Tag Archives: Ferguson

Ferguson expects Rooney improvement

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Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson believes Wayne Rooney is still improving but feels the 24-year-old can become a ‘complete footballer‘ if he continues to work hard (Rooney 5/1 to be the Premier League’s top scorer in 2010/2011).

Rooney notched an impressive 34 goals in all competitions for United last season, his best ever return.  The forward’s contribution ensured United continued to push for the Premier League title until the very end, only to lose out to Chelsea, and Ferguson is delighted with his striker’s development.

“He had an improvement in terms of his timing and movement in the penalty box. His positioning also improved from the previous season,” explained Ferguson.

“He got us over 30 goals and if he does that again and adds a little bit to his game then that is what we expect.

“The boy has got an incredible armoury of talent and what we have to do is to wait for that maturity.

“We also do nurture it and try to advise and coach in a fashion which will improve his game.

“But the most important thing I think he needs now is maturity and, when he gets that, I think you will see the complete footballer.”

However, after his blistering domestic campaign the striker disappointed at the World Cup with England, with Rooney unable to find the net or make any real contribution in any of the Three Lions four games in South Africa.

The United boss has always been an advocate of a mid-season break, with Ferguson convinced fatigue played a major part in the poor showing of England – and Rooney – in South Africa.

Ferguson reiterated his calls for the Premier League to implement a winter break and feels this will only improve England’s performances in future international competitions.

“The FA has to give the country the best possible chance of doing well in the World Cup,” added the Scottish manager.

“Because of the nature of our game and because of the demands from television to have a programme every week, I have been talking about a winter break but nothing has happened.

“They must realise that, going into the World Cup, they have handicapped their team.”

Rooney shouldered the burden of scoring the majority of Manchester United’s goals last season but he will have a new striker partner in the shape of Mexican Javier “Chicharito” Hernández for the 2010/2011 campaign, while Dimitar Berbatov has impressed in pre-season.

Ferguson remains confident the Bulgarian will hit top form at Old Trafford after two years with United (Manchester United 5/2 to win the Premier League).

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Ferguson happy with his lot

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Manchester United boss Sir Alex FergusonSir Alex Ferguson has confirmed that he will not be bringing any more new players into Manchester United ahead of the Premier League campaign (United 5/2 Premiership Outright), as he is happy with the strength of his squad.

Ferguson has bolstered his ranks with Fulham defender Chris Smalling, while Mexican striker Javier Hernandez has been snapped up from Chivas Guadalajara. However, both players are arguably seen as future projects and would not be expected to make an instant impact at Old Trafford.

United continue to be linked with several players ahead of their Premier League opener against Newcastle (Man United 1/5, Newcastle 10/1, draw 9/2 – 90 Minutes Betting) at Old Trafford on August 16.

But Ferguson insists that he will not be opening the club’s wallet, despite neighbours Manchester City again spending big money this summer in a bid to become serious title contenders (City 4/1 Premier League winners) next term.

“I cannot speak about other clubs. We are comfortable with the squad we have got,” Ferguson said. “We bought players at the right time of the season and we are happy with what we have.”

Meanwhile, Ferguson is delighted with his players’ progress on the current tour of North America, despite the fact most training sessions are taking place in hot and humid conditions.

He said: “We are doing double sessions at 9.50am and 5.30pm and that helps us get a little rest after lunchtime.

“The conditions haven’t stopped us – they have been really good. The players have been great. They have shown some good application, good concentration and put in some really good work.

“It is now we are beginning to see the benefits of our training. The tempo is at the level we expect of our players.”

United are set to be boosted by Nani’s return to action following a dislocated collarbone injury, which ruled him out of Portugal’s World Cup campaign.

The winger has joined up with the Reds in Chicago and could feature in Wednesday’s friendly against Philadelphia and against Kansas City Wizards on Sunday.

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Ferguson denies Sneijder link

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Manchester United boss Sir Alex FergusonManchester United (12/5 to win the Premier League)  boss Sir Alex Ferguson has dismissed speculation that the club have had an offer turned down for Wesley Sneijder by Inter Milan.

The Dutch midfielder has attracted interest from a number of clubs after putting in some impressive performances at the World Cup in South Africa.

Sneijder is currently preparing for the final of the competition as Holland take on pre-tournament favourites Spain in Johannesburg on Sunday night.

The Inter midfielder is currently joint top goalscorer at the World Cup and could win the golden boot award if he scores and Spain’s David Villa fails to find the back of the net.

United are just one club that have been linked with a move to buy the 26-year-old however Ferguson has refuted claims the club have had an offer rejected for the player.

He said: “I don’t know where those reports about Sneijder came from.

“How can anybody turn me down when I haven’t even made a bid?”

“I believe the squad is stronger than last season with the younger players having another year under their belts,” he added.

The United manager has also denied claims that the Old Trafford club are lining up a bid for Wolfsburg’s Mesut Ozil who has also had an impressive World Cup with Germany – who finished in third place in the tournament after they beat Uruguay 3-2 on Saturday.

Sneijder could win his fourth trophy this season after helping Inter Milan win a domestic double and the coveted Champions League title and a World Cup trophy would complete a stunning season.

Jose Mourinho, who led the Italian giants to an astonishing season, has moved on to Real Madrid and it is now former Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez’s task to keep hold of their key players ahead of next season.

Manchester City and United have both been linked with Inter striker Mario Balotelli, who was not a regular first-team player under Mourinho.

The 19-year-old has revealed his admiration for both Manchester clubs and could be tempted by a move to the Premier League if Benitez does not offer him regular football.

United begin their Premier League campaign against newly promoted Newcastle United as the club look to win back the top flight title from rivals Chelsea (Manchester United 1/5, draw 9/2, Newcastle United 11/1).

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Ferguson to help pick successor

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Manchester United (United 11/5 to win the Premier League outright) manager Sir Alex Ferguson will have a key role in deciding his successor, according to chief executive David Gill.

Speculation over when the United boss will retire from management has continued after his side missed out on the Premier League title to Chelsea this season.

Gill has stated that Ferguson has not made any decision on when he will retire but the Scot alongside England legend Sir Bobby Charlton and the club’s owner will choose from a “small pool” of candidates to decide the next manager.

Gill said: “I think Alex will be the key. He knows people. He will have a big role in advising and being a sounding board. I am sure we will talk with the owners and look at who is there and determine who we would like to appoint.

“It would be remiss of us not to use the expertise and knowledge that we have,” he added.
Ferguson has stated that his health would be the only factor in deciding when he would retire from football.

Speculation that the new Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho will be taking reins at Old Trafford after the Bernabeu has continued and the United chief executive would not state whether the two-time Champions League winner is favourite to be the next manager.

Gill said: “He has certainly got something about him. He’s a winner.”

Mourinho has revealed that he would like to work with United and England striker Wayne Rooney, but whether this is at Madrid or in Manchester is unclear.

However, Florentino Perez is supposedly talking to representatives at Old Trafford about potentially signing the player as they claim they can reach the club’s valuation for the forward.

Rooney is currently training with the England (Rooney 10/1 to be the top goalscorer at the World Cup) squad ahead of the World Cup in South Africa.

England will face Japan in their final pre season match on Sunday before the 23 man squad is announced.

Avoiding injury, Rooney is guaranteed a seat on the plane to South Africa and any potential deal with Real Madrid would be likely to take place after the tournament which could increase the player’s valuation if he has a successful tournament.

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Ferguson wants to end on a high

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Sir Alex FergusonManchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that he would not leave the club if the side were struggling (Manchester United 11/5 to win the 2010/2011 Premier League outright).

The 68-year old has denied speculation that he will be retiring at the end of next season and has recently stated that his health is the only factor that would see him leave Old Trafford.

Ferguson saw his side win the League Cup this season and run Chelsea close for the Premier League title.

The Scotsman, who has been at the club since 1986, would only leave the club if they were in a ‘good, healthy’ position.

He said: “If we hit a bad spell, it would not be the right time to go.

“I would not want to put the new manager into a situation where he was taking over a bad team,” he added.

The United boss is already looking to next season as he hopes to regain the Premier League title from Chelsea.

Ferguson said: “It’s a challenge. A few years ago it was Arsenal,  then it was Chelsea, and each time we’ve managed to raise the bar at our football club – and that is exactly what we are going to do next year.”

The manager was close to retiring from football back in 2002 but changed his mind after he saw his team suffer a poor run of form.

Ferguson also revealed that his wife Cathy had a big influence on his decision after he felt that 60 was a good age to retire.

United’s chief executive David Gill has stated that the manager will have a substantial transfer budget to buy players this summer.

The Old Trafford club have been linked with a number of players including Aston Villa midfielder James Milner and Joe Cole, whose contract at Chelsea ends this summer.

New signings may be coming to the club in the next few weeks as transfers get rushed through before the World Cup in South Africa starts, which will increase the cost for potential targets.

United have already made two signings in the form of defender Chris Smalling and striker Javier Hernandez and will be hoping to make a few more additions to the squad in an attempt to bring the Premier League title back to Manchester.

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Ferguson determined to carry on

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Manchester United boss Sir Alex FergusonManchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has stated that his health is the only factor that will determine how long he stays in management (Man United  7/1 to win the Premiership title outright).

The 68-year-old has endured constant speculation over his future at the club over the last few seasons despite the domestic and European success the club has achieved.

Ferguson has been in charge at Old Trafford for almost 24 years and has continued to build strong squads through a mixture of strong signings and academy youngsters.

United go into the final day of the season one point behind leaders Chelsea who will be confident of winning their match against Wigan at Stamford Bridge.

This would leave United with only one piece of silverware this season in the form of the League Cup. This would be considered a disappointing season from the club’s perspective.

However if this is indeed the only trophy to come to Old Trafford this season, it will not deter Ferguson to push on for more honours next season as long as he has no issue with his health (Man United 11/5 to win the 2010/2011 Premiership title outright).

The Scotsman said: “The thing I hope is that my health is OK. When you get to 68 years of age, you are not guaranteed anything. You hope you wake up in the morning.

“So you say to yourself, ‘There for the Grace of God that I am still here.”

“And that is the only thing that determines you in connection with football. You couldn’t possibly do your job unless you were healthy,” he added.

Ferguson believes that United’s season came down to the one week in which they lost to Chelsea at Old Trafford and crashed out of the Champions League on away goals against Bayern Munich.

The manager feels that if the results in this week had been different then their season could have been a completely different story.

Speculation over how long Ferguson has left at United has been present at the beginning and end of recent seasons and discussions over who will be his successor have continued.

Over the years names such as Martin O’Neill and Jose Mourinho have been implicated with the manager’s job at Old Trafford but Ferguson is likely to have an input as to who will succeed him.

He said: “You can talk about the successful managers right now who might be on everyone’s list. But in two years, they may not be. Or even next year.

“So it’s very difficult to say who would replace me when my time came.”

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Ferguson hails Evans deal

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Jonny EvansJonny Evans has been described as a future leader of Manchester United (United 11/5 Premiership Outright 2010/2011) by boss Sir Alex Ferguson after he signed a new four-year deal at Old Trafford.

The Northern Ireland international defender has figured heavily in the Red Devils’ current campaign due to a myriad of respective injury problems to the first-choice pairing of Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic.

And Ferguson is delighted to tie him down to a long-term contract as he feels Evans will eventually go on to captain the side in the coming seasons.

“Jonny has signed a new deal,” said Ferguson.

“We have been working on it for a few months now and I am happy that he has signed it.”

United still have a chance of winning this season’s Premier League title (7/1 Outright) but they must defeat Stoke City in their final match of the campaign at Old Trafford (United 1/9, Stoke 16/1, draw 7/1 90 Minutes) on Sunday and hope Chelsea slip up at home to Wigan (Chelsea 1/10, Wigan 20/1, draw 7/1 90 Minutes).

Ferguson feels the week that United lost at home to Chelsea in between crashing out of the Champions League on away goals over two legs against Bayern Munich will be the key period of the season that cost United if they fail to retain their league crown this weekend.

“It was a bad week for us and it might have cost us everything,” said Ferguson.

“The biggest disappointment was the European Cup. It is an absolute travesty because we were the better team.”

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Ferguson hints at minor surgery

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It may not be the clearing of the desks that many had predicted but a suggestion from Sir Alex Ferguson that he will perform minor surgery to his Manchester United squad this summer could be significant (Manchester United 7/1 to win the Premier League).

The game’s longest-serving manager appeared resigned to missing out on an unprecedented fourth consecutive Premier League title when he described Sunday’s last-day scenario as “bleak”.

The defending champions must beat Stoke at Old Trafford and hope Wigan defy the odds to shatter Chelsea’s hopes of a first domestic crown since 2006 (1/9 Man United 7/1 draw 16/1 Stoke in the match betting market).

United have already lost seven Premier League games so far this season, were knocked out of the FA Cup by old rivals Leeds and were denied a fourth straight semi-finals appearance in the Champions League by Bayern Munich, meaning they are likely to end the season with just the Carling Cup added to the trophy cabinet.

Ferguson said he would not be pointing fingers or getting himself in knots about what went wrong but did suggest there could be a change in personnel.

“You have to take a decision about where we can improve the team,” he told MUTV.

“When you are challenging for four trophies it can have a draining effect. You have to be aware of that and spot the moment when it is time to freshen up one or two players.

“It is not a desire to do it but you need to do it because the demands and pressures on players can, over time, be quite exacting.”

Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville continue to roll back the years but cannot be relied upon week in-week out on four fronts.

Ferguson’s pointed remark that “we were just careless in our finishing” in the 1-0 win over Sunderland on Sunday has led to suggestions £30m signing Dimitar Berbatov has blown his chance to prove he is the perfect foil for Wayne Rooney, while England midfielder Michael Carrick could be another high-profile casualty off the back of a disappointing campaign.

Dutch veteran Edwin van der Saar is fast approaching 40, Rio Ferdinand has struggled for fitness and Nemanja Vidic has repeatedly denied he is seeking a transfer.

Ferguson has made a career out of coming off the ropes in the face of adversity and he may need to pull one last rabbit out of the hat to take United back to the top of English football in what could be a telling close-season of transfer activity.

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Ferguson aware of derby impact

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Sir Alex FergusonTitle-chasing Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson accepts the derby clash with Manchester City at Eastlands on Saturday will be a “pivotal” game in the clubs’ respective seasons.

The Red Devils are going for a record 19th league title (13/2 Outright) after drawing level with Liverpool on 18 last season, with Ferguson’s men also looking to become the first outfit to win four Premier League crowns on the bounce.

But Ferguson concedes that top-four hopefuls City (4/9 Top 4 Finish) have their own agenda to fight for over the course of the remainder of the campaign, something which gives derby day a whole new twist.

The Scot said: “In over 23 years at United it is the first time we have played City when they have a chance of actually achieving something.

“Whenever we have played City they have always said they will beat us, whether it is a chairman, director or somebody else.

“That is what a derby game does. Supporters want to hear that.

“But this is a different game in terms of City’s position and you can be sure whatever happens it is going to be pivotal in terms of both clubs’ prospects for the season.”

Ferguson’s opposite number, City chief Roberto Mancini, claims the Blues are facing the most important run of games in the club’s 130-year history immediately after the United clash, as he looks to guide them into the qualifying rounds of the Champions League.

And the Italian concedes the ease of his summer transfer business will be decided by the outcome of City’s season.

He admitted: “It is important we finish in fourth because we can change the way we are going.

“It would put us in the Champions League next year and that would make it easier to get the players we want.”

The derby at Old Trafford finished 4-3 in United’s favour back in September when Michael Owen came off the bench to score the winner five minutes into stoppage time.

A win for United at Saturday lunchtime would see them close to within a point of leaders Chelsea who do not play until their evening encounter with Tottenham at White Hart Lane.

But with four games to play Ferguson knows United’s title destiny is now out of their own hands following the 0-0 draw at Blackburn last Sunday.

Speaking after the game, he said: “It’s a blow, there’s no question about it. It makes it really difficult to win the league now.

“That is a fantastic result for Chelsea. It has slipped away from us.

“We have a lifeline if Chelsea blow it.”

Chelsea went on to beat Bolton in midweek to establish a four-point cushion with four games left for both themselves and United this term.

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