₦airaland Forum

[quote author=Mr_TA]Any ideas how match fit Anderson and Cleverly are? We really need to win on Monday and I reckon we need Carrick with a fully fit Anderson and Cleverly to play.[/quote]Anderson definitely not in contention . . .Cleverly is not injured but not fully fit.

QPR manager Mark Hughes admits his relegation-threatened side need to "stand up and be counted'' sooner rather than later.

The west Londoners have eight games remaining to stave off relegation from the Barclays Premier League, where they currently languish 18th in the standings.

The Rs have a set of unenviable fixtures in the run-in and welcome high-flying Arsenal to Loftus Road on Saturday.

Earlier this week QPR captain Joey Barton described the match as "more than a game'' and claimed "people's careers are on the line".

Asked about the comments, Hughes said: "I think Joey was trying to emphasise the importance of the game.

"I think we all understand we want to stay in the Premier League and that is our aim. We are fully focused on that challenge.

"If we can play as we did against Liverpool [where QPR won 3-2] against the top sides we are coming up against then that will go along way to whether we stay in the league.

"It is down to us and I that's the point Joey was making.

"We all have to stand up and be counted and make sure that we give it our best shot. That is certainly what we will be doing.''

The Rs face trips to Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City before the season's close and play an Arsenal side looking for an eighth successive win.

"Arsenal are playing exceptionally well, obviously they're winning games and their confidence is growing as a consequence of that,'' Hughes said.

"I think the key thing to that is they have got lot of width and pace to their play at the moment.

"Maybe earlier in the season when they were struggling a bit the threat from wide areas possibly wasn't as forthcoming as it is at the moment.

"The likes of [Bacary] Sagna and [Kieran] Gibbs are now playing and giving them a real option out wide, which all the good Arsenal teams had in the past.''

QPR, by contrast, come into the match off the back of last weekend's 3-1 loss at Sunderland, which was compounded by Djibril Cisse's red card.

Cisse will be joined on the sidelines by Armand Traore, who is a week away from returning from a hamstring injury.

Long-term absentees DJ Campbell and Heidar Helguson are making good progress and, while not ready to return against Arsenal, could be involved in next weekend's trip to Manchester United.

Arsene Wenger warned Arsenal must concentrate on delivering another performance rather than harbour hopes of overhauling Manchester City to claim second place.

The Gunners have recorded seven straight wins in the Barclays Premier League to climb up into third place above Tottenham.

City head to Emirates Stadium on Easter Sunday, and then host current leaders Manchester United on April 30.

Mathematically, if Arsenal were to win all their remaining eight games and City buckle under the pressure, the current 12-point gap could soon be eaten up.

Wenger, though, wants his rejuvenated squad to just concentrate fully on the job in hand at Loftus Road.

"I see us fighting like mad to win the game. That is all I see, I don't see further,'' the Arsenal boss said.

"We are focused on QPR, believe me.

"We know that is always a tricky game for everybody and that is what is important to us.

"After that we focus on the next one and our capability to finish the season in a strong way depends on just how much we focus on every game.''

Given the way Spurs saw their own advantage over the Gunners crumble, Wenger accepts things can change "very quickly'' in a short space of time.

The Arsenal manager continued: "Our sport is fragile and we have learned something this season from a very difficult period. Urgency and focus are vital to keep your level up.

"What we can hope for is to be third. We can be fourth, we can be fifth, we can be sixth, we want to be as high as possible and that depends on our consistency now.

"We are in a position that nobody expected us to be in and we want to strengthen that position from now on. That depends on our performances.''

Wenger is expecting a stern test from a battling QPR side, who recovered from 2-0 down with 15 minutes left to beat Liverpool in their last home game.

He said: "QPR is a side which has quality players and is in a difficult situation.

"Certainly you expect them to fight not to go down, but I believe the key will be on our side - no matter what QPR's quality or problem is, it will be important for us to go out and show how much we want another win.''


Match

Aston Villa manager Alex McLeish believes the fighting spirit of skipper Stiliyan `Stan' Petrov will help him in his battle to overcome acute leukaemia.

The condition was diagnosed following tests after Bulgaria international Petrov developed a fever following last Saturday's 3-0 defeat at Arsenal.

Messages of support for the former Celtic player, who was due to spend on Friday night in a London hospital, have flooded in since the news was confirmed in a Villa statement.

McLeish said: "It's that old perspective cliche, but it's so true, and everybody here is behind Stan and a lot of the guys, everybody, will be shocked by the news.

"But he's a captain, he's a leader, he's a defiant guy and he's fought many battles on the pitch and I'm sure this is another one he'll win.

"We certainly think it's in the early stages and Stan will get the best medical attention possible.

"I spoke to him and he was typical Stan, defiant, but I think obviously he's concerned about how its affected his loved ones.''

McLeish was unsure whether Petrov would be able to attend the home clash with Chelsea.

He added: "He's away with the doc and I'm not sure of the schedule. He's away to see another top specialist as we speak and I guess we'll know more [on Saturday].

"I'm sure Stan will be rooting for the lads and sending some of the vibes for the boys to be inspirational in this game against Chelsea.

"Will they want to win it for Stan? I think so. I know some of the players are already texting each other and saying that kind of thing to each other.''

A section of Villa fans have called off a planned protest before the game.

McLeish said: "I would like to think the club and fans will be united. I'm sure the fans will be galvanised with their support of Stan.''

Villa confirmed the news of Petrov's condition in a statement which read: "We expect to learn more about Stiliyan's situation in due course and we have moved quickly to support him and his family.

" During this time we ask that Stiliyan's privacy is placed ahead of all inquiries and trust that we will share information as we receive it.

"Stiliyan is cherished by many and he will get from Villa every ounce of love and support that we have to help bring this to a positive conclusion.''

Chelsea's interim manager Roberto Di Matteo is delighted by the rejuvenation of a "happy'' Fernando Torres.

Torres has performed with greater conviction since Di Matteo replaced Andre Villas-Boas at the start of the month.

Although he remains far from prolific in goalscoring terms - he has been on target only six times in 37 appearances this season - his recent contribution to the team has been significant.

On Tuesday night it was his burst of pace and cross that set up Salomon Kalou's late winner in the 1-0 Champions League victory over Benfica.

Di Matteo insists he has not given Torres any special attention, even though the 28-year-old Spaniard appears more confident under his guidance.

"We're just happy that Fernando's performing well for us. He's a very good player and a great, great team player,'' he said.

"I've been trying to speak to all my players and give them the confidence to play.

"Fernando seems to have been performing well. He's a happy player at the moment, but all players need particular attention.''

Chelsea have been lifted by their success at Benfica, a result that has enabled them to place one foot in the Champions League semi-finals.

But their cup form under Di Matteo - four wins in as many games - contrasts with their difficulties in the Barclays Premier League which has seen them triumph just once in three outings.

They sit five points adrift of the Champions League places and Di Matteo accepts it is time to climb the table - starting with their clash with Aston Villa.

"We need to win points in the Premier League. We have played Stoke, City and Spurs,'' he said.

"It's difficult against Stoke. They drew at White Hart Lane and at Manchester City, so we know how strong they are.

"We're in good form and shape, though. The spirit's good and we'll try to take that into the next game.

"When you win, the confidence flows into the players and team. We'll try and take that into the next game.''

Midfielder Raul Meireles is Chelsea's only doubt after he sustained a knee injury against Benfica.

Branislav Ivanovic and Ramires have been passed fit after overcoming minor knocks.



Match

Just finished watching the Dortmund vs Stuttgart match . . . what a game!!!
Goal crazy

Evans was our best player today, followed by Valencia and A.Young

coogar: welbeck and ryan giggs were utter self-service!
i cannot remember a positive thing welbeck contributed all night. poor ball control, poor vision, appalling execution.

Plus Rooney and Hernandez when he came on.
I thought Scholes should have started.

Looks like Rio has copped an injury again.

afrodoc: terrible,nervy performance! wtf?
wat is it with all the unforced passes to opponents and the useless final balls?

Only Valencia had a good game in the attack today.
Evans - what a player he is starting to become.
We rode our luck with some decisions . . . the penalty wasn't given.

Just glad this game is out of the way - 3 points in the bag.

Ibime big boy Congrats

Wait! Where is the bride now?

My opponent captained Aguero . . . jonzing

A win will be crucial tomorrow.
Hopefully Fergie wakes up on the right side of the bed.
We need the right team selection.

debosky: Congrats Ibime. . . .I still dey wait for my IV though, if not I shall gatecrash.

Debo, send me the addy, we must show face

Game on!
I wasn't expecting Chelsea to beat Citeh at the Etihad anyway.
Can the Arses do it?

afrodoc: @realwale i think ur logic is quite faulty.
u want a club u claim to support to go trophyless like arsenal so as to learn from mistakes and come back stronger.how has that plan worked for arsenal over the past SEVEN years? if its dt easy to go trophyless n learn how come arsenal hasnt learned from annual mistakes? or r u saying Le Prof is a dunce?

U dey mind am.
That's how you know the true and loyal supporters.


Torres must score ooo

Common Chelsea

Vieira says bringing back Scholes shows weakness.
Mancini bringing back Tevez after he claimed Tevez will never play for Man City again is what?

The media circus surrounding the return of Carlos Tevez may give the tabloids something to write about, but it may very well detract from what is a vital game for the blue half of Manchester against resurgent Chelsea.

In form and fit, Tevez would be an important player as City begin their title run-in with ground to catch up on rivals United, and it seems likely that the Argentine will be on the bench to face the Blues. But whether or not he is on the pitch, the furore caused by his return - will Mancini bring him on? What will the reaction of the fans be? - will cause problems that City could perhaps do without.
Indeed, having lost against Swansea in the league and crashing out of the Europa League to Sporting Lisbon, it has not been a good few weeks for Roberto Mancini's men. Falling four points behind United in the title race, this will be a real test of their mettle and they have to win if they have any hopes of catching them. The return of inspirational skipper Vincent Kompany could be key to turning around their recent poor run, although he faces a late fitness test.

In almost total contrast, Chelsea have been in great form under interim manager Roberto Di Matteo and have a 100% record since Roman Abramovich took the decision to sack Andre Villas-Boas. Wins in their last four games in all competitions is their best run since September and the incredible comeback against Napoli in the Champions League has ensured there is a buzz around the club.
As if it needed a further one, Fernando Torres even broke his 25 hour goalscoring drought and bagged a brace in the FA Cup win against Leicester. If the Spain striker can go some way to proving why the club splashed £50 million on him, then it could be a great night for the Blues even without injured captain/cheerleader John Terry.

The Blues may not be in contention for the title this year but they can certainly have a say over where it ends up. It is worth remembering though that City have won their last 19 Premier League home games and could set the record for the competition's longest ever run of home victories if they win this match; setting a record will, however, be low on their list of priorities.

Manchester City player to watch: Carlos Tevez. Whether he comes on, or not, it matters little as Tevez will be in the spotlight from the moment he arrives at the stadium until the moment he leaves it. The Argentine has not been a popular player since his decision not to warm up against Bayern in the Champions League back in September and his AWOL escape to his homeland after. Now showing a willingness to be involved again, he needs to play in seven of the last ten games to get himself a Premier League winners' medal should the Citizens prevail at the end of the season. The question is: can he be trusted? He has scored in each of his last five Premier League appearances against Chelsea after all...



Match

How long is Kompany out for? I hope Savic plays
How can Mancini sell Onuoha and purchased Savic? Smh

I'm not sure they can lose to Chelsea at home - Im hoping for a draw at best.
It's the Arses I'm hoping will do us a favour - but we know u cant bet your house on that.
Either way it will be an interesting race - Manchester will be hot come May.

Fredy Guarin went to Inter in January - that would have been a good signing.

coogar: everyone but united fans expected city to run with it. if city have fergie as their manager, they should be 8 points ahead by now.



thank you!



united have the best record in europe. they have won most games, scored more goals.
they even have the longest unbeaten record in the competition and yes english league is rubbish.



barcelona would not win the premier league with their paper thin squad, the lack of winter break and the physical nature of the games.
guardiola using only one team formation throughout in a 38-game season won't work in the premier league where a team must adapt to different formations to beat their rivals. winning the premier league is biggest feat in europe.

The league is not over yet - I feel there will be more twists and turns. I don't think we would win all our games before the Citeh one.
But we are in a much better position than we were 2/3 weeks ago.

I can understand Starboards frustration though.
After last weeks CL final, we expected to build from that.
I didn't expect us to win it again to be honest after seeing the way Barca improved their squad but I was almost certain we would get to the late stages.

It's Fergie's fault for failing to add to the squad where necessary and the bloody team selection cost us so many times.
To me personally, the league is a priority, that's the marathon (survival of the fittest). The league and any other trophy with CL the main one.

no one gave united any chance at the start of the season with that midfield.
i remember saying we would walk the league but a european title is unachievable with the number of injuries and how fergie treated the group games with disdain.
thankfully, the disgrace would itch fergie's hands to buy eden hazard or any other high scoring central midfielder.

I think most people expect Man City to win it easily this season.

StarBoard: So at a club like United's you're saying a bad season in Europe is not a disaster?
I'm trying to get you.
If we have been disgraced by other teams in Europe,it's not a bad season by you.
Especially when we get doctored and lectured by Europe's lowly sides?
Winning the League will just paper over the cracks.Simple.We've grown beyond the stage of just relying on winning the league and concluding the season was a success.
As for the local champion thing,we are in danger of sliping into that mode.A case can be made for that to be tagged on us judging from our season.
Or what do you think?

It's bad but not a disaster - we failed to qualify in 05/06 when we were even bottom of the table, the following season we got to the semis, the season after we won it.

One bad season in Europe out of the last six is not a disaster.

Winning the EPL is not an easy feat too especially with Man City(our bitter rival) being our main contender with all the money they've spent recently.
I can even say this might even be the biggest achievement if we win the league this season with the 'shitty' squad we have coupled with the emergence of Man City as a powerhouse.

StarBoard: So because Arsenal haven't won anything in 7years,we should sink to the depth of "thanking God for what we have?"
Why don't they (Arsenal) thank God they aren't like Wigan who never win anything but compete just to stay in the Premier League.?Aftersll they both don't win any trophies.
My point(in case you haven't gotten it) is:
Even if we win the league,this season is still an aberration given our shockingly disgraceful European campaign.
Last year, we regained the title much against the backdrop of most pundits not tipping us for the title.We also got to the final of the CL.Mirror that with this season where marabouts kept beating us all over Europe,and tell me whether winning the league will amount to anything worth screaming about when folks ( fans and pundits alike) expected us to raise the level of our game and make a serious foray into Europe.
Stop celebrating mediocrity by comparing us to Arsenal.It's only Arsenal that celebrate meaningless statistics like winning 4 games on the TDO after Conceeding first,just because they can remember what it's like to win anything.
We are bigger than that.We should be thinking of European domination at this stage after so many league titles won;much like what Barca is threatening to do, instead of this local-champion mentality we have when we know we can navigate the EPL with Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs as pilots in out central midfield but get schooled by European minnows and misfits.Barca won't mind losing the league cus they've won it three times on the spin:a fourth win won't mean as much to them as retaining the CL title would to them.Hence my plea for you to put things in perspective.
While I will not gloss over the fact that it has been a torrid season and for us to be in contention despite all the injuries is a credit to us,I'm under no illusions as to the quality of our side and the truth remains that we have a mediocre side bossing a pretty much sub-par EPL at the moment where the London clubs and Liverpool are fighting for fourth but simply can't get our act together in Europe.Unless our midfield is overhauled,expect more back-water European teams to come and take points of us at what used to be Fortress OT in Europe.

I am not talking about Europe here, everyone knows we've been completely useless and utterly rubbish in Europe this season, no question about that.
That's why I highlighted the league and that's what I'm talking about.
I don't see how retaining a title will not be an achievement. We are out of Europe cos we've been disgraced by mostly every team, should we pack up the season then and hand the title to Man City because of that?

I also disagree with your "local champion mentality" quote.
One bad season in Europe is not a disaster, c'mon man. We've been atrocious this season no doubt but I wont call 3 CL final in 4 years 'local champion mentality'.

StarBoard: Get some perspective.
United have won the league 4 of the past 5 seasons.
In that light it isn't anything new if we defend our title this season.
We should be challenging for The CL and going very far, if not winning it.
When you think we got to the final last season,this season is a bit of a let-down,considering that we were supposed to have strengthened.

You said "Winning the league is a must and not an achievement" . . . those were you words. Not Champions League
Even a blind man knows we've been poor in Europe this season, so does that mean we should drop out of the league or not try to win it?
You cant improve on winning the league . . . the best you can do is to RETAIN it.
It isn't anything new but you still have to fight to win/retain it . . . it's no ones birth right.
All these "we've won it many times, its nothing new" quotes don't wash with me. Let's appreciate all what we have achieved.
Some teams haven't won a plastic cup for 7 years now Thank God for your own

Messi has almost scored 50 goals this season, every time he scores, you can see the delight with the way he still celebrates.
Torres finally scored today after 25 hours of football. Starboard thank God for your own

StarBoard: What can I say?
Not a performance that we should be jumping up and down for,I mean it's a 10-man Wolves.
On the basis of our European campaign,retaining the league is now a must,but not an achievement,given that we were supposed to have built on last year's exploits.
Until we get a midfield that can sound fear into rivals in Europe,we're not making any progress.Relying on Scholes and Giggs is an abberation.

So retaining the league is not an achievement?

nateevs: He just wants to play all by himself Sturridge. Gosh!
Why did he not just pass the freaking ball there?

He wanted to score by force cos he had that "PRAY 4 MUAMBA" inscription underneath his shirt

Halleluyahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!
After 25 hours of football.

Pogba and Welbeck look like lost brothers

Ebanks-Blake
What a player

Welbeck should be burying that easy. smh

Welbeck's work rate is impressive.

It's funny how Fergie is quick to throw in Pogba these days
Goal CHICHARITO. 5-0

It's like we've taken our foot off the gas.
We should be going full throttle . . . we don't have a game in midweek.

Hernandez and Welbeck. Smh

We can use this game to reduce the goals difference between Citeh now.
4 more in the 2nd half will be nice.