A Look Into The Future Part 1

I won't dwell too much on the obvious. That's the loss to Liverpool, for the less well informed of you. A pretty amazing spectacle (which I did actually enjoy watching) as you were never exactly sure what was going to come next. However, I'm not going to try making excuses; mainly because there are few and far between. We weren't good enough on the day. End of.

The next club match for United is in the final 16 of the Carling Cup, away to Barnsley on Tuesday evening. Of late, the fortunes of the team in this competition have been fairly tidy, winning two of the last four competitions. And there is much hope for retaining the trophy this season, too, with possibly the most promising set of youngsters the club has ever had pushing for places in the starting XI for games like these, plus the backdrop of first teamers that is inevitable when you have a sizeable set of capable players.

I am going to outline so called players here (three by three) and impress on you my verdict on their prospects for the future by means of percentage (the higher the %, the greater their chance).

19. DANNY WELBECK - Verdict - 75%

Already carries lots on his shoulders for an 18-year-old, and already features for the England U21's. Early signs are very promising. He is unusually tall for a striker and this obviously has its pros and cons. One being a constant aerial threat against the oppostion and also he can easily turn on some pace when and where necessary. Unfortunately, his first touch often leaves a lot to be desired; it means the ball can't be played into feet as United often like to do under Ferguson and attack set-up can be compromised. Still, a great finisher as proved against Wolves in R3.

20. FABIO DA SILVA - Verdict - 70%

A quick, snappy, no nonsense defender who isn't afraid to get forward. Prone to rugby tackles a la Vidic/Carragher on occasion when caught a long way out of position (quite often). Hasn't had too much in the way of first team experience so far and decision making is often a bit iffy. From the Neville school of tackling (stick a leg in and hope for the best). I think he's got a good chance, provided he listens to the manager, and learns how to track back.

21. RAFAEL DA SILVA - Verdict - 80%

Much like his brother, Rafael is blessed with astounding pace and close control. Thankfully, he is also a pretty decent crosser (playing in a team with the likes of Nani and Park: this helps greatly), setting up many goals in his stint in the first team last year. I think he is probably a better 'defender' than Fabio as he can balance the transition between attack and defence more efficiently. He linked up extremely well with Ronaldo last year, playing right back (favoured position), which proves he can mix it with the very best, however he can and has played anywhere across the backline. My hopes are high for him, a little moreso than Fabio's.

United vs Bolton: Review

3 points. Thank goodness. And by all accounts, I reckon we deserved them.

A goal inside five minutes always helps, I suppose, yet it arose from the most unfortunately comical circumstances. Having received an inch-perfect cross from Patrice Evra, all Michael Owen had to do was make a half decent connection and it was likely to result in a goal. He didn't manage it; but Zat Knight was still intent on helping out. Knight realised the ball was being directed at him and he had to make an effort to clear his lines. He failed. Somehow, his contact with the ball resulted in it being directed back between his legs and into the corner of the net. 1-0. In the moments that followed, there could easily have been two, three, or even four more. Evans had a header cleared off the line and then the post, next to Owen, Berbatov and Giggs who all had shots blocked or saved up until Antonio Valencia lashed home for the second.

But now let me talk about the two players who have lit up Manchester United's play this year. The 35-year-old Welsh wizard who doesn't know the meaning of age, and the brooding Bulgarian whose lack of apparent desire is made up for with the sheer tenacity of his play. I'll start with Berbatov. He was at the centre of everything good about United yesterday, and this has been much the same for the duration of the season so far. I am annoyed at the fact he doesn't get as many goals as he deserves, only three in ten games so far this year, and was denied spectacularly by an in-form Jussi Jaaskelainen on two occasions. The flicks and tricks, backheels and intricate passes all contribute towards the positive impact he has on the team. Owen, Rooney and co. must thoroughly enjoy playing alongside the Bulgarian captain; he is certainly a joy to watch.

And then there's Ryan Giggs. You just run out of words to describe him. The pace, close-control, dribbling and brain are still as good as they ever have been. Giggs is capable of beating his man and putting the cross in as any winger should do (a fine example to Nani who - thank goodness - played no part on Saturday). He gave the Bolton backline so much to think about that their minds were probably full of Ryan Giggs by the time they left Old Trafford. Credit to the manager as well; Sir Alex Ferguson is using him extremely wisely, in general only letting him play anything near 90 minutes every other week, which means he is easily able to reproduce this sort of form every time he plays. It must be said there was no Rooney, Fletcher or Vidic in the matchday squad for one reason or another, but boy do we need it, most of the time. He provides something unique, what we cannot get out of any player, and whatever he does, he does well.

It should have been an awful lot more than two, and if we continue to miss that amount of chances (bar the occasional bit of outstanding goalkeeping) in matches then we won't be in a position to challenge for the title come May. Also of concern is the fact we have let in nine league goals in nine league games - neither is this good enough. However, now that Edwin van der Sar is back in the side and Rio Ferdinand regaining his fitness, I'd be surprised if this remained a problem for much longer.

Elsewhere in the Premier League, both Villa, Wigan and a beach ball did United many favours over the weekend, contributing to Chelsea, Man City and Liverpool all dropping valuable points at the hands of clubs who they'd normally be expecting to beat. So I'd have thought that none of the title contenders will be happy bunnies come Monday when training resumes.

Looking ahead, United revisit the scene of their Moscow triumph on Wednesday where I fully expect Ferguson to utilise his squad ahead of a big trip to Anfield next Sunday. For the record, here's what I reckon he'll do: van der Sar, O'Shea, Ferdinand, Vidic, Fabio, Nani, Scholes, Carrick, Valencia, Owen and Berbatov (edited due to new injuries). This will give a currently unfit Evra, Vidic, Park, Fletcher and Rooney the very best chance to be fit for a game where we will need them most. Bring on the Scouse and their beach balls.

Formula One 2010: bring it on.

What a season this promises to be. Yes, we haven't finished 2009 yet, but for me that is already a forgone conclusion. Button and Brawn have run into the distance and it is too late to catch them. So why not look ahead?

2010 sees a number of changes hit the sport, in regards to the driver market, rules and regulations, and the number of teams themselves. There is a good chance of having 26 cars on the grid for next year, and certainly Mr Ecclestone will be doing everything in his power to ensure this happens. His future visions for F1 escalate year by year and certainly he is looking to bring in teams who will be able to challenge the big names. We see this with new boys USF1, Lotus GP, Manor GP and Campos Meta, from all corners of the globe.

Refuelling will be banned completely, which means lap times will be slower and races will be longer, but tyre changes will still be allowed. In 2005 Ecclestone experimented similarly in the reverse, allowing refuelling but no tyre changes. Needless to say, it failed, and I won't be surprised if this latest scheme of his to "spice up" the racing action is also ditched for 2011.

Media attention over the past few months has been based upon Fernando Alonso's move to Ferrari, alleged as the worst kept secret in Formula 1 from around June 2008. As it happened, the contract was signed only three days before the announcement just two weeks ago.

Nevertheless, the Spaniard lines up for the Scuderia next year, alongside Brazilian Felipe Massa who is confident enough to get back into an F1 car after his horror shunt in Hungary earlier this summer. Surely this bodes well for Ferrari, with two of the most gifted drivers in world motorsport representing the Prancing Horse for at least the next two years. However, the team will be under heavy pressure to produce the right car this year, as it was obvious that the F60 did not live up to the high expectations of the Tifosi. The car was poor and for me, a big let down.

Of course this shoves Kimi Raikkonen out in the dirt for 2010. And it will be interesting to see where he ends up, be it in F1, rallying, or sitting at home in Finland watching it all from the sofa. For me, he is the naturally quickest driver on the grid; his raw speed cannot be questioned, nor his desire to do well, even if his press conferences leave something to be desired. He managed to win the Belgian GP this year and strung together a series of podium finishes in a car that couldn't be balanced correctly anywhere, even on the scales. The hot tip is a return to his former team, McLaren (to partner Hamilton), but seeing as he left them in bad taste, you have to wonder if they will be willing to have him back. Despite that, I'm pretty sure Kimi knows where he's going to be next year, and good luck to him.

Red Bull maintain their current line-up for next year of Vettel and Webber, and are expected to be the only team to keep things unchanged in the transition from 09 to 10. It was announced this week that Robert Kubica is to join Renault, again, another driver with raw pace who has jumped ship (just in time) from the sinking wreck that is currently BMW. These are the only confirmed positions at this stage, however, Jenson Button is expected to stay on at Brawn, Rubens Barrichello is apparently undecided and another veteran, Jarno Trulli, is reportedly staying with Toyota. No doubt over the coming weeks we will learn a whole lot more.

Race-wise, the F1 circus will roll into Korea for the very first time in late 2010, we go back to the forests and Hockenheim for the German round, which for me is a pity, as I have a penchant for the Nurburgring, and Canada also returns to the calendar after a two year break. One other slight alteration is the opening round - Bahrain, a week earlier, on 14th March. A literal baptism of fire for the new teams in the heat-haze.

And so as we arrive at the finish of the 2009 season with visits to Brazil and the premiere of Abu Dhabi, one eye focuses on the future, and what more fantastic racing action the new drivers, rules and cars will bring.

England v Ukraine

And so the first installment of something where I can say what I want. Based around mainly events in the sporting world, hopefully I may be able to amuse/interest people such as yourself. So here goes.

England have just lost to Ukraine. And though it hurts to admit, the goal we conceded was Rio Ferdinand's fault. Sin number one of a central defender is surely letting a long ball bounce once, giving an opposition member more than a sniff of an opportunity to cause trouble in the attacking third. He's far from 100% at the moment, this being only his fourth competitive start for club and country this season so far, and so he's still finding his fitness. Nor is he getting younger, and so, once the ball bounced past/over/around him, he may as well have given up the chase.

Spare some sympathy for Rob Green too; he had little or no alternative other than to come out with purpose and attack the ball, accept his fate and as it proved, concede the penalty kick. Though Chelsea outcast Shevchenko stepped up to worry no-one other than the ball boy behind the goal, England never really posed a meaningful threat afterwards and for me, were second best from that moment on.

You cannot blame Ferdinand entirely for the defeat; others had a few opportunities to get a strike in on goal, and on other days, these half-chances may have been taken. Ashley Cole and Terry had far from impeccable games, Heskey was largely ineffective up front, Rooney showed no more than glimmers. The only players who I thought made an effort to stand up were Carrick and Lampard, proving themselves a sound central partnership, with Carrick repaying Fabio Capello's good faith (who of course, suffered his first competitive defeat as England manager).

Neither should we forget the atmosphere, which was hostile to say the least, and you cannot blame the England players for having half an eye on the crowd just to check where the next flare was going to come from. The Ukranians obviously show a passion for the sport but most of them were volatile and verging on the unacceptable; hardly the most pleasant of places, as we have now found out. Their football team are nothing special, but they budged their way past our lacklustre 10 men with the help of their supporters.

A positive however; David James came on and made a couple of world-class stops, which did prompt the question "why wasn't he on the team-sheet in the first place?" and he'll surely be featuring prominently in the build-up to 2010. Another debate for perhaps another blog, but how on earth can Capello decide which keepers will be favoured for the trip to South Africa? James, Green, Foster, Kirkland, Robinson, Carson, Hart, all names that will be in the thoughts of the boss. A tricky choice.

Final stop Belarus, and we'll have to show a marked improvement on Wednesday; English fans won't be so forgiving if a similar display is presented to the 90,000 at Wembley, however you'd like to think we'd be more at home with the bigger pitch and will cause this particular opposition comparatively more problems.

Rio the supposed "untouchable" will be under pressure; plus there's no doubt his club manager will be watching closely. He should be prepared for some stick over the coming days; England too. Yes, Wednesday's a dead rubber, but they need to produce, just to leave that final satisfying taste in the mouths of the English public.