montelik:

We have no choice. We absolutely have to field 3 in d middle against Barca, if we don't want to get murdered. D question is who and how will we play d front 3 and who we will be middle 3.

middle three(carrick + fletch + ando)
front three(valencia + rooney + js-park)

Well, I guess we'll see what Baba decides for the final. Fletcher has no chance considering he didnt play today or even on the bench. No way he'll get the fitness and intensity required to play the final. Anderson's form is still too erratic.

I'm pretty delighted about the league win alone. Im around alot of Arsenal fans and liverpool fans and you should have heard some predict we wouldnt be in the top 4 at the start of the season. .

Mr_TA:

Well, I guess we'll see what Baba decides for the final. Fletcher has no chance considering he didnt play today or even on the bench. No way he'll get the fitness and intensity required to play the final. Anderson's form is still too erratic.

this is because saf is resting fletcher for wembley. he is fitter than fit as we speak.

Mr_TA:

Well, I guess we'll see what Baba decides for the final. Fletcher has no chance considering he didnt play today or even on the bench. No way he'll get the fitness and intensity required to play the final. Anderson's form is still too erratic.

I'm pretty delighted about the league win alone. Im around alot of Arsenal fans and liverpool fans and you should have heard some predict we wouldnt be in the top 4 at the start of the season. .

We will definitely play 3 in midfield
Carrick is a sure starter . . . I think Giggs will play there too.
I don't think Fletcher will make it.

They felt Ronaldo leaving meant MAN UNITED was finished. Well if winning the league and getting to the finals of the CL is being finished, i likey.
We will have to hope that whoever we play in the midfield against barca comes to the party with there A game. Thats all i ask 4. We have seen players who play badly in one game only to step it up in anoda.
Congrats to my fellow MANCS, 19th title. Wembley here come.

Congratulations guys.You are champions,and worthy ones too.

kay_pumpin:

Congratulations guys.You are champions,and worthy ones too.

how gracious!

coogar:

middle three(carrick + fletch + ando)
front three(valencia + rooney + js-park)

I don't think it would be wise to play Fletcher. Thank to Kuskus he couldn't get any playing time today and he needs at least 2 matches to start a CL final against Barca. Even he completes 90 mins against Blackpool it won't be enough and surely he can't start if he plays midweek in Neville's testimonial.

This may sound very crazy but I would play
middle 3 (Carrick, Ando & O'shea)
front 3    (Rooney, Hernandez, Berba)

montelik:

I don't think it would be wise to play Fletcher. Thank to Kuskus he couldn't get any playing time today and he needs at least 2 matches to start a CL final against Barca. Even he completes 90 mins against Blackpool it won't be enough and surely he can't start if he plays midweek in Neville's testimonial.

This may sound very crazy but I would play
middle 3 (Carrick, Ando & O'shea)
front 3    (Rooney, Hernandez, Berba)

o'shea in the midfield and then berbatov/hernandez in the attack? crikey me, you would be the worst manager in europe.

congrats to the scummies. trailblazers. i doff my hat.

coogar:

o'shea in the midfield and then berbatov/hernandez in the attack? crikey me, you would be the worst manager in europe.

.

But seriously I would sooner play O'shea in d position that Carrick presently hides in and give Carrick extra midfield responsibilities. If Fletcher doesn't make it I won't consider playing Scholes. He would get sent off in d first 20 mins, cos we are going to have to press Barca to get d ball and prevent them carving us open, and if we exempt him from tackling duties we get killed. Giggs may have mesmerised against Chelsea & Schalke but d truth is that he ain't a natural CM. You see it in his movement, covering & recovery rate (today and on other occasions this season). So I wouldn't play him either, which leaves Gibson. Hell no.
O'Shea has all d xtics of a midfield anchor, its not that difficult a position to play and he has played there with good effect in d past and this season.

As for d front three. If we want to score in open play Hernandez has to start. Rooney of this season is no good as a target man so he plays behind d lead man.

I think people need to get used to the fact that our midfield at the moment is Carrick + one other. And I also think you're going overboard with the criticism because he's such an important player for the club in that role. He may have been poor in a few games but he has been a very good player since he's joined and been our most consistent midfielder this season.(not including wingers)

montelik:

.

But seriously I would sooner play O'shea in d position that Carrick presently hides in and give Carrick extra midfield responsibilities. If Fletcher doesn't make it I won't consider playing Scholes. He would get sent off in d first 20 mins, cos we are going to have to press Barca to get d ball and prevent them carving us open, and if we exempt him from tackling duties we get killed. Giggs may have mesmerised against Chelsea & Schalke but d truth is that he ain't a natural CM. You see it in his movement, covering & recovery rate (today and on other occasions this season). So I wouldn't play him either, which leaves Gibson. Hell no.
O'Shea has all d xtics of a midfield anchor, its not that difficult a position to play and he has played there with good effect in d past and this season.

As for d front three. If we want to score in open play Hernandez has to start. Rooney of this season is no good as a target man so he plays behind d lead man.

We cant afford to play O'Shea against Barca esp in midfield.
We can get away with it but not against Barca cos it will be difficult to get the ball back when he (O'Shea) loses possession.

Congrats fellow Red Devils

Mr_TA:

I think people need to get used to the fact that our midfield at the moment is Carrick + one other. And I also think you're going overboard with the criticism because he's such an important player for the club in that role. He may have been poor in a few games but he has been a very good player since he's joined and been our most consistent midfielder this season.(not including wingers)

i think one of the litmus tests of whether someone 'understands' football and more specifically man united's style of football is his appreciation of carrick and his role in one of the greatest footballing sides of all time. when carrick shows form, we win league titles. the only season he was off-form was last season and we missed the title by a single point.

Though often maligned for his lack of assertiveness, Michael Carrick is quietly effective for Man Utd in Europe, as tactics blogger Michael Cox argues in a piece exclusive to ITV.com. Few players have had their recent career so widely defined by one game. The abiding memory of Manchester United’s 2009 Champions League final defeat to Barcelona is the sight of Michael Carrick trying – and failing – to pull the strings from the centre of the park.

It’s a little harsh that Carrick’s performance is remembered in such a negative fashion. The truth is that Barcelona had a clear, deliberate strategy to disrupt his game. United’s main attacking threats may have been Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney, but with Barcelona’s backline depleted through suspension, they instead had to cut off the supply to those players. Carrick was the man pinpointed as United’s heartbeat. “Carrick gives United balance and can play defensively too”, Xavi Hernandez said before the match.“He passes well, has a good shot and is a complete player.”

He wasn’t given time on the ball to settle, and therefore his long, diagonal balls to the flanks were often misplaced. At least he was involved, however – Ronaldo and Rooney barely influenced the game at all. It’s a particular shame the former Tottenham player endured such an unhappy memory in Europe, because it is the Champions League where he’s really made an impact over the course of his United career. He was arguably United’s best player in their most impressive performance since he joined the club, the 7-1 home win over Roma, and was also excellent when United lifted the Champions League trophy against Chelsea in Moscow in 2008. Having started United’s last seven European games, it’s clear Ferguson remains confident in Carrick’s ability.

Calm and steady

Carrick's game is based around a calm, steady passing role from the centre of the pitch. Whilst Barcelona and Spain are the best club and international sides in the world through short passing, there are still some who question the worth of a player designed to keep possession. The frequent criticism of Carrick is that he only plays the ball sideways, favouring easy square balls rather than more ambitious forward passes. That misunderstands the way United play, though – they lack a central attacking midfielder, a Cesc Fabregas or Rafael van der Vaart type, and their main creative threats are all out wide – Antonio Valencia, Nani and Ryan Giggs. Carrick’s job is essentially to get the ball from a teammate and distribute it from side to side, and he usually performs this task admirably.

The statistics back up what a key player he is. In United’s previous Champions League match, against Marseille, Carrick finished with a 93.1% pass completion rate, by far the highest on the pitch. He’s also ranks No 10 in the ‘most passes played’ table for the Champions League so far this season, and yes, he does play a lot of square passes – the seventh most in the competition. However, when you consider that the six names ahead of him on that list are Dani Alves, Xavi, Sergio Busquets, Andres Iniesta, Lionel Messi and Xabi Alonso, the sideways criticism looks rather impotent.

A confidence player

Without the ball, he doesn’t thunder into tackles like Roy Keane, but he presses, occupies and intercepts, winning the ball in a less spectacular but equally effective way. Again, he’s amongst the best in the competition in this regard – only two players, Benedikt Höwedes of Schalke and Marseille’s Lucho Gonzalez – have made more interceptions than Carrick.

The main problem is that Carrick is a confidence player. When not on his game, he can look as if the game is passing him by – whereas Keane, Carrick’s predecessor in the No. 16 shirt, could always fall back on his attitude. Wednesday night’s game against Chelsea will be a big game for Carrick. United’s recent trip to Stamford Bridge was a game of two halves – their ‘double pivot’ of Carrick and Paul Scholes controlled the game in the first period, but was completely overpowered in the second.

That juxtaposition underlined that a particular type of game suits Carrick – a patient tactical encounter rather than a blood-and-thunder war. Which will it be on Wednesday night? The answer might influence how Carrick performs.
Still, as a central midfielder, Carrick can’t simply go along with the tempo, he must dictate it. If he wants a calm, technical game, it’s up to him to get on the ball and make sure that happens.

I doubt any United fans deny that pretty much since his signing in 06, Carrick is easily first choice (aside from a brief period in 08 when Hargreaves fitness and form put his starting position in doubt) when it comes to midfield positions. But d truth is Carrick needs support and competition. He is d first name on d team sheet yes, but mostly cos Hargreaves career is in jeopardy, Anderson can't seem to produce any sort of consistency, Fletcher for his energy offers not much on d creative end and Scholes is rapidly regressing. In my view after 3 stellar seasons it is obvious he has taken a few steps backward. Considering that he is now at d age he should be peaking it can be a little annoying to see him seemingly going backwards or stagnating.

montelik:

I doubt any United fans deny that pretty much since his signing in 06, Carrick is easily first choice (aside from a brief period in 08 when Hargreaves fitness and form put his starting position in doubt) when it comes to midfield positions. But d truth is Carrick needs support and competition. He is d first name on d team sheet yes, but mostly cos Hargreaves career is in jeopardy, Anderson can't seem to produce any sort of consistency, Fletcher for his energy offers not much on d creative end and Scholes is rapidly regressing. In my view after 3 stellar seasons it is obvious he has taken a few steps backward. Considering that he is now at d age he should be peaking it can be a little annoying to see him seemingly going backwards or stagnating.

don't you think this is because carrick's role has changed over the years? he now plays far too deep to influence games like he was doing in his first three seasons. his role now is to pick the ball and spread to the wingers. he's now a hybrid between a passing midfielder and a defensive midfielder who shields the back four. not really one or the other, somewhere in-between.

quality means doing it right when no one is looking. it basically sums up carrick as a player for me. he is so intelligent off the ball that only those who pay specific attention to it can spot what he does. take notice when other teams try to break. the first player tracking back, hustling, tackling and intercepting in the middle of the field or in defense will be carrick.

it's not because he is a physical beast, but because he is such an intelligent player who takes up great defensive position. It's great that he is being quicker and more assured on the ball of late as well. look at the stats. four league titles in five seasons. three european finals in four seasons. carrick has the ability to break up attacks without running round like a lunatic but it's his accurate forward passing that makes him so valuable when he's on his game.

@Cougar,
I really don't think this squad is the best like you alluded.That's why we're scratching our heads to see the best possible combo to play a Barcelona side that is porous defensively.

I don't think we're porous defensively. I think the weakness of our midfield is what exposes our defense. I would take our group of defense and GK ahead of any other in football at the moment really.

@TA,
I was talking about Barcelona being porous defensively.

mutd fans r so sensible, unlike other english clubs whose threads r full of vulgar words. we'll play u well at wembley.

cisse7575:

mutd fans r so sensible, unlike other english clubs whose threads r full of vulgar words. we'll play u well at wembley.

Looking forward to playing you. . .

Whats up peeps? Congrats to yall 19th league title. What an achievement.

But I didnt expect much of this anxiety/fear on this thread.Cos the way am seeing
the wembley game, Man-U has the upper hand. Make una calm down jor.

eyoniggar:

Whats up peeps? Congrats to yall 19th league title. What an achievement.

But I didnt expect much of this anxiety/fear on this thread.Cos the way am seeing
the wembley game, Man-U has the upper hand. Make una calm down jor.

Hmm. . .
Bros, don't lull us into a false sense of security.
Every right-thinking footie fan should face some kind of trepidation when facing Barca.

StarBoard:

@Cougar,
I really don't think this squad is the best like you alluded.That's why we're scratching our heads to see the best possible combo to play a Barcelona side that is porous defensively.

the best way to take advantage of their porous defence is via counter-attacks. arsenal exposed that at the emirates. with better strikers on display, gaynners would have won the tie. chicharito would have buried the bendtner chance @ camp nou.

StarBoard:

@TA,
I was talking about Barcelona being porous defensively.

My mistake, I didnt read it properly.

coogar:

the best way to take advantage of their porous defence is via counter-attacks. arsenal exposed that at the emirates. with better strikers on display, gaynners would have won the tie. chicharito would have buried the bendtner chance @ camp nou.

It is interesting you say this, yet you would go with a front 3 of Valencia, Park and Rooney (leaving out our form striker Hernandez). I won't put too much fate in d barca-arsenal game at d emirates. That was a 2 legged tie. Barca were already more than happy with d away goal they had, knowing they could finish d job at d Nou Camp. This on d other hand will be a winner takes all, one-off final. I doubt their defense will be so easily susceptible to counterattacking threats of Valencia, Rooney & Park.

montelik:

It is interesting you say this, yet you would go with a front 3 of Valencia, Park and Rooney (leaving out our form striker Hernandez). I won't put too much fate in d barca-arsenal game at d emirates. That was a 2 legged tie. Barca were already more than happy with d away goal they had, knowing they could finish d job at d Nou Camp. This on d other hand will be a winner takes all, one-off final. I doubt their defense will be so easily susceptible to counterattacking threats of Valencia, Rooney & Park.

our best counter-attacking play had valencia/nani + park + rooney on the pitch. hernandez can finish but his hold-up play is sub-standard.

if we do not start park dat 'l be a problem for united coz we nid a mfder with lot af strenght, takin' ova d mf is like takin ova d game

GGMU

Expect the same team that played Chelsea (minus Evans, Oshea, Fabio) to be the team that starts against Barca in Wembley. . . . .definitely, Rooney & Chicharito up top with Giggsy in the heart of midfield.