Bleacher Report - Manchester United

Manchester United Will Need Jonny Evans to Have the Vidic Effect

Nathan Lowe — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:33:13 -0500

Most casual observers of Premier League football attribute Manchester United's trilogy of consecutive championships to be largely based on an ingredient no longer present: Cristiano Ronaldo.

But it's intellectual evasion to simply attribute anything to just one factor. The current Galactico's emergence into the world class certainly paralleled United's resurgence against Chelsea's brief dominance in the top division, but his influence was not absolute.

Often overlooked—as defenders are—was the capturing of Patty Evra and especially Nemanja Vidic in January of 2006.

Despite each taking time to acclimate to the British game, both Evra's swinging wing play and particularly Vidic's guerilla mentality provided the foundation for players like Ronaldo to get forward with complete abandon.

Then United started winning titles again.

If that trend is to continue, it'll likely be predicated on defense once again.

Unable to rely on that big, red Ronaldo button—the emergency pressure valve, activated after each successful defense, launching marauding counter-attacks—now United are stagnant getting down the field.

Often Wayne Rooney drops deep, sensing need, to spray the ball to the right, and if a cross comes in, it's only Dimitar Berbatov in the middle to fend for himself. Or vice versa, as Berbatov links play, leaving Rooney's considerable head—but small stature—in the center alone.

When once they sprang forward, they now progress more deliberately, making their attack less incisive, their defense more important.

As such, any success in Mancunian parts will be founded again upon a murderin' Vidic with his new partner Jonny Evans.

Rio Ferdinand is mercifully taking ample time to tend to his injuries. He can afford to, already cemented in Fabio Capello's England plans. Therefore, Evans has at least two months of consistent football ahead of him.

In the games he's earned this season and last, the Northern Irishman has proven more than willing and capable to fill Vidic's position in the left of central defense. The right-footed Vidic actually seems more comfortable in Ferdinand's vacated position to the right of Evans.

Just a fortnight ago, against Didier Drogba—formerly Vidic's favored nemesis—Evans cheekily and knowingly stamped the Ivorian's chest in a pugnacious display which brought joy to anyone rooting red, as Vidic himself chuckled on the sideline while Drogba writhed epileptically.

It's the same physical, simple-minded approach that Vidic himself brought to the club in 2006, perpetuating what is now a decade-long dynasty for United.

Each player will have a chance to put their head in where it hurts when they greedily welcome the blue-collar Everton to Old Trafford on Saturday. For Evans, it begins what should be a long run of games alongside the fan-favored Serbian.

If Jonny Evans continues to impress fans, pundits, and his manager, while causing our rivals' show ponies to spasm comically, Ferdinand might not be—nor should be—featuring even into the new year, or even well beyond.

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Manchester United Will Have an Asian Jersey Sponsor One Day

Ashley Furrow — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:37:00 -0500

The English Premier League is arguably the top professional league in Europe. It is also the most watched sporting league in the world and the top earning soccer league.

And Manchester United is arguably the most globally recognizable brand in the EPL.

According to an annual study done by business advisory firm Deloitte, Manchester United made £257.1 million in 2008—making it the world’s second wealthiest football club by revenue, directly under Real Madrid.

Roughly 25 percent of that figure came from commercial revenue. Put another way, Manchester United earned £64.3 million from sponsorships and merchandising during a one-year period.

That is a huge chunk of cash. A chunk many companies are vigorously competing to be a part of.

United is widely acknowledged as the best-supported club in the world with an estimated fan base of 333 million. Of these, 190 million fans live in Asia and 72 million in China.

Since football is wildly popular all over Asia, sponsoring EPL football clubs gives companies colossal brand visibility, which continues to grow as satellite television and exclusive rights to EPL games become more and more accessible to people across Asia.

As of 2007, English Premier League games were broadcast to over 600 million homes in 202 countries in Europe, Asia, Australasia, Oceania, Africa, the Americas and the Middle East.

ESPN-Star Sports, Asia’s biggest sports content provider, announced in early October that it won exclusive rights to broadcast EPL matches in 18 markets across Asia until 2013. For the first time ever, it will show all 380 matches each season live across several platforms including television, cell phone, and Internet.

Of the 16 official sponsors of Manchester United, 6 of them are Asian-owned companies, signifying a trend that is becoming more in more popular in the EPL—sponsors are increasingly becoming Asian-based. These sponsors range from telecommunications companies to vacation destinations to airlines to tire companies.

Manchester United is already ahead of the Asian-based company sponsorship curve, which could explain why the club earns the highest revenue in the EPL. It embraces the Asian market and welcomes players, fans and companies alike.

This year, Manchester United made trips to China, South Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia during the summer months to appease their foreign fans. The club is constantly looking to enter new markets.

As AIG, their current jersey sponsor, had to be bailed out by the United States government, the club had to look elsewhere for a new jersey sponsor for next season.

This decision comes down to one factor. Asia is where the money is.

That is the main reason why Aon, a U.S. insurance company, decided to dish out £80 million over four years to be the jersey sponsor for United. Aon saw how the AIG brand grew in Asia through their links with the football club and wanted to gain recognition in the area.

Furthermore, Asian-based jersey sponsors are not a foreign concept in the English Premier League, Chelsea sports Samsung, a Korean electronics group, on their jerseys and Everton sports Chang, a Thailand beer company, on their jerseys.

As Asia’s economy continues to sky rocket and satellite broadcasting deals continue to prosper, it is not off base to suggest that an Asian sponsor will some day be front and center on the jersey of Manchester United.

That day will probably occur sooner than you think.

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Sir Alex Ferguson Forced to End BBC Silent Treatment

Kieran Beckles — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:22:43 -0500

Sir Alex Ferguson has endured a week of toil after being handed an unprecedented £20,000 fine for his controversial comments over the fitness of Premier League referee Alan Wiley.

He described Wiley as being “not fit enough” to take charge of United’s 2-2 draw with Sunderland at Old Trafford in a post match interview with MUTV.

“The pace of the game demanded a referee who was fit. It is an indictment of our game. You see referees abroad who are as fit as butcher’s dogs.”

“We have some who are fit. He wasn’t fit. He was taking 30 seconds to book a player. He was needing a rest. It was ridiculous,” added Ferguson.

His unwise choice of words incurred the wrath of the Football Association.

Ferguson received a sharp slap on the wrists but in reality, the actions of the FA will leave a relatively small dent in his finances. It is inevitable that the Manchester United boss will unleash another verbal directed at an incompetent official in the near future.

Most managers are guilty of lacking discretion when they feel aggrieved at what they deem a poorly refereed 90 minutes of football.

The head of the referees’ union, Prospect, are planning to discuss the possibility of pursuing legal action against the manager who has led the Red Devils to two European cup successes.

In recent years, Ferguson has refused to conduct interviews with the BBC since the corporation’s Panorama programme produced a documentary which presented the Scottish manager’s son in dis-satisfactory light.

The programme suggested that Jason Ferguson—who is a football agent—had used his father’s position of power to gain influence within the transfer market.

He has only ever broken this barrier of silence to attend the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year in 2007 to present his colleague and friend, the deceased Sir Bobby Robson, with a lifetime achievement award.

Otherwise he has refused to speak to the BBC.

However recent legislation amendments will now force the wily Scot to participate in interviews with the BBC and other television and newspaper companies.

The Premier League held a board meeting on Thursday, which United Chief Executive David Gill attended, where it was agreed that a rule would be established to make it mandatory for all managers to speak to the BBC.

Subsequently fellow cronies, Harry Redknapp and Sam Allardyce, will also be required to put their disputes with the BBC behind them. The pair had boycotted Match of the Day and BBC Radio Five Live after Panorama directed allegations at them in a different episodes of the programme.

Any manager who fails to abide by these new regulations will be subject to sanctions with the severity increasing if individuals continue to ignore the new measures.

In addition, once the referee brings proceedings to a close, television rights holders will be permitted access to the pitch and allowed to interview members of the winning team. It is an innovative move that will provide a greater depth of media coverage to broadcasters.

As only winning squads will be subjected to the interviewers’ questions, matches ending in a draws will see both teams targeted. It is an intriguing decision by the Premier League which will ultimately heighten the experience of the fan watching at home.

We can however expect an escalation in the number of inappropriate post-match comments with the overflowing emotions of professional footballers give a wonderful insight into the competitive streak of these athletes.

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Manchester United's Nani Plays with Fire?

Shayan Ali Tejani — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:10:02 -0500

Nani, who joined Manchester United in a £17 million deal from Sporting Lisbon in May 2007, has failed to live up to the expectation that surrounded his arrival at the club.

The 22-year-old is in his third season for the club but has failed to secure a regular place in the United lineup. He has scored 12 goals in 85 appearances and despite inconsistent performances last season he was not sold by United in the summer transfer.

However, the ex-Sporting winger has put his career at Manchester United at a risk by launching a stingy attack on manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

In an interview with a Portuguese newspaper, he has criticized the Scot for "shattering his confidence" in a season where many believe to be a final trial for the player at Old Trafford.

Despite the exit of fellow countryman Cristiano Ronaldo over the summer, Nani has started only half of United's Premier League games in a season where he was at long last expected to emerge from the shadow of CR7.

"People expect more from me and it's not easy," he was quoted as telling the Portuguese newspaper "I."

"I could be doing better, scoring more, but just think, I make a huge game today but the next one, I'm not even sure that I will play. Such a situation breaks the confidence.

"I know it is still early and that there are lots of games to play this season but I never got to play the big matches like Liverpool, Manchester City, or Tottenham and, if I don't play those matches, I get sadder by the day.’’

"I also played through a foot injury so we'll see if things improve from now on."

Nevertheless, the Portuguese starlet insists that he has no plans to seek an exit from Old Trafford, even though he is unhappy with how his career is being handled.

He also leaked Ferguson’s explosive management. And confessing that he has been subjected to Sir Alex’s infamous "hairdryer treatment." But also revealed that no team member is pardoned the manager's abusive wrath.

Nani also claimed that, "Ferguson is a very complicated man.’’

"He's tough. If things are all right, then they are all right. But when he thinks something is wrong, everything is screwed.

"He can go from complimenting you to just plain trashing you in a matter of minutes. Has it happened to me? Hell, yes! He'll say 'Nani, how could you miss this or this'?

"He shouts at players in front of everyone. No one escapes, everybody is the same. Giggs and Neville suffer most, because they have more experience.

Nani’s future at Old Trafford is now in peril. His public criticism of Sir Alex Ferguson may begin to signal the end of his troubled career at the Theatre of Dreams.

In the past, Roy Keane and Jaap Stam have had to pack their bags after they also had openly spoken against the aggressive manager.

Nani’s own inconsistent form may do little to save him from his looming exit. His fall-out with the boss has become apparent as he has been twice replaced by £3 million summer signing Gabriel Obertan in recent weeks and was also left out of the squad for Sunday's defeat to Chelsea.

Unfortunately, come the next transfer season, a player with bags of talent might be on his way out.

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Nani's Public Outburst May Have Sealed His Old Trafford Exit

Liam Blackburn — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:22:59 -0500

If you ever want to stamp your ticket out of Old Trafford, publicly abusing Sir Alex Ferguson is certainly one of way of getting your wish.

Nani did exactly this last week and it seems increasingly likely that his third year in England may well be his last.

It’s not been easy for Nani who arrived at Manchester United from Sporting Lisbon in the summer of 2007. He may have collected winners’ medals, but his form has been patchy at best, and he has struggled to emerge from the large shadow cast by his fellow Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo.

Nani will forever be tied to Ronaldo whether he likes it or not. Both hail from Portugal, both represented Sporting Lisbon as teenagers and they share similar styles and demeanours. It cannot be easy for United’s current winger to have people make comparisons with one of the world’s best but they are inevitable.

In his third year and particularly in the absence of Ronaldo, Nani was supposed to blossom into the player he threatens to be.

There have been moments of sheer brilliance and it is even more frustrating when everyone is aware of the sheer potential he has.

Good with both feet, quick and an ability to launch long range rockets into the top corner, Nani is capable of being the explosive winger to complement Antonio Valencia. But all too often he is inconsistent, constantly looking to cut inside on his right foot and shoot or failing to clear the first man with crosses.

It seems that Nani lacks the motivation and drive to become a better player. In his current surroundings and with the players around him, his game should thrive but instead he seems disillusioned with life in Manchester. When Ronaldo found life difficult, he pushed himself onto the next level.

He strived to channel his talents in a more effective way and went on to be the most devastating attacking player in European football. The hunger to want to become a great player is often just as important as technical ability.

Ferguson himself has always been a man who values hard work. It comes from his background, his upbringing and he expects his own players to give their all. His side is filled with players who perhaps don’t have great technical attributes but make up for it through pure commitment.

Nani claimed his confidence was “shattered” after not being guaranteed a first-team spot and maybe he is the sort of player who requires an arm around them rather than the harsher hairdryer treatment.

But he is unlikely to find this from Ferguson and those who have questioned his methods usually end up with a large slice of humble pie to accompany those queries.

You would think players would be astute enough to realise that mouthing off in the media is always likely to come back and haunt you. Words may well be twisted but it is surely better to keep quiet and not take the chance. Nani only needs to look at how Jaap Stam was discarded after spouting off in his book.

Perhaps the Portuguese winger is looking for a way out. If not, he may well have created one.

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How Fabio Capello Can Lead England to Glory in South Africa

Christopher Potter — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 18:43:49 -0500

On May 8, 2006, Sven-Goran Eriksson surprised the footballing world by naming inexperienced 16-year-old Arsenal starlet Theo Walcott to his final World Cup squad.

Two months later, Eriksson apologized no fewer than NINE times in a televised post-match interview after England crashed out of the World Cup at the quarter-final stage after a sub-standard tournament.

The media vilified the Swede for his tactics, suddenly and inexplicably switching from a 4-2-2 to a 4-1-4-1 formation.

For many fans and observes, England were doomed to failure as soon as the squad for Germany was announced.

Despite being one of only two fit strikers in the squad, Walcott was overlooked, and the inclusion of Jermaine Jenas and Owen Hargreaves in addition to Michael Carrick can only be described as wasteful and thoughtless.

This year, with the exception of Jenas (who this afternoon failed to impress in the 1-0 friendly defeat to Brazil) all of these players will be in Fabio Capello's thoughts as the 2009-10 Premier League season nears its conclusion.

In 2006, Eriksson decided to choose seven defenders, 10 midfielders and three strikers. His squad was largely experienced, and more than of the 23 players were chosen from the Premier League's 'Big Four' clubs.

In 2010, the squad looks to have a similar make-up.

However, the big difference between Eriksson and Capello is the Italian's strong character and steely professionalism.

While it is clear that Eriksson showed preferential treatment to some players, who he was afraid to drop, Capello has made it clear in words (if not yet actions) that he will choose his team based purely on performances.

STRIKERS

Perhaps the biggest criticism he faces is his continued selection of Heskey, who is not scoring goals and who has been left in the cold by Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill.

Capello argues that Heskey's work rate and hold-up play is crucial to the team's success, and that he allows Rooney to play to his strengths.

However, goals win matches. Heskey has SEVEN in 57 international appearances. In contrast, Peter Crouch has scored 18 goals in 38 appearances.

Despite England's prolific goalscoring during the qualifying campaign (their goal difference of +28 was the highest of all European teams) their strength is not their forwards, but rather their options in midfield.

It is for this reason that England need not select more than four strikers for the tournament.

MIDFIELD

Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard have phenomenal goal-scoring records for club and country.

Lampard's goals to games ratio on the international stage is better than 1:4, Gerrard's is better than 1:5. Under the Law of Averages, England can expect at least two goals during the campaign from midfield.

Combined with Rooney, Defoe and Crouch's impressive ratios, England have plenty of scoring options from central positions.

Nobody has made a compelling case as a first-choice holding midfielder. Capello may not even feel the need for one, if Gerrard and Lampard can continue to work so effectively in tandem.

If the situation arises, Gareth Barry, Michael Carrick, Tom Huddlestone, and a soon-to-be-rehabilitated Owen Hargreaves will be champing at the bit.

The wide positions are more of a dilemma for Capello. At a glance, the list of options Capello has at his disposal is phenomenal.

On the right side of midfield, he could take two of James Milner, Aaron Lennon, Theo Walcott, David Beckham, or Shaun Wright-Phillips.

On the left side, there is a hungry Joe Cole and Stewart Downing to choose from. Aston Villa duo Ashley Young and Gabi Agbonlahor provide real versatility as an option on either flank or upfront.

DEFENSE

The most worrying aspect of England's qualifying campaign has been their ability to throw away cheap goals through individual mistakes and collective lapses of concentration.

Capello has highlighted this as a weakness of the side, and has focused in team training on eradicating these lapses.

However, the lapse by Matthew Upson and Wes Brown to allow Nilmar to score the winner tonight for Brazil, and the woeful backpass by the latter which led to Ben Foster hauling down Nilmar for Brazil's penalty shows that England players have still not kicked the habit.

Much has been made of Glen Johnson's defensive inadequacies at right-back, but he has proven to be one of the bright sparks in Liverpool's disappointing start to the season.

Finding adequate cover is surely a more pressing issue. Gary Neville's cool head and successful track record may make him the surprise inclusion. Unlike tonight's opponents Brazil, England has a wealth of options at left-back.

NO. 1

Capello has made his mind up already who his goalkeeper will be next summer. The general consensus is that veteran Pompey stopper David James will get the nod.

Far from perfect and prone to inexplicable catastrophes, James is still the best shot-stopper in the country.

Robert Green, Scott Carson and Ben Foster have all been given a chance in goal, but all have shown defects.

Learn from the past

Capello has plenty of options and versatility in his squad. It has greater depth than that of 2006.

For this reason, it is essential that he chooses the best 23 players at his disposal. He must not, and will pick a player on a whim. He has experience of success and he has overseen great progress since he took over from Steve McClaren.

Unlike in 2006, there will be no surprise inclusions in 2012. This time, there can be no excuses for failure.

As always there is huge amount of talent in the national team. The difference is that Capello has the management skills and focus that Eriksson sadly lacked.

England's 2010 World Cup Finals Squad?

GOALKEEPERS: David James, Paul Robinson, Ben Foster

DEFENDERS: Glen Johnson, Joleon Lescott, Matthew Upson, Joh n Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Joleon Lescott, Ashley Cole, Gary Neville

MIDFIELD: David Beckham, Aaron Lennon, Joe Cole, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, Gareth Barry, Michael Carrick, Ashley Young

FORWARDS: Wayne Rooney, Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe, Theo Walcott

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The Bottom Corner: Has Michael Owen Answered His Critics Yet?

Salaar Shamsi — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 03:49:34 -0500

Sir Alex Ferguson took a massive gamble during the summer. When the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez had left Old Trafford, he had to find adequate replacements to ensure they would retain the Premier League for a fourth consecutive time.

It might be worth mentioning that Ronaldo and Tevez, between them, scored almost half of all the goals United had scored in the past two seasons.

Needless to say, United needed a big name signing who could guarantee goals, Sir Alex Ferguson though begged to differ.

The Scot brought in Wigan's Antonio Valencia, who despite his overwhelming physique wasn't recognized as a regular goalscorer.

Valencia's arrival was followed by the signing of former Liverpool striker, Micheal Owen, a free agent after his contract with Newcastle had expired on a 'pay-as-you-play' deal.

The move received a mixed reaction from the football world and the Old Trafford faithful in particular.

Some weren't particularly happy with the signing of Owen because he was too 'injury-prone'.

Others suggested Sir Alex was a genius for pulling off such a shrewd business move because Owen was known as a deadly finisher and recognized as a phenomenal striker.

Liverpool fans weren't too happy, they termed Owen as a 'joke', a 'traitor' and even drew comparisons of Owen's move to Judas' betrayal.

The former Real Madrid man accepted the fact that he would be behind Dimitar Berbatov and Wayne Rooney in United's pecking order.

The transfer window eventually slammed shut and nobody else arrived at Old Trafford except for relatively unknown French prodigy, Gabriel Obertan.

Sir Alex Ferguson backed the likes of Dimitar Berbatov and Wayne Rooney to step up, he also said he would give more opportunities to the likes of Federico Macheda and Danny Welbeck.

Owen's first start for United ended with 1-0 defeat to newly promoted Burnley and the skies came shattering down , it appeared as if Sir Alex had got it all wrong, he was blamed for failing to strengthen United's squad during the summer.

Owen missed two straight forward chances in the games against Birmingham and Burnley and came under scathing criticism for it.

However, United's title defense eventually picked up the pace with a 5-0 thrashing of Wigan and 2-1 victory against Arsenal.

Owen scored his first United goal at Wigan, with a fine left footed strike that recalled his halcyon days.

If he was looking for a chance to become an Old Trafford hero, he certainly got it when his predecessor Carlos Tevez and new-team and United rivals Manchester City came to Old Trafford.

In the most dramatic circumstances, Owen scored an incredible winner in the 96th minute of play and thus becoming an instant crowd favorite at the Theatre of Dreams.

Arguably his best United goal came in the Carling Cup against Barnsley, where a sharp turn and a stunning finish silenced the whole crowd.

Owen didn't have the happiest time on his return to Anfield, he came on as a substitute and was put through on goal before being brought down rather controversially by Liverpool's Jaime Carragher. United went on to lose the game, 2-0, as Nemanja Vidic was sent off for the third consecutive time against the Reds.

He couldn't help United losing to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge either but Owen has scored in all competitions for the Red Devils after opening the scoring in 3-3 draw with CSKA Moscow in the UEFA Champions League at Old Trafford.

In his brief stint with the Red Devils, he has already picked up a knock kept him out of action for three weeks.

Despite being five points behind Chelsea, I think United are still quite well placed and in competition for a fourth consecutive league title.

Now, the real question is, has Michael Owen answered his critics?

He was labelled as 'too old', they said 'his time is over', they said 'he's too injury prone', they said 'he's a traitor', they said 'United will regret not signing somebody like a David Villa or Luis Fabiano'.

Hold that thought for now.

That's it from The Bottom Corner , here's Salaar Shamsi signing off, until next time, it's goodbye.

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