Just got back from the training session. I'll post some pics and videos in the Utd Forum in a bit.
Kansas City Wizards v Manchester United- Pre-Season Tour
- Thread starter olesmyhero
- Start date
-
In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik (@Rood) is joined by CEO Duncan Drasdo and Financial Director Andy Green from the Manchester United Supporters Trust for a special episode on all things behind the scenes at Old Trafford including a brief history of MUST and their aims today, views on INEOS and Sir Jim Ratcliffe so far, and the Old Trafford regeneration.
Was it any good? How did Nani look?
He looked fit. No signs of injury.
Still kind of strange to think that United's in Kansas City at the moment. Can't wait for tomorrow.
According to BBC reports, they said that United's visit is a big deal in KC. Is that true?
Yeah, it's a pretty big deal. KC is a big city but usually(and sometimes quite rightly) gets overlooked by Chicago in terms of midwest cities. It's not as glamorous or as well known as Chicago or NY so the fact that United chose to come here is pretty amazing(even though they went there previously). On a grander footballing scale, a big turnout for the game could help KC being picked as a World Cup city is the US gets the bid. And in terms of football cities, KC is a city for the other football. The Cheifs are a huge deal here(even though they're shit every season). Despite the fact that you can watch almost every Wizards game live, there's very little coverage on the local news about scores and general news. Hours of Chiefs and Royals discussions, but relatively little Wizards talks. Hopefully we'll start to see more football(the good kind) fans her.
Odd way of analysing soccer... very B-Ball style
What challenges the Wizards present Manchester United.
Pressure. One of the hallmarks of Peter Vermes’ team this year has been high pressure defense. It works when Stephane Auvray is in the game (and when the team isn’t allowing soft goals on defense to undermine the pressure). The Red Devils haven’t played a pressing team on this tour. Celtic was also in pre-season form and were looking for the counter. Philadelphia played higher up, but didn’t actively confront them as high as KC will. If KC can get younger players like Chris Smalling, Fabio or Tom Cleverley isolated in bad position, they could be turnover prone.
Acclimation. Face it, Paul Scholes needs to apply about 35 layers of sunscreen just to spend 15 minutes on the beach. What will 60 minutes in a muggy Kansas City evening be like for him? Or for any of the English players used to 65 degrees (at max) and rain? Kansas City has been playing in this weather for 6 weeks now.
What challenges Manchester United presents Kansas City.
Poise. Even the youngest Man United attackers are seasoned goal scorers. Federico Macheda scored an injury-time winner in his first EPL game. Danny Welbeck and Gabriel Obertan have appeared in international youth tournaments. Dimitar Berbatov oozes class in the box. If this were a game played only in the opposing team’s penalty box, Man United wins walking away. (Thankfully for KC, it’s played on the whole field. Hopefully.)
An actual top-flight defense. The Wizards haven’t exactly lit up the notorious stalwart MLS defenses this season (12 goals in 16 games). But even without Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand, Manchester United are stocked with high-caliber defenders. Jonny Evans is young and strong and, while Wes Brown might be Samuel L. Jackson’s character in “Unbreakable” at times, he’s still international grade. The da Silva twins have loads of potential and John O’Shea is better than at least 90 percent of MLS defenders. Breaking them down will be very tough for a team that has struggled breaking everyone down.
Key Match Ups
Roger Espinoza and Michael Harrington stopping wide play. Sir Alex Ferguson loves interchangeable pieces, and Obertan, Welbeck, Ryan Giggs, Tom Cleverley, Nani and Darren Fletcher are all capable of filling any spot across the midfield and even up into the wings. This gives him a ton of attacking options. Especially against two mid-20s fullbacks who might be a little over their heads.
Kei Kamara and Teal Bunbury vs. Chris Smalling and Evans. If you can find one weak spot on this incarnation of Man United, it’s the lack of athleticism in the middle. KC is not short on athletic big guys. Smalling was unimpressive against Celtic and Danny Mwanga/Alejandro Moreno gave Brown and Evans fits.
Can the Wizards actually win?
Um... yes? But they can only can win in the sense that “anything is possible” in an exhibition. With a little pressure, a bit of luck and the chance of a muggy and humid night, the Wizards could stick with them. After all, Philadelphia held tight with Man United, losing only 1-0. In the end, unless KC somehow solves the riddle of why they can’t score goals, this game will probably go to the visitors. I think Manchester United 2, Kansas City 1. Good showing, good test for both teams. Lots of fans leave happy.
Read more: Manchester United Week, Day 6: A “friendly” match up - KansasCity.com
So much for the idiom that football is won in the middle of the park!
What challenges the Wizards present Manchester United.
Pressure. One of the hallmarks of Peter Vermes’ team this year has been high pressure defense. It works when Stephane Auvray is in the game (and when the team isn’t allowing soft goals on defense to undermine the pressure). The Red Devils haven’t played a pressing team on this tour. Celtic was also in pre-season form and were looking for the counter. Philadelphia played higher up, but didn’t actively confront them as high as KC will. If KC can get younger players like Chris Smalling, Fabio or Tom Cleverley isolated in bad position, they could be turnover prone.
Acclimation. Face it, Paul Scholes needs to apply about 35 layers of sunscreen just to spend 15 minutes on the beach. What will 60 minutes in a muggy Kansas City evening be like for him? Or for any of the English players used to 65 degrees (at max) and rain? Kansas City has been playing in this weather for 6 weeks now.
What challenges Manchester United presents Kansas City.
Poise. Even the youngest Man United attackers are seasoned goal scorers. Federico Macheda scored an injury-time winner in his first EPL game. Danny Welbeck and Gabriel Obertan have appeared in international youth tournaments. Dimitar Berbatov oozes class in the box. If this were a game played only in the opposing team’s penalty box, Man United wins walking away. (Thankfully for KC, it’s played on the whole field. Hopefully.)
An actual top-flight defense. The Wizards haven’t exactly lit up the notorious stalwart MLS defenses this season (12 goals in 16 games). But even without Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand, Manchester United are stocked with high-caliber defenders. Jonny Evans is young and strong and, while Wes Brown might be Samuel L. Jackson’s character in “Unbreakable” at times, he’s still international grade. The da Silva twins have loads of potential and John O’Shea is better than at least 90 percent of MLS defenders. Breaking them down will be very tough for a team that has struggled breaking everyone down.
Key Match Ups
Roger Espinoza and Michael Harrington stopping wide play. Sir Alex Ferguson loves interchangeable pieces, and Obertan, Welbeck, Ryan Giggs, Tom Cleverley, Nani and Darren Fletcher are all capable of filling any spot across the midfield and even up into the wings. This gives him a ton of attacking options. Especially against two mid-20s fullbacks who might be a little over their heads.
Kei Kamara and Teal Bunbury vs. Chris Smalling and Evans. If you can find one weak spot on this incarnation of Man United, it’s the lack of athleticism in the middle. KC is not short on athletic big guys. Smalling was unimpressive against Celtic and Danny Mwanga/Alejandro Moreno gave Brown and Evans fits.
Can the Wizards actually win?
Um... yes? But they can only can win in the sense that “anything is possible” in an exhibition. With a little pressure, a bit of luck and the chance of a muggy and humid night, the Wizards could stick with them. After all, Philadelphia held tight with Man United, losing only 1-0. In the end, unless KC somehow solves the riddle of why they can’t score goals, this game will probably go to the visitors. I think Manchester United 2, Kansas City 1. Good showing, good test for both teams. Lots of fans leave happy.
Read more: Manchester United Week, Day 6: A “friendly” match up - KansasCity.com
So much for the idiom that football is won in the middle of the park!
Sorry but
One of the best write-ups Sheasy has ever got in the press! I'd like to know who the other ten percent are.
Are you sure its 23:00 GMT and not 22:00 GMT?
You are correct but in the UK we're not on GMT at the moment we are on BST, but that'll just confuse people.
Yeah it's 23:00 BST and 22:00 GMT
What time will it start tonight then, British local time. 10 or 11?
23:00 BST, 11PM
Live: Kansas City Wizards v United - Manchester United Official Web Site
You can't go wrong with the official site.
11:00 (more realistically 11:10)
Quality, thank you.
Right, nice one. I reckon I'm staying up for this one. Even though I'm an old fecker who needs his sleep before a working day....
Nani to perform the Kansas City Shuffle.
It gave us Charlie Parker, so it's not all bad.
My gametime lunch/dinner will be representing both Kansas City and England in the best way I could think of. Barbecued ribs and Fuller's.
not sure if its been posted but stewart gardner has tweeted that nani will play an hour apparently
can't wait to see him back in action
can't wait to see him back in action
If Nani only had a brain...
Ok so I was late for the whole Oz thing.
Ok so I was late for the whole Oz thing.
nani showed signs of a football brain since crimbo
i have a feeling next season he will be fantastic - a real breakthrough year like ronaldo in 2006/7
Well we need a wizard to teach Scholes to tackle.
Ronaldo had a fantastic 2nd half of the season in 05/06 too, just like Nani in 09/10.
how many hours more? I am bricking it
3 hours!
Hoping for some Berbamagic.
Hoping for some Berbamagic.
Berbacum
sir alex had fries in front of him during the pre match press conference
Any TV coverage? Canadian specifically?
If not someone will have to send me a media player stream
If not someone will have to send me a media player stream
sir alex had fries in front of him during the pre match press conference
According to Gemma's blog, a KC barbecue place put ribs and fries up on the table for the coach.
So, what's the word guys? Will Nani be starting do you think? I hope he does but I hope no one goes overboard if he isn't outstanding... need to bear in mind the lad hasn't played since May.
Sunil Chettri, an Indian might be playing for Kansas today
With all this BST, GMT, EST, WTF, PMS, OCD shite I've completely lost track of time zones. Can someone on the West Coast tell me what time this match kicks off in Pacific Time, please? Is it 2:00 pm or 3:00 pm, basically?
In the States it's on Fox Soccer Channel and Fox Sports Espanol.
Starts in an hour and fifteen minutes
It's 15:00 YSB
please pm me a link to a good stream.........thanks
Thanks all.