United must aim to bounce back after international break


SAF
By Chris,
November 9 2009

After the hugely unfortunate defeat at Stamford Bridge, Sir Alex Ferguson will be all too aware that his Manchester United side will need to hit the ground running after the international break. The 1-0 loss at Chelsea has left the Red Devils five points off the pace with the league campaign nearly one-third over.

Despite some neat passing moves and a few close chances, Unitedlacked the cutting edge to break down Chelsea on Sunday. 

The game itself was a largely disappointing affair, settled byJohn Terry’s header after the home side were awarded a controversial free-kick. 

Chelsea have opened up a five-point lead at the top of thetable. Arsenal, meanwhile, sit above United on goal difference, have agame-in-hand and appear to be firing on all cylinders at the moment. 

United don't appear to be yet playing to their full potential -and Sir Alex will know that his team need a positive run of form after theinternational break to stop pundits predicting the demise of his set-up at OldTrafford. 

The Reds have bagged 23 goals this season - fewer than Chelsea,Arsenal and Liverpool, and the same as Spurs, and you can expect the press tohighlight the absence of Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo once again ifUnited don’t bounce back domestically after the World Cup qualificationplay-offs. 

In truth, fans shouldn’t be too worried. United are still third,have qualified knock-out stages of the European Cup and are into the last eightof the League Cup. However, expectation levels are ridiculously high afteryears of sustained success. 

United return to action on November 21st with a home clash againstrivals Everton. Besiktas then visit Old Trafford, before United travel to Portsmouth before hosting Spurs in the LeagueCup. It promises to be a crucial few weeks in the club’s season - with trips toWest Ham, Wolfsburg, Hull andFulham, plus home clashes with Aston Villa, Wolves and Wigan allto follow in December.

 

United must aim to bounce back after international break
Posted by: manutdweb.com (IP Logged)
Date: 09/11/2009 15:41

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Re: United must aim to bounce back after international break
Posted by: Roon Roon Roon (IP Logged)
Date: 09/11/2009 16:22

Quite right, the lads have a busy few weeks after the break and need to bag some points. For me, the European games aren't important and I want to see the likes of De Laet, Foster, Evans, Macheda, Welbeck, Gibson etc. all involved. At Wolfsburg, that'd prove who really does have the potential to succeed.

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