Man Utd Thread:

[Spiritof98]

Coincidence - - he was 33 yesterday.

[hows she cutting]

watched it on Football First aswell

Everton were very poor and were missing in my opinion their two best players, Cahill and Johnson.

United finished the game with 7 defenders on the field
Neville
Ferdinand
Silvestre
Evra
Brown
Heinze
OShea

good sign being able to pick up 3 points with a team like that out, but Everton were very poor
Next up Boro away, could be a tough one, didn't they beat Chelsea earlier in the season.

Why have Chelsea no game this weekend?
Read today that if United win their next 2 games, Boro (A) & City (H) they would be 9 points clear of Chelsea before they play Arsenal(H)

[BenDover]

latest news from the BBC

Man Utd 'to sign striker Larsson' 

Larsson could make his Premiership bow at 35
Manchester United have made a shock move to sign veteran striker Henrik Larsson on loan from Swedish club Helsinborg, according to reports.
Helsinborg declined to comment but will hold a news conference at 1130 GMT.

Former Celtic striker Larsson, 35, would be available in January but would return to Helsingborg in March when the Swedish season starts.

United are short of options up front, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer injured and Alan Smith still seeking full fitness.

That leaves Wayne Rooney and Louis Saha as their only recognised strikers.

However, Barcelona have also been linked with a move for their former striker as they are also suffering an injury crisis, with Samuel Eto'o, Lionel Messi and Javier Saviola injured.

Larsson left Barca at the end of last season to join hometown club Helsingborg for a second time.

He spent two seasons in Spain and played a decisive role in this year's Champions League final when he came on in the second half and set up both goals in the defeat of Arsenal.

This would not be a bad move for Utd especially as Larsson would be consider 3rd / 4th choice but all the same it beats looking at Silvestre on the bench as a matchwinner 

[Barney]

May work out as a good short term solution. He may not be cup tied but he'll be back in Sweden when the main business in Europe is underway.

A club like United should not be loaning 35 year olds.

As has been said most specifically by our Sligo number cruncher the club is now a man of straw.

[resdubwhite]

Well they can't dign anyone until january and the bench looks sparse. Having him on the bench may not be a bad idea. And Saha can be rested now.

good loan deal. But I'd expect two signings in Jan. One striker, one midfielder.

[hows she cutting]

good signing in my opinion

only for 3 months and if United get through against Benfica he would be able to play in CL. Not too many other strikers around Europe not cup tied in European competition
will bring a lot to Uniteds game, his link up play is awesome

[magpie seanie]

This to me is further evidence of the emptiness of the coffers at United so don't be holding your breath waiting for the Glazers to fork out. Fergie described it as "a good bit of business" - how United have fallen from regularly breaking the British transfer record to wheeling and dealing. United do badly need a couple of signings but I just cannot see the Glazers releasing the money. Perhaps if the Benfica hurdle is negotiated some money might be there.

On the signing - I think this will be a very helpful short term move. Larsson will take some of the work load off people like Rooney, Ronaldo and Saha and should play puck in the Premiership at least. He will be a useful man off the bench in Europe too, assuming there is no slip up against Benfica.

[youbetterbelieveit]

ya definitely a very good signing for man u, will he be brought into action straight away or wat?

[maxpower]

i think it could prove to be a shrewd bit of business alright, its a pity they couldn't have gotten him in for the christmas period.

its a strange move to by larsson to not take a pre season, i know the swedish championship mightn't be that intense but i would have thought a 35yr old would have enjoyed his time off

[Redgreenery]

UTD 1-0 up on Middlesburough from penalty taken by Saha after Ronaldo was fouled in the penalty area.

[Redgreenery]

Half time - Same score (1 - 0)

Key match stats   
Middlesbrough                v               Man Utd                       - 02 Dec 2006
   
Scorers: None                                Scorers: Saha, L (19)
Shots on goal: 1                             Shots on goal: 3
Corners: 2                                    Corners: 4
Free kicks: 8                                  Free kicks: 11
Yellow cards: 2 (Christie, Cattermole)  Yellow cards: 1 (Scholes)
Red cards: 0                                 Red cards: 0
Off-sides: 0                                  Off-sides: 1

[Redgreenery]

65mins) Heinze's weak header falls to Morrison in the box and the Boro sub slams his volley past Van der sar.

67 mins) Boro who were still celebrating the goal are caught cold by Ryan Giggs, who swings in a great cross and Fletcher heads the ball past Schwarzer!!!

[Redgreenery]

Game Finishes Middlesbrough 1-2 Man United.

Darren Fletcher's 68th-minute header earned Manchester United three points against Middlesbrough to extend their lead at the top the Barclays Premiership table.
United took the lead when referee Chris Foy awarded the visitors a 19th-minute penalty after Cristiano Ronaldo had gone down under keeper Mark Schwarzer's challenge, although replays suggested the frustration of the home fans was justified.

Frenchman Louis Saha exorcised the ghost of his Champions League miss against Celtic by sliding home the spot-kick, although his effort was not the game's decisive intervention.

United went close to extending their lead on several occasions, but they were pegged back on 66 minutes when substitute James Morrison dragged the Teessiders right back into it.

However, Sir Alex Ferguson's men needed less than two minutes to restore their advantage, Darren Fletcher heading home the winner to cement his side's lofty status in front of a crowd of 31,238 as the master got the better of novice Gareth Southgate.

In truth, had United not won, they would have had only themselves to blame, although the Boro boss will have been pleased with the attitude of his players after he was forced into a half-time reshuffle by Jonathan Woodgate's premature departure.

Writing in his programme notes, Boro chief executive Keith Lamb said: "Gareth Southgate's stated ambition for the club is that he wants success and he wants to achieve it by playing attractive, attacking football - but not at any cost."

That sentiment was reflected in Southgate's selection as he added winger Stewart Downing, back from a groin injury, and combative midfielder Lee Cattermole to the mix - one to help create openings, the other to break up play in the middle of the field.

However, neither proved to be the central figure in an opening 45 minutes packed with incident.

That United deserved to leave the pitch at the break to the good after a series of high-octane attacks was not in any doubt, having already gone close twice - Saha saw a downward header blocked on the line by Robert Huth, and Ryan Giggs failed to find an empty net after Schwarzer had parried Ronaldo's blistering strike before they created their 19th-minute opener.

United's approach play was little short of breathtaking, Saha turning deliciously just inside the Boro half to race past Woodgate and slide a precision pass into the path of the unmarked Ronaldo.

The Portugal international took the ball in his stride and cut inside Schwarzer, plummeting to the ground in the process.

Saha, taking a penalty for the first time since his costly European miss at Parkhead, stroked the spot-kick past the Australian to make it 1-0.

The Teessiders might have been level within two minutes, Abel Xavier hitting a post with a header from Downing's free-kick in his first home game since his drugs ban expired.

But Wayne Rooney, who had a quiet evening, steered a shot just wide at full stretch 11 minutes before the break and Schwarzer had to tip a rasping 40th-minute Ronaldo free-kick over as United threatened to kill the game off.

Woodgate's non-appearance after the break saw Southgate abandon his 3-5-2 formation for a more orthodox 4-4-2 with Morrison coming on to line up on the right side of midfield.

The new shape gave the home side a more enterprising look, although central defender Huth wasted a promising position when he drilled an ambitious 51st-minute free-kick straight into the wall.

Schwarzer had to turn a dipping left-footed shot from Ronaldo around the post two minutes later, but Edwin van der Sar was called upon for the first time in the game seconds later to pluck a Morrison cross out of the air just ahead of Aiyegbeni Yakubu.

But Boro were looking increasingly vulnerable and Giggs shot high and wide from a tight angle after Paul Scholes and Rooney had staged a scintillating break-out before Huth had to dispossess the England striker in front of goal.

They were made to pay with 66 minutes gone when Downing cleverly evaded Gary Neville's challenge to cross and Gabriel Heinze's weak header fell to Morrison, who thumped a volley past van der Sar to level.

But the home side's joy was short-lived and ended within two minutes as Giggs picked out Fletcher's run into the box after Ronaldo had left the Boro defence standing and the Scot headed powerfully home.

Downing curled an 85th-minute free-kick past the angle of post and bar and Huth saw a late effort hacked away by Neville, but the points were safe.

[never kickt a ball]

Man Utd v aston villa in 3rd round of FA cup

[holylandsniper]

Debut for Larrsson?