| Ferguson calls for United to be more ruthless • Ferguson says United's position does not reflect performances • 'That killer instinct just isn't there at the moment'Sir Alex Ferguson has accused his Manchester United players of not being ruthless enough this season. United slipped five points behind champions Chelsea in the Premier League at the weekend following a goalless draw at Sunderland.But it is the points dropped in draws at Fulham, Everton and Bolton that have most irked their manager. "This present team doesn't kill off sides as well as they should," Ferguson told the club's official magazine, Inside United. "At Goodison, we had three or four chances at 3-1 to really put the game out of sight, but we were wasteful and ultimately paid the price."We threw away two goals in injury time. That's unthinkable. That killer instinct just isn't there at the moment and it's something we need to develop. We haven't had a problem scoring goals. We got three against Liverpool, Everton and West Ham, two away at Fulham, three in the Community Shield; that suggests we don't have difficulty finding the net."What we're not doing, though, is killing teams off. I have no doubt the players have taken these setbacks on board. They suffer just as much – if not more – than the rest of us. They're the ones throwing the points away and they're the ones who know fine well that they're good enough to win this league."United have been criticised for some of their performances this season but Ferguson believes much of it has been unfair. "We're playing well, and perhaps those four points we have dropped away from home at Fulham and Everton have given off something of a false impression," he said. "Nevertheless, we didn't like letting those points slip away and it's crucial that we don't make too many more similar mistakes this season."Ferguson also claimed that Chelsea have had such an easy start to the season that they should have won every game. "Liverpool, Arsenal and ourselves have all played top sides early on. Chelsea's sterner tests are still to come."Meanwhile, Ferguson has revealed that he is likely to recall the midfielder Tom Cleverley from his loan spell at Wigan in January. The 21-year-old moved to the DW Stadium on a season-long loan in August but Ferguson believes he may be ready to challenge for a spot in the United team this season.He said: "We'll probably bring Tom back in January. Tom's going to be a great footballer, I really like him. I've heard the fans are starting to talk about Tom, and I think they're right to do that because he could very well be the next top player to come through the ranks."Cleverley had been expected to stay at Old Trafford this season but Ferguson had a change of heart because of the competition for places. "I felt it could be hard to give him enough football. I think five or six months on loan could really help him. He'll benefit from first-team football in the Premier League."Cleverley, who has previously enjoyed successful loan spells with Leicester and Watford, has been limited to one Wigan appearance so far because of a knee injury.Sir Alex FergusonManchester Unitedguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Tottenham takeover of Olympic stadium 'could cause riots in east London', says West Ham owner David Sullivan West Ham co-chairman claims it would be 'slap in the face' to east London if Tottenham win bid to move to Olympic Stadium. telegraph.co.uk |
Liverpool Fans Hurt In Clashes Before Napoli Game NAPLES, Italy (Reuters) - Two Liverpool fans have been injured overnight in clashes ahead of Thursday's Europa League game with Napoli, police sources said. feeds.nytimes.com |
Wayne Rooney saga should not distract Manchester United squad says Nemanja Vidic Manchester United captain Nemanja Vidic says furore surrounding Wayne Rooney cannot be used as excuse for poor form. telegraph.co.uk |
A-League squads, round 11 All the ins and outs for all the teams in round 10 of the 2010-2011 Hyundai A-League. foxsports.com.au |