King Wayne

Mail source

Manchester Evening News

OLD Trafford idol Wayne Rooney has taken possession of one United’s most prized shirt numbers for the new season.

And former King of the Stretford End, Denis Law handed the coveted No 10 jersey to the England star.

The shirt has been vacant since Ruud van Nistelrooy’s controversial transfer to Real Madrid.

But Rooney, who has worn the No8 shirt with distinction, is now the proud owner.

“When I was offered the chance to wear No 10 I jumped at it,” said the former Everton favourite.

“Some of the game’s greatest players have become legends wearing No 10 none more so than Denis Law.

“He was crowned King of the Stretford End during his time at the club and it is a great honour for me to wear a shirt that has such history behind it”

The rest of the squad numbers have yet to be allocated. But there’s speculation new Brazilian star Anderson will replace Rooney at No 8.

Sporting Lisbon arrival Nani may get 12 and Owen Hargreaves could possibly be allocated Kieran Richardson’s 23. Other vacant numbers include 17 and 19.

“There have been some wonderful footballers who have worn the United No 10 shirt,” says manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

“People who capture the imagination of our fans around the world with their skill and their goals.

“Wayne is the right man to carry on that tradition and I’m delighted that Denis was able to pass on the mantle.”

Teen star Anderson will win his second Brazilian cap tonight as a fully-fledged United player.

The final red tape preventing Sir Alex unleashing his ‘fab four’ on the Premiership next season was removed last night.

Work permit

The 19-year-old South American ace has been granted a work permit on appeal.

And the result was never in doubt despite reports suggesting Anderson might not kick a ball at Old Trafford for 12 months.

The Reds were unlikely to spend £17m and wait a year to use their investment.

The prospect of Anderson, Nani, Ronaldo and Rooney teaming up is a mouth- watering one for United fans.

After starring as a second half substitute in the Copa America champions’ 2-0 defeat by Mexico, Anderson will hope for a first senior start against Chile.

New team-mate Gabriel Heinze completed 90 minutes as Argentina beat America 4-1.

Ferguson could yet turn his fab four into a fab five with Michael Owen, Jermain Defoe, Eidur Gudjohnsen and Heinze’s compatriot Carlos Tevez all mentioned as possible targets.

Tevez has rejected a move to Inter Milan to stay in the Premiership while Darren Bent’s arrival at Spurs suggests England striker Defoe could be on the move.

United have previously been linked with Defoe while Owen can leave Newcastle if a club is willing to pay a minimum £9m for his services.

A fee of that magnitude, however, would prove a gamble for any prospective buyer given Owen’s medical history.

United’s Korean midfielder, Park Ji-Sung, returns to next week after recuperating following his knee surgery operation in April.

Anderson get the green light.

Anderson gets work permit

29/ 6/2007

FEARS that Manchester United could be without their £18million Brazilian midfielder Anderson next season have proved groundless after a work permit was today granted for the 19-year-old.

The club initially had an application for a permit knocked back on the grounds Anderson does not have enough international caps but United today won an appeal against that decision.

It means the attacking midfielder, who signed from Portuguese side FC Porto last month, will be part of the United squad for next season.

The club said in a statement: “Manchester United is pleased to confirm that the club has been successful in its application for a work permit for Anderson.”
 
United’s representatives attended a Home Office panel of experts yesterday where they argued that due to his exceptional talent he should be granted a work permit and that only his youth had prevented him from obtaining the requisite number of international caps.

Indeed, Anderson only made his full international debut for Brazil in the early hours of yesterday morning in the Copa America match against Mexico.

Anderson said earlier this week: “To join Manchester United at 19 is incredible.

“Everything will be different in England – I know that – but I am certain I will adjust quickly to life in England.

“I am proud – and my family is also. For me, everything is new, it’s a dream come true.”

Fergies pruning job

UNITED boss Sir Alex Ferguson will be a busy man before the Premiership champions leave for their Far East tour next month.And one of his major tasks will be pruning a top heavy first team squad.

While there is still room for a proven scorer, Sir Alex finds he has a surplus of requirements in other areas.

Alan Smith, Guiseppe Rossi, Gabriel Heinze and Keiran Richardson have all been linked with moves away from Old Trafford.

Richardson loves being a United player but his performances at the UEFA Under-21 Championship didn’t improve his case for the season ahead.

United supporters would be sad to see Smith, Rossi and Heinze leave but they’re unlikely to be guaranteed places in the starting line-up.

A switch to Spain or Italy looks likely for Heinze while Smith must decide whether he’s content to resume his shadow role at Old Trafford or accept first team football elsewhere in the Premiership.

And since clinching their ninth Premiership title, United have welcomed back a handful of players, including Rossi, from loan spells in England and Europe.

Phil Bardsley, Gerard Pique, Jonny Evans, Chris Eagles, Dong Fangzhou and Ben Foster are all available to Sir Alex again, albeit Foster is sidelined until next year with knee ligament problems.

And despite Rio Ferdinand’s insistence that United are chasing a quadruple next term, five of them will remain fringe players.

Salford-born Bardsley has been interesting Everton after Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill opted not to pursue any interest while ex-Barcelona prospect Pique could return to La Liga with Real Zaragoza.

Interest

The signings of Nani and Anderson suggest Eagles will struggle to even make the substitutes bench and he could be heading for another loan spell.

United’s third close season capture, Owen Hargreaves, could make his debut in the club’s opening Asian friendly against Urawa Red Diamonds in Toyko on July 17.

Anderson, likely to be involved in Brazil’s Copa American defence until July 15, and Nani may not feature at all until the home season curtain raiser against Inter Milan on August 1.

David Trezequet is one world class striker definitely not heading to Old Trafford. But the French international claims the Reds were interested.

The former Monaco forward recently signed a new contract with Juventus but says United, Liverpool and Barcelona were all keen on him.

“As soon as Juve showed their desire to keep me I accepted immediately,” he says.

Wayne Rooney in Vegas

ROONEY ALSO WON BIG IN VEGAS 

WAYNE Rooney might have been playing a cameo in the main event in Las Vegas last week but he still came across as a class act.

Rooney treated the honour of carrying Ricky Hatton’s world title belt into the ring before his fight with Jose Luis Castillo with the dignity and the seriousness it deserved.

And afterwards he spoke with maturity and humility about an experience that had taken him outside his comfort zone of life in the Premiership.

The Manchester United forward deserves credit for carrying the belt in the first place, given that the majority of Hatton’s supporters are Manchester City fans.

Rooney might be Hatton’s friend but there are plenty who would have listened to the advice of a paranoid agent and decided it might be bad for their brand.

Rooney’s not like that. He’s a man who lives for sport. His genius has made him big business but, unlike many other players, he has refused to lose touch with reality. That’s what links him to Hatton.

They’re both decent, genuine lads who have escaped the warping effects of their fame. At the post-fight party, Rooney smiled for pictures, signed autographs and chatted with Hatton’s supporters.

Some times in the past, Rooney has appeared to be a prisoner of his celebrity but in Las Vegas he looked like a man at ease with the world around him.

And for those of us who believe his breathtaking talent remains the key to a long-term England revival, that made a happy sight.

Liverpool

New page added to site

New page has been added to the history section of the web site, this gives a list of players past & present for Manchester United.

http://www.unitedsredarmy.com/history3.htm

The Smith saga continues.

Middlesbrough have become the first club to meet Manchester United’s £6m valuation for Alan Smith and hope to persuade the England striker to fill the void left by Mark Viduka’s departure to Newcastle United.

Gareth Southgate, the Middlesbrough manager, now hopes the prospect of regular first-team football will convince Smith to leave the Premier League champions.

Smith has indicated he wants to stay at Old Trafford but the forward is aware that he will play only a peripheral role in Sir Alex Ferguson’s plans next season. Smith and his adviser, Alex Black, were dismayed when they approached the club at the end of the season to ask for a contract extension, as had been previously mooted, and they were informed that one would not be forthcoming.

Roy Keane, the Sunderland manager, is also monitoring Smith’s availability, although Preston North End’s David Nugent is his primary target.
Newcastle are not thought to be interested. Southgate is aware that Smith may be reluctant to leave Old Trafford for the Riverside and the Middlesbrough manager is said to be planning to fly to Florida, where Smith is currently on holiday.

Pompey after Alan Smith

Pompey Join the hunt for Alan Smith

Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp is trying to hijack Newcastle’s move for Alan Smith.

Redknapp is lining up a £3.5 million bid for the Manchester United striker after being priced out of moves for Preston’s David Nugent and Middlesbrough’s Yakubu.

Boro are interested in the England player, too, and Redknapp said: “Alan is fantastic value at the money United are asking.”

Other news

Wolves legend Dougan dies aged 69

Derek Dougan made 43 appearances for Northern Ireland
Former Northern Ireland and Wolves forward Derek Dougan has died, aged 69.
Nicknamed the Doog, he will be remembered as one of the great characters of the game, as well as being a very effective centre-forward.

Dougan scored over 120 goals for Wolverhampton Wanderers and was in their victorious 1974 League Cup side.

He won 43 international caps and before joining Wolves played for Portsmouth, Blackburn Rovers, Aston Villa, Peterborough United and Leicester City.

Dougan was also an outspoken chairman of the Professional Footballers’ Association.

RIP Derek Dougan. He was one of a rare breed

Born in Belfast in January 1938, he played for Irish League club Distillery before joining Portsmouth.

He remained at Fratton Park until March 1959 when he transferred to Blackburn Rovers for £15,000.

He spent two-and-a-half years at Ewood Park before signing for Aston Villa in July 1961. Two years later Dougan was off again, this time to Peterborough United.

In the summer of 1966, he switched to another club, Leicester City, before securing his place with Wolverhampton Wanderers in 1967.

Derek Dougan played in the 1974 League Cup final at Wembley

In just over eight seasons at the Molineux, Derek made 320 first team appearances for Wolves netting over 120 goals.

He helped the club regain get back to the First Division status in 1967 and played when they beat Manchester City in the 1974 League Cup final.

Dougan made his Northern Ireland debut against Czechoslovakia during the 1958 World Cup in Sweden and his latest international appearance was in 1973.

During his time with Northern Ireland, he struck up a partnership with George Best.

In December 2005, Dougan joined other former Northern Ireland team-mates in carrying the coffin at Best’s funeral

 

McClaren..Be Nice to Fat Frank.

McClaren in fan plea over LampardMidfielder Lampard has won 54 caps for his country
England manager Steve McClaren has urged fans to stop the criticism of Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard.
He is unhappy Lampard was booed during the 1-1 friendly draw with Brazil at Wembley this month and has written to the official England supporters’ club.

In his annual report to englandfans, McClaren wrote: “We were all disappointed to hear Frank Lampard being booed at Wembley against Brazil.

“Frank is a tremendous player and he didn’t deserve that reaction.”

In Tallinn, for the game against Estonia, our supporters were brilliant

England boss Steve McClaren

McClaren and his team were targeted by disgruntled travelling fans in Barcelona when England were forced to battle for a 3-0 win over Andorra in March.

Lampard, 29, did not play in that game but he and other watching players were verbally abused as they sat in the stands and retreated to the inner sanctum of the stadium for the second half.

However, McClaren also praised the England followers for their backing in the crucial Euro 2008 qualifier victory over Estonia, which followed the Brazil match.

England won that game 3-0 and McClaren added: “In Tallinn, for the game against Estonia, our supporters were brilliant.

“No matter where we play, we seem to have the largest travelling support and this can genuinely be a 12th man for us.”

URA – So no more Fat Frank chants you nasty nasty people lol.

FFS McClaren just made matters worse, he should have kept his mouth shut, now everyone in the land who hates lampard will make sure he’s taunted even more.

Yet another fuck up by McClaren.

WHAT THE PRESS ARE SAYING TODAY

Papers: Toon want Smith22/06/2007 07:05Smith In Switch To Toon

Newcastle have won the race to sign Manchester United outcast Alan Smith in a deal worth around £3.5million. Toon boss Sam Allardyce made his move for Smith after the England striker made public his dismay at not being offered a new deal by United. But Allardyce failed in his bid to make it a United trio at Newcastle after the Old Trafford hierarchy rebuffed his attempts to sign defensive duo Wes Brown and Mikael Silvestre. Smith revealed his desire to stay at Old Trafford only last week but admitted he had received no assurances about his future from Sir Alex Ferguson, a revelation which sparked a scramble for his signature. Despite his reluctance to leave United following a £7million move from Leeds in 2004, Smith has been assured of regular football at Newcastle under Allardyce, something Fergie could not give him at Old Trafford.
David McDonnell, Daily Mirror

Meanwhile, The Daily Star claims Ryan Giggs is thinking about following the lead of former team-mate Lee Sharpe and appearing in reality TV shows, when he hangs up his boots. When asked about appearing in reality TV shows, Giggs said: “I never say never.”
——————————————————————
22/06/2007 Report by Steve Bartram
No United bid for Italian

United have not voiced an interest in Sampdoria striker Fabio Quagliarella, according to the player’s agent.

The 23-year-old Italian international has been linked with Old Trafford in recent weeks but, although agent Silvio Pagliari claims United are interested, no move has materialised.

Pagliari told BBC Sport: “I know there’s some interest from Manchester United. I’m very proud of it, as he is. But United have had no contact with me or with Sampdoria.

“He’d be keen on playing in England, for sure. We have many things to think of, as many big clubs in Italy too are interest in a player like Fabio.

“We can talk about Inter Milan, Juventus, Man Utd, Chelsea – this is no problem for the player as they are all massive clubs.”

A host of strikers from across Europe have been linked with United ever since Chief Executive David Gill’s admission that the Reds could be tempted into action if the right target became available.

————————————————————
22/06/2007 Report by Steve Bartram

Rossi sees red in Italy win

Italy overcame Portugal on penalties to seal a berth at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, despite the sending off of Giuseppe Rossi.

The United striker received his marching orders in Nijmegen after collecting a second booking for dissent in the 74th minute.

Rossi had earlier come close to opening the scoring for the Azzurini, showing great pace to burst past three Portuguese defenders and into the area, but his powerful shot was superbly blocked by goalkeeper Paulo Ribeiro.

New United team-mate Nani also enjoyed an eventful game for the Portuguese, going close on two occasions to opening the scoring for the underdogs.

Nani did find the net eventually, in the subsequent penalty shootout after the match had finished 0-0, but misses from team-mates Manuel Fernandes and Antunes gifted Italy a 4-3 win and a berth in China.
—————————————————————
/22/6/2007 15:05, Report by Chris McKenna

Red braced for Ricky fight
The attention of the sporting world turns not to football but to boxing this weekend as Manchester’s Ricky Hatton goes toe to toe with Jose Luis Castillo in Las Vegas for the IBO light-welterweight title.

Most people know of Ricky Hatton’s allegiances to the blue half of Manchester but what might be less known is that Hatton’s opponent Castillo is a United fan and even attended a match at Old Trafford earlier this year.

Castillo said: “My children and I are big Manchester United fans, Manchester United are my children’s heroes.”

Talking about his experience at Old Trafford, Castillo said: “It was fantastic, it was great to be there. I am grateful to the people who gave me the opportunity. It was a fantastic experience.”

However there is another twist to add which has caused some controversy. United striker Wayne Rooney will be carrying Hatton’s IBO belt into the ring on Saturday night, something Castillo has questioned.

“I can’t understand why a Manchester United player like him would walk to the ring with a Manchester City fan,” says Castillo.

Hatton, who is a season ticket holder at City, believes he fights for the whole of Manchester, not just the blue half. He said: “I believe when Castillo went out on the pitch there was a small section singing ‘There’s only one Ricky Hatton.”

“I know I’ve got a lot of Manchester United fans behind me. I fight for Manchester in general, not just for the blue half. Obviously everytime we (City) play them (United) we hope we batter them but I am proud to come from Manchester.

“Two of the greatest football teams the world has ever seen are both from my home town, so it makes me proud.”

The United fans who support Hatton include his brother Matthew, also a boxer.

“I believe he was dropped on his head when he was a baby,” jokes Ricky. “He is the bad egg in the family!”

When the bell rings on Saturday night, Castillo will be putting all his thoughts of which side Rooney is supporting to the back of his mind. He said:

“I know who Rooney is because my sons love him and he’s their idol, but once the bell goes, he doesn’t matter. Then it is just going to be me, Hatton and the referee.”

The Mexican is clearly confident of victory over the Mancunian.

“There will be a lot of punches, solid punches, but I am going to win, I promise you,” said Castillo.

Hatton, however, is expecting to maintain his unbeaten record and keep his IBO title. He said: “I believe I’ve got an edge in speed and footwork and I’m probably a bit fresher.

“I just think that anyone in the light-welterweight division that wants to go toe to toe and trade body shots with Ricky Hatton is always going to come second best,” Hatton said.

The big fight takes place in Las Vegas on Saturday night (early Sunday morning UK time).