Manchester United news and links

Ronnie Whelan reveals his Old Trafford allegiances in United Review.

Nemanja is delighted to be considered a candidate for Player of the Year.

Sky Sports pundit Andy Gray feels the Reds have all but won the league.

The United manager has never forgotten his early years of suffering at the hands of Anfield

The peculiar thing is that whenever Sir Alex Ferguson is asked about Manchester United winning an 18th league title he insists it would not make it any more special to draw level with Liverpool. There are Mancunians and Liverpudlians thinking of little else right now. But Ferguson was at it again yesterday, putting on his poker face and arguing that it didn’t really make any difference. “That’s not actually my target,” he has insisted all season.

On the basis that Ferguson is unlikely to agree to being strapped to a polygraph, we shall probably have to take him at his word. We also know that, deep down, United’s manager has a begrudging respect for Liverpool. He admires their history and tradition. He likes the way their crowd appreciate opposition teams that play good football. He can laugh about the time he went to one match at Anfield as a spectator. “You Manc bastard, come to see the champions?” were the first words he heard when he got out of his car.

Yet Ferguson has so much personal history with Liverpool it is difficult to imagine that a man so ferociously partisan and competitive has not felt the first rush of malicious pleasure about inflicting more of the misery on them that they once inflicted on United.

Ferguson has been on top for so long now he has banished many of the old insecurities. But he also acknowledged yesterday he had not forgotten the various agonies to which Liverpool subjected him in his formative years at Old Trafford. He remembers their power, the way referees caved in when the Kop howled for a penalty and the way, as he once put it, “a lot of managers leave Anfield choking on their own sick”. Back then, Ferguson was the guy complaining, à la Benítez, that it was one rule for the club at the top and one for the rest. Liverpool, in short, had everything he wanted. As Ferguson said yesterday: “The 1980s belonged to Liverpool, without question.”

Turning that around took time. So long, indeed, there were periods when fans would demand Ferguson’s sacking. The Old Trafford crowd were as sick of Liverpool’s success as they were United’s failures. And so was Ferguson. It had made him a 24/7 obsessive. “It isn’t just a job to me,” he once said. “It’s a mission. I am deadly serious about it – some people would say too serious … we will get there. Believe me. And when it happens life will change for Liverpool – dramatically.”

But it was not a quick process. Ferguson grimaced yesterday as he thought back to the 1991-92 season when United, without a league title since 1967, won eight of their opening 10 games and, until Easter, it finally looked as if it could be their season. On the final, decisive afternoon they went to Anfield and Ian Rush, who had never scored against them in 24 attempts, broke his duck with both goals in a 2–0 win. Leeds finished as champions and Ferguson returned to Manchester to contemplate a shocking statistic: Manchester United had gone 25 years without a title.

Ferguson remembers it “like a death in the family”. But he was clever. He realised the agonies of that day could be exploited and urged his players never to forget the way the Liverpool crowd had treated them. Outside the stadium supporters asked for Ryan Giggs and Paul Ince’s autographs and then tore them up in their faces. “It was purgatory,” Gary Pallister, United’s former centre-half, remembers. “Alex wanted us to remember it, to imprint it indelibly on our memories so we would make damned sure we never experienced it again.”

Ferguson has had his revenge, of course. Since United ended their wait in 1993 the title has returned to Old Trafford like a homing pigeon, only very occasionally going astray. “It was a great Liverpool team when I arrived in England,” he says. “We had a job to do and this club went about it the right way. We worked our socks off, everyone did, all the departments, scouting, youth programme, and bit by bit we got where we are.”

Question Ferguson about the significance of equalling Liverpool’s record and he will point out that he does not want to say anything that could seem presumptuous or overly confident. But he understands the question. “They have always been our main rival. It’s always been our derby. Geographically, historically, the two cities, the two most successful clubs in Britain. When they get together you expect sparks to fly.”

And Ferguson, when everything is said and done, loves to see Liverpool hanging on United’s coat-tails. In September 2002, he was interviewed by this newspaper after United had lost two of their opening six league games and Alan Hansen had described Ferguson’s position as “the greatest challenge of his career”. Ferguson has always resented the fact there are so many ex-Liverpool players on the Match of the Day sofa. “My greatest challenge is not what’s happening at the moment,” he said, “my greatest challenge was knocking Liverpool right off their fucking perch.”

That quote will be around for as long as there are football pitches, even if it was a classic case of Ferguson trying to rewrite history. Liverpool’s decline can actually be traced to the end of 1990, their last title-winning year, and it was another three years before United finally won the league. Yet Ferguson delivered his line with the dramatic effect of Robert de Niro. “And you can print that,” he exclaimed. Point made.

The continent is stifling a yawn as the gap between the top of the Premier League and the rest of Europe grows

Same again then. The Champions League is becoming a TV repeat best suited to UK Gold between episodes of Only Fools and Horses. The renewed presence of four Premier League teams in this season’s quarter-finals may be a cause for national pride but the rest of Europe must be stifling a yawn.

There is nothing wrong with shifts in the balance of power provided the pendulum eventually swings the other way, and it may be some time before that happens. The predictable return of Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal to the last eight of the world’s most prestigious, and most lucrative, club tournament will have brought a glow to English cheeks while further reddening the countenance of Michel Platini, for whom the four clubs are not so much bad pennies as unacceptable IOUs.

The Uefa president feels that the Premier League’s elite have bought success with borrowed money and therefore enjoy an unfair advantage. While it is impossible to believe that the leading clubs of Spain and Italy have not previously lived beyond their immediate means in order to attract the best players it is obvious, as this week’s matches have shown, that the gap in quality between the top of the English league and the rest of Europe is growing.

When the Soviet Union won the race to put a satellite in orbit, Bob Hope observed that “all this proves is that their German scientists are better than our German scientists”. In the same way the Premier League’s domination largely reflects the fact that its foreign imports are better than everybody else’s, the brilliance of an Englishman, Steven Gerrard, in Liverpool’s 4–0 rout of Real Madrid on Tuesday notwithstanding.

Even so Liverpool, along with Manchester United and Chelsea, are in the quarter-finals on merit. Arsenal are the lame ducks and should have gone out to Roma after conceding the sort of goal press teams give away when the hacks are dying for a pint. Arsène Wenger’s team were fortunate that the spirit of Roberto Baggio lingered on when it came to a shoot-out ended by Max Tonetto shooting over the bar.

On Wednesday’s evidence this Arsenal side is inferior to the one that won the Cup Winners’ Cup under George Graham in 1994. The plot needs a twist. Even Frank Lampard is hoping that next Friday’s quarter‑final draw will not pair Chelsea with Liverpool yet again while those who prayed, unsuccessfully, for Chelsea and Manchester United to meet in the FA Cup semi-finals, thus avoiding the possibility of the tedious 2007 final being repeated, will be hoping for better luck in the Champions League.

A worst-case scenario would be for the two to reprise in Rome last season’s European final in Moscow and then contest the FA Cup final at Wembley three days later. At least the result at Anfield this week touched a nerve. Real Madrid do not lose heavily that often and when they do it sticks in the memory. Twenty years ago, four days after the Hillsborough disaster, a handful of English football scribes escaped to Milan for a European Cup semi-final, their minds still numbed by the images of that dreadful afternoon and wondering whether football was worth the bother. Milan answered their doubts with a sublime exhibition of fast, imaginative attacking play as they beat Real 5–0. Their third goal, instigated, moulded and executed by Ruud Gullit, remains one of the best ever seen.

As a mark of respect for the Liverpool supporters who had died the previous Saturday the match was halted shortly after the kick-off for a minute’s silence, which was broken by the San Siro crowd singing You’ll Never Walk Alone. There were more than a few lumps in throats that night.

In 1976 Derby County beat Real 4–1 at the Baseball Ground in the first leg of a European Cup tie with Charlie George, whose hat-trick included two penalties, having one of the best games of his career. For the return match in the Bernabéu Dave Mackay, Brian Clough’s successor as Derby manager, planned to contain the opposition. But Real won 5–1 and the following morning Des Anderson, Mackay’s assistant, wandered through the departure lounge at Madrid airport carrying an ornamental sword he had bought at the duty-free shop and asking no one in particular: “How do you fall on this thing?”

The Champions League could do with a few red noses just now. Europe used to be a relief from the English treadmill. Now it has jumped on.

The English teams’ solid march through in the Champions League evoked a sense of British courage

Speculating on the reasons for English teams’ domination of the Champions League one could conjure myriad explanations for our supremacy. Firstly though I’ll address my patriotism; I’m abroad at present, in New York and consequently I am all “Enoched up” on Blighty love. On the night that the second pair of the four English clubs progressed to the quarter-finals I was doing a book signing at Barnes and Noble in Union Square. Barnes and Noble? Union Square? It’s difficult to imagine a scenario more bedecked in Americana; if a hot-dog chomping cattle wrangler had “moseyed on by” in the frenzied pursuit of a dollar or a Commie it could’ve been no more Yankee doodle.

Whilst there at the book store – Shop. SHOP!!! It’s a blimmin’ shop, I tells ya, and no mistake – the American literary agent and soccer dilettante I’ve been working with informed me that whilst United had gone through against Inter, Arsenal had lost to Roma on penalties. I have no special affection for Arsenal, or “Those Gunners” as he called them but the nationalist in me demanded a perfect quartet of Premiership clubs to march, yes march, into the next round.

When I discovered that Arsenal had in fact triumphed I felt such a paradoxical blast of pride and rage I wanted to spear the man who’d misled me right through the heart with Boudicca’s dagger or Maggie Thatcher’s stiletto. Did she wear stilettos? Who knows? Maybe for Denis, he seemed pretty confused about something.

Perhaps the success of English clubs and my blinkered devotion are not entirely distinct. Could it be that both cases are examples of what Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves described as “Courage. British courage”? Liverpool immolated Real Madrid with such expert efficiency that the world’s richest club ought consider changing their name to Pseudo Madrid or Madrid-Lite. Chelsea sauntered past Juventus and their former coach Claudio Ranieri, whose “Tinkerman” nickname, earned through his dabbling at the Bridge, is evocative of molestation more than innovative squad rotation. I would never employ a babysitter whose nickname was the “Tinkerman” no matter how much the childcare agency assured me it was in reference to his endless switching of bibs and teddies, the thought of glinting eyes and spindly fingers will not relent.

Manchester United beat Jose Mourinho’s Inter with such ease that the Special One allegedly ran straight out into the street and started thumping supporters. Well not thumping actually, a witness in the report I read in the Sun said that on hearing fans chant “Go home Mourinho”, Jose walked up to the perpetrator he deemed most offensive, “sarcastically” parrotted back the chant into the face of his tormentor and issued a back-handed slap. Backhanded. How like him. What class. He wouldn’t even dignify the unimaginative chant with a clenched fist, the fist lacks elegance, Jose used the back of his perfectly manicured hand to dispatch justice.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Mourinho had given the braggart a gauntlet across his chops for his insolence. Even when accused of Yobbery (Mourinho and Inter strongly deny that any incident took place) Mourinho seems sophisticated; if in keeping with the trend for happy-slapping the event were recorded it would be not on a mobile phone but on Super 8 and would be worthy of cinematic release at the ICA, eventually being heralded by critics as Bergman-esque.

The passion roused by defeat in Jose ever brews in Wayne Rooney, even in victory. Young Wayne pledged anew his loathing for Liverpool. Typically I’m a crusader against hatred but within the relatively safe confines of football antipathy can be managed. If I were a Liverpool fan I might even be flattered by Rooney’s hate. It’s authentic and real and evidence that in spite of his ascent he still has sticky toffee, blue blood. Alex Ferguson sagely stepped in to protect his charge but Rooney’s expression of genuine abhorrence is more attractive than the stagnant indifference that sloshes about in the bellies of most top-flight players and would appeal even were I its recipient.

So whether it’s me jingoistically romping through Manhattan or Rooney realigning himself with the wrath of his youth we English are a fierce breed. But it produces results and whilst you could argue that the majority of the players who have brought European success to our island are foreign, it matters not a jot – even Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves was played by an American and you can’t get any more English than Kevin Costner in tights wise-cracking with Morgan Freeman. To suggest otherwise is so unpatriotic it will likely drive all the ravens from Trafalgar Square and then where will the empire be?

• Manager on verge of century of league wins
• Only Dalglish and Paisley will head Spaniard

Rafael Benítez will replace Bill Shankly as the third fastest Liverpool manager to reach 100 league wins should he triumph in forthcoming games against Aston Villa, Fulham or, as the last hopes of a title ­challenge demand, at Manchester United this afternoon. It is an impressive feat by any standards, but remarkable given how often the Spaniard has stood accused of sending his team ambling out of the blocks.

There was, also remarkably, a tinge of regret amid the euphoria of Liverpool’s 4–0 destruction of Real Madrid on Tuesday. Here was a team that lost the initiative in the title race through too many sterile draws at Anfield tearing into the Spanish giants with intensity and imagination. And from the word go, not having fallen behind or with only a Steven Gerrard miracle to save them. The good news for Liverpool supporters who crave more of the same in the Premier League is that Benítez has promised an ­identical ­mental approach at Old Trafford. The issue, however, is his insistence that it has been present all season – even in the damaging, pedestrian draws against Hull City and Stoke City. The performance against Real was not Benítez instructing his ­players to express themselves, therefore, but a glorious illustration of his two-game plan coming to fruition.

“We played against a top side and Real Madrid are a team that historically always attacks, so this game was different,” he explained. “We started the game really well and because we scored two early goals everything changed for them. They needed to attack and we had more space. We’ve done the same against a lot of teams but the difference is other teams put 10 men behind the ball.

“Real Madrid had to attack and they were not expecting our intensity. Other teams come to Anfield and wait and see if they can score from a free-kick or corner. It is not a frustration for me. It is something we need to analyse. We have to score first against teams more often because then the game will change and there are more spaces, like against Sunderland.”

Benítez has 99 victories from his 180 league games in charge of Liverpool, while Kenny Dalglish reached his ton in 167 games, Bob Paisley in 179 and Shankly in 184. It will take an improvement in ­Liverpool’s playing staff, their manager suggested, for him to join his illustrious forebears in bringing the title back to ­Liverpool. “We know the situation we face at Anfield but how can you penetrate it? You have to be very precise,” Benítez added. “It’s not just a question of determination and high tempo. You can keep your high tempo if you can keep your space and pass the ball. If you don’t have the space you have to make sure you don’t give the ball away. It’s not the same situation. At Old Trafford we will try to play with the same intensity and determination. It will be different without our supporters behind us but we will try to start the game in the same way.”

For others, the explanation for ­Liverpool’s contrasting Champions League and Premier League form is not as straightforward as Benítez’s philosophy or the quality of his personnel. There is a revealing passage in Jamie Carragher’s autobiography that suggests Benítez’s differing prowess at home and abroad is reflected in the psychology of the entire club. “As a side we have been accused of failing to reproduce our European form in the league but the allegation is fairer applied to the whole club,” wrote ­Carragher, whose 114 European appearances for Liverpool is a club record.

“If most English sides had to endure the Anfield European atmosphere we’d probably blow them away and we must all take responsibility for that. It is up to us players to get the crowd going as much as it’s up to the Kop to perform every week. There seems to be a different mindset on and off the pitch. The Kop has had 20 years heading to league games with a feeling of trepidation, having seen us struggle so often, yet the same fans have supreme confidence and self-belief whenever they watch us in Europe based largely on Rafa’s recent success. We also benefit from our knowledge of the European game.”

How to break that cycle when Liverpool enter the unknown whenever they lead the Premier League down the final straight, as Sir Alex Ferguson provocatively observed, remains Benítez’s outstanding challenge at Anfield.

• Spaniard unrepentant ahead of United clash
• Psychology won’t win this game, says Ferguson

Rafael Benítez has insisted he does not regret the outburst against Sir Alex Ferguson that led Manchester United’s manager to hold him up to ridicule ahead of Liverpool’s visit to Old Trafford today. The infamous list of “facts” that Benítez produced on 9 January coincided with Liverpool’s title challenge starting to fall apart and Ferguson could not resist the opportunity to poke fun at his rival last night. “I would need to read more of Freud before I could understand what he was talking about,” he said.

In his wide-ranging attack Benítez had alleged that Ferguson was allowed to operate above the law by the Premier League and the Football Association. He also accused United’s manager of intimidating match officials, damaging the FA’s Respect campaign and being “scared” of Liverpool.

Ferguson said he could not comprehend why Benítez was such “an angry man” and “talking with venom” and he insisted that, if it was intended as psychological warfare, it had failed. “I don’t know where it came from and I’m not really interested,” he said. “It never bothered me then and it doesn’t bother me now. If we beat them it doesn’t involve psychology.”

It has certainly backfired on Benítez given that his team have taken only 13 points from their eight league games since he revealed his grievances. Until that point, they had been top of the league, with realistic aspirations of winning their first league title since 1990. United’s record since then, however, has been immaculate, with 10 wins in a row to turn a seven-point deficit into a seven-point lead, with a game in hand.

Rio Ferdinand, the United defender, has accused Benítez of “falling into the trap” but the Spaniard is adamant he did not make an error in judgment. “I was just talking about the facts,” he said. “I don’t expect a bad situation [with Ferguson]. We will shake hands. There is still respect between us. I was not giving an opinion. These were facts and everyone can judge whether they are true or not.”

Benítez also denied that the criticisms were poorly timed, having carefully planned what to say with the intention of putting pressure on United before they played Chelsea and Liverpool went to Stoke City. United won 3-0 whereas Liverpool drew 0-0 but Benítez was in a defiant mood when it was put to him that it had been a turning point in the title race.

“If [Steven] Gerrard had scored and not hit the post in the last minute against Stoke the situation could be different but the facts would be the same,” he said. “Maybe I should improve my English [if Ferguson doesn’t understand]. My English is not the best, it can improve, but I put the facts across rightly. I’m sure he could understand clearly.”

Of Ferguson, he added: “I haven’t spoken to him since. I have a lot of respect for him. He is a great manager at a big club, that is clear, but I have to defend my club. What I said was clear – facts are facts.

“I have read about the strength of the United squad. That, for me, is the main difference. We were in a better position before but we couldn’t be consistent. It is a pity, but we will fight until the end of the season and we will try to be more consistent if we are in the same position next year. The difference between the sides is £100m, a bigger stadium, lots of things. We have to do everything almost perfectly if we want to reduce the difference.”

The damage to the managers’ relationship is almost certainly irreparable and Ferguson mischievously noted Benítez never celebrated his team scoring a goal. “My instinct is to celebrate because I’m a football man and that is what football supporters do,” he said. “I’m a football man.” Ferguson was also reminded that United fans would subject Benítez to chants of “cracking up” but on this he was more sympathetic. “People said I was cracking up three years ago, if I remember correctly People said my shelf-life had gone.”

Man Utd boss Sir Alex Ferguson calls on his side to respond positively to their loss to Liverpool.

BOSS Steve Burr is challenging Stalybridge Celtic to maintain the sensational return to home form which he believes will propel them towards promotion to Blue Square Premier.


Bridge have hit 11 goals in their last two Bower Fold outings after going more than four months without a home win and entertain Fleetwood tomorrow.


And Burr, whose side boast comfortably the best away record in Blue Square North, insists the key to promotion for Bridge now lies firmly in their own backyard.

BOSS Steve Burr is challenging Stalybridge Celtic to maintain the sensational return to home form which he believes will propel them towards promotion to Blue Square Premier.


Bridge have hit 11 goals in their last two Bower Fold outings after going more than four months without a home win and entertain Fleetwood tomorrow.


And Burr, whose side boast comfortably the best away record in Blue Square North, insists the key to promotion for Bridge now lies firmly in their own backyard.

SIR Alex Ferguson expects sparks to fly when the powerhouses of United and Liverpool collide at Old Trafford.


There has never been any love lost between the sides, a fact Ferguson recognised as soon as he came down from Aberdeen and vowed to knock the Merseyside outfit off their perch as kings of England.

SIR Alex Ferguson expects sparks to fly when the powerhouses of United and Liverpool collide at Old Trafford.


There has never been any love lost between the sides, a fact Ferguson recognised as soon as he came down from Aberdeen and vowed to knock the Merseyside outfit off their perch as kings of England.

United have no new injury concerns ahead of Saturday’s visit of Liverpool.

Our pundits predict a tight contest - and another sending off.

Ronnie Whelan reveals his Old Trafford allegiances in United Review.

Sir Alex is ready to let his United players off the leash against Liverpool.

UNITED welcome Rafa Benitez’s Liverpool side to Old Trafford in an encounter which could see United stretch their lead over Liverpool to 10 points with a game in hand.



Liverpool will be in high spirits after thumping Real Madrid 4-0 on Tuesday, however they face a daunting task as the only home league match United have dropped points in was at the beginning of the season in the 1-1 draw with Newcastle.

UNITED welcome Rafa Benitez’s Liverpool side to Old Trafford in an encounter which could see United stretch their lead over Liverpool to 10 points with a game in hand.



Liverpool will be in high spirits after thumping Real Madrid 4-0 on Tuesday, however they face a daunting task as the only home league match United have dropped points in was at the beginning of the season in the 1-1 draw with Newcastle.

• Riera returns for Liverpool but Benayoun still out
• Michael Owen fit again for Newcastle’s trip to Hull

Arsenal v Blackburn Rovers (Saturday, 3pm)

• Blackburn striker Roque Santa Cruz will miss the trip to the Emirates due to a knee injury. Defender Gaël Givet (knee) is also doubtful while Rovers are monitoring the fitness of winger Morten Gamst Pedersen, who has a rib problem. Vince Grella (groin) is absent and knee-injury victims Brett Emerton and Steven Reid have already been ruled out for the rest of the season.

Blackburn (from): Robinson, Brown, Bunn, Ooijer, Khizanishvili, Nelsen, Samba, Simpson, Warnock, Givet, Olsson, Villanueva, Tugay, Andrews, Diouf, Treacy, Mokoena, Dunn, Haworth, McCarthy, Roberts, Pedersen.

Manchester United v Liverpool (Saturday, 12.45pm)

• Spanish winger Albert Riera will return to the Liverpool squad having been suspended for the midweek victory over Real Madrid, but midfielder Yossi Benayoun is still out with a hamstring injury, as Liverpool try to give Rafael Benitez his 100th Premier League win as Anfield manager. Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard were both withdrawn in the final stages of the triumph over Real, to protect them for the Old Trafford game. Daniel Agger is unlikely to have recovered from his back injury.

Liverpool (from): Reina, Arbeloa, Skrtel, Carragher, Hyypia, Aurelio, Dossena, Babel, Mascherano, Gerrard, Alonso, Kuyt, Torres, Lucas, Cavalieri, Ngog, Riera, Insua, Spearing, El Zhar.

• The Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson will make changes after the defeat of Internazionale, with Tevez, Park Ji-sung and Anderson among those who could return. Read more on Ferguson’s eager anticipation of Liverpool’s visit to Old Trafford.

Sunderland v Wigan Athletic (Saturday, 3pm)

• Antoine Sibierski is Wigan manager Steve Bruce’s only injury doubt. Sibierski pulled up in training yesterday with a hamstring problem and is unlikely to figure as Wigan look to arrest a run of eight games without a win. New signing midfielder Won-Hee Cho, acquired as a free agent after he let his contract expire with Suwon Blue Wings, could come into contention, with Bruce to make a judgment on his fitness.

Wigan (from): Kirkland, Melchiot, Scharner, Bramble, Figueroa, Cattermole, Watson, N’Zogbia, Valencia, Kapo, Zaki, Mido, Kingson, Pollitt, Edman, Brown, Boyce, Rodallega, Sibierski, Koumas, Cho.

Bolton Wanderers v Fulham (Saturday, 3pm)

• Bolton manager Gary Megson has no new injury worries as he selects from a virtually fully fit squad for the visit of Fulham. The nine-day break since the 2-0 defeat at Stoke has allowed players to get over minor knocks and niggles. Joey O’Brien (knee) remains a long-term absentee.

Bolton (from): Jaaskelainen, Steinsson, Cahill, A O’Brien, Samuel, K Davies, McCann, Basham, Muamba, Gardner, Taylor, Cohen, Makukula, Puygrenier, Obadeyi, Al Habsi, M Davies, Smolarek, Riga, Hunt, Elmander.

• Fulham’s centre-back Aaron Hughes faces a spell on the sidelines after sustaining a rib injury during the nidweek defeat to Blackburn. Toni Kallio, who replaced Hughes in that match, could start in his place, while striker Bobby Zamora may be back from the hip problem which kept him out on Wednesday.

Fulham (from): Schwarzer, Pantsil, Stoor, Hangeland, Konchesky, Baird, Davies, Etuhu, Dacourt, Murphy, Gera, Dempsey, Johnson, Zamora, Zuberbuhler, Kallio, Nevland, Kamara, Gray, Barnes.

Middlesbrough v Portsmouth (Saturday, 3pm)

• Portsmouth caretaker manager Paul Hart is expected to field an unchanged side against Middlesbrough. Richard Hughes is available after a hamstring injury and Marc Wilson has recovered after suffering with mumps, but Hart, who will remain in charge for the rest of the season, has so far been reluctant to change his starting line-up during his short stint in charge. Senegal international Papa Bouba Diop is back in light training after two months on the sidelines with a knee ligament injury but is not ready for the first team yet, and Greek striker Theo Gekas must continue to wait for his chance.

Portsmouth (from): James, Johnson, Campbell, Distin, Hreidarsson, Pennant, Davis, Mullins, Kranjcar, Nugent, Crouch, Basinas, Belhadj, Utaka, Kaboul, Kanu, Traoré, Hughes, Wilson, Begovic.

Hull City v Newcastle United (Saturday, 3pm)

• Newcastle captain Michael Owen returns to the squad for the first time since January for the trip to Hull. The 29-year-old is included after recovering from ankle ligament damage and will be joined by the fit-again Nicky Butt (knee) and Damien Duff (calf).

Midfielder Kevin Nolan completes his three-match ban, while Habib Beye (ankle) and Danny Guthrie (hamstring) are closing in on returns. Striker Mark Viduka (achilles) is still two weeks away, and Joey Barton and Xisco (both fractured toe) and Ignacio González (Achilles) remain on the sidelines.

Newcastle (from): Harper, Forster, Krul, S Taylor, Bassong, Coloccini, Enrique, Edgar, Cacapa, Butt, Duff, R Taylor, Gutiérrez, Lovenkrands, Geremi, Donaldson, Ameobi, Smith, Martins, Owen, Carroll.

Chelsea v Manchester City (Sunday, 4pm)

• Midfield duo Vincent Kompany and Nigel de Jong will again be missing as Manchester City look to record their first Premier League away win since August. Kompany (toe) may be fit in time for next week’s Uefa Cup second leg against Aalborg but De Jong joins Craig Bellamy on the sidelines with a knee injury. Manager Mark Hughes may opt to keep the side that beat Aalborg last night, as Shaun Wright-Phillips and Wayne Bridge both return to Stamford Bridge for the first time since joining City.

Manchester City (from): Given, Hart, Schmeichel, Richards, Onuoha, Dunne, Bridge, Garrido, Zabaleta, Wright-Phillips, Elano, Caicedo, Ireland, Fernandes, Vassell, Weiss, Robinho, Evans, Bojinov, Logan, Berti.

Sir Alex Ferguson has no fresh injury concerns ahead of United’s eagerly-awaited showdown with Liverpool at Old Trafford.


Ferguson will be picking from strength as the leaders look to record a 12th successive win, with changes expected from Wednesday night’s win over Inter Milan.

Sir Alex Ferguson has no fresh injury concerns ahead of United’s eagerly-awaited showdown with Liverpool at Old Trafford.


Ferguson will be picking from strength as the leaders look to record a 12th successive win, with changes expected from Wednesday night’s win over Inter Milan.

• ‘I won’t hold anyone back’ says United manager
• Rooney’s comments were ‘understandable’

The Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, says he expects “sparks to fly” at what he calls Manchester United’s derby game against Liverpool at Old Trafford tomorrow lunchtime. The match between the two rivals is always keenly anticipated but the visitors’ faltering title hopes and Wayne Rooney’s midweek comments about his hatred for Liverpool have given an extra edge to the occasion.

“Liverpool have always been our main rival,” said Ferguson. “It does not matter what the position in the league, as far as I am concerned, it has always been the derby game. It will always be that way because of the geography and history of the two cities. We are the two most successful football clubs in England. When they get together you expect sparks to fly.”

If United win or draw tomorrow it would virtually end Liverpool’s title hopes and leave United well clear at the top with nine more matches to seal the championship. Ferguson signalled that his team are now counting down the remaining obstacles to a third consecutive title, but he does not believe that his side will win the Champions League and FA Cup as well.

“I won’t be holding anyone back,” he said. “It is Manchester United against Liverpool. It is not a time to hold back. It is a time to go forward, enjoy it and keep expressing yourself. But no one is talking about the quintuple. I don’t think it can be done.

“We have 10 games left so we must try and get a result and then look at the next nine. You do start to count down and eventually you run out of games. That is not psychology. It is about where you are in the league.”

“This team will win more league championships,” he added. “Whatever happens, this year is only part of the future which looks very good for our young players. There is evidence that we have a group that can stay together for quite a few years.”

Ferguson has defended Wayne Rooney over his declaration that he hates Liverpool. The comments were made on MUTV in the immediate aftermath of Wednesday night’s Champions League win over Internazionale and were eventually removed from United’s official website yesterday afternoon for fear of inflaming passions ahead of tomorrow’s match at Old Trafford.

As an Everton supporter, a former Everton player and a member of Manchester United’s Champions League-winning team, Rooney has taken plenty of abuse from Liverpool fans down the years. But Ferguson has claimed the England man probably used the wrong word.

“Hate is an easy word to say, easier than dislike. Maybe it is not the right word,” said Ferguson.

“But Wayne has had plenty of stick from Liverpool fans over the years, so it is understandable. He supported Everton as a kid and the rivalry between them and Liverpool is pretty ferocious now. Since then he has come to Manchester United and he wants to win. It is nothing out of the ordinary really.”

Ferguson will make changes after the defeat of Inter, with Carlos Tevez, Park Ji-sung and Anderson among those who could return.

Here are the matches, moments and inevitable bust-ups around Europe that we’ll be keeping a close eye on

Man Utd v Liverpool (Saturday 12.45pm)

The background to this game – if Liverpool don’t win, it’s over for another year and United equal their record of 18 titles – has been done to death, but what might be of interest is to see which team blinks first. Even though Liverpool need three points, they only really know one way to play away from home, and even if they do win tomorrow it’s unlikely that they’ll change the fact that their only winning margin at Old Trafford since 1990 has been 1-0. United, contrary to popular opinion, don’t always buckle their swash, either. In the very biggest games, even at home, United also like to play on the counter-attack, a fact that only Jose Mourinho has really noticed. United’s last two home games against Liverpool, a 3-0 win last March and a 2-0 win in 2006-07, have been tactical masterclasses in which they quietly put their opponents to sleep, as they did against Chelsea in January. In the last 12 months United have a staggering home record of P29 W26 D3 L0. But it has to end sometime.

Almería v Barcelona (Sunday 8pm)

Barcelona were scintillating in their 5-2 midweek demolition of Lyon. So what’s new? They have been largely unstoppable at home all season. What trophies they get to lightly finger come May will, you suspect, be decided by their away form, starting with a decidedly tricky trip to Almería on Sunday. Barça have won just one of their last six on the road, whereas Almería – happily ensconced in mid-table – haven’t lost at home since November, when Zavvi was still open for business and the music world’s biggest wedgie magnet was called Pete Doherty. If Real Madrid win in Bilbao on Saturday night, Barcelona will go into the Almería game only three points clear. What’s the Spanish for squeaky-bum time?

Gillingham v Shrewsbury (Saturday 3pm)

Wait, come back! Pull your head out of the Premier League-sized hole at your other end and have a look at League Two, which has been great this season. With three teams automatically promoted, only five points separate second and eighth. In among that pack are Gillingham and Shrewsbury, who meet on Saturday. Gillingham may be among the country’s less pleasant away trips – just ask Peter Crouch – but Shrewsbury desperately need to improve their lopsided record sooner rather than later: no side in the four divisions can match their 14 home victories; only one side (Stoke) has fewer than their one away win. Gillingham, for their part, will want revenge after being slaughtered 7-0 at Shrewsbury earlier in the season. And there could be an, ahem, emotional reunion between Gillingham’s Mark McCammon and Shrewsbury’s Moses Ashikodi: when the pair were at Millwall, Ashikodi was suspended after allegedly pulling a serrated one on McCammon during a row in the canteen.

Trabzonspor v Galatasaray (Sunday 5pm)

These two clubs generally get on famously, united by a mutual loathing of Fenerbahce, but that will go out the window on Sunday. With the Big Four all chasing the surprise leaders Sivasspor – only three points separate the top five – both desperately need a result. Especially the champions Galatasaray, who lie in a relatively ignominious fifth place. This is how bad finishing fifth would be for Galatasaray: only once in the last 24 years have they finished outside the top four. In fact, scratch that, this is how bad finishing fifth would be for Gala: even Graeme Souness got them into the top four.

WHICH Liverpool will turn up at Old Trafford on Saturday?



The Rafa Benitez side who looked world beaters last Tuesday night and tore Real Madrid to pieces or the Merseysiders who were beaten at Middlesbrough recently?

WHICH Liverpool will turn up at Old Trafford on Saturday?



The Rafa Benitez side who looked world beaters last Tuesday night and tore Real Madrid to pieces or the Merseysiders who were beaten at Middlesbrough recently?

This week’s chalkboard top three reveals, among other tactical observations, Arsenal’s most effective formation

For all these years, we thought that famous Tom Jones song was about a sex bomb. Turns out we’d misheard the lyrics and he was actually paying tribute to our brilliant newish chalkboards.

Chalkboard, chalkboard, you’re a chalkboard

You can give it to me, when I need to analysis

Chalkboard, chalkboard, you’re a chalkboard

And baby you can tell me whether Morten Gamst Pedersen is really all he’s cracked up to be or whether he wastes a lot of crosses

That last bit doesn’t quite scan, admittedly, but the point remains. This week we’ve again picked the best of your chalkboards, with the winner getting a signed Premier League shirt for his or her trouble.

3) A change in Carrick?

Quentinho reckons that Manchester United’s comparative lack of goals this season could be down to an increasing conservatism in the passing of Michael Carrick. “Carrick may well be playing deeper this season but this could be because United are playing with a more traditional system in 2008-09, with Dimitar Berbatov as the point of attack,” says Opta’s Duncan Alexander. “It should be noted that although last season Carrick created 39 goalscoring chances, this season he has already created 31.”

2) Arsène’s wingers

CrazyGooner has compared Arsenal’s ball movement this season and last, and surmises that, without Cesc Fábregas and Mathieu Flamini, they are much more reliant on their full-backs and wingers to achieve penetration. Notice the serious lack of passes just in front of the opponents penalty box,” he says, not unreasonably.

“It is arguable that Arsenal’s best performance of the season, at home to Roma, came when Arsène Wenger recognised the limitations of the Gunners’ midfield this season and went for a 4-2-3-1 system,” adds Opta’s Duncan Alexander.

1) Keane note

This week’s winner is iamrafiki, who points out that Robbie Keane is better than David Ngog. “People focused on Robbie Keane’s goals, or lack of them, at Liverpool but he has six assists in the Premier League this season including the two shown here for Spurs against Middlesbrough,” says Opta’s Duncan Alexander.
“David Ngog didn’t do much against Sunderland other than score - perhaps the two of them would have made a good combination? As it was, they played only 33 minutes together.”

RIO Ferdinand is in a “couldn’t care less” mood.


Not that the Reds defender is becoming complacent. Far from it. The 30-year-old isn’t bothered, however, who is plucked out of the pot for the Reds in the Champions League quarter-final and semi-final draw in Switzerland a week today.

RIO Ferdinand is in a “couldn’t care less” mood.


Not that the Reds defender is becoming complacent. Far from it. The 30-year-old isn’t bothered, however, who is plucked out of the pot for the Reds in the Champions League quarter-final and semi-final draw in Switzerland a week today.

MANCHESTER United have defended their decision to take Wayne Rooney’s controversial comments about Liverpool off their official website.


Immediately after Wednesday night’s Champions League triumph over Inter Milan, Rooney was interviewed by United’s in-house TV station MUTV and went public with his long-held ’hatred’ for Liverpool, who come to Old Trafford for a vital Premier League game on Saturday.

MANCHESTER United have defended their decision to take Wayne Rooney’s controversial comments about Liverpool off their official website.


Immediately after Wednesday night’s Champions League triumph over Inter Milan, Rooney was interviewed by United’s in-house TV station MUTV and went public with his long-held ’hatred’ for Liverpool, who come to Old Trafford for a vital Premier League game on Saturday.

RYAN Giggs has warned that Liverpool are no longer a Jekyll and Hyde team. The Merseysiders have built an impressive CV as a European power under Rafa Benitez since 2004.


But the Spaniard’s bid to tackle the Premier League has never hit the mark. Liverpool’s 4-0 Anfield win in the Champions League on Tuesday night has enhanced their Euro profile but their title chances in England are hanging by a thread.

RYAN Giggs has warned that Liverpool are no longer a Jekyll and Hyde team. The Merseysiders have built an impressive CV as a European power under Rafa Benitez since 2004.


But the Spaniard’s bid to tackle the Premier League has never hit the mark. Liverpool’s 4-0 Anfield win in the Champions League on Tuesday night has enhanced their Euro profile but their title chances in England are hanging by a thread.

UNITED and Liverpool served up a tasty hors d’oeuvre ahead of Saturday lunchtime’s main course at Old Trafford in this Reserve League fixture in front of 3,955 fans at The Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington.


United fought back from an early Liverpool goal to lead at the break, before sharing the points after Daniel Pacheco had levelled for the home side just after the interval.

UNITED and Liverpool served up a tasty hors d’oeuvre ahead of Saturday lunchtime’s main course at Old Trafford in this Reserve League fixture in front of 3,955 fans at The Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington.


United fought back from an early Liverpool goal to lead at the break, before sharing the points after Daniel Pacheco had levelled for the home side just after the interval.

• Police launch inquiry but Inter Milan deny claims
• Manager had been taunted during Old Trafford match

Police are investigating claims that Jose Mourinho, Internazionale’s coach, punched a gloating Manchester United fan in the face as he left Old Trafford on Wednesday night after seeing his team crash out of the Champions League.

For the duration of the match, as he prowled the touchline that was once the scene of some of his greatest triumphs with Porto and Chelsea, the crowd taunted him with chants of “sit down Mourinho” and “you’re not special any more”.

It has been alleged that as he left the ground with his team to get on to their coach, he punched a fan who was goading him. Inter Milan immediately denied the incident had taken place, claiming none of the officials who were surrounding the former Chelsea manager had seen him confront or hit anyone.

“At 11.55pm on Wednesday 11 March 2009 a man reported he had been punched in the face on Sir Matt Busby Way, outside Old Trafford football ground,” said Greater Manchester police in a statement yesterday. “Police are investigating a report of common assault. Inquiries are continuing.” A police spokeswoman confirmed that investigating officers had requested CCTV footage from Manchester United. United confirmed they were aware of the allegation but said the club would be making no further comment.

Inter Milan said in a statement that at the end of the game, Mourinho “gave interviews to the European media, signed autographs and watched the penalties of the Roma v Arsenal game before saluting Ferguson in his office. After giving the last interview to Inter channel, he entered the team bus that was parked outside the dressing rooms and hence it was a very calm post-game experience.”

The match had been billed as a personal duel between Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson, who prior to Wednesday’s match had only beaten Mourinho’s teams once in 13 attempts. Mourinho, who declared himself to be “a special one” after he arrived at Chelsea and before winning back-to-back Premier League titles, had suggested he would like the Manchester United job one day in the run-up to the game.

The Portuguese manager’s arrival in English football after winning the Champions League with Porto in 2004 was a gift to journalists. As well as winding up opposing fans, he became embroiled in a series of disputes with football authorities, referees, opposing managers and Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich.

At Inter, he has also had a series of bruising encounters with the press and opposition fans, despite taking the team to the top of Serie A. “I’m not angry,” he told Italian journalists after Wednesday’s game. “This is the kind of match after which, if anyone has anything to criticise my team about, they would have to kill me first because Inter were fantastic tonight.”

• Admires rivals’ Champions League performance
• Determined to end their Premier League challenge

As a boyhood Everton supporter who now plays for Manchester United, it is not often Wayne Rooney has anything complimentary to say about Liverpool. He broke the habit of a lifetime yesterday when he congratulated them for thrashing Real Madrid but quickly reverted to type. “I grew up hating Liverpool,” he said, “and that hasn’t changed.”

No surprise, then, to learn Rooney was rooting for the team in white when he sat down in front of his television to watch Madrid play at Anfield on Tuesday. “Liverpool played really well,” he said. “They attacked with speed, they were aggressive, they put Madrid under a lot of pressure. Madrid just couldn’t handle them.”

Yet Rooney was speaking without a flicker of self-doubt ahead of Liverpool’s visit to Old Trafford tomorrow for a match that, if United win, would put them 10 points clear at the top of the Premier League, with 10 games to play compared to nine for their rivals. “They [Liverpool] were good but maybe we have another level to reach, too,” Rooney continued. “They have put up a great challenge this season but we could end that challenge. We’re in pole position and if we beat Liverpool it will almost certainly end their chances of winning the league. That would be great for everybody at Old Trafford – and especially for me.”

That last remark is another reminder of Rooney’s roots, growing up in Croxteth with an Everton pennant in his bedroom window. “I always get a bigger kick out of beating Liverpool than anyone else,” he acknowledged. “For me, it’s our biggest game of the season. No other game is ever going to get in the way of Manchester United against Liverpool. It’s a massive fixture and especially this time with every­thing that’s at stake.”

Rooney’s comments have since been removed from Manchester United’s website in a move which the club has been forced to defend. A spokesperson for United said: “In advance of the game (against Liverpool) we felt this was the best option. The comments are open to wilful mis-reporting and neither the club nor Wayne wanted that to happen.”

On the field, the England international expects an “anxious” game – “frantic, with a lot of challenges” – and he is also aware this fixture has a history of low scores. Ferguson has been unhappy with his team’s scoring patterns this season, ordering his players to take part in extra shooting practice recently, although Rooney is encouraged by the team’s defensive record, with only 12 goals conceded in 27 league games.

“We have been working on taking our chances and I think we’ve done a bit better in the last few weeks,” he said. “With the players we have here, we should really score more goals. But I remember Chelsea winning 1–0 many times in their title seasons and, thankfully, our defence is so good at the moment we can hold on to one-goal leads with confidence.”

United’s 2–0 defeat of Internazionale in the Champions League on Wednesday was their 31st clean sheet in 49 games this season and, though Ferguson was disappointed about the frequency with which his players lost the ball, over the two legs there was a clear disparity between the top team in England and their Italian counterparts.

“This is the best we have played since I’ve been here,” said Rooney. “There is a confidence about the side and people like myself, [Cristiano] Ronaldo and Darren Fletcher are getting more experience and playing more vital roles. It’s all there to be won. Five trophies is still possible and it’s a great feeling.”

• Tomorrow’s result at Old Trafford set to swing title odds
• Back over 2.5 goals in what promises to be an open game

Rafael Benítez’s statement that Liverpool must win at Old Trafford if they are to have any chance of winning the Premier League is echoed by the bookmakers. Should Liverpool win, Paddy Power have suggested they could slash the odds on Benítez’s side winning the title to as little as 10-1. If United prevail, the Dublin-based layer could be prepared to lengthen Liverpool to 66-1, with the champions cut to a probable 1-50. As it stands, United are 1-16 (Victor Chandler) to win an 18th English crown with Chelsea 16-1 (Bet365) and Liverpool 33-1.

Liverpool’s impressive success against Real Madrid in the Champions League, which they are 7-1 (Betfred and Totesport) to win, has raised hopes among supporters that their team can win at Old Trafford for the first time in nearly five years. From a betting perspective, the best barometer could be the match market on Betfair. Here, United have steadily drifted over the last three days from 1.89 to 2.04 (shorter than 10-11 to bigger than evens). Fixed-odds firms quote United at 10-11 (general), Liverpool 15-4 (Blue Square and Boylesports) and the draw at 23-10 (general).

United, also through to the last eight of the Champions League, are 13-5 (Extrabet and Paddy Power) to triumph in Rome this May while Blue Square offer 13-2 on Sir Alex Ferguson’s side winning the quadruple. The key to the game will be Liverpool’s approach to the fixture. Many pundits – and punters – were caught out by Benítez’s tactics on Tuesday, when he sent his side out to attack. In the past he might have been more prudent – after all a 0-0 draw would have seen Liverpool through. Should Benítez maintain this strategy at Old Trafford, the two IG Sport clients who have staked £3,000 per goal that there will be fewer than 2.3 goals in the game could be in for a nerve-racking – and loss-making – 90 minutes.

Generally punters have had plenty of success going low in total goal markets when United have played Liverpool but the two most recent meetings have both witnessed three goals (the previous seven had produced two or fewer). United’s recent results suggest they are no longer so reliant on their defence and, with Liverpool needing to win, we could easily witness another open game. Therefore I’m quite happy to advise a back of over 2.5 goals at 11-8 (general).

Either side could find themselves chasing the game in the closing stages, so there might be some value in backing late goals. There are a number of ways for punters to do this. A handful of fixed-odds firms offer a “time of the last goal” market. Paddy Power go evens that the game’s last goal will come before the 73rd minute, with evens also offered the last goal is scored in or later than the 73rd minute. Spread-betting firms also offer a time of the last goal spread, which for tomorrow’s game is quoted at 57-60 (Sporting Index).

The braver punter is advised to buy at 60 for minimal amounts. If the game finishes 0-0, buyers will lose 60 times their stake but, if the last goal comes in the 90th minute, they win 30 times their stake.

Liverpool have been scoring later rather sooner in recent fixtures, with 19 of their last 26 goals netted in the second half and six of their last 13 coming after the 80th minute. United’s last goal in Premier League games at Old Trafford this season, meanwhile, has come on average in the 61st minute. Buyers at 60 would have won in five of the last six meetings between United and Liverpool with a cumulative profit from those half-dozen fixtures of £870 for a £10 stake.

Those that like to buy the bookings in this fixture (Sporting Index go 50-54) will be disappointed to know that the lenient Alan Wiley (only one red and 52 yellow cards in 20 matches this season) is in charge. A few quid on Javier Mascherano at 9-1 (Paddy Power) to be the first player carded, though, could pay dividends. The Argentinian has not gone three games without a caution this season and was sent off in this fixture last year.

Trendspotting

Goals change games, as the old saying goes. And the way in which they do so has implications for all sorts of in-play betting markets, including ones on which team will take the next corner or, sometimes, next but one corner.

When a goal is scored, the balance of play is likely to shift. You don’t need to be an expert to realise that teams who take the lead tend to do less attacking than they did before, while teams who are trailing tend to do more attacking than they did before. It is not entirely surprising.

Although some teams will take the attitude that the best form of defence is attack, it remains true that most will be affected by knowing the win is theirs so long as they do not concede. Conversely a team who are behind know that they will lose unless they score.

The longer a team spend in the opposition half the more likely they become to have shots and gain potentially dangerous set-pieces such as free-kicks and corners - as the following figures, taken from Premier League games played during the last two seasons, illustrate. While scores were level, home teams took 58% of all corners. When home teams were trailing, they took 62% of all corners. But when they were winning, they took only 50%.

As you can see, there are significant differences between these figures. In a game featuring two teams of similar ability - those likely to finish close to each other in the end-of-season standings - a fair price on the home team taking the next corner (or next but one corner, for that matter) might be 8-11 if they were drawing, 8-13 if they were losing but only evens if they were winning.

In matches featuring hosts who are better than their visitors, these prices would become progressively shorter, and vice-versa.

To some, betting on incidents that occur during matches might seem trivial. In reality, it requires an ability to read the game, a knowledge of how play develops over time. And because it requires skill, it has the potential to be profitable.
Kevin Pullein

ANDERSON is looking forward to returning to national team duties after he was named in Brazil’s squad for their upcoming World Cup qualifiers.


The 20-year-old missed Brazil’s 2-0 friendly win against Italy in London last month due to an ankle injury he suffered in the second leg of United’s Carling Cup semi-final victory over Derby on January 20.

ANDERSON is looking forward to returning to national team duties after he was named in Brazil’s squad for their upcoming World Cup qualifiers.


The 20-year-old missed Brazil’s 2-0 friendly win against Italy in London last month due to an ankle injury he suffered in the second leg of United’s Carling Cup semi-final victory over Derby on January 20.

INTER Milan have denied allegations that coach Jose Mourinho assaulted a fan after last night’s Champions League tie against Manchester United at Old Trafford.


Greater Manchester Police are investigating a claim that a fan was punched by the former Chelsea manager shortly after Inter crashed out of the Champions League.

INTER Milan have denied allegations that coach Jose Mourinho assaulted a fan after last night’s Champions League tie against Manchester United at Old Trafford.


Greater Manchester Police are investigating a claim that a fan was punched by the former Chelsea manager shortly after Inter crashed out of the Champions League.

Each week we pit readers against the bookmaker Paddy
Power and a former sportsman – today the one-time
Manchester United defender Paul Parker. Paddy Power
provides a free £10 bet and donates the balances to charity after the FA Cup final

Inter Milan say Jose Mourinho did not attack a Manchester United fan on Wednesday.

All you need to know ahead of Saturday’s critical clash at OT.

There are three ways to follow all the action from Old Trafford.

• Welshman expects extraordinary end to the season
• Ferguson’s side ‘have the character’ to win every prize

Ryan Giggs believes Manchester United have the momentum and belief to secure an unprecedented quintuple of trophies this season.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s silverware hunters already have the Carling Cup and Club World Championship in the trophy cabinet this season. United are also fast closing in on retaining their Premier League title and next month face an FA Cup semi-final against Everton at Wembley.

Ferguson is also just five matches away from his dream of becoming the first manager to retain the Champions League title after reaching the last eight with a 2–0 win over Internazionale last night.

When asked whether United could capture the lot, captain Giggs said: “We’ve certainly got the momentum, but we’ll have to wait and see. We’ll take each competition as it comes and obviously try and win every game, but you need a lot of luck, as we enjoyed against Inter Milan, and hopefully we’ll get there.

“But with the run of results we’ve had, the belief is definitely there within the squad, with individuals in good form, and the team generally in good form. Everything is set up for an exciting end to the season, which will be a test of character, a test of that belief.

“But as I say, the momentum is with us at the moment, and hopefully we’ll carry that on through to the end of the season.”

There are many who feel the current side is the best in the club’s history, although Giggs refused to be drawn into that debate. “We’re on a great run,” Giggs said of a side who have lost just one game – a League Cup tie at Derby – of their last 31 in all competitions stretching back four months. “We did it last season, we’ve carried on this season, and now we just need to see it through to the end.

“That has been our goal – not only to win the Champions League, but to defend it because no other team has done that.We’ve seen against Inter how difficult it’s going to be. We need to play well every game, and concentration needs to be spot on.”

Giggs returned to his old stamping ground of the left wing against Inter, a role he felt was behind him, but one he is ready to revive as and when Ferguson requires.

“I never thought I’d be on the wing again,” joked the Welshman. “But the manager set me up on the left, and no matter where you play, you want to be involved in the sort of games like against Inter.

“With Patrice [Evra] behind me, he is an attacking full-back who helps me out. I obviously don’t play like I did 10 years ago, but Pat helps me in that respect.

“It’s something I can occasionally go back to. I prefer positions in midfield and just off the front, but I can use my experience on the left, so I can definitely play there.”

Sir Alex Ferguson defends Wayne Rooney after the Manchester United striker says he “hates” rivals Liverpool in an interview.

Michael Carrick admits United were below-par in overcoming Inter.

Reds striker believes victory on Saturday would end Liverpool’s title hopes.