Source: Team_Talk
Valencia returns to Manchester
Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has said Antonio Valencia has flown to England and will play no part in the club's pre-season tour.[LNB] It was unlikely Valencia would have been involved anyway given he has been on Copa America duty with Ecuador.[LNB]However, a nasty ankle injury sustained in his country's opening match means the winger will play no further part.[LNB]And, whilst he does not believe the problem is serious, Ferguson is taking no chances and has told the player to head back to United's training complex for treatment.[LNB]"Antonio has gone straight back to Manchester," said Ferguson after the 4-1 win over New England Revolution in Boston.[LNB]"He got an injury playing in the first game for Ecuador so he is back in Manchester.[LNB]"It is nothing serious but he wasn't going to be taking part in the rest of Copa America, so there is no point in him coming out here if he is injured.[LNB]"We have the facilities back at Carrington. That is the best place for him."[LNB]It was a long-term ankle injury last season that persuaded Ferguson to head into the transfer market this summer to secure a reinforcement.[LNB]The chosen man, Ashley Young, made his debut in front of 51,000 at the Gillette Stadium, producing a number of decent crosses from his wide role and showing enough signs to suggest he will have no problem settling into his new surroundings.[LNB]"That was his position until last season when they started playing him behind the strikers in a more advanced role, like the way we use Wayne Rooney," said Ferguson.[LNB]"His capabilities are such that he can play at wide left, he can play in behind the strikers and he can play wide right.[LNB]"He showed tonight he's a fantastic crosser of the ball. I think he hit three fantastic crosses in the game, which maybe isn't something we're used to with the way we play.[LNB]"But if we do get used to it then there's goals there. I was very satisfied."[LNB]After a goalless first half, Michael Owen broke the deadlock just after the break.[LNB]Teenage striker Federico Macheda added two more, with Park Ji-sung wrapping up a comfortable win.[LNB]United now head to Seattle for a week-long stay, being joined by chief executive David Gill on Friday.[LNB]Gill was at a European Club Association meeting in Zurich yesterday, which would have provided an opportunity to speak with Inter Milan about the possibility of signing Wesley Sneijder.[LNB]The Old Trafford outfit rejected suggestions Gill had flown on from Switzerland to Milan in an attempt to thrash out a deal.[LNB]There is nevertheless a growing feeling Sneijder is Old Trafford-bound although, with Gill now heading across the Atlantic, any transfer may not be completed for a little while yet.[LNB]
