Alert: CL Round of 16. Real Madrid v. Manchester United, Wednesday, February 13th [R]

If we're looking for an engine, I would rather play Rooney in midfield. At least he can create something. Probably swap with Kagawa from time to time to find some space on the left.

------------RVP
-Kagawa------------Nani
----Rooney---Cleverley
----------Carrick
Evra---Rio---Evans---Rafa
-----------De Gea

 

Which club you support ?

While you make some good points if Rvp if in form he will really show up pepe and Ramos , football isn't all about pace and power

 

I think RVP is not as good as in january, but that´s only a feeling. Pepe and Ramos are maybe the best two CB in the world, TOP-5 at least. Hard work. You need speed against them and RVP is not so fast, Rooney neither.

PD. I prefer Barcelona but my real team is Betis.

 

Guess I disagree, thanks for the wishes.

 

I agree a lot with what you said in the previous post, but no so much in this one. Pepe and Ramos aren't very good, and Arbeloa is a weak link as well.

 

I hope Welbeck gets a chance to play. He will come in under the radar.

 

Wow!! Pepe and Ramos, for spanish people are stunning players!! Ramos was the best defender in the EURO and Pepe is amazing.

Arbeloa is weak in offense but maybe the most reliable member of the squad in defence. He makes no mistakes.

 

I'd expect to see Rooney in the center of midfield and Kagawa someplace on the left. Can't imagine more than one striker at the Bernabeau . . . but could Welbeck show up on the right-side in front of Valencia?

Always like Mr. Alex's odds against the Special1.

 

I agree with you, but then I would. Pepe-Ramos is under-rated outside of Spain. I wouldn't swap our CB options with anyone elses in world football. I like our starting combination the best, I don't see a better prospect than Varane, and I don't see a better fourth and fifth choice CB option than Albiol and Carvalho.

I wonder if you guys will play Carrick-Jones in midfield? Jones did a man-marking job on Fellaini, he helped Rafael with Bale and I think he'll be tasked with doing a job on Ronaldo as well. If he is asked to play, the brief will be slightly different - with Bale all he had to do was protect the fullback by showing him inside. With Ronaldo he is going to have to show him outside, and even then Ronaldo is dangerous.

 

Pepe is unfit and if he starts so soon after the injury, he's there for the taking, so I think Mourinho will go with Varane. And he's even less experienced than Evans, for whom I have no doubts he can handle Bernabeu.

And United doesn't really have a lot of space between Carrick and defence because when he's defending, he "sits" just in front of the defence. The problem is space in front where there's space for midfield runners, like Khedira. But United will start with 3 midfielders so there won't be so much space.

As for the speed of Madrid's defenders, Hernandez can really exploit that when he goes on the pitch in the second half when everyone will be tired.

 

Fellaini is easy to mark if you're strong, tall and don't get frustrated when he's trying to foul you. But as you say Ronaldo is a completely different player and I would rather see United defending as a whole against him than have just one man to mark him all day long. And Jones is not quick or smart enough to make Ronaldo totally ineffective. But with Phelan and no Quieroz it's going to be a difficult task to set up that system.

 

I would hazard a guess that Jones is gonna be used as a terrier in midfield again. I think Fergie took him off today with a niggle, but if today's match had been a big game Jones may have stayed on. Think he was saving him for Tuesday.

 

I agree with everything you said, and his presence would unsettle Madrid more than Cheech - but Cheech will get you a goal with 1 quality assist, Welbeck needs 2-3 chances to bag one. His finishing just isn't on par.

But regardless, I'd rather have Welbeck out there, he's more of a wild card to mess with their CBs.

 

I think he is the best fit if we play with just one winger.

Cheech has to play at cf but with Danny on the wing he provides penetrative dribbling as well as cunning movement and a central threat when our #10 drops deep.

It would be interesting to see Kagawa playing off RvP or Rooney with Nani and Welbeck playing as wingers. Hell, could even try it as 433 with a false nine.

 

Re: the "false nine". It's not going to be played with SAF. When was the last time you played without at least one straight-up centre-forward?

Barca's "false nine" is in fact a modified 4-4-2 diamond with Messi at the tip of the diamond and the "centre-forwards" (usually Pedro and Alexis) staying high and wide and making bending inside runs for the passes of Iniesta, Xavi and Messi. You need specialists in the wide wing positions to make it work, and you guys don't have them. Nor do you have three passers who can consistently find those runs. Maybe Young can leave the ball and make those runs, but I don't see Valencia or Nani adapting their game to make those runs without the ball.

 

The tricky part is that Ronaldo will get 2 home games for this tie.

 

No luck, as I'm on a Neurology rotation where they are Nazi like about keeping us until 5 pm, which here is 2 hours after the game ends. I'm taking the media blackout route I hope, until I get a torent.

 

Can't you make your beeper/pager malfunction? My mate suffered from that type of problem all the time when there was a United match on. The A&E department he was working at were very understanding.

 

Manchester United will win 3:2 for United. Goals: Van Persie, Rooneyx2. Goals for Real Madrid: Cristiano Ronaldox2