Reuters Soccer Blog

United get rude awakening

The plain sailing Manchester United would have expected in the group stage of their Champions League campaign has turned into a rough ride after Tuesday’s 3-3 home draw with Swiss side Basel, who were unlucky not to have come away from Old Trafford with the three points.

Two draws in their last two games, away to Stoke City in the Premier League and the late escape against Basel, will have rooted out any complacency that might have crept into Alex Ferguson’s men after their flying start to the season which included an 8-2 drubbing of Arsenal.

United’s last two performances also showed that despite their three big summer signings in David De Gea, Phil Jones and Ashley Young, the team still lack depth when key players are injured.

With Wayne Rooney, Nemanja Vidic, Javier Hernandez and the increasingly influential Chris Smalling all sidelined, United’s makeshift 11 with Ecuador winger Antonio Valencia filling in at right back looked bereft of ideas up front against Stoke and utterly unconvincing even when they were 2-0 up against Basel, when only a late Young header spared them from paying in full for a comedy of errors at the back.

Any thoughts of wrestling the Champions League title away from holders Barcelona will have also taken a back seat for the time being, especially given they also drew 1-1 at Benfica in their opener, as Ferguson could face fresh dilemmas with what to do with one or two players.

Dimitar Berbatov looks confined to the fringes, behind four other strikers in the pecking order, and Ferguson might be tempted to offload the Bulgarian during the January transfer window when he can still get a decent bargain for last season’s joint top scorer in the Premier League.

Michael Owen won widespread praise for his brace in the 3-0 League Cup win over Leeds United last week but looked rather flat against Stoke and played no part on Tuesday, while Rio Ferdinand was completely at sea against Basel’s 32-year old striker Alexander Frei.

What is Arsenal’s future?

By Zoran Milosavljevic in Belgrade

It is a bit early to single out Manchester rivals United and City as the only title contenders this season, but it appears highly likely that Arsenal will not be among the chasing pack now headed by the new-look Liverpool and Chelsea.

What is more, the 8-2 hammering the Gunners suffered at Old Trafford suggests that Arsene Wenger’s side might even struggle to finish in the top six, unless the Frenchman can swiftly turn around their fortunes.

Crippled by early injuries to some regular starters and even more so by the departure of Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, Arsenal were so off the pace for most of the match that their fans will want to forget as soon as possible.

With the team’s vertebrae boiling down to inconsistent and injury-prone Dutch striker Robin Van Persie, Wenger faces a mammoth task of rebuilding his side which is now a far cry from the 2003-4 Invincibles who won the league title without losing a match and stretched their unbeaten record to 49 games the following season.

Ironically, that remarkable run ended in a 2-0 defeat by United at Old Trafford and signaled a decline which seems to have culminated in Sunday’s humiliation.

The 2005 FA Cup is the only silverware Arsenal have managed since and adding a fourth league title to his trophy cabinet always looked unlikely for Wenger after the Gunners swapped the intimidating atmosphere of dilapidated Highbury for their glittering new palace, the Emirates Stadium, in 2006.

Soccer Break Thursday – United roll on

Manchester United just keep on winning despite a sluggish season by their usually high standards and will now face Barcelona in the Champions League final on May 28.

Predictions? Hard to see even a full strength United keeping Messi and co at bay, especially as Barca coach Pep Guardiola will be seeking to continue his love affair with Wembley.

Next up for Alex Ferguson’s men is the visit of title rivals Chelsea on Sunday, certain to be a much stiffer test than a disappointingly lacklustre Schalke 04 on Wednesday. Will United’s formidable home record count in their favour?

Staying in Europe, and Thursday is Europa League day. Porto take a 5-1 lead into the second semi-final leg against Villarreal, while compatriots Benfica beat fellow Portuguese club Braga 2-1 at home.

Braga, less fashionable than their illustrious rivals, play their home games at the Quarry. Could be an explosive match.

Taking a look at a wider football issue, are tickets too expensive? Read here for what Arsenal are doing to combat the rise in prices.

And finally, referees have a hard time, especially with the stakes so high in Europe, but read here to find out about a New Zealand official’s ‘empty net’ penalty decision.

Soccer Break Monday – Goalline technology…again

It is never over until the fat lady sings or should that be until Alex Ferguson stops talking about refereeing decisions?

The Premier League title race is reaching boiling point and Ferguson is hot under the collar that his team did not get a penalty in their 1-0 defeat to Arsenal.

Is it all just mind games, ?

It could be, after all, only three points now separate United and Chelsea ahead of next week’s showdown between the top two at Old Trafford.

Ferguson’s sense of injustice was no doubt heightened by Chelsea’s win over Tottenham Hotspur that managed to re-ignite the debate over the need for goalline technology and highlight Heurelho Gomes’ flaws as a keeper in the space of a couple of seconds.

You have to give credit to Redknapp for not foaming at the mouth and frothing his indignation like many managers would have done in his place.

Redknapp did prove, however, the need for someone to sit down and explain to all Premier League managers the difference between flying to the moon and goalline technology as there was once again widespread disbelief that one has been accomplished without the other.

Soccer Break Wednesday – Real v Barca. Take three.

Growing tired of Real Madrid and Barcelona playing each other? Not here we aren’t. And nor is an octopus named Iker (see picture).

The Champions League is the biggest club competition in the world and generally where players peak, so Wednesday’s semi-final first leg should be the best of the recent encounters between the Spanish rivals.

A place in the final, most probably against Manchester United after their barnstorming performance on Tuesday albeit against a lacklustre Schalke 04, will be at stake. Will the third ‘clasico’ in 12 days be an all-out attack fest or a nervy 0-0?

Who is your favourite of the two sides? Barcelona for their slick-passing panache or Real for their watchability factor, in which coach Jose Mourinho plays a large role.

A player in form in the Champions League is Schalke keeper Manuel Neuer. Alex Ferguson heavily praised the German but it seems he is set for Bayern Munich as Neuer himself has ruled out a move to the Premier League.

Finally, in England Stoke City edged further away from the relegation zone with a 3-0 defeat of Wolverhampton Wanderers on Tuesday and Wolves find themselves deep in trouble. Can they stay up? But at what cost to the FA Cup finalists Stoke after influential midfielder Matthew Etherington went off with a hamstring problem?

Discuss all these topics and other stories in world soccer on the Reuters Soccer Facebook page. And please feel free to send us recommendations for your pick of the day’s stories.

Soccer Break Tuesday – Bad omens for United

The semi-finals of the Champions League are upon us and the omens are not good for Manchester United ahead of their double-header against Schalke 04.

They might be running away with the Premier League title and facing a side who are 10th in their own table (ok, those portents look pretty rosy), but they have come unstuck the last two times they have lined up against German rivals in the semi-finals.

And these particular German rivals have Raul, the pocket poacher who proved far too wily an opponent when they lost to Real Madrid in the quarter-finals in 2000.

But the motivation is there for manager Alex Ferguson, who after 25 years spent overhauling Liverpool’s domestic record, has admitted he is more than a little envious of their red rivals’ European success.

If this clash doesn’t whet the appetite then you only have 24 hours to wait for Real Madrid’s semi with Barcelona – and if you are not looking forward to that then I’m guessing you’ve clicked this link by mistake.

Real boss Jose Mourinho has a knack of rubbing Barcelona up the wrong way and after last season’s semi-final victory with Inter Milan, he has been struck off many a Catalan’s christmas card list.

And for those of you who don’t know your ‘Cules’ from your ‘Meringues’, we have prepared a little pocket phrasebook to accompany the ‘Clasico’.

Soccer Break Thursday – Mourinho wins. Again.

Jose Mourinho and winning appear to go hand in hand after the colourful Portuguese coach delivered at the first time of asking in Wednesday’s King’s Cup final.

All the more significant was beating Barcelona for the first time as Real coach, which sets up a fascinating double header in the Champions League semi-finals on April 27 and May 3.

The pictures of Real’s celebrations are everywhere but what was not captured was defender Sergio Ramos dropping the trophy off the open-top bus during their victory parade. Or maybe not.

Real fans will be hoping their team do not let slip their slight pyschological advantage ahead of the Champions League having kept Barcelona dangerman Lionel Messi largely quiet during the final. The pacy Argentine stood still for five minutes after the final whistle, inconsolable.

The likely opponent for either Real or Barca in the Champions League final is Manchester United, whose form has dipped recently but all the same Alex Ferguson’s men seem destined to win another league title after Arsenal faltered against Tottenham Hotspur in another classic North London encounter. Chelsea are trying their hardest to make it interesting mind you.

Finally, our thoughts are with Gerard Houllier after the Aston Villa manager was taken to hospital. The stresses of football management cannot be underestimated, if that turns out to be a possible cause.

Discuss all these topics and other stories in world soccer on the Reuters Soccer Facebook page. And please feel free to send us recommendations for your pick of the day’s stories.

Treble? Manchester United’s season could still collapse

Strong belief in emulating the 1999 treble must surely be gripping Old Trafford after Manchester United’s somewhat fortuitous 1-0 win at Chelsea in their Champions League quarter-final first leg, but Alex Ferguson and his troops will also be aware they are still a long way from crossing the finish line first in any competition.

With Wayne Rooney losing his appeal to have a two-game ban reduced and the ever-present threat of injuries crippling a squad well short of the talent of the 1999 crop,  United will once again have to dig deep into their resources as the strength-sapping season reaches its climax.

United are seven points clear of Arsenal in the Premier League but what belies this seemingly big advantage in the run-in is the fact that Arsenal have a game in hand and only the league title to play for, which could be a telling factor when United visit the Emirates Stadium on May 1.

With Rooney out of the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City on April 16 there is no chance of him repeating the spectacular overhead kick which gave United a 2-1 win in their league fixture and Ferguson’s men may well find the going much more difficult against their fired-up neighbours, who have no other chance of silverware.

Rooney’s temporary loss could be a huge blow to United and the few who have jumped to his defence after the striker’s lack of anger management in United’s 4-2 win over West Ham at Upton Park could plausibly argue that a hefty fine might have been more appropriate punishment.

Here’s why: There is no excuse for what Rooney did but it would take some level of hypocrisy to say that swearing is not part of the game, on and off the pitch, just like horrific tackles such as the one that kept former Arsenal striker Eduardo sidelined for 18 months.

Birmingham defender Martin Taylor was handed a three-game ban after the late lunge which resulted in a triple leg fracture and nearly ended Eduardo’s career in Feb. 2008, when the Brazilian-born Croatia striker was at the peak of his powers.

Soccer Break Wednesday

Now the international period is over we can focus on domestic issues again, or can we?

Tuesday’s matches provided plenty of drama, from the battles Spain and the Netherlands had to fight to get through tricky Euro 2012 qualifiers, to Ghana’s lighting up of London, to Australia’s World Cup revenge against Germany in a friendly.

Brazil’s two-goal hero against Scotland continues to grab the headlines. Would you be interested in signing the talented 19-year-old Neymar?

For two of Europe’s biggest clubs there is bad news. The strike that could have seen the cancellation of La Liga matches this weekend has been called off, so Real Madrid must play three days before their Champions League quarter-final against Tottenham Hotspur.

Staying with a North London theme, Arsenal could be without striker Robin van Persie after the Netherlands forward was injured against Hungary in the 5-3 thriller. No doubt Arsene Wenger will have something to say so keep your ears open.

And what about Jens Lehmann? Gunners fans…would you trust him in goal over Manuel Almunia?

Some good news now. Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson says the game is developing well in the United States, though there’s always a flip side. After the encouraging 1-1 draw against Argentina on Saturday, the U.S. lost 1-0 to Paraguay on Tuesday.

Twenty years on and Giggs quest for glory far from over

Mike Collett on 20 years of Ryan Giggs

The world, and English soccer, was a very different place 20 years ago, but one thing has remained unchanged — Ryan Giggs is still playing for Manchester United and still in the hunt for trophies.

Wednesday marks the 20th anniversary of the day the skinny 17-year-old came on after 35 minutes of a match in the old First Division to replace the injured Denis Irwin for the first of what is now 863 appearances for the club.

His arrival went largely unremarked in the following days reports of United’s 2-0 defeat to Everton at Old Trafford.

It’s fair to say that few, if any, of the achievements and milestones he has reached since then have been similarly ignored.

Now 37, he is now the most decorated player in the history of English soccer, having won 11 League Championship medals, four FA Cups, four League Cups and two Champions Leagues.