MUFC Players Rating Vs Chelsea.

De Gea: 9.0
Evra: 8.5
Evans: 8.0
Ferdinand: 8.0
Rafael: 8.0
Young: 8.0
Carrick: 8.5
Cleverley:7.5
Valencia: 8.5
Rooney: 8.5
RVP: 9.0



Replacement:                                                                      Man Of The Match:
Chicharito: 9.0
Giggs: 8.0                                                                                        De Gea

Overdue win delights Carrick

Having seen a string of impressive performances go unrewarded at Stamford Bridge in recent seasons, Michael Carrick feels Manchester United's thrilling victory at Chelsea was long overdue.
The Reds edged a game shrouded in controversy as Chicharito turned in a late winner against the nine-man hosts, but the midfielder cared not a jot as the Blues' lead at the top of the Barclays Premier League was trimmed to one point.
"It's a huge three points," Carrick told MUTV. "Not winning here for a long time against our biggest rivals, we wanted to put that right and we wanted to win for that.
"Plus the fact that if we had lost today we would've been well adrift. I know there's a long way to go, but it wouldn't have been a good position for us to be in. So for those two reasons it was a big result.
"Over the last three or four years we've had some really great performances here and not come away with what we deserved, so today it was sweet to get the three points.
"We've really played some great stuff and the performances have been spot on, so to come away with no wins has been disappointing and we felt the next win was close. We have had some decisions not go our way and it's been tough for us here, but maybe that turned around for us today. We'll take what we get!"
Chelsea, United and Manchester City are now separated by a single point at the head of the table and, buoyed by the Reds' impressive form at imposing venues this term, Carrick insists it is key to keep winning such headline-grabbing encounters.
"Especially against your rivals – the likes of Liverpool and Chelsea, Arsenal next week – it's important you take points off them," said the midfielder.
"That's why it was important and next week is just as important. It's a good start to the season. We've obviously had a couple of defeats but we've bounced back and we're still in a good position, so we can be happy."

Duo on Ballon d'Or shortlist

Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie are on the shortlist of 23 players nominated for the prestigious Ballon d'Or award.
The contenders for FIFA's World Footballer of the Year award were announced on Monday with 11 of the names different from the 2011 list.
Rooney is rewarded for another impressive year at Old Trafford while van Persie's explosive final months at Arsenal contribute to his recognition. Former United favourite Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are expected to battle it out for the award with the Barcelona superstar striving to win it for the fourth consecutive year.
Sir Alex Ferguson is one of 10 managers up for the Coach of the Year prize - alongside fellow Barclays Premier League bosses Roberto Mancini and Roberto Di Matteo.
Ballon d'Or nominees: Sergio Aguero (Man City), Mario Balotelli (Man City), Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Sergio Busquets (Barcelona), Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Didier Drogba (Chelsea, now Shanghai Shenhua), Radamel Falcao (Atletico Madrid), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (AC Milan/PSG), Andres Iniesta (Barcelona), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Neymar (Santos), Mesut Ozil (Real Madrid), Gerard Pique (Barcelona), Andrea Pirlo (Juventus), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Wayne Rooney (Man United), Yaya Toure (Man City), Robin van Persie (Arsenal/Man United), Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid), Xavi (Barcelona).
Ballon d'Or Coach nominees: Vicente del Bosque (Spain), Roberto Di Matteo (Chelsea), Sir Alex Ferguson (Man United), Pep Guardiola (ex-Barcelona), Jupp Heynckes (Bayern Munich), Jurgen Klopp (Borussia Dortmund), Joachim Low (Germany), Roberto Mancini (Man City), Jose Mourinho (Real Madrid), Cesare Prandelli (Italy).

Wide men win plaudits

United wide boys leave Chelsea exposedRefereeing controversies overshadowed an exciting game and an interesting tactical battle – but both coaches made intriguing decisions in response to the Branislav Ivanovic and Fernando Torres dismissals. With Roberto Di Matteo constrained by the absence of Frank Lampard, Chelsea's starting lineup was predictable and the pre-game tactical questions concerned Sir Alex Ferguson's approach. After United went into an early lead his overall strategy was difficult to deduce – David Luiz's unfortunate own goal forced Chelsea to take the initiative while the away side concentrated upon counterattacking, a scenario that played into the hands of United's players. In selecting a formation with width, rather than the diamond he has experimented with recently, Ferguson was seeking to attack purposely down the flanks, particularly the right. Chelsea have been vulnerable down the left this season primarily because Eden Hazard's advanced, central positioning leaves Ashley Cole exposed. This was a particularly bad match to leave the left-back alone against two opponents – Antonio Valencia has frequently outperformed him in recent years, with the Ecuadorian possessing both the defensive qualities to track Cole's runs, and the natural drive to attack him. In direct battles between the two, Cole coped reasonably well with Valencia, who completed only one of his six attempted dribbles – but enthusiastic support for Valencia came from the right-back Rafael da Silva. United's second goal was a perfect illustration of Chelsea's problem down the left this season.

Ognjen Vranjes is being watched by United's scouts.

Ognjen Vranjes is being watched by Reds scouts. The 22-year-old right-back is currenly plying his trade in Russia for Krasnodar and has been impressing for Bosnia.

United Want To Buy Ilkay Gundogan.

United and Spurs are keeping tabs on Borussia Dortmund midfielder Ilkay Gundogan. The 21-year-old shone in the recent Champions League draw with Manchester City when Sir Alex was amongst the crowd.

De Gea To Real Madrid?

De Gea, an £18.3 million buy from Atlético Madrid in the summer of 2011, is expected to retain his place in goal for United against SC Braga in Tuesday’s Champions League Group H tie at Old Trafford.

But the 21-year-old has yet to consolidate the No 1 jersey at Manchester United following a difficult start to life in the English game having been signed as a youthful replacement for Edwin van der Sar following the Dutch goalkeeper’s retirement at the end of the 2010-11 campaign.

The Spain Under-21 ‘keeper was dropped by Sir Alex Ferguson at the turn of the year following an unconvincing performance, a 3-2 Old Trafford defeat against Blackburn and De Gea lost his place at the start of this season when he was replaced by the Dane, Anders Lindegaard, in the wake of a poor performance against Fulham in August.

While Ferguson and United’s goalkeeping coach, Eric Steele, remain convinced of De Gea’s ability and long-term potential, Real have been made aware of the Madrid-born youngster’s struggle to adapt to life in Manchester and the Premier League