The U.A.E. Premier League is in only it's second season. As such it is a remarkable achievement that they have managed to host the FIFA Club World Cup at a time when the hosts are guaranteed a place for a team from their country. This is a major coup, which unfortunately this year they have failed to capitalise on. FIFA requested that all leagues be professional and this gave all countries a chance to remarket their competitions. It is also possibly the reason that Michael Rodosthenous is here, he is the first non Emirati in such a role, and his expertise could move the game forward in this country, however he has a host of issues to deal with in order to achieve this, noticeably the mindset which is to be the best. Look at the Burj Dubai, the world's tallest building (on 4th January next year when it opens) the Emiratis did not release details of its actual height so no one could beat it and then have added a spire to claim the title. They were determined that this would be the tallest. Clearly the U.A.E . cannot be the best in terms of football and they must learn to accept this, and realise that they can play a part, and they shouldn't give up because they are not number one. I mentioned Abu Dhabi was easy to navigate as it is set up on a grid system. Well the one thing they forgot was to align the grid system with Mecca, and so all the mosques are at a slight angle. Michael is in a similar position he hopes to transform the game in the U.A.E. but is working with hands tied and doesn't quite fit as Emirati society is a closed one. However his appointment with Al Nasr has also given him a role as the middleman in contact with the western world for the U.A.E. football authorities. Don't be surprised if we see former stars playing out their remaining days in the U.A.E. League in future years. I spotted an interesting piece of fair play in their rules when teams from different leagues meet. "The FA has permitted the Premier clubs to register three foreign players with only two for the First Division clubs and thus in a match that pairs together a club from the Premier division against First division clubs in the President's Cup competition, the Premier clubs will field only two of their three foreign players". In Spain it is not unusual for ex-pats to have close affiliation to their adopted clubs. Here it seems like they do not want outsiders involved. There is no advertising of fixtures in the press or even around the stadiums, and I couldn't find any information about local games in any of the English speaking newspapers. Of course part of the problem is that only 20% of the population are from the Emirates. Trying to find out about a game on Sunday saw me head to Bani Yas to meet Saeed, that evening they would be hosting Al Ain. Or so we thought. It had been raining now for two days and the streets of Abu Dhabi had turned into rivers. Arriving at the stadium I would not have been surprised to hear that the game had been postponed. It hadn't been postponed just moved to Al Ain. The information I had clearly stated that Bani Yas were at home and Saeed from Bani Yas wasn't aware of this change. (Bani Yas are in the process of building a new stadium and have stopped playing games at the old one). So we went back to Khalidya, in Abu Dhabi and watched the game on TV in a sheesha bar with Liverpool v Arsenal on at the same time. I understand that Abu Dhabi is made up of over 200 islands, during half time Saeed went to find a cashpoint, he gave up as we were marooned. Not put off the next day I headed north to Ajman, where I was confident they would be hosting Al Shabab that evening. First thing I did arriving in town was head to the stadium to confirm the kick off time. I managed to do this with the groundsman and I checked the conditions would be playable. The rain had now stopped and the sun had reappeared for the first time in days. The game finished 5-3 to the hosts but the standard was very poor. It left me thinking that if this is the standard there is no point in star names coming here in a bid to promote the U.F.L. (the U.A.E. Football League) unless they are just here for the money. The process must start with the homegrown players. It is easy the coach to say that the foreigners did not play well, but they need to start to produce their own players and in order to do this they need to listen to the expertise that they are capable of buying in to. © Ross Clegg & Soccerphile.com Tags Soccer News World Club Cup

My route this time took me to Muscat, Oman and then to Dubai, where a flight of 22 minutes saw me arrive back in Abu Dhabi at 13.40 on Matchday 1. The first difference I noticed was that this time there was a bus available for passengers to get to the city centre. So after numerous enquiries I was sent outside to search for the elusive bus stop. Sure enough I found a stop but there were no signs (in English) indicating the times or the route. So I waited ...and waited. Eventually other people arrived but they wanted to share a taxi, so as time was getting on I decided to join them. My companions both worked at the airport and were from Mauritius and Egypt. Both were keen on football but had little idea about the competition that was due to start in their adopted city in around 5 hours time. Arriving in downtown Abu Dhabi I was confident I would be able to find my way about as the city is laid out in a grid system. However I didn't take into account the massive reconstruction taking place to the main road in Abu Dhabi itself. At first I was told the work was to do with the laying of a Metro (keeping up with Dubai, who have recently opened a 30 km route), I believe the work is actually to build a major underpass right into the heart of the city. So with a lot of help from my Egyptian friend I found my hotel somewhat further out from the centre than I was last time, and apparently cut off with the nearby 4 lane highway desolate. My next task was to collect my tickets, I showed the address to a number of people who couldn't help. Jumping in a taxi, was my only option. I had seen on my map there was a football stadium near where I believed the address was so I asked the driver to head for that area. My taxi driver was from Nepal, and although he knew the roads, he wasn't aware of the event taking place, as soon as he understood what was happening he asked if "oomey" was playing. Minutes later I realised he meant Rooney. Eventually spotted Football House, with FIFA banners and joined a small throng of anxious supporters waiting to collect tickets. Everyone seemed to be having problems. They couldn't find their envelope or the tickets they received were not what they expected. A bit of patience would be asked for by the staff and a few minutes later everything was miraculously put right. Eventually it was my turn. Seconds later I received my envelope complete with the set of tickets I had requested. Enquiring on how to get to the Stadium where kick off was now less than two hours away I was told it was less then 10 minutes, in my car. Overhearing a fellow supporter offered me a lift. He was Indian and lived right next to the Stadium. Having a spare ticket, I decided to see if I could find someone who needed one. My original idea was to visit the Adidas shop in the centre and to give it to one of the staff there as they had provided me with tickets for my last visit here to the Gulf Cup in 2007, but time was against me as the roads were busy. Supporters were channeled through security searches and into the Fan Zone, before they would enter the stadium, I watched with interest as various chancers tried their luck at breaching the security. They weren't the ones I was looking to spend an evening with. Half an hour before kick off I meet Saeed, dressed in his dishdasha. At last a local, I thought. He needed a ticket and was happy to join Me in my Category 1 (the best seats!) position behind the goal 8 rows up in the corner. Saeed of course was not an Emirati, but he was the nearest I had met as he was from Yemen. He had a great love of football and also knew about the local league. He told me he was from Bani Yas, and I told him I would be there on Monday for their game against Al Ain. We exchanged emails and agreed to meet at the bus station Monday night. The stadium itself is magnificent, I was interested to see a note in the official programme that the roof had been special constructed so that it could reflect crowd noise. Surely this along with the 'UAE make some noise" slogan evident around the city would make for a good atmosphere. Well the stadium in in Abu Dhabi where the weather is hot all year round, now a roof to provide shade would be great, but the stadium with the extra tier added to the three sides where the majority of spectators are seated has no roof. The only roof is on the main stand where the journalist's and VIPs were housed. The home team support for such an event was disappointing, contrasting markedly with the enthusiasm I had seen in Japan two years earlier . The teams display matched that of their fans lethargic and not totally committed to the cause. They deserved to lose. Reading the paper the next day the foreign stars were blamed and the papers made it clear that there would be changes to the team. © Ross Clegg & Soccerphile.com Tags Soccer News World Club Cup

Preparations for this tournament were somewhat easier than my last visit two years ago. The FIFA website allowed me to purchase tickets, saving me the problems I faced last time when I arrived unsure of how to obtain them, they even said they would deliver the tickets to my home address before the tournament started . If you have followed my travels you will know that collecting the tickets is never straightforward and, sure enough, a week before the competition I received an email asking me to collect my tickets in Abu Dhabi. I am due to arrive at lunch time on the day the competition starts with the first game kicking off at 8 p.m. Last time I would have been in danger of not being able to get in due to the fans arriving hours before the kick off. Surely this time with it being a FIFA event and the fact that I have officially paid for a ticket there will be no such problem. We'll see. The U.A.E. comes to a halt for two weeks whilst the championship takes place, however I have spotted that there are some Cup competitions taking place whilst I am there, and so I have been scouring the web to find out more. Studying the websites of the clubs it was interesting to find that supporters were awarded free away trips with their clubs by entering poetry competitions. Unfortunately the poems were in Arabic and so I was unable to translate them. Mmm. So maybe they went like this. Six foot two, Eyes of azul, Carlos Puyol's after you And I wanna be U. A. E. (With thanks to FC United and The Sex Pistols) Guess it's a good job I bought my own tickets. I also noticed fans being informed in advance of the strip there team would be wearing and that the away team would post a notice that so many tickets would be left for supporters free of charge at the away end. (Are you Wigan in reverse?) Finally, found a game that is taking place whilst I am there Al Nasr will play Emirates in the Emirates Cup on Thursday 10th December. Excellent. I already knew that they were based in Dubai and had just lost 5-1 at home to Al Jazira, looking at photographs of the game I noticed the empty stands (...completely empty stands). My first thought was of Don Valley, where it could appear the same from a wide variety of angles. However I was surprised to find the following article Ruthless Al Jazira Rout Al Nasr Dubai – Five beautiful goals from Oliveira, Tony and Salem Masoud handed Al Nasr a humiliating 5-1 home defeat from ruthless Al Jazira at Al Wasl Stadium here on Saturday night. Al Nasr have been forced by the football governing body to play two of their league games at neutral venues without fans following the unnecessary misconduct of their fans during their match against city rivals Al Ahli. Guess I will wait until I arrive before setting out on any adventures. © Ross Clegg & Soccerphile.com Tags Soccer News World Club Cup

The FIFA Club World Cup is about to take place in Abu Dhabi between 9th and 19th December. The competition sees the champions of the six continental federations compete for the title and the honour to wear the FIFA Club World Badge until the next Championship. This will bring back memories of my visit in 2007 when U. A. E. won the Gulf Cup. The games will be played at two stadiums Zayed Sports City(49,500) and the stylish Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium (42,056), which has added an extra tier to three sides since my last visit. One of FIFA's improvements to the format of the competition has been the introduction of a team from the host country competing. This has livened affairs and helped generate more interest amongst the locals. This time the honour goes to Al Ahli (Which simply means "national' in Arabic) who won the U.A.E. 2008-9 league title. However this season they currently lie 6th in the 12 team league without a win at home. They did manage to win their last league game on Friday 3-0 at bottom club Ajman. Al Ahli come from neighbouring Dubai. I am not sure what the Abu Dhabi residents will make of that. It feels like the equivalent of playing the tournament in the UK at Old Trafford with Liverpool representing. Now how would that go down. Al Ahli, you may have heard of as they were the club involved in the friendly brawl with Chelsea in August this year, accused of karate kicks, knee-high tackles hair pulling out and eye gouging. I believe they were named after the Egyptian champions who also hold the record for the most appearances in the World Club Cup. Their appearance will mean that "National " have appeared in 4 of the six competitions. Their opposition in a play off game for the right to meet the CONCACAF Champions in the Quarter Final will be Auckland City Oceania Champion League holders who beat Koloale FC from the Solomon Islands 9-4 on aggregate. The second leg was played in Auckland in front of 1,250 spectators. The second and only other quarter final! (Remember FIFA make the rules) will be between Tout Puissant Mazembe Englebert and Pohang Steelers. Tout Puissant Mazembe Englebert (Democratic Republic of Congo), what a name. Upon first hearing the name I started on my own Nick Hornby type list of football teams with peoples names. Immediate thoughts for me begin with the likes obviously of Ross County (Ironically the only team here I haven't seen play). Then of course you have Chelsea, Everton, Crewe Alexandra (possibly named after a pub), then there are obvious European teams Paris St Germain, AC Milan, Siena and Carl Zeiss Jena. From South America River Plate and finally AS Nancy Lorraine which takes the number one spot for managing two names. Intrigued by the name Englebert I decided a bit of research was required. I found that they weren't happy with their original name given to them by the Benedictine monks that founded the club in 1939 - Holy Team Georges. The name lasted for only five years and they were then rechristened Holy Paul F.C. Would you believe that Englebert came from their sponsors, a local tyre brand. Tout Puissant (all powerful) was added was added after they won their first league titlle in 1966. So watch out for another change in name if they have a succesful tournament. Mazembe won the Orange Confederation of African Football title after beating Heartland of Nigeria on away goals Pohang Steelers from South Korea are unimaginatively named as they belong to the Pohang Iron & Steel Company, they even play at the Steelyard. They beat Al Ittihad of Saudi Arabia at the National Olympic Stadium in Tokyo to qualify as Asian Football Champions. Atlante from Mexico will represent CONCACAF (North America, Central America and the Caribbean). They defeated Cruz Azul, but only after the match had been postponed initially due to concerns over Swine Flu in Mexico. The next two teams join at the semi final stage, perhaps due to the origins of this competition which comes from the old Intercontinental Cup which was held from 1960 to 2004 between the champions of South America and Europe. This also gives them the best chance of being the showpiece final that FIFA want. Estudiantes de la Plata managed by a certain Alejandro Sabella, yes it is Alex Sabella who played for Leeds United between 1978 -80. No prizes for guessing which team I'll be supporting. Oh and of course Barcelona will be there as well. © Ross Clegg & Soccerphile Tags Abu Dhabi football

YOKOHAMA-Sir Alex Ferguson added another piece of silverware to his extensive trophy cabinet on Sunday with Manchester United’s 1-0 win over Liga de Quito of Ecuador in the final of the Club World Cup. The longtime coach of the Red Devils was delighted by the performance of his club and said the win will act as a springboard to better things ahead in 2009. Following are excerpts from his post-match press conference: Q: Defender Nemanja Vidic was sent off in the second half. How did that affect your play? A: It affected the penetration we showed in the first half. After his sending off we had to be more disciplined and make sure we didn't concede. And I began to wonder if we were going to extra time. To play with 10 men with that long to go would have been a long road. But in fairness we played with good expression and still tried to win the match and that's a measure of the ambitious players we have, so I was pleased with the performance. Q: Wayne Rooney was named player of the tournament, do you think that was deserved? A: Well I think he was the player of the game, there’s no doubt about that. I think he deserved it. Because I think he could have scored two or three times in the first half. It was a very, very good performance from him and a magnificent goal. I’ve seen him do that a lot, coming off the left side and bending it in with his right foot, and it was another example of that ability he has. Q: With all the talk of jetlag and fatigue, why does Rooney seem have this limitless energy when other players look slightly less energized? A: Well, people handle traveling differently. I was speaking to Edwin Van Der Sar this morning, and he said two day’s ago he a great sleep but last night he had a terrible sleep. Last night was the first night I slept more than two hours. Everyone’s different. You hope they all can handle it but that’s not the case. I think it showed in the last 20 minutes of the game on Thursday night when the game became too open for us. But tonight our discipline was very good and it had to be because you can’t leave gaps when you go down to 10 men. Q: Were you more concerned about the offense of Quito than that of Gamba Osaka? You made some changes to your lineup tonight. A: No, we made one change, Rafael Da Silva on for Gary Neville. I think that was the correct thing to do. At 34 years age, Gary needs more rest now, three days or so. You have to compliment Gamba for the quality of their game. I watched them again today and they could have scored 4 or 5 goals in the first half. Their quality, in particular Yasuhito Endo … nobody on Quito had the quality Endo’s got, for example. You have to admire their quality. Q: You created a lot of opportunities, especially in the first half, but couldn’t find the back of the net. What were you thinking substitution-wise in the second half? A: I felt we had to be more disciplined and not to concede. Had we lost a goal we would have lost the game. The important thing was to stay patient and hope either Cristiano Ronaldo or Rooney could do something special for us. I also thought extra time could have been a big possibility, which is why I didn’t make any substitutions until late in the game. Once we scored I could think about who could protect the lead and that's why I brought on Neville and Darren Fletcher. We've only scored 8 goals away from home this season, which is not good enough. But we've played with great expression and imagination and we have players who can entertain and in normal situations we can score goals. Hopefully that will change in the new year. Q: What does winning this competition do for you as a club? A: I think it will be a good springboard for us. We’ve come a long way. It may have been difficult for us to go to Stoke (on Boxing day in the Premier League) had we lost. I think it’s difficult to come back after losing a big tournament like this. But we’ve won it, so I think there will be a bounce at the club. It won't be easy, no games in the Premiership are. But it does give us a platform to start playing with a real purpose to our game now and to chase the leaders. For me personally, I said earlier it would be nice to look back in 30 years and see that Manchester United was world champion. I won't be able to enjoy this 30 years from now, but I will enjoy it next year. Q: After Vidic’s expulsion, I know you must have been concerned. But what was your mindset keeping Ronaldo and Rooney on and bring Carlos Tevez off? A: We’ve been in that situation before. Rooney has such great energy to play as an attacker, to defend as a midfield player and he has such a great tenacity to do these things. Tevez was disappointed to have come off, but it was the only thing I could do. But as soon as I took Tevez off I though to myself, crikey, it could go to penalties and I've just taken Tevez off. But of course, Rooney scored the only goal so it didn’t matter. I thought we played sensible football compared to how we played in the first half. Q: What was the key to your victory tonight and what is your impression of Quito and the South American style of football? A: I think the collective spirit of the team won the day, particularly when we went down to 10 men . I think it's a fantastic tournament. We’re here because we won the European Cup and we’re here to represent England and Europe. At the end of the day you always expect to play a South American team. Maybe we’ve played against better South American teams in the past … I think we were comfortable winners today but when you get to a final, you have still got to win it. And you can lose games like that because the game was so slow in the first half and although we made chances you start to worry that one counterattack could cost us. And if we had went behind tonight it would have been very difficult for us because the South American mentality is different from other places in that they can defend, as we saw tonight many times. Copyright © C.G. Williams & Soccerphile.com Bet with Bet 365 World Soccer News Soccer betting tips Soccer Books & DVDs Tags Soccer News soccer football J-League K-League Betting

YOKOHAMA—Liga de Quito’s Argentine coach Edgardo Bauza announced that he was quitting the club at the end of the Club World Cup. While Sunday’s 1-0 loss to Manchester United in the final came as a disappointment, the former Argentina national team player nevertheless had an exceptional year with the club, steering it to a first-ever Copa Libertadores win for an Ecuadorian side. Following are excerpts from his final press conference as Liga de Quito boss: Q: Despite the loss are you proud of your team? A: I mentioned earlier that I didn't know what would happen tonight. I am very proud of my players. Both teams came to Japan to win. We were defeated and it's sad. We're depressed but we know we were the underdogs. We are very happy to have come so far. It took about 20 minutes for us to get used to Manchester and the atmosphere. Some of our players played very well in the first half and overall I consider it a draw. United went down a man and we were unable to take advantage of it. Our counterattack wasn't effective. Q: Did you feel you didn't take enough risks? A: We wanted to. I changed from four defenders to three when I brought off defender Paul Ambrosi. In the last 10 minutes we had two or three chances to score and we didn't capitalize. I wanted speedier movement on the flanks and I changed to three defenders, which is the pattern of attack that I prefer. Q: Your team played very bravely today and you showed that you were equal with United in many respects. A: I think we have to analyze the game. Were we equal? I don't think so. Our players were looking for opportunities and couldn't. We tried to impose our style but couldn't because of the greatness of our opponent. Q: What was your overall strategy for today’s match? A: Actually, our strategy was to try not to retreat too much because United, when they have the ball, always have the ability to score. In the second half I told my players to move the backline higher, but United were using three forwards and Park Ji-sung was there as well so we couldn't do what we wanted on the pitch. I used (attacking midfielder Alejandro) Manso more in the second half to produce more of an attack. Q: Was your team nervous today? A: No, for the first 15 minutes we tried to stop United's passing. They created two great opportunities to score. We had to be patient early but we struggled even harder than we expected and had a poor first half. But I thought we had more possession as the game progressed. Q: What do you say to the people in Ecuador? A: It's a little complex. First, I am really satisfied to be a part of this team and to represent Ecuador here. It is really important for my career and this experience will remain with all of us. We are sad that we didn't have enough power to win, and I thought we could make United struggle more. They are a great team and we are proud to have played them. I have finished a cycle here and am glad to end my time with the club on this note. I hope the people of Ecuador are happy with our performance. Copyright © C.G. Williams & Soccerphile.com Bet with Bet 365 World Soccer News Soccer betting tips Soccer Books & DVDs Tags Soccer News soccer football J-League K-League Betting

YOKOHAMA—Gamba Osaka finished third at the Club World Cup with a 1-0 win over Mexico’s Pachuca at Yokohama International Stadium on Sunday. Afterward, the typically cheerless Akira Nishino gave his thoughts on the match, the tournament and about being “killed” by Manchester United. Q: Can we have some comments on your impression of the match? A: Well, I wouldn’t say it was an ideal football match for us today but we were able to play against Pachuca, who play a Central American footballing style. We respect them a lot and are very honored to have played them. We played three different clubs from three continents at this tournament, all of whom are well-known and respected clubs. We are very happy about that. At the same time, we played our own game, Gamba Osaka’s style, and we were able to get this result. Our players were not afraid and they were full of challenging spirit, so I believe this match will lead us to the next step in our development. Having said that, we lost some players to injury and all of the players are extremely tired now so we were unable to play at 100 percent at this tournament. Under the circumstances, we did our best. Rather than euphoric, our players are very tired. But with upcoming (Emperor’s Cup) matches, maybe they are not ready to celebrate. We used everything we had at this tournament and I think it was a great experience for Gamba Osaka. Q: With Gamba finishing third this year at the CWC and Urawa Reds doing the same last year, what does it say about the strength of the J-League? A: I don’t really care about how the Reds did last year. That has nothing to do with our result today. As representatives of the J-League, yes it was the Reds last year and us this year but our approach is totally different to theirs. We have a different style as a team and as a club. Of course to participate in this tournament we have to win the ACL and this year three J-League teams participated in the ACL. This year I think the mission of the J-League, to move to a higher stage, was fully achieved by Gamba. We are sometimes compared to Urawa Reds and what they achieved last season but I’m not really sure it’s an appropriate comparison. Q: What advice did you give your defenders today? A: I told them that Pachuca uses short passes and have very good technique. They also have a totally different playing style to Manchester United. I told the defenders to press hard and not be afraid to push forward. I also told them to stay compact along with the midfielders, and to not defend against the players but to defend against the passes. We were able to do this to some extent, however, they were really good at breaking our formation and creating space. We did well, however, ideally I would have liked our backline to have pressed even harder. In the first half, our backline was about 10 meters behind where it should have been. So in the second half I told them to run more, even if it was quite difficult for them, to move the line up. Unfortunately, they were unable to do so and line retreated even further. But for 10 to 20 minutes we were able to press ahead and respond positively. Q: When you compete on the world stage again, would you change your approach? Have you learned anything that makes you think you need to change your style when playing against teams from other countries? A: When we played against Manchester United and Pachuca we had to come up with different approaches. It all depends on who we play against. Of course we do have a basis, our foundation, but we have to be flexible. Depending on the situation, on the opponent, we need different tactics. For those two teams we were able to play with a certain target. Will this work in other matches against other opponents? Not necessarily. Q: Why did you make the two substitutions you did in the second half? A: I replaced Ryuji Bando because I didn’t want to be too defensive and I thought he was tiring and not able to run enough. So I replaced him in an effort to get a second goal. By brining on Takahiro Futagawa for Bando, I was sending a message to my team to continue pushing forward. Bando missed so many good scoring opportunities. He was unable to capitalize, which is what I told him when he came off. I also wanted to use Futagawa because he was injured in the first match against Adelaide. He can create a lot of chances. As for bringing Takuya Takei on for Lucas, I wanted to kill the flanks during the last 15 minutes. I wanted our midfielders to be more defensive at that point. Q: Will you be able to leverage your performance here to your advantage during the upcoming Emperor’s Cup campaign? A: It was a great challenge for us to play in this tournament and I think we have to analyze the lessons we’ve learned here. Otherwise, there is no point to be at this tournament. We need to reflect but we don’t have the time because we have to play on the 25th against Nagoya. We can’t leverage what we’ve learned here in that match. It is too early. Our players are so tired and it will be very difficult for us to fully prepare for our next match. I just hope my players can fully recover from the fatigue. But to be sure, our three matches at this tournament will be a great contribution to our development at Gamba Osaka. Q: I hope my question doesn’t overlap a previous one but … Manchester United killed your movement on the ball. Will you continue playing in the same style or will you make changes to your approach? A: Are you talking about Manchester United? Do you want me to analyze Manchester United? Q: No, no, no. What I am saying … I think the match against United really showed Gamba’s strengths and weaknesses … A: You just told me that Manchester United killed us. That is a horrible thing to say. And I can’t believe you said that. It was a great opponent and we were not sure how we could exploit our strengths. It’s natural that Manchester would come out and try to neutralize our game, but we tried and we scored and we created a number of scoring opportunities. It means something. We learned something. Their style is very simple. One, two, three touches and then shoot. Everybody chased the ball and we learned that if we kept things simple, we could also score. It’s not only about Gamba Osaka. We played against a very good team. Although we wanted to try a lot of things and had a very good imagination, it’s true that Manchester tried to kill that imagination. But at times we were able to show our game and we got the result we did because of that. Copyright © C.G. Williams & Soccerphile.com Bet with Bet 365 World Soccer News Soccer betting tips Soccer Books & DVDs Tags Soccer News soccer football J-League K-League Betting

YOKOHAMA—A day before Manchester United’s Club World Cup semifinal showdown with Japan’s Gamba Osaka, Sir Alex Ferguson was playing his cards close to his chest regarding his starting XI. He did say, however, that he intended to rely on three of his most experienced players—Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville—to see his club into the final. Following are excerpts from a press conference prior to training at Yokohama Stadium on Wednesday: Q: Who will you play against Gamba? A: Well, it's a complex situation. No one's asked me for that information yet, all they've asked me is what I think about the tournament. I will say this: Berbatov won't play tomorrow. He's been in bed since we arrived. He's picked up a virus. He's not very well at the moment. Wayne Rooney was injured in training yesterday but hopefully he'll be OK tomorrow. Other than that, everyone is fit. I can say that we will play some of our really experienced players like Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes. It's a big-game situation and I think their experience will be important tomorrow. Other than that, I've got to decide the rest of the team. But it will be a strong team. Q: Scholes has recently come back from injury. How important is it for you to have him back in the squad? A: I think he brings an order to our game at times. We saw that in the second half against Aalborg (in the Champions League last week). He helped us get us back in the match and to gain control of the match. He's been a fantastic player for us, it's hard to measure it other than to say he's always been good for us. When he was a younger player he used to get us 12 to 15 goals a season, but he can't do that now. And we don't ask him to. But he brings other things to our team-his experience, his ability to keep possession, to control a match. It's a fundamental part of our game. His intelligence on the football field is tremendous. Over the years when Paul has had injury problems, and he's had a few, he has come back very well. And we've seen in training that he's back to normal. He showed that against Aalborg and we're confident of that. He hasn't lost anything. Q: Will Ronaldo play tomorrow? A: Ronaldo will play tomorrow. Q: What do you think of the timing of this tournament? A: In football you don't get a choice. The dates are there and we accept that. There has been some cynicism back home abut this tournament, with some saying we're doing it only for the money (the winner pockets 5 million USD) to play here, which is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard in my life. We're here because we've been invited here as winners of the European Cup. It's a FIFA-recognized tournament and there's no way we can get out of it. So the criticism is unfortunate. The most important thing about being here is that it's a chance to win something in December. To be world champions in December is a fantastic middle-of-the season boost to everyone and that's the way we look at it. Q: Do you think you'll ever see players in the vein of Scholes, Giggs and Neville play for a club at such a high level for as long as they have? A: I think it's unlikely. I think we're a very fortunate club. We're the only club who can do that. Ryan has done 21 years, Gary 19 and Paul Scholes 19 years. And that is exceptional, absolutely exceptional. We hope we can get players who can do that for us on a regular basis but in modern terms and through contracts, I think it's unlikely. Q: Do you think you've ever had such depth in a squad during your 22 years managing United? A: No, I think this is our best squad in my time. We've got 23 players here and the only one who lacks any experience at all is our backup goalkeeper Ben Amos, but he's replacing our other goalkeeper Ben Foster who’s broken a finger in training. All the rest are of a high quality and most are internationals. I think it’s only Rafael Da Silva who is not an international. And there is difficulty in that, of course, because it’s difficult to manage such players. And it becomes a disappointment because you can't play everyone. Here we can have 12 players on the bench but in England it’s only improved this season to seven substitutes. You have no idea how much that helps the coach. I don’t know why, perhaps the structure of the benches and dugouts in England limit the number of subs but to have as many subs as you want at your disposal … You know, to put an international in the stands is in some ways an insult to him. And it’s a problem for me because you feel embarrassed to ask a top player to not be involved in an actual game. They expect to play; they all want to play. I have the best squad I’ve had since I came to the club, but it does create certain management issues. Q: If Gamba were playing in England, would you say they would be in the Premiership, Championship or some other division? A: I can answer that tomorrow. Football is that kind of game. I would say Gamba ... the improvement in Japanese football is there for everybody to see. The great advantage is the facilities. The facilities are very good. And there is a genuine enthusiasm among the people, which generates fervor in the country and I think that is the strongest part of the game here. Watching the video, they have some talented players, there's no question about it. And if you look at Shunsuke Nakamura at Celtic—we’ve played him three times now in the last two or three years—he is proof of the overall quality of Japanese football. Q: How long can Scholes continue playing at the level he has been? A: He's not going to improve much now, is he? He's 34 and had some injuries over the years. We hope he can maintain the level he’s been at, a great level, for another year or two. It's tough for players who get injured in their 30s. For Paul, he'll continue to do what he does. I don't see any negatives about his game, so hopefully he can keep it going for a long time. Q: Do you have any message to the fans who have made the expensive trip here from Manchester? A: It's something that always amazes me about this club, especially at this time of year. As everyone knows, some families are not in the best financial situation back home but they make the sacrifice. I have great admiration for them. To come this far to watch a football team shows you how much they regard us. And it also tells you something about our football club. I hope they think it's worthwhile. Q: Do you think Neville has what it takes to regain his spot on the national team? Q: I think he and Wes Brown are the best right fullbacks. Wes is out at the moment. Gary and Wes both have the problem now that Da Silva has just taken off. But all the players, Gary included, think he is fantastic. In my experience at this club, for a right back to come in and make such an impact is incredible. Gary did the same when he was a youngster, he was part of a group who came in and they were sort of a band of brothers. Da Silva has come in from Brazil, doesn’t speak the language that well, but understands football very well. So Gary and Wes have a similar problem. If they're not getting regular games from me it makes it difficult for (England manager) Fabio Capello to pick them. I would. I have no problem with it, but Fabio doesn’t know them as well as I do. Q: Are you looking ahead to the final at the expense of Gamba? A: We want to win it and I hope I play the right team tomorrow. Sometimes you have to look a game ahead. I want to play a team that can beat Gamba Osaka, and then Sunday, if we’re in the final, I have different ideas. Q: The No. 7 jersey has been a significant number at United over the years. What was the thought process behind giving it to Cristiano after the departure of David Beckham? A: Well, No. 7 has been a special number at our club for many years. When Cristiano joined us, Beckham had just joined Madrid. There was an issue of who should get the No. 7 jersey, but I thought a young kid should get it, given that Beckham was a youngster who came through our system. We thought it would be more comfortable for a younger player to take the No. 7 jersey. But I don’t think Cristiano would have considered it an advantage when he joined us. But over the five years he’s been with us, I’ve seen him develop into the player he is today. But he’s always had certain attributes that have pointed him towards greatness--his amazing skill factor, his speed and his courage. And in the time he’s been with us, he’s developed what he needed to develop most: his decision-making. He used to play center forward. And people in Portugal used to tell us he was a great goal scorer. When he first came to us we couldn’t see that. And all of a sudden he just blossomed. In the first season with us I think he scored 9 goals, the next season it was 13 or 14 and the next season it was 20. Then last year it was 42. And that is a testament to a young person who wants to do well. He improves himself by his own determination and ambition and by practicing all the time. Copyright © C.G. Williams & Soccerphile.com Bet with Bet 365 World Soccer News Soccer betting tips Soccer Books & DVDs Tags Soccer News soccer football J-League K-League Betting

YOKOHAMA—A day after arriving in Japan to take part in the Club World Cup, Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson spoke to reporters on a range of subjects, from the team’s preparations to the Premier League’s controversial idea of holding a 39th round of matches outside of England. While Ferguson and his yawning retinue looked a little worse for wear after the 12-hour journey, the Scotsman was nevertheless in a jovial and talkative mood: Q: What is your impression of this tournament compared to the former Toyota Intercontinental Cup, which you won in 1999 by defeating Palmeras? A: We were the first British team to win (the Toyota Cup) in 1999, and we took great pleasure in it. It can be a great boost in prestige and that's why we want to win it again this year. It's a very difficult tournament and there are many good teams here. Our game against Gamba Osaka I think will be a very good game. It’s our first time in such a tournament. When we were here in 1999 against Palmeiras it was a one off. That's why I want to pick the right time for the first match because we very much want to play in the final. We played the Urawa Reds twice in friendlies and we found them difficult because they were very energetic and technically sound. Clubs in Japan have made tremendous improvements in technical and organization ability. And their stadia are fantastic thanks to the World Cup. It's a young country in terms of football, but it's an up-and-coming country. They have made terrific improvements. I expect a very tough game on Thursday and it will hopefully be one we can navigate properly. Q: What is your assessment of semifinal opponent and Asian champions Gamba, and what is the status of your squad at present? A: I watched a video this morning of their game against Adelaide and we have a good idea of their game. It's always better to watch a competitive match like that rather than something with nothing on the line. (Goalkeeper) Ben Foster broke his finger on Thursday in training. But I brought a full squad of 23 and that's why we watch our opponents so closely--so we pick the right team. I can always pick the wrong team, but I hope not to. Q: There are many in the media who claim this tournament is a hindrance at this time of year. Your comments please. A: I think the media don't take it as seriously as we do. I think we first took part in the intercontinental competition in 1968 when it was a one-off game, and up until four years ago that was the format. But world football has grown and countries like Japan, Korea and China have developed. And a world championship tournament requires more teams. It's an extra game for us but the prestige attached to it now is far greater than in the past. Japan is a fantastic country, with fantastic facilities, a very comfortable hotel … everything is comfortable. Yes it's a 12-hour flight, but even that's comfortable. In twenty years’ time for us to look back and see that Manchester United were world champions is fantastic and that's why we've come here to win it. Q: Which Gamba players do you consider to be the biggest threat? A: (Midfielder Yasuhito) Endo is their star player. He scored their goal (in the 1-0 win over Adelaide United in the quarterfinals). And they changed his position from behind the striker to the left side but he was still influential. Also the Brazilian Lucas. He is tall and quick with his feet, which is unlike most Brazilian players. He's very effective. Two of their midfielders (Hayato Sasaki and Takahiro Futagawa) are also very good, but they will be missing due to injury and that will be tough on them. Q: What is your secret to managing such a talented and diverse group of players? The best way to judge it is that I have been at the club for 22 years and the experience is there. And once you handle one personality it prepares you for the next one that comes along. After a while it becomes quite easy. But the most important thing is that the manager's personality must be as strong as all the players. Q: How have your preparations been, and how do you deal with jetlag with a Premier League showdown with Stoke City scheduled for Boxing Day? A: Changing the body clock in such a short period of time is the most difficult thing. We had the players up at 7 a.m. on Sunday morning and made sure they didn't sleep until the plane ride here. We'll change back on Thursday to British time again. The medical side is taken care of the medical staff and I am confident we are doing all that we can. Q: So does the opportunity to play other clubs with other styles really outweigh the inconvenience of flying out here at such as busy time in the Premier League schedule? A: Playing different opposition doesn't do us any harm, but the main point is that this is a chance to win a world title. We can become world champions in December but we can't win the Premier League title in December. It is a little bit of a handicap but that's what happens when you are successful. We're here because we won the European Championship and we hope to be in Abu Dhabi (site of the 2009 Club World Cup) next year. The incentives outweigh anything happening in the Premier League. Q: If you had to play a 39th game in the EPL, which Asian city would you prefer to play it in? A: I don't think there will be a 39th game, sorry. I'm not in favor of it. If you look at our domestic program, with all those cup competitions, I think it’s impossible. If you ask me to pick a city I won't, because there are so many good ones in Asia and I don't want to offend anyone. But I don't think there will ever be a 39th game and I don't think there should be. Copyright © C.G. 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38,141 supporters at a cold Toyota Stadium , just outside Nagoya, saw J-league Gamba Osaka eke out a narrow 1-0 win over A-League Adelaide United in the World Club Cup on Sunday night. Gamba's contingent of fans were in fine voice throughout and so they should have been as their team now face European champions, Manchester United , in the next round. Some of the fans seem to have divided loyalties however. One babe dressed in red Santa hat and hot pants was wearing a Cristiano Ronaldo Man Utd no. 7 shirt. Bless her! Match report to follow . Bet with Bet 365 World Soccer News Soccer betting tips Soccer Books & DVDs Tags Soccer News soccer football J-League A-League Betting