Premier League - Ferguson fires Scolari broadside

Eurosport - Wed, 23 Jul 15:26:00 2008

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has warned Luiz Felipe Scolari he faces a battle to inspire his ageing Chelsea squad to the success they achieved under Jose Mourinho.

2008 Manchester United Alex Ferguson - 0

Scolari, currently in Guangzhou, China, with Chelsea as part of their pre-season preparations, succeeded Avram Grant at Stamford Bridge this month after resigning his post as Portugal coach at Euro 2008.

The Brazilian arrives in England with a top-class reputation having won the 2002 World Cup with his home nation, but United manager Ferguson, whose team beat Orlando Pirates in Durban, South Africa, on Tuesday believes restoring Chelsea to the top of the tree will not be easy for Scolari.

And he admits that 'Big Phil' faces a daunting challenge if he is to emulate the feats of Mourinho -- the self-styled Special One -- at Chelsea.

Ferguson said: "Mourinho won the title two years in a row and beat us in the FA Cup Final, so there's no-one who can improve on his record really.

"They would have to go beyond Mourinho's performance to really worry us.

"Scolari is fortunate as Chelsea have a lot of experience and that was the one thing I was a bit concerned about last season, but I don't know how far that team has got to go.

"It's hard to see where there's going to be a big improvement with a team that's really very experienced. 'Plateau' is maybe not the word, but how can they (Chelsea) accelerate beyond what they've done up to now?"

Premier League and European champions United face Chelsea in September at Stamford Bridge in their first clash since the Champions League final in Moscow in May, which United won on a penalty-shoot-out.

And Ferguson is confident that his team has the necessary youth to stay ahead of Chelsea in the race for more silverware in the coming season.

He said: "When you see the ages Chelsea have got, apart from Salomon Kalou and John Obi-Mikel, they are an experienced side.

"I'm not saying necessarily that they're old because, with the modern-day training methods, you should be playing in your thirties. What I am saying is that I don't see outstanding progress in a team that's in their thirties.

"I don't know Scolari. We played against him when we won the Intercontinental Cup in 1999 and he has managed a lot of clubs. But he is experienced, having won the World Cup and managed Portugal, and that's one thing he has in his favour."

AFP

Comment 129 - 148 of 148

Sort comments by: Most recent | Most rated
  1. fergies running scare.........please! give it up. hes dealt with better than scolari,such as morinho but you dumped him chelski.

    From Dave G, on Thu 24 Jul 5:54PM
  2. kingorkafa, your the worst kind of 'fan'. one that jumps from team to team as there not winning out. sorry but your a glory supporter mate. you jumped the chelsea ship cos it wasnt going your way and let me guess now your a 'true' united fan. it doesnt matter which champion you support you will always be a loser. 'if you want glory...' change teams aye?! LOLOLOLOLOL

    COME ON YOU HULL!

    From Dave G, on Thu 24 Jul 5:53PM
  3. frankie the bear,im sure you realise that every season chelsea fans think chelsea is better. but wanting it and it being true are 2 different things.

    From Dave G, on Thu 24 Jul 5:48PM
  4. When you back any animal into a corner it becomes aggressive due to being stressed by fear. Ferguson is running scared, he knows that he will be put under real pressure from Chelsea this season. We'll see how far his bravado takes him. Ferguson is an ignorant pig of a man and I would love to see United get slaughtered and win nothing this season. Chelsea may have a more mature squad, but look at the players they have. I think united will be lucky to end up third in the EPL this season. Personalli I hope they get relegated. Not much chance of that though, but winning nothing and not qualifying for the Champs League would do me!
    Al though the prospect of Celtic beating them in the Champs League again does hold a certain allure.

    Mon the Hoops

    From frankiethebear2002, on Thu 24 Jul 11:17AM
  5. if you want success on the short term,without prestige and with lots of fucked up fans,be a chelski...if you're a true lover of the game...uniteeeeddddd!!!!
    abramovich,money cant buy glory...who can stay a chelsea fan(as a i used to be)after what he did to grant ,statistically the best coach they had so far...

    From kingorkafa, on Thu 24 Jul 8:34AM
  6. When jose first took over at chelsea, the drunkered one went on tv and said, chelsea will lose it in the north, they lost one game to a dodgy penalty at man city and lifted the title at bolton, which last time i looked fergie you plastic bum was up north. the following year, the man with a gob the size of the clubs debt said when chelsea dropped a few points just after x mas " its to late to recover from a wobble at this time of the season" chelsea went on an unbeatun run and lifted the title for the 2nd time. so it would seem every time the drunken bum is runing scared he runs it off at the mouth. cluck cluck fergie, your empire is crumbling round your pickled ears ! ya coach has legged it to portugal, your top player wants to leave, you gonna get done for tapping up........again...oh and pray do tell us fergie oh great drunked bum, how exactly are giggs scholes and neville saha gonna get any better you sad little mug !

    From silent assasins., on Thu 24 Jul 5:39AM
  7. That old drunk should shut up

    From tom h, on Thu 24 Jul 5:36AM
  8. what i meant was scolari is too inteligent to get pulled into these pathetic mind games that fergie plays - by adybds

    More likely because he does not understand a word

    From United, kids, wife, on Thu 24 Jul 2:57AM
  9. Lets not say who is better and who is not. Most important if a club can spend get the right player acn help the players to jel asap it is a winning team Man United is a team which is solid as all their players had been playing together for at lease a season. Looking at Chelsea they are rich buying good players but can they jel can they play together let see what scolari can do

    From Wind S, on Thu 24 Jul 2:00AM
  10. TO RAYELLE..... Your comment is idiotic to the point of actually prooving Fergie's statements, Neville, Van Der Sar, Scholes, Giggs? Brown, Foster, Anderson, Nani. These are the younger replacements that Fergie has brought in to be tutored under these Experienced players that are already first team callibre. Fergie can filled a strong team without these experienced players. Scolari cannot. The expeienced players in the chelsea line up are nessesities, They have to be there for the team to be as good as it is.

    From Julie C, on Thu 24 Jul 12:04AM
  11. what i meant was scolari is too inteligent to get pulled into these pathetic mind games that fergie plays,he might intimidate a changing room full of 20 somethings but he doesnt scare a man that has more maturity in his little finger than fergie has in his hole life,,,,,,,go away fergie and change the record for fuxx sake

    From adybds, on Wed 23 Jul 10:25PM
  12. yeah understandable.. it just takes sometime to become senile

    From jako1922, on Wed 23 Jul 8:36PM
  13. but he said similar things last season and the season before and before that and so on, so for all these seasons hes been confused? lets face it he is the greatest manager in the premiership. Premiereship and champions league winners! just face it!

    COME ON YOU HULL, DEANO!

    From Dave G, on Wed 23 Jul 8:08PM
  14. I don't think you can say 'fergies never even been an international manager fool', when clearly he has, even for several months only.

    From pegez, on Wed 23 Jul 7:56PM
  15. Yeah dude Alzheimer's hits quick

    From jako1922, on Wed 23 Jul 7:29PM
  16. so fergie has turned confused in a couple of months has he? was he confused a few months back when he won the champions league and then a fortnight before when he won the premiership. yeah right. but the new season will be starting soon and for chelsea(the new liverpool) its a chance to say fergie this and fergie that. sado's

    From Dave G, on Wed 23 Jul 6:45PM
  17. you mean he was scotland manager for like 2 and a half months cos whats his face died,i dont think that counts. it was a caretaker role.

    From Dave G, on Wed 23 Jul 6:42PM
  18. when you win like sir alexs you can talk like sir alexs catch him if you can

    From george791, on Wed 23 Jul 6:19PM
  19. Ferg. is a confused old useless

    From Specy, on Wed 23 Jul 6:18PM
  20. i just think its funny that fregie does this as a wind up and straight away a load of sado chelski supporters start bitching and biteing .....classic hahahahaha

    And as for your comment Adedeji A Liverpool will need to actually score a goal against utd to hammer them ..ummmmm if my memory serves me correct thats something they havent done in the league under benitez...... another blank for the scousers

    From MuFc FoR LiFe, on Wed 23 Jul 6:07PM
Sort comments by: Most recent | Most rated

Not already a Yahoo! user ? to get a free Yahoo! Account