Lille v. Manchester United - Match Preview

By David Hobbs
November 1 2005

Manchester United will be looking to avoid any more spooky errors just a few days after Halloween against Lille on Wednesday night as Sir Alex Ferguson rings in the changes.

Lille v. Manchester United
UEFA Champions League Group Stage
2nd November, 2005 

Manchester United will be looking to avoid any more spooky errors just a few days after Halloween against Lille on Wednesday night as Sir Alex Ferguson rings in the changes.

The Scotsman has candidly expressed his concern at United's poor performances recently with the 4-1 defeat at the weekend being the last straw.

On Wednesday, we can expect to see Ruud van Nistelrooy elected as captain, Rio Ferdinand dropped from the starting squad and young Northern Irish defender Jonny Evans on the bench. 

Fergie insists United need to find the grit that once made them into a feared side. He said: "We know that young players, what they do at our club, is learn. The learning process is usually good. There's no problem with ability. To go to the Stade de France tomorrow will not affect anything. Temperament wise, it's okay. They've got to pick up the resilience and substance of Manchester United teams in the past. We're asking young players who have only been at the club a year or so to do that.

"We're missing the support of experienced players like Gary Neville, Gabriel Heinze, Roy Keane and Quinton Fortune. It's a big miss that."

He added: "When you lose a game, everyone is disappointed. It's always the case for every footballer to do some soul-searching when you have a bad match or bad result. I don't think our players are different to anyone else.

Injured skipper Roy Keane also had a pop at his United team-mates (in an interview with MUTV) who've under-performed this term, but his comments were not aired on United's official TV channel.

Regarding that matter, Sir Alex Ferguson will not be drawn into the story. "I've got nothing to say about it all. That's our stance on it. It's a very important match for us, we're going to need all our concentration and preparation to make sure we get the result we want. So there we are," he said.

Team News: 

The confirmed traveling team are:

Howard, Steele, Van der Sar; Brown, Richardson, Ferdinand, Bardsley, Silvestre, O'Shea, J Evans, G Pique; Smith, Fletcher, L Miller, R Jones, Park; Rooney, van Nistelrooy, Ronaldo, Rossi.

ManUtdWeb Prediction:
United need to respond to Fergie's hairdryer and, most importantly, need to respond to the fans after their dire performances. My head says we'll put put in another half-baked performance but my heart says we'll win emphatically.

David Hobbs - Webmaster
[david@manutdweb.com]