Kasper Risgard Says Rooney Should Not Be Suspended For The 'Stamping' Incident

Kasper Risgard has been talking about the 'stamping incident' involving Wayne Rooney and himself earlier this week in the Manchester United 'v' Aalborg Champions League game.

Risgard (pictured left) departed from Old Trafford with some stud marks on his chest but he says he does not think Rooney deserves to be suspended or punished further for the incident.

UEFA will study film of the incident on Monday before deciding on what action to take, but Risgard said: “I heard UEFA is looking at this but I don’t think Rooney should be suspended. I haven’t seen the situation on TV yet as we had our Christmas party the day after the match but I can understand it looks bad on TV. It’s what happens in intensive matches. Wayne came up to me immediately and apologised. I appreciated that. I have nothing against him.”

It's quite refreshing to see a guy with this attitude after an incident of this nature. I don't say what Rooney did was right, but the Dane seems to be taking a low key, mature approach to the incident.....Back To Home Page...

A 2-2 Draw With Aalborg That Sees Manchester United Top Their Group But Rooney Faces A UEFA Ban

Wayne Rooney is in line to miss both legs of United's last 16 knockout tie in the Champions League if Uefa decide to investigate allegations that he stamped on an Aalborg player in midweek.

Kasper Risgard claims that Rooney jumped on his chest on Wednesday night and UEFA have responded with the following statement from Rob Faulkner, a UEFA spokesman: "The normal procedure is that we look at the reports from the referee and the match delegate and decide whether to open a disciplinary case, if it is seen to be blatant, if we decide it's a case of serious foul play and the referee has completely missed it, it will be considered by our disciplinary committee."

Uefa's control and disciplinary body next meets on February 13. If Rooney is charged then he is expected to receive an immediate two-match ban.....Back To Home Page...

Rafael Gives Fergie A Selection Headache

Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed Brazilian teenager Rafael Da Silva is now an integral part of his Manchester United first-team squad.

The 18-year-old has been handed starts against Aalborg and West Brom in recent weeks and Ferguson now accepts he has another selection dilemma on his hands at right-back with club captain Gary Neville and Wes Brown also vying for the position.

"In football, when a guy turns the corner you cannot do anything about it," he said. "Rafael is a great talent and his performances are telling me I have another problem at right-back."

At Champions League level, Aalborg did not offer much of a threat, leaving Rafael to attack down the right flank at will. Saturday's clash with West Brom was somewhat different. While the result was eventually quite one-sided, the Baggies gave a decent account of themselves during the first half. The pace and power of West Brom winger Chris Brunt provided Rafael with a tough examination of his talent, which is just what Ferguson wanted to see; a reminder of the task a similarly-aged Brown faced against Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink when he encountered Leeds a decade ago.

"Wes himself came in at 18, played against Hasselbaink in his first game against Leeds and he was superb," said Ferguson. It is a learning process playing against that power and experience. Premier League football is not easy. I didn't realise how big Brunt was and what a nice left foot he had, so that presented a challenge for Rafael. For periods in the game he was finding his way and it was only when I was going to take him off that he started to play the way we know he can." .....Back To Home Page