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Papers: It's United's title
27/12/2007 08:56

Keane: Yule win it, Fergie
United legend Roy Keane tipped his old club to hang on to their Premier League crown after Arsenal were held 0-0 at Portsmouth. Cristiano Ronaldo and Co went a point clear at the top following a scintillating 4-0 destruction of Keane’s Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. Keane said: “My money’s still on United. I thought that two months ago and my opinion hasn’t changed. They are just a lethal attacking team. And they are equally good at the back. Ferdinand and Vidic — they are not bad are they? It takes a combination like that to win the league. Any team like that will get stronger. If United are there or thereabouts they have a chance."
Steve Brenner, The Sun

The Sun suggests Dong Fangzhuo and Wes Brown are heading out of Old Trafford, and speculates that Rangers right-back Alan Hutton will join the Reds for £6milllion.

In other news, Bryan Robson is raiding his old club to sign defender Phil Bardsley. The full-back has been on loan at Sheffield United since October and Robson will pay United £1.5m to make the move permanent.

Another youngster making the news is 20-year-old midfielder Darron Gibson, who has extended his loan spell at Wolves for the rest of the season.
Round up by Gemma Thompson

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26/12/2007 14:27, Report by Nick Coppack

Boss hails super squad

Sir Alex reiterated his belief that the current squad is among the best he's ever assembled after United trounced Sunderland 4-0 at the Stadium of Light on Boxing Day.

The Reds boss made five changes to the team that beat Everton at Old Trafford last weekend but the squad's strength ensured United's winning form was never threatened.

"I said earlier in the season that I think this is one of my strongest squads and I think the players are proving that at the moment," Sir Alex told MUTV.

"We have some big games coming up and the players are all playing their part – Gerard Pique came on for Nemanja Vidic today, Ji-sung Park got his first match since March and other players got some valuable minutes, which is very important in terms of having everyone ready for what lies ahead."

Despite the manager's tinkering, United remained fluent going forward and solid at the back. In fact, Tomasz Kuszczak was only stretched on one occasion, tipping over athletically from Ross Wallace before the break.

"I thought we were very sharp and our passing was excellent today," the United boss said. "The first goal put us in the driving seat because Sunderland have been going through a sticky patch lately and I felt if we could go in front we would make it difficult for them. It was a marvellous move for the first goal and it was well taken by Wayne [Rooney]."

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26/12/2007 14:08, Report by Nick Coppack

Report: S'land 0 United 4

United barely broke sweat at the Stadium of Light as goals from Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo and a Louis Saha brace sealed an important three points and a fifth away win of the season.

For a Boxing Day encounter, Sunderland showed surprisingly little fight and Roy Keane wouldn't have taken many positives out of such a one-sided affair. The Reds were 3-0 up by half-time and coasted through the second period, adding a fourth in the closing stages when Louis Saha slotted home from the penalty spot.

Sir Alex made five changes to the side that beat Everton on the weekend, with Darren Fletcher handed his first league start of the season and Louis Saha starting up front alongside Wayne Rooney. Perhaps the manager's most notable selection was the inclusion of Ji-sung Park on the bench. Park, who came on in the 57th minute, hadn't played for the Reds since injuring his knee against Blackburn Rovers in March.

At the back, Sir Alex recalled Rio Ferdinand to the starting XI but rested Patrice Evra on the left. John O'Shea came in for the Frenchman, with Wes Brown operating on the right.

Neither side's back four was troubled in the game's opening stages until Danny Higginbotham caught Cristiano Ronaldo late 25 yards from goal in a central position. The Reds' no.7 lined up the free-kick and stung Craig Gordon's palms with a vicious strike that dipped and swerved in the air. The Scottish goalkeeper was called into action again moments later when Nani's left-foot shot looked to be sneaking inside the near post.

Sunderland then fashioned
half chances of their own through Kenwyne Jones and Dickson Etuhu before Louis Saha fluffed an opportunity to put United into the lead. The Frenchman did well to peel off his marker but miscued a volley after John O'Shea, Nani and Cristiano Ronaldo had linked well on the left flank.

After a frustratingly scrappy opening period, the match had begun to open up and the Reds took the lead on 20 minutes when Rooney exploited some lax Sunderland defending to beat the offside trap and roll the ball past Gordon.

From Wes Brown's pass to Rooney's ice-cool finish, it all looked so simple and would no doubt have frustrated Sunderland boss Roy Keane. Of course, Keane's concerns were the last of Rooney's worries as the United ace banged in his first league goal since October.

The Sunderland boss was made to suffer further on the half-hour when the Reds turned defence into attack in the blink of an eye. Darren Fletcher was booked for hauling down Michael Chopra near the United goal but the home side failed to make the Reds pay with the resulting free-kick.

Moments later, Cristiano Ronaldo fed Wayne Rooney down the inside left channel. The England international outpaced his marker, reached the corner of the 18-yard box and picked out Louis Saha in the middle with a curling cross.

From there, Saha was left with the relatively simple task of side-footing the ball past Gordon to send the Reds 2-0 up and confirm the gulf in class between the two sides.

Sunderland certainly couldn't argue with the
scoreline, although Ross Wallace almost pulled a goal back five minutes before the interval when he drew a finger-tip save from Tomasz Kuszczak in the United goal. It was the first significant save the Polish stopper had needed to make and underlined the visitors' dominance.

There was still time before the break for United's third, this time from the boot of Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese star had already tested Gordon with two long-range free kicks but in injury time at the end of the first half a third free-kick – this one slightly to the left of centre and 25 yards from goal – sailed over the wall and into the top corner.

It was as good a goal as Ronaldo has scored this season, the perfect blend of power and precision, and took his tally to an astonishing 17 from 20 starts.

Roy Keane withdrew Ross Wallace at the break and introduced Danny Leadbitter but the change did little to stem the Red tide. Indeed, the home side were lucky not to concede a penalty in the 48th minute when former United striker Dwight Yorke appeared to handle Ronaldo's cross inside his own penalty area.

Paul McShane then showed tremendous bravery to block a Rooney shot before Sunderland fans were left cursing Kuszczak's reflexes when the Reds goalkeeper saved well from Kenwyne Jones low to his left.

The Black Cats' fans did have something to cheer on 57 minutes when Ronaldo left the pitch, but his replacement, Ji-sung Park, proved just as menacing. Within minutes of stepping onto the pitch the South Korea international teed up Nani for a shot that
fizzed just wide of Gordon's left-hand post. Park continued to chase every ball and showed little sign of his nine-month absence from the game.

With the game won, the Reds took their foot off the pedal somewhat and contented themselves with keeping the ball. That said, Wayne Rooney should have made it 4-0 in the 76th minute when he blazed over from close range.

The Reds did score a fourth in the 86th minute, Louis Saha converting coolly from the spot after Nani had been tugged back inside the area by Danny Collins. It was academic by that stage but nonetheless a welcome sight to see the Frenchman net so comfortably.



United: Kuszczak; Brown, Ferdinand, Vidic (Pique 74), O'Shea; Ronaldo (Park 57), Fletcher, Carrick, Nani; Rooney, Saha
Subs not used: Heaton, Evra, Tevez

Booked: Fletcher

Sunderland: Gordon; Whitehead, McShane, Higginbotham, Collins; Chopra (O'Donovan 87), Yorke (Richardson 61), Etuhu, Wallace (Leadbitter 46); Jones, Waghorn

Subs not used: Ward, Cole

Booked: Whitehead, McShane

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28/12/2007 11:01, Report by Steve Bartram

Boss: Tevez deserves respect

Sir Alex Ferguson is unsure what reaction Carlos Tevez can expect to receive on his return to West Ham on Saturday, but the United manager feels the Argentine striker should command gratitude at Upton Park.

Tevez's goalscoring was an integral part of the Hammers' against-all-odds Premier League survival last term, and Sir Alex is hopeful that the Upton Park faithful recognise his services.

"When players leave a club and go back, they don't always get the reception they deserve when they go back," he told his pre-match press conference. "We've got Rio Ferdinand and Michael Carrick who'll probably be involved tomorrow too, and I don't think they get a great reception going back there. It'll be interesting to see.

"Deep down they must be thankful to him, because I think he kept them up last year, his performances were fantastic for them. There must be a grudging admiration for what he achieved at West Ham in a short period."

Tevez is set to start against his former side after being rested for the Reds' convincing 4-0 victory over Sunderland on Boxing Day.
"We gave him a break on Saturday, it was a bit of luck for us that we didn't have to use him in the game," said Sir Alex. "He got a couple of bad knocks against Liverpool that he was carrying, just bruises really on his ankle and his knee, but after the Everton game we decided to freshen him up and I'm sure he'll be ready for tomorrow."

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28/12/2007 10:59, Report by Steve Bartram

Safety in numbers for Reds

United have no new injury worries ahead of Saturday's trip to face West Ham, but Sir Alex Ferguson is taking an enlarged squad to Upton Park in preparation for all eventualities.

At a time of year where sudden sickness is rife, the United manager is taking no risks as his side look for a sixth successive Premier League victory.

"We're taking a big squad down tomorrow for the game with West Ham," Sir Alex told his pre-match press conference. "We're taking 20 players down, keeping them all together because you never know at this time of year.

"Utilising the squad is important. We freshened up the other day by leaving Ryan, Tevez and Anderson out (against Sunderland). Tomorrow we'll make some more changes. Hopefully that brings the right freshness and gets us the right result.

"The confidence as a team is good, the form is good so we're going into the game in the right frame of mind. It's never easy at West Ham, of course. They beat us twice last season so we expect a tough game but in the form we're in we're looking forward to it.

"A lot of people say we've lost two league titles there and that suggests we've got a bad record, but in 21 years I've only lost twice there, so it's not a bad record!"

Owen Hargreaves will be among the travelling party for Saturday's match, but goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar has not recovered in time to feature.
"Edwin is not fit for tomorrow, he's still out but Tomasz is doing very well," Sir Alex revealed. "He starts training tomorrow and he could be back for Birmingham."

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27/12/2007 09:54, Report by Gemma Thompson

Boss expects Wazza goal rush

Sir Alex Ferguson believes Wayne Rooney's eighth strike of the season at Sunderland - his first in six games since returning from an ankle injury - could spark another goal rush.

The striker netted seven times in seven games during October and November and also bagged two goals for England during that period.

A freak training ground accident in mid-November, which ruled him out for three weeks, derailed the 22-year-old somewhat, but Sir Alex believes his Boxing Day opener at the Stadium of Light could be the catalyst to another good run of goalscoring form.

"I have said before that strikers do go on little runs like that," the boss told MUTV. "It is his first goal for six games, but his goals have come in waves.

"When he got his recent injury, he was out for nearly a month and since then, he has been gradually getting towards what we have seen of him against Sunderland."

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29/12/2007 16:10, Report by Ben Hibbs

Report: West Ham 2 United 1

United’s attempts to end 2007 on a high were scuppered by West Ham as Alan Curbishley’s side earned a third win in a row against the Reds.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s men took the lead through Cristiano Ronaldo in a scrappy and hard-fought game, and could have gone 2-0 had the Portuguese star converted a second-half penalty. With West Ham buoyed by Ronaldo’s miss, Curbishley’s side managed to snatch two goals and all three points. In truth, United were far from at their best and the Hammers were steeled to contain and frustrate. Unfortunately, their plan worked. But it could have been so different.

Carlos Tevez was given a rapturous reception from the Upton Park faithful before kick-off, a touching moment for a player who was instrumental in keeping the club up last season. Sir Alex observed the standing ovation at close quarters as he began the first of a two-game ban up in the stands.

United arrived in east London seeking a sixth league win in December, but had to go about business without Wayne Rooney, who was suffering from a virus. West Ham, too, were without their main striker. Dean Ashton was left on the bench by Curbishley, who preferred to pack his midfield with five players and let Carlton Cole lead the line on his own.

The tactics worked from the off as West Ham took control of the game. And with United not yet settled the Hammers very nearly scored inside the first ten minutes. A neat move on the edge of the area created space inside the box for Hayden Mullins, whose shot beat Tomasz Kuszczak but rebounded off the bar. Luckily for the Reds, Mark Noble - the goal at his
mercy - tried to place his finish but sent the ball high over the bar. A real let off for the Reds.

The Hammers' may have made the more positive opening, but in United’s ranks there is a player capable of scoring in any situation, at any time, and from anywhere on the pitch. Ronaldo’s 18th strike of the campaign, and 13th in the league, arrived after 14 minutes – this time a simple header. However, while the Portuguese winger should be lauded for his goalscoring capabilities, so too should Ryan Giggs, Louis Saha and Tevez for their part in the build-up play. Tevez held the ball up well before finding Saha, who arced a pass out to Giggs on the left, leaving the Welshman to chip a precision cross for Ronaldo to nod home. It was exquisite stuff and flipped the advantage in United’s favour.

The Reds had landed the first meaningful blow, but West Ham were far from out of the fight and United had to weather a storm before half time. Nolberto Solano went close with a 25-yard shot that Tomasz Kuszczak did well to tip over the bar. Then Evra had to clear Cole's effort off the line, before the West Ham forward powered a close-range header over the bar. United were clinging on.

West Ham started the second half as they had finished the first, putting United under pressure and refusing the Reds time and space to play. The match descended into a scrappy affair and United were being made to work to stay in front. Sir Alex responded by replacing Tevez with Anderson to boost numbers in midfield and try and wrest from West Ham control of the middle of the park.

Shortly afterwards, in the 66th
minute, United were gifted the chance to shore up the lead when former Reds defender Jonathan Spector handled the ball. It was debatable whether the misdemeanour took place in or out of the penalty area, but referee Mike Dean pointed to the spot. Up stepped Ronaldo, but suprisingly and frustratingly he fired his spot-kick a yard wide.

It proved costly. The Reds were made to pay for not taking the chance as West Ham’s persistence paid off. After a flurry of corners, substitute Anton Ferdinand rose highest to power his header past Kuszczak and level the scores with just over ten minutes remaining. Five minutes later the Hammers struck again. Noble whipped in a cross for Matthew Upson to loop a header into the top corner.

West Ham proved able to resist all of United’s late bombardment to come away as unfancied victors. But United must not be too disheartened. Despite the disappointment of defeat, the Reds can reflect on a year that has given Old Trafford one Premier League title and leaves the door well and truly door open to claim another in 2008.

United: Kuszczak; Brown (O’Shea 88), Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra; Ronaldo, Hargreaves (Nani 81), Fletcher, Giggs (c); Saha, Tevez (Anderson 65).
Subs not used: Heaton, Pique.

West Ham: Green; Neill (c), Spector, Upson, McCartney; Solano (Pantsil 49), Parker (A.Ferdinand 55), Noble, Mullins, Ljungberg (Ashton 70); Cole.
Subs not used: Wright, Camara.

Attendance: 34,966

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29/12/2007 16:15, Report by Steve Bartram

Boss: The better team won

Sir Alex Ferguson was magnanimous in defeat as United slipped to a dramatic 2-1 reverse at West Ham, conceding that the Hammers had been clearly the better side.
After only a third league defeat of the season, however, the United manager admits his side need to embark on a long winning run as the season enters a nitty-gritty stage.
"We didn't play well, particularly in the first half," Sir Alex told MUTV. "They were very aggressive, tackled everywhere and we never got our game going.
"I don't think we deserved to be in front to be honest with you. They were the better team, they had two or three attempts, hit the bar, had a few efforts scrambled away from our penalty area and really we just didn't perform.

"I still couldn't see us losing, but losing two goals from set pieces tells you everything. If you're losing goals at set-pieces then there's something wrong, your performance isn't at the top level. You can't afford to do that."
While at a loss to explain United's below-par display at Upton Park, Sir Alex - who served the first of a two-match touchline ban - is all too aware of the need to avoid such slips going into the second half of the season.
"Sometimes you have to say that, from time to time, human beings are going to have a bad performance," he said. "I can't pick out a player who played well for us today, and that tells the story.
"It's a rare disappointment, we don't usually get as bad a performance as that. I think we need to go on a long run now because you're coming to the crucial part of the season. In many ways the season starts on January 1st.
"The run-in involves the Champions League and FA Cup, it's a congested fixture list and you have to have the squad and you have to have players performing properly."

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29/12/2007 18:43, Report by Steve Bartram

Ronny not to blame

Darren Fletcher insists Cristiano Ronaldo was not to blame for United's dramatic defeat at West Ham on Saturday.
The Portuguese winger's penalty miss - after his earlier opening goal - squandered the chance to put United 2-0 up, but Fletcher insists that defensive lapses were culpable for the shock loss.
"To lose like that, late on in the game after battling so hard for most of the match, is disappointing," Fletcher told MUTV. "Ronaldo missed his  penalty but that can happen, we're still in a comfortable position 1-0 up and then it comes down to set-pieces.
"It's not him to blame, he's been fantastic for us and won us many games and many points. We were still in a winning position, so it's nothing to do with the penalty that lost us the game today. It was individual errors at set-pieces that have cost us."
The defeat saw United drop points for the first time in a hectic Christmas period, and Fletcher is already looking ahead to Birmingham's visit to Old Trafford on New Year's Day.
"Every time you drop points or lose, you have to pick yourself up and go on another winning run," he said. "We wanted to get through the Christmas period with maximum points and put pressure on the teams below us, but unfortunately that's not happened.
"We've got to pick ourselves up for Birmingham now and get three points and go on another winning run. We can't wait for that game to come now."

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29/12/2007 17:51, Report by Ben Hibbs

Rooney back for Birmingham

Sir Alex Ferguson will hope to have Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick back for Birmingham City's visit to Old Trafford on New Year's Day.

Both players missed the trip to east London for the 2-1 defeat to West Ham after suffering with a virus.

"Wayne and Michael should be ok, they were both suffering from a virus," Sir Alex told MUTV.

Rooney, who was ruled out on Friday with illness, and Carrick, who fell ill overnight, are both expected to be available for United's first game in 2008.

Sir Alex added: "Michael was taken ill during the night, the doctor attended to him on Saturday morning and he just couldn't perform, there was no way he could have taken part.

"Wayne was ruled out on Friday, he went down with a virus. There's little bits going down at this time of year, quite a few clubs have got it I suppose. But hopefully they'll all be ready for Tuesday."

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28/12/2007 16:06, Report by Steve Bartram

Boss watches January sales

Sir Alex Ferguson expects United's title rivals to splash the cash in the forthcoming January transfer window.

The Reds manager has frequently voiced his caution around mid-season moves, and he is unlikely to join a predicted scramble for new players when the New Year begins.

"It'll be interesting to see what kind of market we've got in January," he said. "I don't think it's always as good as people think it is, but some - particularly Chelsea - will use this particular window to galvanise their squad because they've got one or two players injured and four players away at the African Nations Cup.

"Arsenal are a little bit more comfortable with that situation, they've only got two players going and they're in a better position than Chelsea in the league at the moment.
"January's difficult because if you're in the Champions League then hopefully you're going to add someone who is able to play in it, which of course is difficult because you're eliminating something like 100-and-odd teams who have played in Europe, so it's not so easy."

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29/12/2007 17:27, Report by Ben Hibbs

Wes: We let ourselves down

Wes Brown admitted "we let ourselves down" by conceding two late goals from set-pieces as the Reds slumped to a 2-1 defeat against West Ham.

The Reds had taken a first-half lead through Cristiano Ronaldo's header, while the Portuguese winger could have doubled the advantage after the break but missed from the penalty spot.

However, Brown refused to blame Ronaldo and simply insisted the Reds should have defended better.

"We got the lead and we've conceded from two set-pieces that we should have dealt with," Wes told MUTV. "We've let ourselves down.

"It was a tough game for us, but when we went in front we thought we would settle down and start passing. But we didn't get into our usual game. They kept going and caught us out with two set-pieces.

"If we had scored from the penalty then we would have been 2-0 up. Unfortunately Ronny missed it, but we were still winning 1-0 and we were still in control. We possibly dropped too deep after that, which put pressure on us."

It was a bad way to end the season, but Wes says there is no option but to look forward to the next game against Birmingham City on New Year's Day.

"We need to lift our heads for the match against Birmingham and hopefully go on a run of results. We need to get over this defeat. We'll all be thinking about it tonight, but the next game comes around quickly and we have to forget about it and make sure we do the job in the next match."

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29/12/2007 17:55, Report by Steve Bartram

Gunners come from behind

As United slipped to a frustrating defeat at Upton Park, there were goals flying in at grounds all over the country.

Arsenal reclaimed top spot from the champions with a 4-1 victory at Everton. Both sides had men sent off - Nicklas Bendtner for Arsenal, Mikel Arteta for Everton - as second-half strikes from Eduardo da Silva (2), Emmanuel Adebayor and Tomas Rosicky negated Tim Cahill's first-half opener for the Merseysiders.

Chelsea snatched a dramatic 2-1 victory over Newcastle at Stamford Bridge. Despite appearing offside, Saloman Kalou was allowed to notch an 87th-minute winner for the Blues, after Wayne Bridge's own-goal had earlier cancelled out Michael Essien's opener.

The game of the day, however, was undoubtedly at White Hart Lane as Spurs emerged victorious from a 10-goal thriller with Reading. A perfectly normal game was tied at 1-1 going into half-time as Cisse equalised Berbatov's early opener, only for chaos to reign after the interval.

The Royals took the lead three times after the break through Ingimarsson and Kitson (2), only for Malbranque and Defoe to score, while Berbatov took his personal tally to four - ensuring a 6-4 triumph for the
hosts.

Aston Villa came from behind to register a 2-1 triumph at Wigan. Gabriel Agbonlahor struck the winner after Curtis Davies had negated Titus Bramble's early strike for the hosts.

There were several meetings between bottom-half strugglers. Fulham drew 1-1 with Birmingham at St Andrews and Sunderland bagged a crucial 3-1 win over Bolton, while Middlesbrough's 1-0 win at out-of-sorts Portsmouth lifted the Teessiders up to 14th.

Premier League resultsBirmingham 1 Fulham 1
Chelsea 2 Newcastle 1
Portsmouth 0 Middlesbrough 1
Sunderland 3 Bolton 1
Tottenham 6 Reading 4
West Ham 2 United 1
Wigan 1 Aston Villa 2

Evening kick-off
Everton 1 Arsenal 4

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31/12/2007 11:00, Report by Steve Bartram

Strength in numbers

Sir Alex Ferguson is convinced that he has built a squad strong enough to withstand the rigours of challenging on all fronts in the second half of the season.

Although United regained the Premier League title last term, the Reds' lengthy injury list saw them narrowly miss out on further silverware in the Champions League and FA Cup.

"We felt the draft a bit towards the end of last season," said Sir Alex. "What we tried to do in the summer was make sure we had a squad that was capable of withstanding everything. I think our squad's strong, I like it.

"You could say we don't have a natural left-back, but John O'Shea proved again (against Sunderland) that he's a fantastic stand-in if we have to play him there. He's got the experience of playing there before, he's got the composure and balance that it's not a problem to play him at left-back."

Owen Hargreaves, Anderson, Nani and Carlos Tevez were all recruited over a busy summer, and Sir Alex has been delighted with the way they have adapted to life at Old Trafford.
"They've settled in quicker than we thought, especially with four coming in - with one you're worried enough anyway," he said. "It's much easier for them nowadays, especially at our club because of the level of success we've had.

"Going back 15 years before we'd won the league it was always difficult for players coming here because they were always looked on as the final piece of the jigsaw. That doesn't apply itself now, so they don't need to worry about that."

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31/12/2007 08:05, Report by Steve Bartram

Injured duo on the road back

Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that injured veterans Gary Neville and Paul Scholes are both recovering well from their long-term injuries.

Neville has been out of action with a damaged ankle since March, while Scholes needed knee surgery in October but the pair, who have made 1,088 United appearances between them, are on schedule to return.

"Gary Neville's training with the team," Sir Alex revealed. "What we need to do with Gary is get him a game. The Reserves league is closed down of course during the Christmas period, but once that starts up that's one avenue.

"We have to look about, maybe even practice matches and that sort of thing to get some more intensity into his training. Game situations will bring him on a good bit. We're happy with his progress, we're assured he's ok now and it's just a matter of getting him games."

While the return of club captain Neville would add further steel and experience to United's miserly backline, the Reds' forwards will be eagerly awaiting the comeback of midfield schemer Scholes.
"Paul's doing nice, easy running now," said Sir Alex. "That was the plan. He's out of the pot he was in and the time we set for him was roundabout February, and I don't think we'll be far off.

"Probably the middle of February to be on the safe side, but he's certainly doing very well."