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Sporting Life: Manchester United supporters are facing ticket price rises of up to 14% next season.
The Old Trafford outfit have released details of pricings for the 2007-08 campaign, which could yet see them defending the treble.
While a range of measures have been introduced to effectively cut the cost of concessionary tickets, meaning an adult with two children will pay less next season than they did this, full price tickets have risen sharply.
The biggest increases are in the lower tiers of the North and South Stands, which will rise from £665 to £722, while the most expensive seats in the stadium are the upper tier of both stands, which rise over 12% to £836.
In addition, all season ticket holders not currently a member of the club’s automatic cup scheme, which forces fans to buy tickets for cup games whether they intend to watch the game or not, will be required to join.
Junior tickets in the Family Stand will be frozen at £190, while all junior tickets in other sections of the stadium will be £10, a 48.7% reduction.
Over 65s will pay £20 or half the cost of an adult ticket in the appropriate section of the stadium, whichever is the lower.
Despite those initiatives, United are sure to be condemned by fans’ groups, who warned of hefty increases in ticket prices once Malcolm Glazer completed his controversial takeover two years ago.
However, United officials can argue their move - which bucks the trend of other north-west clubs such as Blackburn, Bolton and Wigan who have cut the price of tickets - is justified given Old Trafford continues to sell out for virtually every home game.
The lowest crowd for any Red Devils’ first-team game this season is 61,325 for the recent FA Cup sixth round replay with Middlesbrough, while all 18 Premiership home games have had attendances topping 75,000.
Chairman of the Independent Manchester United Supporters’ Association (IMUSA), Mark Longden, blasted the price hike, insisting there is “absolutely no justification” for it.
He told PA Sport: “Clearly, it flies in the face of the thinking all over the country, from Bolton to the Emirates (Arsenal’s stadium).
“They have all frozen prices and in some cases reduced them.”
In particular, Longden believes it is hard to justify any price rises given the mammoth new television rights deals sealed by the Premier League in recent months.
“It’s just slightly strange with the new money that is coming in from the TV deal - the club is getting £30 extra per seat across the board for the next three years,” he added.
“For every person that goes through the turnstile they could give them £30 back and not be any worse off, so surely there must be some scope for reducing prices or at least freezing them.
“There is absolutely no justification for putting prices up.”
The linking of season tickets to the automatic cup scheme will also prove highly unpopular with fans, Longden claimed.
“If they are tying tickets to going in the automatic cup scheme, that is going to be a step too far for a lot of people at Old Trafford.
“Every time there is a price rise people don’t renew but they seem to be able to find new people to fill those seats - but whether that happens this time remains to be seen.”
The reduced prices for concessions were to be welcomed, Longden added, although he dismissed the cuts as “just a bit of window dressing” in an attempt to appease angry supporters.
A spokesman for the Glazer family said: “Prices for Old Trafford, when compared to other leading clubs grounds, still represent very good value for money, supported by the exceptionally high quality of the football on offer.”
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Independent: Sir Alex Ferguson bowed to Lady Luck when he pin-pointed the pivotal moment in Manchester United’s epic Champions League semi-final victory on Tuesday, a volley from Kaka that would have delivered the Brazilian his hat-trick and Milan a 3-1 lead but which soared towards the Italian supporters high in the East Stand at Old Trafford instead.
“He should have scored but instead he gave us a lifeline,” the United manager said. “And you always need luck in games of that nature.” It is also United’s blessed fortune that in Wayne Rooney they have a natural talent who has recaptured his instinct, and his reputation, on the European stage.
From 17 Champions League outings without a goal before the quarter-final first leg in Rome to four valuable goals in his last three European games, the 21-year-old has struck consistent form in the competition when his weakened team needed it most although, as always at this stage, the demand will be for more when United take a fragile 3-2 lead to the San Siro next Wednesday. Defending a lead is not in United’s nature at the best of times. With their current defence, attack will be their strongest hope once again.
Fortunately for Ferguson his £27m striker has had a weight lifted by the nonchalant goal he guided beyond Roma goalkeeper Doni at the start of this month, and the instinct he showed in driving the stoppage time winner past Dida on Tuesday was a reminder of precocious ability that had surfaced only intermittently this season.
“What can you say, the last finish was brilliant,” said the United midfielder Michael Carrick. “He could see the gap and to put it away was brilliant for us. He is a world-class player already and he is still young. I am sure there is more to come from him.”
Rooney’s sublime strike transformed the emotions at Old Trafford and the context of the semi-final yet it was noticeable how Ferguson’s elation could not disguise a sense of foreboding in Tuesday’s aftermath. His conviction that United would score in the second leg came with the proviso “Whether it will be good enough I don’t know”, and it may require another compelling shoot-out to decide the victor in Milan.
“It was always going to be tough,” said Ryan Giggs, provider of Rooney’s valuable second against Carlo Ancelotti’s team. “We didn’t want to give away one goal, let alone two, but we’ve got to go out there with confidence after showing such patience and character. We’ll probably have to defend better, but we’re capable of doing that.”
That view is open to conjecture, for not only were United unable to handle the sublime Kaka at Old Trafford but their fragile defence suffered another loss with the suspension of Patrice Evra for a ridiculous show of dissent. Ferguson insisted next Wednesday’s second leg is too soon for Nemanja Vidic to return from the fractured collarbone he sustained against Blackburn on 31 March, though a specialist’s report could decide otherwise on Monday, while Rio Ferdinand’s recovery from a groin strain is, as his manager said, “crucial”. Giggs countered: “I don’t think the injuries have fazed us. It is about using the squad and Darren Fletcher was outstanding against Milan.”
Fitness problems may not be confined to the visitors in Italy next week, however. The departure from the Milan team of Paolo Maldini and Gennaro Gattuso, at half-time with a knee injury and in the 52nd minute to a foot injury respectively, removed resilience from the Rossoneri at a critical stage on Tuesday. Both are now doubtful for the return.
“I will do everything I can to play at the San Siro,” said Gattuso, while Maldini insisted: “I’ve managed to recover quickly from this problem before so I won’t rule myself out. I still think Milan can come back and win this game so I will still dream about European glory.”
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Sun: NEMANJA VIDIC could make a shock Manchester United return in Milan next week.
The centre-back has not played since injuring a shoulder on March 31 but has recovered quicker than expected.
This week Vidic, 25, started proper training and tested the shoulder with physical challenges.
He had no problems and manager Alex Ferguson is considering putting him into the side next week.
Ferguson is also hoping to bring back Rio Ferdinand after he suffered a recurrence of his groin injury in last Saturday’s 1-1 home draw against Middlesbrough.
United are desperate for their big two to return after the defensive chaos against Milan on Tuesday.
Ferguson criticised the defending as Kaka was allowed two goals to put Milan ahead at half-time in their Champions League semi-final first leg.
United eventually won 3-2 with two Wayne Rooney goals, one in injury time.
But they suffered another defensive blow with Patrice Evra receiving a second yellow card in the knockout stages.
He will now be suspended for the return, leaving Wes Brown, Gabriel Heinze and John O’Shea the only recognised defenders.
Off the field, United are to push for better treatment of travelling fans after being fined £14,500 by UEFA.
United were punished for trouble in the Champions League quarter-final leg away to AS Roma on April 4 when Reds fans were hospitalised.
United fans threw objects and let off fireworks in the match. The club accept this happened and will not appeal the fine.
Roma were fined £31,500 for the behaviour of their support.
But United are angry that their fans were attacked outside the ground and were victims of heavy-handed action from riot police in the stadium.
United have lobbied both the government and UEFA.
Home Office minister Vernon Coaker said: “A clear message has been sent to UEFA about security.”
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Sky: Sir Alex Ferguson hopes a week will be long enough for Rio Ferdinand to recover from his groin injury and face Milan.
The Manchester United defender aggravated the injury during last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Middlesbrough in the Premiership.
He missed the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final on Tuesday night and was expected to sit out the return in San Siro.
But Ferguson is now cautiously optimistic that the centre-half will be available to help United’s bid to protect their 3-2 advantage.
With Patrice Evra suspended for next Wednesday’s tie, Ferguson is hoping he will be able to call on Ferdinand to avoid another defensive reshuffle.
“We have seven days to get Rio fit and that will be crucial,” said Ferguson.
“I do have options because I could play John O’Shea in central defence and Gabriel Heinze at left-back.
“But that would mean using Darren Fletcher at right-back and, given his performance, I would prefer not to do that.”
The United manager has also urged his players to be on their guard when handling Kaka, who scored both Milan’s goals at Old Trafford.
He added: “The last goal makes a difference to the tie.
“Milan have to come out and score against us now, which should make it a more open game.
“I am sure they will remain patient and try to create something through Kaka. We will have to be on our guard for that, but I think quality will decide it and I think we can score.”
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Telegraph: There are some questions you do not ask at Manchester United any more. As they prepared for their European Cup quarter-final tie in Rome, you could wonder aloud when they last beat a decent side in the Champions League? Juventus 2003.
When Wayne Rooney last found the net in the competition? Fenerbahce 2004. And when United last looked serious contenders for European football’s most glittering prize? The 2002 semi-final when they drew the second leg 1-1 at Bayer Leverkusen but went out on away goals.
That match, the one in which Roy Keane recalled a team-mate shaking with nerves as the Uefa anthem played in the neat and compact but hardly intimidating surrounds of the BayArena, proved a watershed for United.
For the next four years each Champions League campaign Sir Alex Ferguson’s side undertook proved worse than the last, culminating in the humiliation at Benfica’s Stadium of Light that saw them bundled out of their qualifying group in last place. Whether or not United reach a third European Cup final, this has been a season in which they have reasserted their right to be part of Europe’s elite, not by reputation but by performance.
The two matches at Old Trafford against Roma and AC Milan demonstrated all the virtues that have made Ferguson’s teams great in the past. They entertained fabulously, they struck late - Ryan Giggs’ pass to create Wayne Rooney’s winner would have been exceptional in the first minute let alone the 91st.Most of all, they showed conviction when their backs were most firmly pressed against a wall.
”We didn’t want to concede away goals but we have got to go to Milan with confidence,” Giggs said. “We know that if we keep the tempo up and keep our shape, we’ve got a great chance. We wanted to keep a clean sheet. Away goals are the key and we didn’t want to give away one, let alone two, so that knocked the stuffing out of us a little bit. But in the second half we showed a lot of patience and character.”
United, however, will have to contain Kaka and perhaps the returning Filippo Inzaghi without any of Ferguson’s first-choice defenders. It is unlikely Rio Ferdinand could recover from an aggravated groin injury in time while Patrice Evra ensured he would be missing in the San Siro courtesy of a foolish booking for dissent. Darren Fletcher, Gabriel Heinze, Wes Brown and John O’Shea would not be an ideal United back four but all possess plenty of grit.
This is United’s fourth European Cup semi-final under Ferguson and the first time they have led after the first leg. Ferguson has never lost a knockout tie with United after taking a first-leg lead.
Whether Milan will be able to call upon Gennaro Gattuso or their captain Paolo Maldini in the San Siro, is another matter. It cannot be coincidence that United took control once both players had left the field.
Maldini’s knees again failed him. The pain he said “was unbearable” and the peerless 38-year-old doubted he could recover in time. For Gattuso, the scoreline hurt more than his foot. “The result burns,” he remarked.
Having lost a three-goal lead to Liverpool in the 2005 final, it was curious to hear Alessandro Nesta complain that ”we stopped playing after the break because we thought we were out of danger”.
Nevertheless Kaka, whose two first-half goals had initially put Milan in command, still remains confident. “I still believe we are favourites,” he said.
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UEFA President Michel Platini was thrilled after the Champions League semi-final between Manchester United and Milan.
Tuesday’s exciting match at Old Trafford ended with a 3-2 win for the English club thanks to a late goal by Wayne Rooney and the former Juve legend was quick to pay his compliments to both sides.
“It is on days like this that it is a pleasure to be involved in European football as the UEFA President,” said Platini to uefa.com. “The match was a great advertisement for the Champions League.
“I wish to pass on my appreciation to everyone involved, from the players and Coaches to the supporters. They were the ones who made the event a thrilling spectacle to a worldwide audience.”
The second leg between Milan and Manchester will be played at the San Siro on May 2 and the winners will go through to face either Chelsea or Liverpool in the Final on May 23 in Athens.
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Reuters: Everton get the chance to put a large dent in Manchester United’s title hopes when they face the Premier League’s injury-hit leaders at Goodison Park on Saturday.
United, bidding to repeat the club’s 1999 Treble, are defending a three-point lead over Chelsea, who host Bolton Wanderers in the day’s other early kickoff.
But just as the season reaches its decisive final weeks, with the two top clubs having four games left to play, United are running out of defenders. Five missed their midweek win over AC Milan — Gary Neville, Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic, Mikael Silvestre and midfielder-turned-defender Kieran Richardson — though Neville could yet be fit on Saturday.
A fear that will haunt Ferguson throughout the game on Merseyside is that further injuries at the back could spell calamity ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final second leg with Milan at San Siro.
Ferguson has little in the way of reserves to draw on, as even Youth Cup centre-half Craig Cathcart has suffered a long-term injury after being drafted into the first-team squad.
It all sets things up nicely for Everton, who are fifth in the table and have almost certainly earned themselves a UEFA Cup slot for next season.
The Toffees, with Andy Johnson up front if he recovers from a sprained ankle in time, will also want to make amends for a 3-0 defeat at Old Trafford in late November.
More poignantly, their fans will be remembering former Evertonian and England 1966 World Cup winner Alan Ball, who died of a suspected heart attack at his home on Tuesday night, aged 61.
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Express: OWEN HARGREAVES could seal his dream £17million move to Manchester United as a casualty of a massive summer clear-out at Bayern Munich.
Coach Ottmar Hitzfeld has vowed to swing the axe as the Germans face failure to qualify for the Champions League.
England star Hargreaves, 26, has seen them block moves to United twice since he played
so well in the World Cup. But they are five points off the Champions League places with only four games to play.
Hitzfeld insists he will rip up the current squad and rebuild. “We will definitely have a major team rebuilding exercise because we have fallen below expectations,” he said.
“We will look at individuals, assessing performance and desire. So that makes the next four weeks important for every player and for me. Obviously, we don’t wait until the end of May before thinking about next season.”
Hitzfeld has warned his unsettled stars to forget about thrashing out an escape route before the end of the campaign, however.
He said: “We still have four matches to play, but there’s an immense danger the team could fall apart. The media are talking about new signings and some of the players are talking to other clubs.
“It’s a precarious situation, but I won’t tolerate it. I’ll step in at once.”
United winger Ryan Giggs is trying his best to convince his fellow Welshman Gareth Bale to sign from Southampton in the summer.
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Sun: WAYNE ROONEY insists Manchester United are up for every ‘Cup Final’ they will face from now to the end of the season.
Rooney hit a last-gasp goal to give the Reds a 3-2 win over AC Milan in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final on Tuesday.
That was his second strike on another big night at Old Trafford for the player dubbed ‘The Big Man.’
But he knows every game from now until the end of May is big as United go for an unprecedented second Treble.
And he is convinced they are up for the challenge ahead in Europe, the Premiership and FA Cup final.
Rooney, 21, said: “You definitely sense when there’s a good mood in the dressing room, and I think the team spirit has been good all season.
“It’s weird, because there are so many games and they all come around so quickly, you don’t really have a lot of time to think about it.
“You finish one game and you’re straight into the next one.
“We know every game now — whatever the competition it is in — is like a Cup final. It’s make or break, so we have to keep winning matches.”
The next big one sees Rooney facing a rough reception at his old club Everton in the league on Saturday. Then it is off to Milan for the return leg of their European semi-final.
Rooney has taken to the Champions League again. After a hat-trick against Fenerbahce on his debut two seasons ago he had failed to score until the last round against AS Roma.
He grabbed one in the Stadio Olimpico, another at home in the 7-1 second leg destruction of Roma and now a brace against Milan on another stunning European night at Old Trafford.
Two seasons ago when United met Milan in the second round of the competition Rooney looked out of his depth — no longer.
Rooney said: “Since those games I’ve learnt from playing with good players around me and just playing Champions League football regularly.
“Back then it was my first year at United and I was finding my feet in a lot of ways. But now I am settled and playing much better football.
“I think we are a better team than we were two years ago.”
No doubt about that and Rooney is full of confidence after a mid-season lull. He is now level on 21 goals with Cristiano Ronaldo as the top scorer at United this season.
Rooney is on a roll at the perfect time, hitting 10 goals in his last 11 games right at the business end of the season.
He believes his injury-time winner on Tuesday could be his most important yet. Rooney said: “It was a great to score right in the last minute.
“I hope it will prove to be the most important goal of my career. To be 2-1 behind against a top Italian side and run out 3-2 winners was fantastic.”
The goal had the stamp of Manchester United on it as they broke quickly, Ryan Giggs fed the perfect ball and Rooney finished superbly.
Team-mate Michael Carrick said: “What can you say — the last finish was brilliant. He could see the gap and put it away.
“He is a world-class player already. He is still young and I am sure there is more to come from him. He more than did his job in this game.”
It was the old heads as much as the young who inspired this victory as United fought back from 2-1 down after a Kaka double.
Now 1999 European Cup-winner Ryan Giggs is convinced they can finish off the job in the San Siro.
Giggs said: “It’s going to be difficult but we’ve seen enough in the second half to show that we can go there and get a good result. If we keep our character and nerve then, hopefully, we will.
“We didn’t want to give away goals at home but we’ve got to go out there with confidence.
“With the second half in mind, we know that if we keep the tempo up and keep our shape we’ve got a great opportunity of creating chances.
“We’ll probably have to defend better but we’re capable of doing that.”
Giggs praised the character of the team as they hauled themselves back into the tie in the second half.
He said: “We didn’t want to give away one goal, let alone two, so that knocked the stuffing out of us a little bit. In the second half we showed a lot of patience and determination.
“We felt that we could create chances by not panicking and keeping our shape and that’s what happened. We feel that we’re going to create chances every time we go out.
“Milan are a quality team so when you get those chances you have to put them away and we put most of them away. To score so late on showed great character and ended the game on a high.”
The confidence that Rooney goal gave has run through the whole team. Carrick added: “It’s all set up nicely now. To win the game was great and we’re still confident we can finish the job off.
“But we know this tie is a long way from over and we’ve still work to do.
“To concede two goals but then come back like we did to win it was a big boost for us. The manager told us to keep playing our own game and pass the ball like we know we can.
“We weren’t playing it as well as we can and weren’t getting people on the ball in the right areas at the end of the first half.”
Carrick says there is a huge amount of trust between the players at United — which will be evident in Milan next Wednesday.
He said: “To win this tie would be unbelievable. We’ve done it before and we’ll do it again because we trust each other.
“We have to trust how good we are because we have the belief in each other.
“It’s going to be a fantastic game over there. We’re delighted to have won but we’re not getting carried away and we’ll treat it as a new game.”
AC MILAN vice-president Adriano Galliani has revealed he would love to pair Kaka with Manchester United ace Cristiano Ronaldo.
The duo are widely believed to be the top two players in the world — and they resume their Champions League battle in the San Siro on Wednesday.
Galliani believes they would complement each other perfectly if they could ever tempt the Portuguse ace to Serie A. He said: “We wouldn’t change Kaka for Ronaldo but we would definitely like to have both of them.
“If you had our Ronaldo in attack and Kaka and Cristiano behind, then you could calmly go to the cinema and, without worry, ask how Milan got on.
“However, life doesn’t allow you to have everything you want.”
Galliani is just relieved to have Brazilian Kaka in his squad after he turned in a masterclass of finishing at Old Trafford.
He added: “Who is better — Kaka or Cristiano Ronaldo?
“We had to be tough to find a player of Kaka’s calibre in Brazil.
“He’s the top scorer in the Champions League with nine goals. He scored twice at Old Trafford and has the pure class of a phenomenon.”
Meanwhile, Galliani believes Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney hold the key to the second leg in Italy next week.
Milan recovered from a disappointing first leg to overturn Bayern Munich in the last round but the presence of the United pair could prove crucial.
He added: “For the return leg, I agree with Rooney that Manchester United and Milan have the same chance of getting to the final.
“We know our own strength and we will approach this as a positive week, preparing in the best way possible.
“Of course, United are opponents of the very highest level.
“After the first game against Bayern I was still certain we would qualify — because the Germans do not have two attackers of the calibre of Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo.”
AC MILAN defender Massimo Oddo hailed Wayne Rooney’s late winner — but has vowed to get the better of him at the San Siro.
The England hitman struck twice after the break to give Manchester United a 3-2 advantage going into next week’s Champions League semi-final second leg.
Oddo, 30, was full of admiration for Rooney’s last-minute strike.
He said: “It was something special from a great player and I doubt any goalkeeper would stop it.
“But their second goal was a ricochet and goalkeeper Dida was unlucky with the first one.
“I believe the second leg and qualification are within our grasp if we play as we know how at the San Siro.
“I think this result is not negative for Milan although, obviously, a draw would have been better for us.”
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Times: “It’s a good team and it will get better – the young players in particular. They can grow up together and the desire is also there. Much of it comes down to decision-making and sometimes we were maybe a bit rash with our decisions, shooting from too far out. That comes down to experience.”– Sir Alex Ferguson, March 2005
It was with Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo, especially, in mind that Sir Alex Ferguson, reflecting on Manchester United’s elimination at the round of 16 stage of the Champions League by AC Milan, made this address in the bowels of the San Siro.
Many a wise word has come from the mouth of the United manager, but have any been so prophetic?
Two years after that chastening experience in Italy, Ferguson received all the vindication he could have wished for against the same opponents at Old Trafford on Tuesday evening. He declined to say “I told you so”. Why did he need to? His players had delivered that message with conviction, but it must have been with a sense of satisfaction that Ferguson lauded a 3-2 victory in which Rooney and Ronaldo turned in performances every bit as notable as their previous ones against Milan were naive.
Maybe it is time to stop doubting Ferguson. No one continues to prove so many people wrong so often, and with such gusto, and maybe the same goes for his two most prized players. Like their indefatigable manager, Rooney and Ronaldo have been knocked down enough times to invite comparisons to Audley Harrison, but unlike the boxer, they get up and come back stronger.
The unrelenting speed of Ronaldo’s development has perhaps taken away some of the lustre from Rooney this season, but Tuesday was the night when the England forward seemed to blossom into the player everyone expected him to become after his explosion on to the international scene during Euro 2004.
The one who grabs games by the scruff of the neck, the one who can make even the most fêted opposition seem ordinary, the one who can fashion a goal when everyone else least expects it, as he did with virtually the last kick to win the match against Milan.
Rooney’s two goals and Ronaldo’s one against Milan leave the players tied on 22 for the season. Having gone 43 Champions League games between them without scoring, together they have now managed seven in the past three European matches. The nature of things these days seems to necessitate that there can be only one star of the show, but it is in their apparent desire to outdo each other and be that person that Ferguson has struck gold with Rooney and Ronaldo.
How ironic that they should be nicknamed R & R because there is nothing restful about the fervour with which they are striving for success on three fronts with United this season. It must have been a bewildering sight for Milan’s ageing defenders. They had little trouble containing Rooney and Ronaldo en route to those 1-0 wins at home and away that earned them a 2-0 aggregate success in 2005. Now, they are clinging to the hope that the pair have an off day in the return leg at the San Siro on Wednesday, although as Rooney articulated, the previous experience there will hold them both in good stead.
“Since those games I think I’ve learnt from playing with good players around me and just playing Champions League football,” Rooney said. “Back then it was my first year at United and I was finding my feet in a lot of ways. But now I am settled and playing much better football. I think we’re a better team than we were two years ago.”
Ferguson would be the first to testify to that.
