Alright well I promised it so here it is: Manchester United vs Everton preview (fancy pictures included):

This match marks the return of the EPL after one hell of an international break. We saw Russia fail to qualify for the World Cup in 2010, and Ireland being cheated defeated out of a birth.

This past week(s) we've have a couple united boys playing for their countries, attempting to qualify for South Africa. While its not directly "United Related", there's no way I cannot bring up the most blatant handball since Maradonna's "Hand of God".

So a quick roundup of the scores and the United personnel playing before I get to more on to what is going to be the single most discussed play in recent times:

France 1 1 Ireland (2-1 Aggregate)
France : Patrice Evra
Ireland : John O'Shea, Darren Gibson

Portugal 1 B&H (2-0 Aggregate)
Portugal : Nani

Okay, so the handball (seen/touch/heard) 'round the world.

If you haven't heard by now, Sir Alex Ferguson has received a 2 match ban (and a 20,000 pound fine) for comments made about Alan Wiley, the official for our 2-2 draw with Sunderland. Sir Alex may have implied that Wiley was "fat", simply by stating that he was not "fit" to officiate the match.

Now we all know that officiating is a very hard job.

Over the weekend, Nani was keen to stress that his outburst against Sir Alex Ferguson last week did not constitute a ‘bust up' with his boss.

Speaking in a Portuguese newspaper, he was quoted as saying:-

"Ferguson is a very complicated man. He's tough. If things are all right, then they are all right.

Just a note to say Hi really. You've probably read the biog that Taylor posted on me, a couple of days ago. So you probably know most things about my professional life and that I've had strong links with the club for many years.

Obviously a lot of you are based in the States so I hope I can bring a bit of Manchester to you as often as possible, to keep you in touch with what's going on right here in ‘God's own country!

A Very happy 35th Birthday to Paul Scholes

While he looks like funnyman Simon Pegg, Scholes has been anything but a joke to United's opponents. With ridiculous passing that tears through defenses all the while making it look simple, a niche for shooting long range rockets into the back of the net, and a surly temper (75 bookings in the EPL, 24 in UEFA CL play), Paul Scholes has wrecked havoc on any pitch he steps on.

As Taylor mentioned, I will be one of the day-to-day writers for my beloved Red Devils. So let's get this party started by doing a massive recap of our past "big" games:

CSKA Moscow vs MUFC (CL Group)

The Good : Well we qualified, and that's what really counts doesn't it ?

The Bad : As much as I love him, I'm going to have to call out Mikey Owen.

Hello all. Once again, I would just like to apologize for the delay as we get the blog restructured. To handle the day-to-day news, and to keep us running smoothely, the Manchester United Offside would like to welcome two new bloggers to the page: Ryan and and Rebecca (see below for their individual bios).

As I mentioned on Monday, The Manchester United page is looking for bloggers to cover the biggest club on the planet. I am planning on staying on and posting 1-2 times a week, but we were looking for someone to cover the day to day news stories. If you're interested in the position, you can email me at manu@theoffside.

As I mentioned on Monday, The Manchester United page is looking for bloggers to cover the biggest club on the planet. I am planning on staying on and posting 1-2 times a week, but we were looking for someone to cover the day to day news stories. If you're interested in the position, you can email me at manu@theoffside.

Who: Manchester United vs. CSKA Moscow
What: Champions League Group B Match Day 4
Where: Old Trafford, Manchester, England
When: 19:45 BST (2:45 EST)
Why: The Old Trafford faithful need a first hand viewing of CSKA keeper Igor Akinfeev before every English tabloid spends the summer linking him with a transfer to the club.

Who: Manchester United vs. CSKA Moscow
What: Champions League Group B Match Day 4
Where: Old Trafford, Manchester, England
When: 19:45 BST (2:45 EST)
Why: The Old Trafford faithful need a first hand viewing of CSKA keeper Igor Akinfeev before every English tabloid spends the summer linking him with a transfer to the club.

So another decent performance sees United secure all three points at Old Trafford. Overall, I was pleased with the result, but still found a few things troubling. The inability of our three main strikers to score consistently when given the opportunity is slightly worrying, but Obertan's EPL debut coupled with Berba's world class finish left me as happy as could be.

So another decent performance sees United secure all three points at Old Trafford. Overall, I was pleased with the result, but still found a few things troubling. The inability of our three main strikers to score consistently when given the opportunity is slightly worrying, but Obertan's EPL debut coupled with Berba's world class finish left me as happy as could be.

I really have only one thing to say about yesterday's performance. My girlfriend and I were out to dinner Friday night and the topic of the Liverpool match came up. She asked me if I was nervous/if she should avoid being in the apartment Sunday morning and I (like an idiot) told her the following.