Nice article.......
The whole world will be watching the Manchester derby
By
Joe Bernstein Last updated at 9:28 PM on 29th November 2008
Cristiano Ronaldo will be named European Footballer of the Year on Monday, the first player from
Manchester United to win the coveted
Ballon d'Or since George Best 40 years ago. Having conquered Europe, however, Ronaldo will have his hands full at Eastlands simply proving he is the best player in Manchester.
Ronaldo versus
Manchester City's new Brazilian folk hero Robinho is the sort of exotic and mouthwatering clash the modern Premier League thrives upon. It is why the 150th Manchester derby, which started out life as a local tribal conflict, will be screened live in 211 countries with a TV audience measured in billions.
They will be glued to their screens in Abu Dhabi, whose takeover of City earlier this season changed the Premier League landscape forever, and Florida, home of United owners the Glazer family. And 20 countries will be represented in the two playing squads, from Brazil to Zimbabwe, Serbia to South Korea. Unless Gary Neville is risked by Sir Alex Ferguson, there will not be a Mancunian on the pitch.
Freinds re-united: Mark Hughes (left) faces his mentor Sir Alex Ferguson for the first time as Manchester City boss
At the heart of this global jamboree are two of the most exciting names in world football - Ronaldo and Robinho, whose competition for personal glory is as intense as the rivalry between their clubs.
'No one today comes close to Ronaldo and he is like Pele, Maradona and Cruyff,' claims United boss Ferguson.
'I am also a big player and I want to be king,' retorts Robinho, who will play providing he suffered no reaction from a training ground injury scare.
Ronaldo has come a long way since being handed David Beckham's famed No7 shirt as a teenage unknown in 2004. Ferguson also compared him to old-time England great Tommy Lawton.
Manchester City's Robinho
Meanwhile, City boss Mark Hughes predicted his £32million superstar Robinho will become as big an influence on City as Eric Cantona was at Old Trafford. Ferguson turned down £70m from Real Madrid for Ronaldo last summer and sounded like a doting dad as the 23-year-old joined Bobby Charlton, Denis Law and Best as European players of the year.
'It makes me proud,' said Ferguson. 'Without question he deserves it. For anyone to score 42 goals as a winger is phenomenal, and one of those came in the Champions League final. Nobody comes near to him.
'Teams get three or four bodies around him and systematically foul Ronaldo, but all the great players like Maradona, Cruyff and Pele have taken kicks. It didn't deter any of them and it doesn't Ronaldo. He has natural courage, a natural bravery. He had an operation in the summer as a result of the consistent kicks he's taken. But it hasn't stopped him.'
Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo
Ronaldo's aerial prowess is an extra weapon, good enough for Ferguson to bring up the name of the giant Lawton, who was rated the best header of a ball in the world in his prime for
Chelsea, Everton and England either side of the Second World War.
'Who could head a goal like Ronaldo did against Roma? You'd have to go back to Tommy Lawton,' said Ferguson.
'We knew he had two great feet when we signed him, but I had no idea he had such fantastic ability in the air.
'When Walter Smith was at the club I kept telling him about Ronaldo's heading ability. After three games, Walter complained he hadn't seen him jump. Then he scored a brilliant header against Birmingham. Walter turned to me and said: "I won't mention it again!".'
Ferguson has condemned those defenders who target Ronaldo as the 'real cheats' even though the Portuguese winger has a reputation for going down easily. And United are worried City fans will try to influence the officials today by howling every time Ronaldo goes down.
Hughes half-agrees. 'We haven't got the type of players where we can physically intimidate the opposition, but the crowd might put the emphasis on Ronaldo. It is a consequence of his actions in the past, although he's a lot better now.'
Instead of stopping Ronaldo, City are hoping their gem Robinho can outshine his adversary. The Brazilian became the Premier League's most expensive signing when he moved from Real Madrid on deadline day and has hit the ground running despite the team's inconsistent displays. He has eight League goals already, the same as Ronaldo, as both men chase the Premier League Golden Boot for the season's top scorer.
Even on Brazil duty, Robinho's thoughts shifted towards the derby. 'Robinho and I have talked about this game,' revealed United's Brazilian Anderson. 'He is certain City will win, I am certain United will win!'
Anderson has warned his samba pal about the freezing winters in the North West.
'All the Brazilian players get together regularly to complain about the weather,' he said.
'But the deal is that the clubs look after us very well and in return we have to deal with it, work hard and try to help them win trophies.'
Blast from the past: Ryan Giggs (left) and Mark Hughes (right) in action during their time as Old Trafford team-mates
Hughes knows Robinho has a crucial part to play in building City from a mid-ranking Premier League side into one of Europe's elite.
'I think he can be as big an influence as Eric Cantona was at United when I played there,' said Hughes. 'He's a world star and very much in the loop regarding our big plans.
'I was at United when Eric was there and could see the influence he had on younger players like Paul Scholes. Robinho will do the same with our players because they all have egos and want to improve. Stephen Ireland is in the best form of his life and that happens as a consequence of bringing in top players like Robinho.'
Amid all the foreign razzle-dazzle, the presence of Giggs, born in Cardiff but raised in Worsley and a United fixture for 18 years, is a welcome throwback.
Giggs hero-worshipped Hughes as a United and Wales team-mate and thinks City must keep faith in him if they want to hit the big-time. City have had 13 different managers while Giggs has played under Ferguson.
'You can't just spend millions buying big players,' said Giggs. 'You need the stability we've had at United for a long time. He (Hughes) was immense for United. This is a big chance for him and I'm sure he'll do well. He's a friend but it won't be friendly for this game. I want to win.'
City beat United twice under Sven Goran Eriksson last season, the first time they had achieved it for 40 years. And if Robinho can eclipse Ronaldo in the battle of the stepovers, a hat-trick of surprises is on the cards.
It's a contest the whole world is watching.'
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...world-watching-Manchester-derby.html?ITO=1490
