FORMER MAN UNITED STAR SHARPE SAYS CURRENT BOSS VAN GAAL MUST TAKE RISKS

Former winger keen to show what United were like, says current side need more adventurous approach.

In his heyday, Lee Sharpe was a flying winger for the Manchester United side that conquered all before them in the early to mid-1990s.

On Saturday, the 44-year-old will show glimpses of that superb form when he lines up for United's Masters team as they clash with their Liverpool counterparts in The Castlewood Group Battle Of The Reds 2015 at the National Stadium.

Sharpe (left), who will be reunited with former teammates like Paul Parker and Andrei Kanchelskis, had a memorable eight-year spell at Old Trafford under Alex Ferguson, winning three Premier League titles and two FA Cups, among other silverware.

Apart from substance, he also knows a thing or two about style and is often recognised as United's first "pop star footballer", even before Ryan Giggs and David Beckham came into the picture.

While Sharpe and his former colleagues will be looking to turn back the years and thrill the fans, the same cannot be said of the current United side, who have been criticised for failing to excite in the manner their fans are so used to.

Sharpe is sympathetic of the situation United manager Louis van Gaal finds himself in, although he would like to see a more adventurous approach similar to days of old.

"At the end of the day, it's the manager's job on the line so I think he has to play it in the way he feels best," he told the New Paper in a one-on-one interview yesterday.

"Every United fan has been brought up on entertaining football, but many teams that have decided to play football ended up getting relegated.

"It's a fine balancing act and it's a difficult one to call because I'm certain they'll finish inside the top four this season, and if they win the league playing this way then not many people can argue with that.

"But, for me, United have always had a lot of goal attempts, and crosses into the box, and keeping teams camped inside their own penalty box.

"Sir Alex used to say you have to take risks to win football matches, and I would just like to see him (van Gaal) take a few more risks."

Another player under fire has been captain Wayne Rooney, with many questioning if he is still the same player he once was.

Although Sharpe believes van Gaal's tactics are not doing the United skipper any favours, he feels a change in position could just be what is needed to reignite Rooney's fortunes.

The ex-England international said: "Because United's game is so slow, Wayne Rooney is a lot easier to mark.

"When it's quicker, he can find space and find others with his passing and create more, but the way the manager is playing isn't helping.

"Also, I don't know what it is but it seems like the basics are just not going right for him at the moment.

"His first touch, simple 10-metre passes, he's giving the ball away cheaply and he never used to.

"Maybe it's time for a change and perhaps play him in central midfield.

"But you never lose talent and he's still got it. It's about whether the manager can get it out of him."

Old boys from Liverpool and Man United say their rivalry is special

READY TO RUMBLE: (From far left) Former Manchester United defender Paul Parker, CEO of Masters Football Asia Steve Black, former United winger Andrei Kanchelskis, ex-Liverpool striker Ian Rush, CEO of Castlewood Group Chris Comer and ex-Liverpool goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek with the jerseys the teams will be wearing on Saturday.

When talk of a "39th game" in the English Premier League first came up - a regular-season round with points on the line but played on foreign soil - it generated tremendous chatter both in England and much of the rest of the world.

With the global market such a massive part of its audience, the Premier League was well aware that such a concept could prove a huge success and generate even bigger profits.

With more detractors than supporters, the proposal has been shelved, and the prospect of catching Louis van Gaal's Manchester United taking on Juergen Klopp's Liverpool at the National Stadium in Kallang will almost certainly never happen.

But the fans of the two most famous teams can enjoy the next best thing on Saturday at The Castlewood Group Battle Of The Reds 2015, when the Liverpool and Manchester United Masters teams lock horns at the 55,000-capacity arena at the Singapore Sports Hub.

Headlining the team from Anfield is captain Ian Rush, while famous names like Robbie Fowler, Steve McManaman and Luis Garcia will also be on show. For United, the likes of Andrei Kanchelskis, Lee Sharpe and Louis Saha will all be lacing up their boots once again alongside skipper Paul Parker.

With a star parade on display, Rush is expecting the fans to be given their money's worth, even if the players are a greyer vintage.

"I'm really looking forward to it," said the legendary former Welsh striker.

"Every time against Manchester United is always exciting, even more so in these parts of the world when you see the kind of support we get.

DETERMINATION

"We've got some great players here and I'm expecting goals, we're here to entertain the supporters and we want to win the game."

There was plenty of good spirit at the introductory press conference at the Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel yesterday, with smiles and handshakes all around as the players caught up with one another.

But, there was still a clear divide.

According to former England right back Parker, some things - like the United-Liverpool rivalry - never change.

"Now that we're all retired, there's a lot of us working together and there's definitely a lot of socialising," he explained.

"But one thing we know is that, when the game kicks off, it's going to be about egos.

"You don't want to be making a mistake, you don't want to be losing to your arch-rivals. Even at this level, you'll give everything to try and win, be it that extra bit of air in your lungs or that extra strength in your legs. You go just that bit further to win the game."

In goal for Liverpool will be ex-Poland international Jerzy Dudek, who was part of the famous Reds side that came from three goals down and beat AC Milan on penalties in the Champions League final in 2005.

While Saturday's game is unlikely to produce similar scenes from the Miracle of Istanbul, the 42-year-old believes there will still be plenty of passion in the stands.

Dudek said: "I played in this event for the first team two years ago and I was surprised to see so many people.

"Even at the airport or in the hotel, there were so many supporters and, whenever we play against Man United, everyone is interested.

"It will be nice to play in a full stadium and we'll be looking to provide some good entertainment."

- GABRIEL TAN

Every time against Manchester United is always exciting, even more so in these parts of the world when you see the kind of support we get. 

- ,Liverpool legend Ian Rush on the Castlewood Group Battle Of The Reds match

Kanchelskis: Giggs would do a better job than Van Gaal

Former Manchester United winger Andrei Kanchelskis has moved to clarify comments he made about the team's tactics under Louis van Gaal, while expressing his belief assistant manager Ryan Giggs should take over the top job.

Earlier this month, Kanchelskis was quoted by a number of media outlets as saying the current Red Devils' team "play like robots".

Speaking at a press conference ahead of The Castlewood Group Battle of the Reds in Singapore this week, an event that pits former Liverpool and Manchester United players against each other at the Sports Hub, the 46-year-old was keen to explain his point of view.

"I never said Manchester United played like robots, the newspapers printed that," Kanchelskis told FourFourTwo. "[I just think] we don't play like we used to anymore. We need more aggression and more passing.

"I don't like van Gaal's system and I don't understand it because when he sets his team out to play that way, there's no improvisation at all.

"When I was playing, you had so many creative players like Ryan Giggs, Eric Cantona, Mark Hughes and even Roy Keane.

"Now when United play, there's only one way down the field and no improvisation or variety whatsoever."

The Ukranian-born Russian international spent four full seasons at Old Trafford, top-scoring in 1994-95 with 15 goals in 32 games.

While at the club he played alongside wingers like Giggs and Lee Sharpe and was ultimately replaced by a young David Beckham, leaving for Everton in 1995.

"I understand that van Gaal is under a lot of pressure and results are what he's looking at," he said. "But while we used to watch creative, attacking football and passing, now it's very predictable.

"When you look at the Manchester United team now and compare it to the teams from before, it's not a great look.

"It's not my decision to make, it's up to van Gaal, but I say again that we need more creative play from our wingers. There aren't many wingers now and not too many crosses.

"We used to have Becks, Giggsy and Sharpey putting in so many crosses and it was great service for the forwards. If there is no service, you won't get any chances at goal."

Kanchelskis feels that the problem lies solely at Van Gaal's feet and revealed that he had never been a fan of the veteran coach.

"Fans love aggressive football and improvisation on the ground, like we saw under Sir Alex Ferguson," he said. "Van Gaal is not the right coach for Manchester United.

"In my opinion, they would be better off looking for a new coach, someone creative with more passion for the game.

"Why not Ryan Giggs? He's younger, he's played more than 20 years at Manchester United and he should be given a chance.

"He understands the English mentality which van Gaal might not get given he's come from a different system."

Catch Andrei Kanchelskis and the Manchester United legends as they take on the Liverpool legends live on ELEVEN (Singtel TV Channel 109) from 6pm to 8pm on Saturday, November 14. 

The Castlewood Group Battle of the Reds Tour is not officially endorsed by Manchester United Football Club or Liverpool Football Club.

MLS RUMORS: David Beckham Recruiting Wayne Rooney For MLS Miami Club

David Beckham is working his English connection with Wayne Rooney to make him his first signing in MLS.

Wayne Rooney is being targeted by David Beckham for his Miami MLS team, according to the Daily Star. Beckham has run into a few snags for his MLS club, but it sounds like a stadium deal is almost done, which means the players are next up.

The move for Rooney would take place after his contract with Manchester United expires in 2019, barring a massive drop in production,according to Sportings News.

Rooney is 29 and just broke the England goalscoring record with his 50th goal last week. There is plenty of life left in the Englishman, but by the time he were to make the possible jump to Beckham's club, he would be 34 and not nearly as productive as he is now or will be over the next two to three seasons. 

MLS continues to get a bad reputation for being a "retirement" league and in some ways that statement is very true. The likes of Frank Lampard, Andrea Pirlo and Steven Gerrard that recently came over to play make anyone's argument about the "old" league valid. While the league is still run by many young and talented players, the amount of older Europeans coming over is something of a concern for the league that want's to become a world power in the near future. 

If Rooney does make the trip over to Miami in 2019, he will make for some great headlines, but his presence won't help win a club any championships. 

Next David Beckham?! Harper Seven tells Victoria Beckham ‘Mummy, I want to play football’

Victoria Beckham has revealed that we are very likely to catch Harper Seven taking after her dad on the football pitch...

With New York Fashion Week currently hitting the ground (and our future bank balances) running, it’s safe to say Victoria Beckham and her fancy, fancy clothes are more than in their element.

A recent interview with the 41-year-old mum, however, has revealed that Fashion Week might just catch lil’ miss Harper Seven rocking up in none other than her footie boots- probably getting mud all over the catwalks whilst annoyed and well dressed people bellow things like ‘soooooo last season’…

And this is all because Harper wants to be a football player!

An interview with ABC news saw Victoria despair of her four kids, who won’t stop playing football in the house.

When asked if she can see 4-year-old Harper perusing a career in footie, Vics replies ‘she loves fashion, as every little girl does… but she loves sport, she’s a little tomboy. She said to me the other day ‘Mummy I think I want to play football’… dagger to my heart’.

Considering the English Women’s football team already gifted Harper with very her own personalised football kit back in June, it looks like the gal’s got prospects!

It is at this point that we would suggest Vics is regretting the day she married David Beckham, but c’mon- would ANYONE regret marrying Becks?! Even your own cat would roll out the ‘I do’s’ without any qualms…

Victoria also touched on the secret Beckham recipe to making stonking good children, telling ABC  ‘we’ve always been strict with the children’.

She continued, ‘they have great manners and they always say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ and I think that’s very important’, adding ‘at the same time, they’re still fun and they run around the house and they’re crazy and they’re singing and they’re dancing and they’re kicking footballs around…which I don’t allow them to do but that seems to be one area that I can’t discipline them in’.

Vics also added that she was ‘so proud’ of the eldest in her brood, 16-year-old Brooklyn, having topped off a very successful year in passing all his GCSE’s with a cover for UK’s Miss Vogue magazine.

We won’t lie Vics, with a family like that we don’t think you should be sweating anything at all. Except, you know, why your DNA appears to be superhuman…

David Beckham optimistic of progress on Miami MLS franchise

David Beckham says Miami deserves its own MLS franchise

David Beckham is hopeful of making progress in the next two months in his bid to establish an MLS franchise in Miami.

Beckham's stay in MLS with the Los Angeles Galaxy brought him an option to purchase an expansion team at a reduced price and he selected Miami as his market, only to find trouble over a stadium site.

The Miami Beckham United group, which also includes 'American Idol' creator Simon Fuller, has been exploring stadium options for a while and saw an earlier downtown waterfront site blocked by local business interests.

Miami mayor Tomas Regalado said in July the group were planning to build a stadium near the Miami Marlins baseball ground.

The site, which is near the downtown part of the city, had previously been rejected as a possible base for the franchise, which was announced last year.

"It's been frustrating over the last year and a half with the announcement first and then we had a couple of difficult times, which we knew would happen at some point because you can't everything smooth sailing," Beckham told Sky Sports News HQ.

"But everyone in Miami is excited about us bringing a team there. We are getting closer. 

"There is a lot of positivity around the city and I've always said that Miami is a place that is going to love a team. They need a team and want a team. 

"I think the fans are excited and hopefully in the next couple of months we'll be able to make an announcement."

David Beckham backs Ryan Giggs as next Manchester United manager

Former Man Utd midfielder David Beckham says he hopes his ex-teammate Ryan Giggs will be the club's next manager.

David Beckham hopes Ryan Giggs will be Manchester United's next manager.

Giggs had four games as United boss at the end of the 2013/14 season after David Moyes was sacked.

And he stayed at the club following Louis van Gaal's appointment to work as the Dutchman's assistant after retiring as a player.

Van Gaal's contract is due to expire in 2017. And Beckham has backed his former team-mate Giggs as the perfect man for the job.

Beckham said: "To be a player who has represented one club through his career, that doesn't happen anymore. For a player to have represented his club and his country the way he has and now.

"At some point, he will hopefully become United manager in the future."

The great dummy debate: Are the Beckhams right to let Harper hang onto her soother?

The Beckhams have come under fire for letting their four-year-old daughter Harper hang on to her soother. Virtually nothing divides parents more than the question of whether to use a pacifier

David Beckham is a dummy daddy - or so say furious parenting experts, who are up in arms over photographs of Beckham's daughter Harper sucking a soother. This, they argue, is negligent child-rearing on a par with allowing your toddler play in the traffic.

Adding fuel to the furore is the fact that Harper is all of four years old. Letting your 18-month-old chew on a dummy is one thing. But is it right that a child who may very well be able to feed and dress themselves be mollycoddled - some might call it 'spoiled' - in a similar fashion?

"I can't believe she is still using a dummy," Clare Byam-Cook, author of Breastfeeding Without Tears was quoted as saying. "If she has a dummy in her mouth at this age, at four, it really can damage her teeth and it is very likely to hinder speech development."

When it comes to using a soother, parents tend to either be firmly in the 'for' or 'against' camp. And it's amazing how judgemental parents can be of one another on the issue. But soothers, lest we forget, have been around for hundreds of years, typically fashioned of ivory, coral or bone (in Durer's Madonna with the Siskin from 1506 the infant Christ holds a cloth-tied pacifier).

A backlash began in the late 19th century, with pioneers in pediatric medicine theorising that sucking on machine-tooled rubber (widespread since the mid 1900s) could spell psychological trouble later in life. Anti-soother sentiment had a distinctly sexual undercurrent.

By 1900, a British health leaflet (which would have been circulated in Ireland) went so far as to graphically state that "a baby that has a dummy is like a tiger that has tasted blood".

Read more:

The soother question was even a class issue: their use was regarded as a parenting crutch for the lower orders. Such was the widely held view - albeit with diminished emphasis on tigers and blood slurping - until the early 2000s, at which point researchers discovered soothers had the potential to protect children from sudden infant death syndrome. One theory is that the teat pushes the baby's tongue forward, keeping open the oral pathway and preventing the child from asphyxiating.

In light of this breakthrough, medically-received wisdom has shifted. The prestigious Mayo Clinic, for instance, suggests soothers can help a baby sleep, offer comfort to a fussy child and provide useful distraction during a traumatic incident - such as receiving an injection.

But the clinic is also at pains to highlight the downside - pointing out that early pacifier use may interfere with breastfeeding (many parents will treat such assertions with incredulity).

"Soothers are only for nap-time - in other words, for when the child is going to sleep," says midwife Margaret Merrigan-Feenan. "Really, you should start weaning them off probably at the age of two."

Using soothers outside of nap-time, she adds, can potentially inhibit speech development or cause dermatitis, if the baby dribbles when the soother is in the mouth.

"We don't recommend soothers in the first couple of weeks because of breast-feeding - there can be nipple and teat confusion," she says.

In the case of my three children, our five-year-old was weaned off a soother by two and a half. He was not entirely thrilled by the enforced parting - the best strategy, we found, was to distract him with new bed-time rituals (such having a story read or being permitted to watch several minutes of In The Night Garden).

With our two-year-old twins, the campaign for a soother-free household is ongoing, with the dummies largely confined to bed-time, though our little girl does still occasionally call for hers on a car journey. In a moment of weakness I will occasionally give into her demands, for which I'm sure I should feel guiltier than I do.

Whatever the pros and cons, one fascinating element of the story is that it is David rather than Victoria Beckham who has becoming embroiled in a parenting debate. The former England soccer captain has lately been playing the role of stay-at-home dad, but nonetheless, it's rare that dads are seen tackling such parenting issues head on.

Should we regard it is a positive that this time, it's dad in the firing line? I believe there are positives to be taken from the furore.

Beckham truly is pushing back boundaries and making the house dad acceptable. I have experienced first hand this shift in attitudes and the healthy development in represents. Nowadays, when I take my kids to the park or our local soft play area I am mostly surrounded by other fathers. A generation ago, mothers would have been in the majority, the dads off in the pub or plonked in front of a television. The mood has definitely changed - and Beckham can surely take a bow for having done his bit.

Dummy-gate may rumble on for some time yet. But if there is to be a last word, perhaps it should go to Beckham, who responded to the charges of rubbish dad-dom with dignity.

"Everybody who has children knows that when they aren't feeling well or have a fever you do what comforts them best and most of the time it's a pacifier," he wrote on his Instagram account. "Those who criticize think twice about what you say about other people's children because actually you have no right to criticize me as a parent."

Irish Independent.

David Beckham defends daughter Harper’s pacifier against critics

David Beckham scored a goal for parents Monday, striking back against all the critics who tell us they know how to parent our children better than we do.

Beckham, known as much for his physique and his wife Victoria as his incredible soccer career, was reacting to a Daily Mail story criticizing his daughter’s use of a pacifier (a “dummy” in U.K. parlance) at age 4.

“Experts warn David and Victoria Beckham’s little girl may end up with ‘speech or dental issues’ if she continues to use one,” warned Sunday’s edition, posting a picture of Harper in West Hollywood with her famous father.

Beckham wasn’t having any of it, posting a scathing response and reasoning for Harper using the “dummy” on his Instagram account on Monday.

“Why do people feel they have the right to criticize a parent about their own children without having any facts ??” he wrote.

“Everybody who has children knows that when they aren’t feeling well or have a fever you do what comforts them best and most of the time it’s a pacifier so those who criticize think twice about what you say about other people’s children because actually you have no right to criticize me as a parent …”

There isn’t a parent alive today who hasn’t been corrected about their parenting by complete strangers who would never otherwise interfere in an adult’s life.

It’s true that the American Academy of Pediatrics warns against a child sucking strongly on a pacifier, thumb or fingers after two to four years of age. “This behavior may affect the shape of his mouth or how his teeth are lining up.”

But there’s no way for critics to know if a child is having a hard day and the parent grabbed the one thing that he knew would soothe his child. Or maybe the parent was having a hard day—yes, even superhuman David Beckham, looking all hunky in West Hollywood in his Pink Floyd T-shirt, might be having a tough time.

We parents get criticized for looking at our phones while our children are on the playground or helping too much while our children are on the playground, not dressing them warmly enough or dressing them too warmly, asking people to be quiet when they nap or letting them nap too long, or not forcing them to hug people they don’t want to hug (my personal favorite).

The list is endless, and people seem to think they have the right to comment anytime.

Unless that child is being verbally abused, beaten, locked up in a hot car or otherwise traumatized, my advice is: First ask yourself if it’s your business to comment on a situation about which you have no background.

I can still remember how exhausted I was the day an employee at the local mail store criticized my baby’s pacifier. I was so tired and stunned at his interference that I didn’t know what to say. But I did know what to do.

I left that store and spent my money elsewhere.

Manchester United legend Denis Irwin hails United signing as next David Beckham

MANCHESTER UNITED legend Denis Irwin believes new signing Memphis Depay could be a massive hit at Old Trafford.

He's gone as far as to say he could match David Beckham with his free-kick ability. No pressure then.

The 21-year-old completed a a £25million move from PSV Eindhoven this summer and has already been impressing in United's pre-season preparations including scoring in their 3-1 win over San Jose Earthquakes.

Depay is well-known as a dead-ball specialist and Irwin, who spent 12 years at United, believes he could be the new Beckham. "I think Memphis could match Becks in that sense," he told ManUtd.com.

"I saw him score a few goals last year for PSV and I think he will be a big addition to our team.

"It's still early days yet, but there’s no doubt that he has a lot of talent. He brings that unpredictability and we don’t possess too many players like that.

David Beckham played for Manchester United between 1992 and 2003 and was a free-kick specialist

"His records will tell you that, even though he’s young, he’s a goalscorer as well, having scored 28 goals last year in Holland.

"We’ve already seen how good he is at finishing, so I think he’ll become a big player for us even though he’s young."

United begin their campaign at home to Tottenham on Aug 8.

Memphis Depay can be as good as David Beckham, believes Denis Irwin

David Beckham surprises family with a check for $100,000

 David Beckham made a special delivery to a family in need on the first episode of Fox’s Knock Knock: Live, showing up at the Gonzalez family home with a check for $100,000 and seven new iPhones that are pre-paid for the next 10 years. Their reaction when David Beckham is standing on their doorstep is amazing.

Steven Gerrard is better than David Beckham - according to America's paparazzi

When it comes to living in Los Angeles, one vital group of opinion-makers have already had their say on two of England's finest footballers.

Liverpool fans love him, Man United fans hate him, other football fans respect him, and the general public know he's that guy who's really good at football.

Over in Los Angeles, things are a little different. And as you can see in the video above, Stevie G is still getting used to the biggest difference: the Californian paparazzi.

The clip shows LA Galaxy's latest recruit surrounded by a sea of photographers and flashing lightbulbs - simply because he's gone out for dinner.

It's all a bit new to the Liverpool legend, who admits that he's not used to it, even asking the snappers if they have any tips for him. Their response is very interesting.

"Just don't be like Beckham, please".

"Grrr…"

Now, we can't imagine David Beckham is terribly fussed about the opinions of the photographers who follow his every move on a daily basis.

But take a look at the reactions of Becks and Gerrard to being snapped, and the difference becomes clear.

Becks: "Oh, for God's sake…"

Stevie G: "Wow - this is amazing…"

Becks: "Here we go again…"

Stevie G: "Is this really all for me?"

David Beckham proudly supports sister Joanne as she launches new company

The two siblings put on a stylish display as they posed alongside each other for pictures

He's such a family man

David Beckham has proved his stripes as a big brother.

The former footballer, who is a known family man, stood by his sister Joanne's side as she launched her new company on Wednesday.

It was a fashionable showing from the siblings, who posed side by side to celebrate the opening of We Are Your City.

David looked typically dapper, donning a dark suit teamed with an open-collared white shirt.

Meanwhile his sister was also managing to live up to the expectations of being a Beckham.

The brunette beauty wore a black off-the-shoulder dress while allowing her long her to fall freely.

Afterwards she shared a picture of the bash on Twitter with her 59,000 followers.

She tweeted: "An amazing night at the launch of my new company @weareyourcity thank you to every1 who came and helped us."

David Beckham and son Romeo at Wimbledon

Becks, who now resides in California, has been making the most of his brief return to the UK.

On Wednesday he nabbed himself a great seat in the crowd to cheer on Andy Murray at Wimbledon.

The dad-of-four wasn't alone for the tennis tournament either, as he was accompanied by son Romeo.

It was a great opportunity for them to wear matching suits.