Berbatov Transfer to Manchester United is back on!!!

It seems that a deal for Berbatov is crucially close. United and Tottenham are reported to have agreed a £25 million fee for the Bulgarian and will visit Carrington today to finalise personal terms. In one of the most drawn out transfer sagas of the summer, it seems that Tottenham have caved in to the might of United and have agreed a fee to let Berbatov go. The potential line up of attacking options that Ferguson will have at his fingertips (when they are all fit) will be simply memorising. Rooney, Tevez, Ronaldo, Nani, Anderson, Giggs, the list goes on and on and on.

It's funny that the day we are on the verge of signing Berbatov, Terry comes out and says that he believes United can't get any better. Hey Terry, go take some more penalties mate, when you get that sorted then come and chat to the Champions about winning!

Here are some links to some stories about the Berbatov transfer!
The mail
The Mirror
The Telegraph
The Guardian
The Sun
The Times

As always I love to know what you guys think. Is he worth £35 million, will he improve us further or can our current squad win the double again?

Countdown to the start of the premiership!

So there is less than a week to go until the start of our new premiership campaign and we still haven't signed anyone. Should we be worried? Can we do it with the old boys? You bet we can. This weekend saw us take on Portsmouth in the charity shield, a rather drab affair, but one we won nonetheless. I didn't get to see the game, as I was away in Ireland on my stag do (I have a few bruises for memories sake), but I heard that Nani and Tevez were our men of the moment!!

Although there was a distinct lack of goals on Sunday, I think this has more to do with the fact that, we always start the season, a little slow, we get the wins however we can, battling away, grinding out those 1-0 victories, knowing that they will be the games that make our season. I do feel that our best asset this season will be our defence. We are difficult to break down, and pressurise in attack.

Over the weekend I heard that our man Fergie is after Henry. Personally I think that this is a ploy to try and hurry the transfer up of Berbatov. Spurs know that it is a battle that they will ultimately lose, trying to keep a player against his will, will never end up with the club coming out on top…. Where have we heard that before? Whether it's next season or this season that he moves, is the only subject for debate, again where have we heard that one before? I guess the difference between us and Spurs is that we have a lot more money and we win stuff. However ultimately that Portuguese cry baby will leave for Spain and he will kiss the badge of Madrid and that is why I can never take him to my heart like I could with players like Rooney, Tevez , Scholes and Giggs! No player is bigger than the club.. nobody.

So last post I said that I wouldn't take about Ronaldo and as I type I end up talking about him… man the guy has infuriated me! But enough of that, let's look at the season ahead. Next up we have Newcastle at home. Let me know in your comments, you first 11. remember you can have 5 subs as well.

I'm back.. I know it's been a while

Hi everyone… man it has been a long time since I posted on this blog, but thought that I would try and pick it up again. I have been really busy recently with a few projects, but it has chilled out a little bit now and I have a bit more time to do a few posts here and there. So where do I start?

Well, we only went and won the double… The team last season was nothing short of extraordinary. Ronaldo had the season of his life (more on that little twerp later), as did Scholes, Nani, Vidic, Rooney, Ferdinand and many, many others. I think what made it for me was the team spirit. At any one time you always felt as though the team were working together to strive for the success they so richly deserved. It is testament to our hero Fergie that he keeps creating teams that want it so much that they go out week in week out and give their all for the club… Well done Fergie, you truly are the greatest manager to ever have lived.

Then there was the whole Ronaldo Saga. To be honest I don't want to waste too many lines of this blog talking about him, but I will say this.. You ungrateful little sh*t. We raised you, we made you the player that you are, and then you go and disrespect your team mates and more importantly your manager, who is like a "father figure" to you (your words Ronaldo, not ours), by openly flirting with the Spanish press. Spare me your jokes about Paella and fish and chips. I hope we sell you next season, good reddens, nobody is bigger or better than Utd.

Onto transfers. It seems that the big man is happy to put his faith in the current squad and why shouldn't he? They are champions of England and Europe. I also think that Fraizer Campbell fully deserves his shot in the first team. With a couple of premiership games under his belt, I think he could be the finished article. I also like the look of our Brazillian twins, I hope to see some more of them in the Carling cup this season.

Right well that's enough from me for today. I will be back soon with some more ramblings, but till then, feel free to comment away.

Rossi moves To Villarreal

Manchester United have agreed a reported £6.7 million deal for Guiseppe Rossi to Villarreal. For me it is a sad day, but an inevitable one. Rossi is an exceptional player and I have no doubt that he will shine in Spain. I would like to thank Rossi for his services at the club and wish him all the best for the future. £6.7 million is a bargain!!

It seems that the Tevez saga is rumbling on, with a court date set for the 22nd August. We sure do know how to pick them. I am opeful that the matter can be settled out of court and he will be donning the red shirt for the first game of the season, here's to hoping!

Thanks to everyone who has signed up to the fantasy football league, we currently have 22 teams, but there is still time to enter.
To enter simply click here and signup. Then goto join a league and enter the following code 349621-72423

It's free and a lot of fun, but be warned…. I think that I have got the ultimate team this year, FCTKK beware, I'm gonna take a lot of beating lol.

It's not long until the season starts now, I'm getting excited about this one. There are so many teams with a lot of potential this time around. I really fancy Newcastle and Tottenham to challenge the top four and make this a really exciting encounter. Of course we know there will only be one winner in the end… Glory Glory Man Utd

Fergies first eleven. What is it going to be?

It seems that Tevez is now prepared to force a move through to United by writing to FIFA expressing his concerns. It seems that this has the potential to run and run, especially if the courts get involved. I wouldn't count on him being here when the season kicks off in less than 30 days time.

This has been one of the hardest summers I can remember. Yes it's great that we have signed all these fantastic players, but boy I can't wait for the games to start. It will be great to see Fergie showcase all his new talent, especially as we are by far the strongest team in the league.

Liverpool have spent big on Torres, but to be honest I never really rated him in the first place. He's a good player but in all honesty I would take Tevez Rooney or Anderson over him any day.

This year it will be vitally important that we come out of the blocks firing on all cylinders. We know that Chelsea will be strong, we know it will be tough. Liverpool I'm sure believe that they are also in with a chance, That is until they go through their usually dodgy spell before Christmas and spend the rest pf the season playing catchup.

Thanks to everyone who commented on their dream formation, it makes really interesting reading. I am going to stick my neck out and put forward my best 11. Please feel free to rip it to shreds!

VDS

Neville, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra

Hargreaves, Carrick,

Ronaldo Scholes Anderson

Rooney

Subs: Foster, Heinze, Nani, Giggs, Tevez

Scholes to pus forward and drop back as required, he would be rested and Tevez to replace him. Rooney and Tevez to interchange being the hole player linking midfield to attack.

Anderson on the right in the mould of Ronaldinho. I see him breaking on the left and cutting inside creating space for Rooney. Scholes would also play those clever balls into space for Anderson and Rooney to terrorize the wingbacks. Nani and Giggs can replace Anderson as required. Note Anderson will not play the majority of games but I think he will shine when he plays.

The key to Ferguson's success this season is how the team interchanges positions. We saw it last season, where each player up front changes positions throughout the game. This makes it virtually impossible for the opposition to man mark any of our attackers. Adding the likes of Nani, Anderson and Tevez only strengthens this style of play.

Now it's over to you. Am I talking rubbish, or is this the team to lead us to the quadruple? You decide.

Pre season update, United now the most feared in Europe!!!

Yet again it's been a long while since I posted on the blog. There has been so much going on what with the Tevez saga continuing. It now seems that West Ham are refusing to let him go, whilst the Premier league are insisting that all transfer money goes to West Ham rather than to Joorabchian.

Ferguson has come out to the press and said that he is confident that a deal can be concluded and to be honest that is good enough for me. Ferguson has always had his doubters, but we United fans know that he always get his man. Fergie is building yet another dynasty, with Tevez completing the jigsaw.

Today was a historic day. Ferguson unveiled both Hargreaves and Nani to the press. This year United fans have been living in dreamland. Nobody has bought better than United this summer, with the likes of Anderson, Nani, Hargreaves and now Tevez seemingly on his way. The thought of watching these players grace the field in 2007/2008 is simply mouth watering.

I overheard 2 Arsenal fans talking in the pub the other day, it made for quite interesting listening. They were saying that United and Barcelona are a cut above any other team in Europe and I have to say I agree with them. No other team in the Premiership can match the flair of United up front. Lets look at it for a second. We have Nani and Ronaldo on the wings, with Giggs as backup. In the centre we have the battling Hargreaves and the creative Carrick pulling the strings and for attacking prowess how does Rooney, Tevez and Anderson sit with you? Of course we still have the ginger warrior that is Scholesy boy. I feel that this year we have a truly devastating combination of youthful vengeance coupled with experience.

One last thing before I sign off. Is it me or does it seem that every star in the world is queuing up to play for United? It seemed that only last year nobody wanted to join us, we were a team in decline, Chelsea were the new force to be reckoned with. This year it's all different, we are back where we belong, at the top of the tree and long may it continue. Teams of England and Europe be afraid, be very afraid.

One last thing, I would love to hear your thoughts on formations with all our new signings, so please comment on what you think our line-ups will be!

It's been a while so here's a quick United update!

Hi to all, it's been a while since I last posted on the blog. I've been so busy with other projects, but thought I should just check in. looking at this year from last year, it's been a real contrast. Firstly we had the European championships to keep us occupied and secondly United didn't sign anyone until the close of the transfer window. Now of course it's much better this year as we have purchased some real quality, but it does leave me kicking my heals a bit wondering what on earth to write about.

There is one more possibility of a striker coming in. He goes by the name of quagliarella. With United reportedly increasing their offer for the future Italian star, would this guy represent a shrewd acquisition for the mighty reds? If I'm honest I haven't seen too much of him, but he seems like a strong goal scorer and could be worth a punt at £13 million.

I think much of the remaining talk will be of players leaving. The three players talked about a lot recently are Alan Smith, Giuseppe Rossi and Gabrielle Heinze. For me it would be a shame to lose any of them. All have exception qualities, both Heinze and Smith played vital roles in our seasoned campaigns last season.

As always I want to hear what you have to say on the issue, so I welcome your comments, do we need to lose players? Or is our squad perfect for next seasons battle?

Man Utd in for Tevez - Transfer rumours!

Hi people, it’s been a while since I posted, mainly because we sealed all our transfers so early. But this weekend a new prospect arrived on the scene. That prospect is none other than Carlos Tevez. The Mail on Sunday led with the story, stating that Ferguson has demanded we investigate the possibility of us signing him.

Such a deal would be fraught with problems. Firstly there is the circus that surrounds the player. When 2 of the brightest talents in Argentinean football arrived for West ham most fans couldn’t believe what they were seeing. It all seemed too good to be true and indeed it later emerged that it was. If a further transfer were to go through United would want categorical proof that West Ham own Tevez outright, with everything done legitimately to prevent any FA comeback in the future.

The second problem and an altogether more serious one is Inter Milan. Whilst it is reported that united are prepared to fork out £12 million for Tevez, Inter say that they are willing to pay up to £34 million. It doesn’t take a mathematician to work out which bid the owners (whoever they may be) would choose.

I suppose it all boils down to how much Ferguson really thinks that Tevez is the answer. The Scot is rarely wrong in his purchasing decisions and as we know, he normally gets his man, so watch this space!

Manchester United sign Nani and Anderson. The transfer lowdown

Good morning boys and girls. I thought that I’d get my post in early this morning because of the fantastic news that broke last night. I check my comments and six guys have beaten me to it on the comments, God you guys are fast. I think it’s important for us to welcome Nani and Anderson to the club, so I’ll see if I can find some Youtube videos of them.

Reports suggest that the pair have been purchased for up to £30 million. This would take Sir Alex Ferguson’s pre season spending close to the £50 million mark. Both players represent an attacking prowess, which gives us some insight as to how United are going to play their football next season…. Anyone for more goals?

The sun article says that Ferguson is opting to play a 4-2-3-1 formation next season. We would have our standard back four, Hargreaves and Carrick as holding players, Ronaldo, Anderson and Ronaldo as our attacking options with Rooney up front. To me that sounds a little devastating. My only concern would be that Rooney is not an out and out striker, but the way the front four play, changing positions and interlinking with each other I think that they will all interchange positions throughout the game.

Anderson is one of the most coveted talents in Europe with Chelsea and Real Madrid both interested. His first club was Gremio coincidentally the same club where Ronaldinho rose through the ranks, indeed some have even gone as far as to compare him the Brazilian master. In 2005 he won the player of the tournament at the Fifa under-17 world championship. His move from Porto was completed in real haste, something United have not done all that well in recent years. Anderson has been named in Dunga’s squad for the Copa America. View Anderson’s stats here.

Nani is a more renowned talent to many United fans. Dubbed the new Ronaldo, he has long been a target of Sir Alex Ferguson. He is seen as a long term successor to Ryan Giggs who this week announced his retirement from international football to prolong his United Career. Nani is considered the most promising of left Wingers in Portugal, he has speed, skill and is a good striker of the ball. Nani made his first-team debut for Sporting Lsibon aged 18, making 29 appearances including all six champions league games. He scored 5 goals last season. View Nani’s Stats here.

I think that one important thing has emerged with these two signings and that is the growing role that Carlos Queiroz is havign at the club. These two deals were done in Portugal, Queiroz’s home country. I don’t think this is a bad thing, after all he is bringing flair and exciting players to the club. It’s not that Sir Alex didn’t do that before, more that Carlos maybe has the connections in Portugal at a time when they are producing some of the finest talents on the world scene.

The papers are saying that Ferguson is not finished yet and still wants to add another striker to his ranks. At £50 million already spent I think we will see some departures before this happens. According to journalists, Heinze is a forgone conclusion and I woulld expect Richardson and Saha to move on in order to fund a new set of legs up front.

These signings come at the right time for United. As Scholes and Giggs prepare to hang up their boots, the future of United arrive. They will have one or two seasons to learn from the masters, let’s hope they do and pick up where our Salford heros left off.

Videos of Anderson





Videos of Nani





See the UK Newspaper stories here.

the Guardian

The Mirror

The Sun

The Sun part 2

The daily mail

The Daily Telegraph

The Times

Manchester United transfer rumours 30/05/2007

Good morning people, apologies for not posting in a while, it’s been a hectic week and surprisingly not many transfer rumours about. The latest news is that Hargreaves will join up with United at the start of next week. It will be great when one of the longest transfer sagas in history finally winds up. We are hoping that this is just the start.

What was going on with Bale? So many people have said that this kid is going to be special. We were in the hunt for him and then all of asudden, Tottenham unveil him for £5 million, possibly £10 million. Let’s just hope that we don’t end up paying over the odds for him in 2 years time. I honestly feel that we’ve missed a great opportunity there.

Then there is Nani. This is a player who we have been tracking for a couple of years now. All of a sudden Totttenham are in Portugal looking to do a quick deal. I think the Man Utd scouts need to wake up a little and sign the players that we actually earmark.

Anyway rant over. The news in the oh so reliable Daily star reports that Sir Alex is making his move for both Eto and Huntelaar. These are old stories and I know we need to keep our transfers quiet for fear of being priced out of the market, but let’s have some fresh developments!

I think we should also be focussing on wingers. As it stands we have Giggs, Ronaldo, Park and Richardson. This needs bolstering this summer if we are to avoid being caught thin on the ground next season. Who do you think we should sign other than Nani?

Finally Ryan Giggs is to announce his retirement from international football today. He is quoted as saying that he would like to prolong his playing career at United! Good man! I’m sure you will all join with me in congratulating Giggsy on a fantastic international career!

Manchester United Transfer News 23/05/2007

Good morning fellow United fans, after the drab performance at the weekend, we are left kicking our heals, doing housework and generally making nuisances of ourselves. For after tonight we hit a baron spot of club football. Of course tonight sees Milan and Liverpool battle it out for the champions league crown. I think you’ll all join me in wishing AC Milan the best of luck?!

So onto transfers, it was reported this morning that Bale could move to either Tottenham or United in a cut-price deal, such is Southampton’s financial situation. Please let’s not make this another Berbatov saga, where we had the opportunity to sign him, then Tottenham stole him from under our noses!

The Gudjohnsen deal has reared its head again, with West Ham reportedly lining up an £8 million deal. Do you think he could cut the mustard at United? Such is our pace and attacking flair! For me we need someone with more pace and skill than Gudjohnsen. Eto or Torres would fit the bill more aptly I think.

With Hargreaves, I look forward to him being unveiled as our next midfield honcho. It has been some time since we have had a real ball winner in midfield, I think that we missed that on Saturday and I am hoping he will add that aggression next season, oh next season seems so far away!

Owen Hargreaves transfers to Manchester United

So it's official, Owen Hargreaves has finally completed his move to Manchester United from Bayern Munich. The fee is rumoured to be in the region of £17 million, a record for a bundesliga player. For United it has been a long time coming but we knew it would happen eventually.

I will write a full article on this tomorrow with links to all the newspaper articles, but I just had to get the word out now as quickly as possible. Yesterday was a real bummer and Terry really wound me up when he said his team had the fitness after 90 minutes to push on for the victory. What utter rubbish, neither team played well, but I thought we edged it in extra time. They took their chance and fair play! It was a drab match with neither team playing well.

Guess what Chelsea? We're the Champions. Roll on next season, Hargreaves and Carrick to rule for years to come!

Manchester United Transfer News 17-05-2007

Good morning people, it’s not long to go now until the FA cup final. I’m sure you will all join me in hoping that Jose finds his little yourkie terrier safe and sound. It must be a torrid time for the little thing! On a lighter note Ladbrokes are offering odds of 500-1 that he will make a pitch invasion on Saturday.

Transfer news has been quiet over the past couple of days, but there are a couple of stories that have come out this morning that may be of interest. Let’s kick things off with a story in the Sun about Mark Viduka. Read the article here. I think for a free transfer this guy could work perfectly. He is strong and can hold the ball up well. The only problem would be his pace, but he could be used as and when to provide another option.

The Daily Star is assuring us that Bale will definitely move to either Manchester United or Tottenham this summer in light of them missing out on qualification to the premiership. This old news to be honest, I think we will get him as he is quick, can tackle and can cross. I think United is a bigger pull than Tottenham!

What is going on with Saha? The guy is always injured. I think it might be high time the Frenchman moved on. We need a clearout of certain individuals if we are to progress. Players I think we can afford to let go are Richardson, Silvestre and Saha. That would provide us with the extra funds we need to bring in the big boys!

Manchester United lift the Premiership Trophy, again!

Good morning sports fans! I have a great statistic for you before we kick things off. John O’Shea had a shot to goals ratio of 80% this season. In other words his shots went in 80% of the time. To put that statistic into perspective Gilberto cam second, with 31%. Thanks Sky Sports News for that bit of useless yet interesting bit of information.

What a great weekend! We finally got to see our boys lift the most coveted trophy in England. Fergie we salute you for bringing it home. The Chelsea boys were good housekeepers for 2 seasons, but it’s now back with its friends, all nine of them!

It was a bit of a dampener that we didn’t beat West Ham, if I’m honest I think they deserved to have points docked for the irregularities of the Tevez and Mascherano affair. At the end of the day they cheated and cheated badly. Fining a club £5.5 million when they stand to make £50 million next season from staying in the premiership doesn’t seem like a punishment to me. I’m also gutted for Sheffield United, I think Neil Warnock is a great manager, he has integrity and honesty and works like a Trojan. I hope they come up next season.

The game itself was a bit of a non starter. You could see that our boys were playing with one eye on Saturday’s game. Players weren’t jumping into tackles, they weren’t challenging for the ball and many of our key men were rested. Having said that we were really unlucky, 25 shots in a game is more than enough to grab a goal. Perhaps that day at the races last week hadn’t been completely shaken off? We’ll forgive you boys.

Onto transfer news. According to the Mirror, Huntelaar is our top target for the summer. I know he has been setting the Dutch league on fire in recent years and that they often make the transition to the premiership quite well, but does he have the pace that Ferguson is looking for?

It seems that Berbatov is determined to stay at Spurs. It is another case where we should not pay way over the odds for someone just because Tottenham don’t need to sell. Having said that, he scored another great goal at the weekend, it seems that everything that he touches turns to gold.

Man Utd Transfer Rumours 10/05/2007

What a drab game last night, but then we all expected that didn’t we. Chris Eagles looked lively and I for one hope that he breaks into the first team next season. I think the game only warrants 3 lines of today’s post so let’s move onto transfer targets!

The Independent carries on with the story that United are still very much interested in signing Eto. I have been thinking about this for the past day or so and I am in 2 minds. Yes he is a superb player, but does he have the right attitude to be at United? Would he and Ferguson clash? If they did we all know that there would only be one winner!

The Eto saga is complicated further in the fact that he recently sacked his lawyer and agent, meaning he now conducts negotiations himself. His erratic and volatile behaviour could be a hindrance upsetting the harmony of the club. If there is one man who could handle him though, it would be Ferguson!

But let’s look at the guys pace and skill. There is no doubt that he would score an abundance of goals, such is hi speed and agility. He would suit a real “footballing club” like Manchester United, where speed and slick passing are key! But £40 million? I don’t think so, especially considering he only has 2 years left on his current deal and no new one on the horizon.

The BBC talks of Freddy Shepherd’s anger at news that Owen could trigger a clause in his contract and leave for £9 million. To me that sounds like a chairman that is nervous, worried about losing one of his star assets. I think getting Owen for a knock down £9 million would be a shrewd bit of business, should Fergie pull it off. Sorry Freddie!

Owen is another player who thrives on pace. He has had 2 horrific injuries, but hopefull he can put that behind him now. It would be great to see Rooney and Owen link up week in week out, and perhaps it would help England’s chances too!

Not much else to report today, but as ever, keep posting if you hear any more news!

Manchester United Transfer rumours.

Okay so tonight we face Chelsea in a rather meaningless match against Chelsea. Ferguson has announced he will rest key players so as to make it fair for the other teams facing relegation. If only other managers were so fair. Anyhow today I don’t really want to talk to much about the game as the transfer rumours have started. I want to get the format correct with this, so what I was thinking was, talk about the rumour and put a link to the story. If anyone finds any other rumours, be sure to post it in the comments section for all to see.

Let’s kick things off with Nani. The mirror is saying that he could come for £17.5 million. I reckon £12 million is a fairer valuation of the player, who is yet to explode on the scene. Here is a video of him

Next up is Eto. There was talk of us moving for him earlier this year and to be honest the prospect of having Eto lining up with Rooney and Ronaldo is positively mouth watering. Read about the story in the mail.

The Berbatov Rumours are still rife in the press with various papers reporting that he is next on the hit-list for Ferguson. Berbatov or Eto who would you prefer? Read one article from the Guardian here


Also in the news today, The Malaysian President has criticised United for planning a trip to the country at a time when they hold the Asian cup. The President is worried that it will draw attention from the showpiece event. To be fair he has a point, but surely the people will make up their own mind? Read the story in the Telegraph

I hope that’s enough transfer rumours for today. As always let me know your thoughts on who we should sign.

Manchester United Chaampions of 2007!

We are the champions, we are the champions, no time for losers coz we are the champions… of the world, well of the premiership anyway! What a weekend, yet again I was reminded how great it is to be a Man Utd fan. There was misery on Wednesday as we crashed out of the Champions league, deservedly I might add. Then at the weekend we pulled out a victory when it looked as though we might draw. Then on Sunday Chelsea drew when it looked like they might win!

But we premiership champions we are and there is no taking that away from us. The premiership is our championship and those Chelsea fans that think we have borrowed it from them are sorely mistaken, we have brought the trophy home.

Ferguson has also indicated that he is here for a number of years yet… great news. That will give Keane enough time to get Sunderland established in the Premiership, then he can move over and take control at the helm of the greatest club in the world. Fergie also stated that he has identified 3 players that he is looking at during the summer. Of course that started the press off with transfer rumours.

Apparently we are no longer in for Hargreaves. Munich are trying to hold us to ransom over the England man. Quite right too, we shouldn’t pay over the odds for any player, anyhow I’m sure Ferguson has his eye on a number of key players.

Elsewhere it seems that the rumours surrounding Berbatov to United are gathering pace. I don’t know why, but I just can’t see this one happening. I would love to be proved wrong because he really is a class player, we should have signed him last season!

Well Champions that’s it from me. Let me know the highlights of the season for you, as I am always keen to hear your thoughts. Keep the red flag flying high!

Ferguson is a masterclass, but then we already knew that!

Alex Ferguson has again proven his qualities as a first class manager. Whilst Mourinho seems to be attacking all contemporaries within the game, Ferguson in contrast is remaining noticeably under the radar. We have seen this scenario before, does anybody remember 1996?

Why Mourinho calls himself the special one I have no idea. Somebody on the forum has created a great poll, visit and vote here. For me the guy has no class, no style and ultimately will end up isolating himself from most people in football. In a way what he is doing is clever, he is diverting attention onto himself and away from the team, but there is only so much that one guy can take, are we witnessing the self destruction of a man that is so close yet so far?.. probably not, but it would be funny!

I found this Sun article quite amusing.

In transfer news, apparently we are in for Defoe, who is currently unhappy at Tottenham. For me I think Defoe would represent and excellent coup, should Tottenham be interested in a part exchange with someone like Kieren Richardson. My only issue with this would be his size, the same issues were considered on this blog months ago when we were debating the arrival of Carlos Tevez.

One other issue that has seemingly been under reported is the rise in ticket prices for next year. The Glazers have decided to raise gate prices by around 12% for next season. This angers me somewhat, especially in light of a huge new pay deal that is worth approximately an extra £30 per seat. We are in serious danger of alienating the true fans of Manchester United and instead turning Old Trafford into a corporate arena, full of people who don’t sing and don’t care. The building of the quadrants was the first step in this process; raising prices will only further this course of events.

Okay rant over, let’s look at today’s fixtures. We face an away trip to Everton. This is never an easy game, but the boys know what they have to do. Rooney is scoring goals now and Ronaldo is in sparkling form as ever, it’s down to our defence. If we can beat AC Milan then surely we can do it against Everton in what is arguably an equally important fixture! Let’s hope we win by a penalty!

Chelsea host a Bolton side that could have as many as 6 first team players out. I think Chelsea will win this one at the bridge, but it would be great if they lost in the dying minutes with a penalty gifted to Bolton for a Gary Speed dive!

The pressure is relentless now. Every game is a step closer to the title. Our boys know what is at stake and we have the best man guiding the ship. One love One United!

Manchester United V AC milan match preview

Tonight is the big one. Nothing less than a win will suffice as we look to book our place in the final of the Champions league. We face a Milan side that rested a lot of its major stars over the weekend whilst we have a squad that has only 10 first team players fully fit. United always have injury problems at some point in the season, it is how we deal with it that will determine our season.

Ferguson said it again on Saturday “we like to make things difficult for ourselves and do it the hard way” and it looks like this season will be no different. With the likes of Ferdinand, Vidic and Neville out for both ties, we will be relying heavily on our attacking options to seek a breakthrough. Can they do it?

For the first time this season I was gloomy before the Roma game at Old Trafford I could see as drawing 1-1 with them equalising in the last minute, but how wrong was I? Perhaps it would be a good omen if I were to suggest the same again? I think we all now that the Roma result was a freak, we played outstandingly well and Roma just never closed us down. Tonight promises to be equally spectacular however.

With no first team defence to speak of, the red devils will look to play the kind of football the South Americans like to play. You score 1 and we’ll score 2. I expect us to try and play as much of the game as possible passing, moving and attacking. There will inevitably be gaps at the back, but I think our attacking players will be able to run Milan’s’ ageing defence to pieces. Kaka will be on form and how we deal with him could well be the determining factor.

What happened at the weekend? Drawing against Middlesbrough at home? It threw my predictions straight out of the window. Jose was moaning that the referees are all supporting Manchester United all because his team couldn’t capitalise on our slip up. What about all those goals your team has scored when the whistle should have gone minutes ago Mourinho? I guess we don’t mention those. That draw could well have cost him the title, remember they still need to go to the Emirates.

In transfer news, it seems that Torres was photographed with the slogan “you’ll never walk alone on his captains’ armband. This slogan as many will know is synonymous with Liverpool. Could this be a sign that he would rather move to Liverpool than Man Utd? To be honest I think a move to Liverpool would suit the Spaniard and would make more sense. To me, he is not an essential purchase, more a luxury should we wish to add him to our ranks. There are other striking options that we should be considering, Rossi, Huntelaar, Berbatov all spring to mind!

Well that’s it from me for today. Roll on tonight and I’ll be back tomorrow to gloat or wallow!

Ronaldo signs new 5 year deal!

Ronaldo today committed his future to Manchester United, extending his contract until 2012. Ronaldo announced
"I am delighted. I spoke with Sir Alex Ferguson about my future and everyone knew that I wanted to stay, "
I am very happy at the club and I want to win trophies and hopefully we will do that this season."

This could not have come at a better time for us as the season hots up with United still on for the treble. It will allow the team to focus and build a squad around key players such as Rooney and Ronaldo.

At least it gives the papers one less player to talk about. What do you have to say about that Madrid?