"We face Man United perhaps in
their most tremendous moment of
motivation and flair and style and a
team that has made its impact at the
beginning of the Premiership,
different from last year. It provokes
a good challenge and I think
motivation will be the key factor in
the game and hopefully (we can)
come back from Old Trafford with a
win." - Andre Villas-Boas
"David de Gea will play on Sunday
against Chelsea. That was the
understanding we had before the
game, and it doesn't change. I don't
know why you ask these questions,
you're just looking for stupid little
things. Anyway, it proves we have
two terrific goalkeepers." - Alex
Ferguson
Team news
United - Goalkeeper David De Gea,
rested for the Benfica game, will be
restored to the starting line-up but
the champions will be without
Nemanja Vidic (calf injury), as
expected, and along with Tom
Cleverley (foot), Danny Welbeck
(hamstring) and Rafael (shoulder).
Rio Ferdinand, who missed recent
games against Tottenham Hotspur
and Arsenal with a hamstring
injury, could also start.
Chelsea - AVB could either keep
faith with Fernando Torres, who
created both goals in the 2-0
Champions League win over Bayer
Leverkusen on Tuesday but has
only one goal to his name since
joining in January, or restore Nicolas
Anelka to the starting line-up. John
Terry rested for the Leverkusen
game and Frank Lampard, who
came on as a second-half substitute,
should start.
Key battles
Juan Mata - The new Chelsea No.
10 is technically superb, with close
ball control and peripheral vision to
split defences. He is excellent in his
ability to beat his man and set up
chances but his lightweight frame
could be a hindrance in the
Premiership, though he has
contributed two goals in four
appearances. His with pace and a
direct style could put Smalling under
pressure today.
Chris Smalling - Though his
positional sense and concentration
have been questioned at times, he
has adapted well at right back and
his calmness on the ball, accurate
distribution and solid aerial ability
will be a feature of the United
defence for some time to come.
Though he will remember losing to
Chelsea on his Premier League
debut for Fulham - in which he
scored an own goal.
Anderson - The Brazilian's
breathless box-to-box approach
makes him difficult to play against.
The speed at which he is able to
launch attacking moves has added a
new dimension to the speed of
United's attacks this season that has
already yielded 18 goals. Though he
will like to score more goals, he
may be wasteful in possession and
rash in tackling when frustrated.
Frank Lampard - Another box-to-
box midfielder, Lampard has risen
to become the focus of the Chelsea
midfield. His work-rate, range of
passing and goal-scoring ability
makes him, at club level, a stand-
out performer. He packs a powerful
shot and excellent long-range
passing is a superb weapon to
initiate Chelsea attacks though but
his tackling can be better and is
clearly now losing some speed.
La Liga
Real hoping to keep up momentum
As Jose Mourinho leads his wards to
Levante, there will just be one
option on his mind - get the three
points and substantially increase the
goals difference that already stands
at plus eight. At the Estadi Ciutat de
València tonight, Cristiano Ronaldo
and Karim Benzema are expected to
start and get the goals.
Last September, Levante held
Mourinho's boys to a 0-0 draw - a
result which went a long way in
giving the title to Barcelona - a
mistake they will not want to make
again today.
Last season, Real Madrid lost top
spot with the draw but it was not
because they did not try. Angel Di
Maria failed twice at breaking the
deadlock before half-time while
Gonzalo Higuain saw a goal
disallowed for offside before Karim
Benzema then went very close on
82 minutes. Sergio Ramos blazed
over at the post with just seconds
on the clock.
Mourinho will want to stay under
the radar in this encounter as he
caused a storm in the last one. The
‘Special One' criticised some Levante
players from the touch-line and
midfielder Juanlu Lopez hit out at the
Portuguese coach.
"He told me not to dive," fumed
Juanlu. "He provokes all the players.
He should keep his mouth shut and
stop provoking people."
Today, Mourinho will want to be
provoked by the number of goals
that will be scored by his team.
Serie A
Inter need all three points
The beginning of the season for
new coach, Gian Piero Gasperini,
and his team has not panned out in
positive fashion and after just two
games, coach Gasperini is under
pressure. Though owner, Massimo
Moratti will give Gasperini some
time to prove himself - the crux of
the defeats could be the change in
formation from a 4-3-3 to a 3-4-3.
Inter lost 3-4 to Palermo and then
followed that up with an
embarrassing 1-0 loss to
Trabzonspor in the Champions
League at the San Siro on
Wednesday.
But the decision to switch to the
3-4-3 formation was met with
approval by the Moratti. He said, "At
the moment, I think it's a question
of waiting because the match tactics
have been changed."
The Inter chief will not always be
this accommodating and that is
why he must get something against
Napoli today. Napoli on the other
hand have made a splendid start to
their season, winning away 4-1
against Cesena and then going to
Manchester to bag a creditable 1-1
draw against a star-studded
Manchester City side. And at the Sao
Paolo Stadium where Inter have not
had much joy in recent seasons, the
task could just have gotten harder.
Fabio Capello, Delio Rossi and
Claudio Ranieri are all being linked
with the job should Gasperini be
axed, though it is still early days.
Match facts
Javier Hernandez scored in three of
his five appearances in all
competitions against Chelsea last
season
The last three Premier League
meetings between Chelsea and Man
Utd all ended 2-1, as did the last
meeting in the Champions League
United won four of the five
meetings with Chelsea in all
competitions last season
Man Utd have scored more goals
after four Premier League matches
than any other team in Premier
League history
Man Utd have scored with 30
percent of their shots so far this
season (roughly one in three)
compared to the Premier League
average of 11 percent (one in nine)
Chelsea have won five times at Old
Trafford in the Premier League era,
more often than any other team
Man Utd have averaged fewer
points per game at home against
Chelsea than against any other
opponent (1.47) and are the only
team they have a lower than 50
percent win percentage against (37
percent)
Man Utd have scored in their last 32
consecutive matches at Old Trafford
in the Premier League, winning 30
and losing just one of those
matches. The solitary defeat was
against Chelsea in April 2010
Wayne Rooney has scored nine
goals in his last five Premier League
starts.
Ashley Young has a joint-high four
assists in the Premier league this
season
Man Utd have set a new Premier
League record of 17 consecutive
home wins
March 01, 2011, 01:46:51 AM