Under-fire Quieroz’ comments lost in translation

UNDER-FIRE Carlos Queiroz has received a forceful defence against accusations he branded Manchester United fans stupid - by the newspaper he reportedly made the comments in.

It was claimed Queiroz told Portuguese paper O’Jogo that the United supporters who chanted ‘4-4-2’ during Saturday’s defeat to Blackburn proved “that is why football is a game in which imagination and, many times, stupidity has no limits.”

The former Real Madrid manager was stunned at the interpretation of the interview, which brought a mountain of criticism on supporter websites, even though Queiroz himself was spared any personal criticism during Tuesday’s Champions League win over Benfica.

Concerned United staff immediately launched an investigation into the comments and it has now been confirmed by senior staff at O’Jogo that, rather than attacking the club’s supporters, Queiroz was actually highlighting the wide range of decisions it was possible to be criticised for.

In a letter to Queiroz, O’Jogo editor Manuel Tavares confirmed: “Only a bad translation service could have allowed the phrase that you used to describe the wide range of criticism that football can be subjected to - from stupidity to imagination - could have been transformed into a criticism of Manchester United fans.

“This serious misinterpretation of your words caused great perplexity as your current statements (and those in the past) have shown your position to always be one where managers should respect criticism from the fans.”

Queiroz is scheduled to stand in for Alex Ferguson at his weekly press conference today. And although the Old Trafford assistant manager is anxious to avoid a war over the reporting of his comments, he was extremely concerned at the allegation he had slated United’s vast fan base.

Such an attack could have caused irreparable damage to his hopes of succeeding Ferguson at some stage, so it is little surprise he has welcomed O’Jogo’s intervention.

Meanwhile, Ryan Giggs has rejected reports of a rift with Queiroz and insisted he still has plenty to offer Manchester United. The long-serving Welshman made only his second senior start of the season when he skippered United to their much-needed 2-1 victory over Benfica.

Major question marks have been raised over his absence, especially as he only signed a two-year contract extension in May, with Queiroz’s influence being cited as one of the major reasons why Giggs has been overlooked.

His early absences can be put down to a debilitating chest infection which kept him in bed for a week and ruled him out of action for almost three.

Five successive substitute appearances prior to the Benfica win are harder to explain away, particularly as results turned against United during that period.

However, while the 31-year-old admitted he was frustrated at being dumped to the substitutes’ bench, he denied allegations of a showdown with Queiroz.

Contrary to widespread reports, Giggs was not making his 100th European appearances for United on Tuesday night. Providing he keeps his place, and with Wayne Rooney still suspended there is a good chance, that will come against Lille on October 18 when another victory would virtually seal United’s customary place in the knock-out phase.

Before then, Ferguson’s side face crucial trips to Fulham and Sunderland either side of the international break. Collecting maximum points will not be easy with a squad ravaged so badly by injury.

United’s bench this week contained a sum total of four Premiership starts, three of which belonged to Liam Miller, who has effectively been discarded as a viable long-term option in central midfield.

Of the eight senior figures who missed out, only Rooney is definitely available again, with Ferguson admitting Mikael Silvestre is unlikely to have recovered from his dead leg.