$90?! Pffftttt!!! That is less than a third of what I paid, and I would still have put up double the amount I paid to see this match.
Cleverley hung with the big boys last night, his positional sense and timing of when to close down and back off were superb. Had great vision and allways kept hisbhead turning. The main difference with Barca last night was that they actually got up after being taclked and didnt roll about on every opportunity. & 6 players from the CL final started. We were more of a B team with only 3 from that game.
How good was it when Smalling cleaned up that little guy (Maxwell?) at the end of the game? Loved it.
It was awesome. Literally sticking the boot in at the end of a hard fought win, loved it. Smalling's got silky skills in his locker but he's learning from the Vida school of hard knocks, don't take no prisoners.
This is what that game represents to me. We've taken some of their glitz away, even though it was just a friendly they can be beaten. Has to be a great psychological boost if we ever meet them in the CL again. Was drunk last night so will have to watch it again but my impressions were that Cleverley, Welbeck, Anderson and Evans did well. Which is good news.
1) That was the big goal Owen promised us last season on twitter 2) What was Hefins e-mail? Was it about lack of Berbatov?
Simply: Mandy "Let's go to the emails, this is Hefin in Swansea." Email "I thought Tom Cleverley was magnificent tonight."
Great result but best not to get carried away as it was just a friendly, they were missing several top players and game changers like Xavi and Messi. I really hope fergie doesn't use this result as a reason not to sign Sneijder.
**** sake, With the 1st post saying Sunday I thought this was tonight. Maco is top man with download links though so I'll have a swatch when they are kicking about.
I watched the match live last night and just saw it again on MUTV. Nani really seemed up for the match, confident to run, dribble and get involved. That seemed to wane in his performances towards the end of last year. Had he been on form, perhaps he could have made a real contribution in the CL Final? Cleverley and Welbeck take lots of credit for their work rate. De Gea was unlucky that Thiago hit such an incredible shot to leave him rooted to the spot. And I really want to give kudos to Chris Smalling in the second half. Right back isn't his natural position, but he seems to have really great footwork and pace when he has the ball. Watch out Da Silva twins! Having seen all five matches of this tour, the other thing I would say about United is that they look to have done not just fitness work but a lot of football skills work. The passing has become increasingly sharp, the movement is better, and if the Barcelona CL Final has been watched once a day by Fergie, then I'm hoping its legacy will be to drum in to Manchester United how we too can control the tempo of a match, and suddenly burst through an opposition's defences with power and skill. I'm really looking forward to the season because having seen some pre-season performances of Liverpool, Man City and Arsenal, I would say that we're looking the best of the bunch. I've not taken a look at Chelsea yet and they do tend to get off to a quick start in the League.
That wasn't Maxwell..it was Ivan Balliu. Promising 19 yr old versatile across the back and in midfield
but still took a kick in from our boy Chris. Couldnt care how good he is accross the back. He was tiny as well
6 of their players started the Champions League Final. Their back 4 was a bit makeshift and inexperienced but a team containing Valdes, Abidal, Busquets, Iniesta, Pedro and Villa is not easy to beat. I was absolutely delighted by the result and very pleased with the performances of Cleverley, Welbeck, Nani and Owen. I doubt a manager of Fergie's experience would base his transfer policy on 1 friendly result!
What an irritating tw@t busquets was diving and play acting so much in a bleeding friendly. No need for it at all
