www.red11.org DAILY NEWS
Date: Sat 25 Dec 1999 13:21 GMT
Mail: barry@www.red11.org

This Issue:
1. FA CARLING PREMIERSHIP  Man Utd v Bradford StatPack
2. Beckham doubt for Bantams ««
3. The Straits Times in Singapore,
4. www.red11.org Sound Archive -
5. Solskjaer set for return
6. Sheringham not interested in Bosman's holiday
7. MEN - Fergie hopes for 'fledgling' return

++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++

MANCHESTER UNITED DAILY NEWS CHRISTMAS DAY Sat 25th Dec 1999:

Webmaster comment:
Barry & Bill at The Theatre Of Dreams wish all our Daily News readers a Very Merry Christmas!

* If you have an article for this MUFC Daily News bulletin
   please mail it to  Thanks!

*** Remember our December Competition!
To enter first download 1 meg here
    http://www.red11.org/mickz/mufc_snow.exe
Lets see how far us REDS can get, I already made it to Level 2 
Proof here: http://www.red11.org/mickz/level2.jpg
The best 3 efforts will win a copy of the NEW book 
"European Glory" by RED NEWS edited by Barney Chilton
Eyewitness Accounts of United's 1968 & 1999 European Triumphs
A book celebrating the amazing events in the Nou Camp on May 26th - retails at £7,95
Enties to the competition must include an attched screen pic as proof of
your efforts  mail to barrylee@post3.tele.dk GOOD LUCK  Comp closes today Dec 25th 1999

++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++


Click On pic - for latest interviews from OT

FA CARLING PREMIERSHIP  Man Utd v Bradford StatPack
Sunday, KO 3.00pm  

Man Utd 

Manager Alex Ferguson will be keeping a close eye on David Beckham, who
picked up a hamstrong injury in the 4-2 win over West Ham last week. 

Mark Bosnich is also in full training again and pushing or a return over
Christmas. The Australian keeper has been out of action since December 4
when he strained a hamstring during the 5-1 win over Everton. 

Team (from): van der Gouw, Bosnich, G Neville, Stam, Silvestre, P Neville,
Irwin, Beckham, Keane, Scholes, Giggs, Yorke, Sheringham, Butt, Cole,
Solskjaer, Fortune. 

Bradford 

Dean Windass is the only douvt for Bradford. The midfielder twisted his
ankle on his return to action in the 2-0 victory over Newcastle last week.
Neil Redfearn is available again after a one-match ban, Isaiah Rankin is
out for three games following a sending-off in a recent reserve outing. 

Team (from): Clarke, Myers, McCall, Wetherall, Lawrence, Blake, Mills,
Whalley, Beagrie, O'Brien, Windass, Sharpe, Halle, Saunders, Redfearn,
Westwood, Davison.

StatPack - By Dave Todd

MANCHESTER UNITED (2nd) v BRADFORD CITY (17th)

Man Utd's last six league games:
TOTTENHAM (A) L1-3 (Giggs)
ASTON VILLA (H) W3-0 (Scholes, Cole, Keane)
LEICESTER (H) W2-0 (Cole 2)
DERBY (A) W2-1 (Butt, Cole)
EVERTON (H) W5-1 (Irwin pen, Solskjaer 4)
WEST HAM (A) W4-2 (Yorke 2, Giggs 2)

Bradford City's last six league games:
LIVERPOOL (A) L1-3 (Windass)
COVENTRY (H) D1-1 (Mills)
LEEDS (A) L1-2 (Windass)
CHELSEA (A) L0-1
MIDDLESBROUGH (H) D1-1 (Mills)
NEWCASTLE (H) W2-0 (Saunders, Wetherall) 

Head to Head:



Have not met in the league since September 1935 

Have not met in the top division since December 1921 

Bradford have not won here since December 1932 (3 lge, 1 LC since) 

Bradford have won only 2 of the 21 league meetings here 

Man Utd have won 6 of the last 10 league meetings here 

Met only once on Boxing Day, in 1911 (United winning 1-0 at Valley Parade) 
Last Corresponding Fixture: Man Utd 4 (Moses, Albiston, Moran, Coppell)
Bradford 1 (Campbell) - LC 3rd Round replay, 24th November '82 
MANCHESTER UNITED 


Won 9 of last 10 games (all comps) 

Won only 5 of last 10 league games 

Won last 7 home games (all comps) 

Unbeaten in 25 games at home (all comps) 

4 clean sheets in last 9 games (all comps) 

Top scorers in the entire football league with 44 goals from 17 league
games. In the Premiership, the closest are Sunderland with 33 goals, but
they have played a game more than United. 

Man Utd have never lost a Premiership game at Old Trafford in which they
scored first 

David Beckham has not scored a Premiership goal this season 

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has 5 goals in his last 2 appearances (all comps) 
Top Scorer: Cole - 14 (12 lge, 2 CL) 
Also: Yorke - 11 (10 lge, 1 CL), Keane - 8 (3 lge, 4 CL, 1 Toyota Cup),
Solskjaer - 7 (5 lge, 2 CL) 
BRADFORD CITY 


Won only 3 of last 11 games (all comps) 

Only 13 points from last 16 league games 

Lost 5 of their last 9 Premiership games, conceding 16 goals in that time. 

Lost 7 of their last 8 away games in the Premiership, gaining 3 points from
a possible 24 in that time. 

Opponents have scored first in 12 of their 18 league games this season -
they have managed to salvage only 4 points from these 12 (all drawn - no
wins) 

Only 1 clean sheet in 11 home games this season (all comps) 

Lee Mills has scored in 4 of last 5 home games (3 lge, 1 LC) 

Dean Windass stands on 99 career league goals 

Peter Beagrie stands on 48 career league goals 

Lee Sharpe has 47 career goals in all comps 
Top Scorer: Mills - 5 (4 lge, 1 LC) 
Also: Saunders - 4 (2 lge, 1 LC, 1 FAC), Blake/Wetherall/Windass - 3 (1
lge, 1 LC, 1 FAC/1 lge, 2 LC/3 lge) 
Click On pic - for all latest pics from OT


Beckham doubt for Bantams ««

David Beckham did not train yesterday and is the main doubt as Sir Alex
Ferguson prepares his side to face Bradford City on Boxing Day.
Beckham has a niggling hamstring injury and Denis Irwin is also struggling,
although Andy Cole may return after a painful rib injury sustained in
training.

The match is the first time in 77 years that the sides have met in the top
flight and also marks the return of old favourite Lee Sharpe to Old
Trafford for the first time. 

Sharpe said: 'It's going to be extremely difficult and no-one will give us
much of a chance.

"It's bound to be a fantastic atmosphere. With 55,000 in the crowd - it's
got to be the best atmosphere in the country. But I think that can inspire
us." 

Clearly he has been away too long.

Mark Bosnich is pushing for a first team recall but it may be a little too
early for him to return to the starting line-up.
United: (probable) van der Gouw, G.Neville, P.Neville, Stam, Silvestre,
Keane, Scholes, Beckham (or Butt), Giggs, Solskjaer, Sheringham (or Yorke).
Subs (also from) Taibi, Berg, Irwin, Fortune, Jordi, Cole, Greening. 
Click On pic - for latest interviews from OT


The Straits Times in Singapore,

As part of a feature naming icons in each field (10 in all) of the past decade.
They had Sir Alex as chief entertainer of the 90s!

Sent in by Michelle Lim  Thanks!

******
Goal! Give the Glory to Fergie 

Field Of Dreams

Alex Ferguson, Manchester United coach, showed the world how to manage
talent and crush competition

ICONS OF THE '90s
By CHERIAN GEORGE

ONE game was king of spectator sports in the 20th century. One club
dominated that game in the '90s. And one manager ruled that club. 

Alex Ferguson, coach of Manchester United Football Club, is thus one of the
easiest picks for the list of top 10 show-business icons of the decade. The
gum-chewing, 58-year-old Scotsman may not blend in with your typical
Hollywood star or pop musician, but few have done as much to keep so many
people entertained. 

There were, of course, individual sportsmen whose talents kept fans
transfixed. 

In football, Ronaldo was a genuine artist but his greatness was clouded by
his failure to perform to expectations for Brazil in France 1998. 

Tiger Woods pepped up the game of golf with his youth and elegant swing --
but it was still only golf. 

Michael Jordan, already top of his game in the '80s, was confirmed in the
'90s as one of the greatest athletes of the century. But, although the
NBA's aggressive marketing enlarged its following, basketball still could
not command anywhere near the universal appeal of football. 

In the '90s, Manchester United, already the most famous soccer club in the
world, became the biggest and most successful. Its dominance of the English
league -- probably the most competitive and entertaining -- was unquestioned. 

From 1990, United were English champions five times, and lifted the FA Cup
four times. In Europe, it won the Cup-Winners Cup in 1991 and the Champions
League this year. 

When the European champions beat South American champions Palmeiras in
November, United ended the '90s with the right to call itself the best
football club in the world -- not just the one with the most money and fans. 

Ferguson's management of the squad since 1986 makes a case study worthy of
an MBA class. For a start, he understood the importance of renewal. 

One of the easily forgotten facts about United's string of triumphs is that
last season's Treble-winning team bore little resemblance to the team that
started the ball rolling by winning the premiership six seasons earlier. 

The stars of 1992-93 included crowd favourites like Mark Hughes, Andrei
Kanchelskis, Paul Ince and Steve Bruce. They went on to win the
league-and-cup Double the next season. 

They seemed irreplaceable -- but replace them Ferguson id, with a crop of
relative unknowns. 

When United won its second Double in 1996, only five of the 13 players used
in the cup final against Liverpool had been in the Wembley side that
triumphed against Chelsea two years earlier. 

Behind the club's consistent strength in the '90s was Ferguson's astute
ability to keep the team fresh with new legs and ideas. More remarkable was
his commitment to nurturing young players, rather than simply picking
ready-made stars off the shelf. 

As the manager of the richest club in the world, he could have chosen to
cream off top players who had already proven themselves in other clubs,
especially after European integration opened the doors to foreign talent.
Instead, he drew deep from United's schoolboy and youth teams. 

David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt, Gary Neville, Phil Neville and Wes
Brown were all signed on as trainees when they were 16. As for Ryan Giggs,
he went personally to his home on his 14th birthday to sign him up for
United's schoolboy programme. 

Although non-fans love to hate the Red Devils' size and wealth, the truth
is that under Ferguson, success was built up from the grassroots, not
bought with a chequebook. Of course, what fans and opposing teams alike
will most remember about United's '90s vintage is its breathtaking spirit
on the field of play. Man for man, United teams were not obviously superior
to their opponents at the top of world football. 

In its most glorious Treble season, some of the teams t beat in Europe
looked stronger on paper. Even within England, the likes of Chelsea,
Arsenal and Liverpool had players who were at least as talented as those of
United. 

This was where Ferguson showed most clearly his superiority as a manager of
talent and a master of psychology. He did not just assemble skilful
players; he turned them into collective units that could outplay the best
footballers in the world. 

Young superstars like Giggs and Beckham could easily have turned into
insufferable prima donnas under a weaker manager. Instead, under his
regime, they were among the hardest working footballers on the field,
always running, always selfless. 

United teams throughout the '90s also showed extraordinary self-belief when
it counted. Their work rate and determination never flagged before the
final whistle, regardless of the odds against them. 

Last season, this mental strength produced some of the most dramatic games
that anyone had ever seen, and ultimately delivered the Treble. Against
Arsenal in the FA Cup semi-final, Giggs ran half the length of the field,
past five defenders, to score the winner when United were a man down. 

Against Bayern Munich in the European final, United were down 1-0 after 90
minutes, equalised in the first minute of stoppage time, and while some
Bayern players were shedding tears of shock, scored a second to clinch
victory. 

These results were improbable. But they were not accidental. Behind them
was a maestro whose will to win was so strong, it seeped into the bones of
his players, raised their supporters to rapture, and reminded all fans why
they love the game. 
Click On pic - for latest pics from OT


www.red11.org Sound Archive -

Click on at 

or use direct url's -

20k Dec 22   0.31 
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/irwin_on_bradford.rm 
       Dennis Irwin on prospects v Bradford Boxing Day 

53k Dec 22   1.23 
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/david_may_on_loan.rm 
       David May on loan to Huddersfield for a month 

1.6meg Dec 22   1.23  
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/barry_pancho_mutv_23_12_99.rm
       Barry on MuTV with Pancho Dec 1999 - FA Cup REAL VIDEO
[To stream the video use -
 http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/barry_pancho_mutv_23_12_99.ram] 
Click On pic - for latest interviews from OT


Solskjaer set for return
25 December 
Manchester United's Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is in line for a recall as Sir
Alex Ferguson tries to plot the Christmas downfall of two of last season's
promoted sides.

Solskjaer was left out last weekend despite scoring five times in United's
two previous outings but the Norwegian seems certain to face Bradford at
Old Trafford on Boxing Day.

"This Sunday I will consider Ole Gunnar without question and there is every
chance he will play. I've got good options," said Ferguson.

"The West Ham match was a terrific game. We played very well. Attacking
wise we were very good although I thought we were a bit slack with their
first goal. Nonetheless we went down there knowing it is always tough and
it was a good result for us."

Dwight Yorke rediscovered his goal touch at Upton Park and is favourite to
partner Solskjaer but Andy Cole could also come into contention after
recovering from a slight back injury.

Ferguson was delighted with Yorke's double strike last Saturday and said:
"I think it's important for goalscorers to get back into the goals. All
strikers feel that if they are not scoring they are not contributing but of
course Dwight was contributing. Even so they feel better when they are
scoring."

The main doubt for United remains David Beckham who is having treatment on
the hamstring injury picked up during the 4-2 win at West Ham and Nicky
Butt is on stand-by to step into midfield. After Bradford, United travel to
Sunderland on Tuesday for their last game of the century and their first at
the Stadium of Light.

Ferguson is expecting no easy rides in either game and expects a passionate
affair on Wearside: "I think you can see what history does. You look at
Sunderland and you see history. They have always had a fantastic support
and a passionate support now they have got this fabulous new stadium that
is full every week and you get an idea of what it is all about. Resources
and history.

"Bradford are a team that's now getting to grips with playing in the
Premier Division. I think for their young manager, Paul Jewell, every game
will be an experience.

"We're not taking anything for granted. We know you get three points for
every game and it's not just a matter of thinking it's the important ones
that have to be picked out. Boxing Day is a big game for us."

(c) Copyright Press Association Ltd 1999, all rights reserved.
Click On pic - for all player stats from OT


Sheringham not interested in Bosman's holiday

Teddy Sheringham has slammed the Bosman ruling even though he knows he
could cash in under football's new freedom of contract rules. 
The Manchester United striker is putting football ahead of big money as he
considers his future at Old Trafford. 

"I'm not happy about the Bosman rule. I don't think it's such a good idea
because it would probably make players greedy. I think the money should
stay in football rather than going anywhere else,"

Sheringham said. "Footballers get paid astronomical amounts anyway, so for
them to be on a Bosman ruling and getting crazy money is just absurd." 

The former Tottenham striker is due to have talks with chairman Martin
Edwards in the next few days and could be offered a new one-year deal at
Old Trafford. His present contract runs out next summer and under the
Bosman rule he is allowed to talk to other clubs from next week. 

However, the England star is not looking to put up his feet and accept a
cash bonanza, he wants regular football. 

"Bosman gives the wrong idea of what football is all about," he said 

"I know the rules could help me, but I would be 34 before it comes around
and I don't think it holds out much hope for me. But getting as much money
as I can is not my main ambition. I am sure it won't affect me. 

"As far as my future is concerned, playing football rather than money, is
what will be taken into account and we will have to wait and see what
happens when whoever speaks to me." 

Sheringham has been with United since 1997 and had the most successful
spell of his career last season when he played a leading part in the Treble
success, scoring vital goals in both the FA Cup and Champions League finals
Click On pic - for the history of MUFC 1892-1976


MEN - Fergie hopes for 'fledgling' return
By Stuart Mathieson

SIR Alex Ferguson is hoping his original ‘fledgling’ can fly high again.

Lee Sharpe - the Manchester United golden boy of a decade ago - returns to
Old Trafford with Bradford on Boxing Day for the first time since his 1996
departure.

And the Reds boss is backing his former charge to come good again after
years battling to match his United successes of the late 80s and early 90s.

‘‘I hope Lee Sharpe plays,’’ says Fergie.

‘‘He had a great spell here as a young lad. In fact he had a good career
here for eight years. As a young lad he was one of the great talents.

‘‘We bought him when he was 16 and he joined us on his 17th birthday. He
made his debut as a left back in a wing back formation. He did really well.

YHe added: ‘‘Lee could catch pigeons. He was a flying machine in his day
and was a marvellous crosser of a ball. His service was terrific and he was
not a bad finisher either he scored some important goals for us. The
highlight was the hat trick at Highbury in the League Cup against Arsenal
in ’91. It was one of the great performances of the time.’’

Sharpe was was the first ‘Fergie fledgling’ over a decade ago. But the
Birmingham-born winger found life hard after leaving Old Trafford.

He was eclipsed on by Ryan Giggs at United and suffered an injury and form
nightmare after joining Leeds for £4m.

Added Fergie: ‘‘The Giggsie and Sharpie situation was a problem in that
respect because Giggs was a marvellous player and it was unfortunate
because Lee, like a lot of players, didn’t want to be in the shadow of
someone else.

‘‘They were both in the one specialist position. We played both Lee and
Ryan wide right at times but they were both naturally left-footed.

‘‘Lee was losing out and obviously he wanted to go on with his career and
that’s understandable.’’

Sharpe’s career has now been rejuvenated at Bradford - after an fruitless
stint at Sampdoria on loan and initial injury problem with the Bantams.

‘‘Lee was unlucky getting that terrible cruciate knee injury at Leeds that
knocked his career backwards,’’ says Fergie.

‘‘He’s got over that and will want to do well on Boxing Day. I know he’ll
be telling all the Bradford players about what to expect at Old Trafford.’’
Click On pic - vote now in our MUFC WEEKLY SURVEY