Lay off Cleverley

David Moyes has backed Tom Cleverley to prove the 17,000 people who have signed a petition against him wrong.

By yesterday afternoon, 17,441 people had signed the online petition calling for Cleverley to be excluded from England’s World Cup squad.

The petition was set up by Glenn McConnell from Blackpool in England, who criticised the player’s “inept” performances for Manchester United and England.

England boss Roy Hodgson was appalled by the petition, under which several fans of the national side have left derogatory comments about the 23-year-old.

And yesterday Moyes sprang to the defence of the midfielder, who has 13 England caps.

“Tom Cleverley is a fantastic young player who’s developing all the time,” the Manchester United manager said.

“He is a great trainer. He is first out and every day he does his best in training. He always gives his best and that is why he will succeed.”

Hodgson was unhappy that Cleverley — someone he described as a “sensitive young man” — would have to deal with the pressure of knowing such a petition was in the public domain. But criticism of top-flight players is nothing new, as Moyes acknowledged.

“I remember when Rio (Ferdinand) came in to the (England) team, and Patrice Evra came into the (France) team and they got criticised,” Moyes added.

“It’s part and parcel, but I think it’s wrong on Tom Cleverley.”

Moyes, meanwhile, insists the Greek tragedy that unfolded in Athens a week and a half ago is now a distant memory.

United were heavy favourites to leave Greece with a lead from the first leg of their Champions League game with Olympiacos, but nothing went to plan as the Greeks ran out 2-0 winners. Moyes has had plenty to ponder during the week-and-a-half gap between that defeat and today’s Premier League game against West Brom. He has addressed fans’ concerns in the club’s season ticket holders magazine and has travelled across Europe to watch his players and some future targets.

The Scot is convinced the Olympiacos defeat will not have a lingering effect. “It was a disappointing night in Olympiacos,” the United manager said. “None of us thought we would perform so poorly but since then we’ve picked ourselves up. We have had to recover and get ready for the next one.”

In Moyes’ letter, he thanked the fans for their support during a season which he admitted had gone far worse than he ever expected.

Moyes is happy he has continued to receive the backing of the United support but he acknowledges his team need to play better fast.

“The key is to improve all things,” he said. “I want creativity and the introduction of (Juan) Mata and his interplay with (Wayne) Rooney and Robin (van Persie) I’ve seen recently has helped that creativity.”

Moyes also revealed his surprise at seeing van Persie play 90 minutes of Holland’s defeat to France on Wednesday after spending the previous day in bed due to illness. “Robin was in his bed all day Tuesday being sick but he felt better on Wednesday and he played,” the United manager said.

“I was a little bit surprised he played 90 minutes in a game they were losing 2-0 but he did do.”

Moyes faces another manager under scrutiny today in Baggies boss Pepe Mel.

Albion take on United at The Hawthorns knowing defeat could see them drop into the bottom three and deeper into the relegation mire.

Mel said: “My job depends on winning games and being a head coach is a risky business. I came here extremely excited to do a good job and I’m certain that I’m going to carry this out.”

In a letter written for the club's quarterly season-ticket holders magazine yesterday, manager David Moyes thanked the fans for their support but admitted his reign has gone far worse than he ever expected