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ROONEY EXPECTS STERN TEST
Manchester United made light work of Fulham when the Cottagers visited Old Trafford last weekend, but Wayne Rooney expects this Saturday’s league clash in west London to prove more difficult.
The Reds won the FA Cup fourth round clash at a canter – thanks to goals from Rooney, Ryan Giggs and Javier Hernandez (2) – but have won just once in the last four league visits to Craven Cottage.
And while Martin Jol’s side have taken just 18 points from a possible 36 at home this season, they’ve tasted defeat by the banks of the Thames just once since the beginning of December, hinting at a recent change in fortune in front of their own fans.
“At home, Fulham are a different team,” Rooney said. “It’s always a difficult game there. It’s a smaller pitch and a compact stadium. That suits them. They’ve got players who can take the ball between the lines because the pitch isn’t as big and then create chances. It will be a completely different game [to the one at Old Trafford]. They are down near the bottom so they will be fighting to get one or three points. We will need to make sure we are at our best to beat them.”
More - Team news for Fulham trip | Rooney's best OT goals | Podcast: Fulham focus
After the match, Sir Alex praised Giggsy's ability to convert from 12 yards but who should take our next one? Here's what some United fans had to say on the subject...
Denis Parish, Moston:
"This is probably the obvious answer, given his goalscoring form this season, but I think Robin van Persie should be our primary penalty taker. Obviously, he missed one against Southampton but that is irrelevant for me. He perfectly mixes power with accuracy."
Sion Jones, Warrington
“Personally, I think Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie should take it in turns. Both are equally skilled from 12-yards and splitting the responsibility would ease the burden and enhance both of their goal tallies. If neither is playing, I’d like Giggs or Scholes to volunteer."
Scott Halshaw, Ashton
“RvP has scored lots of goals in big games, winning the team lots of points this season. I think he has enough confidence to take penalties - he doesn't seem to doubt himself when in front of goal. He also proved that he is capable of scoring from the spot at Anfield.”
What do you think? Discuss with other United fans on our Talking Reds message board.
More: Boss hopes for Kiko break | Sir Alex's pitch concerns | Busby Babes tribute flag
ROONEY EXPECTS STERN TEST
Manchester United made light work of Fulham when the Cottagers visited Old Trafford last weekend, but Wayne Rooney expects this Saturday’s league clash in west London to prove more difficult.
The Reds won the FA Cup fourth round clash at a canter – thanks to goals from Rooney, Ryan Giggs and Javier Hernandez (2) – but have won just once in the last four league visits to Craven Cottage.
And while Martin Jol’s side have taken just 18 points from a possible 36 at home this season, they’ve tasted defeat by the banks of the Thames just once since the beginning of December, hinting at a recent change in fortune in front of their own fans.
“At home, Fulham are a different team,” Rooney said. “It’s always a difficult game there. It’s a smaller pitch and a compact stadium. That suits them. They’ve got players who can take the ball between the lines because the pitch isn’t as big and then create chances. It will be a completely different game [to the one at Old Trafford]. They are down near the bottom so they will be fighting to get one or three points. We will need to make sure we are at our best to beat them.”
More - Team news for Fulham trip | Rooney's best OT goals | Podcast: Fulham focus
RAFAEL: ALL ABOUT THE POINTS
Manchester United defender Rafael appreciates Everton will be tough opponents on Sunday but the Brazilian is fully focused on taking another step towards regaining the Barclays Premier League crown. The Reds go into the weekend nine points clear of second-placed Manchester City but the gap could be closed following the champions' trip to Southampton on Saturday. Everton famously upset last year's title bid with a dramatic comeback sealing a 4-4 draw at Old Trafford and the players need no reminding of that afternoon. "Right now, I think we have to get the points in all the games," insisted the right-back in an exclusive interview with United Review, the Reds' official match programme. "It’s important to take three points. It doesn’t matter how we get them, we just have to get them. "It’s always difficult when we play against Everton. They have a good team and you can see they are always in the top five, at least, this season. When we play them at Goodison Park and at home, it is a tough game to play and, this time, it will be no different." Rafael feels the team have learned from the bitter experience of last season and is determined the Reds will not face similar frustration this weekend. "We scored a lot of goals but conceded what were maybe silly goals ourselves," admitted the South American. "Of course, we have learned from that. We can’t concede two goals at the end like we did. I remember it was an unbelievable game. It was tough for us because we drew and maybe it cost us the league but we’ll definitely learn from it." More: Boss wary of Everton threat | Young fit for Sunday | Reds mark Lunar New Year |
KAGAWA RELISHING REAL TIE
Shinji Kagawa is hoping to play a key role in United's "inspiring" Champions League matches against Real Madrid. The Reds travel to Spain early next week ahead of Wednesday night's Last-16 first leg at the Bernabeu and Kagawa, like all of Sir Alex's men, is keen to be involved. "I'm looking forward to it," he said. "If I’m picked, I’ll do my best to help the team reach the next stage of the competition." By his own admission, though, the Japanese midfielder lacks Champions League experience. Indeed, he's never played in the competition's knockout stages, having finished bottom of Group F with Borussia Dortmund in 2011/12. "I played in the Champions League with Dortmund last season but unfortunately we couldn’t perform to our potential," Kagawa said. "We were too young, we didn’t have enough experience and got knocked out in the group stage. "However, United has a great history and we finished top of our group this season. The games against Real Madrid are going to be inspiring. It’s tough to play against Real Madrid, though." More: Kagawa room for improvement | Van Persie nets goal award | Video: Ferdinand on Carrington |
TALKING REDS: PENALTY TAKERS
Ryan Giggs opened
the scoring from the spot in last weekend's match against Fulham, taking over
penalty-taking duties from Wayne Rooney following a couple of recent misses by
the Reds striker.After the match, Sir Alex praised Giggsy's ability to convert from 12 yards but who should take our next one? Here's what some United fans had to say on the subject...
Denis Parish, Moston:
"This is probably the obvious answer, given his goalscoring form this season, but I think Robin van Persie should be our primary penalty taker. Obviously, he missed one against Southampton but that is irrelevant for me. He perfectly mixes power with accuracy."
Sion Jones, Warrington
“Personally, I think Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie should take it in turns. Both are equally skilled from 12-yards and splitting the responsibility would ease the burden and enhance both of their goal tallies. If neither is playing, I’d like Giggs or Scholes to volunteer."
Scott Halshaw, Ashton
“RvP has scored lots of goals in big games, winning the team lots of points this season. I think he has enough confidence to take penalties - he doesn't seem to doubt himself when in front of goal. He also proved that he is capable of scoring from the spot at Anfield.”
What do you think? Discuss with other United fans on our Talking Reds message board.
More: Boss hopes for Kiko break | Sir Alex's pitch concerns | Busby Babes tribute flag
The England international is delighted to be fit and thriving again after a frustrating spell out injured during the first half of the campaign. After earning praise from Sir Alex Ferguson for his defensive display in the FA Cup replay win against West Ham, Jones hopes to be involved in as many matches as possible in the coming weeks as the Reds battle on three fronts.
“The reason you come to Manchester United is to play in big games every week in different competitions,” Jones told Red View. “As well as league games and FA Cup matches we’ve got two massive games coming up against Real Madrid and they’re all matches that I’ll relish if I'm involved.
“Personally, it was good to get another full game in [against West Ham] and good to be playing at centre-back which is a position I always enjoy playing.
"I was just pleased to get a run-out. It’s been so frustrating to be out injured – I’m a nightmare patient! But I feel fit and strong and hopefully I can get a good run in the side between now and the end of the season.
"It’s great to come back into a team that’s doing so well and playing so well. It’s a nice feeling to be top of the league and hopefully we can keep things going this weekend.”
Next up for the Reds is Sunday's visit to high-flying Tottenham and Jones admits the hosts "have got some brilliant individual players and we'll have to be wary of them all.
"It’ll be a test for whoever comes up against Gareth Bale – he’s a great player. But the most important thing for us is to concentrate on what we’re about and how we’ll approach the game."
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