Preseason preview of man u 2010-2011

Preseason Preview: Manchester United

Manchester United will kick start their campaign this season on 16th August when they take on New Castle at Old Trafford on the opening day of the season. They are on the verge of winning the record 19th league title which they were eluded last season by Chelsea on the final day of the season. They had a terrible week that cost them the league and the Uefa champions league when they were eliminated by Bayern Munich in the Champions league on away goals rule, and then losing to Chelsea and drawing with Bolton cost them the League, although they were ahead in the league at that time. Last season the pair of Rio Ferdinand-Vidic was seen rarely due to injuries and injuries to 9 first choice defenders cost them the dearly. It was just because of the depth Ferguson had in his squad that Man U managed to remain in the hunt always and they had to remain satisfied with just the league cup. There was a time when Michael Carrick had to play in the centre-back position in a champions league match. But its over now and it can be said that Chelsea who scored more than 100 goals deserved to win the premier league last year. Looking forward this season the ‘Red-Devils’ are hungrier than ever before to snatch the title from Chelsea and dominate the premier league again.

Stats centre:
1. League Position last season: 2nd (85 points)
2. Champions league: Q/F Lost to Bayern Munich
3. FA Cup: lost to Leeds Utd in 3rd round
4. League Cup: Champions
5. Community Shield: Lost to Chelsea
Leading scorer in league: Wayne Rooney (26 goals in Epl)

Transfers:
Players in--- Chris Smallings (from Fulham), Javier Hernandez (Chivas)
Players out: Ben Foster (Birmingham)-undisclosed, Matthew James (Preston North End)-Loan,
Ron-Robert Ziegler (Hannover 96)-Free, Tom Heaton (Cardiff City)-Free


Strengths:
The 2 pieces of business that Ferguson has done are tipped to be the best transfers this season. Chris Smallings is one of the biggest young talents in England now and according to Ferguson, Smallings needs a bit of ‘polishing’ which can make him the best, and with Ferguson, you never know especially when he has produced the likes of Giggs, Scholes, Beckham, Ronaldo, Evra on his own. And this will help boost the defense too especially the debacles that were faced last year. There are a lot of speculations about defenders who might come to United in the future but with the likes of Vidic, Ferdinand, Gary Neville, The 2 Brazilian twins, Johnny Evans, O Shea, Brown, and Evra, do you need any more support???Don’t think so.
Javier Hernandez was bought by Ferguson before the world cup and people now knows the level of scouting Ferguson does and the immense potential Hernandez is bringing. We just hope that unlike other fellow Mexicans, Javier becomes successful and provides sufficient cover to Rooney and Berbatov, and Owen.
The young guns in United now have another season under their belt and Nani, Valencia combo are set to terrorize the 2 wings this season. It was heartening to see the form of Nani during the later stages of last season and don’t forget Valencia(who does not play much in the centre role) has been wonderful in his debut season and scored more goals than even Ronaldo had in his first season at United. Anderson will be back from injury and is tipped to be the next Scholes will also flourish. With Gibson, getting slowly a look in and the seniors remaining 1 more season the Mid-field looks more solid than last year.
Michael Owen had a satisfactory last season and was used well by Ferguson, and Welbeck and Macheda are there to support Rooney and Berbatov. Nobody can deny the class of Berbatov and someday or the other he will shine and show his brilliance.
Weakness:
Well the ‘big-4’ ( Van der sar, Giggs, Scholes , Gary Neville) has decided to give another season to the club but for how long? Once they do retire, there will be a big void space left by them. Ronaldo and Tevez left last season and Rooney lifted his game quite a bit to feel the void spaces, but Man-U have over-reliance on him which sometimes puts too much pressure on him. Berbatov is yet to live up to his potential and there is not enough goals coming from the mid-field. The mid-field must step up and cover up Rooney from behind, if they have to match Chelsea who themselves have a Lampard scoring more than 20 goals a season. No big names coming to boost the mid-field and over the past couple of years Man U have failed to attract big names and have fallen behind consistently behind Barcelona, Real Madrid, Chelsea, And Man City. The impact of Glazers and the huge debt has been a matter of concern for the supporters. Although we can trust on Ferguson’s judgment but Man U do need 1-2 quality attacking and central mid-fielders. They have tried for Sneijder but again people are now reluctant to come to United. They have considerably fallen behind their Eastland rivals in the market with their current wage structure and the latest example being David Silva who joined City and was also wanted by United.
Important Fixtures:
08 Aug Community Shield: vs. Chelsea
19 Sep Barclays Premier League Liverpool (H)
10 Nov Barclays Premier League Man City (A)
11 Dec Barclays Premier League Arsenal (H)
18 Dec Barclays Premier League Chelsea (A)
12 Feb Barclays Premier League Man City (H)
05 Mar Barclays Premier League Liverpool (A)
30 Apr Barclays Premier League Arsenal (A)
07 May Barclays Premier League Chelsea (H)

Manchester United has a tough December when they take on Arsenal and Chelsea successively and again the same teams in May. These 2 months will shape the premier league and the results in these games will go a long way in deciding the future of this year’s Barclay’s Premier League. Where Manchester United lost last time might gain this time with the biggest depth in their squad and a clear run in during the Christmas period might just bring home the title. The Champions League Schedule will also play a part and it will be interesting to see how much Manchester United has to travel.