May 01
The British Element
This post could create a lot of controversy, so I want to make it clear that I don’t have anything against foreign players per se. Many of the United greats have been from beyond these shores, and I revere them as much as anyone else.
That said, I have always been proud that United has had a core of players from the British Isles (note that’s worded carefully enough to include the Republic of Ireland). United are an English team, who have always placed high value on local talent and team spirit. I need scarcely draw the comparisons with the other big sides:
- Arsenal - are and have been for many years (since the likes of Adams, Dixon, Keown etc began retiring) made up almost exclusively of foreigners.
- Chelsea - bought in a load of players, some English and some not, with a trend towards foreigners (particularly Portuguese, like Carvalho, Ferreira and flops such as Tiago) under Mourinho.
- Liverpool - still value their “local lads” like Carragher and $tevie Mbe, but Benitez has brought in a load of Spanish and Spanish-speaking players (Torres, Alonso, Mascherano, a few random Brazilians, Luis Garcia and others who have now left).
An all-British Isles team
To illustrate, let’s look at the best all-British Isles teams that each of the top 4 can put out. In fact, let’s not bother with Arsenal, because it’s not realistic. And actually, scrap Liverpool too because the only players there are Carragher, Finnan, Gerrard, Pennant and Crouch.
United
Foster; G Neville-Brown-Ferdinand-O’Shea; Fletcher-Carrick-Hargreaves-Giggs; Scholes; Rooney; subs: Simpson, Eagles, Cathcart, Welbeck, Heaton
Now that’s a pretty strong side, and we can even find some subs to put on the bench. I’m actively proud that we can put that team out.
Chelsea
[no keeper]; Bridge-Terry-[no CB]-A Cole; J Cole-Lampard-Sidwell-Wright-Phillips
[none]-Sinclair
Not much cop - even ignoring the gaps, where are the goals coming from?
So, on the one hand, the core of our team is still British Isles-based at present (Neville, Rio, Scholes, Carrick, Rooney). On the other hand, the majority of our recent signings have been Portuguese / Portuguese-speaking, which is Queiroz’s influence. I’m talking here about Nani, Anderson, the twin full backs and Manucho, together with all the links to any decent Porto or Sporting Lisbon player.
I would really like to to carry on trying to buy the best of British where possible alongside the top class foreigners (think Rooney, Rio, Carrick, Foster and Hargreaves), whilst at the same time bringing through our youth players (current alumni Scholes, O’Shea, Brown, Fletcher, Giggs and Neville). Bring in top drawer foreign players, but don’t look overseas for the sake of it, or just because Queiroz finds it easier to coach those who identify with him.
Apart from the “British players for a British league” point, on a practical note we’re likely to get better value in the long run for British Isles players. Players like Ronaldo and Tevez are going to want to go and play in the continent and in their homeland eventually, whereas Rooney and Rio will commit their entire remaining career to United. Think about Keane, Giggs, Scholes, Neville and others who played either all or the vast majority of their careers for us. To anyone who wants to accuse me of being prejudiced against foreigners, bear this in mind. Do you think we’d have been so good for so long without this unbelievable loyalty from our core squad?
The other impact of this view is that I firmly believe that our next manager should be from the British Isles - one who is going to view United as the pinnacle of their managerial career and (if all goes well) be with us for 25 years, not someone who might, for example, be tempted away by the Portugal national side in three years time. United are the top team in the top league in the British Isles, and I think we should always act like it.
End uncharacteristic rant. Try not to flame me too hard.
Related items from Red Rants:- The Wayne Rooney Debate
- Liga de Quito v Manchester United, Club World Cup Final Match Thread
- Manchester United and the Champions’ League
- Man Utd 4-0 Aston Villa: Just Six Games to Glory?
- On Sepptic Bladder’s 6-5 Plan
Tags: Opinions/Columns
May 1st, 2008 at 13:23
Just to lead in, this is the first of two articles - the second will address a topic raised in yesterday’s comments thread, ie “what if we win the CL and Fergie quits while he’s ahead?”
As one more thought on the subject of this article, I’ve given you the team we can put together from British Isles players only…now check out out foreigners’ only team:
EVDS - Pique, Silvestre, Vidic, Evra - Park, Anderson, Possebon, Nani - Ronaldo - Tevez
That’s a top 6 Premiership side, right there - as is our British Isles only team.
May 1st, 2008 at 13:44
Im not sure why you think being British is important to United, being English is important since United is an English team and because Scotish, Irish and Welsh players cannot play for the English national team, they should be considered foreign players as in reality thats what they are.
Now about loyalty you may have a point but thats only true about Scholes, Giggs, Gary Neville and Rio, the likes of Roy Keane and Bekham left the club, although loyalty is needed especially in these times when crazy clubs spend crazy money for players.
About the manager issue, Id prefer Fergie stay for 2-3 years and for Carlos to continue after that, in my opinion that would be for the best of the club.
May 1st, 2008 at 13:45
Good article, I’ll be interested to see responses. I’m personally with you, being British, that it’s great to see top sides in the premiership with British players. United’s history of great English core should be viewed in context - most teams were only importing a few players before premiership days. And the team through the mid 90’s was perhaps an aberration rather than the rule.
That said, i still believe strongly that any non-biased English player would chose us out of the big 4. By non-biased I mean, for example, Micah Richards has said he is an Arsenal fan, and also having played at city that would be tough. But for all others, I think we’re first choice. Hence Rooney, Rio, Hargo and so forth. The only exceptions I can think of are Walcott and SWP, and to be honest they might not have made it anyway. Hopefully we can continue this.
I also find the influx of non-English players slightly concerning - it’s always with much gall that I point out the Arsenal that got to the final of the CL hadn’t played an Englishman til the final. But, if you look at our squad it is becoming increasingly Portuguese-speaking, as you’ve noted. Which is natural in a way, given Rafa’s spanish, Wengers french and Chelsea just player champs manager and pick the best players from each league - there’s not much left for us!
I think most United fans would like to see a rehash of the 90’s - a team of Manchester youth players blooded together and brought through to the highest level. But it’s just not going to happen again - the premierships just to competitive. That was at a time when it was possbile to have a few players in the first XI not quite top class, but today they’d be exploited.
The worst thing for me about United over the past 5 years has been the utter drying up of the youth talent well. O’Shea and Fletcher are more or less it. Every year we get excited about someone (D. Jones, Rossi, Wellbeck) and then they don’t make it to the first team. This isn’t limitd to United, only Arsenal actually seem to promote players in the top 4, but does undercut the crediblity of our youth setup. What we need is a Rooney-like talent in that midst, to burst in and restore faith.
May 1st, 2008 at 14:18
@saudi red devil
I think it’s fair to include the British Isles, for two reasons:
1) The leagues in Wales, Eire, Norther Ireland and even Scotland aren’t a patch on the Premier League, so any player in any of those leagues is going to want to play in the Premier League in just the same way as someone playing for a Championship side would.
2) There is no language barrier and little relocation barrier for any player from any of those countries. Moving from Scotland to Manchester is no bigger upheaval than moving from London to Manchester. But moving from Portugal to Manchester is a huge upheaval of language, culture, environment and lots of other things - many can’t cut it.
On the loyalty point, Keane gave us all but the last 6 months of his careers once he arrived from Forest. We got the best years out of Becks, and he moved because Fergie wanted to sell him and because of the influence of “that woman”.
As will become apparent when I write my next article, I really don’t want Queiroz to take over when Fergie goes.
May 1st, 2008 at 14:38
Good article, but do you think perhaps your Chelsea side is handicapped by your lack of knowledge of the Chelsea youth teams? I have no idea whether it’s brimming with Britons, but it seems likely that they’d still be able to put out a full British team, even if it wasn’t up to much.
And I still think Danny Simpson needs to be given a serious chance in the first team next season, because I reckon he’ll be quality. On the “next manager” point, I agree with completely, although I will add one caveat: ideally, our next manager should be an ex-player. It’s not vital, but it will buy them patience from the fans, which worked wonders for SAF, and it means they’ll already understand the pressure tha comes with working for the greatest club in the world.
PS, we’re the richest club in the world, too.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/7377058.stm
May 1st, 2008 at 15:20
@ Michael
Well, you may be right, but that was the extent of their squad as shown on the BBC website. I’m sure they could put in some teenagers to make up the numbers, but none of my all-British Isles starting XI are obscure players - any half-decent Premier League fan could put that together off the top of their head.
May 1st, 2008 at 15:24
It’s amazing what Manchester has been able to do IN SPITE of such a large British presence on the squad. I kid, England, I kid.
May 1st, 2008 at 15:28
[saudi red devil]
Actually Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish can play for England if they choose to.
May 1st, 2008 at 15:48
Not to mention they’re all British citizens. Only deemed “foreign” by UEFA and other sports associations.
May 1st, 2008 at 15:55
Apart from the Republic of Ireland! I don’t think John O’Shea, Roy Keane or Denis Irwin (for example) would take kindly to being called British…
May 1st, 2008 at 16:16
[RedRanter] I really had no idea that they can.
[Pinguin] You are absolutly right about the language and culture barier.
But about Carlos, why dont you want him to continue after Fergie I thibk hes tottally capable>
May 1st, 2008 at 16:31
I think that United team would be in the top 4! Amazing what kind of team we have. But it made me think of another thing. What is our strongest squad when everyones fit. If everybody can play in the CL final, Fergie will have a problem. None of them should be tired since they will have had a week and and half rest. I know the defense will be VDS-Brown-Rio-Vidic-Evra, but what kind of formation will Unied use. 4-4-2, 4-3-3 or a 4-5-1. Kind of a headache, aisnt it. My team would be:
VDS
Brown Ferdinand Vidic Evra
Ronaldo Anderson Scholes Nani
Rooney Tevez
subs: TK, Silvestre, Oshea, Carrick, Owen, Giggs, Park/Saha.
Some might disagree, but I think this is our best first-11. They would work well together, we know the defence and attack does, but Anderson and Scholes is the best midfield combination United have. At least I think so. Anderson can defend and Play killer passes, Scholes can shoot and play killer passes. Anderson can up the tempo, Scholes can slow it down. Will be exiting to see what team Fergie will choose though. As long as we win, I will be happy!
May 1st, 2008 at 16:55
Nice article, although can’t say I agree. I may be British, but I have lost my passion for England a long time ago and so it matters little to me. Your point on them offering better value for money in the long term, that’s not true at all. Consider comparisons such as Vidic (£7m) - Rio (£30m) or Ronaldo (£12m) to Carrick (£18m), you think Rio and Carrick will offer better value in the long term than Vidic and Ronaldo? They may stay longer but everyone knows that English players come at a premium. And yes, Chelsea do have more players in their youth, and to be honest they now have the best English youth in their academy out of the top four, as they have been working very hard on their academy. We will never be able to go back to the days of 1992, as great as they were it just isn’t possible with the new rules.
Since when? I thought there had to be some sort of relative who had links to England for this to happen.
RedRanter; Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish can play for England if they want to?
May 1st, 2008 at 17:13
[Conor]
I thought, as British citizens you can choose to do so from some Under-17 level or something. I don’t remember where I read it from, but that’s what I thought. Which is why I figured people were always wishing Giggs or George Best played for England.
May 1st, 2008 at 17:19
[Conor]
I found this:
I think it clears up things, or adds to the confusion? The point is that the idea of relatives is still murky, and if one wants to he can easily play for one of the teams as long as he hasn’t already represented one of them.
May 1st, 2008 at 17:33
RedRanter; Clears everything up perfectly, cheers for that.
RedDevil; The Scholes-Anderson partnership has so far proven to be unsuccessful, when they played together there was no fluidity or cohesion. The point you made about the tempo is partially right, except Anderson plays only at one tempo, Scholes can play at whichever one he chooses. Scholes plays to slow for Anderson in my opinion, or Anderson plays too fast for Scholes, however I doubt that. I prefer the Hargreaves-Anderson combination and the Scholes-Carrick combination, both playing at each others tempo. And due to Chelsea physicality I would go for a 4-3-3 with Scholes, Hargreaves and Anderson, Carrick has looked a bit jaded recently anyway.
May 1st, 2008 at 18:01
Anderson and Scholes has only played two games together! We won the first one and lost the second. The second was against City at Old Trafford, and we missed Rooney in that game. We lost some tempo and couldnt find players to play killer passes to, something Rooney is an expert of making. When Anderson and Scholes has played together after one of them has come on as a sub, United have gotten more goals and won most of their mathces. In games like the one against Liverpool at Old Trafford, Anderson and Scholes played together with Carrick. And we all know how that went.
May 1st, 2008 at 18:50
Ireland is not part of the British Isles or the home nations or what ever you like to call it. Was this written purely to cause controversy or is there a point to it?
May 1st, 2008 at 18:58
I would like to add one point: replace British Isles with European or even Northern European players. Man Utd has and had for a long time strong Dutch and French connection, with Nistelrooy and Van der Sar and Silvestre, Evra, Saha and so on. Of cource former players like Stam, Blanc and Cantona belong to this category, too. Solskjaer comes from even further North.
Of course Arsenal has mainly French foreigners, but United comes strong second in the Western/Northern European category.
May 1st, 2008 at 19:22
Orgie:
Britain = England, Scotland, Wales
United Kingdom = England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
British Isles = England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Ireland
Redranter: Typically holding a national passport will qualify you to play for a national team. However given the rather unusual set up of the national associations in the UK the rule could not be kept like that due to the scope for poaching of players. A bit of an issue has arose in Northern Ireland where it is now legal to apply and hold either an Irish or British passport (brought about by Darren Gibson).
RedDevil: The only occasions I can think of Scholes and Anderson being the midfield two is Wigan 4-0, Villa 1-4 and Man City 1-2.
May 1st, 2008 at 19:37
Bad day for you eh, Groggy? Just read Bayern got spanked by Zenit 4-0 in the UEFA cup.
May 1st, 2008 at 19:41
Awww RedDevil you shock me. Hargo should be in United’s midfield first team always if he is fit. He should be a definate starter. I know there are many Anderson supporters on the board, and I don’t want to irritate them at all, but I think Hargo has contibuted to more United wins in his short time in the team than Andi. I still love Andi though, but Hargo has proved he has the experience.
To the post then, yeah I would like to see a couple more good English players coming through or being nought. I can’t really see any who I could say will without doubt make it at the moment. I am not particularly impressed with the home players in our return team - soory!.
I personally don’t want Fergie to leave, but I think he will in the next couple of years.
Now just one controversial point I would like to dare to raise here, so don’t all jump on me OK?. Do you think that Ronaldo has United in his heart. I know he loves all the adulation etc etc etc. Yet I can raise this point here, because we are talking about British players etc. Rooney, Brown, Rio, O’Shea, Carrick, Scholes, Neville have all stated that THEY ARE UNITED FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES. THEY COULD NEVER CONTEMPLATE LEAVING WITHOUT DYING FROM A BROKENHEART. I think that is not there with Ronnie!. He seems to have his own interests first. Red Tev, Andi, Nani, Evra, Vidic, VDS, seem to all have the United til we die mentality. Although Tev said he will only leave near the end of his career to go play for his home team in Argentina. Ronnie doesn’t seem to have the same fervour at all. If you all think I am wrong, I am sure you will tell me lol!.
May 1st, 2008 at 20:28
I have lived the majority of my life in the US and Africa, but I have lived in London for a few years too. I consider the British more civilized then their Americans but I make errors in judgement all the time. I have supported Manchester United for 10 years now, not sparing any effort not matter where I was to get news, watch games etc. I’m there for preseason tours if they are in the vicinity, I have attended a match while living in England at Tottenham while sitting amongs Tottenham supporters.
I support Manchester United primarily because of a belief that they have maintained a tradition of excellence, committment, and prudence. I vehemently opposed the American takeover because it deviated from that tradition.
I don’t hear anyone talking about the fact that this Club is now wholly owned by an American(forgive me didn’t read any comments).
Manchester United has always done what’s best irrespective of prejudice even though I have noticed that Africans don’t come here. That’s been fine because I’ve realized Manchester might not be culturally conducive for Africans or that Fergie might not be equipped to manage such players. I have never stopped supporting nor have I criticized policies that exploit international markets. But one thing is certain. You can have a double standard either be Nationalists and stick to your own. Or accept the blowback of actions taken overseas. This goes way past football too you can have it both ways. If you don’t want me here, I don’t want you there. You want the Messis, Kakas, Ronaldinhos, Evras, Ronaldos, Makeleles and Eto’os in European leagues yet abuse them for the color of their skin?
It would be nice if we all stayed home. Until then expect reciprocity.
May 1st, 2008 at 20:36
Abu;
I don’t understand the general argument in your comment, just for the less intelligent people(i.e. me 
) could you sum up what you were trying to get across?
May 1st, 2008 at 20:44
Firstly Manchester United is now an American Corporation so at the top its no longer British. There is no “keeping it British” anymore. Secondly Manchester United makes every effort to exploit the international markets so it has to cater to that. You aren’t going to export British football to China without some Chinese assistance (Dong).
So my point is I see a double standard. If you want to be All British great. But you can be all British and reap benefits from overseas as well.
Plus take the rant lightly obviously its not just a Manchester United thing its also the vehemently nationalist almost racist tone I detect that I’m emotional about. Being who I am I can’t sit by and not say nothing. Cheers.
May 1st, 2008 at 20:47
sorry to change the topic, but i just saw the dippers and chelskis new home kits, and must say, they look pretty damn good. are we releasing a new kit next year?
May 1st, 2008 at 20:47
Also the editting keeps failing me and I’m not trying to proofread as I type (I have a hard enough time with my real papers) I see a few errors that might change the context of what I write so bear with me please.
May 1st, 2008 at 20:48
Of course we will, jerseys are to be sold and nothing sells like a new kit.
May 1st, 2008 at 21:48
JB:
The British Isles also includes the Channel Islands (i.e. Guernsey, Jersey etc.) OK, I admit not much talent has come from the islands, but there was one Matt LeTissier and also Graeme LeSaux. Just thought I’d point it out since we seem to be being pedantic.
May 1st, 2008 at 22:02
JB:
You may consider it part of the british isles but you’ll be hard pushed to find anyone on this side of the Irish sea who will agree with you. That term is out dated.
May 1st, 2008 at 22:29
The Rangers are into the UEFA Cup finals after beating Fiorentina on penalties (5-3). The only player who completely missed the target? Vieri. Talk about the fall of a star.
May 1st, 2008 at 22:33
Orgie; stop making mountains out of molehills, it may be out of date but it is still a correct term.
Abu; I understand your argument now, makes a lot more sense. I had thought that you did sense a bit of racist tine but I very much doubt that any of it is meant to come across in that way. the part about double standards is pretty much true though.
May 1st, 2008 at 22:33
[Abu]
No one’s talking about being all British. A British core of players is okay to some extent although it can’t come by compromising top talent.
And about your thing about the Glazer takeover, if you trace it backwards, I guess from the time Manchester United became a Plc, this was bound to happen. What you seriously thought that the club was owned by fans? Yes there was MUST and Shareholders United, but like it or not, we were at the forefront as far as commercialisation is concerned. The Glazer takeover, however good or bad it may be, is but a natural progression: rich businessman sees lucrative corporation -> launches hostile takeover.
Back to your point about having it both ways, if you are one for loyalty and richness of tradition, there is a higher chance of getting it from British players. How many Englishmen do you know who have gone to Spain or Italy in the prime of their career in recent times, apart from Beckham? Keane left for Celtic when his position became untenable. Why don’t you see rumours of Rooney to Madrid/Barcelona while you have Ronaldo to almost every other club, every other day. Ditto for Cesc Fabregas and Alex Hleb and Flamini.
Why, only Chris Coleman has been a notable British manager who plied his trade in Spain (for Real Sociedad) recently — of course, before he got sacked. Do you see a pattern here? It’s not that English players lack the technical finesse to play abroad, but they are well paid in the Premiership too.
May 1st, 2008 at 22:34
Oops..it was 4-2. Sorry about that.
May 1st, 2008 at 22:34
Orgie: I’m on that side of the Irish Sea. The term and the context in which it was used here was geographical and the attempt to turn it into something more just seems like an attempt to make a political point. The term is still very valid and encompasses the mainland UK, the entire island of Ireland and countless other smaller islands (i.e. Isle of Man and the Channel Islands as Steve mentioned). Arguments over the term is like the bitching people do over whether to call Northern Ireland’s second city Derry or Londonderry, pointless. Saying Ireland is part of the British Isles is the same as saying Portugal is part of the Iberian Peninsula or Mexico is in the Americas.
May 1st, 2008 at 22:35
RR; I just knew somebody would bring up the collapse of my Bayern Munich today. Yes they got thoroughly and completely outclassed by a very, and I mean very underrated side. I think Zenit would give United a real run for their money. They have players with very good skills but their movement off the ball is absolutely superb. I can’t begrudge them anything. Bayern had their chances but those two early and very well taken goals killed off their hopes and after that, they were spanked on counters. Poor game today from Philip Lahm. A great player but both he and Ribery were very ordinary on this occasion. People at OT will get a good look at Zenit. I sure hope we aren’t placed in the same CL group with them because they are no minnow. Not by a long shot. They remind of the way the game was played in the late 70’s and early 80’s where the movement off the ball and subtle but effective finesse skills were widely used by top European sides.
It just proves what a great tactical and motivational manager Dick Advocat really is. Germans always lose when they lay siege on large Russian cities. DAMN! Just a case of overconfidence like in 1942
May 1st, 2008 at 22:39
[Orgie]
You do understand the premise based on which his argument is made. It has been clarified again. If you don’t have anything else to add other than debating on geography, you are just wasting your time. British Isles has been used and it is a fact. Read it here. It makes it pretty clear. If you think it’s outdated then you are basing this on conjecture not actual fact. The point is he has rightly based his argument on an established fact, so if you can add to this do so or stay out of it.
May 1st, 2008 at 22:44
Grognard: This has been coming for some time in the Uefa Cup for Bayern. By all rights they should have been put out in the quarters when they were playing Getafe. You are in a better position to judge but to me it seems like they have been underestimating their opponents in this tournament to a certain extent.
May 1st, 2008 at 23:02
Dan and Abu- United will not change the home kit for next season. Theyn will wear the same red kit in 2008/09, but will change after then. A home kit is supposed to last two years and then change and use it again in two years. Last season we wore a special kit, so that wont count. But the away kit will change. After what Ive heard it will be blue. And can u give me a link to the kits for Chelski and the Dippers. Wanna know what kit they will cry in after we beat them again next season.
May 1st, 2008 at 23:47
Oh yeah, just saw the jerseys of Pool and Chelski. I dont think they are that good. Fine, but I think Uniteds home kit always will be better!
This is supposed to be the for next season. It looks really fake.
May 2nd, 2008 at 0:22
Man U buy the best players. Of course they want quality English players because it is much less of a risk if a player has already proven himself in the Premier League and does not have to adapt to the culture. But how many quality young English players are there? The only one who comes to mind is Micah Richards and he’d cost around 20 million which is crazy for a player that is a long way from being the finished article. Similarly 10 million for Theo and he has failed to live up to his potential.
May 2nd, 2008 at 0:24
JB; Yes they certainly have. I honestly feel that they think the tournament was beneath them and thus, they never gave it their full attention. And what’s really strange is that they never learned their lesson after the Getafe escape as well as how humbled a good side like Leverkusen was after playing Zenit. Arrogance, laziness and a lot of late season fatigue has caught up with them. They like United have played a lot of games in a very short three weeks. They looked tired and spent today. They just never had that extra gear to slide in to.
The result should not take away the fact that on talent alone, they should be one of the top 5 teams favored for the CL next season. I think a new approach by Klinsmann will also help them out.
May 2nd, 2008 at 1:18
[Grognard]
It’s not Catenaccio, it’s Ccccatenaccio!! You’ll get it if you watch Jose’s I’m On Setanta Sports and Wayne Rooney.
May 2nd, 2008 at 2:55
RR; Sneat! Oh don’t worry. I certainly got it. Almost as funny as Aggggregate a couple of weeks ago. Our Wayne is so gifted. Be champions!
May 2nd, 2008 at 3:03
The thing with buying British players in comparison to foreign stars is that the are very, very expensive. Take Ronaldo for example, around 12million and Theo Walcott cost about 10million and was even younger at the time. English players in particular are so over priced that sometimes clubs are forced to go abroad.
As for our recent signings, we’ve still signed a top quality (the best at the 2006 World Cup) English player in Owen Hargreaves. However, I see Carlos Quieroz as Fergies successor and these are top Portugese speaking players who’ll help build a new era at our club. Players like Ronaldo who was close to leaving after that World Cup will now have a family style relationship in the club. It’s the continuity that SAF always talks about, to ensure a smooth and successful transition between different teams and time periods. We will always have a strong British back-bone and our future captains are likely to be Ferdinand and then Rooney, so we have a great balance of passion, flair and personalities.
If a player like Ronaldo, (12m) did want to move on in a few years, he is contracted at United for a long time and with Foreign players that do have the quality you’ll always profit from them should they really want to leave.
The End.
May 2nd, 2008 at 4:49
All you guys can call Owen Hargreaves English until the moon turns to cheese but the fact is he is and always will be Canadian. He chose to play for England thanks to his parents heritage and because he knew he would have a better career doing so. But not he nor anyone should actually refer to him as an Englishman because he isn’t. My parents are from Greece but I was born in Canada and I consider myself Canadian. If I was good enough to play for a nation in football I would choose Greece because they are a better footballing country with more potential reward, but I would still feel in my heart of hearts that I was a Canadian. He is proud to be Canadian too. Playing for England is nothing more than a business decision. So stop adopting him like he is a pure blood Englishman because that just ain’t the case. Sorry to burst your bubble. Canada still has a claim on him as a native son, and we are proud of that too. Our boy’s done good.
May 2nd, 2008 at 6:47
I actually quite agree on the article and I’m not even a Brit.. Haha I’m Asian (thus the utmost respect for Park), but I will always declare England as my 2nd home because I was raised there..
The England squad will always under-perform if top managers won’t rely much on English talent, which is such a waste, as the talent in England and the British Isles are enormous, they just need polishing..
Actually all countries do have talents, just that one stands out against the rest depending on their work ethic to improve..
I am pretty sad that in my country they refer the PL as Barclays Premier League rather than English Premier League due to the influx of foreign players..
Don’t get me wrong, Foreign players are a must nowadays and they amazed me such as the likes of Ronaldo, Anderson and Park:D but the backbone of the English team must be English
May 2nd, 2008 at 9:37
Staying on the topic of British players, anybody heard the (most likely BS, since it’s from the Daily Star) story that we might buy Dean Ashton for £8m from Saturday’s opponents this summer? SAF is apparently looking for a forward with physical presence and this guy apparently fits the bill…..
May 2nd, 2008 at 10:00
that would be a great training ground match. the Brits V the rest of the world. I’d love to watch that.
May 2nd, 2008 at 12:19
Red Ranter: It’s true that the islands are referred to as The British Isles by the majority outside of the Republic but it doesn’t hide the fact that it gets under the skin of many Irish people. It may seem silly but after the long history between the countries it irks people to fall under a British title regardless of its validity. I can’t say it bothers me too much, but its implication that Ireland is part of Britain is a little inappropriate.
It’s generally referred to as western Europe in the Republic.
May 2nd, 2008 at 14:13
Jose Bosingwa
The Sun Article claims that united bid for ANOTHER Portugal international. CQ is still doing his homework?
May 2nd, 2008 at 14:33
To respond, as best I can, to the biggest points raised in the comments (I tried to keep up at the start, but you lot carry on all round the clock!):
1. No offence intended over the use of British Isles to include Ireland. It was simply as concise a way as I could find of including the Republic in my opinion. Maybe I should have used UK ROI or something, but it was purely nomenclature.
2. Re Abu’s allegation of nationalism / racism - I expected at least a few responses like that, but it misses the point. I’m not arguing for an all British (sorry, UK ROI) team, just for balance. Blend homegrown players with United imprinted on their soul with the best talent from overseas. Sign Ronaldo, Cantona, Schmeichel, Anderson, Vidic etc - definitely. But reports of signing squad players like Bosingwa or Veloso are the ones which irritate me. Buy Hutton (£8m to Spurs) or Barry (Liverpool have just bid £10m) if you want good back-up players. Or, as someone suggested further up, Ashton - a good, solid player who can do damage in the Premier League, will be happy as a reserve and can be bought for seven figures. At least then you know you’re buying someone who can do the job and don’t have a 50-50 chance of getting homesick in the rainy season.
3. Grognard - point taken about Hargreaves, but I think a lot of the same points apply to him as to someone like Carrick.
4. My interest in United’s squad having a UK ROI core has nothing to do with wanting the national team to be better.
5. Thanks to craig mc (no 22), RR (@ no 33) and Park no. 1 fan (no 47) for expanding on some of my points, probably more eloquently than I managed.
May 3rd, 2008 at 7:59
I for one am happy that Bayern are out of the Uefa cup,they(sinister bastards) were planning to stiff ronaldo again this year with whom you may ask Luka toni who apparently has scored some 31 odd goals for bayern and also because the fact he is Italian(the think Italian’s have a divine right to win the Euro’s).apparently that’s the excuse they were going to use despite the fact that Ronaldo has had an absolute blinder of a season as a winger(Not many wingers can claim to have scored more than 15 goals in a season let alone 38!!! and counting).Last season he allegedly lost because he didn’t win the champions league.Well he has done more than Messi and Kaka have managed for there teams this season.
May 3rd, 2008 at 8:17
Oh on the British element in the side does it really matter anymore considering the we continue to live in what apparently is a Global village.Where you mates 30 or 40 odd years ago you mates would share the same nationality with you.Now it is even harder not to have friends from across the Ocean with Social Networking,Gaming,Blogging and all this new fangled modern technologies that are making distantance irrelevant to having or nuturing your relationships or friendships.So does it really matter as long as the values of the club are intact isn’t that what was atmost important rather not the players who play for you after all they do come and Go.But the values if they are preserved they last forever.I think RR that you might want the British element or the English element in the team so that you can have national pride.Not club pride which I thought was paramount if we all do prescribe to the notion that United >Englang.It is important to have those british roots for sentimental reasons\nationalistic self preservation but I ask you what is the greater good.Having Good national team or a great team.We are all on here almost everyday because of our greater love for Manchester United,Not England,Scotland,Ireland,Wales or the channel islands.so should our love continue to prevail above any nationalistic needs or wants.I’d love to hear your thoughts on this one.
May 4th, 2008 at 13:01
It’s all fair and dandy to sign English players where possible, but as of the moment I’d imagine most folks agree we’re short of a striker and a right-back, and I don’t see any English players available (who don’t play for Citeh) who’re anywhere near good enough to get into our side anyway.