'It Was Like Being Back In the Conference,' Fulham Defender Says About Man United: Daily Soccer Report

After this past weekend’s 2-2 draw against Manchester United, Fulham defender Dan Burn compared defending United’s crosses to playing in the non-league conference:

“I’ve never headed that many balls since the Conference. We knew that was going to happen and I was happy for them to play like that.

“I’m six foot seven. It helps when dealing with those sort of balls.

“When we started dropping further back we wanted to get more compact and make them play around us because we had the strength in numbers.

“Manchester United still have amazing players – on another day they could have scored more often but we defended really well.”

Meanwhile, to make matters worse for David Moyes, Fulham manager Rene Meulensteen says that Manchester United’s gameplan was easy to combat and very straightforward. Ouch.

Here are today’s world soccer news headlines:

Premier League

‘It was like being back in the Conference’ – Fulham defender Dan Burn on Manchester United’s barrage of 81 crosses — Evening Standard
Man Utd’s ‘straightforward’ gameplan was ‘easy’ to combat, says Fulham boss Rene Meulensteen — Off The Post
Manchester City do deal for first refusal on Brazilian talent — The Independent
Ronald Koeman agent contacts Swansea City over manager’s job – reports — Wales Online
Garry Monk shows why midfield width is king at Swansea City — The Swansea Way
West Ham sell Upton Park to London developer Galliard Group — West Ham United
Garry Cook interview on making a superpower out of a club that was on its knees — The Mirror
Yaya Sanogo gave Per Mertesacker a black eye in an Arsenal training ground bust-up — 101GG
Manchester United’s David Moyes admits ‘it’s worse than I thought’ — The Guardian
David Moyes will take Manchester United to Dubai for week of training in the sun — The Telegraph
NBC posts most-watched non-live Winter Olympics opening ceremony in two decades — TV By The Numbers
Michael Laudrup sacked after snubbing January loan deals for Nacer Chadli, Lewis Holtby and Tom Ince — The Mail
West Brom’s Bifouma sets Premier League goal record — Premier League
Craig Bellamy charged with violent conduct by FA — The Guardian
Liverpool fan in Kenya reportedly stabbed to death after Arsenal match — Pro Soccer Talk
Yaya Toure escapes punishment for apparent kick on Ricky van Wolfswinkel — Telegraph
Man Utd’s Javier Hernandez frustrated under David Moyes, says Mexico boss — Off The Post
In Jozy’s defence: ‘man on a mission to man on an island’ — Salut Sunderland
Ashley Williams reveals a Swansea City history lesson inspired derby day triumph — Wales Online
Jermain Defoe leaves White Hart Lane for final time on shoulders of teammates — SB Nation
West Ham boss Sam Allardyce calls for reform at the FA — Sky Sports

FA Cup

Budweiser ends FA Cup sponsorship after three years — BBC Sport

La Liga

Atletico Madrid suffer a big setback in their title challenge losing 2-0 at Almeria — 101GG

Serie A

Mario Balotelli cried on the AC Milan bench after he was taken off against Napoli — 101GG

US soccer

Timothy Chandler injured in Nurnberg’s loss to Bayern Munich — Pro Soccer Talk

UEFA Champions League

International soccer

Argentina won’t win ‘even if hell freezes over’, says Chelsea and Brazil star Oscar — Evening Standard

The Daily Soccer Report is your morning guide to the latest world soccer news headlines, so you don’t have to spend an hour or more scanning the Internet. We do all the work for you. Read The Daily Soccer Report on World Soccer Talk every morning to stay on top of all the news that matters.