at Wigan.

“We’ve had a hard time with injuries in our defence over the last two seasons but we’ve got capable people to fill in. Look at John O’Shea: what a role he does for this club – he plays everywhere and without any complaints. He just gets on with the job – he has fantastic understanding of what he has to do and we’re very lucky to have a player like that.”

It was O’Shea who filled in at centre-back against Birmingham and the Irishman will no doubt feature there again on Wednesday as United travel to Turf Moor.

http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid=%7BB4CEE8FA%2D9A47%2D47BC%2DB069%2D3F7A2F35DB70%7D&newsid=6637903

Owen has impressed in pre-season, netting four goals in five outings on tour in Asia and Germany, and looking at home whether alongside Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov or Federico Macheda in attack. Valencia didn’t travel to the Far East but hit the ground running in Munich with a goalscoring debut against Boca Juniors followed by a quicksilver cameo against Bayern in the final.

“Michael’s already done really well,” Carrick told United Review. “He’s a top player and I’m sure he’ll score lots of goals for us. Antonio joined us a little later for training so I’ve only seen a bit of him so far, but he’s already shown what great qualities he has and I’m sure he’ll be a huge success.”

After four largely straightforward friendly wins in Asia, United enjoyed decent workouts against Boca and Bayern in the Audi Cup, and Carrick expects Wednesday’s game against Valencia to provide a similar test of the Reds’ new season credentials. The midfielder continued: “It will allow us to gauge where we’re at and look at the things that need tweaking or working on and there’s no better place to do that than Old Trafford. Valencia are a top side and I’m sure it’ll be an entertaining match.”

http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid=%7BF9E570E6%2D407E%2D44BC%2D800F%2D4A3110258114%7D&newsid=6637272

The 38-year-old Dutch goalkeeper has this week undergone surgery on a broken finger and bone in his left hand, and will be out for up to eight weeks.

Van der Sar suffered the injury saving a penalty from Danijel Pranjic in United’s 7-6 shoot-out defeat to Bayern Munich in the pre-season Audi Cup tournament in Germany.

The prognosis means that van der Sar won’t be back to full fitness until the end of September. It is frustrating news for Sir Alex, especially as van der Sar was so important to United’s defensive solidarity last season. However, Ben Foster signed a new contract in July and Sir Alex said at the time that “[he] is seen as one of the best young goalkeepers in England and we genuinely see him as a successor to Edwin.”

This could be the opening Foster has waited so patiently for, although Tomasz Kuszczak will also see this as an opportunity to prove his worth. Sir Alex’s selection will be an interesting one for Wednesday’s friendly against Valencia and at Wembley this weekend against Chelsea in the Community Shield.

http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid=%7BF9E570E6%2D407E%2D44BC%2D800F%2D4A3110258114%7D&newsid=6637325

Full-time: United 2 (Rooney 52, Cleverley 73) Valencia 0

http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid=%7BF9E570E6%2D407E%2D44BC%2D800F%2D4A3110258114%7D&newsid=6637376

Sir Alex Ferguson singled out Antonio Valencia for special praise, after the Ecuadorian laid on two goals in an impressive home debut.

The summer signing from Wigan Athletic crossed for Wayne Rooney and Tom Cleverley to bag the telling goals against Valencia, and generally caught the eye for his robust, direct approach at both ends of the pitch.

“The important thing for me was Valencia’s performance, I thought he was very, very good,” Sir Alex told MUTV. “He’s got great balance and he’s got power and speed. Coming to our club, he’s immediately taken the challenge well and with purpose, so we’re very pleased with what we’ve seen so far.”

While Valencia’s contribution merited special praise, Sir Alex could also reflect on a string of fine performances as his side deservedly edged an entertaining game. A glut of young talents hinted at a bright future, while the Reds’ forward line created chances with promising regularity.

“It was an opportunity to play a lot of the younger players,” he said. “Tom Cleverley scored, Darron Gibson had two fantastic shots from outside the box – he showed his power tonight, which is pleasing – and Ritchie De Laet and Fabio gave excellent performances.

“I also thought Macheda’s movement in the last third was fantastic. For a 17-year-old, he’s something special. Michael (Owen) showed marvellous movement. He should’ve scored four, but he was unlucky with the first one that he just chipped it over the goalkeeper’s shoulder and by the post. He deserved at least one of them.”

http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid=%7BF9E570E6%2D407E%2D44BC%2D800F%2D4A3110258114%7D&newsid=6637381 ]]> http://www.tailorevents.com/champions-league/boss-salutes-wing-wizard/feed/ 0 http://www.tailorevents.com/premier-league/manchester-united/neville-backing-owen-return/ http://www.tailorevents.com/premier-league/manchester-united/neville-backing-owen-return/#comments Sun, 02 Aug 2009 19:31:14 +0000 admin http://www.tailorevents.com/?p=336 Gary Neville believes Michael Owen has the best possible chance to win back his place in the England team now that he has moved to Manchester United.

Owen, 29, has won 89 caps for England and scored 40 goals but has played only once under current boss Fabio Capello.

But Neville, who is also battling to force his way back into England’s squad in time for the World Cup next year, says Owen is at the right club to achieve his World Cup dream.

The United full-back trained with his new clubmate yesterday before visiting Hawthorns Community School in Manchester to present an award on behalf of WellChild – a children’s charity backed by contributiions from the Team England Footballers Charity. And he sees no reason why Owen cannot become an England contender in future if he is a success at Old Trafford.

He said: “It’s difficult for me to suggest whether a player is going to get picked for a tournament next year, that will be up to the manager. But anybody who plays for Manchester United over a season has a great chance of getting into an international team no matter whether it be England or any other country.

“It’s a hard club to play for and if you are playing well and doing well then you have a great chance of getting into your national team.”

Owen’s move to Old Trafford from Newcastle United is one of the talking points of the summer but with England close to qualifying for the World Cup Finals next year Neville knows the move could benefit not just club but also country.

He added: “Look, I don’t think Michael moved to Manchester United for England – he’s moved to improve Manchester United.

“But I’ve always said if you are playing for United then you have a great chance of being in the England squad – and that’s for any player. Michael is in the same position as everybody else who plays for United. The opportunity is there for him.”

Neville believes the same opportunity is also there for himself after he earned a shock call-up for last month’s games against Kazakhstan and Andorra – more than two years after his last appearance for England back in February 2007.

The right-back, who has 85 caps, didn’t get on the pitch in either match but believes he can now put injury problems behind him to challenge in future.

“I have an opportunity,” he insisted. “If you had asked me six months ago I would have said very little chance. But having been picked at the end of the season I’ll probably say I have more of a chance.

“But there’s still a long way to go for anyone who thinks they can be in the squad. There will be players who think they are nailed-on certainties and then an injury will occur – it always happens. And there will be some players who maybe haven’t even thought about it who will come to the fore this season and grasp the opportunity.

“There’s a chance there for everybody and I just have to play well for United and take my chances to get into the team.

“I like playing for England and I want to be there. It’s been a frustration not winning anything with England and not getting to finals but there’s still a chance there for me.”

Neville believes both he and Owen can take inspiration from the way his great friend David Beckham has come back from the international wilderness to be a key part of Capello’s squad.

Beckham was jettisoned by previous manager Steve McClaren after the World Cup Finals in 2006 but eventually forced his way back into contention and is now a regular under Capello.

Neville said: “You just have to keep going. The lads who are brought through at United are taught to keep going and never give up. You are told to do your all and if that’s good enough it will take you places.

“That’s what David has done – he’s done really well getting back in and not giving up when he was out of the team.

“It doesn’t surprise me. But a lot of players are similar – you get ups and downs in your career. Over a 10-15 year career you have periods where you are not flavour of the month or you’re not selected or you get injured but that’s football. You have to fight to come back.”

The only problem for Neville is he now has some serious rivals for his right-back position, including current first choice Glen Johnson who has just earned a big-money move to Liverpool from Portsmouth.

He said: “I think there always have been a few rivals. I think in the last two games, particularly the second one, Glen Johnson did really well. And he’s now got a move to a big football club so that will help him in his development.

“Wes Brown had a difficult season with injury but he’s started pre-season again and will be looking to come back too. There is competition and there should be. I don’t think that’s something to worry about, we all just have to concentrate on our own jobs and what comes will come.

“You can’t afford to think about what’s going on elsewhere. We’re all experienced enough to know that. It’s important to play well for your club and once you’ve done that it’s a bonus if you can get in the England team.”

http://www.thefa.com/England/MensSeniorTeam/NewsAndFeatures/2009/NevilleMOwen.aspx

Read more about Premier League here

Buy tickets here