Overview
SC Braga are a club that have really established themselves in the consciousness of the football fan in the 2000s after achieving several 2nd and 3rd place finishes in the Portuguese Liga. In doing so, they have challenged the hegemony of the Big Three in Portugal and delivered a litany of eye-catching performances in Europe. As many will recall, Braga reached the 2011 Europa Cup final against Andre Villas-Boas' Porto, only to succumb to the brilliance of Radamel Falcao. The Northern outfit reached the Champion's League group stages for the first time in their history in 2010/11 after dispatching both Celtic and Sevilla in the qualifying stages. Braga's passage to this year's group stages involved negotiating a difficult tie against Udinese. which they did via the lottery of a penalty shoot-out.
Braga arrive at Old Trafford on Tuesday night hoping to put a serious dent into United's bid to secure passage to the knock-out stages. The Iberian outfit have had an erratic start to their Champion's League campaign thus far, garnering three points from their two matches. A victory would put them level on points with United and galvanise their bid to reach the knock-out stage for the very first time. Matchday One saw Braga inexplicably lose to CFR Cluj at home despite dominating the game for large spells, eventually getting outdone by two incisive breakaway goals from former player Rafael Bastos. This jarring defeat was followed up by a daunting trip to face Galatasaray in the unsettling atmosphere of the Sami Ali Yen Stadium. Despite the imposing backdrop, Braga managed to record an impressive victory with goals from Ruben Micael and Alan.
Braga will have been galvanised by the news that both Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra will be rested after their exertions over the weekend. They have the attacking threat that can hurt United, who themselves have been less than impressive in Europe this season. Braga are undefeated in seven away games in Europe, which is no mean feat given that they have travelled to the likes of Galatasaray, Sevilla and Udinese. Their club captain Alan will give Alexander Buttner some cause for concern down the left side, as will Helder Barbosa for Rafael (who should start on Tuesday). Up front, Braga will call upon the services of the powerful Eder, joint second top-scorer in Portugal and a man that has been touted by some as the answer to the national team's perennial goalscorer problem. He will certainly cause problems to a makeshift defensive back line that may include Michael Carrick or Scott Wootton.
Recent results Date Result Competition 07 Oct 2012 Braga 4 - SC Olhanense 4 POR1 02 Oct 2012 Galatasaray 0 - Braga 2UCL 28 Sep 2012 Vitoria Guimaraes 0 Braga 2POR1 23 Sep 2012 Braga 4 - Rio Ave 1 POR1 19 Sep 2012 Braga 0 - CFR Cluj 2UCL
Team and Formation (probable)
Player to watch Hugo Viana (Central Midfield)
Many British viewers will remember Hugo Viana from his time at Newcastle, a stint that was unmemorable and inauspicious for the Portuguese maestro. After leaving Newcastle, Viana moved to Valencia but was unable to establish himself there, being loaned out to Osasuna and Braga during his spell at the Mestalla. He secured a permanent transfer to Braga in 2010 and, while not quite realising the potential seen early in his career, Viana has put in some steady and impressive performances for the Arsenalistas.
Viana is a player with great quality on the ball, being able to play short quick passes, as well as penetrative through-balls to the likes of Eder. His set pieces are also dangerous and United will have to be wary when conceding free-kicks in threatening positions. United will have to guard against the midfield pairing of Viana and Custodio getting a foothold in the game. The two compliment each very well, with the elegance of Viana and the reslience of Custodio; a combination that has hurt United in the past.
In this particular blog post, we look at four young players
who completed their first full season at United as regular members of the first
team and look at what to expect moving forward. The four, David De Gea, Phil Jones, Tom Cleverley
and Danny Welbeck along with the likes of Chris Smalling, Jonny Evans and
Rafael among others lead United’s new generation; a new generation in which
club and fans alike have invested time and energy with great faith.
David De Gea
Bearing an uncanny resemblance to a llama, David
De Gea is a keeper who has been making waves across Europe for a number of
seasons now. The Spaniard an acquisition last summer from Atletico de Madrid
arrived at Old Trafford full beard with a Spanish pop-singing girlfriend by his
side for approximately £18m. In the process he became one of the most expensive
goalkeepers of all time and one of United’s youngest ever number ones. Despite
constant speculation for 6 months or more, it was still a surprising choice and
seen as a gamble by Sir Alex Ferguson when many thought he would perhaps prefer
a more experienced and steady option such as Maartin Stekelenburg or German
Rene Adler especially since in the past United have enjoyed great success
fielding northern European keepers in the shape of legendary duo Edwin Van der
Saar and Peter Schmeichel.
The goalkeeper started off his United career shakily,
struggling to command his box and conceding what were considered by many soft
goals. Fortunately for him none of the mistakes ( vs City in the charity shield
and WBA on the opening day of the season) were costly to United in terms of the
result. De Gea’s slender frame was pinpointed as one of the factors for his
performances, but the shot stopper perhaps also suffered with an inconsistent
defensive lineup from match to match and Ferguson’s constant rotation of the
keeper position in a manner which brought back memories of Tim Howard and Roy
Carrol’s time at the club.
One of the two significant points in De Gea’s season came
when United beat Arsenal at Old Trafford to record one of the most emphatic
results in Premier league history. De Gea pulled off a penalty save from Robin
Van Persie to keep United ahead at 1-0, his confidence soared as almost every
player came to congratulate him and the crowd sung his name. De Gea would go on
to perform very well vs Chelsea at Old Trafford and in the league in general
but remained unconvincing in one or two games in the Champion’s League. Indeed De
Gea eventually did go on to cost United points most notably vs Blackburn at Old
Trafford in a 3-2 loss. He was subsequently dropped and drew plenty of
criticism but through a twist of fate his replacement would get injured and De
Gea would experience another significant moment in what now feels like the turning
point in his United career. United travelled to Stamford Bridge with rumours
that Ben Amos the club’s 3rd choice keeper would be starting as De
Gea was supposedly recovering from an illness. Despite eventually making the
starting lineup it was a 50 minutes United fans would have wanted to forget as
Chelsea scored 3 goals without reply. United fought back very well to level the
game and threatened to win it, so did Chelsea. But for De Gea and arguably the
save of the season they’d have succeeded. Approaching the 2nd minute
of stoppage time, Chelsea won a freekick in a dangerous position, Juan Mata, De
Gea’s international team mate stepped up and curled a near perfect shot which
seemed destined for the top corner of the net only for De Gea to make up great distance
and make a fingertip save to push it round for a corner. The save was
constantly replayed and praised in many quarters, more importantly De gea
rescued a point for United.
"Spanish Cat!! De Gea performs incredible acrobatics to deny
Mata."
From that moment the Spaniard didn’t look back, as he put in
impressive performances towards the end of the season. It was De Gea’s heroics which
stopped United from being humiliated by a dominant Athletic Bilbao in the
Europa League (in my opinion his best performance for United to date) and he
didn’t let himself down vs Ajax in the previous round either. It was clear to
most United fans by this stage that this a keeper growing into the number one
spot, his potential, limitless. De Gea finished 2011/2012 with 39 appearances
overall and 15 clean sheets.
2012/2013 promises to be even better for De Gea. The
recently named captain of the Spanish Olympic squad appears to have bulked up
and after finally settling in to the premier league, the worst seems to be
behind him. The experience gained from his first season and the return of
captain Nemanja Vidic to defence gives United a formidable defence once again.
De Gea will start the season as number one with many fans also hoping the
manager is less inclined to rotate the keeper position as much as last season.
Provided the manager does get the balance right, the sky really is the limit
for David De Gea.
Phil Jones
Long touted as a future England star and
captain, United were perhaps forced to bring forward the transfer a year
earlier than they would have liked (with the interest of Liverpool and Arsenal)
eventually parting with around £16m rising to £20m to bring the player to Old
Trafford. Described by Sam Allardyce at one point as Blackburn’s “Michael
Essien”, the youngster first caught Ferguson’s eye in a youth game and was left
thoroughly impressed, yet it was the leadership qualities on the end of a 7-1
defeat to United which convinced the manager to further his interest. Even with
the departure of John O’Shea and Wes Brown, a few questioned how United could
justify the acquisition with the multiple options in defence at Ferguson’s
disposal rather than diverting funds to more pressing areas. However it didn’t
take long for them to warm to the player’s aggression, stamina, strength, and
enthusiasm to go forward regularly. On message boards fans started calling him
“the new Duncan Edwards” and Fabio Capello the national team manager claimed
Jones could reach the level of Franco Baresi after fast tracking him into the
England setup.
Jones featured heavily in the beginning of the season for a
free scoring United packed with young players, being employed in central
defence and more frequently at right back where his crossing stood out. The
player would later on in the season also feature in central midfield, most
notably a start against Liverpool at Anfield. It was in this position that he
would also register his first United and senior goal vs Aston Villa away. Whilst
the position was not entirely new (he actually played more in midfield than
defence for Blackburn) it was rather surprising Jones was employed by Ferguson
in midfield as the most advanced midfielder in a 4-3-3 setup. The jury is still
out how effective he is in such a role, nevertheless up until December or so
Jones didn’t really let himself down as far as performances go (Benfica own
goal in the Champion’s League aside). The second half of the season was a little
more different as he displayed obvious signs of fatigue, his less than optimal
condition no doubt a contributor to his performances tailing off in addition to
the lack of a settled position, Jones finished with 41 appearances, 2 goals, 2
own goals and 4 assists.
"Mr. Jones: Off the mark finally for United."
So how will 2012/2013 turn out for the player? Forcing
himself ahead of Ferdinand, Vidic and Evans in central defence will not be
easy, the truth is Jones has yet to prove he is any better than the above 3 in
central defence. He will likely gain more opportunities at right back and
occasionally in midfield. It is another season for Jones to develop and
ultimately for Ferguson to get closer to deciding his best position. Jones can
expect to be shifted all around the pitch and perform a utility man role within
the squad. This is what he will remain in his younger days unless he is finally
able to find his true position soon. Maturity and positional discipline are
qualities needed in his game to make the next step in his development, whilst
the potential is undoubtedly there; Jones perhaps needs to play with his head
more than his heart in the forthcoming season.
Tom Cleverley
Seen as a promising prospect before his
breakthrough, Cleverley’s emergence still came as very much of a surprise in
terms of the immediate impact he was able to make on the first team. A United
player since the age of 12, the player actually started out as a fullback but
made the switch to midfield whilst playing for the reserves. As a name Cleverley
was never really hyped up much in his younger years compared to other
youngsters such as Giuseppe Rossi or even David Jones, it was clear however
that he did have a good understanding of the game, space and awareness of those
around him. In time he was able to hone his technical skills but it was perhaps
his determination and desire to prove himself above all which finally got him a
chance at United. In a way you could say it’s quite reminiscent to his idol
growing up at United, David Beckham. The hard work Cleverley put in convinced Watford
to take him on loan where he was nothing short of a revelation. Subsequently
Roberto Martinez of Wigan did the same in the following season. The Spaniard
has talked up Cleverley regularly believing greatly in his potential to make it
to the very top. In between Cleverley showed enough to impress Ferguson on
preseason tours. And it was last year’s pre-season tour which convinced
Ferguson to keep Cleverley for the season rather then send him on loan. The
player was thrown in at the deep end vs Barcelona and impressed in a United
win.
His stock would rise further still. Down 2-0 to Man City in
the Community Shield, Cleverley came on as substitute to partner Anderson in
midfield and his influence was one of the main reasons United were able to turn
around the game and win 3-2. Cleverley played a big part in United’s second
goal arguably one of the best of the season providing the assist in a sumptuous
move of one touch passes on the edge of the box which ended with Nani chipping
Joe Hart.
It wouldn’t be a stretch to say Cleverley also brought out
the best in Anderson. Ferguson started with the two regularly in the beginning
of the season where United impressed greatly. Whilst the side looked vulnerable
defensively and leaked goals, the football going forward and the understanding
between the two midfielders had many fans salivating. Unfortunately for both
players and the club they were not afforded the chance to build on the
partnership as Cleverley suffered an injury from a late tackle by Kevin Davies
when United played Bolton away. It would be the start of constant frustration
as Cleverley lasted barely a game before getting injured again vs Everton,
Anderson would have his fair share of injuries throughout the season as well.
By the time he had recovered, Paul Scholes had come out of retirement and the
season was drawing to a close as Clverley struggled to break into the starting
lineup again, a shame all-round after the season had promised so much. He
eventually finished the season with 15 appearances and 3 assists.
But 2012/2013 promises to be different for Cleverley. It has
already started on a good note. He will take part in the Olympics for Great
Britain rather than United’s pre-season. The worry by many is he will get injured
and suffer yet another setback which would truly be the worst thing to happen
for Tom at this stage. But on the other hand I’m of the opinion the more
competitive football he can get the better. Approaching nearly 23 years,
Cleverley has accumulated very little top flight football that the call up to
the Olympics can only be seen as positive and an aid to his development. An
accomplished one and two touch player, he cites Iniesta and Xavi as big
influences on his game. Cleverley also possesses an ability to whip in a ball
with great curl a trait he no doubt partly picked up from his idol growing up
David Beckham. Because of this it is noticeable he also prefers to place his
shots rather than shoot with power. There has been no in-between with Cleverley
to date, in some quarters he has become somewhat of a forgotten man when fans
flood into message boards to voice their concern over the midfield situation,
but despite this he does also have his followers who have hyped him up
endlessly. It seems the longer Cleverley has been out with injury, the better
he has gotten in some people’s eyes. Like most things the truth is probably
somewhere in the middle, fansshould not
get carried away just yet, but even so it’s clearly obvious the video linked
below serves as a reminder to the excellent qualities he has offer and which
the team lacks. The fans live in hope Ferguson can somehow reunite Cleverley
and Anderson in midfield but in a setup where the team is not as exposed
defensively. Synergy is a very important concept in football; many managers
attempt desperately to build units and combinations throughout the pitch
without much success, that United may have stumbled on one in such a key position
of the pitch is encouraging, however it is still too early to tell how
successful and how good they can be individually and as a pair. Indeed in
Anderson’s case his attitude and conditioning must change drastically. As for
Tom, he’ll be hoping 2012/2013 is finally the year he establishes himself and
every single fan across the country sits up and takes notice.
"A reminder: Tom Cleverley could be just what the midfield
ordered."
Danny Welbeck
Danny Welbeck has long been a familiar name
for followers of United’s academy and Reserves. A local lad, he is featured a
few times in some training drills on United’s 2003 DVD release “Manchester
United: Play like Champions.”
"Blast from the past: Welbeck taking tips from the Welsh Wizard."
"Danny boy and Ruud: Learning from the best of the best."
Welbeck has actually also been in and around the first team
since a very young age, where has drawn comparisons to former Nigerian
international Nwankwo Kanu and the dazzling Thierry Henry. The English born
striker of Ghanaian origin announced his arrival on the premier league stage by
scoring a spectacular goal aged 17, after coming on as a sub. However 2011/2012
was the first season he started as a regular with the full faith of the boss.
After impressing on loan at Steve Bruce’s Sunderland and prior to that Preston
North End, some questioned whether Ferguson would be tempted to cash in on the
player. For those that had listened to Ferguson talk about Welbeck since he was
15, they were convinced otherwise. Such was Ferguson’s belief in the youngster,
he once made the prediction Welbeck would be in England’s 2010 World Cup Squad,
his prediction of course never materialised. But fast forward 2 years later with
the player scoring an audacious back heel in the European Championships vs
Ukraine and we can see his crystal ball wasn’t far off.
"Confidence: Debut goal, and here to stay."
Welbeck has perhaps not always had the full belief of the
fans, with comparisons to another teenage scoring sensation Federico Macheda
aplenty; his awkward style on the ball obvious and his finishing not the most
natural. For a period, even his attitude came into question, away to Derby in
an FA cup tie, Welbeck executed a wonderfully curled finish but didn’t
celebrate with much enthusiasm. Not everyone was impressed with what was deemed
an arrogant approach, in the end subsequent celebrations have proved it really
was all just a storm in a teacup. And as for his development, Ferguson and the
coaching staff regularly pleaded for patience, outlining Welbeck was still
growing and needed time to get over problems related to his knees and thighs.
As such, only once the player had gone through all the physical development
would his true potential finally come to the fore.
Welbeck began the season as a starter being named in the
team to face Man City in the community shield. Whilst he didn’t score he played
a part in the buildup to United’s equaliser. He then retained his spot for the
opening fixture of the premier league vs WBA away but again failed to find the
net. The story looked to be heading in the same direction when he started his 3rd
successive game vs Tottenham and looked set to be substituted, Welbeck had
other ideas though. A cross from the right from Tom Cleverley and Welbeck rose
high to plant a header past Brad Friedel, the goal obviously meant a lot to the
player and undoubtedly triggered his confidence levels higher for the season to
come. Welbeck would score again in the next game, an 8-2 rout of Arsenal and
repeated the feat in the return game at the Emirates bagging the winner.Throughout the season he played his part in
many excellent team buildups and was able to score his first Champion’s League
goals vs FC Basel, a derby goal vs Man City in the FA cup and a goal vs Everton
at home which at one stage looked like clinching the league. Welbeck finished 2011/2012
with 39 appearances, 12 goals, and 7 assists.
2012/2013 Does not look like it will get any easier for
Welbeck. Second season syndrome is very much a possibility, but the major worry
for him has to be whether he will remain a starter, the club has invested big
money in Shinji Kagawa. The Japanese International looks set to start the
season as the main no.10 with Wayne Rooney pushed up into more of a no.9 role
in which he enjoyed such success during the 2009/2010 season. Should this
happen Welbeck would be relegated to more of a bench role. The positive for
Welbeck is that the system Ferguson will look to employ in the coming season(s)
based on pace and fluidity suit his game perfectly and thus he should still get
enough games but perhaps not as the main striker. The 4-2-3-1 which many
predict will be Ferguson’s preferred choice of formation could still allow
Welbeck to flourish in a wide role akin to how he was employed a number of
times when he broke through to the first team and also in the academy. Compared
to Javier Hernandez this is a big advantage for Welbeck in his quest to gain
more minutes and develop further. The Mexican has shown little to disprove he
is capable of playing anywhere else except off the shoulder of the last
defender. As a result, El Chicharito could experience yet another frustrating
season. The club does play in a large number of games each season, hence
rotation is very likely and in fact usually key to a successful season. However
the fact remains that having virtually ended Dimitar Berbatov’s United career,
Hernandez is in great danger of having his own ended by the Mancunian,
especially if Welbeck is able to improve his finishing in front of goal his
only really glaring weakness. All in all, it is clear Ferguson has great belief
in Welbeck’s qualities; Welbeck could very well surprise us in 2012/2013 and
take his game up a notch. Predictions of him losing his starting spot and
struggling greatly may yet be premature. But having said that I personally
expect him to achieve similar numbers to last season and if there is to be an
improvement or deterioration then it will only be minor.
What did you think of these players’ first seasons? And
what do you expect from them in the coming one? Leave a comment on our blog
below, or have your say in the thread on our United subforum. http://www.soccer24-7.com/forum/showthread.php?t=197165
Manchester United is a club which prides itself on the
development of youth. From the Busby Babes, to the Class of ’92 some
illustrious names have come out of the club’s youth academy such as Duncan
Edwards, Sir Bobby Charlton, George Best, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes etc. The club
has produced 4 ballon d’or winners overall with 2 of them (one of who is also England’s
all-time leading goal scorer) coming from the club’s academy, a fine
achievement. The club has also played a key role in the development of
Cristiano Ronaldo. Even though times have changed and the game is a lot more
global nowadays, whether foreign or local the club’s commitment to helping
young players attain a higher level remains unwavering.
United also have a very rich European history filled with tragedy
and triumph, the club and particularly Sir Matt Busby took Europe very
seriously at a time when it was ridiculed. The legendary Scot had a vision when
it came to European competition and what it would ultimately mean for the club,
English teams as well as the whole continent. United were the first team to
play in European competition in 1956-57 and perhaps very fittingly the first
English team to win the European cup.
Knowing all the above it therefore came as a surprise to me
when I learned in April of this year that the 10 time record FA youth cup
winners had turned down an invitation to take part in the 2012-13 NextGen
Series, this competition combined two things United strongly believe in – youth
development and European competition, to me it seemed almost an inevitability
United would take up the invitation.
Most of you are probably aware by now what the NextGen series
is, for those of you that aren’t the NextGen series is basically the U-19
version of the European cup, a Junior Champion’s League bringing together the
finest club academies in Europe’s top leagues from the famed youth academies of
Ajax Amsterdam to Barcelona among others.
The competition was founded in August 2011 under the parent company
Cydad Sports Management. It is the brainchild of Brentford Sporting director
Mark Warburton and Sports TV producer Justin Andrews. Warburton is a former
city trader and professional footballer who has also played a significant role
in UK football, having been the Academy Manager of Watford Football Club. He
set up the Harefield Academy, a renowned dedicated football school and the
first of its kind in the UK. The
competition itself was designed to replicate as closely as possible the
competitive environment and experience of the Champion’s League for younger
players, exposing them to different styles of play, the travelling involved and
even dealing with the media.
Team participating in the NextGen series are limited to a
squad size of no more than 18 members. There is an age limit of 18 on players
participating in the competition. However, each club has the option of having
three players who are one year older than this, although only a maximum of two
of them are allowed to be on the pitch at any one time.
In its inaugural year, 16 teams took part and were split
into 4 groups. There were overall 4 English participants, Aston Villa,
Liverpool, Man City, and Tottenham. The remaining teams consisted of Wolfsburg,
Inter Milan, Marseille, Ajax, PSV, Molde, Rosenborg, Sporting Clube de
Portugal, Celtic, Barcelona, Basel and Fenerbache. Teams faced each other home
and away with the top two teams from each group advancing to the quarterfinals
in a knockout format. At this stage however, unlike the Champion’s league it
doesn’t become a 2 legged affair rather a single game with the quarter finals played
on the home ground of the group winners and the semifinals and final played on
a neutral ground.
The winners of the competition eventually turned out to be
Inter Milan displaying once again the tactical intelligence of the Italians and
their ability to adapt when faced with different scenarios and opposition.
Inter Milan knocked out free scoring Sporting club de Portugal in the quarters,
Marseille in the semis and Ajax on penalties in the final. It was a run to be
respected given Sporting were very impressive in the group stages amassing 16
points from a total 18 and scoring a staggering 20 goals, the most in the group
stages along with Barcelona. Ajax in the final was also no easy opposition, the
Dutch side knocked out Barcelona in the quarters and humiliated Liverpool 6-0
in the semis.
Inter Milan were the NextGen's inaugral winners
Liverpool were the best performing English side but not as
convincing as Spurs or Aston Villa in the group stages, advancing in 2nd
place only a point ahead of Wolfsburg. In fact Liverpool actually did lose in
the quarters 1-0 to Spurs but Tottenham opted to withdraw from the competition
after an “accidental breach of competition regulations”. The specific details
of the breach were not released by Tottenham but there is a belief either they
fielded two under age players or a player on trial in a competitive game. As a
result Liverpool was given a place in the semi-finals.
Next season’s competition is set to see the number of
participants extended to 24 teams with Basel dropping out and 9 new entrants
which are: Arsenal, Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain, Anderlecht, CSKA Moscow,
Athletic Bilbao, Juventus, Borussia Dortmund and Olympiacos.
United are thus the only member of the so called “Top 4” in
England who have decided against participating. This has led to a bit of
discussion from United fans as to the reasons why. Like most things nowadays The
Glazers have taken some blame from some quarters with fans believing the costs
involved and finances are the real reasons behind the decision.
Another possible reason relates to the unwanted hype which
the competition seems to generate for younger players building complacency and egotism
for players who you would have to say as of yet have not made it. On the other
hand depending on the player’s personality a beating by superior opposition may
just motivate him to address his weaknesses whilst giving an indication of
where he actually stands. This is true for the club as well; the competition
would not be a bad assessment of the club’s youth department relative to the
club’s continental counterparts. United perhaps feel it is too much of a risk
to take and want to keep their players more grounded, a competition like this surely does little to
achieve that goal in the long-term. Already United have faced contractual and
attitude problems this season; the cases of Ravel Morrison, Paul Pogba, and
Ezekiel Fryers are well known. Driven by their agents, higher wages and more
minutes in the first team were two key demands made. It seems very soon not one
of the three will be left at the club. Ravel Morrison was sold to West Ham in
January, Paul Pogba’s move to Juventus is almost official and Ezekiel Fryers
will most likely take up Tottenham’s contract offer. All this was on the back of
a successful FA youth cup campaign; take it up a notch with the increased media
attention the NextGen provides and the club’s decision may be justified.
When confronted on the whole NextGen issue, the Ex-Man Utd
academy chief Jim Ryan responded with the following:
"I think the thing about that is we like to have more
control over what games we play. We can do that by selecting tournaments. I’m
not sure how good that’s turned out to be. I saw a couple of games and
Liverpool lost heavily in them both."
What Jim Ryan says seems to make sense; the clubs
involvement in 2 separate tournaments late in the season (Future Cup and the
Dallas Cup) appeared to provide all that the NextGen offers, from travelling to
continental opposition. The Dallas Cup was used for a much older crop of
players, whilst the Future Cup was used for players a bit younger, mainly an
academy side. United finished runners up in both, they came very close to
upsetting Ajax in the Future cup final losing on penalties, in the other final,
Coritiba of Brazil emerged victorious. United’s involvement in the NextGen
might also have triggered their withdrawal from the Premier league reserve
league which is a decision both Tottenham and Man City made. United raised a
few concerns last year when the NextGen was founded whether their youngsters
would still be getting enough football to develop. Man City eventually only
participated in 6 games of last year’s NextGen, but did continue to take part in
the Manchester Senior Cup, Lancashire Senior Cup plus several other matches and
tournaments such as the Central League Cup.
On a personal level, the cynical side of me and one of the
reasons I was not in favour of this competition was my worry that it would
increase poaching between clubs. Whilst clubs are only taking advantage of the
loopholes, the whole process does appear to be on the whole quite unethical. English
clubs particularly have the money to tempt youngsters from abroad (a key period
and age of the player’s development) for promises of riches. You can count on one
hand the number of successes. For evidence what I’m saying is coming to
fruition we only have to see the cases of Joao Carlos Teixeira of Sporting club
de Portugal, signed for £1m by Liverpool and more recently Joan Roman Angel snapped
up by Barcelona from Man City, the Catalan formerly of Espanyol’s academy has chosen
to go back home. Likewise top scorer Victor Fischer has been tracked and linked
heavily with United.
It would be hypocritical for me to say all this without
pointing out United themselves organise the Manchester United Premier Cup
annually where the best U-15 youngsters around the world compete. The
competition has seen youngsters such as Andres Iniesta compete and win. At this
tournament United have been able to get a closer look at some of the best U-15
youngsters and agreed deals for Rafael and Fabio Da Silva not to mention the Chilean
Angelo Henriquez. However for the first time this year the competition will be
staged in Shanghai rather than Manchester, an indication to United’s commitment to delivering
a world-class tournament for club youngsters and a hint of a possible
rebranding of the tournament in the future.
In the end it does seem a shame that historically one of
England’s best youth setups is opting against participating. We will be unable
to see one of United’s most technically promising generations tested against
some of the best youngsters on the continent. A very young and less physically
developed crop was able to reach the semi-finals of this year’s FA youth cup
losing to eventual winners Chelsea. At the very least it would be interesting
to track their progress in the NextGen but the fans must trust the club and Sir
Alex Ferguson have made the right decision and that the cons outweigh the pros.
Indeed the club may yet reverse their decision in the coming seasons.
What are the reasons in your opinion for United opting against
participation in the 2012-13 NextGen series? Leave a comment on our blog below,
or have your say on our United subforum. http://www.soccer24-7.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=33
Our 100% record came to an end yesterday as we drew 1-1 with Stoke at the Britannia Stadium.
Wayne Rooney missed the game through a slight hamstring injury, it meant Dimitar Berbatov partnered Javier Hernandez up front. Jonny Evans was on the team sheet to start in central defence alongside Rio Ferdinand but an injury in the warm up forced a change with Antonio Valencia coming in at right back and Phil Jones moving to partner Ferdinand in the centre.
Four minutes into the game Hernandez needed treatment after colliding with the Stoke goalkeeper, an incident which could have seen us awarded a penalty. Jonathan Woodgate looked to go through the back of Hernandez to win the ball which resulted in the striker going into the goalkeeper and falling heavily. After a couple minutes the striker couldn't continue and was replaced by Michael Owen.
It was a feisty opening ten minutes where Stoke tried to intimidate us early on with their tough style of play, tackles were flying in which infuriated Sir Alex. Glenn Whelan the only Stoke player to be booked for a rash challenge on Patrice Evra.
Stoke's main attacking threat came from corners and Rory Delap's long throws. Many were expecting David De Gea to struggle in this game but he dealt with most corners and throw ins.
We weathered the early attack from Stoke and got ourselves together to take the lead. Nani played a one-two with Darren Fletcher, managed to wrong foot Woodgate and he slotted the ball passed Asmir Begovic. It was the wingers fifth goal this season.
Stoke almost equalised straight away but we had De Gea to thank. Andy Wilkinson found himself free in the box and hit a thunderous drive which De Gea brilliantly saved onto the bar and out for a corner. At the other end we could have doubled our lead but Nani hit the ball over the bar after a Begovic mistake.
We once again had De Gea to thank after Stoke continued to press. Jon Walters did well to get past two defenders before driving a low shot across goal, prompting a superb save from the Spaniard who got down quickly to flick the ball 'round the post. We went into half time with the lead.
Stoke continued to press in the second half through throw ins and corners. They finally used those to their advantage when Peter Crouch headed in the equaliser from a corner. The tall striker made a yard of space which allowed him to rise earliest between Jones and Ferdinand to nod the ballpast De Gea, who was rooted to his line.
The striker could have given Stoke the lead with another header from a corner but put the ball wide.
We had a decent shout for a penalty when Ryan Shawcross seemed to handle in the area to block a shot from Patrice Evra. The linesman put his flag up but the decision was an offside to Owen.
Sir Alex sent on Ryan Giggs and Danny Welbeck to replace Berbatov and Ashley Young. The former had a great chance to win us the game in the dying minutes. Nani with some great work down the left managed to get in a cross which found Giggs at the back post, the Welshman volleying wide after pressure from a Stoke defender and the goalkeeper.
The Britannia is a tough ground to go to and people will argue we were lucky to come away with anything whilst others will be disappointed we didn't pick up maximum points.
Team: De Gea 7, Valencia 6, Ferdinand 6, Jones 7, Evra 6, Nani 8, Fletcher 6, Anderson 6, Young 5 (Giggs 5), Berbatov 5 (Welbeck 5), Hernandez N/A (Owen 5)
Michael Owen has quashed claims he joined us for the money.
Some people are still questioning the strikers choice to join us instead of going elsewhere and playing more regularly.
He said:
“It’s obvious I’ve had a good career and earned money. The last thing I thought I’d be accused of by going to Manchester United was doing it for money. I could have gone to lots of other clubs and earned more. The attraction from Man Utd’s end was that they could get a free transfer and use their name and their ability to win trophies and their kudos to attract players such as me. That’s where they’ve got an advantage, where they wouldn’t have to pay bigger wages. At other clubs a wealthy investor might have to pay twice as much as everyone else because if they don’t they won’t get the player. My situation is the opposite. I’ve been attracted to the club by the players, by the manager, the ability to win things. Money is not the motivation. I’ve had a great career. I’ve done really well. My management company concluded the deal with United in hours. That shows you. I wanted to play under the manager and in a fantastic team. I just can’t believe how many people think otherwise.”
Owen was in good form midweek against Leeds proving he's still got it with two goals. He came off the bench to replace the injured Hernandez early on yesterday against Stoke but never seemed to get going.
We've been given another kind draw in the Carling Cup, this time we're away to league two Aldershot.
The full draw is:
Wolves v Manchester City Cardiff v Burnley Blackburn v Newcastle Arsenal v Bolton Stoke v Liverpool Aldershot v Manchester United Crystal Palace v Southampton Everton v Chelsea
It'll be another chance for Sir Alex to give the squad players some game time along with hopefully youngsters like Pogba, Fryers, Cole and maybe even an appearance for Morrison.
The tie is to be played on the week commencing 24th of October.
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