Manchester United vs. Burnley – Match Preview
Manchester United vs. Burnley
Barclays English Premier League
16. 01. 10
Match Preview:
It would be fair to say that the last few weeks have been tumultuous ones for Burnley fans. The shock departure of ex manager Owen Coyle to Bolton has left many Burnley fans disoriented and disappointed, after what has been a good first half of the season for the relegation candidates. Whilst they have performed admirably thus far this season, the loss of Coyle, a manager’s whose insistence on disciplined football has steered them clear of the relegation zone so far, will undoubtedly hurt the Clarets, and the fans will be more than anxious to see how their players react. Most impotantly however, it will give Burnley fans an opportunity to see how new manager Brian Laws, a shock appointment, copes against an opposition of a much higher quality. Burnley will be keen to perform for their new manager and will be hopeful of taking all three points as they did when these two sides met at Turf Moor in the second game of the season, a game in which United’s inability to break down a disciplined defense lead to a surprising 1-0 win to the home side.
Having recently travelled to Qatar for a brief period of four days, United’s players will hopefully be refreshed after getting in four very good training sessions at the excellent facilities at ASPIRE Academy for Sports Excellence. Ferguson labeled the trip a success, as it provided the team with a great opportunity to escape the bitter cold in England, and prepare themselves thoroughly for the remainder of the season.
United have remained frustratingly inconsistent all season and will look to use this fixture to finally get a much needed win to remove disappointing results against Leeds in the FA Cup and Birmingham in the Premier League out of their mind. Fletcher, amongst others, has been at the forefront, rallying his team mates to use recent criticisms to their advantage, by using it as motivation to prove their doubters wrong:
| “Nothing has developed into a real run yet. But there is a run in this team. We have been written off all season. We need to use all that as a fuel.”
“Everyone wants to shoot you down when you are successful and you have to have the character to take that on board and fight back. That is the challenge,” he said. “You learn from it and it is what being part of this club is all about. You get used to and respond to it.” |
Team News:
United – In: Rio Ferdinand (possibly), Edwin Van Der Sar (Possibly), Nani (possibly), Ben Foster, Nemanja Vidic Out: Dimitar Berbatov, Owen Haregreaves, John O’Shea, Darren Fletcher, Gary Neville
Barnsley – In: Martin Paterson (possibly), Stephen Jordan Out: Steven Caldwell
There is finally some light at the end of the tunnel for United’s injury woes as they welcome back Nemanja Vidic and Ben Foster to the squad. However, the impending return of Edwin Van Der Sar, Rio Ferdinand and Nani also come as a timely boost to United. It is unlikely that any of the latter three will be starting this match, however they may all feature on United’s bench, marking significant progress in their battles with injury.
Having trained with the rest of the first team in Qatar, Ferguson has also expressed his delight with Owen Hargreaves, admitting that whilst he has taken longer than expected, there is finally an end in sight to his prolonged injury battle with tendinitis.
Mg91’s Prediction:
Well, the last few weeks haven’t offered much joy for us United fans. Losing to Leeds, failing to convert dominance into goals against Birmingham, and the demoralizing financial news which has come from Old Trafford all adds up to one pretty disappointing start to the year for United fans everywhere. How I would love for United to make me forget it all with a fine performance at Old Trafford this weekend, in the lead up to a massive Carling Cup semi against City.
Thankfully, I would not expect any surprises this time. Yes, United have been disappointing in recent weeks, but just like all good things eventually come to an end, so do the bad things. Surely United’s dip in form will halt on Saturday, when they face a Burnley side shocked by the departure of manager Owen Coyle, and without their captain.
That said, we will need to be a lot more clinical in the final third of the pitch, and after last week’s disappointing performance in the final third of the pitch, it is now obvious that Rooney needs a partner up front. If we aren’t going to play with two strikers, then Rooney, or whoever it may happen to be, needs to receive some proper support, to remove any risk of isolation. For that reason, I expect United to revert to the preferred 4-4-2 formation, which will see Rooney receive a partner up front:
Kuzczak
Rafael ———————– Brown ——————-Vidic ————————– Evra
Valencia ———————– Carrick ——————-Anderson ————————– Nani/Obertan
Rooney ——————- Owen
The return of Vidic to the back four will hopefully provide some added strength, composure and experience to a defense which has lacked consistency throughout an injury ravaged season. The attacking presence of Rafael and Evra will once again give United extra width and will help to stretch the disciplined defense of Burnley. Rafael will hopefully show the sort of attacking talent that earned him a goal against Wigan recently, as United look to turn the pressure on this wounded Burnley side.
In the middle, Valencia will seek to prolong his good run of form, and will be looking for even more goals this season, to add to his tally of seven. Perhaps more out of hope than anything, I have predicted a start for Nani (if fit) or Gabriel Obertan, simply because I feel Park has underperformed in recent times. Of particular concern is his ability to get past his man and create chances for the front men, particularly against teams whose full backs will not be as adventurous as the Arsenal’s and Chelsea’s of this world. In the middle, the loss of Fletcher, but in Carrick and Anderson we have two players more than capable for making up for the physical presence of Fletcher as well providing a driving force for United through the middle.
Up front, Rooney and Owen will look to reignite a partnership which has had some success at an international level. Rooney’s graft and vision, coupled with his goal scoring form this season will hopefully make for a good foil for Owen’s intelligent movement and natural killer instinct. This partnership hasn’t been given much of a chance this season. Hopefully it will flourish on Saturday.
On that note, I will play the optimist and predict a sparkling return to form for United:
United – 3
Burnley – 0
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