Jun 30
Wenger Speaks Sense As Platini Loses his Mind
Is Michel Platini for real? Or is this different from the rather good player that strolled the park many years ago?
Yesterday he made a statement backing Real Madrid over the Ronaldo saga. Now, I don’t have any problem with UEFA over not taking action against Real; there is hardly any substantial evidence to back United’s complaint. But when Platini goes as far as to encourage Madrid, then it gets a little bit worrying.
This is what he said to reporters in Vienna:
“Every club in the world would like to have Ronaldo. It’s part of the system we have today. Players move from club to club and I can understand why Real Madrid want him. They had [Alfredo] di Stefano and [Ferenc] Puskas in the past, and as Ronaldo is considered one of the best or the best player in the world it’s normal. If the club has the finances they can do it, if they don’t have the money they can’t.”
Like Alfred di Stefano? Are you fuckin’ kidding me? There was a lot that was shady about the purchase of di Stefano — one that, to this day, brings out the worst in Madrid and Barca fans — so surely he’s not going to use that as an example to justify the Ronaldo interest?
What is this love affair between footballing governing body presidents and cretins? Can Platini come across as sounding any more retarded? Not taking action is ok, but speaking about the whole Ronaldo saga in a tone that condones or even encourages Real’s actions is sad to say the least.
Wenger, meanwhile, speaks sense on the whole Ronaldo saga:
“I think Ronaldo will stay at United because I cannot see the club making the kind of statements they have made if they have no assurance from Ronaldo that he will stay. Once a club of their stature say he will stay, he has to stay. If he doesn’t stay you look weak, weaker than if you said nothing at all.
It is not right what Real Madrid do, I agree. And there comes a point when somebody needs to make a stand against them. United have come out strongly at the moment and said ‘No’, and I give them credit for that. Maybe as well they know that the desire doesn’t really come from the player himself. It could be from another environment, from a club that has tapped him up. But it is not something that usually happens between big clubs. It’s not something you do.”
Indeed, and it is a rare occasion where I actually agree with what Arsene says. The Arsenal manager has problems of his own, having to deal with the possible departure of Adebayor. However, it’s all well and good making a stand but will it be easy for Fergie to get Ronaldo motivated on a daily basis, if he does stay? We shall have to wait and see.
Today, I believe, Fergie returns to work and would spend the good part of this week listening to messages on his answering machine. Hopefully by Tuesday we’ll get to see the rumour mills chugging along, linking us with the next wunderkind from Haiti. (We need these stories, don’t we? Otherwise what will we talk about? Actual facts? Bleh! Who talks about facts these days anyway?)
In other news, tickets for the Aberdeen game on July 12 will go on sale [phone lines provided in link].
The Telegraph gives a preview on what to expect from United in the 08/09 season.
Finally, a word on the Euros. It was thoroughly exciting, as a tournament and rewarded teams that attempted to play football. Which is why, barring Austria and Switzerland, every team seemed capable of beating the other because they backed themselves and had a go. Which explains the success of teams like Turkey and Russia. In a way it was fitting that the team that played a good brand of football won the cup, and a team like France and Italy that showed mostly disjointed displays were unceremoniously dumped out of the competition. I just wonder what, Michael Ballack, “the nearly man of contemporary football” must be thinking now.
Anyway, nothing else to report for the day. Till tomorrow, over to you.
Related items from Red Rants:
- Sepptic Blabbermouth Opens Gob + Roundup
- Home Grown Quota Could Temporarily Shut Platini Up
- Edwin’s Dutch Delight, King Cantona and The Ronaldo Daily
- Featured Video: Ronaldo – A Mini-Documentary
- Is United being pound foolish with the below-26 policy?
Tags: Daily Roundup
June 30th, 2008 at 10:15
Just wanted to ask what happened re; di Stefano going to madrid? Ta
June 30th, 2008 at 10:22
Well said RR. When it comes to talking bout that cunt Platini nobody should hold back. I for one have always disliked the smug prick and i hope he gets kicked out of his job sooner rather than later. As far as Wenger’s comments go i personaly think he is tryin to kick the boot in by sayin we would look weaker if we sold ronaldo after all the statments we made bout him not bein for sale.
June 30th, 2008 at 10:36
Platini is a congenital idiot and vies with his mate Sepp Blatter for the lunatic of the year award. When has either of those two said or done anything that you could say is sensible?
It’s interesting that, when Spain ruled the Champions league/European Cup through Madrid and Barcelona, FIFA and UEFA thought it was good for football. Similarly, when Italy did the same, through Juve and Milanx2. As soon as England are the top dog, it’s all bad for football that one country dominates and Pinky and Perky start looking for rule changes to limit our success.
Corruption????
June 30th, 2008 at 10:40
Spike I believe that Real just basically took him from Barca, with connivance of spanish government and FA. no money , just, he’s now our player, next thing he’s playing for Real. In todays situation it would be similar to Ronaldo just rolling up to training at Ream Madrid next week, with no communication or transfer fees at all, and UEFA saying, yes that’s fine.
bout time you guys noticed Wenger speaking sense, he always does
and oh yes, Platini is a faggot
June 30th, 2008 at 10:41
Wenger is up to no good in my view and Platini is just simply a cunt.
June 30th, 2008 at 10:51
Di Stefano was supposed to go to Barca, and they had him signed apparently. But RM (as usual) entered the field late and confusion prevailed as to who had the rights on him, a la the Mikel saga.
As many would be well aware, Real Madrid was supported by Franco, the Spanish dictator at the time, whom many believe turned this case in favor of Madrid, though Barca had rights on Stefano. Finally, Madrid offered that he play 6 months for barca and 6 for Madrid,, to which Barca refused and he became a madrid player.
Franco was rumored to have not only helped Madrid in this deal, but overall in his reign Madrid were supposed to be untouchables, they were like the dictator’s pet bitch. This is one of the very few reasons barca fans absolutely detest madrid. recently figo’s transfer aroused similar emotions.
Even now, Madrid are accused of being a government funded club. When they made the world record bid on Zidane they were heavily under debt and the spanish government bailed them out by buying their training facility. No doubt this constant government patronage is the reason for thier arrogance that lasts till date, believing that they can get whoever they want and that they own the copyright and Trademark and patent for the best club in the world for eternity.
They have shown similar impudent behavior in using the media and press to tap up figo, zidane, ronaldo (fat one) as they are doing with ronaldo right now. and we have our dear so full of himself UEFA president michael bloatini, supporting madrid. it is very apparent he has a negative bias towards the premier league and doesn’t even try to hide it.
first he came up with the home player rule thing, knowing fully well that this would affect premier league clubs the most. la liga already has a similar rule in place where a maximum of i think 4 non-spainards can be on the pitch. but those gys have already found ways round it, with naturalizing the players being easy in spain.
then came his tirade against clubs in debt, referring specifically to united and chelski , calling them cheaters. Is this guy retarded or what, not understanding the basic concepts of free market and buyouts and acquisitions? and what about Real madrid, they too are in a big debt, but no, as long as any club is not from the premiership, they are absolved of everything, even tapping up!!
this guy should be shot on sight before he and his chums septic bladder and calderon do further damage to the beautiful game. on second thoughts, he is not worth it
June 30th, 2008 at 10:51
Spike, No need to call me a twat mate, just my view and I am responding to the article in question.
June 30th, 2008 at 10:53
Platini, while being an exceptional player in his days has become completely the opposite these days, especially when he got into UEFA…his comments of late always leave me amazed. Is he nuts?
Thanks for your nice words about Wenger…
I personally think that the people who are advocating for Ronaldo to go to Madrid (especially those in the EPL) are doing so for selfish reasons….because they are afraid of Ronaldo’s threat!!…the likes of Phil ‘Gene Hackman’ Scolari, Alvaro Arbeloa, etc.
Ronaldo will stay at united I feel, and his perfomance will be as good, if any summer would have affected him mentally, it would have been after world cup 06.
cheers!
June 30th, 2008 at 10:55
In Platini’s eyes, debts can never be allowed, but he allows club to act shadily when purchasing players… it makes no sense. And what about his beloved club Real Madrid, whose finances aren’t exactly textbook. He never comments on them, that french idiot.
He should stay out of our Ronaldo business, and his job should be at a general level. How he finds time to assess individual cases, I don’t know, but he always seems to do, whenever he can hurt English teams. It’s quite remarkable really.
June 30th, 2008 at 10:56
Thanks for the info; Shreyas. I think in La Liga its 4 non-EU players.
Stephen; No offence, its a term of endearment where I live!
June 30th, 2008 at 11:00
@Shreyas: Read “This is one of the very few reasons barca fans absolutely detest madrid” as “This is one of the thosuands of reasons barca fans absolutely detest madrid”
June 30th, 2008 at 11:00
Stephen I have to say this as an Arsenal fan, you have limited vision if you think AW is trying
to distabilise your club. AW is simple speaking from experience of coming out publicly and
confidently that his own top players are staying only to burned many a times.
Well explained Shreyas, very informative.
June 30th, 2008 at 11:02
Tomas, By the way Plati is a two faced cunt, being french he hates this country and the same rules
do not apply abroad.
June 30th, 2008 at 11:02
@Shreyas: Thanks for remembering Real’s situation around their signing of ZZ. How disgraceful is it to let the tax payers fund your debt. It’s highly illegal and sickening, and frankly it only reminds me of Italy’s mafia… only here, it’s government based.
Real are in massive debt right now, and still they try to lure Ronaldo away with enormous sums of money. I feel sorry for the boy, because he doesn’t know, what he wants to join… it’s a beast that eats people up and spit them out like they were a piece of paper. I think, a lot of players not succesful in Real can testify to this. And a lot of coaches too.
June 30th, 2008 at 11:04
Spike, I know I am a twat, no need to remind me
Spot on Tomas, he never comments of the corruption in Serie A, or the racist chanting in La Liga, but he can always find time to comment on English football, which has certainly cleaned up its act in the past 10/15 years.
June 30th, 2008 at 11:10
And in any other field, one out of place comment by men in top positions usually means they have to quit or suffer a loss of face and apologize. Same holds true for most administators, players and managers in football.
But somehow none of this seem to apply to Platini, baldder and co. Keep on making nonsense comments and proposals with no checks and balances to keep their heads from bloating out of proportion.
And hardly any accountability. The disruption in the semis broadcast of germany v turkey should have been a major issue and in any other field would have seen a loss of face and resignation from the head of the department. why, even referee lubos michel was taken out from the refereeing panel after he bravely reverted the yellow card against the russian player, sighting rules of the book.
so are there no rules of the book, code of conduct, laws against bias governing these UEFA and FIFA administrators?
These guys look to be governed not by modern football laws but the mafia laws of Sicily.
June 30th, 2008 at 11:19
Grognard : I head papers in Germany yesterday were saying United had made a £15million bid for Schweinsteiger. Any word on this? I can’t read german unfortunately…
June 30th, 2008 at 11:23
@Stephen: And Porto has been let of the hook after being banned initially for corruption. And all punishment dealt out to Italian clubs were done internally by the Italian FA. Contrast this to banning all English teams from the UCL for the Liverpool-Juventus European cup disaster.
UEFA, FIFA and the twats in the media have always seemed to be biased against the PL. Isn’t it obvious why after Bestie no one from the PL has the won world/european player of the year.
June 30th, 2008 at 11:48
I guess we’ll see this year if United keep Ronaldo. He has been by far the player of the year. If he doesn’t get the award, then it confirms that Platini is a short fat twunt.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:21
But how painful must it be for Platini that english clubs are now walking all over the rest of Europe? I can’t say, I’m displeased with the evolution of things.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:22
Is this for real: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?xml=/sport/2008/06/30/ufnron130.xml
He looks Horrible! Horrible!!!
June 30th, 2008 at 12:34
fergie just quoted on skysportsnews as saying he doesn’t expect us to sign more than one player…. it better be a bloody good one!
June 30th, 2008 at 12:35
Just seen on the offical web site that Fergie said he probaly would buy only one top player this summer
June 30th, 2008 at 12:38
@Chris Traverse: Just beat me to it
June 30th, 2008 at 12:51
The good news this brings is that it’s very unlikely we are selling Ronaldo. Silvestre doesn’t look like he’s going anywhere, so we are ok for defensive cover with Neville back, our midfield is in great shape, with Nani and Anderson set to replace Giggs and Scholes more often than last year… there is only one thing we need. We need a striker. Berbatov and Huntelaar are the ones that spring to mind. Both are deadly, Berba has better touch and vision, but Huntelaar is quicker and younger. If it’s Fabiano, I will not be happy
June 30th, 2008 at 13:47
“People think it’s easy to buy players nowadays, but it’s not because money plays a big part first of all,” he said.
“Clubs with ambitions don’t want to sell their best players, so it’s not as easy as you’d think and we tend to look for younger ones.”
a quote from what Fergie has said today, now when i read that, i think it is safe to assume that the “one” player we are bringing in will be young.. no change there, but will also be a player deemed to be one of their best. also the fact that just one player is coming in could mean that they will cost a bomb. now, when i heard SAF say that my mind instantly thought of S.Aguero, then had to tell my self not to be so stupid. but surely that takes players such as Berbatov and Arshavin out of the list of possibilities… in fact i reckon the “one” won’t be over the age of 23.
June 30th, 2008 at 13:48
I hate this Ronaldo saga, but, are we not perhaps overreacting a bit?
It seems very much like hypocrisy to me…
This Real-Ronaldo-United issue seems EXACTLY the same as the United-Hargreaves-Bayern issue.
How is it possible that we seemed like ‘victims’ then, and again seem like ‘victims’ now. What about the Pool-Heinze-United issue? I’m glad we did not sell to those cunts, but still…
June 30th, 2008 at 13:50
@Shreyas
Septic Bladder…Bloatini…I like the humour. Good one.
June 30th, 2008 at 14:11
Platini was asked if Real Madrid spending so much money on Ronaldo was a good thing for football, and Platini’s response was that if a club has money, they should spend it but if they don’t have it then they should run on debts or operate at a loss.
His statements have been reported a tad bit out of context. The whole Platini-vs-too much money in football thing was covered here.
Also, the gaffer says we’ll buy one player in the summer.
June 30th, 2008 at 14:17
the reason why fergie will not buy to much is because there not much out on the market unlike the world cup 2006, if we keep ronaldo then who is better to bring in that is better then vds brown neville ferdinand vidic evra anderson hargreaves carrick scholes ronaldo nani giggs rooney tevez, it is a talented pool of players and I always wanted a summer where we could say we dont need much to add.
June 30th, 2008 at 14:23
@Ahmed Bilal: Nothing can convince me that Platini is anything other than an ignorant, egotist, biased and incompetent prick. I have seen enough of him to come to this conclusion.
Maybe this comment was taken a bit out of context, but you get the idea.
June 30th, 2008 at 14:31
Platini is a massive CUNT that has seen its share full stop. I remember when He said some very uncomplimentary things about Ronaldo De Lima (One of my all time favorites by the way), Zizou came to Ronaldo’s defense by saying PlatiCunt was just jealous. These players have achieved far more than He did and the Bitch has been was just sulking and whining. Platini I have noticed is a very jealous person, and frankly I wasn’t surprised by his bitch talk. First of, He hates Manchester United and the fact that we are unstoppably TOO dominant. Remember the look on his face when he handed Giggs the trophy? Fucking looser. Secondly, He dislikes English clubs for the obvious dominance, too bad He cant do nada about it. That said, screw Platini, He can sulk all He wants, the Ronaldo decision does not rest on his obese shoulders.
Fergie is characteristically being furtive about his transfer targets. I firmly know we are in for a surprise. Like I’ve said before, I will welcome Ronaldo back with open arms if He pledges to us simply because I love United far too much. Fergie will buy Berbatov or at least Huntelaar. He might have even been referring to Benzema in that interview. Let’s keep our toes crossed.
[ Grog ]
What do you think of the following players? Rate them if you can.
1. Diego ( Werder Bremen)
2. Moutinho
3. David Silva
4. The Jones dude from Schalke
Plus, don’t you think we need an AMC, say a Scholes replacement. Any ideas?
[Craig Mc]
Where have you been mate?
June 30th, 2008 at 14:32
@karl: Strangely I have more respect for Heinze (the scouse sympathising git) for saying ‘I want to leave United’. Lets see if Ronaldo has the balls to do that…..
The Hargreaves situation was also different in the fact that Hargreaves told Bayern he wanted to go to United. He didnt get his move, played for bayern for another year, and then we eventually got him, which is probably how the Ronaldo saga will turn out.
That’s if Ronaldo actually says he wants to leave…..
@Whitey : yeah, Anderson
June 30th, 2008 at 14:41
To add to my rant on UEFA/FIFA’s bias and incompetence in this whole Ronaldo saga, here’s what the FIFA spokesman had to say when United lodged a complaint against madrid:
A spokesman for the FIFA executive committee said: “United’s chances of getting Real punished are zero.
“I think everyone knows that these things go on in football but proving any wrongdoing is next to impossible.
“Real are very powerful and I don’t think they’ll be too worried about United’s claims.”
Now I am not sure if this is an actual recorded comment or another one of those “insider scoops”, but whatever it is, this shows up FIFA for what it is. How can an official spokesman, who is supposed to toe the neutral line say something like – “Real are very powerful and I don’t think they’ll be too worried about United’s claims”?
From when did FIFA start commenting on who they think is the bigger or powerful club, and how the bloody hell does being powerful have any relation with the validity of the complaint?
And saying that “United’s chances of getting Real punished are zero” even before the any investigation was done is as clear a sign that bladder no balls and his chums would be doing nothing at all about the complaint.
June 30th, 2008 at 14:46
I just saw the Euro 2008 team of the tournament, and I noticed to my dismay that Giorgio Chiellini wasn’t even mentioned. What the blaze?, even class clowns like Bosignwa and Pepe were mentioned. What a technical committee. I know Chellini was the best defender at the tourney no question. Maybe even Marchena. But Pepe?? haba
June 30th, 2008 at 15:02
@ Chris Traverse
We all admire Andy, we have to really. The boy has a man’s heart and plays with grit. That said, I don’t fully believe he is the heir to schole’s throne. Why?, too much attention to strength and physical play. Scholes essentially dictates the way the game flows, receiving the ball from the defence and laying killer passes to the attack. When building an attack WE always look to see Scholes transit from our half to the opponent’s. Plus, Scholes FINDS THE NET!. I guess what am saying is we still need a player in the mould like Xavi, Ballack in his days, Gerrard and God forgive me, a Fabregas. Cant believe I just said that. Did I?
June 30th, 2008 at 15:15
Platini was playing for Juve when Heysel happened, I’m guessing thats when his hatred of the English began.
June 30th, 2008 at 15:25
Karl also Bellion, I think we were paying his mobile phone bills when he was still @ Sunderland, fuck knows why, he is arguably the worst plyer I have ever seen play for United!
June 30th, 2008 at 15:34
@Stephen: You forget Djemba2
June 30th, 2008 at 15:43
Don’t forget Pleberson!
June 30th, 2008 at 15:53
I hate the constant speculation over our transfer activity or should I say lack of, but one signing?!?!? hopefully a striker. We are now in a position of stength being Champions league winners (remember that night, seems a long time ago) and should take advantage of that.
We should have the choice of the market out there, and build on our success of last season and not dwell on it, like we did in 99.
June 30th, 2008 at 16:38
I love all the transfer speculation personally although the whole Ronaldo thing alarmed me at the start and is now just pissing me off!
I often see Huntelaars name being mentioned in the forums for a possible signing and the guy can score poals no doubt about it but is he the type of player we really want at utd. Is he not very much in the same mould as RVN more of a target man with not alot of pace which is the opposite of utds fast dynamic attack?
Benzema looks more the ticket for utd!
June 30th, 2008 at 16:44
@Chris Traverse: I’ve read the rumors but to be honest I find them hard to understand. First off, if they were to go for a player like Schweiny, Ronaldo would definitely have to be going. With that said, Schweiny is not the right player for United unless they were to dramatically change the way they play, slow the game down and start playing Beckham ball. That’s not going to happen. Schweinsteiger is a talented player. H has a lethal right foot, is an excellent finesse passer and when not using the EURO 08 volleyball he is also a great crosser. What he doesn’t have and what makes him a poor choice for United is consistency and pace. Although he is not slow, he needs to have more pace as a winger or RMF/LMF player in order to play for United. The team is built around the speed of our outside players. I just don’t see this happening and I really think Bayern and Klinsmann will do their utmost to keep him. Schweinsteiger likes and respects Klinsmann so I honestly don’t think he is going anywhere unless the financial offer is well over what the player’s value is. And United won’t pay that.
June 30th, 2008 at 16:53
@karl: It is nothing like Hargreaves and Bayern. Heargreaves came out himself and said he would like to move to United. United did not tap him up and did nothing illegal in their pursuit of the player. Bayern did not want to sell because it was late in the transfer season and they simply felt they couldn’t find an adequate replacement in time to deal him. Hargreaves shut up about the thing as he respected Bayern and Fergie only persisted in talking to the Bayern brass about a future deal. And we all no what happened. It’s not wrong to want to buy a player. It is wrong to illegally tap him up and get a media campaign of disinformation designed to not only unsettle tha player but especially the team he plays for. Negotiations can occasionally be tough but when one team refuses to talk price, and the other persists, then that is wrong. Bayern said they were not interested in selling the player that year but they would look at an offer the following season. United showed them the respect they deserved and waited it out. They got their player and Bayern got a lot of cash. Everyone is happy. Also key to this is that Bayern Munich and Manchester United maintain a very friendly and cordial relationship that was not bruised or tarnished in any way over the Hargreaves transfer. In fact, Rummenigge and Beckenbauer have both come out in the press and condemned Real Madrid’s tactics in the Ronaldo affair. That certainly doesn’t sound like the statement of a bitter and angry executive branch when it comes to United.
June 30th, 2008 at 17:00
@scoop: Jee I guess you saw RVN as a failure at United? the guy was just a goal machine and our style was just as fast and dynamic then as it is today. At least then we had a true and worthy target man instead of having to convert a winger into that role. A true striker would still allow us to play the same way but he would add the extra dimension of an aerial target as well as a true presence in the box against teams that like to sit ten men behind the ball and crowd our passing and running lanes. This way we are less predictable. Whether it’s Huntelaar or Berbatov, that problem would be solved.
June 30th, 2008 at 17:04
No club is whiter than white in the transfer market, lets be realistic. Every club taps up players it’s part of the game, but the way Real have have gone about it so publicly surely over steps the mark, and Platini should step in and intervene. I thought it was UEFA who police football and when a club openly courts a player its makes a mockery of the system.
If it was an English club doing the same to an Italian or Spanish club I would like to see his views then, twat.
June 30th, 2008 at 17:24
@whiteY: You asked what I thought of the following players and to rate them if I can.
1. Diego ( Werder Bremen)
2. Moutinho
3. David Silva
4. Jermaine Jones from Schalke
First off, Diego. A genius with the ball. Has finesse, style, finishing skill and vision. What he doesn’t have is pace. He’s a lead foot and that’s why he’s still playing in the Bundesliga. His free kicks and ball skills are sublime but like I said, he lumbers about for such a short and skinny guy and it’s really quite surprising. He still is valuable but not for United. Even Scholes today is faster than Diego. Secondly Moutinho. Honestly, don’t know that much about him as I do not follow the Portuguese game. In the games I have seen him he seems very good at finesse skills and especially good at passing and breaking down defensive walls. But he also seems a little soft and he disappears completely in the last third of a game from what I have seen. Not really sure on him.
David Silva; OVERRATED and useless in my opinion. I’m also not impressed with the way he tackles and I certainly didn’t like his head butt against Podolski yesterday. He has always been passionate and temperamental but does have pace and decent long ball passing ability.
Not one of my favorites as he often tries to be a poor mans Gattuso and for me he fails most of the time. I’ll never know how and why he starts for Spain. Finally Germaine Jones. GARBAGE! This guy had a decent season at Schalke but for me he lacks the necessary tools to be a complete player. He isn’t a bad marker and his tackling has improved but that is all he has to offer. Rumors of Fergie being interested in him have to be science fiction. For me the guy could barely make it on Bolton or Hull.
And yes I do believe the team needs to address their weakness at AMF. We need a van der Vaart badly. Anyone who think that Anderson will become this player is deluding himself. Anderson is a physical and aggressive CMD/DMF type who has the ability to make the odd great long ball. He has no finishing skills and lacks the change of pace and finesse needed to be an AMF. Not easy to teach at his level. He should have had those skills years ago. We need a Deco style player who can also score the odd goal. In fact the ideal player for us is Ballack who would have been that extra threat in the box and would allow the offense to still be controlled by our wingers. All the good ones are taken and I cannot honestly think of too many that are United class that are or may be available. van der Vaart is the man and Deco is too old. Riquelme, well he’s mentally incapable of playing to anyone’s drummer even though he is a genius and he also may be too slow for the Prem. Diego is too slow, and Fabreagas is not available nor is Gerrard (although I’d never want him anyway). The ideal player for us was swooped up by Spurs. Modric is fantastic. And my personal favorite Arshavin wants to go to Barcelona.
June 30th, 2008 at 17:52
Now a word regarding Platini. For me one of the poorest sportsmen to ever be a captain for his country and to ever be considered a great player. Too many times I saw that bastard sulk and complain and show no sportsmanship after a loss either with Juventus or for France. The way he acted when France lost to West Germany in the 82 and 86 World Cup semi-finals says it all. Refused to shake hands or exchange jerseys at the end of the game and a player who has never ever had a good thing to say about German or English football. His dislike for German football is understandable. It comes from bitter losses and France’s inability to ever beat the German’s under his captaincy. His hatred for United and for English football comes from something much darker I’m afraid.
About ten years ago I read an article in World Soccer where he claims that everything that is wrong with football comes from England and especially their “IDIOTIC” supporters. He was very bitter and angry over the Heysel (not sure of my spelling) incident where of course the Scouse ran rampant and many Juventus as well as a few Liverpool fans were killed. This of course caused England to be banned from football for a number of years and this was just fine to Platini as he never has liked the way the game has been played in the UK. He is a proponent of technical and continental football and has often said that English football has no form or substance or beauty to it. To a point I agree as it used to be the long ball and chase mentality and it still is in the lower divisions as well as the bottom feeders of the Prem. But the English game has also come a very long way with the introduction of foreign players, coaches and more continental systems. So what’s his problem? Bitterness, ignorance and just and arrogant up tight and callous disregard for a country’s football based on bias and blatant hatred. He is a smug cocksucker and he has always been that even in his playing days. He is also a hypocrite as it has come out that Real Madrid are operating at a 400 million Euros deficit. Obviously they have a way or system in which this seems to be tolerated but how he can complain about teams buying players while being in debt is beyond me? Platini you total wanker, wake up and smell the coffee. Most people today operate on a debt. It’s the way of the world. As long as the Man Utd’s, Liverpool’s and others continue to make their debt payments, the way they buy players should not be a concern to you. Especially when things are not on the up and up in places like Madrid. So could somebody find it fitting to kick this pompous ass off his high horse and do all of us and the game of football a great service PLEASE? This man lacks the impartiality and fairness required to be in such a high position. I’d even go as far as to say his continued influence in the way UEFA runs it’s policies may have a double standard as well as suffer from a blatant conflict of interest. I hated him as a player and I hate him even more as the elected head of UEFA. Excluding Cantona and little Evra, he is everything I hate about French footballers and the way they carry themselves. He is a total and complete ASSCLOWN.
June 30th, 2008 at 18:00
Well Fergie is making me feel as insecure as ever. He has just come out and confirmed to me that the club is broke. He is only interested in buying one player? Are you frakken kidding me? Obviously that player is a striker but what happened to Richards, another central defender to replace Pique and a LB to backup Evra if Silvestre goes? How about a 4th striker for backup unless he plans on aking the collosal mistake of keeping Saha? What, no AMFer either. Instead giggs and Scholes are a year older and we still haven’t found their replacements. Is everything pinned on the hope that Nani grows up and makes the grade? Perhaps. But we still need a van der Vaart in the v=center of the park.
I’ve just got two more things to say. Fergie better make that one player either Huntelaar or Berbatov and he better pray that he can convince Ronaldo to stay for his entire contract. Ronaldo playing for us as a lame duck player who will be leaving does not fill my heart with confidence that United will be a s good or that Ronaldo will give a damn. We shall see but it’s looking more and more like I may have had a valid point in my many rants about United’s suspected financial problems.
June 30th, 2008 at 18:22
Well put on Platini Grognard. Your rants are always informative, if not a little opinionated. Which is fine as I usually agree.
June 30th, 2008 at 18:32
I have to say that I am elated that one German player has come out to voice his displeasure over the bias shown by Referee Rosetti in yesterday’s final. Jens Lehmann has voiced his displeasure at the phantom foul called against the Germans in the Spanish box just as Gomez was ready to score on a real sitter (not a given with Gomez) as well, he was not amused by the refs ignorance at David Silva’s head butt on Podolski. I totally feel vindicated and relieved that I wasn’t the only one that noticed how the ref has screwed Germany in this final. The problem with all this is that it’s a shame it took the controversial and always flaky Jens Lehmann to bring this out. I knew there was a reason why I liked him. Great minds think alike.
June 30th, 2008 at 18:39
yeah but i noticed lehmann didnt mention the handball he committed that got ignored, that was a bad call aswell hahaha
June 30th, 2008 at 18:44
@Grognard: I think, you’re wrong about David Silva, and comparing him to Gattuso is certainly not fair, since they play different positions all together.
Silva is a quality left winger/forward with great pace and class ball control. And as we saw in the Euros, he’s got a solid left foot as well. And he’s only 22. Unfortunately, we won’t be going after him, since we’ve got Nani for the future in that position.
About us being broke – well, I guess it depends somewhat on what player we bring in. And he hasn’t excluded that we could be going for 2. I guess some of the transfer activity going in will depend on what exits, because obviously we can’t risk losing another defender (Silvestre), and not bring in a replacement.
I think SAF feels very confident in his current crop of players, and why shouldn’t he. Yes, the players are a year older, and Giggs will have only 25 matches in him (SAF’s words), but Nani will be ready for a lot more games, and so will Anderson, which means we’re covered pretty well all round, if we bring in a striker.
Neville’s coming back as well, which could be a very important “signing”.
About the striker situation. I read that we might battle it out with Real Madrid for Radamel Falcao, who’s a Columbian international playing for River Plate. I know absolutely nothing about him, but he might be the signing of the summer. He fits the bill that’s for certain:
Young
Selling club’s profile
Striker
And that’s another thing that eases me a bit. SAF has said, we’re after the best young players from teams around. Could be a good sign.
Plus he seems quite certain, we’ll keep Ronaldo. If he wasn’t, he wouldn’t talk like this about the transfer plans.
June 30th, 2008 at 19:03
@Grognard: Fergie sees Anderson and Nani as the long term replacements for Giggs and Scholes, so in his eyes there is no need to sign for those positions.
Maybe signing one player is a morale thing. If he goes out and signs 4 or 5 players after a fairly young team wins a league and europe double, it’s gonna cause a few heads to drop. By only signing one (and lets hope its a striker asthats where we need one) it’ll benefit the younger players.
Also, looking at it, where are the problems in our squad?
EVDS looked good in the Euro’s, and it’ll be Fosters first propper season, Kuszaczk is better than he gets credit for.
With Neville back, Brown can move into the center to cover (as Pique did last year) and Gary can play right back. Left back is an issue if Evra gets a big injury… Silvestre isn’t going anywhere, and can do a decent enough job in short runs.
Midfield we have Carrick , Hargreaves, Scholes, Giggs, Ronaldo, Nani, Anderson… not even counting Flecther, Park and O’Shea. If that can’t see our Midfield through a season, then we have serious problems.
Upfront we have Rooney and Tevez. Saha cannot be relied on, we are yet to see what’s going on with Campbell, but he isn’t a game changer. It’s not yet Welbeck’s time, Manucho is untested (but judging on the ACON he can belt a ball or two) and Dong is here for marketing, not football.
I’m sure you’ll tell me if I’ve gone wrong anywhere
June 30th, 2008 at 19:11
I also got the impression that SAF’s transfer targets were young. I think his actually words were “we’re looking at one or two things.” I dont think he wants to bring in a ton of players, since that will cause more time to gel. And I also dont think he needs too.
Just because we have money, doesnt mean we need to spend it. And just because we dont spend money, doesnt mean we have it. We are, after all, champions of europe. We dont need a retool. And this may be SAF finally trying to bleed in some youth team players, if not just to find out if they are in fact United material. I would love to see Possebon in the middle of the park with Carrick or Hargo just to see if he can cut it. No use spending money on players to back up people if we ‘might’ already have people that are able. Would certainly love to see us get a good young talent the likes of Garay or someone like that though.
June 30th, 2008 at 19:13
Come now Grog. You can’t expect Fergie to bring in 4 new signings after he just had a team win the double? Our squad is complete, outside of a striker, which to me, if Saha can stay healthy, we don’t really need. But since we can’t depend on him, we have to make a move. Here’s how I see it…we’re not walking a financial tightrope her. Fergie isn’t trying to bust up this team, a team that has been succesful for him just last year. He just splashed a good $50 mil the offseason before this one, and chances are he’ll drop 20+ mil on a new striker. The fact is, especially if Ronaldo stays, we don’t have much to do with the team. An attacking mid would be a luxury I think, especially if we buy a striker. I think the money is there, we just already have a world class team, so why buy when you don’t really need to. If we need something in January, I expect we’ll be able to get a good player.
Keep in mind that Fergie wants to lock up Tevez, and that Ferdinand, Eva, Carrick all got new deals this year. Ronaldo will also most likely get a raise in wages. Tevez will be like a new signing. All in all, I think we’re fine.
And to be honest, I don’t know if I’d meet Zenit’s asking price for Arshavin. I mean its not my money, but I just have this bad feeling about Arshavin. I feel like he is going to be a tournament wonder who doesn’t live up to the hype with his new squad. If he proves me wrong, then great happy for him. Just don’t see it personally.
June 30th, 2008 at 19:14
well, it looks like Red Ranter and Grogs were right about the transfer kitty! now thats a kick in the bollox. As euro champs we won £££££s, but we can only afford one major signing! What the fuck? I’m pissed off if this is true.
, Silvestre to stay 
Gary Neville back from a year out and so big things are going to be asked from Simpson and Manucho 
This is our plan to maintain our dominance?
the jury’s out there! I’ve said before and i’ll repeat it; get rid and use the money to buy. I think we would get the most out of the fascists this summer, and with some decent aquisitions, we move forward with strength and style
So do we believe Fergie that Giggs and Scholes are able to perform at the required level? even though Giggs has lost alot of his pace? I heard that Anderson got a bad injury recently playing for Brazil? anyone know anything?
So Saharrrgh is off
We definetly need a striker and in my mind that man is Berba. He would be a great addition to our squad.So what kind of performances can we expect from our star winger who dreams of playing for the fascists? mmmmmmmmm
June 30th, 2008 at 19:15
If we are buying just the one player Im hoping it is a world class striker. But as Ferguson says its hard to buy good players because clubs like to hang on to their good players, so Im guessing we’ll be buying another “one for the future”. The Colombian guy sounds interesting but could end up being another Forlan.
Van der Vaart would have been my choice but a striker is more of a priority and to be fair our midfield is covered. We do not need the AMF player so long as we have Ronaldo and the way Tevez and Rooney drop back they are equivalent to an AMF.
I think it will be another surprise signing like the Nani/Anderson deals of last years. A young forward for around 10 million up front with installments rising to a total fee of 20 million. But I cannot think of a player who fits that bill.
What do people think of Zarate? Only got a few games for Birmingham but has the physique we are looking for.
June 30th, 2008 at 19:38
@whiteY: Give Anderson a chance. Last year he was just past recovering from a broken leg. Now that he is off the mark (penalty in the CLF) he might starting banging them in a la Fabregas only now has started to.
June 30th, 2008 at 19:49
I know i may get a bit of stick for this but i think a great signing this summer would be Benny Macarthy
he had a great season for Blackburn the season before last second only to drogba in the league i seem to remember.
a big plus would be his price we would not have to fork out 20 million for him we could get him for around 10 million
Any Thoughts
June 30th, 2008 at 20:31
So Chelsea have signed Deco – no big surprise there. Apparently it’s a deal worth £7,9 mil. He’s a great player, but in my world, they can sign all the 30 yos they want to… not exactly long term. But he’s a good player, and it gives us an idea of what kind of football Scolari wants to play.
To me, he’s just another midfielder in Chelsea’s squad, but it could mean exit Lampard, and frankly that would be a poor swap, since Lampard is used to the league and a sure goal scorer.
June 30th, 2008 at 21:11
@Grognard: , seriously mate, just because SAF said that he only wants to sign one player does not mean that we are broke coz lets be realistic here, there is at the most 2 positions on our team that need strengthened, striker and right back.
With Nevilles return and Silvestres decision to stay we are adequately manned in the full positions and if both of these players can stay injury free it will give SAF time to get a closer look and develope the Silva twins who could save us a fortune if they come good so I honestly dont feel concerned about us defensively.
The only position that I think we definately need to get a player into is the striking position and I dont think you have to be a genious to work out that the ONE player that SAF is speaking about will be a striker and if he suceeds in getting quality then I will be happy enough.
To bring in more midfielders or wingers might increase our squad size but in the long run could damage the development of some of our existing players like Nani and Anderson who must be given more games and responsibility next season to see if they are the real deal, to bring in more players just for the sake of it would be unwise and unfair coz ultimately this would lessen game time for players who are at a vital stage in their development at OT and I honestly believe that it is this that is influencing SAFs thinking this summer and not a lack of funds.
Now I know some of you are still worried about the Ronaldo situation and what I wrote above only applies if he stays at OT, but having listened to what SAF had to say today about his squad, the idea that Ronaldo wont be there next season is definately not in Fergies mind and I would be very surprised if Ronny boy is not our no7 next year.
June 30th, 2008 at 21:26
@Fred The Red: Agree. I think Ronaldo will stay (although that does little to change the way I think of him), and I’m sure he’ll perform well next season. So really it has to be a striker that he’ll bring in. I’ll be happy if we just sign a striker (a good one) all summer.
June 30th, 2008 at 21:34
Deco is a great signing for Chelsea giving them some creativity in the midfield and someone who can pull the strings. It would be interesting to see how he adapts to the English game but he’ll be a major asset in Europe no doubt. I thought he was better than Ronaldo for Portugal in the Euros.
June 30th, 2008 at 21:40
He said they are looking at a couple of things – so we may sign 1 or even 2 who knows.
We dont need a new goalkeeper.
If Ronaldo stays we dont need any new midfielders.
If Silvestre stays and Neville is fit then we prob dont even need to strengthen at the back as brown/silvestre/O’Shea and evans will be back up CB’s. Maybe a cover LB.
So the one area is up front where we need 1 striker. Berbatov!
So all in all we won the double with this squad so a small tweak is all we need really.
20m on Tevez and upto 30m on another striker will 50m spent! not bad for a club in financial crisis!
June 30th, 2008 at 21:50
@gator: Thats because it wasn’t a hand ball. He handled in the box and then quickly controlled eith his chest because he knew his momentum would carry him outside. Even the commentator for the game in the feed I watched agreed with me on this one. For what it’s worth. It was close though.
June 30th, 2008 at 21:53
If we signed 3 or 4 players then how the hell do we keep them all happy?! must have been hard enough last season. We have a big quality squad and adding 1 or 2 players will freshen it and make us better.
Neville is back and we already have Manucho so thats like 2 new players already!!
June 30th, 2008 at 21:57
Tomas. I was comparing him to Gattuso in temperament not in the position each plays. I don’t like his style of play and his cheap shot bull crap theatrics. We have enough of that crap to deal with in Ronaldo and Nani.
June 30th, 2008 at 22:03
I love it. Fergie says it’s hard to go out there and buy players for such and such reason. The bottom line is that it’s hard to buy players when you have no money and the team’s are asking for more than you can afford. Let’s call a spade a spade here. Wake up people! United is almost broke. We’re operating on fumes and what money we make from the Champions League.
And to those people who think I want four or five players bought, you are wrong. Ideally I would love a striker, a backup at LB and an attacking midfielder. For me that’s two major signings and convincing Silvestre to stay. For me Huntelaar and van der Vaart would be ideal. That’s of course if Ronaldo stays. If he leaves I would want those two, Ramos and Robinho in return and Fergie goes out and signs a player like Arshavin. But hey, whose complaining when we can look forward to Manucho and Grandpa Nevile’s return. Wooopee!
June 30th, 2008 at 22:08
Our current squad:
Goalkeeper:
Van der Sar
Kuszczak
Foster
Defenders:
Neville
Evra
Ferdinand
Brown
Vidic
Oshea
Evans
Simpson
Silvestre
Midfielders:
Hargreaves
Anderson
Giggs
Park
Carrick
Nani
Scholes
Fletcher
Eagles
Forwards:
Ronaldo
Saha
Rooney
Tevez
Manucho
Campbell
Welbeck
Add a new signing and we have 7 players that can play as a striker.
A good squad, can get better, will get better!
P.S. Is it just me or has the Ronaldo transfer-talk calmed down since Portugal got knocked out? Maybe CQ was right? Maybe Calderon did this just to unsettle Ronaldo so Portugal wouldnt win. In the end Spain won, so maybe Evil-Calderon got what he wanted.
June 30th, 2008 at 22:09
@Grognard: Showing a lot of faith in one of the absolute best right backs in the world there Grognard?
Huntelaar and van der Vaart aren’t good enough, and therefore we won’t buy them, and neither is Arshavin. He won’t work outside Russia. Van der Vaarts only great asset is his delievery from set pieces, but I guess we have players able at that already. Huntelaar… well, he’s not exactly first choice for his national team, neither 3rd nor 4th choice either. Not sure he fits the bill, but we’ll see. I like his goal scoring ability, but if his footballing skills aren’t good enough to get him on the pitch, what does it matter.
June 30th, 2008 at 22:12
Yeah ok – Huntelaar might be 4th choice
June 30th, 2008 at 22:13
Fred the Red; Sorry mate, I think we are broke. And I also believe in never standing pat. Champions don’t look to yesterday, they look to tomorrow and in the past Fergie has thought like me. If he’s not doing so now, it’s because he doesn’t have the capital to really make the changes that are needed. I’m not saying we need to make wholesale changes. But we need a world class striker and a world class attacking midfielder. Anybody who doesn’t see that is wearing blinders and fatalistically optimistic. Scholes and Giggs are on their last legs and so who is going to back up the already injured Anderson and the not ready for prime time Nani?
June 30th, 2008 at 22:17
Tomas; I’m not even going to dignify that with a reply mate.
June 30th, 2008 at 22:20
Grog why do we need Van Der Vaart? We dont need him, he is just a luxury. Decent player but not needed this season. Drop Rooney into that role of ACM and let Tevez and Berbatov run the show up top!
June 30th, 2008 at 22:23
Grognard – I kind of knew you wouldn’t, but we’ll just have to wait and see.
Imo van der Vaart plays for HSV at the age of 25, because he’s overpriced, and the same goes for Huntelaar. People in the business know the value of these players, and if they aren’t traded away from Holland or Germany, it’s because they’re overpriced.
Arshavin – well, I’m undecided on him. He comes in and plays very well in 2 matches. He’s fully rested and up against slow defenses of Sweden and Holland. Then he encounters more skillful and quick defenders from Spain and is completely torn apart.
June 30th, 2008 at 22:26
@Grognard: Grognard, you are not calling a spade a spade. You are calling what you think to be a spade as a spade. Big difference there. No one knows, so you are neither right nor wrong. The fact is you want to believe (or at least that’s how it comes across when I read your theory of united being broke) that United is broke because Fergie is not buying as many players as you thought he’d buy.
There is a big, big chance that he reckons we are good if we manage to keep Ronaldo and sign a striker. There is a big, big chance that Fergie has a different opinion of the squad than you, rather than the financial situation.
Yes, we may be in financial trouble, but may is the operative word here. We’d be daft to assume we are either extremely loaded or completely broke without having any idea of the numbers. It’s a private company and they can show anything based on their accounting jugglery. Speculate, but when you state it like it is the ultimate truth, then I will say just this: I strongly disagree.
June 30th, 2008 at 22:30
@Grognard: weres the evidence that we are operating on fumes, have I missed something and before you start talking about the debt we are in I am well aware of the current Glazer situation so if you would like to show me the basis of your opinions I would be happy to study it but until then it sounds pure supposition to me.
Like RR said, a quality striker would suffice for me, the rest would be buying for buyings sake and would be to the detriment of the squad.
Many of us on here believe Anderson will provide the attacking impetus from midfield so he must be allowed to show wether we are right or wrong, the addition of an attacking midfielder at this stage could bring about a situation were too many cooks spoil the broth.
This team and particulary its younger players must be given the chance to grow and mature coz the way I see it, there isnt a lot wrong with it.
June 30th, 2008 at 22:45
@Grognard: I agree that champions should never stand still but I honestly believe that our situation is slightly different than most teams that are reigning champions in that our current squad is nowhere near its peak and the improvement that you desire could come through maturity and not major surgery.
This time next year we will know if SAFs blue print is gonna work long term and also we will know what if any areas need changing but until then lets wait and see.
June 30th, 2008 at 23:04
@Red Ranter: Agreed about Ronaldo, his antics this summer have shown the calbre of person he is and for me it has left a bitter taste in my mouth.
I also believe that we only seen about 80 percent of what Rooney and Tevez are capable of last season and I am expecting to see both players improve next term and this will be aided by the signing of a proper no 9.
Add to this the natural improvement of Nani and Anderson after a fine first year and I think you would agree that United are in good shape.
Give me Berbatov and I will be happy this summer.
June 30th, 2008 at 23:12
RR; Ya but Fergie is wrong and I’m right.
I mean really, wasn’t that obvious?
June 30th, 2008 at 23:22
@Fred The Red: I am basing my theory on how the Glazer’s have been operating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers now for over decade. That team is cheap cheap cheap. They never spend to bring a proven quarterback, runningback or wide receiver. They never spend for the team’s skill positions and when they won the Super Bowl 7 or 8 years ago, they did it with a strong defense that never costs as much to build as a good defense. There have been rumors in Tampa that they have no money and that the team may go up for sale. What evidence do I have? The evidence of inaction. Nothing is happening. No great team stands pat. They always tinker and improve while sending older players on their way. United is doing none of this. I believe that they shot their transfer budget for the last two years when they bought big last Summer. And I’ll be surprised if we sign either Huntelaar or Berbatov. Nope, we’ll settle for the cheaper Santa Cruz or Fabiano. Only a team scared of it’s own shadow would allow what Ronaldo has done and not gotten rid of him. I honestly cannot see how him returning is going to be good for the team after he has burned his bridges with his actions. Whether he goes or stays he is dead to me unless he apologizes to all the supporters and Fergie and devotes himself to fulfilling the entire four years remaining on his contract. I’m sorry fellas but I just have a bad feeling about things. Proof is not always in the pudding. It also is in there being no pudding.
And all you guys are building Nani and Anderson into something I don’t think they are or ever will be. We’ll see.
June 30th, 2008 at 23:46
Grognard: You want us to sign an AMF, but we need to change the whole system we played last season. We had two MFs, who interchanged perfectly.. Against good teams we played 3 MFs where 1 sat in front of the defence. Now you want a new AMF, an experienced one that is, which means that we need change our system again… Our team is young and they’ll only develop from here…. Sure you look at both sides of things, yet in your last (i don’t know how many) posts you’ve sounded as if doom had already been upon us. Fergie never sounded as if we did not have the money to buy players…
He said that clubs are now ambitious so they want to keep the best players, and they have to be sold then the price for them has to be exorbitant… So we are going for younger players… And he also said that we have a relatively young team which means that bringing experienced players will only limit the chances of players like Nani, Anderson etc…. He doesn’t want to do that…
June 30th, 2008 at 23:48
@Grognard: thats the point mate, as much as you believe that Nani and Anderson wont be the players that some people think they will be, at this stage its just two differing opinions and only time will prove if they are right or wrong but if SAF believes in the opinion that is contrary to yours would it not be madness for him not to let the team mature and grow together without unnecessary changes that might take us backwards instead of forward coz dont forget, WE are the reigning premier and european champions and this fact proves that things are ok at present so forgive me for saying this Grog, but I think our current position completely defies your pessimism and if this is what your like in times of success Im not looking forward to reading your comments when things go wrong.
Cmon Groggy, the glass currently isnt even half full, its actually almost filled to the brim
July 1st, 2008 at 0:01
@Krishnan: No you don’t have to adapt systems. A good player is bought that best fits a system, not the other way around. To say we don’t need an attacking midfielder is a mistake. I’m saying we need a young and quicker and more adventurous Paul Scholes. That kind of player perfectly fits our system. A Ballack style player would add extra scoring dimension and added pressure in the attacking box etc. It amazes me that many of you cannot see this.
July 1st, 2008 at 0:09
@Grognard: I perfectly understand what you’re saying but show me young AMFs in the market. Again we need to go for young unproven ones which is like what Arsenal are doing.. testing the talent that they have…
July 1st, 2008 at 0:13
@Krishnan: “He said that clubs are now ambitious so they want to keep the best players, and they have to be sold then the price for them has to be exorbitant… So we are going for younger players…” That sounds like defeatism due to no money. That doesn’t stop the Real Madrid’s or Chelsea’s from buying whomever they want if all that stands in the way is money. Fergie is on a penny pinching budget so he is looking for cheap young prospects and hopes for them to become like Aguerro or Ronaldo. Playing with fire. I like youth too but there comes a time where you need to add a bit of experience. Not a 30 year old but 24 or 25 year old is fine. But when all you have is a few coins to scratch together and Louis Saha, it doesn’t lead to too much optimism.
Fred; Once again I will emphasize that I am not expecting Fergie to gut the team and buy half a dozen players. I am asking for a world class striker which we need badly whether you aor others think we do. Even Fergie agrees on that one. We also need an attacking force in the middle of the park. If nobody cannot see that than I can’t help them. Add those two ingredients to an already solid but aging team and we can be more lethal than ever. EVDS, Neville, Scholes, Giggs, Saha are all question marks for either their age or their health or both. That’s five players that need to be replaced,if not now, by next year. And Saha needs to be shopped now. I’d take a plate of fish and chips and a subscription to 4-4-2 as well as a few shillings for him. Just get him the Hell out of my sight. Eddy and Scholesy have a year left in them tops, and Giggs is really quite finished but he may be OK as just a reserve. Neville is a major question mark as pace and strength is required for his position and I need to see that he still has it.
July 1st, 2008 at 0:20
Grognard
Buying as many players is always not the solution. Real Madrid and Chelsea, despite buying as many players as they wanted to, threw up a horror show the past two seasons. Yes, Real won its league, but I’d rather watch paint dry than watch the jokes that were the Real and Chelsea circus. Yes you can buy an entire side, but past experience would show, that one or two signings that fits into the system would be easier to integrate than wholesale purchases.
I agree regarding your response to Fred that we need a world class striker. But just because Fergie says one or two signings are enough to take the team forward does not mean we are in a financially bad position.
July 1st, 2008 at 0:27
Krishnan; Why do we need to go for young ones? I really don’t understand this policy for youth only. I like experience in certain positions. The attacking midfielder is the talisman of the team. The last position with central defender I would want youth playing in. I say go for a 24 to 28 year old AMF who can offer a full arsenal of skills. van der Vaart, Sneijder, Diego (too slow), Arshavin, Moutinho, are a few names that are available and qualified. I’d take any of them except for Diego because I honestly think he lacks pace, or at least quickness off the mark. The best in the bunch for me is Arshavin and then Sneijder. Neither seem interested in United and Moutinho is a bit soft in my opinion. That leaves van der Vaart who I feel is the talisman we need. He can do a lot like score goals, take free kicks, corners and he is an outstanding finesse passer of the ball. He can also play LMF or second striker positions with very little loss in his game. But you mark my words, we’ll miss out on him, Arshavin, Huntelaar and even Berbatov. Sure I’m pessimistic. As Tom Cruise says, “SHOW ME THE MONEY!” The last thing I want is to follow Arsenal’s plan. We are the champions, we need to stay where we are. Let Wenger tinker with youth, who cares? While he tinkers we can continue winning until Fergie retires. Remember, he won’t be here forever and I doubt he needs to start on too many youth projects with only a few years left in his tenure. The time is now, not tomorrow.
July 1st, 2008 at 0:28
I definitely think Fergie is going to be giving more of a chance to the youth players like Evans, Simpson and Welbeck next year. Having secured his 2nd European Cup, the pressure of success is now off Fergie a little. I think he’d love nothing more than to bring another set of youngsters through from the youth team, as a fitting way to finish his time at the club. Don’t get me wrong, the desire for success will still be there, but I think before he won his 2nd European Cup, the pressure for success was too much, and he refrained from blooding youngsters.
Don’t forget, as well, that from next season on, we will be able to have 7 players on the bench in league and FA Cup matches. If we’re 2 or 3 nil up against the likes of Middlesborough and Bolton at home, what better time to bring on the likes of Welbeck and Evans to give them a chance to impress. Before this 7 player rule, we’ve always understandably taken the cautious route of choosing 5 ‘experienced’ players for the bench in the event that we needed to call on them if things weren’t going to plan. Now we have the option of both experience and youth, and I can’t wait to see the possibilities and opportunities it will be bring for the younger players.
Regarding the one player comment from Fergie, it doesn’t bother me too much. Firstly, because I don’t think it’s set in stone that we’ll only sign one player, as Fergie’s done this kind of thing before and pulled a rabbit out of the hat. And secondly, because I don’t think we really need more than 1 player. Truthfully, all we really need is a centre-forward, providing we can hold onto Ronaldo. Berbatov is that forward, and I’m confident that we can sign him from Spurs. After being denied a move last summer, Berbatov will have made an agreement with Spurs that he could leave this summer if the club failed to get CL football. The only other position we may need a signing for is full-back, though given the form of Brown, it’s not a necessity. If Neville can get back to full fitness we’re fine, and Simpson and Evans will hopefully add the other cover we need.
I don’t agree that we need an attacking midfielder. It’s clear to me that we’ll sign a big striker (hopefully Berbatov) allowing Rooney to revert back to his preferred position in the hole. This makes an attacking midfielder redundant, especially if we continue to play with 2 pacey wingers. Much better to stick with the 2 slightly deep lying midfielders, who allow the quad of attacking players to run riot. From what I’ve seen of Anderson, he’s got ‘pacey box-to-box midfielder’ written all over him. Perfect.
July 1st, 2008 at 0:29
Someone needs to lunge at that Platini fool with a sharp object. How did he become president and when is his term over?
July 1st, 2008 at 0:31
RR; Again I say that I am not advocating that we buy a lot of players. I just want us to buy 2 bloody players. But I feel we need to spend a minimum of 35 million to get the two players the team needs. I doubt Fergie has 20 million to spend. And when we sign Santa Cruz or Fabiano I will be vindicated for my concerns and paranoia. I think a lot of you are in denial. Go and read about the Glazer’s and their financial empire. I already gave the example of Tampa Bay. A massive debt with a deadline looming? I don’t know chaps, sounds like trouble to me. HOPE I AM WRONG! Sincerely I do!
July 1st, 2008 at 0:45
I have NO IDEA what you are talking about Grognard. The Tampa Bay Bucs are fine financially and has always been. They are buying players as we speak … go have a look …
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/nfl/teams/buccaneers/
July 1st, 2008 at 1:17
@Grognard: If we do buy Santa Cruz, i doubt it’d be for the reasons you stated(being broke), it’d be more like Fergie bought him because he thought he’s right for United, not because we’re broke. And also based on what United fans are going through right now with Ronaldo, i don’t think we should be going for a player who’s being quoted as saying he’s heart is in Spain. Anyone know what happened to the 50mil Fergie had for transfers? I find it hard to believe that we’d be in soo much debt we’d only be able to afford a player of 20mil or less. If we were really up to our neck in debts to the point of being able to afford only bargain price players I’m sure Fergie isn’t stupid he’d have offloaded Ronaldo when Real were still willing to pay 80mil
July 1st, 2008 at 1:19
@RedAddict: some good points there my friend, agree with the Berbatov with Rooney in the hole with 2 pacy wide men point strongly, get Berba and I think we will be well equipped next season
July 1st, 2008 at 1:31
Again, I am not in denial. I am willing to believe we are broke only when there is evidence presented before me. Till then I won’t have a clear cut opinion on United’s finances.
July 1st, 2008 at 1:45
@Grognard: thats it Grognard, Ive heard enough of your unproven and generally all round happiness devouring theories
and it appears that the more people disagree with you the more it galvanizes you, never mind what Tom Cruise said,
Fred The Red says SHOW ME THE PROOF GROGNARD, SHOW ME THE PROOF, in black and white my friend and not from fresh air, and if you cant then let us enjoy our current position of the best team in Europe and possibly the world, weve had enough gloom with Ronaldo this summer, please freind, look at the positives for a change instead of always bringing up imaginary negatives its been a bad summer mate, everybody has tried to rob us of our happiness, dont aid them in their quest Grognard, oh infamy infamy
July 1st, 2008 at 2:09
Agree with Grog on signings required here!!!
We actually do need a world class AMF and a pretty good striker (although I prefer a third choice one rather than first choice one as I have faith in Rooney and Tevez!)
The AMF I had identified months earlier was Van Der Vaart!!! At that time Grogs had vehemently opposed me but now it seems he sees merit in what I see. VDV is worth pursuing simply because he is a plausible option and he is looking for a move. He is really good, a ready made Scholes but that would also mean Carrick is rendered redundant!!! Plus that would also mean Fletcher leaving as there would be too many mids. But my choice of VDV over Carrick/Fletch is simply because both of them dont score enough. All great teams have a great free scoring midfielder! We had Scholes in 99, Chelsea have Lampard/Ballack, Liverpool have Gerrard, RM have Schnider, l’arse have Febregas. We had Scholes but he is past his best now and he doesnt get into the box so often! But if we retain both Carrick and Fletch than no need to go for him. I just believe we have too many of central mids in the team and no proper AMF! VDV’s arrival can mean contention of starting place with Anderson which would be good for the youngster. He shouldnt get the message that its all so easy for him as there is no competition for him for the starting place.
And about the striker we can definitely do with a third choice one (although my personal first choice is Berbatov!) In fact I believe it could go like this : Either it will be a World Class striker (+ 1 squad player) or it will be a world class ACM + third choice striker!
July 1st, 2008 at 2:36
@jos: has chelsea won the league since Ballack and Lampard have been Paired, have arsenal since Fabregas took the reins and finally has Gerrard led the pool to the premiership, do you not think its funny that people are saying that a goal scoring midfeilder is needed despite the fact that we are back to back champions and champions league winners.
Winning the league once without one could be put down to luck, but winning it again along with the champions league without one sort of kills the notion that a goalscoring centre mid is a must, especially taking into account that in both seasons we were the top scorers and in reality, to use teams that finished behind us to prove the point seems illogical.
Would you be happy having a ACM scoring 20 a season for us if we then finished second or third.
July 1st, 2008 at 2:45
Fred
you are missing the point. Nobodys denying our success to this point. All we are discussing is how to improve things. Of course you can have the view that everything is ok and we donot need to do anything and that too is fine by me. I am arguing for improvements on one vital position that we can certainly improve upon in our team. You talk of Gerrard but he led his team to a Champions League! And Lampard also led (thru his goalscoring) his team to back to back titles. In fact Chelsea came very very close to winning the league last season thanks to mostly Lampard and Ballack only. In any case argument is why have 4 or 5 central mids in the team and only one (and htat one is not proven – andy) ACM kind of a player? Isint it more logical to have lets say 3 CMs (OH, Carrick,Scholes) and two attcking types (VDV, Andy) or rather it is more logical to have no goal scoring thread from midfield ???
Last season we were saved by Ronaldo. What if he picks up a long term injury this year or goes into a barren run. Then our only goal scoring threat would be forwards and any team that stuffs them would kill us!!!
July 1st, 2008 at 3:07
@jos: theres more than two ways to skin a cat and I think the signing of a Berbatov type striker with Rooney or Tevez in the hole would be more suited to our style of play and lets not forget, Ronaldo getting amongst the goals last season was by design and did not happen by accident while a planned avalanche of goals from midfield failed to materialise. Personally I would have no problem with us playing a diciplined holding central midfield pair if it was to accomadate a flexible goal scoring front four coz I think you will find that our goals will be more evenly spread amongst the front four next year if we get a proper no 9 who has the ability to both score goals and link play, ala Berbatov. Im not not saying that adding an ACM to our team wouldnt work, but I think with our current players and style of play we can be just as effective without one.
and lets see how Anderson progresses coz I think he has the ability to play in centre mid and be solid but also pocess the ability to spring forward and join in at times which can be even more effective than an out and out ACM coz it brings more of an element of surprise when someone breaks from the centre occasionally rather than someone who is constantly pushing forward coz uaually the opposition detail some one to mark or watch for these players.
July 1st, 2008 at 3:16
@jos: Our system is fluid enough for the goals to come. Right now only Van Der Vart seems to fit your bill. Do you want us to go for a guy who is unproven in the Premiership? I thought Carrick was really good in his first season and last season I guess he played in a slightly withdrawn role allowing both the wingers to go forward with Rooney and Tevez.. I really do think we do not need an AMF coz that would only mean we have to change our system. Besides we have too many midfielders in the team anyway and I really do see goals frm our MFs this season….
July 1st, 2008 at 3:26
@“OL Devil: Perhaps you can tell me when they ever bought a true star QB, RB or WR? They buy bargain basement players and projects. They are underachievers because management doesn’t give a damn and they live well below the salary cap unlike ateam with an owner that gives a damn like in Dallas or New England. Sorry but that one won’t work on me. The proof of their mediocrity and lack of spending is there for all to see over the past 6 years.
July 1st, 2008 at 3:27
@Rd: Trust me, buying Santa Cruz would be a case of settling for sloppy seconds. The guy is mediocrity personified.
July 1st, 2008 at 3:29
@Fred The Red: Fine RR, we’ll wait for the evidence but I’m sorry if I’m jumping the gun. Theres nothing wrong with good old intuition and gut feelings now are there?
July 1st, 2008 at 3:34
@Fred The Red: I’d expect more from you than to sensor and try to shut the mouth of a fellow blogger just because he believes in something contrary to you. Not fair and frankly beneath you mate. Sorry but nobody is going to shut me up for voicing my concerns and my beliefs. This is a rant site it’s not a we all must agree and see eye to eye site. Like you and everyone else, I’m entitled to my opinion whether it is popular or not.
July 1st, 2008 at 3:40
There’s nothing wrong with gut feelings and intuition, and I didn’t even tell you not to think the way you have been. I was just responding to the suggestion that I am in denial. It’s ok to state gut feelings as gut feelings, but when one states gut feelings as facts then the lines get blurred and one gets unsure of where you are coming from.
So for example saying, “I have a feeling United might be broke” is entirely different from saying something like, “lads United is broke, I am sure”. One is speculation, the other not so. I hope you see what I am saying.
Now I do know that you are stating things on gut feelings, so that’s fine, and as I said, I disagree with that opinion of yours but I will gladly see your view if I get to see facts and evidence. Simple as that. I hope I am clear where I’m coming from.
July 1st, 2008 at 3:43
@Fred The Red: “has chelsea won the league since Ballack and Lampard have been Paired, have arsenal since Fabregas took the reins and finally has Gerrard led the pool to the premiership, do you not think its funny that people are saying that a goal scoring midfeilder is needed despite the fact that we are back to back champions and champions league winners.” Fred you are too smart a football fan to write that kind of drivel. All those players are part of a team and it takes an entire team to win a championship. If those AMF’s haven’t won anything, it’s because of the inadequacies of their teammates or perhaps even their managers. And by the way, Frank Lampard has won a few FA Cups and a few League trophies in his day I do believe. Also Ballack has won many Bundesliga and German Cup trophies in his day also. So I wouldn’t call those two complete losers, although Ballack does come close I must say. Maybe it’s not a must but an AMF would give our team the added dimension and multiple option that would help free up Ronaldo and others to play even better. The same could be said of an imposing striker who poaches goals and dominates the box with his presence as well as his aerial ability. Two skill sets that have been vacant from our great team. Just imagine how much greater we would be if those ingredients were present?
July 1st, 2008 at 3:48
RR; I see what you are saying but please, one would have to be a complete Muppet to not know the difference between fact and what I’m saying. As if I’m in the know. I don’t work for United or reside inside OT. I’d have to be a moron to believe that everything I say is embedded in fact. All of us are making our gut feeling and suspicions known when we rant. Some are positive, some are negative. For anybody to honestly take my word as gospel needs to get their head examined. I’m pitching feelings, intuition and what I read in the press or in the gossip arena. I know no more or no less but I still have my good old intuition based on my ability to piece little facts and items of evidence and come to a conclusion or theory that is based on nothing more than my gut feelings and intelligence. And that’s what all of us here do. I’m just the one that plays the Devil’s advocate a little bit more than most.
July 1st, 2008 at 3:53
@Fred The Red: In your comment about Berbatov we can definitely agree. A number 9 player who can link the midfield and forwards while still score a fair number of goals like the great King Cantona would be a godsend. Forwards of this kind are definitely rare and I honestly cannot think of a better one in that mold than Berbatov.
July 1st, 2008 at 4:05
@Krishnan: Krishnan, honestly mate, if I read one more post from somebody crying about Prem experience I will lose my mind.
Cantona, Klinsmann, Vialli, Zola, Bergkamp, Stam, Ginola, Adebayor, Fabregas, Essien, Ballack, Drogba, Robben, Carvalho, Torres, Berbatov, Lehamnn, Schmeichel, EVDS, Tevez, Henry, Vidic, Ronaldo, van Nistelrooy, Evra, etc etc. Are those enough names of foreign player who were or are bonafide studs in the Prem and who came here without any Prem experience? That argument has absolutely no weight or validity to it. Class and quality will always overcome lack of experience. My goodness, look at the number of successful managers who came to the Prem with no experience in English football. Hell, Fergie came directly from Scotland and he didn’t look back now did he? Look at Arsenal last year. A team littered with young foreigners lead the league for 80% of the season without having experience in the Prem or experience in years. Trust me, world class players don’t need the Prem to make them quality. 
July 1st, 2008 at 4:55
Got to agree with comments here. Scholes was I believe kind of like Rooney in his youth. A second striker who didn’t score enough goals for a second striker, and went into tackles not necessary for a striker. Fergie moved him into AMF, and voila, we had an attacking midfielder who could both pull the strings and score more than your average AMF.
If we do get a proper no.9 like berba this season, I see Rooney as the long term successor to scholes, if Anderson doesnt develop into the AMF we are all hoping him to become.
Remember, Anderson played as a winger/AMF at gremio/porto and I truly believe him recovering from that horrific leg injury was one of the main reasons why we didnt see his attacking and flair side of the game last season.
Honestly, if Fergie goes out and buys another AMF and winger, what message would it send to anderson and nani, just one year after they have been bought and helped United win the double. we need to show some patience, and wait for this season atleast. we do have scoles and giggs for this season to give us atleast 20 games each. by the end of this year, if nani and anderson still don’t develop into the players fergie is hoping for, I am sure he will buy once more. but right now AMF and a winger are luxuries. only if a once in a lifetime player becomes suddenly available (somewhat like the rooney-everton situation) should we go for it.
All we need is a world class no.9, and if fergie gets us that, I will be more than satisfied.
July 1st, 2008 at 5:21
What a load of rubbish as usual from the Mail:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1030635/Ferguson-fears-stalwart-Neville-played-game-United.html
All through the quotes fergie was nothing but supportive of red neville, but the so called reporter decides, hey what the heck, I can write any headline I want, creative liberties…
July 1st, 2008 at 5:28
shreyas
if we buy another not-so-young AMF than that would mean that andy would have to constantly pull himself up and work harder if he is to be part of the first XI! As of now what I see is its only his place which has no competition(plus probably striker dept but if Saha can remain injury free than theres contention there also). Competion is never a bad thing. On the contrary if things are let go too easy on that lad than he might just slag off! If he is a real player he should not fear competition!
And I still think Rooney is a striker not an ACM and he is a very very good striker. He is really young (what age did Scholes break into utd side?) and he will get much much better…
July 1st, 2008 at 5:43
@jos: United look to be moving into the direction of having two deep lying midfielders, one who is more strong on the defensive side,i.e the game breaker, and one who is more of the playmaker and passer, a la pirlo and gattuso at milan, with most of the forward thrust coming from the front 4(wingers/strikers).
, and fletch, the other MF are suitable for both roles united now have in the centre of midfield. flexibility is the key.
In this system, I do not see the requirement of an out and out AMF. And anderson fits into the second category I mentioned, i.e the deep lying playmaker.And he has carrick competing with him in that position and even hargo can fulfill that role as seen again roma, CL home leg. also we have scholesy for this season at least.
So, I cannot agree that andy doesn’t have any competition in his position. wrt the game breaker role, again we have hargo, anderson and fletch fighting it out
The advantage we have is that, except scholsey, as much as we all love him can’t tackle to save his life
the only positions where there is almost no competition is the LB, where if silvestre remains injury free is a good enough back up, and so is sheasy, and striker, which should be solved with manucho and the new striker, whoever he is.
July 1st, 2008 at 5:47
grog
for the price of Berbatov we can have both of van der vaart and Pavlyuchencko! I would still be tempted to give Saha one more chance (simply because we can afford to! and his value is going to be zero if he is booted out now. we can always sell him in the january window)
July 1st, 2008 at 5:47
@Shreyas: I don’t know but I think it would send a message to Anderson and others that they must work even harder and get even better if they want to be a starter. There is nothing wrong with competition. If they can’t handle it, trust me that’s not the kind of player you want to be your team’s talisman anyway.
July 1st, 2008 at 5:54
@jos: Jos, I would take that deal in a second but I don’t think Fergie is thinking like us.
And Saha must go….for my sanity. Never ever in my life have I taken such a dislike to a player on my team. Even if it isn’t fair of me, the player just rubs me the wrong way. And even though I have said many times in the last month that Ronaldo is dead to me, even he gets more love from me than Saha. I detest soft players with no intestinal fortitude and courage. So what if I’m wrong or unfair. Like I said, he just brings out the worst in me. Get rid of him Fergie. Jeez after ten thousands visits to the hospital ward you think Fegie would get the bloody hint already. The guy is a package of cookies that were stepped on when delivered to OT.
July 1st, 2008 at 6:27
@Grognard: LOL at the cookies comment
but again, have to disagree about the lack of competition remark, ref my comment at no.115.
July 1st, 2008 at 6:44
yes I would take both of them as well. Plus add a defender like Thuram!!! (shouldnt cost us anything and vidic, rio & company can still learn from him a lot and he can be great 4th or 5th choice backup). That would be my summer spending… very close to 30m.
In fact I am not sure if kuzack is utd class so I would sell him and buy another good keeper in his place. This way when VDS finally retires in a season we’d still have 2 class keepers in the team.
July 1st, 2008 at 7:23
Let me just make a swift comment on the financial situation at OT, and wether or not we can afford players.
We all now, we were in for Ramsey… that’s £5 mil. Giovani dos Santos has said, we made a good offer for him… that’s £11 mil, and then SAF has said, we’re in for 1 or 2 players… one of them being a young important player that a team doesn’t want to part with. Doesn’t sound cheap to me.
To me, these statements smell more like SAF being almost satisfied with his current team and only wanting to sign for 1 position (striker, hopefully) and then build even more for the future. SAF always looks to how he can assure our future team, and he always has. That’s how he operates.
I’ll state again that neither van der Vaart, Arshavin, Pavlyuchenko nor Huntelaar are good enough for our team. I might be proven wrong, if we buy one of them, but it doesn’t look like we will.
None of them fits the bill really – maybe Huntelaar, yes. He almost fits it. I’ve always liked him, but my reasoning tells me that SAF doesn’t value him as high as many. I think, SAF has been interested in Huntelaar at some point (I think, he actually said so), but he may have been unsure of him and wanted to wait to see, how he developed. Now, it appears, he doesn’t like the look of things.
And yes, Huntelaar has scored a lot of goals, but let’s be honest… the dutch league is bad and getting worse, which means it’s the perfect place for almost world class to thrive (aka. Huntelaar). Another part of my reasoning is that he’s behind Rvn, van Persie and at par with Hessellink in the national team. He’s not that young anymore at almost 25.
I don’t question his goal scoring abilities, but I doubt SAF sees him in our style of play.
July 1st, 2008 at 8:35
@jos: I guess you didn’t hear that Thuram has been diagnosed with a heart problem that seriously threatens what is left of his career. If he’s smart he will forget about what’s left in his legs and worry about how many years he has left in life.
July 1st, 2008 at 9:29
Thuram too old, too slow like Blanc, and obviously dodgey ticker. Lahm really the only defender as can play both flanks but BM won’t sell and if they not cheap.
Berbatov who we will sign in my view, Huntelaar ideal but somw how we won’t make a bid for it seems, very odd. So we will only buy Berba this summer.
July 1st, 2008 at 10:32
If Rooney had scored on 1/2 of his 1-on-1 with the keeper, he would have scored many more goals. Warning! This is long
This is all of Rooneys chances this season.
Reading- Missed 1-on-1 with Hanheman, headed outside from 7 yards, shot over from Carrick cross(broke foot), passed to Giggs instead of shooting from 10 yards.
Sporting- Return from injury, no big chance.
Chelski- Shot from 28 yards that would have gone into the top corner had it not been for an amazing save from Cech, Saha 1-on-1 Rooney was free but Saha shoots over. Rooney gets angry.
Bimingham- Makes contact on a cross from Ronaldo that Taylor saves.
Roma- Shoots over on volley from 8 yards on cross from Nani, Doni saves shot from 18 yards, scores goal assisted by Nani.
Wigan- Only gets 1 chance that he converts with a header from Simpson cross.
Aston Villa- Scores two goals, misses penalty, hits crossbar from 6 yards.
Dynamo Kiev- Scores one goal from Wes Brown pass, passes to Anderson from 12 yards who hits post.
Middlesbrough- Scores one goal, heads over from Nani cross, doesnt hit target from difficult angle, shoots over on hard volley inside the box, passes to Tevez who scores.
Arsenal- Shot on Gallas that becomes own goal, heads outside from Giggs cross.
Dynamo Kiev- Scores one goal from Nani cross.
Fulham- Shoots outside from 6 yards.
Derby- Hits post on open goal, keeper saves from 1 yard, shoots just over from 25 yards, shot cleared off line from 20 yards.
Roma- Doesnt get a single chance.
Liverpool- Shot that Tevez converts from 20 yards, misses 1-on-1 from 12 yards after Ronaldo pass.
Everton- Chip cleared off line, hits crossbar from 25 yards.
Sunderland- Scores 1 goal.
Aston Villa- Comes on in second half and scores one goal.
Newcastle- Misses 1-on-1, should have had a penalty, shot just outside from 25 yards, headed over from Giggs cross, shoots outside from Tevez pass.
Spurs- Wins penalty.
Pompey- James saves chip from 12 yards, volley just outside from Scholes pass.
Spurs- Doesnt get a single chance.
Arsenal- Headed goal, shoot outside, Lehmann saves, volley on target that Lehman saves with foot, Lehman makes another easy saves in second half.
Lyon- Chips over from 20 yards.
Newcastle- Scores 2 goals.
Fulham- Passes instead of shot from 10 yards.
Lyon- Shot saved from Coupet.
Pompey- James saves 1-on-1.
Derby- Hits side netting from 10 yards, heads right on Carroll, shot saved from 20 yards, then 10 yards, then 2 yards.
Liverpool- Shoots at Reina when 1-on-1, again from VDS long kick.
Aston Villa- Misses from 18 yards from Tevez pass, scores 2 goals, goal gets disallowed for offside.
Roma- Scores 1 goal.
Middlesbrough- Scores 1 goal.
Arsenal- Lehmann saves from 1 yard, Lehmanns foot saves shot from 18 yards when 1-on-1, Lehmann saves shot from Evra pass.
Blackburn- Passes to Ronaldo instead of shot from 18 yards.
Chelsea- Scores 1 goal.
Wigan- Wins penalty, Kirkland makes one of the saves of the season from his shot from 20 yards.
Chelsea- Doesnt get a single chance.
This is all the chances I remember Rooney getting, and I bet I dont remember everyone. If he had scored on half of his chances he would have scored more than Ronaldo. So if he just learns a lttle from Ola, he might get more goals next season. Hopefully!
July 1st, 2008 at 11:45
I can’t believe how many people are calling for multiple signings. We are domestic and european champions, why the hell would you want to spoil that formula? Throwing a bunch of “world class” footballers does not always bring results. Just look at Chelsea. New players, especially high-profile ones can disrupt and unbalance the entire squad. Just look at Chelsea
What a lot of people are forgetting is the youthfulness of our team. “We need to buy players to strengthen!” “Everyone else is buying so-and-so and is after 5 other players!!!” Do you not think that our young players (I include Rooney, Tevez, Ronaldo in this group) will only improve next season and make the team stronger by doing so? Why would you want to disturb that? Let it flourish, as we did in 94 with our renowned batch of youngsters.
Personally, I would be more than happy with one signing (and not dissappointed at all if we made none at all – just a little concerned) and that is a striker. Like many I’ve subscribed to the sad actuality that Saha, despite being a brilliant player on his day simply cannot be relied upon. How many times did we end up shoving John O Shea up top as our striker when we were out of ideas last season? Having said that, if he could stay fit for a season, then there would really be no need for any signings at all.
Other than this I think the team were brilliant and as I’ve said, with time on their side they will only get better. That’s the whole point of buying youth. You get year on year of improvements from gifted players so that you DON’T HAVE to buy a new group of players each summer.
July 1st, 2008 at 12:04
@ Grognard
I wasnt saying RVN was a failure at all how did you come up with that conclusion? RVN was a great player for Utd and a fantastic striker he was absolutely lethal in the box and I sorry to see him leave OT.
All I was saying was that Utd play better without an out and out striker and look better going forward with a more flexible forward line that can interchange with each other. A RVN type play can’t fit into that type of system and thats why I thought Benzema would be more suited to that style of play.
An out and out striker would be a great plan B if things aren’t going well or we need to nick a goal. At the start of last season when we were struggling to score that would have been the perfect solution.
I think Newcastle got Mark Viduka on a free transfer last year he would have been perfect to bring on as an out and out striker to grab a goal if things weren’t going our way but buying a high profile out and out striker is not the way to go.
July 1st, 2008 at 16:16
@scoop: My point is you seem to think that with RVN the team suffered more offensively than they do now? Not so. In fact, now the team has a lot more problem breaking down teams that put ten men behind the ball and defend for a 0-0 tie. Remember, the beginning of last season and at least a dozen games after that where United really had to work to break down mediocre or poor teams because the opponent played this way. United had a Hell of a time because they never possessed that old school striker who was a presence in the box , could poach a goal out of nothing and who gave them some aerial dominance. Although they are exciting to watch now, the team does rely on only one style to get past these defenses. We need a team that possesses more than one way to skin a cat. A tall goal poacher would give us this. Now besides Berbatov, the two names being linked to United are build in this mold. Pavlyuchenko and Huntelaar. I f we end up signing any of these three players it will confirm the need that I am sure they will feel and in the end confirm the fact that I am right on this one note.
July 2nd, 2008 at 15:30
@Grognard
I know exactly where your coming from mate but its not that we suffered offensively we still scored a bunch of goals with RVN I just think as an attacking force we are more potent without an out and out striker. I don’t think any team would suffer with RVN in it!
Here’s the goals we score since 02/03 season:
02/03 74
03/04 64
04/05 58
05/06 72 (Ruud leaves for the Spanish scum end of season)
06/07 83
07/08 80
Big jump in goals scored when he left and utd started playing the more fluid attack.
Your point on utd at the start of last season and indeed several games throughout the season having great difficulty breaking down teams is spot on and thats why Ive always said on other postings that we always need a plan B. An out and out striker to bring off the bench to mix things up in the box and grab a goal or 2. Newcastle got Viduka on a free transfer last year which I thought would have been a perfect signing for us. Deadly in the box, free, reasonable wages and would be content on the bench and coming on when things aren’t going well but by no means expecting to play every match. A great plan B.
We still need that type of player definately but are we going to pay BIG money for a Huntelaar type player who with his profile and being dutch would expect first team football all the time and maybe cause waves if he didnt.
Thats why a benzema type player for a big signing and then a cheaper viduka plan B type player as well.
I know that Benzema is out of the question as well because of price, desire to play in prem etc etc
July 3rd, 2008 at 16:40
@scoop: Do you honestly believe we would be better off without a goal scorer? A natural goal scorer that knows what to do when he gets a chance in the box or gets a half chance near the box? RVN scored one goal outside of the 18 yard box in his entire career up until he went to Madrid. We need a guy like Huntelaar because he can score like RVN and he can score like Ronaldo too. When RVN was playing for us he scored most of our goals just like Ronaldo is doing now. Back then the team didn’t have the all round talent we have today nor did we have the defense or the depth. The Ronaldo of the RVN era is not the Ronaldo of the current era. Imagine if that RVN played along side this current group or at least with Ronaldo. Remember how much better Rooney was when he had RVN? We need Rooney to once again become a second striker and take the big pressure off of him to be our go to striker. Only a true striker with finishing talent can do this. A player who lives in the box and preys on defenses by never giving them a moments peace. This would also take a lot of the marking off of Ronaldo and add the aerial game back into our wingers repertoire as they would have a true target man to aim for, intstead of having a winger as the team’s best header of the ball.
You want to know what I want Scoop. I want my cake and eat it too. I want that striker as well as Ronaldo and Rooney scoring. I want Tevez coming off the bench and making the odd start. Above all, I want that depth and that balance in our attack with the added option to our attack that a tall goal poacher brings to the team. Nothing has to change. Instead of spending most of his time in the offensive end of things patrolling outside of the box (like Rooney and Tevez), this striker will boldly go where only Ronaldo feels like going. This can only work well for us.
July 4th, 2008 at 5:12
Scoop; Also, United scored 87 goals in 2001/02 and 74 in 2002/03. Thats averaging 80 goals a season in RVN’s two most prolific and healthy seasons. That proves the club was more than capable of scoring a lot of goals with him. The reason for the drop off afterwards were his injuries and the loss of Beckham who was the provider for many of Ruud’s early goals in his United career. Ronaldo was not known for his passing or crossing which is why the two had a blow up and the outcome forced Fergie’s hand.