Reds confirm Euro squad

United's Champions League squad for the knockout stages of the competition has been confirmed today.

The Reds were required to submit a senior list of up to 25 players to UEFA on Tuesday. Clubs can also name an unlimited number of qualifying players on a 'B' list, which includes players born on or after 1 January 1989 who have given at least two years' continued service to the club after their 15th birthday. Rafael and Fabio, for example, both make United's 'B' list.

Sir Alex Ferguson's men take on Marseille in the first knockout round later this month, with a first-leg visit to Stade Velodrome on Wednesday 23 February, followed by the return tie at Old Trafford on Tuesday 15 March.

The full squad registered by the club with UEFA is as follows:

Goalkeepers: Van der Sar, Kuszczak, Lindegaard; Defenders: Evra, Ferdinand, Brown, Smalling, Vidic, Fabio*, Rafael*, O'Shea, Evans, Gill*; Midfielders: Anderson, Giggs, Park, Carrick, Nani, Scholes, Fletcher, Valencia, Gibson, Norwood*; Forwards: Owen, Berbatov, Rooney, Hernandez, Obertan, Bebe, King*, W Keane*.

*Players who qualify for the 'B' list.

Former Red David Beckham has paid tribute to his old team-mate and best friend Gary Neville, hailing him as "one of the best defenders ever to have played the game".

The 35-year-old announced his retirement on Wednesday after an illustrious career that spanned nearly 20 years in the United first team.

Beckham and Neville formed a successful partnership down United's right wing for almost a decade at Old Trafford and the ex-Red says the defender will go down as one of the game's greatest.

"Not only is Gary a great person, he is one of the best defenders ever to have played the game," said Beckham on his Facebook page.

"It was an honour to play with him at United and for England. He deserves all the praise and recognition."

Current Red Rio Ferdinand echoed those sentiments, adding on Twitter: "Gary is the best right back in Premier League history. He's going to be a loss to our dressing room.

"He is loyal, funny, dedicated and talented - a true United legend. He gave his all for the club he supported and won a load of medals."

Gary Neville, who ended his playing career on Thursday, is to remain with Manchester United in an informal role until the summer.

The 35-year-old had been linked with a pundit job at broadcaster Sky Sports or a full-time position at Old Trafford.

But Neville says he will work with the club to achieve his coaching badges before deciding his long-term future.

"I want to have 12 months to gather my thoughts. I don't want to rush into another relationship quickly," he said.

Although Neville is seeking to complete his coaching qualifications, he admits that he is unsure if he will pursue a regular position.

"At this moment in time my mindset isn't to go into coaching or management full-time," he added.

"I have been working for a football club every day for 20 years. I definitely want to try and continue my relationship with this club, even if it is just as a fan.

"I want to ease off a little bit and just relax. I need to chill out."

The right-back made his debut for the club in September 1992 in a Uefa Cup tie against Torpedo Moscow and played for the 602nd and final time for the club in the 2-1 win over West Brom on New Year's Day.

Neville is likely to be granted a testimonial at the end of the season in recognition of his part in the most successful period in the club's history.

He won the the Champions League, eight Premier League trophies, three FA Cups and two League Cups in his time at United.

Gary Neville sat down for an exclusive interview with MUTV to talk about his decision to retire, and to look back on some of his best moments in his career. In the first of a three-part serialisation of that interview, Gary explains how he came to make his decision...

You caught a lot of people by surprise, can you take us through the chain of events that led to your announcement?
It wasn’t just on the day; something like that doesn’t come as immediately as that. It’s been a combination of events over the last few months and I’ve known for the last few weeks having spoken to the manager. You don’t go and do something like that so quickly. I went away for a week and still came to the same conclusion: it just felt like the right thing to do and that my time was up. When your time’s up, your time’s up.

You could have played until the end of the season. Why stop mid-season?
Sometimes you just go off gut instinct, it’s the type of person I am. I felt it was right. Having spoken with the manager, I’ll continue to go in until the end of the season but not in the capacity that I have been doing in the last 19 or 20 years. I’ll maybe work with some of the young players, but that will be until the end of the season. I played my last game against West Brom and came to the conclusion pretty quickly after that that I didn’t feel right and my time was up. I didn’t want to delay it for four months. In my mind, it just wouldn’t have felt right for me. I felt that, for the manager and the club and everything they have done for me, they should know that as well. They accepted it and supported me in my decision.

So you came to the decision after the game against West Brom on New Year's Day?
It wasn’t after that game, it was during that game! [Laughs] No, it was probably a month or so before that. You don’t just give up after one bad game – I’ve had enough of those over the last 20 years to know that it can happen! The way I felt, at the start of the season picking up those little injuries, your mentality at this club is just to come back and go again. But you get a feeling in your mind that you can’t go again. That time had come for me. There was also the fact of being of use to the team and the squad. In the last two seasons I think I played 25 or 30 games in each season. There were games, or periods of games, where I felt I was contributing to the squad. Once you’ve lost that, you get to know in your own mind that it’s not quite right. You don’t want to be a passenger.

You’d perhaps have preferred to go out at the end of the season lifting a trophy; is it a low-key way to go out?
I don’t think it’s a low-key way to go; you can write scripts, but the reality is that life doesn’t happen like that. In the perfect world, of course, I’d have walked off having lifted the championship at the end of the season. But that’s not reality. That’s not real life. Things happen in life at moments in which you wish they wouldn’t. But I can’t look back and believe that there is a bad way to go. After everything that’s happened, it is what it is.

Who did you consult when you came to your decision?
I didn’t consult anybody. I made the decision myself. I spoke to my mum and dad, my wife, but the decision was made. They weren’t going to try and talk me out of it. They know me well and they know my mindset and the way I have been for 20 years at this club. When that fire stops burning a little bit you know something’s not quite right. The injuries you get deflate you, so they get to know your mindset. It wasn’t a case of consulting them, it was more just talking to people and telling them basically. Knowing me, they accept it; they might be disappointed for me, it’s the sort of thing you don’t want to come to an end for your son or your husband. But that’s life.

What did the boss have to say?
He was fine. Initially he said to go and have a think about it, it’s not the sort of decision you make lightly. He’s been really supportive and brilliant towards me. It just comes. Better players than me have left, greater players than me, so it’s not the end of the world. It’s a big thing for me, obviously, but the most important thing is that the team is doing well. We’re five points clear at the top of the table and hopefully we go on to win the title.

Did you talk to your team-mates?
I spoke to Paul [Scholes] and Ryan [Giggs]. They probably knew a few weeks ago. We’ve been playing football for 25 years together and I’ve known Scholesy since I was 12 and Giggsy since I was 14. So I spoke to them. They’ve lived everything with me. They’re in completely different moments, though; they are absolutely incredible football players and still outstanding performers, still two of the best players in the Premier League let alone at United. I hope I can continue to watch them for the next few years.

You’ve been going into United every day for over 20 years, training and playing. How do you suddenly cope with not doing that? It’s a total change of lifestyle…
It is, but it’s not come suddenly for me. With what’s happened in the last few years, you have an acceptance that your career is coming to an end. It could have happened at the end of last season. The club only contacted me a few weeks before the end of the season and I was quite relaxed about that. I did genuinely feel I was playing my last two or three months at the club. I was prepared for it then. The club phoned me up and David [Gill] and the manager asked me to have another year. You can’t say no. I thought, 'you’re Gary Neville and you play for Manchester United, that’s what you do'. I’ve supported the club all my life and anybody in my shoes would have said no. In the off-season, I did four weeks training to prepare for another tough season, and then I pulled my calf on the first day of pre-season and was out for four weeks. I got back to what I believe to be reasonable shape in training fitness but just without the games. Then my ankle flared up in October, the injury I’d done four years ago. My ankle had been really good and hadn’t given me much trouble. But that’s when you say, ‘enough’s enough’. You get to that point.

if man utd happen to win the premiership/fa cup/champions league, will gary neville be eligible to receive the winner's medal?

not enuf appearances i think

Ryan Giggs believes his former Manchester United team-mate Gary Neville will make a perfect first-team coach - but is NOT cut out for management.

Wednesday night after a distinguished 19-year career in which he made 602 appearances for United and won 85 England caps.

The 35-year-old has been taking his FA badges, along with United contemporaries Giggs and Paul Scholes, and is set to be offered a coaching role at United by Sir Alex Ferguson.

Giggs, 37, who continues to defy the ageing process by playing at a formidable level almost 20 years on from his United debut, said Neville would be perfect in the No.2 role at Old Trafford.

"I'm not sure about Gary," said Giggs. "He'd be a brilliant assistant manager because he is so focused and organised. He could do the day-to-day coaching.

"He gets his point across well on the training pitch. I wouldn't be great at that. I'm better face-to-face, so probably better at management.

"I'm not sure about David Beckham [becoming a manager], but Scholesy will get involved, though probably not as a manager, and Phil [Neville] will definitely be a manager.

"I hope I can be a good manager. I like helping players and improving them, but the life expectancy of a manager is just 18 months, so you don't get long."

Gary Neville admitted he accepted some time ago that his 20-year United career was over and said he did not want to be a "passenger" at the club.

"I've known for the last few weeks," he said. "I've been speaking to the manager, went away for a week and came to the same conclusion that it was the right thing to do.

"The mentality at this club is always to come back, to go again, go again. Sometimes you get a feeling in your mind that you can't go again and that time had come for me.

"You know your own mind and you don't want to be a passenger. When that fire stops burning, you know something's not quite right.

"Sometimes you have to go with your gut instinct. That's the type of person I am and I felt the time was right.

"Having spoken with the manager, I'll continue to go in until the end of the season, but not in the same capacity I have been doing for the last 19 years.

"I'll be working with some of the younger players and doing some coaching, but that will only be until the end of the season.

"At this moment in time, my mindset is not to go into coaching or management full-time. I want 12 months to gather [myself] and not to rush into a new relationship.

"I need to relax. I'm not a very relaxed person, but I need to chill out after 20 years coming in and doing the same thing."

With his contemporaries Giggs and Scholes continuing to excel at United, the 35-year-old defender insisted it was not the end of an era at Old Trafford.

"I don't know if it's an end of an era feeling, because there's a new layer below us now," said Neville.

"When Roy Keane left five years ago, and Denis Irwin before that, it was seen as the end of an era. But me, Giggsy and Scholes stepped up to that next layer, with Edwin van der Sar obviously.

"But now, below us, there's Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand, Darren Fletcher, Michael Carrick, John O'Shea and Wayne Rooney, and they'll step up. The conveyor belt doesn't have a gap in it.

"The manager creates a squad with layers and tiers of experience, from young lads of 17 who are in the squad, right through to experienced players aged 37 or 38.

"And when those ones go off, there are people who step up to the plate and take that responsibility and experience.

"You think back to Roy going a few years back and you wondered how the club would ever replace that character and that player.

"But it happens in different ways. It will happen again when Giggsy and Scholes leave, although I don't know how you replace those two, or the manager obviously, because they're all a bit special."

"He gets his point across well on the training pitch. I wouldn't be great at that. I'm better face-to-face, so probably better at management.

Manchester United defender Chris Smalling is happy at how he has settled into life at Old Trafford.

The 21-year-old was signed by Sir Alex Ferguson in a surprising £10million transfer from Fulham one year ago, and the player moved to the North-West last summer.

Smalling had made just 19 appearances for the Cottagers after they plucked him from non-league club Maidstone in 2008, but the Scot saw enough from the tall centre-back to persuade him to pay such a substantial amount.

The stopper has shown maturity in his role and managed to gain a place in England's under-21 squad, as well as overtaking Jonny Evans in the pecking order at United as deputy to first-choice pair Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand.

Surprised

"A lot of the young lads have been here for a long time," he said.

"I only came here in the summer and I wasn't at Fulham for too long, so I have surprised myself how settled I have become.

"Manchester is quite different to London. It is a bit more chilled out up here and I only live five minutes from the training ground, so everything is nice and easy.

"A lot of my family come up quite often too, so on a personal level I feel really at ease.

"And the more games I play in, the more I feel like I belong here. I really feel good at the moment."

Smalling has appeared 16 times for the club so far this season, including three consecutive games in January, two of which saw him partner Vidic, who has been in outstanding form for the Red Devils this term.

"Vidic has had the biggest impact this season on us," said Smalling.

"That is why we have been so solid at the back so to have the chance to play with him is a massive boost for me.

Chance

"He is one of the world's best central defenders so to get the chance to learn my trade next to him is invaluable.

"He is always talking to me, which makes my job a lot easier when I step into the team.

"His partnership with Rio Ferdinand is something I admired from afar so that chance to train with them each day and interact with them allows me to pick up bits and pieces of information, which is a real bonus."

"It is a big step for me. I am still improving but am trying to learn from all those experiences and kick on."

But Manchester United defender Patrice Evra was not selected by national team boss Laurent Blanc in his 23-man squad for the game on February 9.

Sir Alex Ferguson wants Wayne Rooney to spearhead United's hunt for trophies by producing the form - and goals - he produced against Aston Villa on Tuesday night.

The Reds take on another Midlands team this weekend, with a trip to Molineux to play Wolverhampton Wanderers, and Sir Alex wants his no.10 to kick-start a glut of goals from now until the end of the season.

The boss once again has a full squad to choose from as Rafael and Darren Fletcher are both expected to be available after recent head injuries. Rafael suffered concussion in the game against Blackpool, while Fletcher was hampered with an eye injury. The Scot is the more doubtful of the two, but should be passed fit.

"Rafael should be OK," Sir Alex said on Friday. "He has trained. He should be available against Wolves. I don't think we've got any other injuries from Tuesday night. With Fletcher, we'll assess him today. What happened is that his eye closed and he couldn't see the ball properly. So we had to take him off. I'm sure he'll be OK."

But it is Rooney who the United boss feels could make the real difference. "Hopefully - and there's every chance with scoring the kind of goals he scored the other night - that he'll take off," said Sir Alex.

"Goalscorers are like that and hopefully that's what we're going to see with Wayne. He's got 14 league games, Eurpean games and FA Cup games - he could easily get a good average.

"What Wayne has always had is a fantastic energy to play in a game," added the boss. "He's always committed to doing his best. The bonus is, as we saw the other night, he got two goals.

"Last season he was very consistent, but in the previous years he has scored in clutches of five or six games. But if he can get the consistency of last season then we are going to benefit from that."

Sir Alex Ferguson wants Gary Neville to remain part of the Manchester United "family" now the former England defender has retired from playing.

Old Trafford manager Ferguson confirmed at Friday morning's press conference: "We want him to stay in some capacity."

Neville, who decided to bring the curtain down on a glittering career with immediate effect earlier this week, played his last match in the 2-1 victory against West Brom on New Year's Day when he suffered an ankle injury.

Ferguson said: "Gary will remain with the team. He will train whenever he wants. The next step forward for our club is to retain Gary in a capacity in which he will be satisfied.

"That's because I feel his contribution and what he can contribute in future years is about what we are. We are a family club and he has been part of that.

"He has created that family atmosphere in the dressing room time and time again over the years."

Ferguson believes Neville's last injury was the final straw.

"He had this ankle injury and I think that is what really accelerated things for him," said the United boss.

"If you look at the last four years he's had nothing but injuries. The amazing thing is how he came back from his injuries time and time again.

"Eventually, I think getting that ankle injury in the West Brom game he felt enough was enough."

Ferguson has indicated that Neville could help produce the next generation of young players.

He said: "I do think he has a role to play as a coach, I really do, particularly with the young players.

"Gary has been a great example to the young players in the professional side of it. But on the other side, the academy, we should have that presence and coaching ability Gary has.

"He is taking his badges. He is ready to go into coaching and we will just find a role for him."

Neville intended to announce his retirement this weekend but then change his mind once the Champions League squad was announced and he was omitted.

Ferguson said: "We have been discussing it a few weeks now. Gary wanted to do it on Sunday while there was an international week.

"Once we had given our squad for the second half of the Champions League the press were alerted to that. So Gary thought it would be best to come out now.

"He is a fantastic, incredible man. He came to us as a 13-year-old boy, an avid United fan. He has been that way all his life.

"He has made a great career out of a fantastic will and determination to be the best. He is an absolute legend at our club and will remain so for the rest of his life."

Newcastle : " i cant live without you, carroll .. "

Prove me right, carrol is a good player and worth 35 mil.. kill chelsea tomorrow !!!

That's gotta hurt. ouch. How long Rio's out?

Manchester United's England defender Rio Ferdinand will be sidelined for two weeks after picking up a calf injury before Saturday's 2-1 defeat by Wolves.

The 32-year-old pulled up in the warm-up before watching his side lose their unbeaten league record this season.

United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said afterwards that he believes Ferdinand is out for "a couple of weeks".

He will miss England's friendly in Denmark on Wednesday and the Manchester derby at Old Trafford on Saturday.

When fit, Ferdinand forms an imposing partnership with Nemanja Vidic at the heart of the United backline, but he has been restricted by back problems in recent seasons.

He had to wait until mid-September to make his first appearance of this campaign because of a knee injury which had already ruled him out of the 2010 World Cup, although he has since returned to England duty in November's friendly defeat by France.

Darren Fletcher has dismissed the disappointment of United’s long unbeaten run coming to a halt against Wolves claiming the Reds are only interested in winning the title - not breaking records.

A third minute Nani strike set United well on the way to making it 30 Premier League games unbeaten – a new club record.

But two first half goals from George Elokobi and Kevin Doyle turned the game on its head and brought an end to talk of United ending the season without defeat.

Speaking after the match, Fletcher told MUTV: “The main concern for us is winning the league and losing today is a dent in our challenge. That is the real disappointment for the lads. The unbeaten record has gone and people will stop talking about that now.

“We could have remained unbeaten the whole season and not won the league. What would have been the point in that? Our focus is to win the league. We have lost three points and we will have to bounce back and show our character.”

Despite the frustration of defeat, Fletcher was keen to praise the efforts of Wolves -who add United to a growing list of high profile teams to come undone at Molineux this season. The midfielder was also critical of the Reds' inability to take advantage of an early lead.

Fletcher admits: “It was a great start for us and from moments like that we should really go on and see the game out. We had a couple of chances in the first half, didn’t take them and conceding goals from set-pieces ultimately cost us.

“I spoke before the game and said Wolves have been mightily unlucky this season. I don’t think their performances have been rewarded with the points they deserve, they have played well and lost games. They play the way their manager is – in your face.

“We are obviously disappointed to lose after getting off to a great start. We knew it would be a difficult game against Wolves, they play a high tempo physical game and the ball is always in the air. We just didn’t create that chance in the second half to get us back in the game.”

Sir Alex Ferguson was magnanimous in defeat after his side were left humbled by Premier League strugglers Wolves.

Despite taking a third-minute lead through Nani's clinical strike, the Reds rarely approached top gear as the tenacious hosts overturned their deficit and clung on for a deserved victory.

"We are disappointed, particularly after going in front so early in the game," Sir Alex told MUTV. "The result was caused by bad play at set-pieces. That is the nuts and bolts of it and we don’t dispute that.

"It was a great start. We made a lot of chances, particularly in the first-half. Nani had two great shots at the goalkeeper, Wayne Rooney had a good chance too, so we played a lot of good football in the first-half and made some great chances, but we were never at the races in the second-half. We had an incredible amount of possession. The pitch wasn't very good, but nevertheless we never really created anything."

The league leaders' cause was hindered by the late withdrawal of Rio Ferdinand, who suffered a calf injury during the warm-up and is now out of action for a fortnight. In his stead, Jonny Evans started, while Chris Smalling stepped up to the bench.

"Normally I think we would have put Chris Smalling in that position because he has been playing right side and Jonny has been playing left side, (but) Jonny had already done the warm-up. It was important because of the experience that Rio has in games like that."

Sir Alex Ferguson used the break to make a tactical change; throwing on Paul Scholes for Carrick, but Mick McCarthy's response was to encourage a deeper approach from his side, who clustered around their own area in steadfast refusal to let United anywhere near Hennessey's goal. Scholes came close to nabbing a leveller shortly before the hour, but he could only slide a finish off-target after racing onto Rafael's low cross. Soon after, Sir Alex replaced the injured Evans with Smalling, and introduced Chicharito at the expense of Berbatov.

Player Home Grown

1 Van Der Sar, Edwin No
2 Almedia Da Cunha, Luis Carlos No
3 Neville, Gary Alexander Yes * retired *
4 Evra, Patrice Latyr No
5 Evans, Jonathan Grant Yes
6 Ferdinand, Rio Gavin Yes
7 Brown, Wesley Michael Yes
8 De Abreu Oliveira, Anderson Luis No
9 Berbatov, Dimitar No
10 Rooney, Wayne Mark Yes
11 Giggs, Ryan Joseph Yes
12 Park, Ji-Sung No
13 Vidic, Nemanja No
14 Carrick, Michael Yes
15 Scholes, Paul Yes
16 O'Shea, John Francis Yes
17 Fletcher, Darren Barr Yes
18 Valencia Mosquera, Luis Antonio No
19 Gibson, Darron Thomas Daniel Yes
20 Kuszczak, Tomasz No
21 De Laet, Ritchie Ria Alfons Yes
22 Hernandez Balcazar, Javier No
23 Owen, Michael James Yes
24 Hargreaves, Owen No
25 Lindegaard, Anders Rozenkrantz No

Ajose, Nicholas
Amos, Benjamin Paul
Blackett, Tyler Nathan
Brady, Robert
Brown, Reece
Cleverley, Thomas William
Cofie, John Erzuah
Cole, Larnell James
Coll, Joseph Aloysious
Devlin, Conor
Dias Correia, Tiago Manuel
Drinkwater, Daniel Noel
Dudgeon, Joseph Patrick
Ekangamene, Charni
Evans, Corry John
Fornasier, Michele
Fryers, Ezekiel David
Gill, Oliver David
Hendrie, Luke John
Jacob, Liam David
James, Matthew
Johnstone, Samuel Luke
Keane, William David
King, Joshua Christian Kojo
Lawrence, Thomas Morris
Lingard, Jesse Ellis
Macheda, Federico
Massacci, Alberto
McCullough, Luke
McGinty, Sean Andrew
Morrison, Ravel Ryan
Norwood, Oliver James
Obertan, Gabriel Antoine
Pereira da Silva, Rafael
Pereira da Silva, Fabio
Petrucci, Davide
Pogba, Paul Labile
Smalling, Christopher
Thorpe, Thomas Joseph
Tunnicliffe, Ryan
Van Velzen, Gyliano
Vermijl, Marnick Danny
Welbeck, Daniel
Wootton, Scott James

Who is Almedia Da Cunha, Luis Carlos?
Fabio? Rafael?

fffuuu alien is like a ghost... appear out of nowhere.. have to downgrade my keyboard

Ryan Giggs was recently described as ‘an incredible human being’, so it was no surprise he was kind of enough to stop by for a quick chat for a few random questions…

Hello Ryan. The boss says that, to still be at the top of the game, you’re an ‘an incredible human being’. Do you feel like one?
[Laughs] Not really, no! I feel lucky to be playing with good players. I try to look after myself – you’ve got to at my age. I still feel great and I just enjoy the challenge of playing every week, and I hope I can carry on for a while longer yet.

Who is the best player you’ve played with?
I’ve got to say Scholesy.

What about the best trainer?
Scholesy again.

And who’s the worst trainer?
He’ll get the hump with me, but I’ll go for Pally [Gary Pallister]. He’d take it easy in training and then go out in a game and be brilliant.

What’s the funniest thing you’ve seen in training?
[Pauses] You’d think after all this time I could think of something – my memory is going! I’ll go for Jim Ryan always getting nutmegged.

We hear you’re pretty lively on the dancefloor, but who would you class as United’s best dancer?
I read Michael Owen said I was the best dancer… but I’ll go for Nani, he’s got some moves.

And who’s the worst?
Nev [Gary Neville].

Most intelligent?
Nev.

Biggest moaner?
It’s a hat-trick for Nev!

Which player has made you laugh more than any other?
Nicky Butt. You never knew what was coming next.

Most vain?
Cristiano or Becks - they spent a long time in front of the dressing room mirror.

You’re the boss and you’re picking a five-a-side team of players you’ve played with. Who’s in?
Scholesy, Keaney, Eric… this is a really hard one. I’ll go for Ole and Rio or Vida. I can’t choose between them.

You’ve travelled the world, but is there anywhere you’d like to return to when you stop playing?
I’ve always liked going to Eastern Europe. I’ve been all over – Moscow, Volgograd, Kiev, Prague, Budapest… and you see a change every time you go back. I remember the first time I went to Istanbul [in 1993] and the animosity towards us with the ‘Welcome to Hell’ banners. We went back in 2009 and it was totally different, a really lovely place. There are some beautiful cities in Eastern Europe and having only seen most of them from the team coach it would be nice to see a bit more.

Since Giggs already confirm Nev is intelligent , let Nev become United manager one day 

J.Evans (Northern Ireland) - vs Scotland in Belfast
Fletcher (Scotland) - vs Northern Ireland in Belfast
Nani (Portugal) - vs Argentina in Geneva
Rafael (Brazil) - vs France in Paris
Anderson (Brazil) - vs France in Paris
Vidic (Serbia) - vs Israel in Tel Aviv
Chicharito (Mexico) - vs Bosnia in Atlanta
Rooney (England) - vs Denmark in Copenhagen

waa......thats a long list and half of them are seniors wch we need....

any one has a similar list of cit£h players out on duty???

Stoke City's Jonathan Walters comes into the Republic of Ireland attack for the Nations Cup opener against Wales at the Aviva Stadium on Tuesday night.

Walters will partner Kevin Doyle after Robbie Keane pulled out of the game on Sunday with a calf injury.

Seamus Coleman and Ciaran Clark will make their Republic of Ireland debuts.

Ten players are certain of starting but manager Giovanni Trapattoni needs more time to decide on either Paul Green or Darron Gibson in midfield.

Republic of Ireland team: Given (Man City), O'Shea (Man Utd), St Ledger (Preston), Dunne (Villa), Clark (Villa), Coleman (Everton), Duff (Fulham), Whelan (Stoke), Green (Derby)/Gibson (Man Utd), Walters (Stoke), Doyle (Wolves)

he is back and i presume has started training this week.
hoo their edin will face chicha, so thats 2 long flights for both, square ground there.hmm why the soap actor x play wif his nation??dia retire d ka??

anyway fair amount for us and them, cant really chose much.btw fletch has withdrawn from scotland too.hope its nothing big and he will play this weekend for us

Anders Lindegaard could take his training-ground rivalry with Wayne Rooney onto the international stage on Wednesday night.

The new United goalkeeper is likely to play for Denmark against England, after keeping clean sheets in his last three starts for the national team - against Czech Republic (0-0), Cyprus (2-0) and Iceland (1-0).

In the last game he didn't start for the Danes, Lindegaard came on for injured Stoke shot-stopper Thomas Sorensen in the first half and kept Portugal at bay for nearly an hour. Denmark were trailing to a Nani double when Anders entered the game, and he was only beaten once, by Cristiano Ronaldo five minutes from the end as Portugal won 3-1.

Now Lindegaard will aim to frustrate Ronaldo's former sidekick Wayne Rooney, the solitary Red in England's squad for the Copenhagen friendly. Meanwhile, only one other home nation will field any United players on Wednesday night - Northern Ireland.

Jonny Evans and his brother Corry, currently on loan at Hull, have been joined in Nigel Worthington's squad to face Scotland by 19 year-old Reds midfielder Oliver Norwood. The latter was a late call-up after three senior players sustained injuries.

Darren Fletcher misses the chance to face his United colleagues after withdrawing from Scotland's party. Assistant manager Peter Houston said, "Darren never misses games so we know he must be injured."

Gary Neville’s leadership qualities are one of the major losses to United’s dressing room following his retirement last week. But Nemanja Vidic, the man who earlier this season took over the armband from Neville, has seamlessly taken to the role – that’s the view of Ryan Giggs no less.

Vidic has been described as a warrior, a collosus, a player who leads by example, never afraid to put his body on the line for the United cause. While that has always been his style, those qualities are amplified as team captain.

“Taking over the captaincy can sometimes bring out the best in players, and I think it has with Vida,” says the Giggs, himself a leading figure in the dressing room and a player who has played alongside some of United’s most famous captains.

“Some players just go up a notch when they get added responsibility. I’ve seen it happen before with Roy Keane and Eric Cantona,” adds the Welshman. “Vida’s one of the best defenders this club has ever had and he leads by example week in, week out.

“He has been brilliant for us this season. He’s a proper old-school defender and he just loves everything about his job: tackling, battling for possession and heading the ball clear. He’s like Steve Bruce was in the way he puts his body on the line, week after week.”

It may be scant consolation for Javier Hernandez but after losing in the league for the first time with United, the Mexican has won the first ManUtd.com Player of the Month award for 2011.

In one of the closest ever polls on the website, Chicharito gleaned the same percentage as fellow striker Dimitar Berbatov – 45 per cent – but pipped the Bulgarian by just 69 of the total 33,000 votes cast.

Ryan Giggs and Nemanja Vidic were also on ManUtd.com’s shortlist for January, a month in which the Reds picked up 13 league points from a possible 15 and progressed through two rounds of the FA Cup.

Hernandez’s contribution to the cause included two match-winning strikes away to West Brom and Southampton (both 2-1), and two other vital goals - the first against Stoke City (2-1) and the equaliser in United’s dramatic comeback at Blackpool (3-2).

No wonder United players, as well as fans on ManUtd.com, have been queuing up to give the Mexican credit. Darren Fletcher told MUTV recently: “Chicha is a natural goalscorer so when you bring someone on like him, there are always going to be goalscoring opportunities.

“He's still young and improving his game, but he's already got a great eye for goal. He showed great coolness for his goal [against Blackpool] because he'd missed a chance just before that. He didn't let that affect him and that's a sign of a good goalscorer.”

Sir Alex said after the Southampton game: “Hernandez only had one chance and he scored. One chance, one goal is a tremendous ratio. He has great feet in and around the box and gets his shots away quickly.”

This is the second time Hernandez has won ManUtd.com’s monthly award – he also topped the October 2010 poll. Other winners in 2010/11 so far are Paul Scholes (August), Berbatov (September) and Ji-sung Park (November and December).

Javier's your January star

Javier Hernandez was voted Player of the Month for January by ManUtd.com readers. It's the second time he's won the award this season - in that respect he's on level pegging with Ji-sung Park.

2010/11 Players of the Month

August - Paul Scholes
September - Dimitar Berbatov
October - Javier Hernandez
November - Ji-sung Park
December - Ji-sung Park
January - Javier Hernandez

hmm vida withdrawn on the gaffers request according to the press.either way as long as he didnt play midweek i x kesah who requested it.

also the press saying evans and smalling both suffering knocks.

Sir Alex Ferguson has put in place measures to help ensure Manchester United have sufficient back-up for the injured Rio Ferdinand going into the derby against Manchester City on Saturday.

Ferguson has negotiated an agreement with the Serbian football association so that the club captain, Nemanja Vidic, is not involved in the game against Israel in Tel Aviv on Wednesday and can concentrate on facing Carlos Tevez at Old Trafford.

Ferdinand has been ruled out because of the calf injury he suffered in the warm-up before the 2-1 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday and Jonny Evans has become the latest United player to withdraw from international duty. He cited a sore ankle for not taking any part in Northern Ireland's friendly against Scotland. Chris Smalling had already withdrawn from the England Under-21 game against Italy because of an unspecified injury described only as a "knock".

As it stands, that means Vidic is the only fit centre-half at the club apart from Wes Brown, who is now effectively fifth choice and considered leaving Old Trafford in the January transfer window.

However, it is understood the withdrawals are based on precautionary reasons, United taking a better-safe-than-sorry policy ahead of a match that could go a long way to determining whether they win a record 19th championship. Ferguson has said Ferdinand will miss two to three weeks and was concerned about the possibility of losing Smalling or Evans in a round of friendlies that represents a source of extreme irritation for the United manager at this stage of the season.

As well as issues involving his defence, Ferguson also has misgivings about whether Javier Hernández will be able to take part against Roberto Mancini's team. The Mexican is in Atlanta to play in a friendly against Bosnia, which kicks off at 1am English time on Thursday, and his plane back to Manchester does not arrive until 9am on Friday. The concern at Old Trafford is that a long flight directly after a match, the jet lag and stiffening up of joints might mean the striker is not in a suitable condition to play in a Saturday lunchtime game.

City do not have the same problem because Bosnia agreed to allow the club's new £27m signing, Edin Dzeko, a week to prepare for the derby rather than take a tiring round trip to the United States. Similarly, Argentina have not included Tevez in their get-together in Geneva for a game against Portugal.

Park Ji-sung, the United midfielder, has returned to training after being given a fortnight off at the end of the Asian Cup. Park, 30 this month, led South Korea to the semi-finals and has retired from international football because of the difficulties of the travelling.

Feeney and Evans both have pulled out of the squad for Nations Cup game at Dublin's Aviva Stadium after suffering ankle injuries in training.

Manchester United are facing defensive problems ahead of Saturday's derby, with Rio Ferdinand unlikely to have recovered from a calf injury in time for the game against City at Old Trafford, and Jonny Evans an early casualty of the international break yesterday.

United's initial two-week prognosis on Ferdinand is proving accurate, with little chance of him recovering from the injury sustained in the warm-up at Wolves on Saturday. United have already prepared themselves for the absence of one or more defenders, by coming to an agreement with the Serbian football federation that Nemanja Vidic will not travel to Tel Aviv to play in the national side's game against Israel tonight. Evans withdrew from the Northern Ireland squad yesterday with an ankle injury and Chris Smalling has withdrawn from England Under-21 duty so Vidic will be sorely needed against the twin threat of Edin Dzeko and Carlos Tevez.

The international break has not helped Sir Alex Ferguson's striking preparations for City either, since Javier Hernandez is due to play for Mexico at 1am tomorrow morning against Bosnia Herzegovina, in Atlanta, Georgia. That means he is unlikely to be back before Friday – probably too late to take a place in the starting line-up for a lunchtime kick-off on Saturday. Ferguson will have to judge the effect of the long flight before deciding whether Hernandez can take a place on the bench for the match. Tevez has not joined the Argentina squad to face Portugal for the friendly in Geneva tonight.

Gary Neville is backing Rafael to be his long-term successor in United's defence.

Neville announced his retirement last week after an illustrious career spanning two decades. After breaking into the team in the mid '90s, the former England international became his generation's best right-back. But Neville feels United have already found the man to fill his boots.

"He’s more than capable of going on to become United’s right-back for many, many years," Neville told ManUtd.com. "His performances in the last six months in particular have been brilliant. He’s matured and really come of age. I remember when I was young defender you need that time to mature and get experience.

"Rafael’s always had ability - he gets to the ball quickly, he’s aggressive, he defends his position well, he’s tough, courageous, good on the ball and provides energy in attack, but he’s really developed in the last six months with games and experience. He has a great attitude too."

Such has been Rafael's progress this season, Neville feels the Reds have a stable back four. "We haven’t had a consistent right-back in the last couple of years," he adds. "I’ve been around and Wes and Sheasy have played some games as well as Rafael, but in the last four or five months we’ve had a consistent performer in that position. Now you can say we’ve got a first-choice back four for the first time in a few years with Rafael, Rio, Vida and Patrice, who are all quality players. That’s important to a team."

In the first place the club has no problem with players representing their countries. We let them use our players (sometimes even at stupid periods when we have a packed schedule) and hope they return without any injuries. So, why can't international team coaches like Trappatoni show some respect by keeping such thoughts only to himself? Clubs at times are 'forced' to let their players go at crucial times during a season (e.g. Park) and now have to bow down to such disruptive advices made to the players they are paying week in week out?

Though to be honest, O'Shea is no first eleven week in week out now is he?

rio, evans and hernandez will miss the derby

Sir Alex Ferguson will put his faith in Chris Smalling when he prepares his back four to face Manchester City in Saturday's blockbuster at Old Trafford.

The 2010 signing from Fulham will partner Nemanja Vidic at the heart of United's defence as Rio Ferdinand's absence with a calf injury continues. Another centre-back option was lost in midweek when Jonny Evans, a starter in last Saturday's defeat at Wolves, injured his ankle while training with Northern Ireland.

"Rio Ferdinand is out for a couple of weeks with a calf problem and Jonny Evans got injured training with Northern Ireland, so Chris Smalling will play," confirmed Sir Alex in Friday's pre-match press conference. "I'm sure young Chris will do well."

The United manager said Smalling's absence from the Wolves defeat - when he has normally been Ferdinand's replacement - was no reflection on the young England defender's ability. Far from it, in fact.

"Last week Chris got a bit of tightness in his back on the Friday so that’s why I named Jonny Evans as a substitute last week against Wolves. Then of course when Rio got his injury, Jonny had done the warm-up so he played.

"We’re very, very pleased with Chris. He’s played a few games now so of course he’ll lack that bit of big-game experience but in terms of the experience he has had, he’s used it well and he’s done well.

"We did really well to identify him at Fulham. Our scouting department did a great job and fortunately getting him at a good age where he can develop into our club will prove very fruitful to us. He’s been outstanding since coming to us."

At the time of speaking, Sir Alex was still waiting to check on another of his new boys for 2010/11, Javier Hernandez, following his goalscoring display for Mexico in the US. "He doesn't come back until lunch-time today," said the boss.

With Evans and Ferdinand the only new problems, Sir Alex feels his squad is in good shape for a fixture as important as Saturday's skirmish between local rivals currently placed first and third in the title race.

"Tomorrow is a derby but it could also be a decisive game in terms of the championship for both teams and that makes it an interesting game for us," said the United boss.

"You never get easy games in derby games but I’m going into the game with good confidence in the sense of our home form. I must say our home form has been outstanding and hopefully it works out that way tomorrow."

Sir Alex Ferguson has refused to be drawn on comments from Giovanni Trapattoni regarding Manchester United midfielder Darron Gibson.

The Republic of Ireland manager spoke out following a strong performance from Gibson on Tuesday, scoring in his team's 3-0 win over Wales.

Trapattoni called for the midfielder to move to a club where he can play regular football in a bid to further his career.

The 23-year-old has struggled to break into Ferguson's first team this term, making just 12 appearances, yet has stated he is happy to make a more limited contribution for a club of United's stature.

Mischief

Despite his fierce reputation, Ferguson was fairly muted in his reaction to the comments of Trapattoni and chose to steer clear of the argument.

"I don't know in what context he said it," said Ferguson.

"The media today can exaggerate anything now. It may have been a simple message for Darron. Who knows?

"I only picked up the headline of it yesterday and didn't really bother about the content.

"I know Trapattoni. He is a sensible, experienced man. I don't really give much credence to it. I don't think he would say it to cause mischief."

Ryan Giggs says he will not leave his house for a week if Manchester United lose today's derby at Old Trafford.

Giggs, who will be playing in his 34th Manchester derby today, said he could not face the outside world if Sir Alex Ferguson's side lose to City.

"You don't tend to leave the house for about a week if you lose," said Giggs. "You don't want to lose them [derbies].

"If you've lost one you'll be walking down the street and a City fan will come and let you know about it.

"But that's me being a local lad and living around the area. It's got more intense over the last few years.

"The money that's come into City means they're up there.

They hype around the games in the last couple of years has been massive.

"Tackles will go flying in. You can't get away with tackles like you used to. All players know the importance."

Today's encounter pits the Premier League's top scorers, United's Dimitar Berbatov and City's Carlos Tevez, both of whom have 20 goals this season, against each other

Although Tevez has been in inspired form for City this season, Giggs said United had moved on following the Argentine striker's defection across Manchester to their bitter rivals.

"Obviously when you lose quality players you're going to miss them," said Giggs.

"But at United we've lost quality players in the past and the club moves on.

"Carlos was certainly a quality player but I'm not really still in touch with him. City are really solid as a team but they have that bit of quality as well in Carlos, who we know a lot about.

"His goals, movement, strength, he's a very good player. David Silva adds that bit of magic that no other player possesses, but ultimately it's just a strong squad.

"It will be tight, but hopefully we'll win. Normally when you get games of this importance there aren't a lot of goals, because no team wants to make a mistake."