Rooney and Van Persie will miss Man United FA tie against Swansea City

LONDON

Manchester United’s Dutch striker Robin van Persie (centre) celebrates scoring a goal against Aston Villa during past English Premier League football match. Manchester United will host Swansea today in FA Cup. [PHOTO: AFP]

 Manchester United will be without strikers Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie for today’s FA Cup third-round tie with Swansea. Rooney (groin) and Van Persie (thigh) are both injured, as is winger Ashley Young (shoulder).

Swansea winger Pablo Hernandez is likely to miss out after suffering a hamstring injury. Leon Britton is a doubt though illness and Michu, Michel Vorm and Nathan Dyer are all definitely out.

Rooney missed the trip to Norwich on 28 December with a groin problem but returned for the New Year’s Day loss to Tottenham. However on Friday he was pictured leaving a private hospital in Manchester.

“He has got a groin injury and won’t be available on Sunday,” Red Devils manager David Moyes said. “He’s got a chance (of facing Sunderland on Tuesday).”

Liverpool plays fellow northwest team Oldham for the third straight season in the FA Cup as Bolton and Blackpool renew their rivalry in the competition.

Moyes also said Ashley Young faces a spell on the sidelines after injuring his shoulder. Young, who plays in the midfield, fell awkwardly in a collision with Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris during a Premier League match on Wednesday.

Moyes added; “it is a shoulder injury he received in the challenge by the goalkeeper. I am not sure how long it will be.”

Moyes was unable to give any update on the fitness of striker Robin van Persie, who has missed six matches with a thigh injury.

Moyes said “we will let you know when he is ready.”

diving manace

Meanwhile, Everton manager Roberto Martinez believes everyone in football has a responsibility to help eradicate diving from the sport.

Following Fifa president Sepp Blatter’s proposal for the use of a time penalty as a deterrent, Martinez says simulation has become a problem.

“It is our fault,” said the Spaniard. It has been creeping in and has been happening for a couple of seasons. It is down to all of us to try to eradicate that.”

Writing in his weekly column for Fifa, Blatter said cheating in football was “deeply irritating” and expressed frustration that “dives, simulation and play-acting to feign injury” caused long delays in matches.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho criticised one of his own players, Oscar, for diving in his side’s victory at Southampton. The Portuguese boss added on Friday that Blatter should tour the world to educate countries against the culture of diving.

“There are many ways to fight it,” he said. “Fight with a yellow card, with wild critic from media and the fans and with penalty time. You have to persuade people it is an important issue in the game.

“If Blatter is worried by that he should go around places where that becomes part of the culture and the last country for him must be England because it is a country where football is more pure and more clean in relation to these situations.”

And influential Manchester United fanzine Red Issue has called on manager David Moyes to “sort out” players guilty of diving, citing examples by players Adnan Januzaj, Ashley Young, Danny Welbeck and Wayne Rooney.

“No-one minds MUFC losing. Losing while disgracing the club through cheating is another matter,” it said.

The United boss was angry with Howard Webb after the referee failed to award a penalty for Hugo Lloris’ challenge on Young in United’s 2-1 defeat on Wednesday. But he does not think that the use of video technology should be broadened to help referees in those situations.

He said: “I wouldn’t go down the route of video technology. I trust the referees to make the right decisions.

“They do make the wrong ones at times and I have not changed how I felt on Wednesday. I thought that was the wrong decision.”                               

— BBC Online