Fuente: © Manchester United
http://www.manutd.com/

UNITED: Boss: Jose isn't always right

Sir Alex Ferguson says United's position at the top of the table proves that Jose Mourinho's predictions don't always come true.

/noticias.info/ The Chelsea boss had backed his side to be leading the way at the Premiership summit over the festive period, but United's 3-0 win at Aston Villa means it's the Reds who occupy first place.

"It proves we shouldn't listen to Jose too much because he said we wouldn't be top at Christmas," joked Sir Alex during his post-match interview with Sky Sports. "He had to apologise to Andy Johnson [for saying the Everton striker dived] earlier in the week so we shouldn't listen to him all the time!

"The players responded in the right way following the defeat at West Ham," added the United boss. "I thought it was a fantastic performance against a very good Aston Villa team.

"They've got a lot of youth and energy in their side which is refreshing to see. We had to handle that energy because sometimes it can overwhelm you and during the early parts of the match I was worried about that. But we played with great determination and it was an excellent result for us."

A second half double from Man of the Match Cristiano Ronaldo set the Reds on their way to victory at Villa Park. Sandwiched between the Portuguese winger's brace was a thunderbolt from Paul Scholes who crashed a delicious volley in off the crossbar.

"Scholesy does that all the time in training so it was nice to see it go in," explained Sir Alex. "It fell perfectly for him, it was a marvellous strike and a wonderful goal.

"I wasn't surprised to see it fly in because he's done it many times in the past - I remember his goal at Bradford which he scored direct from a David Beckham corner.

"The boy is in great form," he added, referring to Ronaldo's display. "He was a revelation against Villa - he played with great strength and courage. He's having a marvellous season for us and is playing as well as anyone [in the Premiership] at the moment."

The United boss made three changes to the side that lost at West Ham. Gabriel Heinze was rested, while Michael Carrick missed the game with an ankle injury. Wayne Rooney, a second half substitute, was also left out of the starting line-up after a difficult week.

"Wayne has played eleven games in a row and unfortunately he missed two days of training earlier in the week because of a family bereavement," explained Sir Alex. "So I felt it was a good time to give him a break."
--

"Jose said we wouldn't be top at Christmas - it just proves we shouldn't always listen to him!"

- Sir Alex Ferguson notas_de_prensa_archivo