Manchester United 2013/2014

[red amoeba]

Basement price for young defenders? Shd find resonance with some fans here, not to raid anymore at Everton

EXCLUSIVE: Manchester United turn attention to £8m PSV defender Santiago Arias

http://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/fo...n-attention-to-8m-PSV-defender-Santiago-Arias

Not Less Than €10m – Agent of Arsenal and Manchester United Target Martin Hinteregger

Read more at http://www.insidefutbol.com/2014/03...artin-hinteregger/130074/#dj5q7yiQEczqovKj.99

ginter too....frieberg may be forced their hand.

 

[red amoeba]

If MAN U missed CL which i think they will this season, i rather they give Europa a miss too. Concentrate on rebuilding and focus on BPL next season.

i fear they will spiral down to decades of obscurity and heading nowhere like Liverpool.

 

[laksaboy]

i fear they will spiral down to decades of obscurity and heading nowhere like Liverpool.

Liverpool is okay. Put a sensible manager on the job and things will improve.

Obscurity is like being Leeds United.

Man Utd getting relegated...

 

[yinyang]

From rumour mill, Dutch connection??! If anything but to give Moyes a kick in the rear to buck up

Manchester United eye Louis van Gaal and Frank de Boer managerial team, should they ditch David Moyes

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/manchester-united-eye-louis-van-3196231#ixzz2us4zhIFj
Follow us: @DailyMirror on Twitter | DailyMirror on Facebook

Premier League - Paper Round: United plot Dutch duo to replace Moyes



‘United line up Dutch dream team to replace Moyes’ - Manchester United are plotting a managerial dream team of Dutch duo Louis Van Gaal and Frank de Boer if they pull the trigger on David Moyes, that’s according to the Sunday People. Holland boss Van Gaal – also coveted by Tottenham – has now emerged as a serious contender for the Old Trafford hot seat and the 62-year-old could take the job with Ajax manager De Boer as his assistant and anointed successor. De Boer, currently trying to lead his Ajax team to their fourth consecutive Dutch title, may be persuaded to quit if a deal was in place for him to succeed Van Gaal.

Paper Round’s view: As sensational as it sounds, this could actually be a wise call from United. Desperately in need of a manager with serious clout, Van Gaal would pull the ranks into shape at Old Trafford and likely instil a similar mentality and respect garnered by Sir Alex Ferguson. He certainly does not lack European pedigree and neither does De Boer. The pair are understood to be very close with De Boer having played for Van Gaal at Ajax, Barcelona and during his first spell as Holland boss.

Extracted from article on UK Yahoo:
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/news/p...6465--sow.html

The full story on the Mirror:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/footba...is-van-3196231

 

[GOD IS MY DOG]

van Gaal is not the guy you want when in crisis............


should try to get Prandelli or Montella...........

 

[red amoeba]

I will be happy with Louis Van Gaal although i was hoping for either Klopp or Simone.
He has the track record, experience and reputation.

go for it Man U...even if de Boer is not there, put Ryan Giggs as Asst Manager.

 

[yinyang]

Moyes' misery continues into pre-season... United boss wants EIGHT new signings but will barely have a squad to take to America!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...nings-barely-squad-America.html#ixzz2v2Pt1HZb

David Moyes faces a logistical nightmare this summer as he plans an unprecedented overhaul of Manchester United’s under-achieving squad.
Moyes is understood to want up to eight new signings to revive the struggling Barclays Premier League champions after a disastrous season.
Rio Ferdinand will follow Nemanja Vidic and Anderson out of Old Trafford, and there are serious question marks over the futures of Patrice Evra, Robin van Persie, Shinji Kagawa, Nani and Javier Hernandez.

However, implementing such a large turnaround of players will be massively complicated by the demands of the World Cup, the increasing possibility that United could be involved in Europa League qualifiers, and the club’s pre-season tour of the USA.
United target Toni Kroos has already stated this week that he will not discuss his future at Bayern Munich until after the World Cup, and Moyes is likely to face a similar scenario with many of the other players he wants to sign.

United’s exclusion from next season’s Champions League is hardly going to be a selling point either for a manager who struggled in last summer’s transfer window when the club were in a much healthier position.

But the basic logistics of rebuilding his squad and integrating new players in time for the start of the new season could be the biggest obstacle for Moyes, who can ill-afford another slow start to the campaign as he comes under increasing pressure at Old Trafford.

The majority of United’s top players will be representing their countries in Brazil and the very earliest their World Cup can finish is June 23-26. They are unlikely to return for pre-season training until a month later, by which time Moyes and the remainder of his squad will have flown to America.

United are scheduled to play in the International Champions Cup against Roma on July 26 and Inter Milan on July 29, but have yet to confirm a third game against Real Madrid on August 2. Even if Moyes’s side do not qualify from their group for the semi-finals and final in Miami on August 3-4, they are expected to arrange a friendly at short notice with another of the European clubs involved.

However, Manchester City’s victory in the Capital One Cup final on Sunday has freed up another Europa League place, meaning that United could find themselves having to pre-qualify for the competition in late July or early August.

It raises the question of how many of United’s top players would fly out to America and how many would be kept behind to secure the dubious honour of reaching the Europa League which – Chelsea aside – has proved to be something of a curse for Premier League clubs in recent years.

The situation is also clouded by financial and commercial issues. It is believed that United are receiving significantly more just for taking part in International Champions Cup than they would by actually winning the Europa League.

They also have obligations to US sponsors AON and an American public who are even more knowledgeable about English football than in 2004 when United sent out a shadow squad because of a Champions League qualifier against Dinamo Bucahrest and were forced to parachute in Paul Scholes and Mikael Silvestre to avoid a backlash from US fans and sponsors.

Quite how Moyes treads through the minefield this summer while building a squad capable of challenging for top honours next season and, potentially, saving his job remains to be seen.

 

[red amoeba]

Moyes' misery continues into pre-season... United boss wants EIGHT new signings but will barely have a squad to take to America!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...nings-barely-squad-America.html#ixzz2v2Pt1HZb

David Moyes faces a logistical nightmare this summer as he plans an unprecedented overhaul of Manchester United’s under-achieving squad.
Moyes is understood to want up to eight new signings to revive the struggling Barclays Premier League champions after a disastrous season.
Rio Ferdinand will follow Nemanja Vidic and Anderson out of Old Trafford, and there are serious question marks over the futures of Patrice Evra, Robin van Persie, Shinji Kagawa, Nani and Javier Hernandez.

However, implementing such a large turnaround of players will be massively complicated by the demands of the World Cup, the increasing possibility that United could be involved in Europa League qualifiers, and the club’s pre-season tour of the USA.
United target Toni Kroos has already stated this week that he will not discuss his future at Bayern Munich until after the World Cup, and Moyes is likely to face a similar scenario with many of the other players he wants to sign.

United’s exclusion from next season’s Champions League is hardly going to be a selling point either for a manager who struggled in last summer’s transfer window when the club were in a much healthier position.

But the basic logistics of rebuilding his squad and integrating new players in time for the start of the new season could be the biggest obstacle for Moyes, who can ill-afford another slow start to the campaign as he comes under increasing pressure at Old Trafford.

The majority of United’s top players will be representing their countries in Brazil and the very earliest their World Cup can finish is June 23-26. They are unlikely to return for pre-season training until a month later, by which time Moyes and the remainder of his squad will have flown to America.

United are scheduled to play in the International Champions Cup against Roma on July 26 and Inter Milan on July 29, but have yet to confirm a third game against Real Madrid on August 2. Even if Moyes’s side do not qualify from their group for the semi-finals and final in Miami on August 3-4, they are expected to arrange a friendly at short notice with another of the European clubs involved.

However, Manchester City’s victory in the Capital One Cup final on Sunday has freed up another Europa League place, meaning that United could find themselves having to pre-qualify for the competition in late July or early August.

It raises the question of how many of United’s top players would fly out to America and how many would be kept behind to secure the dubious honour of reaching the Europa League which – Chelsea aside – has proved to be something of a curse for Premier League clubs in recent years.

The situation is also clouded by financial and commercial issues. It is believed that United are receiving significantly more just for taking part in International Champions Cup than they would by actually winning the Europa League.

They also have obligations to US sponsors AON and an American public who are even more knowledgeable about English football than in 2004 when United sent out a shadow squad because of a Champions League qualifier against Dinamo Bucahrest and were forced to parachute in Paul Scholes and Mikael Silvestre to avoid a backlash from US fans and sponsors.

Quite how Moyes treads through the minefield this summer while building a squad capable of challenging for top honours next season and, potentially, saving his job remains to be seen.

it shld be a good opportunity to blood his youngsters- ppl like Macheda, Barmby....

 

[GOD IS MY DOG]

yeah........let all the young flops play..............

 

[yinyang]

Tmrw how? Can makan WB away? :p

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/26396175

Barclays Premier League
Venue: The HawthornsDate: Saturday, 8 March

TEAM NEWS
West Brom's Billy Jones is out for a month with a hamstring tear, while Nicolas Anelka begins a five-match ban.

But Stephane Sessegnon could be fit after groin surgery and Claudio Yacob should return after a hamstring injury.

Manchester United forward Javier Hernandez is doubtful after limping out of Mexico's friendly against Nigeria on Wednesday with a knee injury.

Midfielder Juan Mata, who was cup-tied for United's last game against Olympiacos, returns to the squad.

MATCH PREVIEW
Six winless games into his tenure and West Brom boss Pepe Mel is under real pressure.

I generally find betting on the next manager to lose his job quite distasteful, but in the interests of research I've had a quick scout around and note that most bookmakers have him down as second favourite behind Norwich's Chris Hughton in the 'Sack Race'.

Unfortunately, they're not often wrong.

LAWRO'S PREDICTION
Mark Lawrenson
Football analyst "It is amazing to think what has happened to West Brom since they beat Manchester United at Old Trafford in September, and not in a good way.

"If you had told me at the final whistle that day that, at the start of March, they would be struggling badly having sacked their manager Steve Clarke, then I would have told you to go back to the planet you had just landed from."
Mel has received a 'vote of confidence' in a roundabout way this week, however, with Albion's website advertising 'An evening with Pepe Mel' scheduled for 26 March.

For £25, fans get a curry, a pint, and the chance to ask "burning questions". If Albion are nine games winless under his management by then, the questions might be hotter than the curry.

As the man in the opposition dugout would agree, every manager needs time to bed in - but West Brom's current predicament demands results now. After this game, they face four crunch relegation battles in a row: Swansea away, Hull away, Cardiff at home, Norwich away.

For Manchester United, it's a first game since losing in Athens in the Champions League and it might not have been a bad thing for the players to have a break from the norm on international duty this week.

They now have to be fully together and ready for an almighty push to the end of a season which cannot be allowed to peter out.

It's also a fifth away game in six for United before returning to base for most of the rest of March, and it's those Old Trafford tussles to come this month that can set up how the season ends. Win the grudge games against Liverpool and Manchester City, either side of a famous fightback to beat Olympiakos - and the mood changes massively.

Two teams in desperate need of a win. A draw suits neither - although as a neutral I'd happily take another 5-5!

MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head

•This fixture last season ended in a 5-5 draw, an eventful climax to Sir Alex Ferguson's reign as United manager. His side had been 3-0 and 5-2 up.
•West Brom's win at Old Trafford earlier this season was their first over United in the Premier League (W1, D3, L11).
•The last time United lost in the league at The Hawthorns was a 2-0 defeat in March 1984.
•West Brom have scored own goals in three of the last five league meetings with Manchester United.
West Brom

•West Brom have won just one of their last 18 matches in all competitions (a 1-0 win over Newcastle on New Year's Day). They have drawn four and lost two since Pepe Mel took charge.
•The Baggies have won fewer matches (four) than any other top-flight club. They have had 13 draws in the league this season, which is four more than any other team.
•Albion have kept just five clean sheets in this season's Premier League - only bottom-of-the-table Fulham have kept fewer.
Manchester United

•This will be United's third away league game in a row - they've scored three more points away from home than they have at Old Trafford this season (and scored seven more goals), although they have played one match more.
•They have kept back-to-back clean sheets in the league for the first time this season.
•The Red Devils' tally of 45 points after 27 games of this Premier League season is five points worse than their previous lowest in 1992-93 (50).
•Robin van Persie has scored in four of United's last five league games.

 

[laksaboy]

Moyes is clearly desperate to keep his job:

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs...ds-fan-letter-pleading-support-085833000.html

 

[yinyang]

DAVID MOYES has opened talks with Sporting Lisbon over a £30million swoop for William Carvalho.
Defensive midfielder Carvalho, 21, is boss Moyes’ No 1 target as he seeks to rebuild his ailing Manchester United team.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepag...ing-Lisbon-over-a-30m-swoop-for-Carvalho.html

Another cradle snatch?

Manchester United snap up 16-year-old Swiss wonderkid from under the noses of European rivals

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/manchester-united-snap-up-16-year-old-3222610?

 

[red amoeba]

this weekend against Pool, lets see...he will start with fucker Young n Valencia again...to be hit with another 2 goal from in-form Daniel Sturridge and Suraez.

Jones n Smalling unable to cope with these 2....

 

[LEGEND]

SWEE LAH! Noisy neighbour bites the dust!

 

[yinyang]

SWEE LAH! Noisy neighbour bites the dust!

Can't disagree with your sentiments :p

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/26533631

But on other hand, we are no better with -2 deficit with greeks :o

 

[red amoeba]

Can't disagree with your sentiments :p

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/26533631

But on other hand, we are no better with -2 deficit with greeks :o

We will soon join them 2-1 to Man U out on aggregate

 

[yinyang]

RVP staying, squashing rumours?

Manchester United striker Robin van Persie says he wants wants to extend his contract at Old Trafford.

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/26569342

 

[yinyang]

Psycho-analysing Moyes? Futile task :p

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/26533130



Man Utd boss David Moyes by his former performance psychologist
Is David Moyes out of his depth at Manchester United? Do his behaviour and body language betray a man unfitted to the pressures of managing a club of such size and prestige?

Some Old Trafford fans, seeing their side 18 points off the top of the table, will have formed their own conclusions. But one man who really knows him is performance psychologist Michael Finnigan, who worked with the Scot at Preston and Everton, helping him to handle the pressures of management.

As United enter a crucial 10-day period that includes a Manchester derby, the second leg of their Champions League clash with Olympiakos and the visit of old enemy Liverpool on Sunday, Finnigan draws on his knowledge of Moyes to explain what makes him tick - and what club and manager need to do now to show the former Everton boss was the right man to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson.

Moyes was never going to be an instant success
"I know David Moyes. I have not changed my mind about him one bit. He is absolutely awesome - but he is not the kind of guy you can just drop into a situation and expect him to grasp it all instantly.

“Moyes is not the kind of guy you can just drop into a situation and expect him to grasp it all instantly” Michael Finnigan, Performance psychologist

"You have to give him time to get his arms around it and really understand it. That is who he is. Your due diligence would tell you that. I am pretty sure Everton chairman Bill Kenwright would say Moyes' first couple of years at Goodison Park were not easy because he was getting used to everything.

"If you can't deal with that, don't give him the job.

"If I was advising the people at United who appointed Moyes, I would have said 12 months ago: 'Are we sure we have the right person? Do we really understand why we are appointing this guy? What is the realistic/optimistic/pessimistic assessment of how this is going to go - and do we have a plan for each of those situations?' Please tell me that as a board of a multi-billion dollar company you have thought about all these scenarios and have a plan for each one. Please tell me this is not a surprise. I am not having that.'

"These guys are paid big money to have those conversations and have that strategic foresight."

Moyes must stick to his beliefs
This season has been a huge test of Moyes's leadership skills
"This is Manchester United. The amplification of your actions is massive. The reality is that everything you do is going to be scrutinised.

"It is all very well being yourself at Everton, but at Manchester United it is much more difficult.

"I am sure you can start thinking about what will happen to the share price if you don't win this game, or that two million people are about to hit Twitter if you lose that one. You can stop being yourself and start doing what you think you should do, rather than doing what you are being paid for.

"I know him well enough to know if he just does that, he will be fine. He is good enough to be there and deserves to be there."

Moyes must behave like a leader
"At times like this you need the leaders to be strong, to stand up and be counted.

Michael Finnigan - the man who has helped Moyes
•Worked in performance psychology since 1998
•Helped Moyes at Preston and Everton
•Also worked with Bolton Wanderers and Wigan Athletic in the run-up to the Latics' 2013 FA Cup triumph
•Assisted South African cricket team that beat England in 2004, the England side that regained the Ashes in 2005 and the Indian World Cup-winning team of 2011
•Worked closely with golfer Darren Clarke before his victory at the 2011 Open
"He must be absolutely clear that no matter what kinks appear, he is not going to be diverted from his path.

"These situations become a real test of leadership, character and faith in where you think you are going. You can't be running these big organisations and changing direction every five minutes. People don't respond well to it. People respond well to certainty.

"Leadership has to seep into everything you do - the way you drive into the car park, the way you walk through the restaurant when we are all eating our lunch. It is an understanding that leadership is every action, every word, every behaviour that we see.

"It has to be everything, from the way the kit is laid out, to the way the pitch is prepared, to how we walk through the changing room. Then it is the team talks and the news conferences.

"You can't put a sticking plaster on it. You can't be having negative thoughts but pretend everything is all right. It has to pervade your whole thinking. What you and I see has to be a natural outpouring of what is going on on the inside. It is not something tactical, it is something that runs through the whole of your day."

Key men at United must help Moyes
"You have a person adapting to a totally new situation. You could argue it is the highest-profile sporting situation in the world right now.

"There is loads of stuff former boss Sir Alex Ferguson, former chief executive David Gill, the Glazer family who own the club and current chief executive Ed Woodward can do.

"You are looking at those experienced leaders to help him take control at the helm. There are loads of things they can do in terms of conversations, their dealings with the media, the way they behave when they are in the stand, both directly and indirectly, that can send out that message.

"I would do a little reassessment of where we are going to be in three or five years' time. I would make sure that we all clearly understand it and we all see it the same way and are agreed upon it.

"Then, what kind of behaviour would we exhibit if that were the case? We would be positive. We wouldn't be defensive in any way. We would be assertive and confident.

"I would be having those conversations with those people. 'Could you please do me a favour? Every time you are in public anywhere, stick true to that set of behaviours we have designed.'

"The point about these people is that they should be naturally tuned into that anyway. It is not like you are asking a man in the street to suddenly start behaving like a leader. You are asking people who have been there for years, just for a little while, to really tune in and appreciate the importance and subtlety of their behaviour.

"Ferguson has done really well in not giving the journalists any moments to see him in the stand with his head in his hands. I want to see more of that and I want an appreciation from them that there needs to be more of that."

This is no time for negative thoughts"There is a temptation to say: 'If these next few games don't go well, what will happen?' It is easy to get into that negative spiral.

Man Utd in numbers
Three - upcoming consecutive home matches against Liverpool, Olympiakos and Manchester City
Four - Home Premier League defeats this season
Six - Successive wins against Liverpool at Old Trafford
Nine - Points behind fourth-placed Manchester City, having played two games more
11 - Points behind Liverpool from the same number of games
20 - Number of league championships, two more than Liverpool
23 - Years since United finished outside top three
£42m - Money Man Utd banked in prize money, TV distribution and gate receipts from Champions League last season

"Instead, you have to say: 'This is where we are going to be at the end of the season - and there is no question about it - then we can plan for next season.'

"If you say to a child 'don't fall off your bike', he will fall off his bike.

"David has to stay positive about his direction. Things haven't gone as well as he would have liked but so what? I am not interested in that.

"I am interested in his next match, next decision and his thinking about the next three months. He has to stay committed to the direction.

"That is an awful lot harder than it sounds when all around you it feels like it is caving in.

"In the book by Sir Clive Woodward [England's rugby union World Cup-winning coach], there is one phrase that is particularly striking - 'winning doesn't happen in a straight line'.

"You might win 10 games on the bounce, then you lose two. You go above and below the line. As leaders, we pay you to work out the strategy of where we are going and make sure we stick to it."

United must stand by their man
"I don't think they have any other option. They can't change horses in mid-stream because the first one is not doing very well. It would contradict everything the Manchester United brand is supposed to stand for."

Michael Finnigan was speaking to BBC Sport's Simon Stone

 

[laksaboy]

Dear Man Utd, please take some points off Liverpool. Cannot win never mind, a draw is enough.

 

[red amoeba]

Dear Man Utd, please take some points off Liverpool. Cannot win never mind, a draw is enough.

Lol u forgot old trafford is now cold comfort ? Playing at home is akin to playing at etihad

Lose 1-0 can consider win liao