I think touchline ban has it's own radius of not talking to the assistant

In addition, Wes Brown had to be substituted at half-time in the win over Wanderers because of a leg injury - but Ferguson hopes his injury problems will ease over the international break.

"We have two weeks now to try and patch up the injuries," said Ferguson.

"That is the biggest break we have but we should have Nemanja Vidic back for the West Ham game."

On  the other hand,great performance from Cleverly. 1 goal and 1 assist,man of the match for wigan...

i was just thinking SAF really has trust and belief in the players he has in the club as even with so much injuries so far i notice he didn't recall back anyone from loan.

Err, you don't need to dial the numbers every single time you pick up the phone?
Anyway, what's the return date for Vidic? Thin in defence and ban on the gaffer, we are really being tested aren't we?

---

Added on March 20, 2011, 3:04 pm
And Fabio isn't exactly one of the fittest. I'll be surprise if he manage to play 5 games in a row

"That is the biggest break we have but we should have Nemanja Vidic back for the West Ham game."

is Evra going to play?
i tot the france FA decided not to use him permanently?

or i got misinformed?

Patrice Evra and Franck Ribery have been named in the France squad for the first time since the 2010 World Cup.

The Manchester United left-back and the Bayern Munich midfielder were two of the main protagonists in the disharmony which plagued the French campaign.

Evra and Ribery received five and three game bans respectively and have not been selected for the last seven games.

France boss Laurent Blanc has now picked them for the Euro 2012 qualifier against Luxembourg on 25 March.

The pair will also be available for the friendly against Croatia four days later.

Stuart Holden has spoken with Jonny Evans and holds no grudge against the Manchester United defender.

The Bolton midfielder was on the receiving end of a full-blooded challenge from Evans during a Premier League fixture on Saturday.

The tackle earned the Red Devils centre-half a red card and led to Holden being stretchered from the field.

It has since been confirmed by the Trotters that the injury suffered by their United States international will keep him sidelined for up to six months.

That news means Holden's season has been brought to a premature end, while his international commitments with the USA this summer have also been shelved.

Sincere

It promises to be a long road back to full fitness for the 25-year-old, but he remains upbeat.

He has also been contacted by an apologetic Evans and accepts that there was no malice in the challenge which has left him facing up to knee surgery.

"Just had a sincere phone call from Jonny Evans wishing me the best in my recovery, def wasn't intentional, just unfortunate part of the game," Holden wrote on his Twitter account.

He is due to go under the knife in London on Monday, before setting out on the road to recovery.

and the price set by Ian Holloway is not cheap oso

Szczesny's critics on his teammates
so so funny 

i found this on one my girlfriend fb,
pinned it up? @ muka surat satu

Manchester United rising star Chris Smalling has been told by the club's coaching staff that he needs to find his voice on the pitch.

The former Maidstone defender has proved to be a more than ample understudy for the injured Rio Ferdinand, having only arrived at United from Premier League rivals Fulham last July.

But Smalling still has a lot to learn and there was a clear lack of communication with Wes Brown in the 3-1 defeat at Liverpool and the nervy UEFA Champions League second-leg win over Marseille.

The 21-year-old has surpassed expectations, however, he has been urged by Sir Alex Ferguson and his team of coaches to become more dominant as he continues his development at Old Trafford.

"The coaching staff want me to start expressing myself a bit more," said Smalling.

Confidence

"They think I am a bit quiet on the pitch. But it is starting to come. With more games I am sure that confidence will come across.

"At set-pieces in particular you have to be a figurehead when you are in central defence.

"You have to dictate and make sure people are marking. I have to make sure that comes across."

The injuries and suspension of Nemanja Vidic forced Smalling to play alongside Brown, and the youngster admits that he prefers playing with a more experienced partner at centre-back.

"It is important to have an experienced player with me," he said.

"I have not really faced these kind of strikers before, so having someone around to help has made it a lot easier. It gives you the confidence to cope."

Manchester United's parent company made a loss of £108.9m in 2009-10, according to newly released financial results.

Red Football Joint Venture is the Glazer family parent company that owns the Old Trafford club.

Its loss, for the year to July 2010, includes one-off costs from setting up a £526m bond scheme last January to replace outstanding debts of £509m.

There was also a drop in player sale income, compared to the previous summer when Cristiano Ronaldo was sold.

That Ronaldo sale had netted the club £80m in the summer of 2009, and had contributed to a £21m profit the previous year.

Losses in 2010 included £30.2m interest on their £220m payment in kind (PIK) loans which have now been repaid.

Manchester United's club accounts were published in October and revealed losses of £83.6m.

The club is currently top of the Premier League, in the FA Cup semi-final, and in the Champions League quarter final, all of which offer revenues in terms of prize money and television monies.

Transfer

Earlier this month Manchester United chief executive David Gill told a Commons committee hearing into football governance that he was "comfortable" with the club's financial situation, including debt and interest repayment levels.

Mr Gill told the hearing that net debt of £370m and annual interest of £45m was not hampering United.

And he said that under club owners, the Glazer family, revenues had risen from £40m in 2006 to more than £100m.

In February it was revealed there had been a transfer of the ultimate parent company of the club, Red Football LLC, from Nevada to Delaware.

That has raised fears about the ultimate ownership of the club, as companies' beneficial ownership information is not registered in the small US state.

But Mr Gill insisted that "the ultimate owners, 100%, are the Glazer family".

Manchester United are ready to sign teenage Chilean striker Angelo Henriquez in a £3million swoop.

Boss Sir Alex Ferguson has teed up the deal for the 16-year-old South American sensation, who will sign shortly for the Red Devils – pipping rivals from around the globe.

The youngster has already been to United for training, but now an agency – working for the club – has agreed terms.

United are using the same Brazilian firm who brought Rafael and Fabio da Silva to the club. The youngster, who plays for Universidad de Chile, is starring in the South American Under-17 Championship.

Henriquez has been notching goals with head and feet for Chile in the tournament in Peru, as he shows he may be one of the continent’s best emerging talents.

Ferguson and his staff are working overtime to improve their youngsters after a spell when the assembly line dried up.

United's American owners are also keen to sign young players, rather than pay large fees for established stars.

Home is where the heart is, they say. This season, it's also housed the points to keep United's Barclays Premier League title bid alive.

After successive defeats at Chelsea and Liverpool, Saturday's dramatic win over Bolton marked a welcome return to winning ways in the league, and extended the Reds' almost unblemished record at Old Trafford this season. With every other challenger displaying degrees of inconsistency at home, United's form in M16 can make the difference come late May.

Arsenal have lost to West Brom, Newcastle and Tottenham at the Emirates; Manchester City have dropped points at Eastlands six times; and both Sunderland and Liverpool have won at Stamford Bridge – although it was Chelsea’s midwinter of discontent, when they won just twice in 11 league games, that has proven most damaging for Carlo Ancelotti's reigning champions.

In contrast, while United’s away-day travails have been much hyped this term, in the midst of the unpredictable tumult of the 2010/11 season, Old Trafford has been an oasis of calm consistency, where Sir Alex Ferguson’s side have racked up 43 points from a possible 45.

The Reds’ dominance of the Premier League era has always been underscored by relentless home form, but this term the bar has been raised.

Hosts with the most

Over the last 100 Premier League home games, United's record is head and shoulders above the rest of the top six...

Won - United (85), Chelsea (71), Arsenal (69), Liverpool (67), Tottenham (58), Manchester City (54)

Drawn - United (9), Manchester City (18), Arsenal (21), Tottenham (23), Chelsea (24), Liverpool (26)

Lost - Chelsea (5), United (6), Liverpool (7), Arsenal (10), Tottenham (19), Manchester City (28)

Goals scored - United (245), Chelsea (224), Arsenal (223), Liverpool (208), Tottenham (178), Manchester City (155)

Goals conceded - United (55), Chelsea (62), Liverpool (64), Arsenal (81), Tottenham (96), Manchester City (98)

Points gained - United (264), Chelsea (237), Arsenal (228), Liverpool (227), Tottenham (197), Manchester City (180)

*Stats correct at 22 March 2011

While eyes were fixed on the Old Trafford directors’ box last Saturday to see if Fabio Capello would finally get up close and personal with Rio Ferdinand over the England captaincy issue, many would have missed the five Brazilian boys sitting six rows behind the Italian.

Long after Capello’s discarded skipper ends his career at United, the club hope their tie-up with Sao Paulo academy Desportivo Brasil will provide them with a steady stream of talent.

The process is part of a painstaking two-and-a-half-year project by the Barclays Premier League leaders to develop their own talent in South America rather than splash out huge fees on the next generation of stars.

Confidentiality agreements prevent Desportivo Brasil from revealing which of their 100-plus teenagers have a pre-contract agreement with United, but Sportsmail has learned that the five players pictured at Old Trafford are called Gladstony, Aguilar, Lucas Evangelista, Agnaldo and Rafael Leao.


Youths of today: Gladstony (1), Aguilar (2), Lucas Evangelista (3), Agnaldo, (4), and Rafael Leao (5) watch from the directors' box, as does Fabio Capello (circled bottom right)

The five are now visiting Dutch champions Twente, who United plan to use as a holding club for the boys to gain European Union passports.

Midfielders Gladstony and Rafael Leao will be 18 later this year — the age at which they can legally sign for a club outside Brazil — but tight immigration laws in England mean they are unlikely to be granted work permits as, unlike United defenders Rafael or Fabio da Silva, they have not even represented their country at youth level.

This is where Twente come in. Holland will happily let the boys play there, where they can stay until they qualify for an EU passport or get enough international experience for a UK work permit.

Desportivo Brasil is owned by sprawling South American football company Traffic, whose president of international business Jochen Losch told Sportsmail: ‘Twente are a partner, helping United to resolve the problem of their EU passports. For two reasons it’s good that a player goes first to Holland. First, after two or three years he’s considered to be European. And of course it’s easier to play in the Dutch league than the Premier League.’

The players all live inside a multimillion-pound training centre in Porto Feliz, a 90-minute drive from bustling Sao Paulo where they enjoy better training facilities than at most major Brazilian clubs.

But Desportivo Brasil do not dream of winning the league title or the Copa Libertadores; their raison d’etre is to have the best youth teams in South America and sell on their talent.

The designated United players are given extra English lessons, sessions with a psychologist about being away from home and visits to the Carrington training complex they may one day call home.

If United go through with a signing, they pay a set fee, based on a player’s position rather than ability.

The Brazilian academy, set up by Traffic, then retain a hefty 50 per cent sell-on clause.

Losch said: ‘Manchester United look for young players in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay. If they find a good one they come to us. We’ll get the player, register him with Desportivo Brasil, and we have a contract with United that they have an option to buy this player at 18 for a fixed amount.

‘If the guy turns out to be an Alexandre Pato (the striker who left Internacional for AC Milan for nearly £20million on his 18th birthday) United can still have him for a huge discount because of course we’ll honour the contract. If they don’t like the player, we keep him.’

The partnership was struck after United’s pursuit of the Da Silva twins. They were first spotted as 15-year-olds but could not be formally taken out of Brazil until their 18th birthday, meaning they risked being neglected in the Fluminense youth team and they never made a senior appearance in Brazil.

One of the brightest hopes on Desportivo Brasil’s books is striker Aguilar, who was 16 a fortnight ago but was called up by Brazil’s Under 17 squad for training in January.

Aguilar was signed by Belo Horizonte side Cruzeiro in 2009. However, because contracts are not valid before a player’s 16th birthday, Desportivo Brasil were able to take him to Porto Feliz a year ago, prompting an angry reaction from Cruzeiro president Zeze Perrella.

Aguilar’s former coach Joao Paulo Tardim said: ‘There is no doubt about his quality. Saying he will become a great player is an exercise in predicting the future, but the chances of it happening are very high.’

English scouts will no doubt be at the Emirates on Sunday to see Brazil, with exciting Santos striker Neymar and Sao Paulo playmaker Lucas, take on Scotland.

But the pair have recently signed contracts setting their value at £39m and £66m respectively.

If United’s project comes off, it will have been a long game worth playing.

Tomasz Kuszczak lined up by Galatasaray with Pole to leave Manchester United in summer

sos!

not sure I slowpoke or not. 

Edwin van der Sar has ruled out a return to Ajax after he retires, revealing he plans to stay at Manchester United in a non-playing role.

The 40-year-old goalkeeper will quit at the end of the season, but told Dutch magazine Life After Football he will not be making good on a 12-year-old pledge to return to Amsterdam just yet.

"I'm not going back to Amsterdam, though it would be very comfortable there with Frank de Boer, Danny Blind and Dennis Bergkamp," said Van der Sar of his former Ajax team-mates.

"When I left 12 years ago, I said I would return, but I did not know then what great years I would have with Manchester United.

"I might occasionally visit training with them, but I will not be going regularly."

Instead, Van der Sar is mapping out a role with United.

"It may be that I'm going to give Manchester United clinics in Asia, where the club is very popular, or something in commerce," he added.

"I think this is interesting. I have already held some talks."

The fuss started again after reports that he had turned up in Old Trafford’s VIP seats last Saturday to watch the Bolton match. The club now say that it was a case of mistaken identity and that the 20-year-old was “100 per cent definitely not” at the game.

wow.....
chicharito scoring for mexico..
   

The Manchester United striker has now scored 13 goals in 22 matches for Mexico

England squad update

Sunday, 27 March, 2011

Six England players return to their clubs.

The FA can confirm that six players have left the England squad and returned to their clubs.

Following England's 2-0 win over Wales on Saturday, John Terry, Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole have returned to Chelsea, Michael Dawson has returned to Tottenham Hotspur, Wayne Rooney has returned to Manchester United and Kyle Walker to Aston Villa.

Manchester United will face the MLS All-Stars in July as part of the club's 2011 pre-season tour to the USA.

Full details of all US tour games, including opposition and ticket details, will be announced on Tuesday by Sir Alex Ferguson at a special media event in the United States and also on ManUtd.com.

The All-Stars game, sponsored by AT&T, will take place at the Red Bull Arena in New Jersey on Wednesday 27 July (kick-off: 20:30 local time).

It's the second successive year United have featured in the annual All-Stars game. Last July, Javier Hernandez scored in his first run-out for the Reds as United became the first international team to beat the All-Stars over 90 minutes, with a resounding 5-2 success in Houston, Texas. Youngsters Federico Macheda (2), Darron Gibson and Tom Cleverley were also on the scoresheet.

"We're delighted to have been invited to play the MLS All-Star Game for the second year running,” Sir Alex said. “Last year's game was a special occasion in front of a noisy, passionate crowd. Obviously we'll be looking to repeat the performance and the scoreline, but it will be a great spectacle for everyone involved."

It's a measure of the impact Antonio Valencia has had on his return from injury that he has been voted United's Player of the Month for March.

The winger made his long-awaited comeback at half-time in the FA Cup win over Arsenal on 12 March and looked like he'd never been away, displaying his usual strength, pace, touch and crossing ability.

The Ecuadorian followed that up with an electric half-hour cameo in the victory over Marseille, before completing his first 90 minutes in six months as United overcame Bolton.

Fans are clearly delighted to have the 25-year-old back. He took half the votes in our poll, narrowly beating Javier Hernandez into second place, with Wayne Rooney and Chris Smalling in third and fourth respectively.

Sir Alex Ferguson has challenged his players to treat every one of United's remaining Premier League fixtures as a must-win game.

As the season draws to an exciting close with the Reds still challenging for three trophies, the boss knows we cannot afford any slip-ups with crunch games coming thick and fast.

Saturday's testing trip to West Ham means an early kick-off and the chance to move eight points clear at the top but it's certain to be a difficult challenge against Avram Grant's side.

Arsenal, who entertain Blackburn on Saturday, are five points behind United, but with a game in hand and the blockbuster showdown at the Emirates Stadium still to come. Sir Alex believes the Gunners are the biggest threat to the Reds' bid to lift a record 19th league title but has refused to rule out a late challenge from three other contenders.

"It looks as if it's going to be us and Arsenal," he told Inside United. "But you never know. Man City, Chelsea and Tottenham are still in the frame - you can't dismiss them, but there are some important games coming up.

"The way I look at it is every game, for me, is a winner now. These are must-win games in the sense that every time you get the three points, it's another step closer to the finish line."