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Friday, March 30, 2007

Huntelaar to Man Utd?

Here is an article in The Times that talks about the Torres and Huntelaar comparision. What do you guys think?

The Premiership is back, thank God!

So the premiership reconvenes tomorrow, thank god for that. England are drab, can’t play decent football and have more chance of scoring in a brothel. They won 3-0 against Andorra, a team of builders, bankers and milkmen. To be honest they looked more interested in playing fisticuffs than football, perhaps it was the out and out quality of the England play the lowered them to such unsportsmanlike behaviour. Then again maybe they just didn’t like the look of Ashley Cole and his bling!

So we take on the immovable force that is Blackburn tomorrow. Sparky loves to throw a spanner in the works, last season we lost to them twice, but this time around we are a whole new proposition. I’m sure Hughes is already complaining about the referee, how things never go his way. I think that if Ronaldo tripped over coming out of the tunnel he would label him as a habitual diver. Alas United must galvanize their players and get the hunger back, something they have surely missed whilst away with their fellow international team-mates.

In transfer news it seems we are poised to move for Huntelaar, nothing new there then. I think he would compliment the new line-up quite nicely. Question is who would you prefer the Chorizo chomping Spaniard that is Torres, or the Clog wearing tulip boy that is Huntelaar? Why do people still wear clogs? They’re bloody uncomfortable if ever you’ve tried them!

Right enough of my nonsense for today, Ronaldo has said he wants to stay with us for many a year and is set to sign an all new wage topping deal, were six points clear and still challenging on 3 fronts, oh to be a United fan!

Friday, March 23, 2007

Internationals are dull, transfer rumours are fun

I can’t stand international breaks. It seems the world of United just stands still whilst our players go off to join their respective underperforming international compatriots. It breaks up the togetherness of the squad and even worse, destroys the momentum of the team that was just about back to its best. So what should we talk about? Transfers maybe?

The Sun is claiming that Tottenham are in the race to sign up and coming superstar Nani. Sorry but I think if United want him they will get him. They have excellent links with Sporting Lisbon and he is good friends with Ronaldo. Add to that the fact that he would actually win silverware and play with more talented individuals then I think United could have this one sewn up. There is also reportedly a minimum fee release clause of around £15 million, not too bad for today’s standards.

The debate about right back was answered well by a number of people yesterday, thanks for your input guys. The opinions that seem to be coming out are that we have 2 options. Number 1 we could nurture one of our own players. The likes of Bardsley, Pique and Danny Simpson have all been mentioned. From what I hear Pique has been playing particularly well at Zaragoza in the right back position. The other option is to buy. However the only player that I can really see capable of taking over Neville, is Micah Richards and there is more chance of Ferguson inviting Wenger over to his place for a romantic meal than that one happening. Marlowe made the good point though, that who really knew about Vidic, Heinze and Evra before they walked through the pearly gates of O.T? I’m sure the players are out there, we just need to rely on our scouts/ homegrown to come up with the goods.

Another player I wanted to touch upon is Gareth Bale. The little Welsh Wizkid has been touted as a successor to Ryan Giggs. I would be great to carry on the Welsh dynasty at United, nurturing them on to become the best players the country has got. I haven’t seen Bale play much but I have heard the rumours that he has a wicked cross, perhaps we will bring back the crossing game at United? Something that has been absent for nearly 4 seasons now!

Then there is Owen, poor old Owen. Yet again Bayern Munich have said they will block any transfer attempts made by Man Utd in the summer. Aren’t there human rights issues involved here? Holding a player hostage against his will is barbaric behaviour, I think we just contact amnesty international or something, bloody Germans!

Then there is the striker problem. Is there really a problem? We have Saha, Rooney, Solskjaer, Smith, Dong and Rossi, isn’t that enough for one team? Sure Solskjaer’s knees are about to fall off and crumble, but he can still score. I think this might be his last year though. Saha means our medical premiums are 3 times what they should be, but when he is fit, he is one of the best. Rooney is Rooney enough said. Dong, I’ve only seen him play once, one for the future and Rossi despite being a midget has the potential to be a world beater, he’s hardly your target man is he. Smith is fighting his way back from a horrific injury after he kicked the turf too hard, maximum points for effort son, that’s why we love you. He is a great target man and a really determined player, I say he compliments the team and provides options for Fergie.

So do we need another striker? Of course we do. You can never have too many strikers and I for one would not complain if Torres, Eto or Berbatov arrived in the summer.

It’s good to talk about transfers again, I love the international break!

Thursday, March 22, 2007

Manchester United Transfer news

I think we have really turned a corner. Ronaldo has said to the press that he now wants to commit to United beyond 2 years. It is testament to the club on how well they are performing, he could not envisage more success anywhere else. Today he has declared that he has no interest in joining either Real Madrid or Barcelona. Now Ronaldo let’s get that contract signed so we can all move on.

In other transfer news, Ferguson is reportedly interested in signing Eidur Gudjohnsen from Barcelona in an £8 million move. I think this would represent an excellent piece of business, but would say that £6 million is a more appropriate figure. Gudjohnsen is a fantastic player, he has skill, movement and can spot a pass a mile away, why Chelsea ever sold him in the first place is beyond me and he is now struggling to hold down a first team place at Barcelona.

I think we should also be keeping our eyes peeled for a right back. Gary is getting on a bit now and Wes Brown, although dependable is not best playing in that position. Therefore we need a young committed right back that can tackle and cross, does anybody have any ideas?

I think this summer will be interesting in terms of transfers. We have progressed well in all competitions, we have new sponsorship deals in place and so I think Ferguson will be allowed to strengthen in a few areas. I would desperately love to see another class winger at the club and of course Hargreaves, surely Bayern are losing the war to keep him now!

Lastly the international break provides a welcome break in fixtures for the club. It provides a little time for the walking wounded to recover and more able to deal with the congested fixture list ahead. To have Saha, Neville and Scholes back will be vital if we are to carry on in this rich vein of form.

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Man Utd V Chelsea match Rearranged, surely a good thing?

United’s crucial game against Chelsea has been moved to 9th May. This represents good news for the Reds as Chelsea face fixture congestion worse than our own. Of course there is the added bonus that the league could be well and truly wrapped up by then, allowing us to rest key players for any finals we may still be in.

Chelsea’s resolve is still strong. They still believe they can catch us to seize a third premiership title in a row, a feat that has only ever been achieved by Manchester United. Winning is the only option now, dropping points at this late stage would be disastrous. But something tells me that this group of players are treating every game like a cup final, you can see their hunger, that desire to win silverware.

I think we are back to our best. Although we only won 1-0 on Monday I think it was more down to our poor finishing than anything else. Wayne Rooney had two one-on-one’s which, on his day, he would have tucked away confidently. The defence splitting passes came with every attack, the ball was moved with an air of confidence and you just knew that every pass would find a man.

Today I reflect on the journey of this blog. As an online marketer I started this blog as an experiment. I set myself the target of getting top place in Google for the phrase “Man Utd blog”. The problem was I enjoyed writing about my club too much and instead of being an experiment, it became more of an obsession. When people started commenting I realised we had a great group of like minded fans who posted intelligent well thought out comments and so it has flourished.

So to the likes of Radio Deadon, Jesus Rodrigo, Time killing Kid, Marlowe Diego (great posts recently Margowe), Andrew M, Gerard, eddiie, Clonefunkasaurus and all you anonymous posters thanks for your contributions, it wouldn’t be the same without you! P.S if I’ve missed any others off I’m sorry, but thanks to you guys as well.

I look back at where United were when I started the blog. It was time when we still had Van Nistelrooy, Carrick was still at Tottenham and (as far as the press were concerned) we were a team in decline. However we thought differently, we knew that this was our season, we had every faith that our illustrious manager would do the business and yet again he hasn’t let us down. As we approach the run-in life is once a gain great for us. This team can rule for years to come and this blog will be documenting it every step of the way!

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Manchester United V Middlesbrough match review

Another victory and the treble is still on. We had to deal with a little bit of afters last night, with Ronaldo in the thick of it yet again. It was Ronaldo who provided us with the goal, that sent us through, to be honest I think the Middlesbrough players and coaching staff just couldn’t handle his exquisite skill.

The penalty was a stone cold penalty if ever I saw one. People have said that Ronaldo drew the foul, that he played for it and blah blah blah. I’m sorry but the only person to blame for that penalty was Jonathan Woodgate. You cannot tackle a player from behind, not get the ball and then claim that he played for it. As a defender you need to be aware that if you don’t get your man in the penalty box then you will concede a penalty, simple.

The antics that followed clearly showed Middlesbrough’s frustration with the Portuguese superstar as James Morrison was dismissed for a horrible challenge on Ronaldo close to the end of the game. Rooney then unnecessarily got involved as did a few other United players. I think this is more proof that this team is so together, that they will fight for each other whatever the cost. A rash challenge riled so many of the players that tempers flaired and many of our lads had to be held back.

Carlos Queiroz was involved in a scuffle on the touchline after a number of the Middlesbrough coaches branded Ronaldo a cheat. I think Ronaldo put it best when he said “Perhaps I am just too good for them”, I think he may just be right.

In transfer news, Hargreaves is reportedly being told that he should move to Liverpool instead of Man Utd. That sounds like a great plan… if you want to win no trophies and fight it out for 3rd in the premiership year in year out.

Monday, March 19, 2007

Manchester United V Bolton highlights and review. Berbatov transfer to Man Utd?

Well guys, yet another cracking weekend of football as the red machine goes marching mercilessly on. It was a game that many predicted would be a stumbling block. Even I thought the fixture could have caused problems, but it was another performance that was vintage United at their very best.

People murmur that Ronaldo and Rooney are two of the best young players in world football right now, but how quickly that talk is quashed when one of them has a bad day. Saturday was a demonstration of how two of the best players can combine with lethal effect. It was their day; a day to really turn it on and turn what could have been a sticky tie, nothing more than a training session.

The game was all but over within 30 minutes. Ronaldo, showed his intention to bring the title back to Old Trafford, with some dazzling movement down both flanks, his reward was 3 assists as United put the fixture to bed. Park was on hand to put a brace away, whilst Rooney looked back to his best.

There had been criticism that Rooney had been off form recently. It is true that our star talisman has blown a little hot and cold this season, but how often we forget that he is only 21. Saturday was a Stirling performance, a demonstration of what he is capable of. If ever there was a time for him to blow hot, now would almost certainly be it.

So we are another game closer to the crown, with every three points we earn, that little bit closer we get. Chelsea still need to close the six point gap and it might as well be 7, such is our superior goal difference. That is no easy task considering they still need to face Tottenham and Arsenal during the run-in.

In transfer news it appears we are now keeping tabs on Berbatov of Tottenham. I have been paying close attention to him in recent weeks and I have to admit the player is out and out class. What is frustrating is that I remember that we were interested in him this summer and he elected to move to Tottenham instead of waiting for an offer to come through.

The price would probably be in the region of £25 million, is this too much to pay? More importantly to we want to continue lining the pockets of Spurs for the foreseeable future? For £25 million surely Eto could be tempted away from Barcelona, I think I know which most fans would prefer.

Hargreaves has declared that the only club he would want to move to is United…. I can see why…. they’re the best.

I realised yesterday that it will soon be that time for transfer speculation again. This summer is a baron one as far is football is concerned and we will need to ramp up the discussion on who is going where as we kick our heels waiting for the new season to start. Robinho, Ronaldinho, Kaka and Torres, well we can all dream can’t we?

Friday, March 16, 2007

Man Utd running on empty. Exclusive transcript between Ferguson and Ronaldo revealed

As we approach a week of hectic fixtures, Ferguson must be cursing his luck as the injury list continues to grow. Add to that the antics in Spain about Ronaldo’s apparent agreement to join Madrid at the end of the season, Ferguson must be scratching his head saying “why now”?

The next three games appear to be a defining moment of the season. I can see myself writing those words a number of times over the next few months, as every game should be treated as a cup final. Ferguson faces the next 3 games at least with little more than 14 1st team players available for selection.

First up are Bolton, a strong physical team who are by no means pushovers. We face them with Van Der Sar, Evra, Silvestre, Ferdinand, Scholes, Fletcher, Saha and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer all missing. Add to this the permanent absence of Larrson and the squad looks thin, worryingly thin.

We are lucky that we have an international break after playing Middlesbrough on Monday. This should give Ferguson enough time to nurse some of his stars back to fitness ready to push on for glory, particularly in the premiership. If ever we needed to dig in and get a result Saturday would be it.

More news has surfaced that Madrid are going to chase Ronaldo over the summer. Apparently they have a verbal agreement with the Portuguese superstar. The article in the Guardian points to instances where Real have poached their man before and even refer to Beckham. I think there is one important difference between the Beckham transfer and the potential Ronaldo sale and that is Ferguson’s desire to keep Ronaldo.

When Ferguson sold Beckham it was because he wanted him to go. Ronaldo on the other hand is a player Ferguson evidently wants to hang on to. The irony of this story is that the Madrid president reports that "All he needs to do is speak to Sir Alex Ferguson and publicly demand to leave.” Right then it must be a done deal then. Of all the managers I would want to go and see and express my desire to leave, Ferguson would be so far down the list the ink would have run out in my pen.

You could picture that conversation couldn’t you:
Ronaldo: Hi Mr Ferguson
Ferguson: Hi son
Ronaldo: You know Real Madrid are interested in me?
Ferguson: Yes, but you don’t want to move to them, you have everything you could possibly want here, isn’t that right?
Ronaldo: Yes but..
Ferguson: No buts son you love it here and are happy.
Ronaldo: But my agent said…
Ferguson: Agents smagents, don’t listen to them son, they’ll tell you anything. Now about that new contract we’ve been talking about..
Ronaldo: But Real Madrid…
Ferguson: I know, it’s heartbreaking to see what was such a great club going down the shitter, I have a lot of respect for them too son, but hey that’s football, theirs nothing you can do about it. Now that contract. Just pop your autograph down on here, there’s a good chap.
Ronaldo signs and leave the office.
Alex: Son… I’m glad we had this chat!
Ronaldo: Me too.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Manchester United injury crisis..or not?

Fixture pileups and injury threaten to ruin all the hard work that United have put in throughout the season. But do we have faith in our glorious manager? Of course we do. As the days progress things look more and more bleak, but if there is one man to pull us through it is Ferguson.

Let’s take a look at who is out. Van Der Sar looks a doubt for Saturday’s game. The man who has rallied the defence in recent weeks, could be a key loss for us on Saturday. I am sure that we would not be facing a replay against Middlesbrough, had he been between the posts on Saturday.

Next up is the defensive pairing of Vidic and Ferdinand. Both face a race to be fit for Saturday. Ferdinand in particular pulled up quite sharply at the weekend, let’s hope it’s nothing serious. I think without those 2 at the back we look particularly vulnerable, especially against the more physical sides.

Then there is Evra and Silvestre. Evra has had a fantastic season and it is a shame to see him pick-up another strain as the season reaches a crucial point. Silvestre has been a fringe player this time around, however his ability to fill in at the back has provided welcome cover for the centre backs at crucial moments of the season when united face fixture pileups. The one saving grace we have is Heinze. His stirling performance at the weekend was nothing short of breath taking. He is a class defender that offers so much going forward and even more defensively. If there was ever a time for a player to reclaim his place in the starting eleven, now would be it.

The midfield is missing Scholes through suspension and Fletcher through injury. Scholes will now be back to face Blackburn and Fletcher’s injury is not as bad as first thought. We hope that, Giggs, Ronaldo, Park, O’Shea and Carrick can hold the fort in the coming weeks.

Up front is where things look decidedly thin. Saha is out until the end of March with a thigh strain and Solskjaer has had an operation on his knee. That leaves us with Rooney, Smith and Dong, the latter two are decidedly lacking in first team experience this season. It is now more than ever that we will rely on Ronaldo and Giggs for attacking support..

Ferguson has been particularly brave about the situation. Unlike Mourinho, you don’t hear him whinging to the press about the terrible time his squad are having and how the opposition are lucky etc etc. Instead what Ferguson does better than any other manager is he supports his entire squad. If one player gets injured he assures the world that another can aptly fill in. He rallies and Marshals his men, giving them a hunger, desire and more importantly a belief that anything and everything is possible, you just need to believe in yourself. Does anybody remember the Champions league final of 99?

So as the season approaches the final stages, I have no doubt that our manager is the man to keep the campaign alive on three fronts. He is a master at man management and I am sure we will see his vast array of skills on show in the coming weeks. Roll on another treble!

Friday, March 09, 2007

Manchester United Quarter final champions league draw

We have been landed a near perfect draw. We play Roma away in the quarter finals and then either Bayern Munich or AC Milan in the semi finals. To be honest it could have gone a lot worse and I for one am glad we avoided English opposition.

I think it is quite amusing that Liverpool and Chelsea face the prospect of playing each other in the semi finals; this will be the third year in a row that they have the potential to meet each other before the final.

This year there is a very real possibility of there being an all English final. Could you imagine 50,000 Liverpool fans and 50,000 Manchester United fans in Greece for the final. I would not fancy policing that one.

Overall a very good draw, now let’s focus on the FA Cup on Saturday. This really could be our year!

Thursday, March 08, 2007

Manchester United V Lille Match Review

Good morning people, so we are through to the quarter finals after a 1-0 victory over Lille. It wasn’t vintage United, but we got the job done and now face the prospect of facing some of the European giants for a place in the semi finals.

Lille looked dangerous from set pieces and threatened us a few times on the break, whereas united lacked that final ball into either Larrson or Rooney. I thought Rooney’s touch let him down somewhat and Larrson seemed to struggle with the physical nature of the game. But let me complain no more, we did what we needed to do and that’s what counts!

The draw for the quarter finals is tomorrow and the big question is… who do and don’t you want to face? you can vote for your choice in our Man Utd forum. Personally I would like to avoid and English team, the excitement of the champion’s league revolves around playing the top clubs in Europe and not in playing domestic teams.

Therefore the 3 teams I would like to face in order of preference would be Bayern Munich, AC Milan and Valencia. I know this is tough opposition, but I don’t think we need to fear anyone in this competition, it’s almost as though the bigger the team, the better we play.

I know that I have said this many times this season, but the next few games really are crucial if we are to push on all fronts for silverware. Without Scholes in midfield and limited options up front, the team must pull together more than ever. We have 2 physical games against Bolton and Blackburn coming up, I see this as potential slip ups. Our saving grace without doubt is our defence. We look so solid at the back, that we rarely look like conceding. It is up front that we really need to work hard, wasn’t it great to see Smith have a run out last night?

Right that’s it from me this morning, I forgot to mention earlier, the atmosphere at Old Trafford was excellent last, it reminded me of previous seasons, let’s have more of it!

Monday, March 05, 2007

Liverpool V Manchester United review and Highlights

Well people what a weekend. We have successfully done the double over our arch rivals. It was one of those games where you always thought there was no chance we would walk away with the points, then once they had thrown everything at us, you felt sure that we could nick it at the end. What a game!!

I thought that we were largely outplayed for a lot of the game, but that is to be expected when you go to Anfield, the crowd can act like a twelfth man at times and I think this was certainly the case on Saturday. But in the end it was superb defending by our boys and that was the difference between the sides.

Rio Ferdinand was excellent, as was Van Der Sar. His save from Crouch in the dying minutes was the difference between 3 points and 0 points. In the end we had one chance in the dying seconds and we grabbed it with both hands. It was a sterling performance that reminded me of a team we had 8 years ago.

Something feels different this year. No matter how up against it we are, we have the drive and determination to get results when it matters. Last season I am sure we would have crumbled under the pressure from Liverpool. Heads would have dropped and we simply wouldn’t believe that we could do it.

This season it is different. Against Fulham and Liverpool, we didn’t care whether there was 10 minutes or 30 seconds left to play. We would always go for it knowing that we could score that vital goal that would take us one step further to glory.

Mourinho said a while back that the season wasn’t over. We had to go to Anfield, Emirates and the Bridge, all difficult places. Mourinho fully expected these fixtures to be an opportunity for his team to close the gap on United and really make a title race. Well we have two of those results out of the way and are still 9 points clear. We are now fully in the driving seat and the title is ours to lose. Judging by the celebrations this weekend I think the players no this more than any of us.

We now have 3 fairly tough domestic games against Bolton, Blackburn and Middlesbrough and will have to face them without our midfield man Scholes. It’s not often you see him react like that and we will miss him badly for them. But I am confident the team can cope and bring the title closer to home.