FA Cup Youth Final gets a bit of attention. Louise Taylor gets back to just reporting after 2 days of silly comment, with a piece on the final, telling us Sir Alex and Sir Bobby will be watching, and Sir Alex's comments on it:
"One of the greatest privileges of being a manager is playing a part in the development of young players, watching them grow in confidence and ability," says Ferguson, who is hoping his juniors will clinch the Youth Cup for a record 10th time. "I've been fortunate to work with many exceptional young players but the class of '92 was unique; their success is a tribute to their talent and this club's belief in the power of youth." ...
"I'm convinced no group of players will ever make such an impact on the English game as did the class of '92," says Ferguson. Nonetheless he remains quietly optimistic about the latest academy crop. Both the Wythenshawe born Morrison and the Bury born Tunnicliffe possess the potential to emerge as high-quality midfielders.
Their number is further enhanced by Paul Pogba, whose passing and incisive tackling have seen him likened to a young Patrick Vieira and Michael Essien. A France Under-16 captain of Guinean descent brought up in the Paris suburbs, Pogba, now 18, started out in Le Havre's academy, prompting a legal wrangle with United in 2009 when the French club claimed he had been poached unlawfully.
Other United youngsters to catch the eye include the Keane twins – the full-back Michael and high‑scoring, deep‑lying, striker Will, whose hat-trick saw off Chelsea in the semi‑final. No relation to Roy, these Stockport born siblings could yet become the "new Nevilles".
The First leg at Bramall lane is promising to be quite the occasion, with 30,000 tickets already sold:
[Sheffield United] Youth team coach John Pemberton said: “They are not all Blades fans, but they are all football supporters and Sheffield people who want to see fellow Sheffield people do well. ...
“Manchester United have brilliant players and that’s why, with our budget, it is particularly good what we have achieved without any big stars,” he added.
The Guardian report that we won't face punishment (for a change) from the FA for fielding a "weakened" team against Blackpool:
Despite Blackpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers being fined over the past two seasons for fielding weakened teams, Ferguson will escape similar punishment provided he includes players who have made several first-team appearances this season and not a raft of debutants.Sir Alex has suggested that there's a balance to be struck between those players who'll benefit from a rest and those who'll play to maintain their fitness:
"It gives us a real opportunity to look at how we can rest players and who needs to be kept going because maybe that was a weakness in our last European Cup final [in 2009]. We played a reserve team against Hull City. We have a responsibility to make sure we are fair to all the clubs in the country who are struggling with relegation."
Rio Ferdinand was on Talksport and his comments are reported here, including this on those saying we weren't very good this season:
"When you look back at the end of the career I won't be thinking about what's been said about the squad," he said. "I'll be thinking: 'Did we win the league this year? Yes we did.' The manager has said we maybe haven't got a Ronaldo-type player like we did before but the team ethic in this squad is phenomenal. I think you've seen that over the season with various different results."
And this report includes Rio's comments on the last game and resting players issue:
'Looking back to last time, we had two weeks to prepare for the final against Barcelona in Rome and we kind of rested beforehand. But sometimes, if you rest up too much, you can become a little bit lackadaisical.'
The Telegraph report that Sir Alex refused to acknowledge the latest and possibly stupidest FA charge:
Ferguson is understood to be so incensed by his latest brush with the FA’s disciplinary unit that he has chosen to ignore the charge and has waived his right to reply.
United have acknowledged receipt of the charge in their correspondence to the FA without Ferguson offering either his acceptance of it or his determination to appeal.
Central to Ferguson’s anger is his belief that rival managers, notably Stoke City’s Tony Pulis, have made similarly innocuous comments without being charged by the FA.
And that's the lot.
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