Ferguson confident Ferdinand on way back

January 1, 2010

Sir Alex Ferguson believes Rio Ferdinand is finally winning his battle against injury after the England defender stepped up his training with Manchester United.

Ferdinand has made just five league appearances for United this season and has not played since the defeat against Liverpool in late October because of a persistent back injury.

United have struggled with major injury concerns among their defenders recently and, although the problems are now easing, Ferguson revealed on Thursday that Irish international defender John O’Shea could be absent for a further two months.

But Ferdinand has been running in training and suffered no reaction, the first positive sign in his recuperation.

In his absence English champions United have still maintained a title challenge and a 5-0 thrashing of Wigan at Old Trafford on Wednesday left them just two points behind Premier League leaders Chelsea.

Ferdinand’s fellow centre-half Jonny Evans is at a slightly advanced stage in his own comeback and Ferguson predicts his return within ten days although the United manager is unwilling to put a precise date on Ferdinand’s availability.

“We will see how Rio Ferdinand and Jonny Evans progress,” said Ferguson.

“If they come through the physical work then they will go onto the football side. Jonny has been involved on the football side for a few days.

“Rio is not near that but there is no recurrence of the back problem with the running he’s doing which is good news.

“That’s the moment you?re waiting for. He’s come through that running and the training, he’s doing the programme in the gym, which is good.

“At the moment it’s looking very hopeful.

“We do not have a date in mind but, hopefully, it?s not too far away and the signs are looking good. Jonny (Evans) should be back within the next ten days, he?s doing well.”

Meanwhile, Ferguson has conceded that O’Shea’s thigh injury remains a concern and the Ireland defender could face a further two months on the sidelines after suffering a haematoma to his thigh on international duty in the World Cup play-off against France in mid-November.

“He is showing no signs at all of recovery,” said Ferguson.

“It’s his first ever injury at the club and he is a big loss because he was so versatile. He could play any position for us and now we’ve just got to get him back, it doesn’t matter when. But it could be another couple of months.”

However, with Gary Neville expected to be involved in Sunday’s FA Cup third round tie against Leeds, United’s immediate defensive crisis, which at one stage saw eight senior defenders out injured, has passed.

The return of Nemanja Vidic and Wes Brown to the centre of United’s defence for the recent victories against Hull and Wigan has shown the value of having experience back in the team, according to the manager.

“You can see the difference it makes to the team, when you have two centre-backs back,” said Ferguson, who celebrated his 68th birthday on Thursday.

“You saw with Vidic and Brown, the stability and strength they bring to the back is going to be important.

“The second half of the season doesn’t hold any fears for us. We have got the squad, we hope we have everyone available and we have the confidence we can handle what’s coming up over the next few months.”

MANCHESTER, England (AFP)

Tags: back injury, Brown, CHELSEA, doing the programme, England, english champions, Ferdinand, Ferguson, gary neville, HULL, injury concerns, Ireland, irish international, John O'Shea, league appearances, league leaders, LEEDS, Liverpool, Manchester, manchester united, old trafford, premier league, recuperation, recurrence, Rio, rio ferdinand, sidelines, sir alex ferguson, thigh injury, title challenge, wes brown, Wigan

Messi, Ibrahimovic in doubt for Barcelona-Real

November 26, 2009

Star strikers Lionel Messi and Zlatan Ibrahimovic missed Barcelona’s training session on Thursday and are in doubt for the club’s weekend clash at home against arch-rivals Real Madrid.

Messi, who injured his leg in a league match on Saturday, and Ibrahimovic, who has been struggling with a hamstring injury, “continued their process of recuperation”, the club said in a statement posted on their website.

Sunday’s match at the at the Camp Nou comes as Real have have a one-point advantage over the reigning champions following their best league start in 17 years.

Both strikers missed Barcelona’s crucial 2-0 Champions League defeat of Inter Milan on Tuesday because of their injuries.

“It was an important game and it has given us confidence and lifted morale because we were at our best. We could have gone out of the Champions League,” Barcelona captain Carles Puyol said Thursday after the training session.

“We have great respect for Madrid. They are league leaders and that means something. They have won nearly all their games and are a difficult side. I think (the odds of) our game with them is 50-50,” he added.

Real defeated Racing Santander 1-0 on Saturday to wrestle top spot from unbeaten Barca – who drew 1-1 at Athletic Bilbao – and their haul of 28 points from a possible 33 represents their best start since the 1991-92 season.

MADRID (AFP)

Tags: 17 years, arch rivals, athletic bilbao, barca, Barcelona, Bilbao, camp nou, carles puyol, champions league, inter milan, league leaders, lionel messi, MADRID, Milan, point advantage, real madrid, recuperation, santander, strikers, training session, weekend clash, zlatan ibrahimovic

Injured Iniesta to miss Confederations Cup

June 5, 2009

MADRID (AFP) – Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta dropped out of the Spain squad for the Confederations Cup because of an injury and will be replaced by Valencia’s Pablo Hernandez, the Spanish Football Federation said Friday.

Medical tests carried out on the 25-year-old confirmed that his thigh muscle injury was more serious than previously thought and could require him to be sidelined for up to two months, it said in a statement.

“There is a strong chance of a relapse. He already had one in the Champions League final and we don’t want another. He needs a long period of recuperation,” federation doctor Oscar Celada told a news conference.

Iniesta picked up the injury at the beginning of last month and he aggravated it during Barcelona’s 2-0 Champions League final win over Manchester United in Rome at the end of May.

Iniestsa is a key member of the Spain squad and he helped Barcelona to win the treble this season.

Spain will play a friendly away to Azerbaijan on June 9 before making their way to South Africa for the Confederations Cup which gets under way five days later.

Tags: Andres Iniesta, Azerbaijan, Barcelona, champions league, confederations cup, football federation, LA Liga, MADRID, Manchester, manchester united, medical tests, midfielder, news conference, Oscar Celada, Pablo Hernandez, recuperation, relapse, ROME, South Africa, Spain, spanish football, thigh muscle injury, treble, Valencia

Henry returns to training ahead of Champions final

May 23, 2009

MADRID (AFP) – French striker Thierry Henry returned to training with the rest of his Barcelona teammates on Friday, five days ahead of the team’s Champions League final against Manchester United in Rome.

“Henry joined the squad for the first few minutes of the session before continuing with his specific programme of recuperation,” the club said in a statement.

The 31-year-old has a ligament injury in his right knee which has caused him to miss Barcelona’s last few matches but he is expected to be fit in time for the Champions League final.

Spanish midfielder Andres Iniesta, who suffered a tear in his right thigh, is also expected to be recovered in time for the match. He worked with a coach away from the rest of the players on Friday, the club said.

Barcelona have already won the Primera Liga and Spanish Cup and if they take the Champions League they will be the first Spanish side to achieve the treble.

The Catalan side face Osasuna on Saturday at home in their second-to-last match of the Spanish league.

Tags: Andres Iniesta, Barcelona, catalan side, champions league, friday five, last match, ligament injury, MADRID, Manchester, manchester united, midfielder, miss barcelona, osasuna, primera liga, recuperation, ROME, side face, spanish cup, spanish league, spanish side, striker, teammates, thierry henry, treble, UEFA Champions League

Roma´s Doni out for 3 months after knee operation

April 30, 2009

ROME (AFP) – AS Roma’s challenge for a top four Serie A finish and Champions League football has been hit after goalkeeper Doni was ruled out for three months with a knee injury.

Roma released a statement claiming the Brazilian needs an operation on the cartilage in his right knee, a process that usually requires three months of recuperation.

Roma currently sit sixth in Serie A, six points behind fourth-placed Fiorentina, who thrashed them 4-1 last weekend, with just five matches remaining.

Tags: cartilage, champions league football, doni, fiorentina, knee injury, knee operation, League, recuperation, Roma, ROME, Serie, Serie A, six points, three months

Chelsea stars in line for pre-Barca breather

April 25, 2009

LONDON (AFP) – Amid the disappointment at failing to return the English Premier League title to Stamford Bridge for the third consecutive year, Chelsea might also feel a twinge of relief as they limber up for the season’s final weeks.

While there remained a glimmer of hope of overhauling leaders Manchester United, the west Londoners, who must also squeeze in a two-legged Champions League semi-final with Barcelona and an FA Cup final before the end of May, were at risk of spreading their resources too thinly in their pursuit of an unlikely Treble.

Now that the league is effectively, if not mathematically, out of reach, Chelsea’s campaign has been brought into sharp focus.

All their resources can now be trained on delivering success in Europe, with the first leg of their double-header against Barcelona looming large next Tuesday.

With that in mind, the most pointed aspect of Saturday’s trip to West Ham is likely to be how many of his first team regulars interim manager Guus Hiddink chooses to rest ahead of the daunting trip to the Nou Camp.

Hiddink will be forgiven a little pragmatism, even if it puts Chelsea at risk of being humbled by one of their fiercest rivals.

Success in the Champions League remains the overriding aim of everyone connected with this intensely ambitious club, not least the owner Roman Abramovich, and Hiddink.

For all his good work since his appointment in February, it’s unlikely he would be forgiven by his boss if one of Chelsea’s more influential figures sustained an avoidable injury at Upton Park.

“We’ll make the analysis to see if any players are in the ‘overload zone’,” Hiddink admitted. “It might be possible for one or two to get a rest or to play less than they do normally.

“When we play West Ham, we won’t have the approach to let it slip away. But it’s true that we have to focus more on the up-coming Champions League games.”

In truth, the Dutchman must already have concluded that several of his players look in urgent need of recuperation.

His team gave an unusually leggy display in Wednesday’s goalless draw with Everton, particuarly given a win was essential to keep alive their faint title hopes.

It would be no surprise to see the likes of Didier Drogba, Florent Malouda and Michael Essien left on the substitutes’ bench in east London.

Hiddink may also decide that the meeting with Gianfranco Zola’s side gives him a useful opportunity to decide who best to deploy at left-back against Barcelona next week, when Ashley Cole serves a one-match suspension.

There are no shortage of options, although none are without potential pit-falls. Branislav Ivanovic, the right-back, is perhaps most likely to be redeployed, although that might depend on Jose Bosingwa recovering from a hamstring injury.

There are doubts, too, over the Serbian’s defensive prowess, a weakness which could be ruthlessly exploited by Lionel Messi.

Michael Mancienne has also featured in the role, although his youth might count against him, while Julian Belletti, a former Barcelona player, has experience, if not the legs, to fill in.

Regardless, it is a testing conundrum for Hiddink and all eyes will be trained on his team-sheet on Saturday to decipher clues.

While Chelsea’s minds would be forgiven for drifting elsewhere, West Ham have no such excuses. A win is essential to their own hopes of booking the seventh-placed league finish that would deliver qualification for next season’s Europa League, the successor to the UEFA Cup.

“We’re going to have to have our players all digging in,” Kieron Dyer, the midfielder, admitted. “We can’t have any passengers. Hopefully that will be enough because if their players all produce it’s going to be an extremely difficult game.”