Jul 03
The Battle of Ankles Deep and the Dark Forces of Madrid
J. R. R. Tolkien was a great dreamer. Which was perhaps why the Lord of the Rings was a rather good fantasy novel. It had all those elements one would ask for in a well written fantasy: the good, pure evil, adventure, perils, the good getting lured by the evil.
So forgive me if I spend the next few lines drawing tedious references to that masterpiece.
The Ronaldo saga is one such work of fiction (albeit a bad one), that is incidentally a part of reality — go figure. The involvement of the evil forces of Madrid trying to lure Ronaldo (read Frodo) towards the dark side, has now reached that stage where we’ve moved from small issues, like Ronaldo’s ego, to his ankle.
I’ll save you some trouble here; clearly I’m not doing a good job of drawing a convincing analogy between Tolkien’s work and this, but then it would be doing a disservice to the masterpiece if I did. So I’ll just end it by saying that the title of the post was derived from the Battle of Helms Deep. How that has anything to do with Ronaldo possibly undergoing surgery, I wouldn’t know.
Back to reality, Manchester United Football Club has issued a statement about Ronaldo’s ankle:
Manchester United medical staff met with the medical team from the Portuguese FA and Cristiano Ronaldo in Lisbon today regarding the ongoing treatment of his injured right ankle. As a result, further specialist advice is being sought and an announcement will be made on any action in due course.
That’s the official line, although according to other reports he might undergo an operation. One would suspect it to be minor because it would have seriously inhibited his game had it been any serious; he was carrying the injury for about two to three months according to him.
Ronaldo is scheduled to return to pre-season training on July 14 but the offshoot of his injury concern is that Madrid might be put off, which is what the Telegraph reckons. I think that’s bollocks really. Calderon needs a star signing to satisfy the restless Bernabeu faithful and to strengthen his position in the face of elections. And having made so many advances through the media, they would really be left with egg on their faces if they don’t sign Ronaldo this season.
So whilst all went quiet over the past week in the Spanish press, one reckons that could be due to the hysteria surrounding Spain’s Euro 2008 campaign. Now that the press have gotten over Spain’s victory, focus has shifted back and the latest bit of drivel (this time from Madrid based AS) has something to do with Ronaldo going to Miami, thus sidestepping an opportunity to meet with Ferguson:
As’ claims seem to indicate that the player’s time at Old Trafford is up. The paper reports that Ronaldo will tonight leave the island of Sardinia, where he has been since Portugal’s exit from Euro 2008, but rather than heading back to Manchester he and his girlfriend will join friends for a trip to Miami. Apparently his journey to the Floridian metropolis is confirmed after he procured tickets without first returning home to the Manchester area. As deems this gambit a product of agent Jorge Mendes’ strategy. Mendes allegedly regards this move as integral to angering United and thus increasing their chances of letting Ronaldo leave for Real Madrid.
As much as I have admitted that my efforts at linking this saga to a fantasy novel was a poor one, I can’t help but attempt to make that comparison over and over again. [Not to worry, I won't do it.]
In short, Ronaldo is not due until the 14th. He can go wherever he pleases. All that strategy designed to avoid Fergie is bollocks really. Yes, he’s behaved like a twat all through, but he is not stupid. He knows he has to meet Fergie some day. So let me stick my neck out (although it’s not too much of a neck sticking really) and tell you that nothing is happening until July 14, for sure. Marca can stuff all those copies that proclaimed ‘Madrid to sign Ronaldo by July 7′ up its Castillian hole.
As I’ve said earlier, I think Ronaldo will stay at United this season. Although that does little to change what I think of him. However, all I am going to be doing for the next month and a half is calling the bluff on stories in broadsheets and rags, alike. I think it’s not a very difficult job with these tabloids, to be honest, but sometimes one can get carried away with reports that may sound authentic. I’ll be sure to put on my thinking/second guessing cap on when I read reports for the next month.
* * *
In other reports, there is certainly a big chance of Queiroz seriously considering the Portugal job, but it is not surprising.
Manutd.com is running the Solskjaer story — a good read.
And I guess, I don’t have anything intelligent to say. So I’ll hand the stage over to you.
Announcement: You may have noticed a small Manchester United logo by the side of my comments. That’s an avatar for those not familiar with forums. You could get one too. All you need to do is go to http://gravatar.com sign up by providing your email address (same as the one you use here) and upload a favourite image, and voila, it will show up here like magic. I will tweak the avatar size because it’s currently a bit too small. But, one enhancement at a time.
Over to you…
Related items from Red Rants:
- It’s Still All About Ronaldo, Love
- Spurs, Levy, Ferguson and Berbatov
- How’s the latest episode of the Ronaldo-Madrid soap opera an ‘exclusive’?
- Ronaldo to Madrid — Again
- A Tale of Full Backs and Some Idle Speculation
Tags: Daily Roundup
July 3rd, 2008 at 10:22
Hey RR. Theopening para looks more like star wars then LOTR! Anyway. Seriously.As much as i despise ronaldo now and as much as i hate to say this. There is NO ONE to replace him! I just hope Rooney shows up and takes ronaldo’s place so that even if he goes. We know that there is someone better than him!
July 3rd, 2008 at 10:47
what would anyone do to get one more season of Solksjear?
July 3rd, 2008 at 11:23
Let me draw up a few more analogies…
Gandalf = Fergie (intellectually)
Sauron = Calderon (linguistically)
Gimli = Rooney (psychologically)
Legolas = Ramos (physically) *if he were in our team*
July 3rd, 2008 at 11:45
My avatar ain’t comin up
July 3rd, 2008 at 11:53
Getting sick on the Ronaldo Saga. 2 things will stop it. First Ronaldo should come out and
tell us all if wants to stay or not. Second Fergie should preempt him and put him up for sale
Say 85 million Euros or a combination of money and players. If Real agree they should pay all the money up front
July 3rd, 2008 at 11:53
How did you come up with this RR? Its great! I could never look at it that way, what imagination you have. But you are right, along with antsBoy, about the persons roles. Hopefully it will end well at United too and Frodo will become himself again.
July 3rd, 2008 at 12:22
I reckon we sign Legolas and Gimli.
We play Gimli up front as a lone striker; small, stocky build can hold the ball up well and give the defenders a hard time a bit like Sparky. Then have Legolas just playing off him, a good eye for goal, pacey with a devastating finish. The perfect upfront partnership.
Phew thats our transfer problems sorted who need Berb, Benzema etc etc!
July 3rd, 2008 at 12:29
Hey RR! Aren’t there any prizes for the winner(s) of the Red-Rants Euro08 fantasy league???!!!
July 3rd, 2008 at 13:09
I would liken Ronaldo to the ring; silent, but with still clear motives, and Fergie to Frodo; he knows he has to keep the ring safe or destroy it forever by letting it rot in the stands, rather than have the enemy get a hold of it!
July 3rd, 2008 at 13:20
I almost signed up to make an avatar. Then thought better of it.
July 3rd, 2008 at 13:26
If United go for a new keeper to take over for VDS, I hope it wont be this one!
July 3rd, 2008 at 13:28
I just want him gone now, he has shown no interest in staying. We were better without beckham and ruud and we will be better without him “viva hemustgo”
July 3rd, 2008 at 13:44
I don’t think ronaldos going anywhere this season! He is simply playing a game in which either way he’s a winner! He is after a pay rise thats why hes playing the waiting game, or he would of just come out and said he wanted to move 110%! I think we will keep CR and we have to buy benzema and richards i know its easier said than done and would be hard to get these two players but if we are ambitious to dominate europe and the EPL for the next couple of years then these 2 players would be perfect buys as they are 19 and 20 and already fantastic, exciting players! Come on fergie call both clubs bluff n offer £18m for micah n £27m for benzema, both clubs will obv ask for more so go in with a 2nd offer of £20m and £30m and are future is secure for at least the next 5 yrs with young players all growing in to world class players together like andy, nani, rooney, ronaldo,tevez,benzema and richards hu could all become the best in the world in their positions! EVDS Foster/kuszak richards brown rio vida oshea evra carrick hargreaves scholes anderson nani park/giggs ronaldo rooney tevez benzema! imagine that as our startin 11 and 7 subs as our team selection that would be rotated! And also having players like simpson evans silvestre neville possebon fletcher eagles campbell manucho and wellbeck to call upon if needed n maybe saha hu may be shippd out! Who would stop us winning the treble and world domination muhahaha! What do you think WILSON
July 3rd, 2008 at 13:52
@Wilson: That team would be unbeatable, scare the shit out of every possible opponent. But I doubt United will go for Richards and Benzi this summer. Maybe next year though.
July 3rd, 2008 at 14:37
Hey guys let the FREAK GO!!!!!
July 3rd, 2008 at 15:03
Why should we let him go? He is under contract, arguably the best plater in the world and scored 42 goals for us.
If we sold him it would be a sign of weakness, what happens if Nani, Anderson or whoever decides that thay fancy a move to Madrid, it sets a president if we stick by our guns that proves we will not be bullied by other teams and our best layers can’t be poached.
July 3rd, 2008 at 15:07
Hey guys. If Ronaldo isnt fit for the opening game of the season against Newcastle or the next game against Pompey we will have problems. Remember that Nani is suspended for those two games. If neither can play we will have to use Park and Giggs as our wingers. Or one of those with Fletcher or Eagles. When United play their attacks usually goes through the wingers. That is why we play so fast football. Park is okey, so is Giggs and Eagles, but none of them can match the speed that Nani and Ronny has. Evra can play left winger, Andy can in emergensies, Rooney can, Owen did it against Chelsea in the CL final and against Roma, and the reserve player Martin can. Unless Newcastle get new fullbacks, they will have problems containing a fast winger. Imagine this being our team against Newcastle:
VDS
Neville Rio Vidic Evra
Park Carrick Scholes Giggs
Rooney Tevez
subs: Foster, Silvestre, Brown, Fletcher, Owen, Anderson and Saha/who knows?
This team is good enough to beat Newcastle of 2007/08, but will it be able to beat the Geordies of 2008/09? Probably. But Pompey? I have my doubts!
This is the second alternative:
VDS
Neville Rio Vida Evra
Owen Carrick/Anderson Scholes
Tevez Rooney Giggs/new striker
subs: Foster, Silvestre/Oshea, Brown, Fletcher, Carrick/Anderson, Park, Saha/Who knows?
July 3rd, 2008 at 15:11
well we also need to consider that we are not a one man Team you know…What if tommorow everyone
starts demanding for a higher fee structure.We are already deep in debt and we can’t afford to pay
unrealistic fee for the PLayers….
July 3rd, 2008 at 15:15
@antsBoy: It should come up. I don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t unless the server is down at Gravatar. Jay’s avatar seems to work fine.
Re: the fantasy league — sorry mate, no prizes for that. It was a fun thing because some members on the board requested it to while their time.
July 3rd, 2008 at 15:22
Fucking cunts!
July 3rd, 2008 at 15:58
The press of spain will do anything to prove their loyalty to real madrid. first it was marca now it is AS.
July 3rd, 2008 at 16:03
michael carrick
July 3rd, 2008 at 16:12
Just checkin if my avatar works.
Hope if ronaldo if to move, we should get Ramos instead. Or Sneijder.
July 3rd, 2008 at 16:29
Sorry for this but I couldn’t find any better place to ask this…
Does anybody know where i can get the season 07-08 away jersey long sleeve (black one)
July 3rd, 2008 at 16:32
Never quite understand everyones obession with Ramos. We have a good right back and our captain is also a right back, Hargo was superb there last season, O’shea can also play there, odd one to me.
July 3rd, 2008 at 16:47
Regarding your avatars [for those whose avatars haven't appeared], make sure you’ve rated the image in your profile on Gravatar.com. Ideally you’d want to rate it as G.
July 3rd, 2008 at 16:49
@AndyCR7: Go to the kits page on RR. You’ll find a link that leads to the away kit where you could buy it from.
July 3rd, 2008 at 17:11
What I think of Calderon and the rest of Real Madrid: They smell!
July 3rd, 2008 at 17:37
@Red Ranter: Anybody who appreciates and loves the Lord of the Rings is OK in my book. Lets simplify things a bit. Sauron is Real Madrid, the seduction money they are offering (the one ring) as well as Ronaldo’s girlfriend (Gollum) is the seductive force leading him to his encounter with Mount Doom which of course is a mask for what Madrid really is. Saruman is none other than the Spanish media who are working as Real’s willing ally in their attempt to lure Ronaldo (a confused Frodo) as well as destroy Manchester United which is similar to the Scouring of the Shire. The one ring’s biggest ally is represented by his Gollum like girlfriend who by her desire to get the one ring from Ronaldo, is trying to convince him to move closer and closer to his doom where she can have all that he has and all that she wants. Her Precious.
In many ways Ronaldo is less like Frodo and more like Boromir. He wants to be good but his burning ambition and desire to please himself, his ambition and his family drives him to do a terrible thing. Like Ronaldo he may realize that what he did was terrible and it may end up costing him but by finally staying with us he may save his soul. Gandalf the White (Fergie), King Elassar (Queiroz), Gimli and Legolas represent Manchester United and all that is noble chivalrous and good about our team and the game. They will be victorious at Helms Deep against the forces of Saruman because in the end, the Spanish media is not going to make it happen. Not as long as Gandalf (Fergie) and King Theoden (David Gill) are running the show and not as long as they have the will and stomach for the fight and a team of great allies who will do their best to win. And hopefully buy time for the confused and limping Frodo to come to his senses and drop the ring (money) as well as Gollum (girlfriend) into the fiery pit known as Real Madrid’s black and evil heart, thus destroying the ambitions and life of Sauron.
The major battle has yet to be fought. Gandalf (Fergie), King Elassar (CQ) and United and all it’s supporters (The Army of the West) will still have to fight the ultimate battle and defeat the evil forces of Real Madrid at the battle for Pelannor Fields (Ronaldo signing a new contract). In the book we have a happy ending and Saruman is destroyed as well as Sauran by the victorious Gandalf Elassar and by Frodo (Ronaldo) who sees the light and and chucks the contract and the girlfriend into the fire pit of Real Madrid’s Mouth of doom. Elassar is rewarded for his loyalty and is named king. (In two years CQ will be named manager of United, provided he sticks around) Frodo returns victorious back to a previously decimated shattered Shire (Manchester and OT) where he injects new life and signs his extended contract and plays out the rest of his career until it’s time to take a boat ride back to Madeira and retirement.
Hows that RR? Don’t get me started on the greatest work of fiction in the history of mankind. I could barely get myself to stop. One last thing, I was a little confused in trying to figure out if Gollum was Calderon or was it Ronny’s girlfriend? Actually, I think it was Calderon because Ronny’s girlfriend is probably Shelob. Rooney or some other friend of his is going to have to do him a life saving big favor and kill her off before that eight legged bitch has Ronny for dinner. Where’s Keano when we need him?
July 3rd, 2008 at 17:46
What bugs the Hell out of me is why this ankle problem wasn’t dealt with immediately after Ronaldo was eliminated from the Euros? It would be in United’s best interests to have sent doctors there immediately to assess the injury. Why didn’t they? I think at that point they felt they were going to lose him and let Madrid deal with it. As it turns out, if he indeed is going to stick around, he could conceivably miss a number of games early in the season recuperating from surgery. Again, I can’t help but feel this would have been addressed had Fergie and Gill be in Manchester. Ronaldo saw that nobody was home and so he split for holidays. This whole thing has been handled very poorly and with no sense of urgency. In the end it’s us supporters that get screwed the most. Watching the team operate without Ronaldo for several games and no Nani either. A replay of the results we had early last season seems to be beckoning. And even worse, we still really don’t know squat about how this Ronaldo business will end up. Meanwhile, it looks like Chelsea is ready to sign Arshavin and are in talks over Ronaldinho and Etoo too. And as for United, all is quiet as a mouse. And many of you ask me to be patient. What the Hell for?
Watching others take care of their business while United’s hierarchy sit on their ass and do nothing to solve their problems and to try to get better as well. Very very frustrating indeed.
July 3rd, 2008 at 17:56
Grog, I agree we seem to be basking in the glory of last season as our nearest and dearest rivals are snapping up or the available talent, leaving us to pick up the unwanted and over priced scraps.
We should have been quicker and more aggresive in the market, picking up Ramsey in May, and we really were intersted in Dos Santos, and at £4.6m seems a decent punt we should have done that soon after.
We will probably pay 30m for Berbatov, Ok good player, but expensive or even worse 20m on Santa Cruz!
July 3rd, 2008 at 18:07
@Stephen: My God, I’m reading that Zenit accepted Chelsea’s bid for Arshavin. It was a measly 12 million. 12 million. Consider how much we paid for Carrick and how much we could end up paying for Tevez. And Arshvin is worth both of those players combined. He is a super talent and he will be bought for nothing. Sure his personal terms may be high but come on, we are United, we should be able to afford a player of that quality. At least we should have been battling for him. Instead we stand idly by while the rest of the footballing world tries to improve their teams. We are arrogant enough to think that ours needs no changes. If this disturbing trend continues up until the trade deadline, then I will be vindicated when you all see just how far United have fallen back into the rest of the pack. All I know is we better sign Ronaldo or we are in big trouble. Once again I will say it for umpteenth time to all of you who do not want to hear it or believe it. United are cash poor and in major debt which has crippled their attempts to buy players and then pay them what they want. WE ARE BROKE!
July 3rd, 2008 at 18:11
first thing, the new united 3rd kit is here.
second, how do i add an avatar?
July 3rd, 2008 at 18:16
@Red Ranter: RR I checked that Kits section…
but 2007-08 away kit doesn’t seem to be available there…
I am not kind of liking the new 2008-09 away kit… that black one was really good… any idea where I can get it?
July 3rd, 2008 at 18:21
Grog, I agree mate it does not make logical sense why we have not shown any interest in a player like that especially for 12m!
Also hear that the Glaziers are happy to sell Ronaldo. Fergie would not talk about him on the golf day he was on, and probably he has been told to sell the player as we need to pay off some of the debt.
I heard today Dickov has been released by Citeh, so all our forward problems have been answered!!
July 3rd, 2008 at 18:25
King Elessar *
July 3rd, 2008 at 18:32
i just realised something, if we (england) are successful in our bid for the world cup(2018 i believe it is), will united develop the stadiums south stand?
July 3rd, 2008 at 19:33
@Red Ranter: Yeah, I think it was a problem with the Gravatar server then..it’s fine now.
About the fantasy league prizes, I was juz kidding mate
It was awesome fun though!
July 3rd, 2008 at 19:37
@Grognard: Hey Grogs, keeping with the LOTR analogy, who do you think would Arwen be? I’m hoping it would be Colleen as Rooney (Aragorn) comes back to take his rightful throne as King next season.
July 3rd, 2008 at 19:44
Hmm… nice to see others appreciating LOTR. But before someone brings it up, let me hasten to add that I detest Harry Potter and am not a big fan of the Star Wars series [I mention this because they are the other obvious stories one could bring up].
July 3rd, 2008 at 19:59
how do you add an avatar?
July 3rd, 2008 at 20:03
@dan(u-ol): Read the last part of the article.
“Announcement: You may have noticed a small Manchester United logo by the side of my comments. That’s an avatar for those not familiar with forums. You could get one too. All you need to do is go to http://gravatar.com sign up by providing your email address (same as the one you use here) and upload a favourite image, and voila, it will show up here like magic. I will tweak the avatar size because it’s currently a bit too small. But, one enhancement at a time.”
July 3rd, 2008 at 20:17
ok, thanks.
I’ve done everything, but the avatar is still not on, what do i do/did i do wrong?
July 3rd, 2008 at 20:19
Aww, happy days!
July 3rd, 2008 at 20:19
Uhm RR plz dont enlargen the avatar size.They right the way they are.I dont really like them lol
Ishaaq
July 3rd, 2008 at 20:20
Dunno.
Dan, that is not the third kit, thats our Champions League away kit. We might use it against Sunderland, Stoke and Arsenal though.
July 3rd, 2008 at 20:23
Remember this?
July 3rd, 2008 at 20:24
cool.
NO
, WE MISSED OUT ON DEEGAN 
, great thats 2 players that should gone to us, go to a rival club, i cant believe we missed out on the class that is deegan.
July 3rd, 2008 at 20:35
@RedDevil: Damn funny man..brings back the good feelings…I remember there was another solo Nani dance almost as soon as we had won it that was absolutely hilarious..can’t find it on YouTube though
July 3rd, 2008 at 20:39
If we keep Ronaldo we are still ahead of Arsenal and Liverpool. Chelsea are a bit stronger but could end up losing Drogba and Lampard two of their best players in previous years. Arsenal have already lost Flamini and could yet lose Hleb and Adebayor.
We have a stable and unchanged team (again assuming we keep Ronaldo) and that constancy is a major advantage for us.
I’d like to have Arshavin but I do not believe the 12 million figure. I would imagine it is closer to 20 million, which is too much for a player who would either be a sub or impede the development of Nani.
I reckon the money will be spent on a Saha replacement and Saha will be loaned out or sold. I do not think any of the players who are being snapped up ever were our targets with the exception of Ramsey and Dos Santos and in that case I think the players just felt they’d get first team football at their chosen destinations.
July 3rd, 2008 at 20:59
Scholes replacement is Anderson.
Giggs replacement is Nani.
The future is bright.
July 3rd, 2008 at 21:06
Theres a rumour going on that Saha may be one his way to WBA. He might not be the best striker in the world, but WBA? Come on, you aint that bad! Its like Owen moving to Rochdale!
July 3rd, 2008 at 21:10
I like the Chamipons League away kit/3rd kit! It looks just like the 68 final kit. I will defo buy it when it is for sale. With Anderson#8 on the back. He is just awsome!
July 3rd, 2008 at 21:47
Looks like Ronaldo’s not the only one who has a dream. Messi’s father has comeout his son’s dream is to play in Italy someday and sooner or later this will happen….
July 3rd, 2008 at 21:58
*sigh* that anderson video was a breath of fresh air, he is something special that boy.
July 3rd, 2008 at 22:07
@antsBoy: The King of course has to be Cantona but I couldn’t work his kingdom into the story. Arwen would be Nani because there are times he acts like a girl on the pitch.
July 3rd, 2008 at 22:11
@Red Ranter: They all pale in comparison to LotR don’t they RR? In fact all fantasy other than the Iliad and the Odyssey pales in comparison to Tolkien and they have all stolen from him too. Sounds a lot like United. Everybody pales in comparison but they love to steal from them.
July 3rd, 2008 at 22:17
@dan(u-ol): Deegan is not in Ramsey’s class so that was no great loss,believe me.
July 3rd, 2008 at 22:18
End of Euros +4 and all is quiet.
July 3rd, 2008 at 22:36
The Premier League will use a new, improved ball next season. Hoepfully it will help us score more goals
July 3rd, 2008 at 22:40
42 days until the Premier League season starts.
July 3rd, 2008 at 22:50
@RedDevil: Ronaldo has already complained about the ball being just like the one in the Euros. It will make spinning free kicks float and crosses will sail too. You have to drive the ball like Ballack did against Austria to have any success with the ball. This is the EPL’s way of hurting Ronaldo and United although I don’t think it is a conspiracy. It will hurt us in free kicks. But lets wait and see. If Ronaldo stays, hopefully he may get used to it.
July 3rd, 2008 at 23:02
@Red Ranter: Hmm, that I wouldn’t have expected that..
Off-topic but still..
RR, did you read Harry Potter? I actually don’t like the Potter movies but the books are IMHO quite excellent. Whereas The LOTR movies while being much better ovies on the whole, are also a little wee bit disappointing with respect to the books, but hey that’s a fanboy talking here!
Else;
)
Van der Sar = Treebeard
Gaz Neville = Faramir
Rio = Galadriel
Vidic = Gimli
Evra = Tom Bombadil
Ronaldo = Frodo if he stays, Gollum if he leaves
Scholes = Master Samwise
Carrick = Merry
Owen = Pippin (he actually looks the part!
Giggs = Elrond (much friendlier in the book than in the movie)
Rooney = Thorin Oakenshield (from The Hobbit)
Carlitos = Eomer
SAF = obviously, Gandalf (the white, now that he’s mellowed a bit…)
On a side note, Beckham would have been Boromir, havin been lured by fame and riches to finally see the truth, but too late, huh?
Pushing the analogy, Keano could be Bilbo, and Eric Aragorn , as he after all is the King!
Hmm, thinking of which I’m sure this analogy can be done with the 68 team. Let’s see:
Sir Matt: Gandalf
Dennis Law: Aragorn
Geoge Best: Frodo
Sir Bobby… aak can’t fid anynone
I hope I don’t look like the fat guy from the simpsons with all my musings
July 3rd, 2008 at 23:05
Hmm thinking about it Giggs should be Legolas Greenleaf. Physically not much esemblance but in terms of personality and skill
July 3rd, 2008 at 23:10
@Grognard: as regards our rivals spendind and us not there is now a section on the official website talking about how our rivals are `dipping into the transfer market´ Personally I think that it is a travesty that they would have to publish that. I am sure that we will sign good players I just don´t want to see Berbatov as I think he is the wrong player for us. I think that our transfer strategy will depend on whether Ronnie leaves. By the way Arshavin is overrated. people are talking about him as if he is the next coming of Jesus because he had 2 good games in the EUROS, he is a good player, just not a world class player as is being made out.
July 3rd, 2008 at 23:18
new 3rd kit looks great has to be anderson for me on the back for me
July 3rd, 2008 at 23:36
@Grognard: Exaggerating a bit here, aren’t we? Fergie wasn’t interested in Arshavin, so if any club signs up, good for them. There’s no proof we’re broke, yet you keep saying that, theres a difference between being realistic and being overly- pessimistic, you should know where you fall into. If we were cash strapped as you often suggest, don’t you think Fergie would have offloaded Saha and Silvestre(he’d have probably gotten a combined 20mil or more) when he had the chance? I fail to see flurry of transfers you keep mentioning, between all the top four clubs, only one high profile signing has been made(Nasri isn’t completed for Arsenal and he isn’t high profile). We’re being linked to players just like Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool are also been linked. Its still 40+ days to go and i really don’t see us signing anyone before middle or end of July, so Grog brace up for more frustrating days for you.
@Stephen: The last time i checked, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal were our main rivals, i seem to have missed this “snapping up” you mentioned and i’d really like to know, the playerS that the above clubs have snapped up. Also i seemed to have missed this interest in Dos Santos that you mentioned(no sun or tribal football thank you very much). Like i said if nothing happens by the end of July i’d be worried, but for now..i’m not. It just seems weird that Arsenal fans seem to have more faith in their club who hasn’t given them anything for three years than we United fans.
July 3rd, 2008 at 23:46
@Grognard: Grog, Tolkien has stolen a hell of a lot from northern mythology and stuff. But he’s still the best out there when it comes to heroic fantasy.
Ah, just read your earlier post, very funny, but for neophytes, you should mention that Elessar = Aragorn
But LotR greatest work of fiction ever? Perhaps for entertainment value..But I still prefer 1984 by Orwell.
July 4th, 2008 at 0:22
@Nico QB: I would never want to compare LoTR and 1984. It’s like apples and oranges. One a majestically woven fantasy and another a chilling evaluation of a world dominated by fascist forces.
Both brilliant nonetheless.
July 4th, 2008 at 0:25
@Rd: To be fair, dos Santos was quoted as having chosen Spurs over us. Will put up the link later.
July 4th, 2008 at 0:41
@Nico QB: Mate LOTR was/is a mythology.
July 4th, 2008 at 0:59
@Liam: Don’t you think that if they wait to find out if Ronaldo leaves that all the good players will be gone by then and they will have to settle for scraps? They are dragging their asses in this matter and there is absolutely no excuse for it. And nobody should waste their time trying to defend their inaction because frankly, it is indefensible.
Look, All I’m asking for is a bloody striker. I frakken player, not three not foour not six. What is so God Damned difficult about dishing out the money and buying one of four or five good ones that are available. Huntelaar, Berbatov, Arshavin, Pavlyuchenko, Podolski, Gomez, Villa are all out there. I don’t include Benzema because the price they are asking at Lyon is twice what the player is worth. Just buy the bloody striker already and then deal with Ronaldo. We need the striker whether Ronaldo leaves or stays. Just get that piece of business out of the way already. JEEZ!
July 4th, 2008 at 1:00
@Liam: Obviously you haven’t watched Arshavin enough to be sold. I’ve seen him play about a dozen times and trust me, he’s the real deal. The boy can play.
July 4th, 2008 at 1:12
Hehe Chelsea released Crespo. Id like to snap him up and play him as our Larsson figure. He’d bring so much experience to the team.
July 4th, 2008 at 2:13
I’d have no problem with Crespo as a third striker. I still think he can contribute and he would be valuable late in a game when we need to get a goal and we need a predator in the box.
July 4th, 2008 at 2:25
I have to say that I applaud Aston Villa’s stubborn as Hell approach when it comes to Gareth Barry and his proposed move Scouserville. Don’t settle Marty and make that bastard Rafa pay way and above his value if he really wants him that badly. When Rafa wakes up and realizes Crouch is only worth three pounds and bag of hammers instead of the ludicrous 15 million he is asking, then maybe Marty will start to talk business. Until then Rafa…..UP YOURS MATE!
July 4th, 2008 at 2:28
RR; You need to help some of us mentally challenged souls on this avatar business. I went to Gravatar and opened an account and selected my photo and all. Now what? How the Hell do I get it to show up next to my name on your blog? I waited the ten minutes the site asked and nothing has happened. ?????????
July 4th, 2008 at 2:33
Is this real–ly true???
http://www.goal.com/en/articolo.aspx?contenutoid=762505
July 4th, 2008 at 4:38
It never ends. Now the Guardian reports that Ronaldo’s sister says Ronny has decided to stay at OT after all. Wasn’t she the bitch that proclaimed him leaving for Madrid was as good as done? Between his mother, and siblings it’s a miracle if one word in a sentence is true. There is a term for people like that where I’m from. Poor white trailer trash.
July 4th, 2008 at 6:41
Interesting analogy RR…
Caveat: I am currently re-reading the series 
I really do not think that Ronaldo will be going to Real this year, or next for that matter. We just won’t sell him, And I think he knows he can accomplish far more in Manchester than Real in the near future. It will most likely come when Raul hangs it up and Fergie retires, imo.
These are the same type of rumors that always fly just before an election. Last time it was Kaka, this time CR7. The fact that he has stated a desire to play for them only fanned the flames of the Spanish media. Further more, while being very coy for quite some time has surely pissed off a great many fans (including me),I can see that has only increased thier desire for a future transfer.
If you will remember the story was at it’s peak when that stupid Brazillian site popped off a load of shit that was never confirmed (to my knowledge). That piece was a big part to giving the story a few extra news cycles, neatly complementing the filth coming out of Spain. As I ponder this for a minute it seems that La Liga have quite a good number Brazillians in the league and we know that Real have quite a few connections down there. I’m sure it wasn’t too hard to get someone down there to write up a bunch of drivel. What’s a favor amongst friends anyways…eh?
I also don’t really believe that the ankle has anything to do with thier slow retreat from this matter. He is not for sale, they know it and will look like asses come Monday for making a promise that they can’t keep.
@Grognard, you just have to confirm the Avatar you want to use in the manage account area.
July 4th, 2008 at 7:06
Groggy- Awsome avatar man! And it wasnt Ronaldos sister that said he was leaving, it was his brother. Hopefully this one is right.
July 4th, 2008 at 7:46
@Grognard:
Hehehe, he’s probably just slightly better then simpson, knowing rafa.
July 4th, 2008 at 8:53
looks like we’re not the only one’s having trouble with our star players this pre-season, i feel sorry for martin o’neil over how barry is treating the club he is captin of. personally i would have O’neil as the next manager perfect replacement in my book.
i carn’t wait 42 days for the season to start! its gonna be great when it finally kicks off… and when we get to see the mistery signing.
July 4th, 2008 at 9:02
dont nobody have the training picture yet?
July 4th, 2008 at 9:09
united fans are the most luxuriou loty i have known in port.you have all this big squad of champions,you want youngstars to come through,but you still insist on spendig three days into the transfer window,
July 4th, 2008 at 9:40
@RedDevil: Thanks. I had to go with the King as he best represents the personality of the Grognard. just love Cantona. Weird though. The avatar doesn’t show up for me on my main computer but it shows up on my laptop which has a different e-mail address. I wonder if that is happening to you or others? Are we all not able to see our own avatars but are able to see everyone elses?
July 4th, 2008 at 10:30
@Grognard: Your Gravatar is linked directly to your email address, so if you’re using one email address on one computer and a different one on another, that would explain why it sometimes appears and sometimes doesn’t. The Gravatar will only display alongside one email address.
July 4th, 2008 at 11:17
Spanish daily Marca reports that Robinho could terminate his contract with Real Madrid under the Webster ruling, with the club being entitled to compensation amounting to a mere 10 million euros…
http://www.goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=762104
How hilarious would it be if we snapped him up AND kept hold of Ronaldo. Real Madrid would be utterly sick and heads would roll. Make it happen!
July 4th, 2008 at 11:24
Ronaldos’ sister claims he wants to stay with us
July 4th, 2008 at 13:09
What happened to this guy? I miss the person, the player was not soo good then. But he was better than most.
July 4th, 2008 at 13:12
@Grognard and partly Stephen: Can you please tell me, who it is the other top clubs are signing, while we sit on our asses?
Yes, Chelsea have signed Bosingwa and Deco, but that’s it. Liverpool are the only other club to have signed someone, and that was a Suiss back, who’ll turn out to be useless.
You write that Chelsea are in talks over Ronaldinho, but yet his agent reports that it’s 90% likely, he’ll go to AC Milan – where do you get your insider information from?
Eto’o is merely specaulation isn’t it? The same with Arshavin.
And you should expect Chelsea to sign a bunch of players, so some of their new players will most likely be players you’d have liked to have.
You are becomming more and more paranoid and speculative. It’s fine with me that you are, but I just don’t see the point. I know, it’s probably easier to deal with negative results, if that’s how all this turns out… a defense mechanism.
I’m not trying to judge you – I just simply don’t understand your frustrations. What I can understand is that frustration leads to more frustration, and at the rate you’re at right now, it’ll be hefty in 42 days, because I doubt, you’ll be anywhere near satisfied with our signing(s) at that point.
July 4th, 2008 at 13:44
@Everyone: can we all grow up and stop making these ridiculous references to LOTR?
@Grognard: you do my head in with your condeceneding tone of “i am right and all you people have no idea”. With regard to Arshavin, I dont agree that he is the pinnacle of current talent floating about. Yes he is good, but so was Djemba-Djemba at the African Nations Cup. We didnt buy him because we didnt want him, not because we are “broke” and cant afford him at 12 mil. I find it disturbing that you can actually inderestimate united and AF this much, you think they are sitting there now going…”ahh shit dave…that russian lad has just signed to chelski…we really dropped the ball on that one.”
….utter bollocks! Ronaldo is a fantastic player, and he was aswesome for us this year, but lets not forget that he is just one player. If the united team were to fall apart because we lose one player then we have serious problems!
July 4th, 2008 at 14:01
I am A, not paranoid and B, not being speculative, what we are saying that United are between £600 – £700m pounds worth of debt, and £74m on wages per season @ least so we probably don’t have the money to spend on players.
You forgot Arsenal have signed Ramsey and Nasri.
I don’t need you to tell me how to support my club mate, I have been watching United for a long time thru thick and thin
July 4th, 2008 at 14:15
@Stephen: well if we are counting ramsey as a meaningful signing then we have signed 2 players…the brazilian twins.
July 4th, 2008 at 14:22
What do mean by meaningful? would you have said Fargregas was not meaningful when Arsenal signed him, also the twins were agreed last Feb.
July 4th, 2008 at 14:42
i mean that you are classing ramsey as a big signing for arsenal…and i dont think you can do that. and yes they were agreed in feb, but they couldnt play til this summer…hence 2 new signings. also manucho falls into this bracket too…so actually we have 3 new signings already!
July 4th, 2008 at 14:45
Don’t forget david petrucci
July 4th, 2008 at 14:47
@pratyush: good point…4 signings.
July 4th, 2008 at 14:49
I know what you are saying, it just seems very quiet and I think personally that we just don’t have the money to spend on players.
That not me being “paranoid” or “speculaive” it is fact that we have a hige debt, and we can’t petend we that haven’t, and that is probably the reason why we have been so quiet in the market thus far.
We probably are still awaiting to see developments with regard to Ronaldo b4 we can actually spend any money.
July 4th, 2008 at 14:52
@Stephen: yeah i do agree with you on both counts. we dont have much money, and it would make sense to wait til the ronaldo guff is sorted.
July 4th, 2008 at 15:29
I think we are all now fed up with talking about the Ronaldo sarga it needs to be resolved once and for all.
The Euro’s are finished, Portugal were knocked out over two weeks ago, and we are none the wiser on where we stand with regards to our winger.
The club took a very tough stance at first, now is it me or is that stance dwindling? Or do we now want to sell, and we are waiting for Ronaldo to come out and say he is leaving? or are we being being blase’, and just being strong sticking by our original stance know one knows, lack of infomation.
I think us fans just want to know what is happening, are we selling him in order to purchase other players? or are keeping hold of the player?, hence our lack of activity in the market (not being paranoid). Either or, the fans would respect the clubs decision, but not knowing is in my view not fair on the fans, but what do we expect.
July 4th, 2008 at 15:47
Wow. There is more paranoia here than one would expect from Radiohead and Muse combined. A few things to keep in mind.
Those in the Uk might not be used to it, this sort of leveraged buyout with what appears to be heavy debt is common practise in North American sports and rarely leads to the sort of doom and gloom being discussed here (although, I concede that the situations are not identical given that North Americans trade rather than buy players). So unless there is evidence to the contrary, the debt is not really that big of an issue (despite what that t#@t Platini has to say).
SAF said earlier that funds were available to strengthen the squad and that he would indeed strengthen the squad in the areas that it required. Since I can’t recall him ever outright lying to the fans, why all the concern that there is no money available? I agree that the wait is annoying, but you can’t infer that we won’t sign anyone from the fact that we haven’t signed anyone.
Finally, what are all these big signings that other clubs have apparantly completed. Deco is the only one that might truly qualify as ‘big’ but he is 30 and surely not what we need. Sure, there have been a couple of nice signings, but nothing earth shattering and surely no one has been signed that is world class. So nothing has changed that drastically in the big 4 pecking order.
Bottom line: colour me puzzled?!?!?
July 4th, 2008 at 15:53
100
July 4th, 2008 at 15:56
berbatov could be on our cards, link.
July 4th, 2008 at 16:22
we might have some pre season injury problem
manucho injury
July 4th, 2008 at 16:35
@Stephen: Mate Arsenal have to sign players because they’ve already lost Flamini and looks like Hleb will also leave and Adebayor might. So they need to look for replacements. Chelsea sign players for the sake of doing it. The y have Paulo Ferreira who was offered a 4 year contract last year and they brought in Belletti only last year now they’ve brought in Bosingwa for big money. Liverpool have brought in a 2nd grade centerback. Spurs are the only ones to have made meaningful signings and they have to build a good squad if they want to challenge the top 4. We don’t need to be signing a lot of players coz there’s no need. We are looking for 1 or 2 players and I’m sure SAF knows who that’s going to be and talks must be going on.
So I don’t see the need for all this fuss from most of us here.
July 4th, 2008 at 16:43
Damn, I´ll have to wait ´til i´m back from holidays to set up my avatar by which point all of the good ones will probably be gone
@Stephen: As regards the debt I think that the Glazer´s business plan may be to sell the club before the loan runs down. The club is worth over 1bn and the debt is something like 700m. That translates into huge profits for them
@Grognard: As regards Arshavin, yes he is good when he is given time on the ball but when he isn´t getting much of the ball he doesn´t do very much for his team. What I´m trying to say is that he is slightly one-dimensional. For example if Ronaldo, Messi or Henry isn´t seeing much of the ball they will switch positions and try to get on the ball as much as possible. Arshavin against Spain was being completely choked by Senna but continued playing the exact same style and was kept quiet for the whole game. Another thing is that he is the star of both St. Petersburg and Russia and it is unknown how he would adapt to not being at the centre of his team´s plans. Like i said he is a good player, just not world class.
@everyone; just be patient, there is still 2 months left in the transfer window, the signings will come, the real world is not like football manager and FIFA 08 (and if not we still have a fantastic team so I´m not worried)
July 4th, 2008 at 17:33
Any debt that exists is Glazer debt, not United debt. The Glazers could sell United to a Chinese or Saudi group for £1bn easy. It’s not like if the Glazers can’t pay the debt, they will sell of Old Trafford for houses and shit like that.
Anyway, we just won the 2 biggest titles available to us, prize money coming out of our arses, £40mil less of wages than Chelsea and only £3mil more than Arsenal. I hated the Glazers at first, but the transfer funds have been there EVERY YEAR, even when we won nothing.
Everyone needs to stop panicking, and stop talking about Djembax2 like he is relevant to anything!
In Fergie We Trust.
July 4th, 2008 at 17:56
@ Chris Traverse
Yes, I agree in Fergie we trust. He was quoted as saying the Glazers where good owners, plus I just read stuff concerning our debts and the fact that our HUGE profits will “service” them in the long run. But you do agree also that we should get on with the transfer biz, don’t you? Don’t want to be too optimistic but fact remains, I have faith in Fergie. Would he lie to us? Don’t think so.
What’s this nonsense with Ronaldo’s entire clan? Who’s next? He’s cousin form he’s mother’s side twice removed? Silently though, I pray the latest rumor apparently from he’s sister holds water
@Grog
40 days is a real long time mate! If there’s one thing common to we United faithful, it’s faith. Have faith, the Glazers CAN not ruin us.
July 4th, 2008 at 18:13
@Tomas: Arsenal have already signed Ramsey and Nasri and are actively pursuing Arshavin and a replacement for Adebayor. Chelsea have signed Deco and are strongly linked also to Arshavin, who they apparently flew in to discuss terms, Ronaldinho who Scolari wants badly and Etoo are also very interested to go to Chelsea. I’m sure it won’t stop there. Liverpool are aggressively going after Barry, while having just agreed to terms with the Italian defender whose name escapes me at present. They also have tapped up Robbie Keane and have him demanding a move to them from Spurs. Tottenham have made the signing of the off season so far in landing Modric and also Dos Santos. They are close to finalizing the deal for the Brazilian keeper and are actively pursuing others. Barca have signed Daniel Alves and are strongly linked with a number of players. Inter is actively going after players as Mourinho is trying to get Lampard and is also pursuing numerous names while trying to get a feel for who is available.
My point is you hear from these teams. They make inquiries, invite players to negotiate terms, discuss openly the players they want and hope to get. Sure the media creates a lot of bullshit but the bottom line is that these teams are making changes and trying to move aggressively. United is doing nothing and everyone there is acting and sounding like they are at a funeral. They are totally tied up with the Ronaldo affair and they are stuck in limbo until that gets resolved. Fine, so be it. But if Ronaldo is transferred in a week or two or three, will there be anyone worth going after to help replace him? Will the Glazer’s cough up the Ronaldo profits in order to go buy players, and if so, will there be anybody left or will those monies go straight into debt payments?
If we don’t lose Ronaldo it’s not the end of the world this non activity. If we do lose him however, we will not have to buy just one player to replace his impact on this team. And waiting to find out what that impact will be is fatal. At least buy the bloody striker we need right now. Manucho went down with a metatarsal bone fracture the other day. We can’t even count on him to be with the team now. It would be lunacy and complete folly to not buy a top striker now while there are a half dozen available. He is needed even if Ronaldo stays. He is absolutely vital and shoots all the way to the top of the class if Ronaldo leaves. I honestly get amazed how many of you cannot see the writing on the wall. That many of you are so blinded by your faith and loyalty that you dare not question the lack of desire and expediency that is not be taken in dealing with our team’s needs and the Ronaldo affair. Should I have faith in Fergie? Perhaps, but lets put it this way, I have more faith in his coaching and managing of the team in the dressing room and on the pitch than I have in his attempt to tempt and persuade players to sign with us or his power to get a deal done when the team seems to me to be in financial trouble. This calm seems to be a sign of surrender by Fergie. He may feel he has lost Ronaldo and the money he needs to rebuild the team is not present nor will it be in the near future. Now he also has to deal with the probable loss of Queiroz too. When it rains it pours!
I’m probably wrong with all this and if so, no problem. I’ll be happy as Hell to admit my mistakes and move on. But it amazes me how so many of you here love to be spoon fed with only positives and pablum. It’s important for members like myself to occasionally rock the boat and bring up concerns that may in fact be relevant and accurate based on current situations and inaction by our team’s brain trust. So forgive my doom and gloom because somebody has to offer up a dose of it since so many love to look at things from rose colored glasses. If I’m wrong and Fergie goes on a buying binge and picks up a major striker and keeps Ronaldo, then I will come out and apologize for being wrong. However, how many of you will apologize to me for questioning my sanity if Ronaldo is sold, we buy a scrap for a striker and nobody else arrives unless it’s part of the deal with Madrid? Is this calm before the storm? Lately we have been led to believe that Ronaldo has had a change of heart and has decided to stay. I don’t believe it, not for a second. Real’s inactivity in the transfer market is because they are awaiting to make the big announcement. Ronaldo to Real for 70 million and Robinho. The Glazer’s will have spoken and that is what will happen. And then we will pursue and buy Santa Cruz, or probably Fabiano or Falcao and that will be it. Certainly not the value on the pitch for what we will have lost I feel. In the end, this whole off season may even cause Fergie to chuck it all and announce his retirement sooner than later. He’s used to being given the resources to fight the fight. All of a sudden I get the feeling we are acting more and more like West Ham. No way Fergie’s ego amd pride can handle that I feel.
There, I’ve said my peace. Paranoia and worry personified. Now how many of you are honest enough to admit that the very same feelings have bounced around in your heads over the past month? Don’t kill the messenger if you don’t agree with the message. Someone had to deliver it.
July 4th, 2008 at 18:35
@Tomas: Tomas if the sports media in Europe can go around and deliver garbage and lies as well as rumors and innuendo then I feel I can be forgiven for adding a little paranoia and concern on a fan based rant site. Unlike them, I don’t even get paid for my paranoia and speculation. You say that my actions are fine with you and that you are not judging me but clearly you are. Clearly I have my defense mechanism working but I feel that I have the right to do so and that there is nothing wrong with that. It’s how I deal with disappointment. And right now I am feeling a great deal of disappointment. To know how I think and why I am like this you would need to know the number of bad things that have happened to me in my life to create this defense mechanism. I won’t bore you with the details but suffice it to say, I have been burned and betrayed by people who I never suspected and never expected such treachery from.
It has ruined my faith in a lot of things and my faith in people in general. Oh trust me I am not a walking bitter angry old fool who can’t get along with anybody. But I am a cautious person who is very astute these days when he sees symptoms or warnings of impending problems.
I personally believe that you and others are setting yourselves up for a major hurt and feeling of betrayal because you refuse to see the obvious and the possibility that I just might be right. What if I am? At least I prepared myself for the doom and gloom that may come. For many like you it will hit you like a brick falling from the top floor of the Empire State Building. Now if you are right and I am wrong, I end up feeling incredible rapture and relief while you maintain yourself with the status quo. You don’t get high or low. Great for you, not great for me. I experience all the emotions fully and I prepare myself for them so that they don’t hit me to hard. I certainly don’t think I’m a fool nor am I accusing you of calling me one, but my theories and beliefs are not those of a fool. I consider myself a good reader of people and I do have an experienced and accurate intuition on how I read people and their actions. Sure I’m not always right but you’d be surprised how often I am. I personally see and read warning signs all over the front of OT. And Fergie and Gill will have to work hard to prove to me that I am wrong. From where I am standing right now, I am looking more and more correct every day. Two and three weeks ago many posters on this blog claimed that I was paranoid and that Fergie would immediately take care of business once the Euros were over and he was back from vacation. Ronaldo’s Euros were over ten days ago. Nothing has happened. Where is the urgency man? Nero is playing his harp while Rome burns, and I for one don’t like fire.
God what I would give for Fergie to prove me wrong. GO AHEAD FERGIE….MAKE MY DAY!
July 4th, 2008 at 18:36
@jstar7: You are out of line with your comments mate and I for one do not appreciate it.
July 4th, 2008 at 18:42
@dan(u-ol): Your posts are becoming more and more difficult to understand mate. What exactly does “100″ mean?
and if you are replying to somebody’s comment or question, use their name before you make the comment so you don’t put me and others into a state of confusion. Not a criticism, just a suggestion.
July 4th, 2008 at 18:43
@Grognard: I think the difference between you and most other users on this site is that we share a common faith which you seem not to. That is the faith in the man who has done more for this football club than any other manager has, for any other club out there; Sir Alex Ferguson. If you cant put your trust in him to do Manchester United right, then who can you?
The man is the key figure in the last two decades of Manchester United’s success. Have a little faith.
July 4th, 2008 at 18:50
@Liam: So let me get this straight. You are basing this theory on one game against Spain. What about all those games for Zenit where he is given free reign by Dick Advocaat and where he goes from one side to the other and interchanges positions. Did you ever stop to think that maybe Hiddink restricted him or the fact that maybe the Russian team as a whole were not good enough to overcome Spain thus allowing a blanket of coverage to be placed over Arshavin that he could come out from under? All great players are only as good as the players around them and the system they play. Arshavin has shown me that he is capable of doing all the things you say he isn’t. How many times was Ronaldo invisible for Portugal. He certainly was against Germany. Or how about Ronaldinho when Barca won their European Cup or in the last World Cup? I guess they just aren’t up to snuff. Sorry Liam but I am not going down on record and placing an unfair label on a player for one game at the Euros. It is after all a team game and one player does not make a team, nor should he be relied on to carry a team.
July 4th, 2008 at 18:52
we Will sign someone.. just be patient… Grog have you ever considered that we don’t and haven’t often revealed openly interest in a player… bar perhaps Hargreaves, just cos were not seen to be going after player X and player Y just credits how good Utd are in going about there transfers (re last year.. no one saw the portugse Job) any way my point is i think Wenger has to rebuild the crux of his squad which is why he seems to be desparate to bring in players… what we have is a group of CHAMPIONS! Champions of Europe and England and considering for 4 of those players it was their first season at Utd with only one of them having Premiership experience, i’d say we have a pretty awesome squad.. and like SAF said, one player will probably do, it will mean minimum disruption to the flow of the team who can kick off not having to settle into a new team or getting to know how each other play, so i think thats a big advantage to us. also as someone mentioned i reckon Ronaldo features heavily in our future plans so he needs to be secured then we can look at bringing in this “one player”
Foster
Neville Ferdinand Vidic Evra
Ronaldo Hargreaves Anderson Nani
Rooney Tevez.
this is gonna be our first choice squad sooner or later… and other than a replacement for Gary and the outright purchasing of Tevez… all these players are in the squad, just because Chelsea and Arse have finally realised their squads weren’t good enough, and they are having to invest more than us to try and match us… we are the dominant team and will be for years to come, and that will only be harmed by bringing in players just to stop another team getting them,.. i mean come on aint that the chelski way of doing things.
July 4th, 2008 at 18:57
United club spokesman about Real Madrid’s attempt to get Ronaldo : “It is utter nonsense and totally laughable. Cristiano Ronaldo is not for sale.”
Let that be the end of that. Going nowhere. Ronaldo’ll get an improved contract. His agent used possible Real interest as a bargaining chip, and Real in their desperation to stop the slump pulled out all the stops to land him, and have ended up with a big red omelette on their face.
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11667_3776679,00.html
also, I completely agree with Will. Our lack of signings is a Strength, not a weakness. we are the benchmark for others to strive to.
July 4th, 2008 at 18:58
@Jay: So now we are slinging mud are we? How fucking insulting can you get? It’s not lack of faith in Fergie it’s lack of faith in the Glazer’s and and the debt they are servicing. Fergie’s inaction comes from that, so try not to insult me by calling me less of a fan or less faithful to the great man than yourself. Nobody and I mean nobody loves or respects Sir Alex Ferguson more than myself. But make no mistake, I am not a fucking sheep and I will question my mother and my father if I feel they are dropping the ball. That doesn’t make me less of a son.
Oh, and I don’t need a Fergie history lesson from you either. And people accuse me of talking down to them. God give me strength!
July 4th, 2008 at 19:04
@Chris Traverse: Do you watch politics much? Because if you do then you’ll know that professional spokesmen are born liars. They are paid to lie and they are rarely ever held responsible for it because that is their job. I’ll believe it when it actually happens and Ronaldo puts pen to another contract that has commitment written all over it. No spokesman’s verbal diarrhea will make a Hell of beans difference. Hell i trust the media more than I trust team spokesmen.
July 4th, 2008 at 19:07
Hallelujah…Jay
We are the champions of CL and EPL….we dont need this paranoia and dark thoughts before new season….relax!
If we keep Ronaldo and buy Berba (or Eto maybe)…There will be glory again….so, dont panic….Ronaldinho is going to Milan , lamps in Inter, Ade in Barsa and their clubs are not going to be stronger than Man utd…We just need one striker and that`s all…Enjoy!
July 4th, 2008 at 19:26
@Grognard: I think Fergies wife loves him more than you…
July 4th, 2008 at 20:03
@RedDevil: God I hope you are right. If not, I have a problem.
July 4th, 2008 at 20:06
@Grognard: Hi-hi
July 4th, 2008 at 20:09
grognard, 100, means 100th comment, not a hidden message or anything like that.
July 4th, 2008 at 20:14
@man utd – Aleksandar: And i certainly don’t need all this phony positive as Hell blind faith that is being force fed to some of us that have different personalities and different temperaments. I often wonder to some of you who find my posts annoying or negative, why the hell do you read them? You do, or you wouldn’t comment on them. All I hear is we will, if we, if what, but nothing concrete ever happens and yet I’m supposed to be positive. Like I said before, I’m nobody’s fucking sheep and I won’t be told how do feel and what I should feel.
And contrary to some accusations thrown my way, I am not telling any of you to agree or follow my lead. All I am doing is saying how I feel and making my views felt. For those of you who can’t deal with it, get help. Honestly, some of you act like local sheriff’s and I’m the bad guy wearing black. Get of your high horses and let me rant to my heart’s content. I’m not crying for a following, I just want the right to be heard and not put down or censored for my beliefs. Disagree if you must, but stop the personal insults, digs on my character and allegiances and all will be fine with me.
July 4th, 2008 at 20:15
@dan(u-ol): Thanks for clearing that up for me Dan. Now I know.
July 4th, 2008 at 20:20
@dan(u-ol): What do you mean with 100th comment? It was 103.
More pictures of our new CL away kit/3rd kit. I sure will get one with Andy on the back. It looks amazing.
July 4th, 2008 at 20:25
@Grognard: You shouldnt be afraid to write your meenings and feelings. Those who have rea your comments from back in time knows that you are just as much a United fan like others. That people disagree with you doesnt meen that you are wrong. I have disagreed with you pleanty of times, but I respect your thoughts. That is important for everyone to do.
July 4th, 2008 at 20:29
If Ronaldo has indeed decided to stay with us the reason may have to do with the fact his relationship with his girlfriend may be on the rocks. Why do I say this? Just a hunch but I ask you this. If you were a young man with deep Christian and old fashioned rootd haviing been brought up on an island in poverty, would you feel pride and joy seeing your girlfriend pose in the nude? Well apparently she has and the pictures are there for all of you to see at
http://www.thefootie.com/cristiano-ronaldos-girlfriend-nereia-gallardo-poses-nude/
I know that she would be yesterday’s news if she embarrassed and shamed me like that. I for one am not prone to sharing my woman’s privates with the world and I doubt Ronny or his mother feel very good about this tramp doing this. I don’t know but this may have a lot to do with his recent about face. I said many times in the past that she was probably the main reason why he wanted to go to Madrid in the first place. Check out the headline on top of the nude photos too. Funny as Hell.
July 4th, 2008 at 20:35
@RedDevil: Thanks a lot for those words. I’ve never ever questioned your intentions or the way you disagree with me because you don’t make it personal or derogatory. If more were like you.
By the way, I am reading a number of reports that claim that Arshavin to Chelsea is a done deal. In fact Abramovich came down personally to make sure pen went to paper. If true, another one lost and another reason for me to fume and get all bent out of shape. What do we get for our satisfaction as United fans? United coming out and saying that Ronaldo is not for sale. Well on the chance he is sold, are they going to come out and apologize to us all for lying to us? Just wondering. I wouldn’t hold my breath.
July 4th, 2008 at 20:43
@RedDevil: its 103 now, before it was 100, im guessing RR accepted 3 comments from a new user or users.
July 4th, 2008 at 21:41
@Grognard: Thanks!
People should not talk bad about others just because becuase they disagree. That is a major problem in the world these days. You dont know what do when others think different like you, so yu just harras them. Thats just worng…
July 4th, 2008 at 21:51
@Grognard: there is no need to panic. What happened when we only signed Carrick and Chelsea signed Sheva and Ballack? did we finish 4th like most newspapers and so called experts said we would? no we won the league. I would be content if Fergie signed someone who would come on in the 65th minute if the game is still 0-0 or something like that and just offer us something different. I would be happy to start next season with the same starting 11 as started the CL final. I even think that Frazier Campbell would be able to become that substitute player for us because he made absolute mincemeat out of the Championship defences last season. All we need is one cover striker and if Saha can (unlikely but I´ll give it a shot) prove his fitness then we might not even need that.
A few weeks ago I was really on Ronaldo´s back but now I hope that he does stay and prove that he is worthy to play for us. A lot of his proclaimations of intent to go to Real were from tabloid newspapers because every interview he made he said that he was happy at United and to play at Madrid was a dream and dreams sometimes don´t come true. I would accept Ronaldo back and even if everyone says otherwise I´m sure that they would too. I´m sure he can do a decent job down the right side
July 4th, 2008 at 22:10
@Liam: The point is we pursued Carrick openly and showed some aggressiveness in getting him. Some might even say we tapped the player up to get him. We did the same to get Rooney, Ferdinand, Tevez, Nani, Hargreaves, RVN, Andy Cole, Yorke etc. These weren’t silent signings that came out of nowhere. We all heard about United’s serious interest in signing them and then we saw United go out and get them. players like Evra, Anderson, Ronaldo, EVDS, Vidic and Park may have been surprises that came out of nowhere but lets not be fooled into thinking that United always do their business on the sly. They can be just as loud and sometimes just as ruthless as Madrid in going after a player. I see none of that now and the silence is deafening.
July 4th, 2008 at 22:11
End of Euros +5 and all is quiet.
July 4th, 2008 at 22:16
Ajax have smashed the Dutch transfer record after agreeing a fee with Heerenveen for forward Miralem Sulejmani. That folks is going to be Huntelaar’s replacement. That obviously means Huntelaar is definitely going and may have already agreed to terms with somebody. Why do I get the feeling it’s not United. A striker, a striker, my kingdom for a striker! And please make him world class.
July 4th, 2008 at 23:00
@Jay: I agree 100% with this, call it mudslinging or whatever, but i’ll say this again, if Arse fans can still say In Wenger we trust after three years of nothing, we United fans should be able to believe that the man who had brought us nothing but glory in 2x decade he’s been with us.@Eric the Red: For some reason, the doom and gloomers didn’t notice this post, if i remember well too, Fergie before the season ended(before we won anything and got the EPL and CL prize money), said he was going to buy and i don’t believe he’ll say this if we were broke, as much as i hope to God that we don’t buy an inferior striker, i know that if we do, it’d be because thats what Fergie wanted not because we didn’t have any money. If you call it blind faith or stupidity, then i’m blind and stupid enough to say that i believe in the man who has been consistent(bar a year or two) in winning us trophies.
@Grognard: And no offense intended, but after reading your fickle comments about you possibly dumping United if they were relegated and didn’t come back up in time(can’t remember the post you made that comment), you can mark me down in the category of readers who question your allegiances. I just wonder what you’d be saying about Fergie now if like Wenger he hadn’t brought us success for a while.
July 4th, 2008 at 23:27
@Grognard: Oh man, I love you. How great are you for this site. I’m a little drunk right now, but that doesn’t change the fact that any site needs someone like you who stands by his beliefs no matter how many people disagreeing.
I’ll try to make a comment tomorrow, when I sober up.
Cheers Grognard, and everyone else in here.
July 4th, 2008 at 23:28
41 days until the Premier League starts.
Liam- I was one of the fans that hated Ronaldo a few weeks ago. But that was because I was confident he wouldleave us. But for every day that goes I become more and more sure that Ronny will stay. Instead of thinkng of the bad stuff he has done thiese last weeks, I started remember ing the shy guy that joined us and didnt even understand the word confident! He is happy everytime he scores for us, he started crying when United won the CL in Moscow, he has saved our butts so many times since 2003 so I will forgive him. Just come out and say that you want to stay and I will forget everything that has happened. Then it will be good times again…
July 4th, 2008 at 23:29
I miss this guy! I dont miss the player so much cause he has become the best one, but I miss the shy person.
July 4th, 2008 at 23:31
http://www.redcafe.net/f9/according-insider-ajax-we-signing-klaas-jan-huntelaar-209792/
From the guys at Redacfe, i know they’ve posted some muppetish things in the past, but i do hope this is true, hopefully it’d get Grog off United’s case.
July 4th, 2008 at 23:39
We going to have a great season.
July 4th, 2008 at 23:45
i have a feeling we will sign some one before we go to south africa.
July 5th, 2008 at 0:03
@ebrahim: I think thats a given, cus i think the SA trip is towards the end of July and if we don’t sign someone, we’d have only about 2weeks+ till the season starts which i don’t think is enough for a new signing to bond with the team.
July 5th, 2008 at 0:12
lmao. That thread has to be one of the funniest I’v seen.Feel sorry for the guy though.The way they mocked him with the sarcasm.
July 5th, 2008 at 0:54
If i was Fergie, i would have gone and picked up Crespo now…Cause like Larsson he is an experienced player who certainly know to put the ball in the net with his foot or head…I think whenever he played he did okay with Chelsea..he also got big game experience playing with Inter and Milan….and think about a big name signing in January depending on the situation then….Now all the players are just too overrated and over priced…..more than 25M for Berba …over 35M for Etoo are so ridiculous…
July 5th, 2008 at 1:06
@Tucsred: Honestly I really don’t care what you think regarding my allegiance. Secondly my allegiance is none of your business. Worry about your leanings and kindly leave mine alone. You don’t know me and you know nothing of me to be able to question my faith and loyalty.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:07
@Tomas: Have a drink on me Tomas. On second thought, make it a double.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:10
@Grognard: Yeah, actually I do. Enough to know that United wouldn’t be coming out saying this stuff if they weren’t COMPLETELY 100% sure of their situation.
And also enough to know that Real Madrid, and more importantly Calderon are constantly smacking of desperation. Calderon has pretty much promised Ronaldo to the fans, as has Berndt Schuster. Because of this Calderon will get voted out in their stupid ‘elections’. A new president almost certainly means a new manager. Both of their jobs are on the line. All the promises of crazy money and daily stories from their media mouthpieces have been to try and get Ronnie to break his United contract, which is the only chance in hell they have of getting him, becuase WE DO NOT WANT TO SELL and hold every single one of the cards.
If it was going to happen, United would have done it by now. We don’t wait around for players to ‘make decisions’ about their future, we make them for them. We did it with Beckham, Rudd and Heinze. Nobody dictates to United.
Ronaldo is going nowhere. I wish people would stop ignoring the only solid news from any of the parties involved in this. Satements from United, rather than Madrids posturing, or what Ronaldo’s mom’s dog groomer thinks.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:11
@Shyam: Crespo couldn’t settle in London, so he sure as hell wouldnt’ be able to settle in Manchester.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:13
@Rd: Yes it would definitely call of Grognard’s wolf pack that’s for sure. On the other hand, I hate sites that offer this kind of crap where a friend of a friend said such and such and he knows because his friend washes the dishes of the trainer and shags his wife etc etc. It’s all bollocks mate. I wish it was true but it’s probably just crap.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:17
@Shyam: I agree. I’d much prefer Crespo to Saha as third striker. As well, he would also be a positive cultural influence on Tevez. But why should United do something that obvious? Honestly, if we aren’t going to sign a big name striker, I’d prefer Crespo over Fabiano or Santa Cruz or even this overrated kid Falcoa. At least I know what we’d be getting with Crespo.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:29
Grognard:Why should we buy Arsavin…that would be unfear for talents like rooney and tevez…both better and younger than arsavin…what kind of new dimension that would bring to our game…that is like to buy messi when you already have CR …those moves from man utd can destrupt thier chances to evolve and increase their foodball skills…Same story about Huntelar….That man can ruin our attacking model of game… look at my posts and you will understand… and please Look at the post number 116 from Will….to understand that actualy our position on the market is better and stronger than ever…We have cover for every position exept maybe for striker….”Berba” point of view…Wenger, Scolary and Rafa are under huge pressure trom their own funs so they must spend big money. we are on the oposite side …Champions with no “real”
weakness …..1..Best defence in the world…andy and nani…maybe the brightest talents in the game and we owe them cnance to show what are they made of…what about fletcher and o`shea ….where are they in your “bringing in players just to stop another team getting them” point of view…that is not real fun tribute to our boys – they bringed titles this season…dont forget that
July 5th, 2008 at 1:31
@Jay:
I think the difference between you and most other users on this site is that we share a common faith which you seem not to.
Er, how is that relevant? He can because he can. If that’s your problem with him then you are not going to make a case defending your stand. I don’t agree too (I have faith in Fergie) but I don’t make that a point to force feed my beliefs on to Grognard or whoever has a thought just because it’s contrary to mine.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:34
@man utd – Aleksandar: I think Grognard’s point is to strengthen irrespective of trophies. His stand is that we have to keep buying players and not standing still.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:34
fun=fan
July 5th, 2008 at 1:42
Red Ranter…We already have young talents…to buy another player means less time for them on the pitch…how you expect to evolve….playing football manager or wining eleven?that is what chelsea actualy doing…blind atempt to win everiting and buy everyone and result is destroing potential like SRP,Mikel,Diara,Roben and other young players…That is not our policy and never will be….
July 5th, 2008 at 1:48
Oh and hello everyone, I was out the whole past day and hardly had access to my laptop. Happy 4th of July to the Americans on the site and, to the rest, have a good weekend.
Sorry for not posting anything but I will post something tomorrow. About the rumours of Glazers resigned to sell Ronaldo, I think it’s a load of rubbish because it’s coming from the Spanish dailies. I’d go with the statement by the spokesman where he rubbished these stories. Of course, I am not sure that Ronaldo is staying or not (although my gut feeling says he will) until I hear from Ronaldo himself but we can give more credit to the spokesman than Marca or AS — considering the shit these dailies have dragged us under all summer.
My thinking is that it’s gone a bit quiet after the Euros and Calderon needs a big signing for his plans — and Ronaldo in particular because of the advances he’s made. The fact that it may not happen, makes it all the more necessary for them to leak stories of the Glazers being resigned to losing Ronaldo.
Regarding the lack of activity, I haven’t lost my cool over it. I know lot of people have been worried over it, but then I shudder to think how they may have been when we lost RvN and signed only Carrick. I had some concerns then, but I always thought we’d do just fine even without Ruud. Of course, the Fulham game got me on my feet straightaway and the rest was history.
Now I don’t want to use history as a way of proving my point — I don’t have any point to prove anyway. But my belief is adding one player [a striker] would be perfect and I will be satisfied. Till then I’ll wait and watch.
Of course, I am a very patient bloke in these matters which might come across as optimism to the others, in some cases I have been unfairly branded as naive and blindly optimistic. But, I’d take all that because, as I mentioned, I’m patient.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:50
@man utd – Aleksandar: Again as I said, that was Grognard’s opinion. Not mine. Don’t ask me.
July 5th, 2008 at 2:16
I’m sorry Grog.I’v been reading this blog ever since ahmed said, theres a new man utd blog,on soccerlens.I’v enjoyed your comments ever since and mate i’v agreed with you most of the time but sorry man this time I have to agree with the others.Yes we are all eager for us to sign new players but try being a bit less pessimistic man.I mean just because we havnt signed a big name player yet you comment that united are broke and we cant afford players etc etc.I mean Grog im sure even you yourself, on second taughts, would see how far fetched that assumption is.I guess what the others are trying to say is try being a bit less pessimistic and a bit more realistic. No disrespect mate. Cheers!
OH GREAT SITE RR!
July 5th, 2008 at 2:23
oh RR perhaps you could do a three part series season preview covering the defence midfield and attack,and discuss the shortcomings,strong points,lack of cover etc etc etc.
PLZZZ?
July 5th, 2008 at 2:44
@Ishaq(South Africa): I would obviously do a preview but only a week or two before the start of the season. If you are in South Africa, you should go watch United play.
About Grognard, he can be as pessimistic as he wants and I think he has reasons for it. Just because you tell him not to won’t make him change his mind about something he’s spent all summer saying. So really, as long as you feel you are optimistic and if you are sure you are right then I suppose it shouldn’t matter to you what he thinks now, should it?
July 5th, 2008 at 4:48
@Ishaq(South Africa): Believe me I try mate. I try to be less pessimistic but the more I read and the more I see of what’s going on the less faith I have that anything good will come of this off season. This should have been an off season to savor and celebrate. Instead Ronaldo himself destroyed that for us and then, Fergi has done nothing really to make us feel that their are things to look forward to and to put our minds to rest. Add to that a schedule being released that could kill us off before the first month is over and now we also fear losing Carlos Queiroz too.
For three weeks during the Euros people were saying be patient, nothing happens during the Euros and as soon as it are over United will start to make moves. And now the icing on the cake for me. As if things couldn’t get worse. If we in fact end up keeping Ronaldo, he is due to have an ankle operation on Monday. He is expected to be gone for two months. That’s the first four regular season games and especially the big game at Liverpool. On top of that the first two games will be without Nani and Ronaldo because of Nani’s stupid suspension from last year. I could easily see us losing three or four games in our first 5 this term because of these factors and still, we do nothing to add some power up front and some depth to help nullify this problem and help make us a better team overall.
I adamantly opposed to the idea of standing pat and doing nothing to improve the team. We are sitting on our laurels and living in the past. Forget the past. Our opponents will all be digging in their heels and coming at us with improved teams determined to dethrone us. And all we have to show them is the status quo and wounded one at that. Sorry but I have a right to feel pessimistic because I remember the shite united served up for the first 6 games of last term and that was against bottom feeders mostly. This time the first half of the schedule could potentially be devastating to us due to it’s difficulty and our problems with or without Ronaldo. Will everybody wake up and smell the coffee please. I may not be in panic but I certainly am very concerned.
July 5th, 2008 at 4:50
Ishaq – thank you for listening to me
July 5th, 2008 at 4:51
Grog – I guess you should stop reading BS
July 5th, 2008 at 4:55
Red Ranter; Welcome back. Question for you. My avatar seems to be showing up on your site when I use my laptop which has the old e-mail address which is not my current one with you. Yet my new pc (MAC) which is registered to your site with my new e-mail address and the one I used to create the avatar isn’t showing it. The FAQ section at Gravatar says the problem may be at your end. If it is or isn’t, do you or Ahmed have any ideas what is causing this as I am perplexed by this problem? I’m posting this on the chance others may also be suffering from the same problem. Thanks.
July 5th, 2008 at 4:58
@Ahmed Bilal: Honestly, it’s hard to avoid because I often use NewsNow’s football section and it’s all there sitting in front of me staring right back and it tempts like the devil spawn that it is.
July 5th, 2008 at 5:43
@Grognard: Let me clear this up first: no one has to “register” any email address — I don’t require anyone to login to this site (at least not yet). But yes, you have to provide an email address to comment. For your avatar to show up the address you make any comment with must match what you provided to Gravatar. That’s all.
Now if your avatar shows up in one and does not in another it’s a problem with your local browser cache in the system where it does not show up. Try clearing the browser history/cache etc and check it out. Or maybe in a day or two it might show up.
It certainly is not a problem from our side, because I can see your avatar.
July 5th, 2008 at 5:43
Even with Ronaldo and Nani out we’ll be fine for the first month. We can still play:
EVDS
Brown Rio Vidic Evra
Hargreaves Carrick Scholes/Anderson Park/Giggs
Tevez Rooney
That team is still strong enough to get us through the first month until Ronaldo and Nani are back. It will also do us good to have a little taste of life without Ronaldo and we’ll remind ourselves that we have other stars who can step up when required. Ronaldo will come back and seeing we can do fine without him might finally develop a bit of humility.
I would be happy once we wrap up this third striker who will provide cover when Rooney inevitably gets injured. Last season we always lost our veneer of invincibility the periods Rooney was out and that is why having a third striker is so important.
Fergie promised us a signing and has made it clear in the past he’s looking for a striker. I have faith he’ll deliver.
I think Berbatov could well be one of the targets and that situation depends on whether Ramos can line up a suitable replacement. If he can he’ll drop his valuation and the clubs can talk. It makes sense. Berbatov is a luxury and Tottenham could do with someone a bit more prolific. We on the other hand do not need a 30 goal a season striker so long as we have Ronaldo and we have the kind of players who could benefit the most from Berbatov’s intelligence and link-up play.
With the other targets I think he is playing a waiting game. Remember last season Fergie said that he snapped up Nani and Anderson a bit earlier than he’d planned because other clubs forced his hand. I think if another club made a formal offer for one of our targets we would match it. But until then it makes sense to wait a bit and see if other clubs cool their interest or buy other players which means we can avoid a bidding war.
July 5th, 2008 at 6:55
@Red Ranter: Thanks for clearing that up for me. I’ll do as you say and hopefully that will do the trick.
July 5th, 2008 at 7:00
@colver: Yah right! Just like we could play early last year when Ronaldo was suspended and Rooney was injured. We couldn’t score a goal if our lives depended on it. Honestly, does nothing phase some of you? Or is that positivity potion you take that damned good? I need to get me some.
July 5th, 2008 at 7:20
RR; It worked. I cleared the cache and that did the trick. Thanks again.
July 5th, 2008 at 8:05
@colver: I won’t go as far. Not having both Nani and Ronaldo wouldn’t be the best way to start our season.
July 5th, 2008 at 9:16
@Red Ranter: It’s relevant because all I see is Grognard moaning (within his rights of course) that Fergie is idle, complaining that he’s doing this wrong, or not doing that correctly. It comes across almost as if he believes he would be doing a better job, or knows more than Fergie himself.
I don’t have a problem with Grognard, I don’t even know him. I just find it a little unfaithful to read every other of his comments and find him bashing our great manager.
July 5th, 2008 at 9:24
@Jay: If you are annoyed with what he writes, then dont read it! Simple as that. Lelet a fan be aa fan, evenif he thinks Fergie makes bad decisions, thats his opinion. You shouldnt make him feel bad about himself or make him feel like he is not one of the fans, a fan is a fan even if his thoughts are different to anothers.
July 5th, 2008 at 11:50
I don’t really get this “Madrid are evil” to be honest. I know SAF likes to say how horrible they are, but we can all see through that can’t we? They are being sneaky maybe, clever certainly. It’s the type of thing our own boss excels at, and we love him for it!
I think the point i’m trying to make is that it is Ronaldo that is the ‘evil’ one in this story. Not once was Frodo tempted by the Dark Lord (well not until the very end), let alone put in a bleedin’ transfre request!
July 5th, 2008 at 12:08
RR cant go watch them…Matric exams during that time
July 5th, 2008 at 16:08
@Grognard: So i guess in your words, that makes us a one/two-man team? @Grognard: its six weeks, and if you calculate that correctly, that means he only misses the first two games, and i’m confident being the player that Ronaldo is, he’ll probably recover before the 6weeks are complete.
On the issue of being overly- positive, i speak for myself when i say i’ve supported United through times when we were in MUCH MORE trouble(i wouldn’t even call our situation now ‘trouble’) than we are now, so i guess it doesn’t faze me much cus United have been in a lot much worse situation than this.
July 5th, 2008 at 16:47
@Jay: “I don’t have a problem with Grognard”. Well clearly you do. First off, there are few who have greater admiration and respect for Fergie than I do. If you have read all my posts (which I seriously doubt) you would know this as well, you would know that my problem is not with Fergie but with the team’s ownership and what I believe is their poor financial state that has Fergie’s hands tied behind his back. Certainly not a slag on Fergie I think. Take the time to carefully read somebody’s rants before you shoot them down and and make assumptions on their character and their loyalty. “I don’t even know him”. No you don’t, so in God’s name how can you make so many unfair and ruthless accusations regarding me and my intelligence?
Like I said before, my problem is not with Fergie but even if it were, how dare you or anyone else for that matter tell me that I cannot have my own views or voice them on this rant site? Have you never had arguments or disagreements with your parents or wife? And if so, did you stop loving them or stop being loyal to them because you weren’t seeing eye to eye with them over something? Of course not. That would be ridiculous. I don’t always see eye to eye with Fergie tactically but I also know my place and realize he has a lot more ability and experience managing a team than I do. That should exclude me from the occasional rant of frustration and questioning over some of his squad and tactical decisions. As great as he is, he is not super human and he occasionally make the odd error in judgment. With that said, I am only a fan and as a loyal fan I occasionally rant and say things that may be controversial or unpopular. But that is my right as a long time fan and student of the game. So imagine how ridiculous it is for you to accuse a 25 year devoted fan of Manchester United of lacking faith or love for his manager after what that man has brought to all of us? Just a load of bollocks as well as complete Bullshit because you sir, know nothing and I mean nothing about me so kindly keep your opinions of my character and allegiances to yourself and stop trying to force others to think like you. You are not my keeper and you have no right to tell me how to think and what to say. When I rant I am not forcing others to think like me but only to see where I am coming from and to share my thoughts on a specific subject. You may think that I ma trying to make others think like myself. That is not true although like anyone, it is satisfying when some do agree with you or appreciate one’s take on a situation. So my advice to you is to start respecting the rights of others and limit your comments on this blog to things that have to do with United players, staff or football in general, and not personally insulting, insinuating or accusing fellow bloggers of falsehoods just because they don’t always see things from your rose colored glasses. Kindly Grow up!
July 5th, 2008 at 16:55
@Grognard: Fair enough, but you have said this a million times. Clearly it seems to have little effect
July 5th, 2008 at 16:58
@Rd: Umm… not really because we also had our defence to keep them to draws rather than losses. So then 4 plus the one/two man team, which means any great team shorn of 4 or 5 key players can look ordinary.
July 5th, 2008 at 17:03
@Rd: Last year we missed Rooney early on and Ronaldo was missing due to a suspension. We played like shite. So although we are not a one or two man team I’d say we were very dependent on those two. This year will be worse because we will be missing the best player in the world for four matches and the winger on the other side of the field for two. Giggs clearly cannot run the ship for us anymore so yes I’d say we are up the creek without a paddle, or two for a while. This team operates based on it’s wide players. We don’t have advanced central midfielders like a Lampard, Ballack, van der Vaart or Deco to help our offense out a bit. We work the ball up and attack with our focus clearly on Ronaldo and Nani. So please illuminate me on how those two players missing isn’t going to hurt us? I’m dying to hear about it because it just sounds to me as nothing more than fan optimism and not anchored in reality. Four games from Hell if we don’t have Ronaldo and two of those will be missing Nani too. That’s to say that going into those games we don’t suffer any other injuries to key players. Yes we are deep but no team can escape injuries to such key players without it affecting it’s chemistry on the field as well as it’s confidence. You make it sound like United are immune to bad runs of play or luck. Remember the bad run of play over 12 games before Fergie bought Cantona? How about when he was suspended for a year? Does anybody remember the garbage we served up last year to start the season off? And that was with a fairly easy schedule. This first half schedule is absolute murder because their are not enough home fixtures versus good teams to help us recover lost points. All our away games in the first half are against our top rivals and better teams. in all my years I have never run across a more brutal schedule than this. But none of you seem to care because optimism is so blinding. Fine be optimism but be prepared for Grognard’s revenge if things go sour early. It may not happen in which I will more than be willing to eat humble pie. But some of you lack that humility which is so deeply submerged that it is drowning from all that optimism. If things go bad the optimists are the ones who will fall hard, not me. I’m prepared for the worst because for me, the writing is on the wall whether Ronaldo is dealt or whether he’s not.
July 5th, 2008 at 17:03
@Jay:
It’s relevant because all I see is Grognard moaning (within his rights of course) that Fergie is idle, complaining that he’s doing this wrong, or not doing that correctly.
You see the part I bolded in the quote above. That is the most important part. He is within his rights, so really no problem with that.
July 5th, 2008 at 17:16
@Red Ranter: If it has little effect is that because the problem lyes with me? I think it’s because others are so incredibly stubborn they are a little thick. and if I have stated it a million times it’s because I have been unfairly criticized a million times. That seems to make perfect sense to me don’t you think? I never let a personal dig go without my reply as you know. Wars are started by the one who fires the first shot. That has rarely been me. I will never be the one accused of signing the Treaty of Versailles because like Germany in WW1 I’m not guilty of starting things and I am not the one slinging the personal abuse therefore, I will not capitulate to the rude rants of others. So I say again, if I make the same comments a million times it’s because their are a million individuals out there who need to know respect and tolerance for others.
July 5th, 2008 at 17:23
@Grognard: Humble pie? This is about humble pie? Did you eat one when Carrick turned out decent? Did you eat one when our season turned around when you were of the opinion that we are going to sink and I said we will start spanking teams because we have been dominating teams but for scoring goals? (As an aside did you remember that we actually played well but couldn’t score?)
No, all you said was that you are willing to come around and accept it when United play well or Carrick turns out to be good. The same will be with us, if United turn out shite — which we will know half way or maybe in April we will accept it for the mistakes the team makes.
To think that this will be about vindication or us eating humble pie would be rather silly. If you scoff at our optimism — okay, at times it is misguided — don’t pass your pessimism off as reality. Because it’s not from where I see it. Your pessimism is based on your assumption of a series of events that hasn’t happened. Which is not reality.
Now I am not speaking for all optimists here. I know a few would immediately turn on Fergie the moment we start losing. In fact I’ve seen a fair bit of United fans will actually start calling for Fergie’s head.
Feel free to be pessimistic but don’t laugh off optimism and then expect people to not knock you for being pessimistic at the same time.
When things go sour everyone will be worried in equal measure. Although I think you will be more worried going by the history of your passionate rants.
July 5th, 2008 at 17:26
@Grognard: Yes when you respond it grows. And what did I tell you about restraint? So should I call you thick because you didn’t listen to me despite telling you a million times? No, I think you wouldn’t like that would you?
Did you see the smiley conveying something said in jest? Also it wasn’t a knock on you.
July 5th, 2008 at 18:37
@Red Ranter: The difference RR is that I never attacked others for the love of Carrick. He won me over because he improved as a player with his consistency. I have always been fair and always been willing to get off a player’s back and start supporting him even if I was one of his largest critics. If that isn’t humble, then I don’t know what is? I have a problem with blind optimism. Being optimistic for the sake of being optimistic is just foolish. Be optimistic because you are knowledgeable and confident in the team we have and the players and manager we have. But being optimistic because we are United is just a whole lot of rubbish. The captain of the Titanic was optimistic and arrogant too remember. After all, the ship was unsinkable.
Some seem to think that I’m this constant downer and that all I bring is negativity. That is far from the truth. When I have reason and proof to be optimisitc I am as loudly positive as anyone else. But I won’t be called a hypocrite when I jump of the Happy Days bandwagon because I see something may be broken or something may be wrong with the team. Last season I made a habit of giving my post game player ratings. I had way more reason to be positive than negative based on the season the team just experienced. But you know something, ver rarely would anybody comment on my positive ratings and evaluation of a player or game. Instead, they would jump down my throat on those few occasion when the players or team lost or performed badly and I wasn’t so generous with my grades. I ask you again, where were these people when I was being positive and complimentary? When I was on Carrick’s back he deserved the criticism and you know it. I was the first to praise him when he would turn in a good performance and I was even willing to eat my HUMBLE PIE and admit I was wrong about him to Carrick advocates like JB and others when he turned his game around.. I did the same regarding Scholes as he clearly sucked early in the year too.
The problem I have is when they sucked all the optimists couldn’t see anything wrong with Carrick or Scholes but when they both improved their optimism and praise just increased and went over the top. I’m not like that and I refuse to be. I have no kids of my own but if my child does well in school I will reward him or her and tell them how proud I am as a parent. If he or she does poorly I will let them know that what they have done is unacceptable and I will either punish the child by taking some privilege away if it’s due to lack of effort or bad attitude or I will seek to get them some assistance if there is a learning problem. An optimist would just see 40% on the report card as better than 30%. I on the other hand do not tolerate failure if failure can be prevented. I will do my best to see that the mark improves from 40% to at least a passing grade. It would be my responsibility as a loving and caring parent. I have the responsibility as a loving and loyal Man Utd supporter to cheer on the lads and praise them when they deserve praise. I will not praise them and I will scold them if they are not doing what I know they are capable of. I never expect more from a player or team than what I feel or know they can offer. So forgive me for feeling that if things stay the same, I feel United will fall closer to the pack due to it’s lack of new signings (so far), coupled with the improvement of our opponents, the Ronaldo situations uncertainty and the tough schedule. I think it is my right to see things a little more darker than some. I know you don’t have a problem with that but please RR, do not think me a hypocrite or a person who does not show humility when I’m wrong or when I jump the gun? Because I might add that on numerous occasions when I have had arguments with certain members on this site, I have always been willing to apologize for my part in it even when I think I’m right. I can think of a number of them who have not returned that sentiment. Some of them no longer participate on this blog due to their intolerance and short tempers. Now if that’s not humble, then I don’t know the meaning of the word. I hope you see my point as it is intended with as much humility as I can presently muster?
July 5th, 2008 at 18:43
@Red Ranter: I wouldn’t call it being thick as much as my stubbornness to let an injustice towards me go without reply. If you think it’s me being thick, that’s fine, i can see your point. But as hard as try, it’s hard to avoid all this because it never ends. Perhaps the people who are really thick are the ones who constantly ignore your rules of behavior for this site and who continually break them by not getting the message that they cannot attack members with personal insults and try to enforce them to think in their preferred manner. Now that seems a lot more THICKY than someone whose pride won’t allow him to not defend himself and his honor and reputation.
July 5th, 2008 at 18:50
@Grognard: I was not suggesting that you are being thick. But actually getting you to realise that everyone is being stubborn. Just like you.
July 7th, 2008 at 12:08
@Grognard: dry yer eyes
September 12th, 2008 at 18:17
Testing.. please moderate