Champions League quarter-finals

[dww]

As i've been saying for a while now, they are the DEFINITIVE example of the 'one man team' and the clearer it becomes, the more the media try to ignore it

The problem is that more or less at the top PL teams are dependent on one or two players to lead them to anything like a decent level this season. Without Torres and Gerrard we look lost, if Rooney is absent United look much less threatening, Arsenal without Fabregas frequently struggle. Chelsea have more leaders but at the same time are ageing into a much less quality team in general. It is a depressing state of affairs.

United have more players who can grind out results than us. Which is just about all the separates them from the level of mediocrity we have achieved this season.

Fergie is a poor decision maker when he has to defend. His choice to keep Rooney on at half time also cost them badly. All of his gambles paid off in the first half to some degree but his lack of faith in his other players shone through at half time and that as much as the more discussed crowd reaction seemed to sap the conviction of the players from the little I have seen (listened to the game on the radio - seen highlights).

[Matt]

The problem is that more or less at the top PL teams are dependent on one or two players to lead them to anything like a decent level this season. Without Torres and Gerrard we look lost, if Rooney is absent United look much less threatening, Arsenal without Fabregas frequently struggle. Chelsea have more leaders but at the same time are ageing into a much less quality team in general. It is a depressing state of affairs.

United have more players who can grind out results than us. Which is just about all the separates them from the level of mediocrity we have achieved this season.

Fergie is a poor decision maker when he has to defend. His choice to keep Rooney on at half time also cost them badly. All of his gambles paid off in the first half to some degree but his lack of faith in his other players shone through at half time and that as much as the more discussed crowd reaction seemed to sap the conviction of the players from the little I have seen (listened to the game on the radio - seen highlights).

Whilst the second half was thoroughly enjoyable, I thought it was remarkable how Bayern were so dominant after Utd went down to 10 men. Utd looked like they'd lost 3 or 4 players, Bayern were that dominant. You don't usually see a team suffer so badly, they completely collapsed.

Shows how much they rely on Rooney. And after they'd lost him and had a man sent off they were completely there for the taking.

[Craig_H]

i;d just love it....if chelsea win the league, ferguson finally ****s off and retires, along with van der sar, giggs, scholes and neville (you can't underestimate what their presence/experience still offers)........vidic finally ****s off to Real/Barca/Milan as we constantly hear he wants out, ferdinand is crocked, rooney sold for a silly amount of money to real or barca i don't care, and lwe get took over by bill gates and given a £1bn transfer budget

That's what i love about you mate, you always try to keep it real

[Exiled_red]

But will any pundits or journalists dare suggest the scum are over-reliant on him or suggest they are a one man team??

[PTP]

But will any pundits or journalists dare suggest the scum are over-reliant on him or suggest they are a one man team??

no not at all.

[Neil Young]

A bully, a hypocrite and and a racist. What a nice man.

[dww]

But will any pundits or journalists dare suggest the scum are over-reliant on him or suggest they are a one man team??

The thing is that last season people (on here and elsewhere) were claiming that United were a one man team based on Ronaldo, this season Rooney has proved that wrong. I can see why journalists are reticent to make such strident claims but it is clear that they are a weaker team than last year and they need rebuilding which it is surprising that journalists haven't commented on - they have been making such criticisms of Chelsea and did so after their CL defeat.

Interesting that the line now is about the decline of the PL not about how much worse United are than they were.

[Exiled_red]

A number of people were saying last season Rooney and Ronaldo were key to them playing which amounts to them saying they were a two man team.

Also last season they said we were a 2 man team, but without Alonso now it seems last year we're a 3 man team and this year a 2 man team, they're happy to say it about us but not the scum

[Kenneth]

Read the match write up in the Torygraph this morning (i didn't buy it) and they called Rooney's layoff to Gibson for the first goal 'exquisite' . They also said grandad's goal was the kind of thing that Rooney has been doing all season

But then they alo think Cameron is a credible politician..

[badpiggy]

rooney's layoff last night was class i totally understand people's personal antipathy towards rooney but as a footballer i definitely think he's one of the top 5 in the world and i wish we had him.

[Neil Young]

Burn the heretic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[red g]

rooney's layoff last night was class i totally understand people's personal antipathy towards rooney but as a footballer i definitely think he's one of the top 5 in the world and i wish we had him.

yes, think Messis is out on his own then you get the likes of ronaldo, rooney, torres and drogba who people will argue all day long about whose better out of that lot

[Exiled_red]

yes, think Messis is out on his own then you get the likes of ronaldo, rooney, torres and drogba who people will argue all day long about whose better out of that lot

[PTP]

The thing is that last season people (on here and elsewhere) were claiming that United were a one man team based on Ronaldo, this season Rooney has proved that wrong. I can see why journalists are reticent to make such strident claims but it is clear that they are a weaker team than last year and they need rebuilding which it is surprising that journalists haven't commented on - they have been making such criticisms of Chelsea and did so after their CL defeat.

Interesting that the line now is about the decline of the PL not about how much worse United are than they were.

i think a lot of the one man talk comes from the fact that, really on paper most people (me included) see nothing that makes we think, hmm they are good - as much as i hate saying it, you look back at that United midfield of

beckham--------scholes--------keane----------giggs

and just think wow, it's perfect, probably the most complete midfield I have seen

atm, on paper at least other than Rooney and Evra(a **** but very very good left back) i dont' see anything that makes me jump out my seat and **** my pants ---------brown, fletcher, o shea, carrick, nani, valencia, berbatov, a crocked ferdinand an at times shaky vidic and on their last legs van der sar, neville, giggs and scholes.

Nothing other than rooney and say evra stands out..........where as maybe through bias, i'd argue that we have Reina, Mascherano, Gerrard and Torres that stand out on any team sheet.


I'll put it out there.............United are a one man team.........but it's Ferguson not rooney.


Thats why i have said for all these years, that once that **** finally goes it will be massive loss for them, they may really struggle to recover for a few years - the important thing for us is we need to be in a position to pounce when it happens.

[Kenneth]

rooney's layoff last night was class i totally understand people's personal antipathy towards rooney but as a footballer i definitely think he's one of the top 5 in the world and i wish we had him.

He's a great player, but to describe a pretty simple layoff as 'exquisite' is jst more of the usual hyperbole that surrounds him at the moment imo.