Pre-Match Build Up - Man Utd - 03 March 2007

[Craig_H]

At the risk of being pedantic, didn't they actually play the game in Lens?

Yes, they did. But i didnt write it.

And i'm sure a clever chap like you could make 'Lens' fit into the one-syllable gap that 'Lille' would leave behind

[El Jefecito]

The mancs are due a beating in the league from us. I can see another solid performance by RAFAS REDS. In midfield is where the battle will be and because of that we will win it.

The battle will be on the flanks.

[The_weatherman]

I'd go with Arbeloa at left back to kick that **** Ronaldo. He did a job on Messi after all and will be well rested as he didnt play at the weekend.

Reina

Finnan
Carra
Agger
Arbeloa

Gerrard
Alonso
Sissoko
Riise

Kuyt
Bellamy

Subs: Crouch, Masher, Gonzo, Sami and The Dude

Only reason i wouldnt go for Crouch is cos he has a broken nose and Vidic and Ferdinand would probably be able to cope with his aerial threat. Thay need to be exploited on the floor. I'd play Riise above Gonzalez simply to help out defensively against winker otherwise Gonzalez would get my vote every time.

We simply cannot afford to lose this.

This would be my team too, Gerrard and Riise offer protection on the flanks but can still go forward, and Sissoko will just roam about and kick people in midfield. This formation will get us a 2-0 win. Might see Gonzo on the left though and Arbeloa on the bench.

[Red_Polo]

Poll is not going to be the ref now...

Clicky

[tomasjj]

Hmmm....

Thinking about the line up for tomorrow, and I can't help thinking that Rafa will think a bit about the game on Tuesday.

I reckon the back four will be set:

Reina
Finnan Carra Agger Arbeola
Gerrard Momo Alonso Riise
Bellamy Kuyt

That is the same as someone else posted....hmm...Rafa usually does something I don't expect.
Not sure if it will be one striker only (Kuyt) and a 4231, including Gonzalez on the left and Pennant on the right.
Alonso Momo
Pennant Gerrard Gonzalez
Kuyt
But I can't see him starting with Speedy in such an important game.
Is Aurelio still injured?

[Johnny]

The battle will be on the flanks.

We will fight them on the flanks,we will fight them in defence,we will fight them in the centre,we will fight them in on the front lines.

[Le Chef]

[B][U]Come on you redmen !!!!!!!!

[Shanks65]

Some buildup stuff in todays papers:

Daily Mail 3rd March

Rafa Bennitez is prepared to jeopardise a Champions League quarter-final place to try to sabotage Manchester United’s title charge.

With Liverpool perfectly placed to eliminate holders Barcelona in Tuesday’s return meeting at Anfield after triumphing 2-1 in the Nou Camp, Benitez was expected to rest key players for Saturday’s lunchtime meeting with United.

Mindful of the bitter rivalry between the two camps, though, and the importance to supporters and home-grown players like captain Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher of at least putting the brakes on United’s advance, Benitez is adamant a full-strength side will step out against the Premiership leaders.

He said: "It wasn’t a difficult decision. I’m not thinking about resting any players against United, only of the best way to win the game.

"When I name my starting XI, there may be people who will think a different player should have been picked in one position or another. That will always happen, but I can assure you it will be our strongest team.

"I’m confident three days is enough for them to recover and be ready for Barcelona. If anything, the United game could be beneficial for us if we can play well and win to boost our confidence."

Gerrard made no secret earlier this week of his longing to dent United’s title aspirations, but Benitez has no concerns about his fiercely committed skipper overstepping the mark.

He said: "He has experience of these games and knows how to approach them. He is out there to win from the first tackle to the last and will be as passionate as ever. He will also use his brain, though, and I don’t see any need to remind him of that."

Peter Crouch is available to play against United and Barcelona after delaying an operation on the broken nose he suffered in last Saturday’s 4-0 win over Sheffield United. Any surgery may force him to miss the rest of the season.

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oliver kay - times

Sir Alex Ferguson made the dubious claim recently that “even Liverpool fans” want Manchester United to win the Barclays Premiership title, but even if Rafael Benítez were to believe that, the Liverpool manager knows that his popularity on the Kop would be tested if he were to ease United’s passage at Anfield today in the name of squad preservation.

With Barcelona going to Merseyside for a Champions League match on Tuesday, desperate to overturn Liverpool’s 2-1 first-leg lead, BenÍtez has more reason than ever to indulge in the kind of rotation that frustrates many of the club’s supporters. But these are not normal circumstances and, with Steven Gerrard having expressed his disgust at the idea of United “virtually” securing the title at Anfield, the Spaniard is in no mood to play into Ferguson’s hands.

“I’m not thinking about resting players,” Benítez said at Liverpool’s training ground yesterday. “I’m thinking about winning this game. There will be enough time to prepare for the Barcelona game.”

It suggests that Benítez’s team will be similar for both matches, although his side remains far more difficult to predict than Ferguson’s, which, with the exception of whether Henrik Larsson or Louis Saha starts in attack, picks itself for matches of this magnitude.

Even so, it is contrary to the Benítez philosophy of rotating with an intensity that would leave even Claudio Ranieri’s head in a spin. Ferguson has fielded a similar team for all United’s biggest matches in the Premiership and Champions League — with the likes of Wes Brown, John O’Shea, Darren Fletcher and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer mostly kept in reserve until the “easier” games — but Benítez prefers to tinker according to the opposition.

“When you have enough quality in your squad, it’s not a big problem to change your players,” Benítez said. “The question is how many changes you make. We changed seven against Sheffield United [last Saturday] and won 4-0. Because the team is in a good moment, it is OK. The difficulty is when you’re playing two games a week for several months. But when there are not so many games, it becomes easier [to pick a settled team].”

It is the rotation system — worked out meticulously with his assistant, Pako Ayesteran — that Benítez believes led to Liverpool’s triumphs in gruelling cup finals against AC Milan and West Ham United on the final day of the past two seasons.

By the same token, others feel that the same early-season tinkering was partly to blame for a lack of consistency that meant his team’s Premiership title challenge was over before it had begun, with Liverpool suffering five of their seven league defeats to date before mid-November, all away from home.

It is questionable whether Liverpool had enough quality to keep pace with the leaders this season anyway, despite having finished one point behind them last term with a creditable 82, but Benítez believes that, as well as the match-winning ability of Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney, it is United’s greater experience — embodied by Edwin Van der Sar, Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes — that has proved the difference.

“With players like Scholes and Giggs, when you have players who have played 500 or 700 games in a top side, they must be really good,” BenÍtez said. “They have very good players, very good mentality and players with ability and quality.

“And when you have all these things together in a good squad, it means that you can play for eight or nine months and keep a very high tempo.”

Changing man

Rafael Benítez made 99 consecutive team changes for Liverpool up until last October but his greater emphasis on retention rather than rotation since then may have helped their season to recover

The Spaniard made an average of 3.4 alterations to the starting lineup in the first nine Premiership matches – the last of which brought defeat away to Manchester United, their opponents today – and reaped just 1.2 points per game. But, having made just 2.4 changes per game in their subsequent 19 league fixtures, the record has improved in that period to 2.2 points per game 4

Steven Gerrard has started all 28 Premiership matches, while Steve Finnan and Jose Reina have missed one each and Jamie Carragher two. The combined number of Premiership starts made by Liverpool’s most-used 11 players is 245, five more than Manchester United’s busiest 11, even though the identity of United’s first-choice lineup seems clearer. The only uncertainty has been the battle for the left-back position between Gabriel Heinze and Patrice Evra – won by the latter since December – while Henrik Larsson displaced Louis Saha on his arrival in January.

However, six of United’s first XI have missed a few league games because of injury or suspension, while Sir Alex Ferguson has rested some players when faced with weak opposition or fixture congestion.

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indipendent
Benitez will field 'best' team but shifts focus to Europe
By Andy Hunter
Published: 03 March 2007

A European ascent in Athens represents the final opportunity of success for Liverpool this season but the manager Rafael Benitez, acutely aware of Anfield sensibilities regarding Manchester United's pursuit of a Premiership title, has insisted there will be no deference towards Barcelona in his plans for a first League victory over Sir Alex Ferguson this afternoon.

Rotation is a temptation Benitez finds hard to ignore even in less taxing times and while a 16-point deficit on United has reduced what should be a defining phase in the Liverpool calendar to a pivotal moment, a second date with the reigning European champions on Tuesday, the Spaniard was adamant yesterday that no key figures will be rested against the Old Trafford club. Duty dictates that will always be the case for a Liverpool manager when United visit but, despite the protestations, Benitez indicated there may be allowances in his selection when he conceded the Champions League has again become a more realistic target at Anfield than the League crown.

"It is clear that if we beat United we will be closer to them but it will still be really difficult to catch them," he said. "In the Champions League you never know because it is a cup competition and if we beat Barcelona we will be closer with more possibilities. But I think three days [rest] are enough and, mentally, the squad can cope with these two important games.

"I'm not thinking to rest players, but to win this game. We'll have three days to prepare for Barcelona and that is enough. My idea is to use the best team to beat Manchester United. You cannot go into a game like this, against a team that is playing well and winning a lot, with a team that is maybe worse. We will use the best team we can."

The Liverpool manager believes psychology could be a greater obstacle to his players today than fatigue against Barcelona. "Maybe the problem will be to keep players focused on both games and to show them that they are both important," he said, and with Peter Crouch available he has the option of shuffling his attack without too much complaint. Crouch requires surgery on the broken nose he suffered against Sheffield United last weekend but has opted to delay the operation until after the Champions League tie.

Motivation for victory does not stem merely from local pride for Liverpool this lunchtime. Benitez is yet to taste victory in five League meetings with Ferguson, his only success coming courtesy of a Crouch header in the FA Cup last season, and Liverpool have not triumphed in this Anfield fixture since November 2001. "That hurts deeply," admitted Steven Gerrard. Similar statistics conspired against Liverpool before they met Chelsea in January, and were comprehensively overcome in a 2-0 win as Benitez's side extended a record that now stands at 30 Anfield League games undefeated.

The manager, however, cautioned: "United are having a very good season, they deserve credit for winning a lot and how they have played. Last season it was the same with Chelsea and it is normal for these teams to be at the top because they have good squads. Last season we had 82 points, our Premiership record, and finished third. Maybe we won't be in the top two this season but that shows how strong these teams are."
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Benítez to field first team before Barça tie

Dominic Fifield
Saturday March 3, 2007

Guardian
Rafael Benítez is due to choose his strongest line-up for the visit of Manchester United today, despite the proximity of the Champions League match against Barcelona on Tuesday which presents Liverpool with their only realistic route to a trophy this season.

Liverpool are yet to beat United in the Premiership under Benítez and currently trail the league leaders by 16 points, but the Spaniard wants to inflict psychological damage on Sir Alex Ferguson's side. He will pick the likes of Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher and possibly Mohamed Sissoko, who all could play against the reigning European champions three days later.

"It's clear that if we beat United we will be closer to them in the league, but it will still be really difficult to catch them," said Benítez. "The Champions League is a cup competition, so you never know. If you beat Barcelona it will still be difficult, but you'll have more possibilities. But that does not come into our thinking. We can manage these two games and I'm not considering resting players with Barcelona in mind.

"The idea of rotating the squad earlier in the season, using different players in different games, was to have them fit at the end of the season for occasions such as this when you have two big games in a short time. My idea will be to use the best team I have to beat United. It will be what I consider to be my strongest team."

That policy will be welcomed by Gerrard, who has confessed his admiration for the manner in which United have challenged Chelsea this season. "You have to admire the way they're playing at the moment, and their manager still has that hunger to take them to the top," said the Liverpool captain. "You have to take your hat off to him for that, but this game means that extra bit more and we'd love to get three points from it."

Only the long-term absentees Harry Kewell and Luis García are unavailable, and Peter Crouch will not have surgery on the broken nose he sustained against Sheffield United last week until after the Barcelona tie.

There is frustration in the Liverpool camp that they are so far adrift of United, and Benítez acknowledges that indifferent away form earlier in the campaign has cost his side a title challenge.

"United deserve credit for winning the games they have," said the manager. "It's clear that they have players with experience, like Paul Scholes or Ryan Giggs, and that has really helped them this season. When you play 500 or 700 games for a top side like United, you have to be a very good player. They have others with ability, quality and experience. All those things together, in a league that lasts nine months, allow you to maintain a high tempo. We couldn't win those away games in the first few months and that has been the difference.

"But while we know this is a good team we're coming up against, we have confidence that we will win. When you're up against a team that is winning almost every week, you cannot afford to put out a sub-standard side. We go into this match with a line-up that can beat them."
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****ING COME ON REDMEN