Luiz Felipe Scolari has told United to show more respect for referees after Mike Riley booked seven of their players during a stormy 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge. Paul Scholes, Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov, Rio Ferdinand, Gary Neville and Patrice Evra were all booked for United, who will be given a mandatory fine of £25,000 by the FA. Tempers flared at the final whistle, with Ferdinand complaining to United boss Sir Alex Ferguson about the theatrics of Chelsea substitute Didier Drogba as they left the pitch and Ferguson himself furious with Riley. Referee Mike Riley brandished seven yellow cards to United players at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea manager Scolari said: "I’m not surprised there were so many bookings. The referee is there for that reason. If players don’t respect him then he will show yellow card or red cards. It is the same for everyone — Liverpool, Chelsea or Manchester United."
Neil Ashton, Daily Mail
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Monday, September 22, 2008
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Mixed emotions for Park
Ji-sung Park scored United's goal at Stamford Bridge but he and his team-mates were disappointed to leave the gound with only one point.
The South Korean international put the Reds in front on 18 minutes but a late Salomon Kalou header levelled the scores.
“It was disappointing,” Park told Sky Sports. “We were 1-0 up and to lose a goal from a free-kick with 10 minutes to play…
“We were looking forward to winning this game at Stamford Bridge but we only managed a point. So yes, it’s a little disappointing.”
Park reacted first when Petr Cech spilled Dimitar Berbatov’s shot on 18 minutes and was left with a simple tap-in to put United in front. The goal, Park admitted, went some way to making up for the heartache he endured when left out of Sir Alex’s squad for the Champions League final.
“A little bit, but not fully,” he said. “It was very disappointing to miss the Champions League final. But I was pleased to score today.”
The Reds had seven players booked by referee Mike Riley, yet Park (one of those not shown the yellow card) insists that statistic doesn’t reflect what happened on the pitch.
“It wasn’t a dirty game,” he said. “I think that’s a little unfair and some Chelsea tackles seemed to go punished. But that’s the referee’s decision.”
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The South Korean international put the Reds in front on 18 minutes but a late Salomon Kalou header levelled the scores.
“It was disappointing,” Park told Sky Sports. “We were 1-0 up and to lose a goal from a free-kick with 10 minutes to play…
“We were looking forward to winning this game at Stamford Bridge but we only managed a point. So yes, it’s a little disappointing.”
Park reacted first when Petr Cech spilled Dimitar Berbatov’s shot on 18 minutes and was left with a simple tap-in to put United in front. The goal, Park admitted, went some way to making up for the heartache he endured when left out of Sir Alex’s squad for the Champions League final.
“A little bit, but not fully,” he said. “It was very disappointing to miss the Champions League final. But I was pleased to score today.”
The Reds had seven players booked by referee Mike Riley, yet Park (one of those not shown the yellow card) insists that statistic doesn’t reflect what happened on the pitch.
“It wasn’t a dirty game,” he said. “I think that’s a little unfair and some Chelsea tackles seemed to go punished. But that’s the referee’s decision.”
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Rooney champing at the bit
Wayne Rooney was pleased with the “a point gained” at Stamford Bridge and believes that, with one of United’s toughest spells of the season behind them, the Reds must now build up a significant run of form.
“It’s definitely a point gained,” Rooney told MUTV. “Chelsea’s record at Stamford Bridge is really good and, although we were leading for most of the game and it was disappointing to lose the goal, it’s still a good point. We had the better of the game in the first half but Chelsea were better in the second half. A draw was probably a fair result.”
Losing to Liverpool does not gain favour with Rooney at the best of times, but the manner of last week's 2-1 defeat cut deep. “We were all disappointed,” he said. “It was a terrible display, but against Villarreal I thought we deserved to win, and against Chelsea we showed at times what a good football team we can be.
“We knew it was going to be a tough start to the season – we had three of our toughest away games in the first four matches. Liverpool, Chelsea and Portsmouth away are all tough. But we’ve got them out of the way now and hopefully we can go on a good run, get some wins under our belts and some points on the table.”
The return of Cristiano Ronaldo, who played more than half an hour at Chelsea, and the bedding in of Dimitar Berbatov also bode well. “It’s a huge boost for us to have Cristiano back,” said Rooney. “He’s a great player and hopefully he can get a few games in the next few weeks. That will give him fitness and he’ll start to produce what we know he is capable of.
"With Dimitar, he’s a new player and we had some good touches together. I’m sure the partnership will get better the more we play together and, of course, with Carlos Tevez to come in as well.”
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“It’s definitely a point gained,” Rooney told MUTV. “Chelsea’s record at Stamford Bridge is really good and, although we were leading for most of the game and it was disappointing to lose the goal, it’s still a good point. We had the better of the game in the first half but Chelsea were better in the second half. A draw was probably a fair result.”
Losing to Liverpool does not gain favour with Rooney at the best of times, but the manner of last week's 2-1 defeat cut deep. “We were all disappointed,” he said. “It was a terrible display, but against Villarreal I thought we deserved to win, and against Chelsea we showed at times what a good football team we can be.
“We knew it was going to be a tough start to the season – we had three of our toughest away games in the first four matches. Liverpool, Chelsea and Portsmouth away are all tough. But we’ve got them out of the way now and hopefully we can go on a good run, get some wins under our belts and some points on the table.”
The return of Cristiano Ronaldo, who played more than half an hour at Chelsea, and the bedding in of Dimitar Berbatov also bode well. “It’s a huge boost for us to have Cristiano back,” said Rooney. “He’s a great player and hopefully he can get a few games in the next few weeks. That will give him fitness and he’ll start to produce what we know he is capable of.
"With Dimitar, he’s a new player and we had some good touches together. I’m sure the partnership will get better the more we play together and, of course, with Carlos Tevez to come in as well.”
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Boss pleased with point
United and Chelsea deserved to share the points on Sunday, according to Reds boss Sir Alex Ferguson.
“In football terms, I think we certainly deserved a point,” he told MUTV. “That said, I think in some ways it was a point gained – we didn’t know what was going to happen on that pitch with so many free-kicks being awarded around the edge of the box. I was starting to worry.”
It’s no wonder the manager was fretting. Referee Mike Riley was particularly whistle-happy at the Bridge, awarding 35 free kicks (19 against the Reds, 16 against Chelsea) and handing out eight yellow cards (seven to United).
“I don’t want to get into that,” Sir Alex said. “All I’ll say is that the match went out around the world and I think some people will be wondering what was going on.
“I didn’t think there was one bad tackle in the game.”
After a feeble performance at Anfield last weekend, Sir Alex was pleased in midweek with United’s performance against Spanish side Villarreal. At Chelsea, too, the boss found there was much to take heart from.
“I think we played with great tempo to our game, particularly in the first 20 minutes. We played some excellent football.
“If there is a criticism of us today, then we didn’t go for the jugular when we were 1-0 up and in complete control. We eased off and allowed Chelsea to regroup at half-time.”
Injuries forced Sir Alex to hand Jonny Evans a Premier League debut and pick Gary Neville for his first league start since March 2007. Ji-sung Park and Owen Hargreaves were also included from kick-off after impressing in their first starts of the season in midweek.
“I’m very happy with how Gary Neville and Jonny Evans played,” the boss confirmed. “I think they’ve all done well. There were a couple of moments where Joe Cole got free – once in the first half and once in the second half – but I think we defended quite well.
“We maybe lost a little energy towards the end of the game because we’ve still got a few players, like Berbatov, Hargreaves, Park, Ronaldo and Neville who haven’t played all that much football recently.
“They started to tire a little and that allowed Chelsea to break on a few occasions when we should have kept possession of the ball. But everyone worked hard on a hot day.”
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“In football terms, I think we certainly deserved a point,” he told MUTV. “That said, I think in some ways it was a point gained – we didn’t know what was going to happen on that pitch with so many free-kicks being awarded around the edge of the box. I was starting to worry.”
It’s no wonder the manager was fretting. Referee Mike Riley was particularly whistle-happy at the Bridge, awarding 35 free kicks (19 against the Reds, 16 against Chelsea) and handing out eight yellow cards (seven to United).
“I don’t want to get into that,” Sir Alex said. “All I’ll say is that the match went out around the world and I think some people will be wondering what was going on.
“I didn’t think there was one bad tackle in the game.”
After a feeble performance at Anfield last weekend, Sir Alex was pleased in midweek with United’s performance against Spanish side Villarreal. At Chelsea, too, the boss found there was much to take heart from.
“I think we played with great tempo to our game, particularly in the first 20 minutes. We played some excellent football.
“If there is a criticism of us today, then we didn’t go for the jugular when we were 1-0 up and in complete control. We eased off and allowed Chelsea to regroup at half-time.”
Injuries forced Sir Alex to hand Jonny Evans a Premier League debut and pick Gary Neville for his first league start since March 2007. Ji-sung Park and Owen Hargreaves were also included from kick-off after impressing in their first starts of the season in midweek.
“I’m very happy with how Gary Neville and Jonny Evans played,” the boss confirmed. “I think they’ve all done well. There were a couple of moments where Joe Cole got free – once in the first half and once in the second half – but I think we defended quite well.
“We maybe lost a little energy towards the end of the game because we’ve still got a few players, like Berbatov, Hargreaves, Park, Ronaldo and Neville who haven’t played all that much football recently.
“They started to tire a little and that allowed Chelsea to break on a few occasions when we should have kept possession of the ball. But everyone worked hard on a hot day.”
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Edwin's injury not serious
Edwin van der Sar should be fit to face Bolton Wanderers on Saturday, despite needing to be substituted at Stamford Bridge in the first half.
The Dutchman, who was injured in a collision with Chelsea forward Florent Malouda in Sunday’s 1-1 draw, played on briefly before signalling to the bench that he could no longer continue.
“He got some studs in the kneecap and there was a bit of swelling there,” Sir Alex told MUTV after the final whistle. “Hopefully he’ll be okay for next week.”
Van der Sar isn’t the only Reds goalkeeper who’ll be visiting the treatment room at Carrington this week.
Ben Foster fell awkwardly on his ankle playing for United’s Reserves last Thursday and is expected to be out of action for up to two months.
“Ben’s not had any luck,” Sir Alex told media last Friday. “He’s been blighted by injuries so far in his career.
“He’s a top goalkeeper and I just hope he gets a little break now.”
Tomasz Kuszczak, who replaced van der Sar at Chelsea, will almost certainly don United’s goalkeeper jersey on Tuesday night when Middlesbrough arrive at Old Trafford in the Carling Cup.
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The Dutchman, who was injured in a collision with Chelsea forward Florent Malouda in Sunday’s 1-1 draw, played on briefly before signalling to the bench that he could no longer continue.
“He got some studs in the kneecap and there was a bit of swelling there,” Sir Alex told MUTV after the final whistle. “Hopefully he’ll be okay for next week.”
Van der Sar isn’t the only Reds goalkeeper who’ll be visiting the treatment room at Carrington this week.
Ben Foster fell awkwardly on his ankle playing for United’s Reserves last Thursday and is expected to be out of action for up to two months.
“Ben’s not had any luck,” Sir Alex told media last Friday. “He’s been blighted by injuries so far in his career.
“He’s a top goalkeeper and I just hope he gets a little break now.”
Tomasz Kuszczak, who replaced van der Sar at Chelsea, will almost certainly don United’s goalkeeper jersey on Tuesday night when Middlesbrough arrive at Old Trafford in the Carling Cup.
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