Ferguson: Better team won

December 29, 2007

PHILOSOPHICAL: Sir Alex Ferguson

UNITED manager Sir Alex Ferguson insisted he had no complaints about his side's 2-1 loss at West Ham.

The Reds had appeared on course for victory after Cristiano Ronaldo gave them an early lead.

But the Portugal forward then missed a penalty before Anton Ferdinand and Matthew Upson both scored with headers at the other end to give the Hammers victory. United's disappointment was compounded by Arsenal's 4-1 win at Everton, which means the Gunners go into the New Year on top of the Premier League.

Ferguson, who was without Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick through illness, said: "I have no complaints. We were beaten by the better team. We were not nearly up to our normal performance.

"Scoring the penalty would have killed the game but if you lose goals to set pieces you are not at your best."

United had demolished Sunderland 4-0 on Boxing Day but failed to rise to similar heights against Alan Curbishley's side.

Ferguson added: "It's difficult to say why but they are human beings and you can't expect them to be perfect all the time.

"We put in an excellent performance at Sunderland on Boxing Day but this was disappointing. They struggled today, our team. They were very competitive and aggressive, West Ham, and were always about us.

"They were very motivated and it was probably their biggest game of the season."

It was the third time in a row that United had been beaten by West Ham following home and away 1-0 successes last term.

Ferguson added: "Sometimes it goes in little cycles like that but we can't complain."

What do you think? Have your say.

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Bigmouth strikes again, Manchester (29/12/2007 at 18:29)

Can the 13% of people who voted for Giggs as man of the match please book a trip to spec savers!

roslers boot, Bolton (29/12/2007 at 18:32)

OOPS. Riverdancer missing a penalty and goalie Kuszczac voted best player of your team. Merry christmas stretford!!!!!!!

RANDYRED (29/12/2007 at 18:51)

Fergie baby the best team didnt win your chosen squad e.g the engine room lost us it and tactics enough said.
Where was nani anderson at the start and rooney?????.
So fergie the best team lost simple,where are your team and where are whu????does that make sence fergie,i could have picked a better squad.

Devil's Own,, malaysia (29/12/2007 at 18:52)

The defeat is simply due to poor team selection.

Fletcher should never start. And never again.

RANDYRED (29/12/2007 at 18:53)

riverdancer????18 goals from a winger more than city have scored with your top notch strilers,pmsl.
Now get to bed and await for you scouse invasion tomorrow where youll drop points.

spencertea, Brussels (29/12/2007 at 19:12)

Yes the better team won it, but it's entirely due to this poor selection that, aggravated by poor performances by Fletch, Giggs, Tevez, Brown, Saha, Ronaldo. When will SAF understands that we're not invincible, that easy win at Sunderland was a smokescreen, we use to hear SAF and our "stars" talking laud when we murder weak sides, bout how can they explain to the fans, this lack of ambition in such important game? beating Brum won't ease my pain, we simply threw the leadership away and i'm afraid that the Arse, Chavski and Pool would have increased their self believe that they are serious title contenders. Thanks to the staff, the players, for that wonderful present on this festive period

Dino (29/12/2007 at 19:16)

Fletcher shouldnt be in the team..

Dev, Johannesburg (29/12/2007 at 19:40)

Don't be too hard on Fergie (yes, Anderson instead of Fletcher etc, etc - he does get it wrong sometime). Neverthless, it was expecting too much to think we would get maximum points from the holiday period, and West Ham is our bogey side with great supporters right on top of you. Before it was Middlesborough, now West Ham, who seem to play out of their skins each time they meet us. We were shell-shocked for most of the game - but hey, viewed in perspective Arse were 6 points ahead with a game to spare after our Bolton defeat, and Chelski and Liverpool breathing down oiur necks. Now into the new year they are just 2 points ahead, with Chelski and Liverpool well adrift still. Better have these hiccups now rather than later. Rooney's illness today further underlines the paucity of our attack options - we need someone like Berbatov as a matter of urgency......

cjh, Portland (29/12/2007 at 19:45)

This slating of Ferguson is silly. It's not like he put the Carling Cup line-up out on the field. He started 8 of the 10 first-choice outfield players, and Kuszczak played in goal because VDS is still injured. "Rotation" consisted of Fletcher for Anderson, Saha for Rooney. Not exactly Rafa-like.

Sometimes you just don't win. Especially when you miss penalties. Come to think of it, sell Ronaldo. He's clearly rubbish.

Dangermouse 2, Heywood (29/12/2007 at 19:51)

Hmmm....worrying loss, if City win tomoz they'll only be 7 points behind us and with all that cash to spend in january we could have another contender!

Invisible Man, Manchester (29/12/2007 at 20:16)

That boy Ronaldo puts his penaalty wide, that boy Ronaldo should find a place to hide ,that boy ronaldo always dives in the box... , that boy ronaldo etc

A. pirzadeh (29/12/2007 at 21:06)

Today we played with no heart. Without Rooney, MU is heartless. Saha, is done, I really do not care how good he is or how bad he is, he just does play with any emotion, and thats why he is where he is, no where. He is leaving by the end of the year, mark my word.

Dev, Johannesburg (29/12/2007 at 21:36)

It's amazing that some 'fans' are calling for Fergie's head after what he has achieved this season and last. Exciting football and chasing the title, unbeaten in the CL, goals galore - and a slip here and there seems enough to erase all the great things he has done. What idiots. Then there are those going after Giggs no matter how well he plays - its as if they've written the script well before every match. But I am glad to see that 39% of the fans (the poll as at 9.34pm GMT Saturday) feel that Giggs was the best player today. Am not sure I agree he was MOM but he certainly deserves recognition for his astute play - slick, intelligent passing, movt off the ball, helping out in defence etc. On a bad day for the team he was one of a few that played decently. That a tiny minority refuse to see that is more a reflection on their own abilities to watch games than the reality on the pitch, I suppose.... (would love to get opinions from fans who watched the match 'in the flesh', as they perhaps see more than TV allows us.)

red4ever, Chennai (29/12/2007 at 21:39)

Fergie is just providing a fig leaf for Fletch!

Did anyone notice Kieran helped Keano's team win.

BrewDevil, Clemson,USA (29/12/2007 at 21:40)

Oh, he had complaints and anger aplenty, but as no man likes to be mad at himself, he dared not admit the truth.

Hubris will out in the end.

Ol' Devil, Cambridge (29/12/2007 at 22:32)

Giggs gave the ball away a lot ... especially though on their second goal. Fletcher is NOT GOOD ENOUGH TO PLAY FOR MANCHESTER UNITED!!! I know he tries and plays hard, but that unfortunately does not translate into talent. Sorry Fletch!!!

torred, Toronto, Canada (29/12/2007 at 23:49)

Just a reminder that "you can't win 'em all".It's true for United as it is for others.Every team or person has an off day. Accept it as alesson and get back on the winning trail!Torred, Toronto

Austin Powers (30/12/2007 at 01:05)

Hangover from Rios party? maybe they should have all gone shopping and turned thier mobiles off

TAKIN, strasbourg france (30/12/2007 at 01:24)

a defeat is a defeat.sometimes it really hurts to remember we beat liverpool at anfield and then we give three points away at upton park:it sounds like nonsense.this defeat cancels the victory against liverpool.Ronaldo is only human.it will help him to learn to become more humble.it really hurts to admit we were poor against wes ham

Iben Wong (30/12/2007 at 02:16)

The stubborn one will not learn, and he wants to win the CL....not never Fergie!!! You haven't learned...Fletcher, Blanc, Sivertre at CB, Everything through RVN, Smith in MF, .... you're holding back this team from producing great things once again. The better team won!!! Yes that I'm sure...anyteam without Fletcher is the better team...end of story...my 6 year old knows that!!! You just gave it away and worst of all you've given Liverspool hope....pathectic Rafa and the "two footer diver" Gerard. Over!!!!!!!!!!!

arletta red, USA (30/12/2007 at 07:09)

Right with you! SAF blew this one, and tends to under estimate the opposition or over estimate his own squad. Fletcher has to go. Why not play Anderson? Why play a 4-5-1? Aren't we the attacking top of the table team? Merry Christmas indeed.

che, Malta (30/12/2007 at 07:54)

It's not fair to blame it on Fletcher. The whole team, except Kuszczac played badly.
They simply were`nt involved in the game and lacked inspiration even when they took the lead against the run of play. I was saying to myself that if W.H. scores they would go on and win it, because the writing was on the wall. Why it is always like this against W.H. They seem to play well in only two games a season and thats, against us. Last year we had the chance to send them to relegation and make it a double celeblation, but we threw it away and they spoil our party at our home.
The performance yesterday bothered me more than the three points lost. Nobody seems to motivate our players when the game was going wrong. For me Giggs should never be the skipper, we need men like Wayne who tussle for every ball, to motivate others. he has all the credits. Even from the management point of view, we need to see more motivation from the bench. If you look at foreign managers and coaches, they almost play along the team on the touchline. I was particularly sorry for Kuszczak, because he had a perfect match, and was'nt at fault in the two goal we conceeded.

saha rocks, work (30/12/2007 at 08:40)

A bad day at the office is an understatement. Apart from Kuszczak, thought Saha was one of our positives. His close control is something to behold and whoever disagrees has it in for him because of his bad luck with injuries. Has Giggsy ever had a worse game for us? I doubt it. He was shocking. And will the real Owen Hargreaves come out of hiding! Surely Bayern must have sold us an imposter!

Well, hindsight is a wonderful thing and even Sir Alex will privately admit that he could have planned for yesterday better insofar as team selection is concerned. Still, all told we shouldn't be too downhearted. Every season has its own highs,lows, twists and turns. Yesterday was a low, no doubt, but I'm sure we'll take it on the chin and move on.

As for the title, it's too early to call. As long as we're still in the mix come April then there's hope. However, a voice in my head keeps telling me it's Arsenal's title but OUR CHAMPIONS LEAGUE!!!

Jack Thorley Timperley (30/12/2007 at 08:57)

The absence of Sir Alex from the touchline was the main reason United lost.His analytic coaching brain is worth an extra point to the team!

Ferrari (the original one), Toulouse (30/12/2007 at 09:10)

Randyred? Your name makes me laugh, is it a tag you give yourself to boost your own sex drive! Randyred indeed? I'm not going to say anything about the mighty blues game today, don't want to tempt fate but you lot must be worried. Frank is getting all his money back, we have the best academy in the land and smooth Sven is at the helm. Times are changing, Arsenal for the title, Chelsea runners up, Liverpool 3rd, City 4th etc etc etc!

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