Today’s midweek game features Portsmouth, a team we lost 2-1 drew 1-1 in our last encounter this season. It was also a game that saw the dismissal of Ronaldo to a head butt. Those were early days in the season when we got off to a rocky start. Things have changed drastically since then.
Portsmouth, who had an excellent start to the season now sit in ninth place. They have lost the likes of Kanu, Muntari, Utaka, Bouba Diop to the African Cup of Nations — which is akin to ripping the heart of the team. Portsmouth’s African contingent have been their star performers and their loss has been fairly telling. Only Benjani remains.
All this should come as good news to us. It’s a home fixture against a weakened Pompey side. One couldn’t have asked for a better time to be facing them.
The team composition will be interesting for the first time — especially in central midfield. Scholes’ return leaves Fergie with a happy headache. I would imagine Fergie going with Scholes and Hargreaves, but with it being a home game he could also play both Anderson and Scholes. Oh well, your guess is as good as mine.
Vidic is unlikely to play as he continues to recover from the virus. Rio and Brown in the centre were unconvincing against Spurs, as a pair. Let’s hope they do better today. Ronaldo and Giggs could play in the wings, although one would want to ask the question as to when Ronaldo would really get a rest. The lad’s been playing virtually every single game for us, in recent times, while being kicked all over the park.
Michael Carrick has spoken about meeting our short term goals of securing maximum points this week; one against Pompey and another against Spurs in the weekend. He talks a lot to the press, doesn’t he?
And O’Shea has also been talking. With him it has been about the fact that we can pick maximum points from now on. (I know, it sounds boring, but read it if you want to.)
Prediction: 2-0 to United
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