Sir Alex Ferguson remains silent on pursuit of German star Mesut Ozil
Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson refused to comment on the pursuit of signing German playmaker Mesut Ozil. The question regarding Ozil was asked following United’s thrashing of double winners Chelsea in a Community Shield match. The Red Devils defeated the Blues 3-1, winning the FA Community shield for a record 18 times.
The German has been strongly linked to move away from his current club, after impressing everyone at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The playmaker was nominated for the Golden ball at the age of just 21, with prospects of a bright future ahead. Many of the top clubs including Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Chelsea have been linked for the 21 year old, with United being the fore- runners. When asked about Ferguson’s interest in the youngster, the manager simply stated, “I don’t know”. The 69-year-old was present at Craven Cottage when Werder Bremen played Fulham in the pre-season friendly. Ozil plays for Bremen and many expect the playmaker to join the Red Devils. Ozil is labelled to be a long-term replacement for the long-serving Paul Scholes, and showed incredible ability while playing for the national side.
The manager is reported to be an admirer of the German playmaker, but refused to comment on the issue. The manager praised his current squad and does not wish for further additions. Ferguson said that there would be a lot of top clubs in Europe on the hunt for the 21-year-old, but refused to comment upon the playmaker coming to Old Trafford. Alex was extremely delighted with his team’s performance against double winner’s Chelsea in the Community Shield match. However, he was even happier about giving most of his players time to play, especially the World Cup players.
Wayne Rooney played an impressive 45 minutes for the Red Devils, and seems to have put his disappointing World Cup performance behind him. The striker laid a perfect ground cross for Valencia, and made the most out of it. United took the early lead, before Hernandez scoring the second of the match. Chelsea sought a comeback, however, with Kalou scoring and taking the match to 2-1. In the dying moments of the match, Bulgarian Striker Dimitar Berbatov lobbed the ball above Chelsea keeper Hilario’s head, finishing the match 3-1.
Sir Alex Ferguson praised Wayne Rooney’s ability while playing the Community Shield match, stating that the run, the timing and vision of the player was outstanding. Ferguson added that there was no way that Valencia could’ve missed such an opportunity, and the pass was just fantastic. The manager was also vocal about Hernandez scoring a rather unusual goal, in which he ended up using his face and finding the back of the net. The striker however did manage to score none the less, which was a dream start for the 22-year-old. The Mexican has had an impressive run with the Red Devils, scoring in every match wearing a Red Shirt.
United manager also backed his 32-million pound signing, Dimitar Berbatov, who scored the third goal owing to a wonderful chip above the keeper’s head. The Bulgarian had come under heavy fire owing to the inability to fill in the shoes of Wayne Rooney last season. Berbatov couldn’t find the same form he had while playing in Tottenham Hotspurs, which led to United paying over the odds for the striker.
Veteran midfielder, Paul Scholes, however, won the man of the match award owing to his master-class performance. The 35-year-old never showed signs of ageing, and his long balls were inch-perfect. The midfielder is one of United’s greatest assets for nearly two decades and has been phenomenal. The player wanted to retire from United this season, but aims to keep on going for the club “as long as he gets the job done”
Manchester United would be looking to keep the momentum going following the Community Shield win over Champions Chelsea.
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