Time to make a stand

Anyone who applied for tickets to United's December 13 trip to Spurs may have noticed the away allocation has been slashed from 3,000 to 1,900.

Under Premier League rules, clubs are obliged to give visiting fans 3,000 or 10 per cent of their stadium (whichever is least) unless outside authorities intervene.

Tottenham's press manager Simon Felstein said restricting the allocation "is as a direct consequence of persistent standing by the visiting Manchester United fans and in particular this behaviour at last season's corrsponding fixture."

He said the decision was taken by its Safety Advisory Group, which is chaired by Haringey Council which "has agreed to monitor and review the situation going forward."

In English that means "sit down like good boys and we might let more of you in next season."

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't fans of just about every other team who visited White Hart Lane last season stand persistently in the upper tier?

Oh look! What's this? Sunderland fans this very August standing up in the away end.




Did anyone die or get injured in this video or at any match in which people stood in the upper tier at this stadium last season, earlier this season or, indeed, in the last 10 years?

Call my cynical, but it's no coincidence that the Safety Advisory Group chooses to withdraw tickets from away fans when they happen to support the English and European champions, as

it's a far sight easier to attract Spurs fans to United at home than Sunderland at home, with all due respect to them.

Plus, they get to cut down on the policing bill and make a fortune in the megastore.

Oli Winton from MUST is encouraging all reds to email customerservices.complaints@haringey.gov.uk to tell them exactly what you think about this decision. (Be kind, though).

Here is what MUST have written to them:

Sir,

I am absolutely appauled by Haringey Council's decision to not allow Manchester United supporters to be given the upper tier of the way section at White Hart Lane and, therefore, to limit number of tickets from 3,000 to 1,900.

Tottenham Hotspur FC have stated clearly that they were instructed to take this action by the council, apparently caused by United supporters standing up in previous years.

I attend football matches all over the country every week and see that most sets of fans behind the goal mouth of all teams stand up.

This includes Tottenham fans in the same stand who I understand ARE being allowed to use the upper tier in the seats usually reserved for away fans. There is no logic to this decision at all.

I would be grateful if you could provide me with information of how many football fans have been injured, including minor reported scrapes, at White Hart Lane in the last decade in the upper tier that are a result of fans standing up?

I am appalled by this decision which penalises ordinary decent football fans from obtaining a ticket to an important match, and would have thought the council should have far bigger concerns at the moment when it comes to safety.

Oli was, no doubt, referring to the council's current difficulties with child welfare.

While there is absolutely no chance Spurs will reverse their decision this season, your pressure will increase the chances of us getting a fairer deal next season at White Hart Lane and other stadia.

A date for your diary

The pre-Christmas period is set to be a busy time for United's foreign efforts, what with the World Club Championships semi final taking place on December 18 and, fingers crossed, the final three days later.

Another festive pick-me-up for reds will be the Champions League last 16 draw, which takes place at 11am* on December 19. It'll be live on Sky Sports News.

*UEFA build these draws up more than Ali versus Frazer, so expect it to start at about 11.30am.

Reds travel south for cup

United have been drawn away to Southampton in the FA Cup Third Round.

The match will be played on either January 3 or 4 and, out of a stadium holding 32,689, the reds will probably get a 5,000 allocation.

Ticket information will be announced tomorrow and a detailed travel guide and drinking guide will be put on here in the next few weeks.

Villareal

Villareal Club de Futbol
Tuesday, November 25, kick off 20:45
UEFA Champions League group stages match five

Tickets

The match will be played at the Estadio El Madrigal, which has a capacity of 25,000. United have been given 2,800 tickets. All have been sold, though there are quite a lot of spares up for grabs if needed.

Travel

Important note - Spanish trains
There are six or more different types of trains in Spain. The regional ones are dirt cheap, the other kinds are only slightly faster and are much more expensive.
If you've got time to spare it's worth planning your journey using this website around the regional trains to save loads of money.

Getting to Villareal from the airports

Alicante Airport
If you're not staying in, or wanting to visit Alicante itself, get the coach direct from the airport to Castellon.
But there's only three a day - at 13:00, 21:00 and 23:00. It takes six hours, 20 minutes and costs e24.26 single or e46.86 return.

Otherwise, you need to go: Airport -> Alicante -> Castellon -> Villareal

Travel to Alicante centre, which is about seven miles south east of the city.
The bus goes from stop 30 at the airport to Calle Portugal 17 in the city. It takes 40 minutes, costs e1.20 each way and runs from 06:30 to 23:10.
The taxi takes about 20 minutes, costs e13 in the day and e16 at night.

Once in the city, take the coach or the train north to Castellon.

The coach from Calle Portugal 17 to Avenida Perez Galdos, takes three hours and 20 minutes and costs e19.11 one way and e36.31 return.

The train goes from Alacant Terminal, takes about two-and-a-half hours and costs about e30 one way. There are no Regional Express trains on this route.

To get from the coach stop to the train station, a taxi takes 10 minutes. Walking would take half an hour, though it’s pretty much a straight walk down Calle de Bono Guaner.

Castellon is five miles north west of Villareal. See the guide below about how to get there.

Alicante Airport via Benidorm
The Stretford End Bar in Benidorm is running coaches on the day of the game to and from the stadium. Email stretfordend2@gonuts4free.com for details.

Airport -> Benidorm -> Castellon -> Villareal
The bus goes from stop 30 outside the airport to the Avenida Comunidad Europa 8 stop in Benidorm.
It takes an hour, costs e8 each way and runs hourly from 11am until 23:00.
The taxi takes about an hour, costs e68.

If you book in advance, you can get a shared shuttle bus with Shuttle Direct for £6.47 pp or a private one for £28.03 pp.

Once in Benidorm, you can only really get a coach to Castellon as, by my reckoning, there isn't a train service that far north.

The coach leaves from Avenida Comunidad Europa to Avenida Perez Glados takes three-and-a-half hours and costs e16.26 single and e30.89 return.

Castellon is five miles north west of Villareal. See the guide below about how to get there.


Valencia Manises Airport

Airport -> Valencia -> Villareal

IMPORTANT: IF YOU ARE BOOKED TO FLY WITH RYANAIR TO VALENCIA, PLEASE CONTACT THE AIRLINE IMMEDIATELY - YOUR FLIGHT MAY BE CANCELLED DUE TO A DISPUTE WITH THE VALENCIAN LOCAL GOVERNMENT.

Travel to Valencia centre, which is eight miles west of the city.
Take the bus from outside the departures entrance to Estación del Norte Train Station in the city centre.
It takes 25 minutes, costs e2.50 each way and runs every 20 minutes from 08:00 to 22:00.
Make sure you get on this direct service rather than Line 150 which goes all around the houses and takes forever.
Get the metro from inside the airport. Use the Red Line to get the train station stop, Turia, or the Green Line to get to Turia - the stop nearest to the bus stop. Services leave every 15 minutes.
Here’s a map of the metro.

The taxi takes about 20 minutes, costs e16.

If you book in advance, you can get a private shuttle bus with Shuttle Direct for £24.88 pp.

Or you can get a private shuttle bus direct to Castellon, which is five miles north of Villareal, for £49 pp. Again, you have to book in advance.

If you're booking a hotel in Valencia, make sure you take note of the location as the Valencia beaches are 40 minutes east of the city centre.
That could prove a problem if you have to go from the airport to the city, to the resort, to the city, to the stadium and then back.

Once in the city, take the coach or the train north to Villareal De Los Infantes or to Castellon.

The train from Valencia Cabanyal takes about two-and-a-half hours and costs about e30 one way. It takes about 50 minutes and costs e17 on normal trains and e4.40 on Regional Express.

The coach from Avenida Menendez Pidal 13 to Avenida Perez Glados takes an hour and costs e8 single and e16 return.
Castellon is five miles north west of Villareal. See the guide below about how to get there.

Barcelona Girona

Airport -> Barcelona -> Castellon -> Villareal

Take the Segales coach from outside the airport to Barcelona Estacio Del Nord. Services leave in sync with the landing of flights - approximately 20 minutes after the plane lands. It takes 45 minutes and costs e e12 single or e21 return.

Once in the city, get the Metro from Arc de Triomf six stops south on the Red Line, get off at Espanya and then take two stops west on the Green Line and then get off at Sants Estacio. Here’s a map of the Metro.

Barcelona International

Airport -> Barcelona -> Castellon -> Villareal

This airport is only six miles out of the city, so it’s easy to get there on the RENFE train, which takes 25 minutes and runs every half hour. Get off at Sants station. A one-way ticket costs e2.60.

A taxi costs about e25 for a 25-minute journey.

From Barcelona centre onwards
The train goes from Sants station and takes two-and-a-half hours to three hours and costs e30 for a normal train and e17 on Regional Express.

There is only one bus a day. It takes four-and-a-half hours and costs e40 return, so the train makes much more sense.

Castellon is five miles north west of Villareal. See the guide below about how to get there.

Barcelona Reus Airport

Airport -> Reus --> Tarragona -> Castellon -> Villareal

Reus is 66 miles south west of Barcelona, but don't head to Barcelona. Instead, head to Reus train station.

To get there, take a taxi from outside the terminal. It's six miles, but due to busy traffic, will take about half an hour and cost about e16. Or get the bus direct to the train station from outside the terminal.

Then get the train to Tarragona. The service leaves every 20 minutes and takes 15 minutes, costing e1.40 on Regional Express.

From Tarragona, you can get the train to Castellon. It takes just short of three hours on the Regional Express service, which costs e12.25 each way, or one hour 20 minutes on the Euromed, which costs e27.90 each way.

Getting from Castellon to Villareal

The coach will drop you off in Castellon at Avenida Perez Galdos. Walking to the train station would take more than an hour, so it's easier to jump in a taxi, which will take about 10 minutes and cost e15.

Villareal is about four miles south east of Castellon.

The train takes four minutes and services run at short intervals through the day. It is anticipated that there will be trains put on after the game back to Castellon as they were last time United played there.

It takes 20 minutes in a taxi from Castellon to Villareal and costs about e30.

In Villareal

The train station is on Calle Estacion. Walk straight ahead and keep going up and you'll reach the main square, Plaza Mayor, which is most likely to be the meeting point for reds.
Bars are spread evenly around the city and there is another square with a few bars just in front of the stadium, which is a 15-minute walk from the centre.
To get there, go north – away from the train station – up Calle de Trullenc, turn right onto Av de Italia and then left onto Calle de Miral Camp.

Aston Villa travel guide

Aston Villa
Villa Park, Witton
Saturday, November 22, kick off 5.30pm


Tickets

Villa Park holds 42,640 and United have got 2,800 tickets priced at £35 for adults and £21 for under 16s and over 65s.
All away-end tickets have been sold and everyone who applied will have been informed here. Home-end tickets are on sale, but only to people who have previously bought tickets for Villa games. They won't go on general sale.
Internet touts are selling away-end tickets for £179.40.

TV

The match will be shown live on Setanta Sports 1. The programme starts at 5pm.
Or you can watch it for free online here. The best stream will probably be Star Sports 3, through the Sopcast player, but there'll be many to choose from.

If there's a Chubb Club screening in Manchester, we'll let you know.

Travel

Car - £20.40

If you're using a sat nav or a route planner, use the postcode B6 6HE.
The journey takes 99 minutes, is 94 miles and costs £10.20 each way in petrol.
There is loads of free street parking within a five-minute walk of the stadium on any side of the ground.

Club coach - £20

United are running coaches to Villa priced at £20. They leave the Old Trafford N2 car park at 11.30am. To book, go here.

Public coach - £15.20

National Express has lots of coaches from Chorlton Street to Birmingham but only two on the way home after the game. All these returns cost £15.20.

From the coach station, it's a 15-minute walk to Birmingham New Street Station, from where you can catch a local service to Witton.

See the train section for more information.



To get from the coach station, turn left from Oxford Street onto Coventry Street, right onto Allison Street, left onto Shaw's Passage, left at Park Street, right at Moor Street Ringway, left onto St Martin's Circus Queensway, right onto Queens Drive and then into the Parasades Shopping Centre to the station, which is beneath.

Going
Leave Chorlton Street: 07:15 09:05 10:10 11:40 12:50
Arrive Birmingham Oxford Street: 10:10 11:45 13:00 14:15 12:50
Journey time: 2:55 2:40 2:50 2:35 2:55

Returning
Leave Birmingham Oxford Street: 20:10 22:30
Arrive Chorlton Street: 21:50 01:10
Journey time: 1:40 2:40

Megabus do a coach there, but not one back after the game. It leaves Chorlton Street at 12:00 and arrives Birmingham The Priory Bus Station at 14:00, costing £6 (and 50p online booking fee).

On arrival, walk south west down Corporation Street for five minutes to Birmingham New Street station. Get the local service to Witton. See the train section for more information.

Train - £14

I've seperated the Piccadilly to Birmingham New Street services from the New Street to Witton services because it's cheaper to book the two routes seperately and many reds prefer to stop off in the city centre for a pint, rather than continue right through to the ground.

(There's a pub right outside New Street that opens from 10am - more of that in next week's pub guide).

A return ticket from Piccadilly to Witton bought on the day costs £30.30.

Two one-way tickets from Piccadilly to New Street cost from £14 and a return ticket from New Street to Witton costs £1.60, so that comes to £15.60 and a saving of £14.40

Going
Leave Piccadilly: 08:25 09:15 09:24 10:15 10:24 11:15 11:24 12:15 12:24
Arrive Birmingham New Street: 09:48 10:56 10.58 11:56 11:58 12:56 12:58 13:36 13:58
One-way price: £9:00 £11.50 £12:50 £10.50 £9 £8.50 £24.50 £8.50 £9

Trains from New Street to Witton leave every hour at 27 minutes and 57 minutes past the hour and the journey takes nine minutes.
The timetable goes out of the window for the journey back to New Street after the game. Police organise services to leave as quickly as possible, though there is often a queue to get onto the platform at Witton.

Once you arrive at New Street, it's highly likely the police will have a Manchester-bound train waiting for you.

Returning
Leave Birmingham New Street: 20:13 20:20 21:13 21:20 22:20
Arrive Piccadilly: 21:51 22:02 22:45 23:05 00:02
One-way price: £11.50 £10.50 £8.50 £25.50 £5.50

And what have we got for Villareal?

So, the forecast is in and it's good news for those travelling early and not so good news for those getting straight in and out.

It's not going to rain, but the really warm weather will die off after this weekend, so it'll be chilly on the evening of the game...though a damn sight warmer than Villa on Saturday teatime.


Saturday November 22
Sunny to partly cloudy and windy.
High: 21°C
Low: 8°C


Sunday November 23
Breezy and cooler with brilliant sunshine.
High: 12°C
Low: 3°C



Monday November 24
A full day of sunshine.
High: 12°C
Low: 3°C


Tuesday November 25
Sunshine. Clearly or slightly cloudy in the evening.
High: 13°C
Low: 4°C


Wednesday November 26
Sunshine and patchy clouds
High: 17°C
Low: 5°C

Readers' questions

Q. How do we get from Salou to Castellon on the day of the Villareal game and how do we make the return trip to Reus Airport in time for the 10.25 flight to Birmingham for 9am the next day? Chris

A. Salou has its own train station at the east of the town. It’s very easy to find, as Salou is quite small.
On the day of the game, you can get the following trains:

Leave Salou: 10:51 12:04 16:06 18:07
Arrive Castellon: 13:18 13:37 17:25 19:40
Journey time: 2:27 1:33 1:19 1:33

As a rule of thumb, the slower the train is, the cheaper the fare.
Search for more trains here

On the way back, you need to get to the airport at least an hour before the flight.

It would help you a lot if you check in online, print out your boarding passes and only have to go through security when you arrive.

You can only do so if you have one piece of hand luggage to take on the plane with you and nothing to put in the hold.

On Wednesday morning, get the train from Castellon to Tarragona.

Catch either:
the 06:06 train that will get you in at 07:53 or
the 07:17 train that will get you in at 08:34.

Miss those and you’re screwed.

From there, get the 08:00 or 08:39 train from Tarragona to Reus train station. It’s a 14-minute journey and then you can get a taxi to the airport, which takes about half an hour depending on traffic.

So that should get you to the airport by 9.10am at the latest, but I’d go for the early option just to be safe.