[TABLE="width: 800"] [TR] [TD] [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE="width: 800"] [TR] [TD]So far Christmas hasnât been very merry for the canaries, who have been struggling to get the point on the board. The performances have left many of the Norwich fans starting to question what future Hughton has at the club but so far the CEO has held fast where others have not been so patient. A long and frustrating injury crisis is starting to lift for Norwich, albeit with players still picking up [/TD] [TD] [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE="width: 800"] [TR] [TD]injuries at an undesirable rate. With Jonny Howsonâs industry and attacking qualities missed when replaced with the far more defensive Bradley Johnson. This may be the first start that Rick van Wolfswikel has made since Norwich were at home to Chelsea two months ago but this shouldnât detract from the workmanlike performances that Johan Elmander has put in, he was however taken off after a bruising game on Boxing day. Gary Hooperâs recent discovery of the back of the net has lead to him scoring in four consecutive home games and looks the most likely outlet for Norwich. Manchester Unitedâs form on the other had has improved significantly in recent games after losing several games which they would generally be expected to win. Arguably United are suffering from the number of changes that were made to the club over the summer with both manager and CEO stepping down, both of who very hard to replace, leading to few deals being done for new players. However there are rumours that David Moyes will be given the funds he requires to improve the squad with name such as Koke and the fantastic Marco Reus being linked making the prospect of the second half of the season very interesting for United Fans. The game between Norwich and United will mark the middle of the season and a point good point to take stock of the season so far at the bottom the table is incredibly close with two point separating Norwich in 14[SUP]th[/SUP] to Stoke in 10[SUP]th[/SUP], largely Norwich fans would have taken being mid-table at Christmas and thatâs pretty much where they are, the discontentment heard from Norwich fans is no uncommon in the bottom half of the table. Manchester United have, by their own extremely high standards had a poor first half of the season and a 4[SUP]th[/SUP] place finish would feel like a real victory from the second half of the season, the truth of the matter is that they can in no way be written off, as they still remain in contention for every competition they haven entered, with some new faces and a more settled David Moyes they could be a very different beast after Christmas. I'd also like to add how pleased I am to see Darren Fletcher back playing football and hope he will be able to keep on to of his illness for a long time.[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD] [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Michael Turner for Norwich and Antonio Valencia For Manchester Uniter are suspended for this game and Rafael is likely to be absent through injury[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD] [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]From Hughton On Motivating players⦠âItâs never difficult to pick players up. The reason why they do what they do is because theyâre very good professionals. Any bad period, or any defeat, always hurts,â On the Fulham Match... âWeâre on the back of a disappointing result on Boxing Day. We certainly couldnât fault the effort of the players, we just didnât create enough clear-cut chances. On Michael Turner⦠âI think Michaelâs been on four bookings for a while, so weâve managed to get a bit more out of him than we thought we might do,â On Injuries⦠âWeâre ok injury-wise. We are where we are with Jonny - itâs one weâll continue to assess. Weâre not giving up any hope.â On Manchester United⦠âItâs of course a big task. Manchester United are Manchester United and they have quality all over. We are playing at home though. It is an opportunity for us to bounce back from Thursday, and it is certainly the type of game that lifts everybody â itâs one to look forward to.â From Moyes On the Hull Match⦠âHopefully my teams have always been committed to trying to win games of football. âAfter being 2-0 down, to get back to 2-2 was terrific but I actually felt a bit disappointed not be winning 3-2 by half-time because we had a few chances to do something more.â On Rafealâs injury⦠âIâll find a right-back, we have a big squad at Manchester United. Weâve plenty of players and plenty who can play on Saturday.â On the Norwich Game⦠âI think all the games at this time of year are difficult to call, I expect Norwich to be another hard game. I think at this club youâre waiting on winning more games than this and then you might talk about being on a run. Weâll just try and win the next one and see what happens. All we can do is keep knocking away and hopefully be in there fighting come the end of the season.â [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]
Nice one BC I am personally dreading this one today but if CH can get a real reaction from the Boxing Day horror show, then who knows what can happen.
Good Job Bath, an enjoyable read. I wonder if we can have a bit of bouncebackability today to keep us happy. Like Thai, I'm fearful rather than hopeful today, but if Hughton can indeed get a reaction and make them look like a team today, then I'll be happy. There's nothing worse for me on a Sunday, going to work to face my students who will all turn up in MUFC tops (if we are beaten).
The problem with today is the need to rotate the squad to avoid fatigue, could really do with Pilks and Benno back but we don't. Maybe we will see RVW and Becchio up front to start?
It was kind of in jest, though I could see RVW and Elmander start to give Hoops a break. I think the most changes will be at the back, with Martin and Bennet coming in.
I think mine is better http://www.not606.com/showthread.ph...anchester-United-thread?p=5822874#post5822874 There is a link for a free £5 bet too.
Wes back in a 4-5-1: Ruddy; Martin, R Bennett, Bassong (c), Olsson; Fer, Johnson; Snodgrass, Hoolahan, Redmond; Hooper. Subs: Bunn (GK), Whittaker, van Wolfswinkel, Elmander, Garrido, Becchio, Josh Murphy. Only other non-enforced change is Martin returns at RB, presumably because he's more solid defensively than Whittaker. Looks like we're trying to hold out for a point. United: De Gea, Smalling, Vidic, Evans, Evra, Young, Cleverley, Carrick, Giggs, Kagawa, Hernandez. Subs: Lindegaard, Anderson, Welbeck, Fabio, Fletcher, Zaha, Januzaj. Kagawa to tear us apart again then?
I don't rate Smalling at RB, so up against Redmond that could be interesting, and Johnson + Fer can outmuscle Carrick and Giggs in the centre hopefully. Damnit, I've got optimistic again...
