It won’t be the end of the world if United lose at Celtic Park on Wednesday night.
With a trip to Villarreal and a home tie against Danish minnows Aalborg to come, the Reds would still be odds-on favourites to qualify from Group E.
But Sir Alex Ferguson is determined this season’s group stage campaign won’t go down to the wire.
“Hopefully I can give a few players some minutes on the pitch [against Celtic],” he told MUTV in an exclusive interview at the Reds’ team hotel.
“But I’ll be picking a team to get a result. That’s the important thing: we’re not fiddling about here.
“We did that in 2006 and threw away a game [against FC Copenhagen in Denmark]. We can’t afford to do that.”
On that occasion, United had to scrape through on Matchday 6 with a come-from-behind win against Benfica at Old Trafford.
Victory on Wednesday night would secure the Reds’ passage to the next phase and allow Sir Alex the freedom to rest and rotate players in the remaining group games.
See the manager’s exclusive pre-match interview on MUTV at 18:30 on Wednesday night.
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Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Owen may not need op
Contrary to press reports last weekend, a decision has not been made on the best treatment for Owen Hargreaves’ ongoing tendonitis problem.
Some UK papers claimed Hargreaves was set to go under the knife in an effort to ease the knee trouble he’s experienced since arriving at United in July 2007. The on-again, off-again nature of the problem has restricted the midfielder to just three appearances this season.
Earlier this week, a club spokesperson told ManUtd.com Hargreaves would return to a specialist; on Tuesday evening, Sir Alex Ferguson revealed a decision on the best way forward is unlikely to be made before next week.
“We’re managing it at the moment,” he said. “We should have some news next week on our exact position.”
Meanwhile, an ankle injury means Wes Brown didn’t travel to Glasgow for Wednesday night’s match against Celtic. The boss said Brown could be out of action for “a couple of weeks”.
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Some UK papers claimed Hargreaves was set to go under the knife in an effort to ease the knee trouble he’s experienced since arriving at United in July 2007. The on-again, off-again nature of the problem has restricted the midfielder to just three appearances this season.
Earlier this week, a club spokesperson told ManUtd.com Hargreaves would return to a specialist; on Tuesday evening, Sir Alex Ferguson revealed a decision on the best way forward is unlikely to be made before next week.
“We’re managing it at the moment,” he said. “We should have some news next week on our exact position.”
Meanwhile, an ankle injury means Wes Brown didn’t travel to Glasgow for Wednesday night’s match against Celtic. The boss said Brown could be out of action for “a couple of weeks”.
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Rio wants to make history
Rio Ferdinand insists he will view his career as a failure if he does not add to the three Premier League titles and Champions League crown he has won with Manchester United. Ferdinand's status as an Old Trafford legend is assured but the defender, who turns 30 on Friday, is far from satisfied. "I won't be looking back yet," said Ferdinand. "But if I get to the end of my career and have only won the trophies I currently have, I'd be disappointed. I want to win more. I'm greedy. You have to be in this sport to try and achieve anything. I would not be happy to just have this. It's realistic to think we can win the Champions League again this season, because we have fantastic players. We've added Dimitar Berbatov - he's a fantastic player - and we have a very talented squad if everyone stays fit."
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Tuesday, November 4, 2008
O'Shea hopes Bhoys attack
John O’Shea believes Celtic’s expected attacking approach in Wednesday’s Champions League clash at Parkhead could play right into United’s hands.
Gordon Strachan’s men know a win over the Group E leaders is imperative if they are to have any chance of qualifying for the knock-out stages of the competition.
A United victory, coupled with a win or a draw for Villarreal in Aalborg, would officially end Celtic's hopes. For that reason, O’Shea fully expects the Bhoys to go all out for victory, but believes that tactic may suit the Reds.
“Celtic will have to come out and try to win the game and that could be to our benefit because of the way we can hit teams on the counter-attack,” the Irishman told MUTV.
“They may have a couple of strikers back fit meaning they'll have a bigger physical presence up front. So we'll have to make sure we deal with that.”
Sir Alex’s men totally outplayed Celtic in the corresponding fixture during the 2006/07 group stages, but a combination of poor finishing and a missed penalty, as well as a stunning free-kick from Shunsuke Nakamura, resulted in a 1-0 defeat.
Despite being in a strong position at the top of Group E, O’Shea says it’s vital the Reds leave Glasgow with at least a point.
“It'll be a tough away game and the crowd will be like an extra man for them, but we'll be looking to pick up something,” he said.
“We're then away to Villarreal and home to Aalborg so we’re in a strong postition, but we won't count our chickens just yet. There is still work to be done.”
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Gordon Strachan’s men know a win over the Group E leaders is imperative if they are to have any chance of qualifying for the knock-out stages of the competition.
A United victory, coupled with a win or a draw for Villarreal in Aalborg, would officially end Celtic's hopes. For that reason, O’Shea fully expects the Bhoys to go all out for victory, but believes that tactic may suit the Reds.
“Celtic will have to come out and try to win the game and that could be to our benefit because of the way we can hit teams on the counter-attack,” the Irishman told MUTV.
“They may have a couple of strikers back fit meaning they'll have a bigger physical presence up front. So we'll have to make sure we deal with that.”
Sir Alex’s men totally outplayed Celtic in the corresponding fixture during the 2006/07 group stages, but a combination of poor finishing and a missed penalty, as well as a stunning free-kick from Shunsuke Nakamura, resulted in a 1-0 defeat.
Despite being in a strong position at the top of Group E, O’Shea says it’s vital the Reds leave Glasgow with at least a point.
“It'll be a tough away game and the crowd will be like an extra man for them, but we'll be looking to pick up something,” he said.
“We're then away to Villarreal and home to Aalborg so we’re in a strong postition, but we won't count our chickens just yet. There is still work to be done.”
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Wes and Edwin miss Celtic trip
Aside from long-term injury victims Paul Scholes and Owen Hargreaves, Wes Brown and Edwin van der Sar were the only two Reds left in Manchester as the squad flew out to Scotland on Tuesday afternoon.
An ankle knock has kept Brown out of United's last two games and he also missed training on Tuesday morning at Carrington.
Van der Sar, meanwhile, has been rested with Ben Foster set to be handed his Champions League debut against Celtic on Wednesday night.
The squad trained at Carrington on Tuesday morning ahead of their trip to Celtic Park. Victory over Gordon Strachan's men will ensure the Reds' a safe passage through to knock-out stages of the competition.
The travelling squad: Kuszczak, Foster; Neville, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, O'Shea, Rafael, Evans; Possebon, Anderson, Fletcher, Nani, Ronaldo, Gibson, Giggs, Carrick, Park; Tevez, Berbatov, Rooney.
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An ankle knock has kept Brown out of United's last two games and he also missed training on Tuesday morning at Carrington.
Van der Sar, meanwhile, has been rested with Ben Foster set to be handed his Champions League debut against Celtic on Wednesday night.
The squad trained at Carrington on Tuesday morning ahead of their trip to Celtic Park. Victory over Gordon Strachan's men will ensure the Reds' a safe passage through to knock-out stages of the competition.
The travelling squad: Kuszczak, Foster; Neville, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, O'Shea, Rafael, Evans; Possebon, Anderson, Fletcher, Nani, Ronaldo, Gibson, Giggs, Carrick, Park; Tevez, Berbatov, Rooney.
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