03 March, 2008
Crerand's quandary
 Spare a thought for Sir Alex, his job must be awful at the moment. United’s squad is so good, in so many areas, that I’d find it impossible to leave players out. I’m glad it’s his job and not mine! Going into Tuesday's crucial clash against Lyon, Sir Alex once again has some tough decisions to make regarding his team selection. Getting players to understand it is key. And the fact that they never complain shows the confidence and respect they have for the manager. No player complains in the press, and the fans aren’t disgruntled. Look at Liverpool, everyone goes on about their squad rotation. But I don’t think Rafael Benitez has got a strong enough squad to rotate. United have, and ultimately that’s why it works. No player should look at it as being dropped. It’s for the benefit of the team in the long run. There are a number of advantages to it. Firstly, of course, everyone stays fresh and sharp. Secondly, it can puzzle your opponents. They don’t know who they are going to be facing, and in what formation. Different players bring different qualities to the team. As a television pundit everyone thinks I must know the team. But until I actually see the team-sheet, there’s not a chance I can tell what the team is. That has to have an affect on opposition managers and players, too. There are so many games to be played and so many competitions to try and win, that you need to have a squad of players. United have got that at the moment. Look at Michael Carrick, his form has been outstanding. But he’s still not a regular. When someone is in that form, you’d think they would be in the team every week. It shows you the quality of players United have. It sets a very high standard for everybody. If you’re playing you only need take one look at the bench and think to yourself, ‘My God, I’ve got to play well to stay in this team’. Sir Alex rested Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo at the weekend, so you would hope to see the benefits of squad rotation against Lyon. We couldn’t have done better than getting the away goal, considering we went 1-0 down. It's far from done and dusted, but the tie is set up well for United and it’s a competition everyone at the club wants to do well. We could be in for another great European night at Old Trafford. As for the team selection, though, your guess is as good as mine. |
posted by redarmy at 4:31 AM
