Manchester United Monday

Checking in with our lads at Old Trafford today, Wayne Rooney has set a goal for his goals this season. He wants to beat his 20 nets from last season, especially since everyone is looking to him to earn the majority of them since Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure.

Over the last two seasons, Ronaldo scored 68 goals for the team, which equals out to 30% of the team’s overall total goals. That leaves a huge gap of goals to be made up. Between Michael Owen, Dimitar Berbatov, Federico Macheda, and others that have already been scoring in preseason, as long as they can keep up and step up their streaks…the team should be able to fill that gap.

Wayne told ManUtd.com, “There are a lot of great players in our team and we know if we all work together then we’re capable of achieving great things.”

The team is on their way to Munich for the Audi cup where they will play Boca Juniors and Bayern Munich or AC Milan.

Rooney said, “You want more difficult games as pre-season progresses and I think the matches in Germany will be a really good test for the team. We’re still a couple of games off peak performance and from a personal point of view there’s still a bit of work to do.”

Rooney might be referring to his missed attempts at finding the back of the net during the second half of the second Malaysia game. He was trying very hard to score but it just wasn’t meant to be. Otherwise, on this Asian friendly tour, he’s really been scoring very well…just like we know he can.

Rio Ferdinand had high praise for Johnny Evans as the defender stayed on at Old Trafford even after receiving offers from Sunderland, where he most likely would have had more guaranteed time on the pitch. Some advice from Ferdinand could have helped him stick to his guns and keep the red jersey on his back.

“He’s a fantastic young player,” Rio Ferdinand told the Press Association. “For centre-halves it’s always difficult to see the best of them at early ages. There’s always a chance of them making mistakes but Jonny keeps that to a minimum.”

“I spoke to him in pre-season last year in South Africa,” Rio said. “He was at a stage where he wanted to play every week. He’d been doing that the season before at Sunderland and he didn’t want to come back and play for the Reserves again. He wanted to play first-team football.

“It’s the same argument for any young player: Do you want to go and play for mid-table team or do you want to be in the squad of a team where you’re going to get chances to play in a title-winning or European Cup-winning team?

“When you look at it like that it’s a bit of a no-brainer. The manager didn’t want to let him go anyway, but I think Jonny came round to thinking that it was better to be a part of the squad and play when the opportunities came.”

 

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Manchester United wins 3-2 against FC Seoul

Manchester United won their friendly match 3-2 in South Korea against FC Seoul. Apparently, the crowd wanted to see Ji-Sung Park more than they wanted to see the match! Every time his face was up on the big screen, they cheered and applauded, and then booed when it was replaced with camera angles of the actual match.

The three goals of the match came from Rooney, Macheda and Berbatov, all of which made Sir Alex Ferguson very happy. He said seeing the strikers as the ones scoring goals is always something to be proud of. In fact, Sir Alex spoke very highly of Federico Macheda.

“The goal Macheda scored was excellent. The lad has a real chance. His movement is very good and he does well when he gets onto the shoulder of the last defender.”

At only 17 years-old, this kid has his whole life ahead of him, with nothing to do but get better as a player and continue to rise. Back in his hometown of Rome, he is considered one of the most promising, up-and-coming stars of the game and he’s proving his value by working hard on the pitch for the world’s greatest team.  Sir Alex says that if Macheda continues to improve, he’ll become a real asset to the team saying, “it gives me a big advantage. An extra player like that will do us the world of good.”

United have been on a winning streak during their tour of Asia, unfortunately there has been one bump in the road.

Gary Neville suffered a groin injury during training on Thursday and will be out of play for at least ten days. He was sent home early since there was  no sense in his hanging around, unable to participate or do much of anything. Hopefully, this won’t dampen the start of the season, which begins in just three weeks. We don’t want the skipper/defender to miss the opening game against Birmingham City on August 16^th. (The game was pushed back a day due to scheduling conflicts.)

 

Considering the way I love to (and have to) surf online all of the time to research articles and blogs, I need fast satellite internet service. I’m able download information faster and upload files quicker and smoother than I ever could with dial-up! It’s all because of my HughesNet satellite internet service that I’m able to get my work done and I don’t have to worry about breaking my budget just to have internet service! They’re super affordable! I was able to work a great deal on equipment and installation, too! My broadband high speed internet is fast and informative!

Catching Up With Rovers and City

Blackburn Rovers boss Sam Allardyce is stepping up his efforts to find a new striker. He’s still trying to fill the gap left behind by Matt Derbyshire. Allardyce has said “if we haven’t got anybody to put the ball in the net, we will struggle.” Yep, pretty much! He’s had a look ahead by the friendly matches played recently, one against Portuguese team Nacional, which ended up a nil/nil draw. The second, sent the Rovers packing with a 1-0 loss to hosts Hajduk Split. Allardyce says that with all games at this time of year, it’s all about the workout and the team had a setback due to the time delay as well as having “to suffer in the hot and humid climate…” The Rovers will be back in the UK this weekend, where the heat and humidity will no longer be a viable excuse.

Manchester City’s first summer signing, Gareth Barry is glad to have some real time with the team underway. According to the team’s website, the England international played virtually the whole first hour of the 1-0 win over the Kaizer Chiefs in Durban.

 The 28-year-old said that as far as getting ready to be part of the Barclays Premiership, “Every game is going to help, I’m getting used to the other players and they are getting used to me.”

He was especially glad to wear his Manchester City colors for the first time in an actual game.

“It was good that we came away with a win, the lads worked extremely hard and we deserved it. Coming abroad to different atmospheres and weather conditions makes it tougher, but that can only be a good thing. It’s harder work on the fitness side of things but we all put in a good shift and we will feel the benefits when we go back to England.”

The team’s injury list looks to have Vincent Kompany on it through the start of the new season. He’s admitted that he’s just not winning the battle against his foot injury and soon, he’ll be having surgery. Kompany will definitely be out of the Belgium international start for the Premier League campaign.

 

 Considering the way I love to (and have to) surf online all of the time to research articles and blogs, I need fast satellite internet service. I’m able download information faster and upload files quicker and smoother than I ever could with dial-up! It’s all because of my HughesNet satellite internet service that I’m able to get my work done and I don’t have to worry about breaking my budget just to have internet service! They’re super affordable! I was able to work a great deal on equipment and installation, too! My broadband high speed internet is fast and informative!

Is a Return to Old Trafford in Ronaldo’s Future?

Sir Alex Ferguson was very complimentary to Cristiano Ronaldo according to a recent FIFA report. In fact, Sir Alex has not completely discounted the possibility that the Portuguese striker might return to Old Trafford someday.

  “Sometimes it happens that way,” said Sir Alex. “He loved United. If you look back at the six years he had with us, he never missed training. That’s one of the things he has above all other players – he was never injured, he always played. And his best is yet to come. He is only 24.”

I’m slightly confused by what SAF means by his never being injured since Ronaldo did have some problems with his right ankle at one time and even had surgery. Didn’t he miss the start of the season in August 2008 while he healed? Maybe Fergie meant that Ronaldo was never injured in a game and had to leave the field? He most certainly was on the injured list at one time, though.

Sir Alex still sees Ronaldo’s departure as “a massive loss”, and he complimented Ronaldo as still being number one on the planet.

“I have nothing but praise for the boy. He is easily the best player in the world. He is better than Kaka and better than Messi. He is streets ahead of them all. His contribution as a goal threat is unbelievable. His stats are incredible. Strikes at goal, attempts on goal, raids into the penalty box, headers. It is all there. Absolutely astounding.”

One can only think that Sir Alex still feels a fatherly affection for Ronaldo, after all, the young player has been with the club since he was only 17 years old. Much of his training, skills honing, and ethics as a player have come from playing for and training with the most successful club manager of all time. An affection between the two certainly can’t be snuffed out simply by a change of venue. There’s also the £80m to consider that Ronaldo brought the club on his exit…that certainly has to warm the heart in the cool of the night.

 

 Considering the way I love to (and have to) surf online all of the time to research articles and blogs, I need fast satellite internet service. I’m able download information faster and upload files quicker and smoother than I ever could with dial-up! It’s all because of my HughesNet satellite internet service that I’m able to get my work done and I don’t have to worry about breaking my budget just to have internet service! They’re super affordable! I was able to work a great deal on equipment and installation, too! My broadband high speed internet is fast and informative!

From Wolverhampton to Hull City to China

A few pre-season matches took place that involved some of the  Barclays Premier League teams: Thailand vs Liverpool 1-1

Wigan vs Timiosara   0-2

Wolverhampton vs Port Vale 1-2

 

Speaking of the Wolverhampton Wanderers, Chris Iwelumo has undergone surgery on his broken metatarsal after having injured it in the pre-season friendly match against Perth earlier this month. He most likely will be on the injured list until sometime in October. He’s hopeful at this time and since the operation is said to have gone well, he’s looking ahead to successful rehab. In fact, he told his club’s official website that as soon as he’s off crutches, he plans to start in on the physio. Let’s hope he does have the speedy recovery he seeks.

In the meanwhile, his team have signed Marseille defender Ronald Zubar, who spent three seasons with L’OM. The 23-year-old is the sixth signing of the summer for the Wolves. Manager Mick McCarthy is very happy with the signing as he heard great things about the defender from the scouts that were in France.

Greg Halford has completed his switch from Sunderland to the Wolverhampton Wanderers for a three year deal. He is reportedly the third new recruit in four days after the recruitment of Kevin Doyle and Andrew Surman.

News from Hull City is that Richard Garcia is foaming at the mouth in anticipation of facing fellow countryman Ryan Griffiths in the Barclays Asia Trophy next week. He’s played all of his professional career in England after starting at fellow Barclays Asia Trophy team West Ham United. He never thought he would be playing against his fellow Australian countryman Ryan Griffiths in China. He’s prepared to hit the heat of Beijing in July, which will give Beijing Guoan a slight advantage over the Hull City team. Garcia is looking forward to the experience and learning about China. Ah, the benefits of Footy international style!

Considering the way I love to (and have to) surf online all of the time to research articles and blogs, I need fast satellite internet service. I’m able download information faster and upload files quicker and smoother than I ever could with dial-up! It’s all because of my HughesNet satellite internet service that I’m able to get my work done and I don’t have to worry about breaking my budget just to have internet service! They’re super affordable! I was able to work a great deal on equipment and installation, too! My broadband high speed internet is fast and informative!

Manchester United vs Malaysia (Game 2)

Manchester United won 2-0 in the (second) friendly match they played against Malaysia at Kuala Lumpur’s Bukit Jalil Stadium. Federico Macheda scored first for the Red Devils in the eleventh minute and Michael Owen was right behind him in the twelfth with another goal. That was it for the game’s scoring. The second half went by with what kept getting very close to scoring but was always either just a little too wide or if it was Malaysia getting close to our side, Kuszczak was on top of swatting it away.

In the second half, Fabio was injured badly enough that he was taken off the field on a stretcher. Something happened to his right leg. When Rooney came on for Macheda, before the switch even took place…as he was just standing on the side line, the crowd started going crazy! Then, as he ran out on the field, the stadium broke out in thunderous applause. They must have really been waiting for the big moment that #10 would take the pitch. The commentator said something to the effect of “What is it about Wayne Rooney that gets the crowd so excited?” I’m sure it’s simply because he’s Wayne Rooney! He’s only 23 years old and yet, he’s one of the greatest strikers in the league. He was hungry to score too, but it just wasn’t meant to be. On his first possession, he shot too fast. It looked as though he had time to control the ball a bit more but he shot immediately and it was too far off of the goal. Later in the match, Rooney took an elbow in the ear from the Malaysian keeper and he really didn’t react too badly. There was a time when he would have retaliated in some way, but he handled it very well. He wasn’t penalized because his maturity is beginning to really come through. Although, a bit later he did knock a player out of the way of the ball hard enough that the poor guy had to be taken away on a stretcher. The Malaysian team is filled with small guys and Rooney is a bulldog of a man. In fact, all of Manchester United looked like big, grown up men playing against school boys. The Malaysians were small and wily, they seemed so much more petit than the United players. But in the previous game, they did score twice so it was a fair match up.

Next stop is Seoul, Korea for another friendly!

 

  Considering the way I love to (and have to) surf online all of the time to research articles and blogs, I need fast satellite internet service. I’m able download information faster and upload files quicker and smoother than I ever could with dial-up! It’s all because of my HughesNet satellite internet service that I’m able to get my work done and I don’t have to worry about breaking my budget just to have internet service! They’re super affordable! I was able to work a great deal on equipment and installation, too! My broadband high speed internet is fast and informative!

Manchester United News

It’s all about Manchester United today. They cancelled their trip to Jakarta after the hotel they were going to stay in was bombed. This means the Indonesian leg of their Far East tour is off, at least for now.

Sir Alex Ferguson has been quoted as saying, “It is terrible news but we have taken what I believe to be the right decision in terms of safeguarding our players.”

The club added another official statement saying that, “Following the explosions in Jakarta – one of which was at the hotel the team were due to stay in – and based on advice received, the directors have informed the Indonesian FA that the club cannot fulfill the fixture in Jakarta on the 2009 Asia tour.”

Could you imagine if they’d have been in that hotel when these bombings took place? I mean, it’s a horrible, horrible crime that took place but if an innocent sports team such as Manchester United had been there…it’s just too much to think of. I’m just so grateful that they are safe and planning to stay safe. They’ll try and work out another schedule for a later date.

Speaking of later dates…Owen Hargreaves has been on the mend and Sir Alex Ferguson says that sometime in September, we should see him back on the pitch! I say “sometime” in September because Manchester United’s site (which I should trust most) says beginning of the month, ESPN’s says end of the month. Regardless of when it is, we need this powerful midfield-defender back on our team!  Vidic is out with an injured ankle. By the time Owen comes back, Nemanja should be healed as well. Provided Vidic’s injury isn’t more serious than they are initially thinking.

Finally, just when we thought they’d finished signing anyone for a little while…Manchester United and Molde F.K. have agreed to terms for the transfer of Mame Biram Diouf.

Sir Alex said in a press conference,

“We weren’t intending on signing anyone else after [Gabriel Obertan] last week – we feel we have a full squad – but the situation accelerated to a point where other clubs started to make bids, so we had a decision to make. “We decided to act now and he’ll be the last person we sign this summer.”

Ok, Sir…if you say so!

 

Considering the way I love to (and have to) surf online all of the time to research articles and blogs, I need fast satellite internet service. I’m able download information faster and upload files quicker and smoother than I ever could with dial-up! It’s all because of my HughesNet satellite internet service that I’m able to get my work done and I don’t have to worry about breaking my budget just to have internet service! They’re super affordable! I was able to work a great deal on equipment and installation, too! My broadband high speed internet is fast and informative!

Transfers and Some Historical Moments

The buzz of transfer is still in the air as Inter Milan scoop up Bayern Munich’s defender Ferreira Lucio. The Brazilian has signed a three year deal with the Italian champions. He’ll be undergoing his physical in Lombardy before all the formalities can finalized. Neither team wanted to disclose the transfer fee for Lucio, so that has been kept quiet. Lucio is known for winning the World Cup with Brazil in 2002, he also captained his national team at the Confederations Cup in South Africa.

The German club’s general manager Uli Hoeness said that  Inter Milan offered players in exchange for the Brazilian defender  “but we rejected that. We wanted cash. Now we have cash, so we agreed.”

Speaking of Inter Milan, Chelsea has been sniffing around their camp with hopes to sign Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Now that both Manchester United and Chelsea have shown interest in the Swedish striker, Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti has taken him completely off the market.

Manchester United are running a special tribute of the 50 most heroic moments on their site. Here’s a few:

Foulkes’ finest hour: Real Madrid, 15 May 1968

Over ten years had passed since losing to Real Madrid our first European Cup semi-final, Foulkes found himself back in at the Bernabéu, with a challenge as Real built a 3-2 aggregate lead. David Sadler levelled matters with 19 minutes remaining, and a replay in Lisbon loomed. Just six minutes later, as George Best pulled a ball back across the hosts’ penalty area, there was Foulkes, “the last man any of us wanted to see there” according to Sir Bobby Charlton, to calmly sidefoot home a tie-tipping goal – one of only nine in 688 appearances. Foulkes recalled: “Matt asked me what on earth I had been doing in their penalty area, and I could offer no rational explanation.” Being 10 years after Munich, divine intervention wasn’t far from the mind…

This is one of my personal favorites because I’ve been studying the life of Diego Maradona lately. Hearing Captain Marvel’s interaction with him is fascinating to me. I’ve lifted this straight from the Manchester United website because they said it best.

12. Robson eclipses Maradona and dumps out Barcelona, 21 March 1984

“You have a two-goal first leg deficit to overturn in Europe. You’re at home, but you’re playing Barcelona. And Diego Maradona. Tall order… unless your name’s Bryan Robson. Herculean efforts were run-of-the-mill for Captain Marvel, but this 1983/84 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup quarterfinal clash was something else. Maradona was outshone by Robbo, whose goals either side of half-time broke Catalan resolve. Frank Stapleton applied the coup de grace on one of the legendary Old Trafford nights.”

There are more great stories of the greats, which if you’re anything like me and you want to learn more about the history of the club, it’s a great opportunity to do so. Reading these great tales of the best moments in Red Devil history is what made our team what it is today, the best in the world.

Considering the way I love to (and have to) surf online all of the time to research articles and blogs, I need fast satellite internet service. I’m able download information faster and upload files quicker and smoother than I ever could with dial-up! It’s all because of my HughesNet satellite internet service that I’m able to get my work done and I don’t have to worry about breaking my budget just to have internet service! They’re super affordable! I was able to work a great deal on equipment and installation, too! My broadband high speed internet is fast and informative!

Football (Ok, soccer!) Odds and Ends

Rumors of snatching John Terry away from Chelsea won’t die down. Mark Hughes admits he’s not giving up on trying to score the defender for Manchester City, and that they might make a third bid to try and give the skipper “a change of scenery.”

Now, John Terry hasn’t been commenting on any of this speculation but somehow, word has gotten out that he’s not happy with Chelsea’s lack of signing the high-profile targets they were looking for this summer. Because of this silence on Terry’s behalf, Hughes is seeing an opportunity to drive a wedge between Chelsea and Terry. Hughes has mentioned that they are ready to make yet another sizable offer to Terry as part of their whole “big-spending project” they’ve been working on during this transfer season.

Manchester City recently acquired Carlos Tevez from cross town rivals Manchester United and they’re ready to make a significant offer in the hopes of obtaining Emmanuel Adebayor from Arsenal.

Aston Villa have joined the transfer game with the £12m  purchase of Middlesbrough winger Stewart Downing. Recently, Downing was seen visiting Aston Villa’s training grounds, I say he was only visiting and not training because Downing has a foot injury that will most likely delay his participation in the beginning of the 2009/10 season.

And finally, in Red Devil news, Manchester United have extended the contract of midfielder Darron Gibson, keeping him at Old Trafford until 2012. The 21-year-old Gibson  made 14 appearances for the Red Devils last season and was instrumental in the acquisition of the Carling Cup. The up and coming midfielder found the back of the net from a far-off strike, which ended up being the only goal of the game against Hull City. Gibson was quoted on Manchester United’s website as saying, “I am very happy to commit my future to United. Last season I enjoyed every opportunity and when I got my chance I wanted to prove what I could do. I hope to continue that this season.”

Considering the way I love to (and have to) surf online all of the time to research articles and blogs, I need fast satellite internet service. I’m able download information faster and upload files quicker and smoother than I ever could with dial-up! It’s all because of my HughesNet satellite internet service that I’m able to get my work done and I don’t have to worry about breaking my budget just to have internet service! They’re super affordable! I was able to work a great deal on equipment and installation, too! My broadband high speed internet is fast and informative!

Tuesday Footie Odds and Ends

Liverpool just paid £17m for their new full-back, Glen Johnson. He’ll be making his debut in Switzerland on Wednesday.  Rafa Benitez declares he is worth the money, and he agrees with Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, that the transfer fees have gone crazy this summer.

Benitez was quoted as saying, “Yes, the money [that] people are asking is crazy. I hear, for example, that people at Seville are asking for €41m for Daniel Alves. That is a lot.”

However, he knows that in order to get good talent and cultivate a winning team, it costs money. “The market is crazy, but you must pay good money for good players. The money for Johnson is OK. He is English, an international with quality and he is worth the money.”

 

Well, we all know about losing Carlos Tevez to Manchester City this summer and it’s a loss that most likely will be felt on the pitch. He’ll be replaced but he’s one of a kind. The man was a force and worked hard for the team but for some reason, he wasn’t able to come to an agreement with Manchester United’s management that was suitable to him. So, off to City he went. We wish him the best of luck…well, not the best, after all, we do want to beat his socks off now that he’s competition. But, I do personally hope he’ll be happy. He’s signed on for a five-year deal to a club that hasn’t won the league title since 1968, which is a far cry from the ultra World Cup and multi-title winning Manchester United.

 

And finally, Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh has been quoted as saying that he would consider a move to Sunderland. However, Bordeaux president Jean-Louis Triaud feels that the Black Cats are not a  big enough club for Chamakh.

Triaud said, “What the (****) is he going to do at Sunderland? I don’t want to insult Sunderland, but I don’t even know where they finished last season!” Ouch! How can that not be an insult? Regardless, Chamakh is still considering all of his options and wants to take his time in making the right decision.

 

Considering the way I love to (and have to) surf online all of the time to research articles and blogs, I need fast satellite internet service. I’m able download information faster and upload files quicker and smoother than I ever could with dial-up! It’s all because of my HughesNet satellite internet service that I’m able to get my work done and I don’t have to worry about breaking my budget just to have internet service! They’re super affordable! I was able to work a great deal on equipment and installation, too! My broadband high speed internet is fast and informative!