Queiroz eyes Reds treble

January 10, 2007

AMBITIOUS: Carlos Queiroz and Sir Alex Ferguson

UNITED assistant boss Carlos Queiroz insists winning the Premiership alone will not satisfy the Red Devils this season and that they are looking to emulate the achievement of 1999 and challenge for the treble.

Queiroz claims the Premier League has become a two-horse race with Sir Alex Ferguson's side six points clear of second-placed Chelsea after a fantastic first half of the season.

But Ferguson's number two warns the players cannot afford to relax - and that United are desperate to win the FA Cup and Champions League as well.

Queiroz told Manchester United Radio: "It's not enough for us to compete only for the league. We also have ambitions and a great desire to win the other competitions as well.

"The reality at the moment dictates that the championship will probably be a two-horse race.

"But that isn't the case when it comes to the FA Cup and Champions League - it's wrong to think those competitions are also between us and Chelsea."

Aston Villa, beaten 2-1 in the FA Cup third round on Sunday thanks to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's last-minute goal, return to Old Trafford on Saturday and Queiroz warns that Chelsea are waiting to pounce on any slip-up.

Commitment

He added: "We deserve our position because we're playing the best football in the league at the moment and all the lads are doing very well.

"We haven't won anything yet though. We're in a good position as a result of our hard work, commitment and concentration and we must keep that going until the end of the season.

"The race will not be easy and I'm sure Chelsea will not give us any chances to make mistakes.

"We cannot just enjoy the fact that we're six points clear, we need to build on that.

"If we don't, then that is when you make mistakes and one small mistake could represent big punishment for us.

"Letting our focus and our state of alertness slip even just a little bit is the wrong attitude for us."

The Portuguese coach also believes there is still room for improvement among the United players.

He said: "There is no perfection within the game. There is always room for improvement both from an individual and a collective point of view.

"We have very much enjoyed the team's performances recently and cannot ask any more from the players regarding their attitude, concentration, discipline and the team spirit because it has been fantastic.

"But during the week there is no room for fun, there is only room to work. And we will continue to work on the specific areas we feel we can improve upon."

Do you think United should go for glory on three fronts, or just concentrate on the Premiership? Have your say.

Articles

Fergie eyes treble chance

| Submit Comments | Comments (42) |

Showing comments 1 to 25 and replies | View All

manc_abroad, OT (10/01/2007 at 11:48)

Premiership. Anything else is a nice bonus.

Loyal to the End (30 years, City Fans, 30 years..), Malaysia (10/01/2007 at 12:08)

All this treble talk is a bit too soon.. The lads had better keep their feet on the ground, or complacency will start setting in...

Robbo, North Stand (10/01/2007 at 12:10)

Yes, just the Premiership please. We want our trophy back.

Mick, Dublin (10/01/2007 at 12:17)

Today is January 10th. Nuff said.

chris, oxford (10/01/2007 at 12:35)

Prem first but let's not get ahead of ourselves because there is still plenty of time for the wheels to fall off! Makes a nice change worrying about whether we can win the league or not, has anybody else missed feeling this nervous and excited at the same time?

stu, london (10/01/2007 at 12:56)

Shut it Quieroz. Anything we win this year will be DESPITE you not because of you. Thank God Fergie finally decided to revert to his tried and tested 4-4-2 with flying wingers, rather than your god-awful 4-5-aaaaaagh system of mundanity. Maybe you've learned a valuable lesson.

duffer, Far Corner of the Globe, via Dublin (10/01/2007 at 12:58)

Thank god we're out of the League Cup or else Queiroz would be eyeing Reds quadruple! Nonsense! I'll take the premiership please.....

Thomas, Norway (10/01/2007 at 12:58)

I think the staff should focus on one game at a time and stop babling about a possible new treble. They seem to get carried away by our recent form. It is a long way to even thinking about any titles. Chelsea will come strong as the season comes by. I have said it all along that they probably will make a third title capture. It all comes down to the size and debth of the squad and Chelsea are superior on that matter. If United are able to add some quality during this transfer window, a left flanker for instanse, then our squad would be more competitive. Anyway, we have started the season very strong. Lets hope it continues.

A Mancunian, Manchester (10/01/2007 at 13:00)

Wouldn't get carried away with talk about a treble but it's surely better to be in our shoes than the Scousers'. I'm still laughing at their spanking by Arsenal Reserves. I thank god I'm not from that city of self pity.

gary, LONDONDERRY (10/01/2007 at 13:08)

if nobody else is signed we could struggle if there were a couple of injuries

Reds4Ever, West Yorkshire (10/01/2007 at 13:08)

The PL will do this year.

Roy, ex-Manchester (10/01/2007 at 13:10)

This is the second reference to the treble in a week. Why? Maybe because the Jan transfers have yet to materialise and it's a slow press day. Either way, the only team that should be crowing today is the Arsenal. Now that is what I call a promising youth team.

Kevin, Tralee, Eire (10/01/2007 at 13:45)

Another glorious derby win & the PL will be plenty this season Mr Quirozzzzz. Lets not get ahead of ourselves yet. Any news on the USA job anybody know? It would be such a shame to lose Quirozzz's tactical nous, but sacrifices have to be made.

Felix, Nairobi (10/01/2007 at 13:57)

Just give us the premiership. As for the Champions league may be we should ensure that we get past Lille first then take it game by game from thereon. If we get to the semi-final we can be happy with that and plot to finish off the job next season. sorry to say this but I do not think we have enough quality to win the Champions league - of course I hope I eat my words. We will need a lot of luck plus God on our side with injuries, suspensions, decisions to win the treble. Priority has to be the league. Lets not tire our strongest 11 in a bid to try to win it all and end up losing all.

blue, baile atha cliath (10/01/2007 at 14:13)

premiership maybe-the rest forget about it see you all in may

BEST MARK 11, london (10/01/2007 at 14:18)

The league title please is top priority.
To Roy: Dont be taken in by the latest lot of foreign players at Arsenal they have been doing this over the last five years or so and very few have progressed and liverpool were terrible. I dont think Arsenal will win anthing this year or indeed liverpool.

To Thomas : Dont believe all you read in the press Chelski might have paid a fortune for their squad but the proof is on the pitch at the moment we are way ahead on point.

At the worst I think United and chelski will share all 4 TROPHIES

dazk, clayton (10/01/2007 at 14:49)

yes i totally agree with the comments made by queiroz, firstly we will need a little more from rroney as he's not scoring enough goals to be fair he's had problems but a club of uniteds stature should be able to deal with things quickly,we will have but a defensive tackling midfielder if hargreves is a no go then gattuso should be a second option, last of all the team will have to all contribute as they have been doing to the goals,giggs try a litlle harder to up his tally and carrick needs to muck in

nonameboy, justice (10/01/2007 at 15:00)

I will be pleased if we win the PL...+ the FA, but Chelsea will get closer and closer and I wouldnt underestimate Arsenal maybe not for the title but they can beat us again and the same goes for Liverpool. We will not be at the same level if Scholes or CR will be injured. CL is just a question of how lucky we will be with injuries but if I speak squad or quality, MU is not between the best four teams, sorry.........

United4Life, Don't know where I am (10/01/2007 at 15:06)

Go for it all. Why not. But prioritize. First and foremost the Premiership. Second CL, third FA Cup. It is early indeed. Too much talking in January, but hopefully the train keeps on rolling and we beat the Russians to the finish line. Need some MF reinforcement this January, but something tells me it is not coming. I hope DF and JOS pick their game up...lol...sorry had to add that in there.

Moses Masondo, Camden, London (10/01/2007 at 15:29)

Carlos Queroz steered Portugal to the Under-21 World Cup a few years ago and he nurtured such world class players as Luis Figo, Lui Costa and others who were in the Portugal side that beat England in the European Cup and in the last World Cup. So, when he thinks United can win the Treble he knows what he is talking about. However, many of us would argue that the current United side is not as balanced as the Treble winning team. The present side is weak in central midfield. The Treble side had Keane, Scholes, and Nicky Butt, all of whom were the best central midfield players in England at the time. The Treble side was so strong in midfield that they won the European Cup without Keane and Scholes; Nicky Butt and Phil Neville were more than competent replacements for the suspeded Keane and Scholes. You cant say the same of O'Shea and Fletcher if Scholes or Carrick were not to play. We can win the Premiership if we can avoid defeat at Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea. Without a new signing in central midfield this will not be easy. As for the FA Cup, we struggled at home against an average Aston Villa side; I am not sure we can win it in a final against the three top teams all of whom are very strong in midfield. Moses Masondo, Camden, London.

Pat, Bickington (10/01/2007 at 15:36)

no name boy, you say we are not amongst the four best teams. I would like to ask you are? Barcelona, Chelsea, Lyon and Real Madrid? is that your thinking? because I don't see any reason to place Real Madrid ahead of us and we are six points clear of Chelsea in our league which is a reflection of who the best team, squad and manager is, no more Chelski excuses, at this moment in time we are better than them, it's time people acknowledged that.

David Williams, London (10/01/2007 at 15:39)

Two teams to beat and the league is ours, Liverpool and Arsenal. The way Chelsea are playing, we shouldn't have a problem with them. It's only the Anfield and Emirates visits that scare the hell out of me.

Oluseye, London (10/01/2007 at 15:57)

The only thing we should be focused on is winning our next match (which is against Villa in the PL). No talk of the treble or which competition to concentrate on. Just take things on a match by match basis and see how things turn out in May

clarence, DENTON (10/01/2007 at 16:01)

Martin O.Niel says we are of of the two best sides in England and 1 of the top 5 in Europe.

Richard Saberton, milton keynes (10/01/2007 at 16:02)

i think united should concentrate on the premiership this season, the treble is extremley difficult and although they deserved it in 1999 they only just done it with a more experienced and sronger sqaud

()

Report

Manchester United