Sir Alex Ferguson expects the treble, says Smalling

Feb 18, 2013 11:30:00 AM

The Manchester United defender is surprised the Premier League leaders have failed to win the FA Cup since 2004, and says the manager is after all three trophies this season

Chris Smalling has revealed that Sir Alex Ferguson expects Manchester United to win the treble this season ahead of their FA Cup fifth-round tie against Reading.

The Red Devils became the first and only English team to win all three major trophies in one season in the 1998-99 campaign and are on course to repeat the feat this season.


MANCHESTER UNITED LATEST
22/1	Manchester United are 22/1 to win the Premier League, Champions League & FA Cup with BetVictor

"The manager has stressed that he expects to go to the end in all three competitions," Smalling told reporters.

"The FA Cup is notoriously unpredictable. Luton reached the fifth round this year, which shows that anything can happen so there is no point looking too far ahead.

"But our home form has been good and another victory can give us the impetus to kick on and get to another final."

United have won the FA Cup 11 times in their history but have not lifted the trophy since the 2003-04 season, when they saw off lower-league Millwall in the final.

Smalling is surprised by the 19-time league champions' drought in the competition and says it adds further incentive to emerge from their clash with the Royals at Old Trafford victorious.

"I was quite shocked at how long it has been since United won the FA Cup," Smalling admitted. "It is a massive competition and one we all look forward to.

"Before we played West Ham in the third round, the manager stressed how much we wanted to win this tournament. There are quite a lot of lads who haven't won it despite being here for quite a while."

Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25
Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200
Sign up to Paddy Power for £250 in free bets
Sign up today with Coral and get a £50 FREE bet - no strings attached!
Sign up today with BetVictor and get a £25 FREE BET!

play

open

Inside Goal.Com

BVB's rise from the abyss to European contenders
BVB have recovered from teetering on the edge of bankruptcy to take their place on Europe's grandest stage, humbling their opponents on Saturday, Bayern Munich, along the way
Transfer Talk: Mourinho wants six new signings
Get your daily dose of all the speculation from around the globe as clubs cast their eye towards summer reinforcements
Soulless EPL must face up to grim reality
After a season marred by controversy and a failure of its top teams to put up a credible Champions League challenge, the world's supposed best league is falling behind
Bayern's jinx - CL final referee Nicola Rizzoli
Goal takes a look at the career of the Italian arbiter to date following Uefa's decision to appoint the 41-year-old for Saturday's showpiece at Wembley
Cartoon: Injured Gotze ready to 'do a Terry'
Goal.com cartoonist Omar Momani gives us his unique take on the football news of the day