Premier League: Robin van Persie deflated by Sir Alex Fergsuon departure as Manchester United boss

The 31-year-old striker admitted one of the main reasons behind his decision to quit Arsenal for the North West was to work with the legendary manager.

"We were once 18 points clear of City but we lost at home 2-1. We were still 15 points ahead but he was furious. Then I realised: he's a winner."

Van Persie on Ferguson

Van Persie, who signed for the Old Trafford club for a fee of £22.5million in 2012, was a Premier League winner in his first season scoring an impressive 35 goals in 53 appearances.

Premier League: Marouane Fellaini says he felt like scapegoat at Manchester United last season

The 26-year-old says the support of his family plus his determination and success with Belgium helped him maintain his mental strength even when things were going badly for him and the club.
Fellaini was former United boss David Moyes' only signing of the 2013 summer transfer window when he arrived at Old Trafford for £27.5million from Everton.
He did not score a goal in his first season at the club and failed to discover the form he had shown under Moyes at Everton, but he has found his feet under Louis van Gaal this term with some impressive performances.

"I didn't lose faith in myself. In football you have to be strong in the head. The mentality is important and I do have this quality so I can keep going." Marouane Fellaini

Asked if felt he was made a scapegoat last season, Fellaini said: "Yes a little bit. That is a difficult question. It is difficult to answer that.

England captain Wayne Rooney desperate to win trophies

The Manchester United striker is understandably in reflective mood this week as he gets set to become just the ninth England player to reach 100 caps on Saturday when he leads the team out for their European Qualifier against Slovenia at Wembley.
Of the eight names currently on the list, only Sir Bobby Charlton and Bobby Moore have got their hands on an international trophy, the World Cup on home soil 48 years ago.
Rooney has won five Premier Leagues but is yet to win anything with England in five major tournaments over 11 years and said: "To get 100 caps for England, there's not many players who have done it, would be a great achievement. I'll be proud to join that club and is something that myself and my family would be honoured by.

Premier League: Manchester United's Michael Carrick hopes to sign new contract

Carrick pulled out of England's squad for the double-header against Slovenia and Scotland after suffering a groin injury in training.
The 33-year-old will start his rehabilitation at Carrington later this week and United boss Louis van Gaal will aim to have Carrick fully fit by the time his team take on Arsenal a week on Sunday.
Carrick has only played twice for Van Gaal because of an ankle injury he suffered just before the Dutchman took over.
But he is more than happy with life under the former Ajax coach and he is keen to extend his contract, which expires next summer.
"My contract is up at the end of the season. I want to stay, of course. I've got nowhere else to go." said Carrick, who has been at Old Trafford for eight years.
Carrick confirmed talks over a new deal with United have yet to begin, but the former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder is not concerned.

FIFA Finally Votes to Bar 3rd-Party Trades

FIFA imposed a gag of silence last week upon members of its own executive committee. Those who had called in the media for disclosure of a report into allegations of bribes for votes relating to the next two World Cups — to he held in Russia and Qatar — were reminded by president Sepp Blatter that “the principle of confidentiality” must be respected.

Adidas Plans to Buy Back Up to $1.9 Billion in Shares

Adidas, the German sportswear giant, said on Wednesday that it would return as much as 1.5 billion euros, or about $1.9 billion, to shareholders over the next three years, primarily by buying back its shares.

The company also said it remained committed to paying an annual dividend to shareholders equal to 20 to 40 percent of its net income.

“We believe that our shares are currently significantly undervalued and this provides an excellent opportunity to optimize the company’s cost of capital, deploy cash and create further value for our shareholders,” Robin J. Stalker, the company’s chief financial officer, said in a statement.

Replacing Alex Ferguson Proves Tough

This is a Champions League week in Europe, but the United brand is missing from the tournament. Worse, the team had to fill the Monday night television slot reserved as a warm-up for the bigger shows to come.

Alas, United cannot even win before the national cameras. Having spent almost $300 million on big-name players during the summer transfer window, it scrambled to a 2-2 tie at West Bromwich Albion, needing a late goal to even achieve that.

Woe is United. Its sponsorship contracts with Chevrolet and Adidas are among the richest in the game, yet it plays right now in the shadows of where it needs to be.

Manchester United is owned by an American family, the Glazers, and its shares are floated on the New York Stock Exchange. The laws of finance and sports may not be far removed from each other: What goes up can go down.

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RVP deflated by Sir Alex loss

Robin van Persie admits the departure of Sir Alex Fergsuon as manager of Manchester United had a profound effect on his form.

The 31-year-old striker admitted one of the main reasons behind his decision to quit Arsenal for the North West was to work with the legendary manager.
Van Persie, who signed for the Old Trafford club for a fee of £22.5million in 2012, was a Premier League winner in his first season scoring an impressive 35 goals in 53 appearances.
"My decision to come to Manchester was partly because of the presence of Ferguson, or excuse me, Sir Alex," Van Persie said. "And he told me he’d stay for another three years. I enjoyed his approach.
"We were once 18 points clear of City but we lost at home 2-1. We were still 15 points ahead but he was furious. Then I realised: he's a winner."