When's Hargreaves back? Where's Fletch?

I'd say the "kids" that we have chosen in the Carling Cup so far are Welbeck, Macheda, Obertan, Gibson, Anderson, Fabio and Rafael.

Sure, a few of them have played CL and all have played PL, but they're still only youngsters. However, despite what Fergie has said previously, he cannot play that side, because it won't beat City.



Before, we knew that if in doubt, we could give the ball to Ronaldo and 8 times out of 10 he would score a goal to get us a draw or more likely a win, the team always had confidence in him getting something. This season we rely on Rooney, and his ability to pull something from nothing isn't as good as what Ronaldo, which aint something to be upset about, Ronaldo was a freak.

Rooney liked playing alongside Ronaldo. They both read each other's game perfectly, and together they created just about everything that was good about United. Rooney liked playing alongside Tevez too, and his partnership with Berbatov just aint working. Berbatov is by far one of the best players on the ball in the League, but he doesn't fit into the United system with Rooney, he always wants one or two touches too many IMO. Unfortunately, I think we should cut our losses and say goodbye to him.

Another major loss for United since we lost Ronaldo is pace. Evra and the da Silvas apart, we have a shocking lack of pace in the side. Many times this season when we've tried to hit on the break (previously one of out biggest strengths), but we've tried to use Carrick as the breakaway. Although you can always rely on Carrick to keep the ball, he isn't going to sprint up to the other end of the field in a matter of seconds. So this season, we've tried to pass our way out, and with our awful passing so far this year we often lose it and put ourselves back under pressure.

Fergie claims he has £60million to spend, well he needs to buy a striker and a creative midfielder. Ideally, he'd sign David Silva, but as a cheaper alternative, somebody like Milner from Villa could be just as effective. He's somebody that puts 110% into every game, he can play anywhere along midfield, and he'll do all the running and hard work that we lost when Tevez left. Not only that, but he can hit the ball too.




As it's two legs and we're at home second, I think we are probably just about favourites, as long as we don't get stuffed at Eastlands. If it was a one legged tie, I'd put you as favourites.

ATM I even think AC Milan will chuck us out of Europe too.

Physically, Hargreaves is ready to return to full training. It's mentally where he isn't ready. So nobody really knows how long he's going to be out for.

I think Fletch was just dropped as "unrequired" for Leeds. If fit, he must play v City.

Other problems include O'Shea and Ferdinand. Both long term injuries with no clue as to when they could be back. Without Ferdinand, we miss pace at centre back, as we found out to our cost yesterday.

I thought Wes was the best natural defender in England, surely, if he can read the game so well, Rio's pace isn't needed?



I don't think things are as bad as made out at United, but I do think you'll be really exposed come the business end of the season. You have a solid squad renowned for grinding out the results, but when the big matches come around I do feel your strongest XI is severely weakened without Ronaldo, which is to be expected.

Excellent points.

I don't think we should minimalise the loss of Ronaldo, and I think we can all now see just how good a player he is. Maybe some United fans (me included) under estimated his impact on the team. I said to my old man towards the end of last season, if you gave me a choice Rooney, Messi or Ronaldo, I'd choose Rooney. He IS United now. However, although I think Rooney is key to Uniteds success, Ronaldo was more important. He made things happen from nothing, as Nemanja has said. He is irreplacable.

We are simply not the same team as in previous years. I would look round the team in seasons gone buy and thought Ronaldo, Rooney, Scholes, Giggs, Larsson (for a short time), Tevez - Someone will do something special to get us back in the game. Now it's changed. It's Rooney or bust.

I think that because Chelsea and Liverpool have also been so poor this season, it's papered over United's cracks. We are dreadfully thin at goalkeeper behind EDVS, who, due to his age, will miss more and more games. I have always said Foster isn't good enough, and Tommy will be a career back up at Old Trafford, a la Van Der Gouw.

Don't get me wrong, we still have a decent team, in the current state we'll probably finish runners up in the prem and get to the 1/4 finals of the Champions League. But that's not good enough for United, or Fergie. We need to kick on in the summer and bring some new talent in, I just don't know where the funds will come from. We'll hammer a poor Wigan side at home, beat Hull away and raise our game for City, but the old dependability of beating the decent teams on a good day when we're not playing well seem to have gone. That's where United have always been a cut above. Last minute goals at home to Sheff Weds, away winners at Fulham, snatching draws at Sunderland etc. I can't see the team doing that now.

[url=http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/leisure/article6973929.eceReports in the [iSunday Times[/i[/url suggest the Glazers are considering a bond issue to try raise cash to refinance MUFC.

[url=http://www.crainsmanchesterbusiness.co.uk/article/20100103/FREE/100109996/1012Crain's[/url have more information on the debt at United.

[url=http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=64214MUST response.[/url

Ironic from A Kopite

I've backed Berba in the past but at the minute he just doesn't look interested in playing football and i think it's all down to how we set up. The way he likes to play is to get the ball deep and try too create but we have Rooney doing the exact same job (but 100% better) i think if he had an out and out front man making runs/taking players with him we'd start to see the old Berbatov that we saw at spuds but i'd rather have Rooney in the side pulling the strings.

As for the pace in the side i'd agree about the DaSilva's and Evra but i'd also throw Valencia and Valencia in there as they're not slow players. Many times this season i've seen players bursting through out wide only to be left crossing a ball into an empty box as Rooneys still making his way back after making a cover tackle for a half, then you have Berbatov who'll still have his hands on his hips 25 yards out. Fletcher is a player who has improved his running into the box no end in the last 18 months but he can't do it every attack. You can have all the pace in the world but it doesn't make you a good footballer just look at Nani for an example

We definately need to bring some fresh blood into the team but who is good enough,available and not cup tied for the Champions League? I think the money is there but Fergies not be willing to splash out the big money these days incase the players flop.

A quality Left winger is a must and most reports are linking us with di María at Benfica, Valencia imo is improving game on game and is starting to take the right option alot more after a poorish start we have back up in Park (not the greatest but a grafter) and Obertan can fill in on the right.
I think central midfield is solid when fit with Carrick, Fletcher, Hargreaves, Anderson and to a lesser extent Giggs and Scholes playing bit parts although Gibson doesn't look Manchester United quality to me. We could have a couple of midfielders breaking through at the end of the season so who could we bring in of a decent standard who'd be willing to take a place on the bench???

Then we get to the forwards

Rooney is simply brilliant, Berbatov can't be bothered and Owen just doesn't get enough game time to prove his worth. Welbeck needs a left foot transplant and Mecheada seems to have stagnated a little and should really be going out on loan for the rest of the season, we also have Diouf coming this month but is a bit of an unknown but from the limited footage i've seen of him he looks quick with two decent feet and is deadly in the air just hope he's better the Manucho



A worldclass keeper is a must with VDS running out of time, Foster and Ketchup looking like ok back up and Zieller a bit too young at the minute although he looks like he has a decent future infront of him.

Some good points here. For me one of the biggest issues is our creatvity, if Rooney does not play well then there just isn't any. There is way too much reliance on him and I think he will end up playing too many games and become jaded as the season closes.

I think there are several areas we need to strengthen, most impotantly would be an attacking centre midfielder and a wide left player. That would give us pace down both flanks and enable us to break with pace like we always have done. After that I would look at shipping out Berba and bringing in a replacement and also sign a top class keeper and then decide on a fixed no.2 between the two lads there now.

We have been linked with Di Maria and Silva who would both fit the bill for Utd and there have been links with Villa and Fabiano. Trouble is what money does Fergie have?

I woiuld also look to bring in a new no.2, for me we always look our best when we have a proper assistant to Fergie and I don't rate Phelan at all.

Utd don't seem to have the edge to their game this season, in the past they would have found a goal from somewhere against Leeds and they would have fought for their lives, for me there are too many players either past their best or players who just are not Utd players.

I think there's some discontent in the camp - Vidic doesn't seem to want to play for Utd anymore. What about Rio?

Every game we have gone behind in this season we have lost. I think that answers the question for you. I am feeling strangely confident for the city game though. I am more worried about the home fixture than the away leg.

Why did city decide to charge £40 in all stands for this game? It shows how much fans have been priced out with the game at city 2 days away and still not sold out, along with the return game at OT going on general sale and still having plenty of tickets left.

Without wishing to be deliberately provocative, Ronaldo's departure has exposed just how reliant Fergie had become on the direct long ball game. For all the plaudits that Fletcher may have received last year he isn't able to put his foot on the ball in the same way that Scholes could. Similarly Carrick is a hot and cold player. Did Ronaldo's progress damage the technical skills of the side? Maybe but that's similar to a lot of teams these days where the importance is on shifting the ball forward as fast as possible to speedy forwards. Only the very best can move the ball around the pitch and the shift over here to the quicker, more basic counter-attacking game dumbs down some of our teams. Arsenal are the only team that's remained true to the core value of ball retention.

Apparently weve score more goals and got more points than we had at this time last season. We do miss the moments of Ronaldo brilliance. I don't think teams are scared of us anymore.

Unfortunately, Karlos, City wanted to price the game much lower but the clubs have to decide on prices together and the greedy s at United wouldn't budge on the £40.

Well, anyway, it's either going to be off or there will be about 15,000 people there due to everyone else being snowed in.

29 years I have waited for this. Gutted!

Trophies or ball retention. It's a toughie.

Not for Barcelona or the Spanish national football team it isn't.

I think the fact that Nited are seemingly so reliant on a player of such limited abilities as Darren Fletcher indicates they are nowhere near as imposing as they have been in the past...and I'm not knocking Fletcher per se as he has improved massively over the past few years.

But Arsenal aren't Barcelona. Aresenal have won nothing in the last 5 years. Man Utd have won 3 titles, 1 CL, 1 FA and 1 LC. Chelsea have won 2 titles, 2 FA, 2 CC. Man Utd and Chelsea have won 6 trophies each to Arsenal's none.

So ball retention or trophies?

Its defnitely midfield where we struggle. Carrick has regressed and is nothing more than an average player now. Anderson hasn't really kicked on. Hargreaves will be fine when he's back(injuries permitting).

Judas H Priest, do you have to start arguments with everybody son? I was making a point about how United have drifted away from what was a fundamentally sound passing team to a more direct team and how that's contributed to where they are currently. I wasn't saying Arsenal were more successful or anything just pointing out some other shortfalls that they appear to be experiencing.

Btw Barcelona are the current Champions League Champions having dismantled a relatively one dimensional United team last year. For the record, I wouldn't say that Chelski can't retain the ball because they can. There you go.

City United off apparently

agree totally -

lots of good players in there -

But who out of GiggsV2010 Scholes V2010, Anderson, Carrick, Fletcher, Gibson, Obertan, Nani, would get in any of the great united teams

None is my answer, the 99 midfield was freakish in so far as it was largely home grown and a big fee for Keane (at the times prices)

A fit Hargreaves would be a big boost (should such a thing ever happen) , but it lacks grit, drive and guile for me as it is - sort that out and get the defence fit and it's a decent team.

would not surprise me at all

I heard that because Utd are charging city fans £42 at OT, city decided to charge the away fans £40 for the first leg. However they failed to realise that you have to charge the away fans the same as what the home fans are paying, so had to charge their own fans £40 as well.



It's off now anyway.

United's Carling Cup semi-final first leg against Manchester City has been postponed.

The Reds were due at Eastlands on Wednesday night, but heavy snow in the north west means the game has been rearranged to Tuesday 19 January.

The second leg, originally scheduled for Tuesday 19 January at Old Trafford, will now take place on Wednesday 27 January. As a result of this, the Barclays Premier League home game against Hull City (scheduled for 26 January) has been postponed. A new date for this fixture has yet to be decided.