Man Utd's CL Hope For Glory 2004/05

[United Forever]

I was just thinking that I should make this thread. Do you think we can win it. I guess we have a chance. You never know! ;)

[Warren_S]

I was just thinking that I should make this thread. Do you think we can win it. I guess we have a chance. You never know! ;)


Manchester United are one of the favourites to win the Champiosn League without question!!!

If Paul Scholes' legitimate goal was not incorrectly flagged offside than Man U not Porto would have been in the Final in 2004.

In 2003, Man U played 2 amazing matches against Real Madrid, but for Barthez carelessness. Man U could of gone through. Remember Juventus reached the Final by beating Real in the Semis. And Man U beat Juventus TWICE home & away, beating Juverntus 3-0 in Turin!!!


Once Man U get all their players back and are at full-strength. WIth Van Nistlerooy, Heinz, Ronaldo, Ferdinand, Rooney, Saha, etc. Man U will be more of a match with anyone!!!

One thing is for certain Man U will do much better in the Champions League than Arse.

[United Forever]

One thing is for certain Man U will do much better in the Champions League than Arse.

I repped you on this comment alone!! :D

[tscboys]

If we finally get all the injured players on our team healthy, then we have defintely gotta be one of the favs..we have 4 quality strikers in smith ruud saha and rooney...which could be possibly the most blinding foursome in the world right now...we should atleast make the quarters er semi's this year...if not then we have obviously had bad luck er injuries

[blackjack]

I repped you on this comment alone!! :D

I dunno about that. It seems like you Reds are desperate to win the Prem again (good luck), while Arsenal have made it perfectly clear that Europe is their number one objective.

[United Forever]

I dunno about that. It seems like you Reds are desperate to win the Prem again (good luck), while Arsenal have made it perfectly clear that Europe is their number one objective.

Just because It is their Number 1 objective does not mean they will do good! :D

[cristiano_007]

Look Arsenal is not going to win champions league they depend on Henry and Freddie, and we all know that Henry really does not perform all that well for france and in the CL you are playing against abroad teams.


Not the same old peolple they meet in the prem

[Robert25]

I really dont think the leadership of the team just focuses on the CL or the league, but wants success everywhere. At first missing so many players we'll ned to be savy and determined as we face the opening challngers., But later I think we'll do even better with a complete squad.

I think we have as good of a chance as anyone, sure we had a rough start to the season but this teams going get a lot better very quickly. Then there will be no limit to our success.

[johno]

We have to take the good with the bad... we have had unbelievably poor luck of late, including last season. However, we must examine what we have seen due to our misfortune...

1. We went from Ruud, Forlan and Bellion and OGS to Ruud, Saha, Smith, Rooney

2. We realized how important depth is on defence and we added Heinze and bought two young defenders.

3. Our injuries have allowed some other players to shine... Spector stands out, but also Djemba looks better this season than last season... Kleberson is showing his class, Smith is proving he was worth every penny, the team is learning to play hard and try to win every game on effort and not talent. Once our stars come back the squad we will turn it on...

4. I started this post an hour ago and got interrupted by some friends so I forgot my other six or seven brilliant points... damn... :p

[bigtoga]

1. We went from Ruud, Forlan and Bellion and OGS to Ruud, Saha, Smith, Rooney

2. We realized how important depth is on defence and we added Heinze and bought two young defenders.

3. Our injuries have allowed some other players to shine... Spector stands out, but also Djemba looks better this season than last season... Kleberson is showing his class, Smith is proving he was worth every penny, the team is learning to play hard and try to win every game on effort and not talent. Once our stars come back the squad we will turn it on...
1. Yes!! Major improvement on offense even if we have only one healthy at a time!! Last year when Ruuud was hurt, the choices were very limited. Now, as long as one of those are healthy, we're golden.

2. Defence is still shaky even with Heinze until Silvestre/O'Shea settle down. I don't know what it is but those two players have really just bottled it for the past 12 months. Hopefully Fortune gets healthy and can provide cover on left; he's so versatile.

3. I can't say that I expect Spector to play any Champions League games after this round - or, if he does, we'll have already qualified. I think he was there in an emergency...

My biggest concern now, thankfully, is the midfield. I think we've shored up the defense, have the best forward core in the world, but when Keano's not playing, we lose possession and can't keep our shape. We have no backup for Keano and, without one, I think we can't win the EPL/CL this year. I know, I know - topic for another thread perhaps, but I just do not believe DjDj/Kleb/Phil can do the same thing he can do. Letting Nicky leave was inevitable but it left a MASSIVE hole in the middle of the park. Look how much possession Everton had last match in the center - you need a guy who'll run box to box for 90 minutes and fight fight fight and our current group won't do it.

[johno]

Letting Nicky leave was inevitable but it left a MASSIVE hole in the middle of the park. Look how much possession Everton had last match in the center - you need a guy who'll run box to box for 90 minutes and fight fight fight and our current group won't do it.

I believe that once the defence is sured up with Heinze and the return of Rio, DjDj will have the confidence to play more aggressively and I think that he will be fine for now... of course that is being optimistic, but seriously not that many guys could marshall the midfield effectively when there is no one behind you incase you make a mistake, what usually happens is you play more cautious, afraid to make a mistake because u don't trust those behind you.... We can fully evaluate DJDJ only after the defence starts to play well... Its like saying you striker is not good enough when the midfield is not serving him... sure he gets a chance or 2 but most strikers need more than that... and that's where DjDj differs from Keane, he cannot inspire those around him to up their game and he cannot dominate the opposition with soley will power... he is a different creature.

[bigtoga]

Good points - hopefully you are right on. Which brings up another point (for a new thread)

[Kavster]

we have 4 quality strikers in smith ruud saha and rooney...which could be possibly the most blinding foursome in the world right now...

I think we're forgetting a certain Real Madrid, they have Raul, Ronaldo, Morientes, and now, Owen. I gotta say that makes our four sharks look like goldfish. However, i must admit although Real bought Woody and Samuel, a lot of other defenses look stronger than theirs, including ours.

[Achtung]

I think we're forgetting a certain Real Madrid, they have Raul, Ronaldo, Morientes, and now, Owen. I gotta say that makes our four sharks look like goldfish. However, i must admit although Real bought Woody and Samuel, a lot of other defenses look stronger than theirs, including ours.

Oh I don't know about that. Ronaldo is top three in the world right now, and Morientes is hot, but both Owen and Raul are coming off of disappointing seasons. I'll say they might be a step ahead, but again let's wait for all our guys to be healthy before we judge any of them.

It's just so annoying that we don't have our first team at 100%... this has to be one of the most frustrating seasons ever.

[tscboys]

I think we're forgetting a certain Real Madrid, they have Raul, Ronaldo, Morientes, and now, Owen.

Those are all quality strikers, til it comes down to owen, he has been pretty crappy lately..

[United Forever]

We all have rivals in the CL . That is what makes it so exciting! But we have a very tricky trip to turkey. What do you all guys think about that?

[christosap]

If Paul Scholes' legitimate goal was not incorrectly flagged offside than Man U not Porto would have been in the Final in 2004.

umm, no



In 2003, Man U played 2 amazing matches against Real Madrid, but for Barthez carelessness. Man U could of gone through. Remember Juventus reached the Final by beating Real in the Semis. And Man U beat Juventus TWICE home & away, beating Juverntus 3-0 in Turin!!!



juve had just gone through some sort of flue epidemic, one of those games the only starting player they had was nedved.


Once Man U get all their players back and are at full-strength. WIth Van Nistlerooy, Heinz, Ronaldo, Ferdinand, Rooney, Saha, etc. Man U will be more of a match with anyone!!!

One thing is for certain Man U will do much better in the Champions League than Arse.

man utd are always contenders your group stage is easier the some of the other big teams, last 4 or 8 is my prediction. it really depends on what situation man utd are in, if the league is beyond them at one point and they are still in the CL it will take priority, i just dont see you beating real or milan.

[United Forever]

No christosap they were going through the flu problem at OT when we beat them 2-1 so we did beat them fairly 3-0 in Turin. I will not comment on Porto because it would just make me angry!

[Achtung]

juve had just gone through some sort of flue epidemic, one of those games the only starting player they had was nedved.

Juve lineup from that match:
Buffon, Thuram, Ferrara, Montero, Conte (Tudor 46), Davids, Nedved, Camoranesi, Zambrotta (Pessotto 67), Di Vaio (Salas 46), Trezeguet

Now I'm not saying we would have certainly gone through either last season or the year before, but it does hurt to wonder "what if" on Scholes' goal, as well as the prospect of facing Juventus again. Oh well, not worth thinking about the past too much anyways.