Sep 02
What Did We Learn from Deadline Day Transfers
Paying over the odds to Tottenham (yet again) for the signature of Dimitar Berbatov: £30.74 million.
Citeh paying over the odds to Real Madrid to prise Robinho from under the noses of Chelsea: £32.5 million.
The look on the faces of Peter “I fucked it up again” Kenyon and (some) eager Chelsea fans: Priceless.
I have been in a naughty mood today, hence the baiting and teasing. A more serious article will follow (either today or tomorrow). But I’ll just say this: whilst we got our pants pulled down yet again over transfer fees, it at least dispels the thought that had seemingly enveloped a lot of fans over the summer — that we are broke. We are not, and I think spending 30 million quid on a 27 year old surely stands as reasonable evidence?
Comment away…
[Oh, and I acknowledge the flurry of activity that smashed all commenting records for a single post yesterday. Cheers for spending a good part of your day on Red Rants. And apologies for some of the comments that somehow got sent into the moderation queue. I've managed to recover some and lost some others. Sorry for the inconvenience.]
- Deadline Day Approaches. So, United vs Chelsea: Who Spent More?
- Deadline Day Looms…
- Hargreaves Move Confirmed - Breaking News
- United are on vacation, you should be too
- Can you lead Manchester United to the Premier League title?
Tags: Daily Roundup
September 2nd, 2008 at 10:11
crazy money to be honest but if he brings us towards the promise land again then yeah it’s worth it i can see fergie staying for a few more years now!!!
September 2nd, 2008 at 10:25
if we are gonna pay 30 mill anyway, we could have got him at the syart of season thyself…..why wait for so long……and the same old story of milking united continues…..
September 2nd, 2008 at 10:28
Kenyon must be shitting in his pants right now. I am happy we finally got that signature after a long and confusing night yesterday and i would like to reiterate to all doubting thomases that he will turn out good and i also think this we wake up the old rooney since IMO one of the reasons he’s not performing is due to lack of competition upfront.
@Redranter. Finally ur back. I want to know why i cant edit my comments after i post them. that ajax thing tells me i dont have enough permissions and 2)how does one upload a picture so as to appear next to your name
September 2nd, 2008 at 10:48
This is what we do. This is Man Utd. We pay 30 mil for every striker we need, but keep in mind that Ferguson likes to pay his transfer fees based on performances, so if Berbatov will be a complete flop (which he won’t), we will most likely only have paid the inital fee…
September 2nd, 2008 at 10:50
An essential signing considering the increasing quality of the rest of the league.
Hopefully the team can regain its focus, I think Berbatov will help other players by giving them more options on the pitch. I’m hoping this will help Nani and Rooney in particular with their decision making in the last third.
September 2nd, 2008 at 10:51
RR: Surely your statement is a tad unfair.
For those with selective or short-term memory, we had placed our initial bid of 20m a long time ago. At that time, we were to be the only serious bidder (there were rumours of Barca, Real taking a sniff but none of them lodged a formal bid) but Levy was holding out for 30m. Between when we had our initial bid rejected till now, it’s not as if Fergie and Gill just sat on their hands and waited. We off-loaded Silvestre and Saha to reduce our salaries in anticipation of a new signing. And I’m sure other options (read: players) were explored as well.
Once Berbatov submitted his transfer request a week ago, it seemed that we were poised to seal the deal at a compromise of ~25-28m. The player was dropped from the squad and Spurs crashed to 2 defeats. But the thing that pushed up the price to the final 30.75m (with Campbell on a one-year loan) was the unexpected sale of City to ADUG and City’s last minute 34m bid for Berbatov. It would have been unfair to put the blame on Fergie and Gill to not anticipate such a development. I don’t think many people in the footballing world did. Did you? Had City not put in the 34m bid, Levy would have caved in and we would have got Berbatov for a lower price.
People take risks all the time in buying and selling players. Fergie and Gill read the situation and took a calculated risk to try to get Berbatov for lower than the 30m asking price. Levy held out in anticipation of higher bids. Alas, luck wasn’t on our side and Levy won.
From a longer and broader perspective, what is an extra 10m if we successfully defend our titles this season? There are teams that spend a lot more than that and end up empty-handed every season (you know who I’m talking about). And don’t forget the bargains we have gotten over the years – it all evens out at the end of the day.
Finally, it’s not your money – it’s the Glazers’ money. If they feel like spending 30m on a 27-year old, that’s their prerogative. Sure, you may say that it’s going to hit us with higher ticket prices. But nothing’s free – if you want to watch a better squad play (compared to last season), you’ll just have to pay a bit more.
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:02
expensive but nonetheless an important signing..i hope he settles down fast enough.I was shocked when i read that Robinho had joined City. Seems like chelski are “slipping”
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:12
I hope we all give Dimi sometime to settle in. Now I know for 30 mil quid the level of patientce granted will not be high, but this man is more than a goal scorer. Dimitar Berbatov is extremely skillful and will only add to the flare in which we are used to seeing at United. So if he doesn’t score 30 goals it does not matter. What matters is how we play as a team and whether we win or not. For me, Berbs will help in both areas. By the way, does Berbs look thin as feck or what!? What have they been feeding him down in London? Perhaps Levy tried poisoning him, but hell, those pictures made him look as if you was related to Peter Crouch.
Nevertheless, I am thrilled and I cannot wait for the scousers already!!!
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:26
Massive signing - and he’s worth every penny. He’s pure class, and I can’t wait to see him in action at Anfield, who’ll have a hard time keeping us away.
This, to me, is the signing that’ll keep us winning titles this season. We could have done it without him, but we should never disregard the impact in freshness such a signing can have.
And the reason why we’ve signed him is his ability, and that’s why SAF waited. He wanted Berbatov and noone else, because he knows, this is the man that can take us to the next level.
Watch out Europe as well - he’ll be absolutely superb in Champion’s League.
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:30
@Redranter: no we are not broke, but we have serious debt. which is now even greater thanks to the ridiculous money we just blew on berbacrap.
firstly can i just refer anyone who was bouncing off the walls yesterday like a hysterical jackass to this, My post yesterday, and now this See?
Now as i have said before, i didnt want berbacrap, i didnt think he was “THE ANSWER”, and i sure as hell didnt want to be shelving out much money for him. so you can imagine how elated i am to see that we have signed him, and not only that but we have paid 10 mil more than hes worth, whilst getting rid of frazier campbell!
This has to be the biggest mistake ever! the money for a start….what the hell was all that about? why didnt we just buy him last month when he was overpriced? no no no…we all said SAF was much too smart for that…he wont pay over the odds for his man…he will play the waiting game and get him on a much better deal …”time is on our side”…bolocks. it wasnt. and we paid 30 mil for him….well done daniel son!
and what about our predicament of having no strikers?? that any different now? NO! had we kept campbell then we would be much better off. but no…we have berba and manucho. so what happens when berba gets injured?
screwed.
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:30
rooney stays further up the field but behind berbatov, with tevez playing as well, we might just start shitting our selves, tevez rooney AND berbatov!
question, when ronnie comes back, who gets dropped? if it where uo to me, well you know who i would drop….
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:32
I’m really happy about the City takeover. Let me explain why. For all Chelsea’s cash, we’ve won the league two years running and the European Cup, proving that 1) money can’t buy you everything, and 2) class is permanent. Put another way, we didn’t suffer from not being able to compete with them financially. The big losers now that City have got all this money will be Chelsea, who wont just be able to flash their wads about and buy anyone they want. It’ll take City at least two years of big spending before they are anywhere near a threat.
Yesterday was just perfect - Chelsea being out bid, and Real getting a big dollop of their own medicine. But the highlight was without doubt Sparky confessing to Sky Sports that HE HADN’T EVE SPOKEN TO ROBINHO! Imagine that. How will cry baby Robinho react when he finally gets to Eastlands and sees what sort of club he’s joined, or when he has to face Grimsby away on a wet Tuesday .
And some final thoughts. ADUG have only signed a memorandum of understanding to buy City, in other words, an agreement to agree, in legal terms, barely worth the paper it’s written on. This being City, what chance that they find something dodgy in the accounts and the deal doesn’t happen? And the shareholding in UDAG seems a bit cloudy at the moment, so they may struggle to pass the FA’s tests. And as the Times alluded to this morning, what is ADUG’s relationship to the group that wanted to buy Liverpool? This could also signal the end of any escape route for Gillett and Hicks.
So yes, I’m really buzzing!!
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:34
Thank God! King Berba the Red has arrived! Looking forward to some better fluid football this season! Follow follow, we’re the Busby Boys!
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:47
Berba interview tonight at 6:30
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:53
@Redd75: i dont agree with you mate. the city bid was real and all that but it cant have forced us to pay 30 mil. spurs couldnt force berba to go to city so it wouldnt have mattered what they bid. so the stakes were exactly the same. we bottled it in the end due to someones lack of business knowledge when the contract chats were happening.
regarding your last 2 paras, firstly “what is an extra 10m if we successfully defend our titles this season?”…its 10 mil less off the debt. and we gonna do the double now cos we have berbacrap?
and secondly, yes its not our money but we are supporters and are entitled to care about our club and its finances. if we didnt we could juts sit back and let the glazers rack up huge debts for us. but its not our money so why should we care right?
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:59
@benjd: i havent got MUTV!
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:02
Glad to see our second and final saga of the summer come to an end and now we can settle down and totally focus on doing the business on the pitch.
Its is a desperate price for the player but I don’t think we had much of a choice and hopefully all will work out and he will be worth the inflated transfer fee.
At the end of the day I can’t really blame spurs for sticking the knife in with the transfer fee when we came sniffing round after another one of their stars. I always thought during the Ronaldo Fiasco that if we did sell him (which at the time IMO I thought we should have but thats another argument I don’t want to drag up again) then we stick the financial knife right in to Real and make them pay top top dollar for him. They want him they fecking pay for him big style. Spurs have done the exact same thing and I respect that.
We look for another teams big star expect to be hit with a ridiculous transfer fee.
On robinho absolutely brilliant! Screw chelski and Kenyon talk about egg on their face bunch of numptys. At the same time thats a warning sign as well. Romans billions are small change in comparison to what these guys are worth. Robinho is just petty cash to them. They only had a few hours to splash the cash about yesterday wait until the Jan transfer window.
C’MON UTD
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:14
@dan(u-ol): Nor have I. MUTV Online isn’t free is it?
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:16
@jstar7: so u are not excited jstar! Probably the best striker out there (who was available) has joined us. The price is probably 5m too much but thats what we have to pay for being manchester united. And berba can play till he is 33-34 so thats 6-7 years of top football from him. A solid 4-5 years at his very top and then 2-3 years as 3rd/4th striker so its an excellent proposition. We have a tremendously talented and young forward line now and once settled it should be fine for years to come. Fergie has undoubtedly built a very good team that can be his most successful of all time. look at it this way: To a CL & PL winning side he has added a player of the pedigree of Berbatov! And he has lost nobody important (Saha barely played last year) This year Nani and Anderson are expected to improve (and so are Ronaldo, Rooney, Tevez etc). it can only get better from here.
Even if we expect 15+ league goals from the front 4 of Ron, Roon, Tev & Berba it is 60+ goals. We can expect Andy to open his utd acc now, Carrick to score a bit more (his target shud be to match Keane’s number at the least) and some decent return from Nani.
And let glazers worry about debts and all… the season has started, tr window is over and lets enjoy it while it all lasts. why really worry about something not in our hands.
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:17
We have signed Mr Burns!!
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:26
@jstar7: You are a sour tootenham fan for sure. Go bark up another tree.
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:26
@jos: you make some good points and i admire your optimism.
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:27
@R: woof.
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:28
@jstar7:
I would rather spend the extra 10 mill on Berbatov and have a decent chance of defending the League and CL than get no-one and save ourselves 10 mill and then struggle for the season with a lack of fire power.
We have to challenge for silverware no not even challenge we have to WIN silverware to manage this debt not save ourselves 10 mill on a player who could potentially win us that silverware.
Also whats the whole Berbacrap about. Give the fella a chance Im not the biggest fan but Im gonna give him time before I make any judgements.
If you were at OT would you be shouting Berbatov your crap before he did anything?
Also I think we have ample cover in the striker role now even with Campbell gone. Your just annoyed we let him go as part of the deal!
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:29
OUR NEW BERBA CHANT IS AWSOME!
Sorry for the caps, but I meant it in the way that I screamed it out!
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:35
————-VDS————–
Brown—Rio–Vidic—Evra
—-Carrick—-Anderson—
Ronaldo–Rooney—Tevez
————Berbatov———–
Subs
Foster
Neville
Hargreaves
Scholes
Nani
Giggs
Manucho
That is an unstoppable machine!!!
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:40
VDS
Brown Rio Vidic Evra
Anderson Hargreaves
Ronaldo Tevez Rooney
Berbatov
subs:
TK
Neville
Rafael
Carrick
Scholes
Giggs
Nani
With 3 strikers on the pitch you dont need a striker on the bench
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:43
@RedDevil: Berba tov-tov-tov
He told Tottenham to beep off!
Berba tov-tov-tov
We told City to beep off!
With his left With his right
Berbatov is dynamite.
Spectacular. He’ll get ya! …
and he looks like Draculaaaaaaa!!!
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:45
@dan(u-ol): I know, you took that one yesterday. Its good, but I think this one is better.
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:45
@scoop: id rather call him berbacrap until he does something to make me stop. 30 goals outta do it. yes we need to win silverware to help with the debt but you think that cos we have this one player that is much more likely now?? and since we are all about giving people chances…why dont we give manucho a chance?…evryone is quick to jump on here with things like…”ah but he is untested in the prem”…so what? he didnt cost us 30mil and one less striker. and yes i am annoyed we let campbell go…how do we have “ample cover” for the striker role?
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:45
F*ck chelski! haha in your face Kenyon! You f*cked up again! this time i think much bigger! haha! berbatov will live up to his price i tell ya. give him a chance to shut doubters up.
love to see this happen: liverpool nil, united 3 (berbatov hat trick)
O’shea > Rooney < Ronaldo
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:47
i think United’s attacking front will be unstoppable. Just bring into mind Rooney, Tevez, Ronaldo & Berbatov and of course there’s Manucho who seems to be a good striker…
I hope they all stay injury free
http://www.utdtillidie.blogspot.com
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:47
@jstar7 : Give the guy an opportunity to shut doubters up
(that includes you) Manucho will shine, come on mate, just sit back and leave the rest to fergie, he knows his thing. 
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:54
@john freakin’ o’shea: at the end of the day im a united fan and i would love to be wrong! cos if i am then that means we are winning trophies and i can hold my hands up and say i was wrong. the problem is that he cant just be good (15 goals)…for 30mil he needs to be absolutely amazing (25+, and assists).
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:05
Red devil…perfect starting line up.altho wen hargreaves is injured carrick would replace him ..i wud also put a striker on the bench just incase,manucho or someone also no need for neville AND raphael as they are both right backs…dam that team is quality!
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:05
I’d be shitting my pants if I was a Liverpool supported right now.
I’m am seriously looking forward to that game.
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:05
@jstar7: maybe he needs to do that to please you, but there is more to his name than just goals. I want to see if he really gives something and understands that this is not a club in Leverkusens or Spurs statue, but Manchester United, I he gives an effoort I will be pleased. Hey, as long as we win games.
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:10
@benjd: i know, no gerrard or torres for our match, and we have berbatov!
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:12
No he dont jstar7 i would be happy with 15 goals and 15 assists..and his first touch…
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:13
What The Fuck, they have gone mad!!
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:13
keegan is off! newcastle to be relegated!
i love it.
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:17
well,up man utd,up berba,that is a great signing for utd….now we have berba,rooney,tevex,ronaldo when his is back,what an attack? i think we can go and defend out tittles and even add to it now that we have more attacking options.
Down chelkis,they can only buy player with the age of 30 for 30mil. robinho would have been a better signing for them but cos he is age is 24 they can only pay 24 for him. i bet you when robinho is 30 they will go and pay 30 for him,let wait and see…..
once again utd go and attack the CL nad PL
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:18
@jstar7: you’re an idiot to be expecting that much from berba. First off if the guy gets 15 goals in the league and 20+ in all competitions he’ll have had a good season because his style of play is going to help other players flourish as well i.e rooney and tevez.
Also you’re calling a guy who is rated as one of the best strikers in Europe as Berbacrap. You’re deluding yourself mate and if i didn’t know any better i’d think you’ve never seen berbatov in full flow because the guy exudes class.
Also one question, name one guy who was available -and “available” is the operative word here- you would have rather seen us buy instead of berbatov?
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:18
Liverpool team against us:
Reina
Carragher Skrtel Agger Dossena
Babel Macherano Alonso Riera
Keane Kuyt
United team vs them:
VDS
Brown Rio Vidic Evra
Anderson Scholes/Carrick
Nani Tevez Rooney
Berbatov
Duels:
Reina < VDS
Carracher < Brown
Skrtel and Agger < Rio and Vidic
Dossena < Evra
Macherano and Alonso < Anderson and Scholes/Carrick
Babel and Riera < Nani and Tevez
Keane and Kuyt < Rooney and Berbatov
Rafa “Fat Spanish Waiter” Benitez < Sir Alex “The God” Ferguson
VICTORY SHALL BE OURS!
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:18
http://www.arabianbusiness.com/529737-abu-dhabi-planning-240mn-ronaldo-swoop
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:20
Anderson is injured………hope it is a short term thing and will be better before the international break is done.
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:20
@R: They seriously think this is Football Manager!
CRAZY PEOPLE!!! 
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:23
@RedDevil: fairly good analysis
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:48
Once I heard Berba was at OT I was confident he was going to be in place in time. I had my doubts about whether we really needed a striker in his mould until Friday but then it all became very clear.
Having Berba up front occupying the central defenders will create so much more space for the likes of Rooney, Tevez and Ronaldo and I just don’t think teams will be able to cope with it. Tevez was again the best player on the pitch on Friday but needs to be working off someone to be at his best, Rooney likewise.
I think the comparisons with King Eric are a bit ridiculous though (not from here necessarily), Cantona came at a time when we hadn’t been as successful as hoped and was the catalyst for changing all that. Berbatov comes to the Premier League and European champions, I guess he will be measured by whether we create European dominance, which I’d say is probably a lot harder, especially given that no-one has retained teh CL to date!
Overall, good signing, £30m was the going and market rate so that is what we had to pay to get him, Fergie rarely lets us down so here’s hoping for a 25+ goal season from Berbatov, Rooney, Ronaldo and Tevez hahaha
September 2nd, 2008 at 13:56
@Penguin: Do you think it could be a smoke screen, due to him being away @ the Olympics for so long?
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:06
@Stephen: Not impossible, and I hope it is an injury skin to those that Giggs used to come down with before Wales friendly games!
Still, with Carrick and Nani returning to the side, we should be ok in any case.
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:08
@Penguin: It will now start to get intersting, any news on Hargo, is there any chance he will be fit?
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:10
so keane and berbatov will face ov in our next match…
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:16
@Sidharth: im an idiot? thanks for that. and am i really expecting too much from a 30 mil striker? 15 goals is not good enough im afraid. torres cost 20 mil, never played in the prem before, and scored 33 goals last season. and im expected to be ok with berbacrap scoring 15 for 30 mil??
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:18
@jstar7: Berbatov is not a Torres type, who plays on the shoulder, so you can’t judge him as the same player and expect the same return.
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:20
as for kenyon same story and I got two words for chelsea ronaldinho 2, its like kenyon does not want tp pay to doller for talented brazilians.
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:24
@Stephen: ok someone needs to explain to me what “type” of player he is then….given that we have rooney and tevez who we all seem to agree are not out and out strikers…i was under the impression we were after a goal scorer no? or is it that we want someone with flair to basically do what those two do?
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:30
@jstar7: He has a bit of everything in my book, he is not lightening quick like Torres but he can create and score he is also 6′2/6′3 which Rooney and Tevez are not, he is a class act mate.
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:38
Somebody’s gonna it his own **** when berba spells his magic…
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:40
A good, balanced view on the Berba signing.
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:42
@Stephen: Not sure, but I read some comments a few days ago from Fergie which sounded pessimistic. This tendinitis thing sounds as though it’s never going to go away completely, it’s just a case of managing it.
Shame, given how good Hargreaves was in the last six weeks of last season - but hardly a surprise. Let’s hope he isn’t stepping into Saha’s shoes…
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:43
@jstar7:
“id rather call him berbacrap until he does something to make me stop. 30 goals outta do it
Ok fair enough you call him Berbacrap for now. If he turns out to be guff and huffy Ill call him Berbacrap as well. If he turns out to be class Ill call him Berbagreat (or something like that) but for now he’s Berbatov. If he scores 30 goals Ill call him whatever you want me to call him
“yes we need to win silverware to help with the debt but you think that cos we have this one player that is much more likely now??”
As a matter of fact I do. No way am I saying its written in stone he could turn out to be a complete flop but for now Im a dam sight happier about winning something this season with him than I was yesterday without him. Even without him I was pretty confident but the firepower worried me. Not now!
“and since we are all about giving people chances…why dont we give manucho a chance?”
Brilliant Im all for that I want to see what the kid can do. I hope he gets his chance and I hope he shines but would I want SAF to think ‘right Ill give manucho a chance this season and see how he gets on and forget about berbatov. Brilliant and The glazers will be pleased because I saved 30 mill’. Bugger that Im glad we got Berbatov and like I said I hope Manucho gets his chance but given the choice for the season ahead I’d take Berbatov.
What would you do Jstar take the chance on Manucho and not buy berbatov. Berbatov is a punt as well but not anywhere near as risky as a punt on Manucho for the season!
Also if we didnt buy Berbatov who would you buy or would you be happy startig the season with Tevez, Rooney, Campbell, Manucho and Wellbeck?
“and yes i am annoyed we let campbell go…how do we have “ample cover” for the striker role?”
IMO Tevez, Rooney, Berbatov, Welbeck and Manucho is ample cover. Do you think losing Campbell has really made that much of a difference?
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:44
@jstar7: I agree with Sidharth. Your projections are unrealistic and downright fanciful. In fact your understanding of a striker’s role seems to be akin to that my 5 year old neighbour.
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:48
@benjd: Particularly well put.
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:50
@Stephen: but who is gonna actually score all the goals? ive no doubt that berb can flick rooney into a great goal scoring opportunity, but with rooney’s one on one record its not a great thought. i thought we wanted someone that could link up with rooney and tevez so they could weave some magic and put the ball into the box for our new out and out striker to bang it in. do we now have 3 strikers laying each other up with outlandish skill and finese?
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:50
I don’t think Berbatov should be judged on a perform/price ratio, the manager yes, but not the player. It’s not Berbatov’s fault that he cost so much.
If he doesn’t show full commitment to the club then that is another thing, but for the moment he has been quite dignified about the whole issue (not slagging off people in public)and stayed faithful to United.
I can’t wait to see him play.
I’ll judge him at the end of the season
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:54
Have you seen Citeh’s new kit? http://www.laughfc.co.uk/wp/?p=115
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:54
@jstar7: Yes, he is another flair player, like rooney and tevez, but he is classy in a way rooney and tevez (and torres) will never be. You will love him soon. His general play is an absolute pleasure to watch. 30 million is acceptable for the most watchable player in the world.
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:57
@benjd: really? more so than everyone here who thinks we are virtually guaranteed trophies now we have berbcrap?
September 2nd, 2008 at 14:59
@tevez: i will love him if he produces the goals mate. if he does it with style…even better. if he doesnt with style..i wont.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:00
@magno: how will you judge him at the end of the season? obviously given that the goals ratio isnt important.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:01
I think fergie is smarter to know what is right…
He thinks Berba will improve our squad… so he got him… thats it…
He knows better…
I would be happy if Berba gets 15+ goals and assists…
And I personally think he will perform better any other striker (supporting/shadow/whatever) on our squad…
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:02
I am sure mate he will get goals, with Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez all knocking in goals we will be fine, this season is going to be tough but we have no devine right to win anything, we just need our young players to continue to development, and more goals from rooney. Berbatove will score goals I think last year he got 23, and Spurs gave up after winning the League cup.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:05
@jstar7: Yes really. Maybe you could provide us with an insight as to why you think he’s crap? Tell me, do you think Rooney is crap too?
jstar7: Why are you being so single minded? Open up.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:13
@jstar7: Maybe you give him a chance, fergie obviously sees something in him?!
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:13
@jstar7: He’s not a 30+ goals-a-season striker mate. He’s not a predator. Were you a fan of cantona? Or Sheringham? You wanted an out-and-out goalscorer, fair enough, but we didn’t get one. You can blame fergie for that though, not berbatov. Don’t blame berbatov for not scoring enough just because that was the kind of player you wanted.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:16
@jstar7:
Goals to minutes played is important to me, or assists to minutes played.
But I said price (£30 mill.) to performance ratio.
I wont be thinking 30 goals per season for 30 million, or 10 goals for 10 million.
He’s a prize asset, and should be treated well. It’s one of the basics of any management…make people feel wanted, not get on their backs after a little mistake.
How can you be insulting his name before he’s even played
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:17
Jstar, if your a United fan, I’m feckin glad we haven’t got too many like you. You should join Liam and start your own WE HATE BERBA fan club. Berba aint as much crap as you haters are crap United fans.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:17
@Penguin: Finally, an unbiased article from the media that actually exudes well-thought facts and reasoning. Berbatov has been pursued for a reason and that is because he has the ability to bring out the best in players around him - thru assists and link up plays - just like he did with Robbie keane at Tottenham (who was average before Berba).
He’s the type of striker that leaves defences confused, because whwn he gets the ball in the box, it is unclear if he’s gonna shoot, dribble or pass(he can do all three) and that is why Rooney, Tevez and co will benefit excellently from his foil.
With this signing, we will be going back to the style of the 06/07 season when we scored 120 goals and won the prem with 8 points ahead of the runners-up, chelsea. That season, everyone scored their fair share because the team was not built around Ronaldo; last season it was - part of the reason he did so well - and although he scored 42 goals the team scored less in total.
Also, with Manucho looking like a younger, taller Saha (less the injuries, hopefully), and the fact he will get valuable playing time (due to Campbell’s loan) we will hopefully have a wealth of options to choose from.
Campbell, in my opinion, should have been loaned to hull if playing time was what was desired for him. He will get chances at Tottenham, but very few, beause there are two top class strikers ahead of him, added to the fact that he is only there for a year, he’s pretty much just cover for them - similar to Rossi at newcastle - and will get little top-level game playing time whereas in Hull, he’ll almost definitely play week-in, week-out. He will however have a better chance to train and play with players of a higher calibre at Tottenham compared to Hull and also better training staff and manager, so maybe it all worked out for the better.
Can’t wait to see Berba in action for United though, he always looked like he had more to offer when playing at Tottenham and hopefully he unleashes the full plethora of his massive talents while on display for United…
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:18
David Villa would have been a better signing and suit the team more. he is younger, faster and twice as deadly in front of goal. Berbatov isn´t a bad signing but for 30 mil, united should have invested in a younger player for the future.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:19
@Gabriel: Two top class strikers, what Bent?
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:22
@benjd: no ben i dont think rooney is crap. and to be fair i dont think berba(tov) is crap either. i was venting my frustration with the “berbacrap” thing. but i dont think he is anywhere near as special as you all think. i dont think he is the right kind of player, even though he is great to watch/ and links up well/ and all that, and i dont think he is worth 30mil. im sorry if my want for a united striker to score loads of goals seems juvenile to you, but it is borne of a love for winning and getting trophies.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:23
@Stephen: i will of course give him a chance to prove me wrong…and i hope he does.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:29
@tevez: i know man and that i spose is my gripe, the fact that he isnt a 30+ man and that what i wanted. and yes i was a fan of eric(1.2 mil) and teddy(3.5 mil) both awesome players. but i didnt think we were after one of those guys…i thought this was about getting a main striker…not someone to create.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:30
@Stephen: like it or not, Bent is a top class striker; the typical old-school out-and-out striker whose sole purpose on the pitch is to look for the net. He has proved he can score plenty, while at Charlton and despite his very limited playing time last season, scored a decent amount. Hell, look at his pre-season tally and the goal against chelsea.
Pavlyunchenko is also another option for spurs and i don’t see Campbell starting ahead of those two if fit. Also, all indications point to Tottenham playing a 4-5-1 formation which even decreases campbell’s chances of starring for them.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:31
@magno: fair enough with the ratio for judging. but its hard to get that 30 mil outta my head at the same time ya know? and ill stop referring to him as berbacrap…(at least until he deserves it)
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:33
@Gabriel: A pre season tally is not a gage mate, if Heskey can get in front of him in the England squad than thats proves he is not a “top class” striker.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:34
@Craig Mc: im sorry for disaggreeing with you craig. i guess we cant have differing points of view and rant with each other about them? maybe ill just wait till you post from now on and agree with you…hows that?
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:37
@Gabriel: I like the way bent is constantly running in behind a defense. He is very quick and he gambles. He is still not a top class striker though.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:41
@Redd75: Which statement was unfair?
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:44
@Craig Mc: Er, what’s wrong with someone not liking Berba? Stop judging people just because they don’t agree with you.
I seriously wish we don’t have fans who start throwing judgements on other fans just because they don’t agree with them.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:46
@Red Ranter: In Craig’s defense we also don’t want fans judging players, before they have even kicked a ball for us to surely?
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:47
@jstar7:
Good. It is an important point to established that you can’t judge a player just by looking at a their goal tally.
…well I’m with you on that one.
No, that’s fine, everyone loves goals; But your point came across rather bluntly as: 30 goals or he’s crap.
We have to remember that we now have 4 (rather than 3 last season) potentially high scoring goal scorers (20+ goals) and it’s just bad (and decremental to the team, maybe) to hope that one striker gets majority of them. I would argue that they need to be spread more evenly than last season for the good of the team.
I wish I could take 10+ of Ronaldo’s goals last season and split them between Tevez and Rooney.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:48
@Stephen: funny you should say that, because I always wondered why Heskey was included ahead of Bent, Defoe, Ashton, Owen, Agbonlahor etc That is England for you and hence another matter…
Also, don’t just pick a snippet of fact and use it to back up your point when the bigger picture says something else. He scored bags of goals while playing up top ‘alone’ at Charlton (37 goals in 79 app). He, despite coming off the bench in almost all the games he played for Spurs last season, managed to bag 8 goals. He is a top striker, and this season, under a manager who understands his strengths, he has already began to prove it.
Btw, why should pre-season not be a gauge? Are the matches not meant to be won?
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:58
Just a little look at last season’s league stats:
Keane Goals: 15, Assists: 7
Berbatov Goals: 15, Assists: 11
Torres Goals: 24 Assists 3
I’d put money on Keane not being anywhere near as potent as he was last season.
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:59
@Gabriel: They are friendlies mate not competitive games, and you are using a snippet of infomation to back your point. He has had one good season in the prem for Charlton and fair play to him he played well, but form is temporary and class is permanent, he was awful last season, under mostly Ramos, but we will agree to disagree mate, I am not a fan, but he is better than Heskey I must agree!!
September 2nd, 2008 at 15:59
@benjd: true enough. if the goals get spread and we win silverware then i will be content.
September 2nd, 2008 at 16:01
@benjd: if you want to take 10 off ronaldo from last season… don’t let him take penalties!