United in the news

Ferguson plays waiting game in struggle for power at Old Trafford (Daniel Taylor, The Guardian)

One of the more intriguing issues of a potentially long and drawn-out takeover campaign is what Sir Alex Ferguson makes of one of his close allies emerging as the main player... More.

£1.5bn or you can say good Knight! Glazers to stand firm over Manchester United sale (Heath Aston and Chris Wheeler, Daily Mail)

One expert said that it could take a ‘ridiculous’ bid of up to £1.5billion to persuade the Americans to walk away from Old Trafford. More.

Red Knights: 'Glazers will fall like the Berlin Wall in Manchester United takeover' (David Anderson, The Mirror)

The Glazers have been warned by the Red Knights that the revolution is coming. More.

Question and Answer: Can the Red Knights force out the Glazers? (Helen Power, The Times)

The only way to make the Glazers leave Mancherster United is to pay them so much money they would not be able to say no. More.

United kid stars for Northern Ireland U21s (yahoo! UK)

Talented Manchester United midfielder Oliver Norwood steered Northern Ireland U21s to their first victory in their Championship qualifying campaign with a 3-0 win over San Marino. More.

Is Neymar the Real Deal? (soccer 365)

Manchester United have been tracking him since he was 16, and Real Madrid continue to pressure his agent into doing a deal. More.

Gamble on Madrid for under 40 quid

Yes, United must get the better of three potential opponents across five potential games to get there.

And while we don't want to jinx their reds on their way to what would be a third consecutive UEFA Champions League final, we know that, if they make it, flight prices will rocket.

With the help of Red Issue's Cal6899, we have found a way of getting to Madrid for the big match for just £32.48.

Ryanair has two flights from London Stansted to Madrid on Wednesday May 19, leaving at 08:30 and 19:00 and each costing £16.24 one way.

The final this year will be on Saturday May 22 and there are homeward flights with the same airline on the same route on Tuesday May 25 at 06:30 and 17:10 for £16.24 one way.

That's £32.48 in total.

Of course, Ryanair will try to add on lots of charges, so only take hand luggage, don't get Ryanair's insurance or Speedy boarding.

And make sure you pay for the flights via Entropay, which will only charge you peanuts rather than the £10 card charge.

Overall, it shouldn't cost you more than £35 per person.


And remember, you can always cover your losses by betting on United not to reach the final to make it so the stake pays out £35.

So, with betfair, you can bet £8 that United won't reach Madrid and win £38.40.

So either way, you'll lose a maximum of £8.

The alternative is planning a holiday either way.

You could catch a £30 one-way train to Alicante on the day after the match, enjoy Benidorm for a few days and then book an easyJet flight from Alicante to London Luton or to Liverpool for about £25 one way on most days after the final.

Cold and cloudy for Wolves trip

According to the BBC, there won't be any rain (or snow!) when the reds travel to Wolverhampton for a Saturday tea time kick off.

It will be cloudy and cold, with temperatures not climbing above 4C/39F in the daytime, which means it will be more like 1C/33F during the game.

United in the news

Red Knights plan to buy United (Oliver Kay, The Times)

As details emerged of the first tentative meeting between the group of leading City financiers who plan to put together a consortium to buy United, the name of O’Neill, who briefly served as a director at Old Trafford and has strong ties with Ferguson, figured prominently. More.

City bankers line up £1bn bid for Manchester United (Owen Gibson, The Guardian)

The Glazer family, under pressure from fans protesting at their ownership, said United were "not for sale". More.

Jim O’Neill ponders move on Man Utd (Roger Blitz, Financial Times)

The group has taken on Finsbury, the corporate public relations outfit, and believes that it can muster a fund of about £1bn to take the club off the Glazers’ hands. More.

Owen happy as bit-part winner (Tony Barrett, The Times)

Michael Owen has admitted that he would rather be a bit-part player at Manchester United, challenging for football’s biggest prizes, than a first-team regular at a less successful club. More.

Wembley pitch is an utter disgrace, says Villa's Milner (Mark Irwin, The Sun)

"You work as hard as you can to get to a cup final at Wembley and find yourself on one of the worst pitches you've played on all season." More.

Wolves ticket and travel guide

Wolverhampton Wanderers
FA Premier League
Molineux
Saturday, March 6, kick off 17:30

Tickets
Out of a capacity of 28,303 United have got 2,567 tickets in the Steve Bull Stand along the touchline.

They are priced at £38 for adults, £25 for over 65s and £17 for under 16s.

All away end tickets have been sold. So have all home end tickets.

Weather

According to the BBC, there won't be any rain (or snow!) when the reds travel to Wolverhampton for a Saturday tea time kick off.

It will be cloudy and cold, with temperatures not climbing above 4C/39F in the daytime, which means it will be more like 1C/33F during the game.

TV
ESPN and ESPN HD will show the match live. The show starts at 16:45 and ends at 19:45.

Travel

Car - £22
If you're using a satnav or internet routeplanner, use the destination postcode WV1 4QR.

Petrol should be about £11 each way. It's 85 miles one way, which will take you about 90 minutes, providing the infamously slow M6 motorway doesn't back up at any stage.

It's an easy route until the last mile when you will face a glut of annoying roundabouts and inner-city traffic.

Take the M6 to Junction 13 and take the third exit onto the A449. Keep following it straight for 10 miles. You'll go over roundabouts and pass a lot of speed cameras.

When you pass Dunston Park Train Station, you're within walking distance of the ground. But if you want to get nearer, take the third exit at the next roundabout and follow the road down towards Asda, where the ground is.

Parking - free
The ground is so close to the city centre, it's just a case of grabbing whatever spot you can on a Saturday afternoon one one of the city's many car parks.

The adjoining Asda will have no problems with you parking there so long as you spend £5 or so in store and display your receipt in the window during the game.

But there are a few streets within a 10-minute walk of the ground where you can park for free.

It's best to look to the north of the ground. Try Craddock Street (WV6 0QJ) and the streets around there. There are about 50 streets to choose from between the ground and Dunstall Park Racecourse.

Train - £21
If you buy tickets on the day, it will cost you £25 for an off-peak return. If you book in advance, via National Rail, you can buy two singles for £10.50 each, saving £4.

Virgin runs frequent trains between Manchester Piccadilly and Wolverhampton throughout the weekend.

From 07:07, direct trains leave at 07 and 27 past the hour. They each take about 70 minutes. Don't leave after 16:07 or you'll miss kick off.

The ground is a 10-minute walk from the train station.

Come out of the station and walk straight ahead towards Lichfield Street past the Britannia Hotel, turn right onto Stafford Street and then left onto Ring Road St Peters.

From this point on, ignore the diagram below. There's an underpass on your right which takes you past The Wanderer pub and straight to the away end (on your left past the pub). The diagram will take the long way around.

On the way home, trains leave Wolverhampton at 19:47, 20:37 (change at Crewe) 20:16, 20:49, 21:17, 22:16 and 22:49. They each take about 80 minutes.

Match Coach - £18
On behalf of United, Eavesway are running coaches to this game. Places cost £23 per person. They leave from the Old Trafford N2 car park at 14:00 and the estimated return time is 22:00. Call United on 0161 268 8000 to book.

The Betty Bus is going to this game. It departs from the Bishop's Blaize pub in Chester Road at 12:30. Places cost £18 per person. To book, email your name, number of desired places and contact number to redsaway@hotmail.co.uk

Red Army Travel is running a coach to this game. Places cost £20 per person. Departure times will appear here shortly. Go here for booking information.

Public coach - £10
National Express has three coaches going from Chorlton Street Bus Station to Wolverhampton Bus Station and one coming back, but it's touch and go whether you'll make the one home.

Going
Leave : 07:15 09:05 11:30 14:55
Arrive: 09:30 11:05 13:35 17:15
One way: £5, £13.30, £13.30 £13.30

The bus station is a 10-minute walk from the ground. From Pipe's Row, branch left onto Lichfield Street and then turn right onto Princess Square. Keep walking for five minutes and you'll see the stadium on your left.

Coming back

If the match finishes on time at about 19:20, you should be able to get there on time.

But for big games, West Midlands Police tend to stop fans in the Steve Bull lower tier (the away end) from turning right after the game, so they can't mingle with home supporters.

That could prevent you making it back to the bus station on time, so leave slightly before the end to make it.

Leave: 19:35
Arrive: 21:45
One-way price: £5

You can book online, but National Express charges a £1 booking fee.

Megabus does not run to Wolverhampton

Pub guide coming later this week

Ticket office now taking Bolton applications

Executive members and season ticket holders can now apply to get tickets for the Bolton Wanderers to be played on Saturday March 27, kick off 17:30.

United have got 2,800 tickets in the South Stand lower tier.

They cost the same as they did last season £27 for adults, £21 for over 65s and £13 for under 16s.

When Liverpool played at the Reebok Stadium in August, they got 4,635 tickets.

People can apply until 08:00 on Friday.

Apply by calling United's ticket office on 0161 868 8000 or online.

You can find out if you've got tickets on March 12.

United in the news

Wayne Rooney seals Manchester United's Carling Cup comeback (Kevn McCarra, The Guardian)

United commonly have greater prizes in mind than that or the Carling Cup but today's victory is a fillip as the true challenges approach. More.

Villa see red over Carling Cup final defeat to Manchester United (James Ducker, The Times)

Martin O’Neill launched a scathing attack on Phil Dowd last night, effectively accusing the referee of costing his team the Carling Cup. More.

Wembley crowd see another off-day for referees (Patrick Barclay, The Times)

Once again, so much of the talk was about a match’s fraudulence rather than its technical merits and little dramas. More.

Trophy No 34 has Sir Alex Ferguson hinting at end (James Ducker, The Times)

“Hopefully, I’ll get one more this season,” Ferguson said. “Maybe I’ll be too old next year. We enjoy everything. You have to accept what you can get. Any trophy is good for us. Every trophy is special.” More.

Pato knock takes gloss off Milan win (ESPN)

An injury to Pato took the gloss off AC Milan's 3-1 victory over Atalanta with the Brazilian striker now facing an anxious race against time to be fit for the Champions League return leg against Manchester United. More.

Messi and Barcelona are most valuable media brands (234next.com)

Real’s record signing, Portuguese international Cristiano Ronaldo, was second with 19.6 and Manchester United’s England striker Wayne Rooney third with 13.6. More.