Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar announced yesterday that he will retire at the end of this season. The 40-year-old Dutch goalkeeper will end his 21-year career this summer.
In his 21-year career, Van der Sar played a total of 130 times on behalf of the Dutch national team. His only regret is that he did not help the Dutch team reach the highest podium in the World Series. In June 2005, Van der Sar won 2 million
With a transfer fee of £1, he switched from Fulham to the Red Devils and became another legendary goalkeeper of Manchester United after Schmeichel.
In an interview with Manchester United's official TV station, Van der Sar explained the reasons for his decision to retire. "After playing for so many years, you reach a turning point where you need to make a decision. There are a lot of things to consider, whether you still have it or not."
Competition**, and your family, now is the time to place your bets
The focus is on my family. You have to look back at yourself. You have to ask if you can still perform at the top level and that's what you have to do at Manchester United. At the moment I am still confident about my form.
Satisfied, still happy with my results on the pitch. I just want to leave at a high level."
"After 40, you can't always perform like a superman. It's a difficult decision to make, but this season is the last one. When I first came here, I was just happy to be able to
Signed a two-year contract. I want to win a Premier League title before I retire. I'm lucky to have achieved more than I ever imagined. The happiest moment of my career.
?Saved Anelka's penalty. I have to say that the happiest moment was when I saved Anelka's penalty in the 2008 Champions League final against Chelsea. Of course I have made better saves, but that
It was so decisive. The boys and I were so happy after the game that I will never forget it. As a player, it feels great to win the most important trophy for the club you play for.”
Ferguson was not surprised by Van der Sar's decision to retire. As early as last month, Sir Alex Ferguson said, "We are ready. This is Van der Sar's last season." Ferguson gave Van der Sar's answer.
He praised him very highly, saying, "An extremely good person, a fantastic goalkeeper, and an incredible career."
"He is a role model for all young people around the world who want to become goalkeepers. Over the years, Van der Sar's level has not shown any signs of regression. He has never changed. He has always performed at a consistently high level. He has always been exceptional.
Calm. He is very calm. He never likes to express himself deliberately. He is very happy with the achievements he has made in his career. He does not pursue other things. He is really a good person. I know that he will rest for a while first.
But sooner or later he will take the coaching path, based on his experience over the years."
When Van der Sar and Ferguson talked about the Dutch goalkeeper's decision to retire, they both said their biggest regret was that Van der Sar did not join Manchester United earlier.
In this regard, Van der Sar felt helpless. "This is a decision we made together (to retire). I talked to the coach last week and he agreed. I enjoyed my time at Manchester United and have been very happy at Manchester United for so many years.
Be happy. You might be saying, 'You might stay longer'. But that's life, you can't always be in the right moment
Get what you want. I'm just happy that at least we've been together for so many years. It's not over yet, I still have months to go. I still have more goals to accomplish. At my age,
It's a blessing to have a lot of great experience at a great club like Manchester United."
Manchester United goalkeeper coach Steele believes that Van der Sar will be another legend of the Red Devils after Schmeichel. "Van der Sar will retire at the end of the season. This is a decision between the head coach, the team and Van der Sar."
It was a joint decision. He was so good and I was very lucky. I worked with Schmeichel at Villa and I worked with Edwin van der Sar at Manchester United for two and a half years. The penalty save in Moscow,
Van der Sar is completely equal to Schmeichel."
Manchester United's official website praised Van der Sar as a "super goalkeeper" and believed that the Dutch goalkeeper is physically capable of playing for another year.
This season, Van der Sar has kept 12 clean sheets in the Premier League. In the past three seasons, when Van der Sar played for Manchester United, the Red Devils averaged the lowest conceding rate per game and even kept more clean sheets. This season
, when Van der Sar comes on
, Manchester United's average conceding rate per game is only 0.8; when he fails to play, Manchester United's average conceding rate reaches 1.2. In the past 14 games in which Van der Sar has played, Manchester United has only conceded 7 goals, averaging 0.5 goals per game.
And kept 8 clean sheets.
Such a super goalkeeper's decision to leave the Red Devils this summer is definitely sad news for tens of millions of Manchester United fans around the world.
At the same time, the fourth round of the FA Cup will also begin.
Manchester United defeated Southampton 2-1 without any danger. After the crazy reversal of three goals in the previous game, the Red Devils once again showed their magic in this campaign and once again launched a reversal battle.
"Little Pea" scored in two consecutive games and became the spokesperson for Manchester United's comeback. Gibson, who rarely got the opportunity to start consecutive games, continued his poor performance. The Irish youngster who once had high hopes from Ferguson failed to seize the generosity of Sir Alex Ferguson.
Given the redemption opportunity, his appearance made the team habitually passive in the first half - using the conceded goal to build a platform for the team to stage a comeback. Gibson achieved the beauty of Manchester United's "Reversal King" from another level.
name.
Gibson appeared in the right midfield position in this game, and Chamberlain, the super rookie that Manchester United is focusing on, is also frequently active on Manchester United's right wing. This gives Gibson many opportunities to have direct conversations with Chamberlain.
As a result, Gibson, who has played for Manchester United for four seasons, actually looked as immature as a rookie in front of a 17-year-old football prodigy.
In the 13th minute, Gibson received a direct pass from O'Shea and was about to break through. As a result, Chamberlain rushed in from the side and destroyed the ball at Gibson's feet with a precise sliding tackle. In the first head-to-head confrontation between the two sides, Gibson used his feet slowly.
His weaknesses are clearly exposed.
In turn, Chamberlain's breakthrough on the left left Gibson helpless. In the 44th minute, Chamberlain used his speed to rush from the left to the penalty area and score the ball. Gibson chased behind him in a panic, and Chamberlain made continuous changes on the way.
Even though Gibson was trying to get away from the action, Gibson was still chasing further and further away. For Manchester United's majestic main midfielder to be reduced to such a situation, it really shamed the red shirt that carries the great history.
In addition to being completely defeated in the direct dialogue with Chamberlain, Gibson also squandered the offensive opportunities created by his teammates many times.
In the 33rd minute, Fabio created a free kick on the left side of the penalty area. Gibson, who is considered to be top-notch in long-range shooting skills among Manchester United midfielders, made a mistake like an amateur player - he did not kick the ball at all.
Being so close to the goal, professional players often make such low-level mistakes only when their physical strength is severely exhausted. Gibson's "out of the world" kick can probably only be attributed to his absolutely solid basic skills.
A minute later, Gibson once again wasted Manchester United's excellent offensive opportunity. He received a pass from his teammate in front of the penalty area and got a shooting opportunity without being marked. This was supposed to be a demonstration of his proud shooting foot. This was a good opportunity for France, and it was even possible that he could redeem himself for his poor performance in the previous game. However, Gibson made many adjustments in succession due to instability in stopping the ball. As a result, he waited until the defensive player reached the ball before completing the shot. The ball was blocked by the defensive player without any suspense.
Unable to bear it, Ferguson replaced Gibson with veteran Ryan Giggs in the 58th minute. This was the second consecutive game in which Giggs replaced Gibson.
After Gibson came off the field, he shook his head dully on the bench, as if he had a premonition that his end at Manchester United was approaching.
Like the previous game, this substitution once again became a turning point in the game. After Giggs came on the field, Manchester United's offense immediately improved and the reversal was completed as a matter of course.
Giggs, who only had a chance to perform for 32 minutes, provided key assists to Hernandez in two consecutive games. This not only earned him the reputation of "Little Pea" as a key player, but also strongly contrasted Gibson's mediocrity.
Take a look at the naked comparison between the two in opta's post-match statistics.
In 58 minutes, Gibson made no contribution on the offensive end except for a non-threatening cross and two wild shots; and he is known for his tough style of play and only had one counterattack and one on the defensive end. Rescue.
In 32 minutes, Giggs sent 2 threatening balls, made 3 crosses, did not shoot a single shot, and performed an astonishing 3 counterattacks on the defensive end.
According to "Sky Sports" fan ratings one hour after the game, Gibson only scored a pitiful 3.9 points, the lowest in the game. This is also the second consecutive game for the unlucky Irishman to be ranked as "Mr. Worst".
Giggs' score was as high as 7.6 points, almost twice as high as Gibson's. Players on the same team scored such a disparity, which is very rare in the rating history of "Sky Sports".
In addition to Gibson, the performance of Manchester United's other "star of hope" Evans was also lackluster. It was his defensive mistakes that led to Southampton's wonderful goal.
In the 45th minute, Southampton's Chapleau, who was on loan from Preston, intercepted Manchester United's clearance ball on the right side of the penalty area. He suddenly started to easily get rid of Evans who rushed forward and shot the ball in the air. The bullet roared like a cannonball and hit the upper right blind spot. The moment Chapleau took off, Evans was already thrown 5 meters away. In fact, after being successfully broken through by Chapleau, Evans began to slow down. He has obviously given up resistance. This mental state is extremely inconsistent with Manchester United's never-give-up team spirit.
Evans was once regarded by Ferguson as a defensive super rookie with the same potential as Pique. However, while Pique has grown into a world-class defender, the 22-year-old Evans has lost his aura and has become a mere A mediocre central defender.
In this campaign, Evans' poor defensive skills and poor defensive awareness were amplified in front of the weak team. If it weren't for O'Shea's active replacement, Evans would have been beaten by the opponent's attacks.
More importantly, Evans has not shown any talent to grow into an excellent central defender. In addition to the poor performance that caused the goal to be conceded, Evans also made many amateur defensive moves. No. 37
Minutes later, a Southampton player made a big-footed clearance in the penalty area. Evans was fighting for the top near the center circle and used a very obvious elbow push to knock the opponent down. As a defender of a wealthy team, such a lack of technical content
The little defensive moves can only be described as childish.
The fan rating of "Sky Sports" gave Evans a low score of 5.1, which was only higher than "Mr. Nanguo" Gibson and was the second worst score in the game.
Looking back at the few appearances Evans has made this season, he can only be reduced to such a buffoon almost every time.
From the low-level false start in the 3-3 draw with Everton, to the perfect return pass in the 1-0 victory over Rangers, to the only stain in the 7-1 victory over Blackburn, and the embarrassing 0-4 defeat to West Ham
Unbearable, Evans has become the chief disaster star of Manchester United's defense.
"Evans is a player with outstanding technical ability and psychological quality. He represents the future of the team's defense." Evans, who was once given such an evaluation by Sir Alex Ferguson, is obviously no longer able to carry the job that has been seriously criticized.
Overrated reputation.
The 37-year-old Giggs has renewed his contract. Manchester United's major overhaul to welcome the "New Red Devils Dynasty" seems to have turned the gun. Those veterans whose competitive status is not inferior to that of their peak years are regarded as valuable assets of the team and are valued again.
The clean-up targets were instead directed to people like Gibson and Evans.
Such mediocre talents have proven to be embarrassingly useful. Even if they have an age advantage and were once considered to "represent the future of the team," it is absolutely impossible for Manchester United to revive players whose abilities are completely unworthy of wearing the Red Devils jersey.
hope is pinned on them.
A few years later, they did not have the chance to leave their names in Ferguson's magnificent Manchester United epic. If they did, the footnote could only be: a rare failure in Ferguson's discerning coaching career.
The games in January have all ended. Manchester United's killer Li Yu will also return to the team. Li Yu, who returns with the style of the king of Asia, is bound to set off a scoring trend again, so Manchester United's road to championship will undoubtedly add a lot.
Less combat power.
In the current ups and downs of Rooney, Li Yu is the most secure person. Ferguson has been impatient for a long time. Now that the Asian Cup has finally come to an end, Li Yu rushed back in a hurry. It must be said that this is a sign of Ferguson's impatience.
The Chinese New Year has arrived, but in the game on February 2, Chinese fans still could not see Li Yu. In the game against Aston Villa, Ferguson did not let Li Yu enter the squad and let the main striker
Taking a break is also a helpless move for Ferguson.
Running around like this and playing in a hurry is a very dangerous thing for the players. To be on the safe side, let Li Yu rest this round and adjust his physical condition. There will be games waiting for Li Yu to appear!
With Rooney's two goals and an assist, Manchester United easily defeated Villa 3-1 at Old Trafford and won 9 consecutive home league victories. After the game, coach Ferguson was full of praise for Rooney. Before this game,
Rooney has only scored 3 goals for Manchester United in all competitions this season, but it seems that after this game, Rooney has gradually returned to his best form.
In an interview with "Sky Sports", Ferguson said: "I'm absolutely delighted, a great performance! Our performance today was fantastic. I'm very happy. We played brilliantly. Villa are a good team.
As a team, when they have the ball, we have to stay very focused because they have good ball possession."
"Van der Sar's vision was so good, great pass! Rooney felt great today and everyone should remember tonight, he finally got his due. We missed some chances today and theirs
The goalkeeper made two or three really fantastic saves and I thought we deserved to win more."
"If we keep winning, we can't lose the final championship. Our goal is to keep this momentum and maintain the same work rate as we did tonight against Villa, and hopefully we can get what we want in the end."
Before Manchester United's game against Aston Villa, even the most optimistic Red Devils fans did not expect that the team would start so smoothly. Rooney opened the game with a Batistuta-style goal in just 49 seconds.
The team opened the door to victory, and the person who sent Rui Costa's precise long pass was not Nani, Giggs and other "passing masters", but the 40-year-old veteran goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar.
At that time, Manchester United won a free kick in the backcourt. Vidic stood in front of the ball and was about to take the penalty. Van der Sar suddenly saw Rooney who was advancing and quickly shouted to Vidic. The Manchester United captain stepped aside knowingly. Van der Sar
He hit the horse and hit a long pass that ran nearly 70 meters in front of Rooney. Rooney stopped the ball comfortably and leaned against Dunn, who was pressing closely. Then he volleyed with his right foot and the ball roared into the air.
After entering the back corner of the goal, Ferdinand immediately rushed to Van der Sar excitedly and celebrated this typical assist with his old partner by head-to-head.
In fact, Van der Sar's passing skills have always been underestimated, especially compared with Manchester United's previous legendary goalkeeper Schmeichel. The Dutchman's low-key and steady style is highly deceptive. Former Danish national team
The captain is world-famous for his roaring backcourt command and ultra-accurate back-throwing to initiate fast breaks, but the introverted Van der Sar is not inferior in these two skills. This assist for Rooney is
Van der Sar's overall view and precise footwork were fully demonstrated, and this was just the beginning of Van der Sar's outstanding performance throughout the game.
In the 17th minute of the game, Van der Sar once again used his long pass skills. Under the pressure of the opponent's players, Van der Sar's big foot was comfortably sent to the feet of Evra near the midline. In the third minute of stoppage time in the second half, Van der Sar
Sa launched another counterattack with a hand-thrown ball that crossed the half-court, and the ball accurately found Nani on the right like a cruise guide.
Manchester United center back Ferdinand, who is known for his delicate footwork, once lamented that Van der Sar's footwork is outstanding, even better than many of his teammates who are not goalkeepers. In this game, Van der Sar's wonderful performance fully proved that his teammates' praise was no lie. More
The important thing is that Van der Sar's left and right feet are very balanced. When faced with an opponent's pressing, there will be no embarrassing scene of the weak foot rushing to release the ball. Compared with Cesar, Senna and other players who have excellent footwork but rely too much on their dominant foot.
For South American goalkeepers, this characteristic of Van der Sar is even more valuable. All things considered, Van der Sar can even be called the goalkeeper with the best footwork in the world.
In addition to passing the ball on behalf of others, Van der Sar also completed his job perfectly. Opta's post-match statistics show that Van der Sar made 3 rescues and 4 successful attacks.
Friedel, who performed brilliantly on the side, acted as his opponent and became a bright sight in the game. It is worth mentioning that compared to Friedel's 7 rescues, which were more entertaining, Van der Sar's performance was more masterful.
