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發表於 2005-8-26 11:06 AM
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Sanguine Sir Alex ready for Champs League draw
Sanguine Sir Alex ready for Champs League draw
Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson will sit back and accept his Champions League fate this afternoon when the Red Devils learn who their latest group foes will be.
The presence of Real Betis, Udinese and Villarreal among the lower-ranked sides in this season's competition has brought an increased sense of danger for Europe's heavyweights.
But experience has taught Ferguson not to bother poring through the list of potential opponents.
'Over the years I have thought `I hope we get this team or I hope we don't get them',' he said.
'But in the end, it doesn't really matter. You never get everything you want anyway, so you might as well just accept what you get.'
United cruised into the last 32 with a second successive 3-0 triumph over Hungarian champions Debrecen.
The victory came at a heavy price though with the loss of Gary Neville for up to five weeks after the veteran full-back picked up a groin injury just 10 minutes into the contest.
It was the type of setback Ferguson feared on a heavy pitch, the same one Wes Brown sustained a broken ankle on three years ago.
Having let Neville's brother Phil join Everton, Ferguson must decide whether to draft Brown or John O'Shea into the vacant slot for Sunday's Barclays Premiership trip to ailing Newcastle, or hand relatively untested youngster Phil Bardsley another outing following his impressive second-half performance in Budapest.
What Ferguson, nor Sven-Goran Eriksson, who has lost Neville's services for next month's World Cup double-header with Wales and Northern Ireland, can replace is the 30-year-old's vast experience.
'Gary's experience is vital to us,' admitted the United chief.
'He has been such an important player for us over the years.
'But Phil Bardsley proved he has potential, Wes Brown has played there many times before and we have John O'Shea too, so we are well covered in that area.'
Unfortunately for United, Neville's groin was not the end of their injury troubles as Kieran Richardson also limped off with a knee injury, leaving the visitors to play the remaining 20 minutes a man down.
'We won't know the situation until we get Kieran checked later today,' said Ferguson.
It was a sad end to what had otherwise been a good night for Richardson, who came on for Neville and switched into central midfield after half-time after initially slotting in at left-back.
Relishing the extra responsibility, the young Londoner, who scored on his England debut in the United States last summer, revelled in the role and drilled home the visitors' final goal in fine style from 20 yards.
Before that, Gabriel Heinze had converted headers either side of the interval, trebling his previous United goal tally on the ground where he also scored for Argentina in their friendly win over Hungary seven days previously.
'Gaby is such a brave player, he is always capable of scoring from set pieces,' observed Ferguson.
'He is prepared to put his head in and has got his reward.'
With both goals coming direct from corners, United look like ending what has been a miserable return from set pieces over the last few seasons, a situation Ferguson knows can only aid his team's push for honours.
'It is an area we can improve on,' said the Scot.
'If we can get a reasonable return from set pieces it will make a big difference to our goal tally.' |
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