Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Sports World

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Foster offered hope by Ferguson Posted: 12 Aug 2009 03:07 AM PDT The sentiment from Sir Alex Ferguson was welcome but Ben Foster may have had a sleepless night when he became aware of his manager's insistence that he has "no worries" about his ability to become the permanent successor to Edwin van der Sar. Foster is unlikely to look back with too many fond memories of his first major outing at Wembley on Sunday in the FA Community Shield as the potential heir apparent to the injured Dutchman and he will know that Ferguson is unlikely to present him with too many more opportunities. The Scot is historically ruthless when it comes to offloading unwanted goalkeepers – just ask Mark Bosnich, Massimo Taibi, Fabien Barthez, Roy Carroll, Ricardo and Tim Howard to name but a few – but it's a safe bet he is willing to grant Foster the chance to deliver on his promise as an outstanding number one of the future. The former Watford loanee endured a difficult afternoon against Chelsea and has since pulled out of the England squad to face Holland in a friendly because of a minor knock. Ferguson insists the 26-year-old's confidence will not be affected by his blip and is convinced he has the mental strength and ability bounce back. "Knowing Ben and the ability which he has, he should have done better with the second goal," said the United boss. "However, it was his first big challenge. He has waited a long time, has had his injuries and in pre-season I spread the load between the three keepers, and maybe we did not have enough minutes for him. "But the important thing is, knowing his ability, it means I do not have any worries about him." Nick Walsh writes features and betting previews for Betfair.

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