The Manchester Derby - 3/14 [R]

[Motterman]

Reports suggest that Danny Pugh is in line to get a start with...ohh... just about everybody on the defensive side of the ball either injured or suspended.

OUT: G. Nev, Rio, Fortune, Keane, Djemba, Silvestre

DOUBTFUL: Ronaldo

[bigtoga]

Reports are of Keano having a hamstring injury and might be out for this game.

[Achtung]

All I want for Paddy's Day is a league win
A league win
A league win...

[BillyManutd]

It will be interesting to see who will make the bench.

[musicl]

We have Fletcher so we will win.

[Achtung]

Originally posted by BillyManutd
It will be interesting to see who will make the bench.

JOHNNY! ;)

[Sofabloke]

This is the worse injury / suspension crisis I can remember. So many of the missing players are the experienced ones ...

City play three at the back and a five man midfield IIRC. Given we are likely to have O'Shea and Wes at centre back which is likely our worse pairing, having no experience and two players lacking consistency we gotta go with a five man midfield too.

Shaun Wright-Philips is a threat, so I don't think we can risk Pugh at left back. Phil Neville would be best placed to do a job marking him.

Surely SAF can't overlook Kleberson again given available personnel? Hopefully to play in the centre along with Butt and told to sit and allow Scholes forward.

As well as having no place for him because of a five man midfield, Saha has been poor the last two games and has been complaining of an achilles. So he should be on the bench.

Gotta go with Ole on the right. Short of match fitness I know, but we need some threat with Ronaldo being absent.

Means right back is a problem. But I would have thought Fletcher could play there in the absence of anyone else. His tackling on the whole is good enough. Just a worry about whether he could play the line for offside well enough.


..................Ruud
.................Scholes
Giggs Butt Kleberson Ole

P Neville O'Shea Brown Fletcher

..................Howard

BTW I am willing to bet that none of us will pick the same team as SAF, even with so many players missing :)

[johno]

Originally posted by Sofabloke
This is the worse injury / suspension crisis I can remember. So many of the missing players are the experienced ones ...

City play three at the back and a five man midfield IIRC. Given we are likely to have O'Shea and Wes at centre back which is likely our worse pairing, having no experience and two players lacking consistency we gotta go with a five man midfield too.

Shaun Wright-Philips is a threat, so I don't think we can risk Pugh at left back. Phil Neville would be best placed to do a job marking him.

Surely SAF can't overlook Kleberson again given available personnel? Hopefully to play in the centre along with Butt and told to sit and allow Scholes forward.

As well as having no place for him because of a five man midfield, Saha has been poor the last two games and has been complaining of an achilles. So he should be on the bench.

Gotta go with Ole on the right. Short of match fitness I know, but we need some threat with Ronaldo being absent.

Means right back is a problem. But I would have thought Fletcher could play there in the absence of anyone else. His tackling on the whole is good enough. Just a worry about whether he could play the line for offside well enough.


..................Ruud
.................Scholes
Giggs Butt Kleberson Ole

P Neville O'Shea Brown Fletcher

..................Howard

BTW I am willing to bet that none of us will pick the same team as SAF, even with so many players missing :)

Well that is a safe bet... he reads these boards, looks at the sound advice and then forms a team that borders on insane, just to be contrary...

[haven]

We're going to lose, I'm very afraid. SAF has lost his mind, the team has lost all of its good players, and the rest have just about given up.

[Motterman]

Originally posted by haven
We're going to lose, I'm very afraid. SAF has lost his mind, the team has lost all of its good players, and the rest have just about given up.

Please do not http://pages.prodigy.net/indianahawkeye/newpage22/4.gif and post on BigSoccer.

Thank you.

[BackOtheNet!]

Depends on which City shows up. If they play like they did against Chelski you may be in trouble.

[Motterman]

James, Arason, Distin, Van Buyten, Dunne, Jihai, McManaman, Sinclair, Bosvelt, Barton, Reyna, Wright-Phillips, Tarnat, Sibierski, Fowler, Macken, Wanchope, B Magoo, Elliott, Flood, Jordan, McCarthy, Mass Ive.

Howard, Carroll, P Neville, Brown, O'Shea, Pugh, Fletcher, Butt, Scholes, Giggs, Saha, Van Nistelrooy, Lynch, Kleberson, Solskjaer, Forlan, Bellion, Richardson.

O'Shea on Citeh:

"If they take anything off us, and they survive relegation, they will see this season as a success ......"

[Sofabloke]

Originally posted by BackOtheNet!
Depends on which City shows up. If they play like they did against Chelski you may be in trouble.

Citeh always raise their game against us, for obvious reasons. Those two scouse gits always raise their game too.

Also gonna be interesting to watch Van Buyten. Is he good enough for us? Looks like he will definitely be available.

[haven]

Originally posted by Motterman
Please do not http://pages.prodigy.net/indianahawkeye/newpage22/4.gif and post on BigSoccer.

Thank you.

Come now. Our defense, as even you'd acknowledge, is crap. Our most precocious midfielder, Ronaldo, is hurt. Our worldclass striker, RVN, is in a slump (the goals are coming, but it's been a while since he scored a truly good goal). Roy Keane is back to being a half-game player. Kleberson is off-form. Our other two DM's show almost no offensive prowess.

That leaves... what? Scholes is still magnificent. Giggs has played well. Saha has played mostly well. Our manager is so terrified of conceding goals that he has the team go into a shell after scoring... and the continued pressure means they almost always concede.

These haven't been good times, recently. The team is playing poorly and they're on the road. No point in false optismism.

They'll pass, and even if they don't, I'll still back the squad.

[bigtoga]

Originally posted by Motterman
Please do not http://pages.prodigy.net/indianahawkeye/newpage22/4.gif and post on BigSoccer.

Thank you. Are you saying that you shouldn't post here, MM? ;) Or are you trying to keep me from posting? hehe

[cloud_fc2004]

muahahahahaha i feel this game were gonna win it with style. i see our players taking out all their hate of porto on man city. hahahaha. just like madrid did to malaga the weekend later they were discualified by juve. big win for united i bet.

[Unorthodox Yank]

It's on FSW at 1:00 PM central.



repeat after me:

YES!

[Coach_McGuirk]

ManU needs to win this one, even though, as an Arsenal fan it would obviously be better for the Gunners in ManU lost. manU needs to win so I can enjoy a Kevin Keegan post game meltdown.

[Motterman]

Off to Summer's to watch this one....

Not alot of info availble on who's starting, on the bench, etc. at this point, but I'm hopeful that we'll respond well today.

[Soccerholic]

5' 1-0 Citeh on a Fowler goal.

Matchtracker's only comment: Disaster for United...the defence is in disarray.