Manchester United Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread 11/12

Le King

Your Airbag wrote: »

Probably the best fcuking set of ads of all time.

Kess73

Le King wrote: »

Probably the best fcuking set of ads of all time.

Damn straight.

And the ones with Terry Crew were funny as well, just not as funny.

markc1184

David Moyes was supposedly at the reserve match last night to take a look at Macheda, over a possible loan move. Think Everton could be good for him for a season if he could be guaranteed a decent amount of gametime.

Mars Bar

markc1184 wrote: »

David Moyes was supposedly at the reserve match last night to take a look at Macheda, over a possible loan move. Think Everton could be good for him for a season if he could be guaranteed a decent amount of gametime.

It would be a good move for him as Everton are light up front. He'd be guaranteed game time...

Mitch Connor

mars bar wrote: »

It would be a good move for him as Everton are light up front. He'd be guaranteed game time...

he really does need to kick on. Was poor last night imo - Will Keane looked far better when he came on. More assured on the ball, more dangerous, better movement and link play.

Mars Bar

Mitch Connor wrote: »

he really does need to kick on. Was poor last night imo - Will Keane looked far better when he came on. More assured on the ball, more dangerous, better movement and link play.

I watched some of the game last night and I don't remember him being mentioned once. He scored though didn't he?

Saganist

SAF's rant at the FA

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/14678931.stm

Mitch Connor

mars bar wrote: »

I watched some of the game last night and I don't remember him being mentioned once. He scored though didn't he?

Yeah - scored the opener after 3 mins (lovely quick feet and pass from Petrucci) and missed an absolute sitter later in the first half. About all I remember from his performance.

Mars Bar

Saganist wrote: »

SAF's rant at the FA

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/14678931.stm

I never get fed up with the fact the BBC Player volume goes up to 11.

Samba

Kess73 wrote: »

Would agree 100% with this.

I have never bought into the "United have a weak squad" or the "United have a crap midfield" rubbish that seems to pop up every season for the last 10 2 years or so.

Fixed.

To claim this has been said for the past 10 years or so is a bit of an exaggeration, the worries of our MF have mainly stemmed from a few factors which only transpired in recent years.

The ageing of the golden generation

The loss of Owen Hargreaves

While CR7 was a winger, his move to R.Madrid helped compound those fears.

The loss of Michael Carrick as an attacking midfielder and his transformation to a deeper role, remember there was a time Carrick used to score goals!

Couple all the above with the calibre of players we had coming through the ranks, who were mostly unproven, I think it's fair to say those concerns weren't unwarranted.

This is the first time in those few years that I've felt more comfortable, however I still feel we're lacking a little bit of bite and cover in that area, i'm hopeful Fletcher will bring this back though. Homer makes a fair point, a few injuries and we could be back to last seasons MF options but without Scholes, potentially with a massive game ahead of us, against the likes of Barca or Madrid I wouldn't be overly confident in this scenario.

Just to add one last point, to everyone arguing there's no need to strengthen that area, why is it Fergie has shown interest in signing two world class MF players in recent transfer windows?

Your Airbag

keane2097 wrote: »

All this worrying about our midfield is unnecessary.

Anderson and Cleverly are going to crush.

Lets not lose a run of ourselves.

keane2097

Your Airbag wrote: »

Lets not lose a run of ourselves.

I have made my prediction.

Le King

keane2097 wrote: »

I have made my prediction.

PMSL. Don't ever change.

keane2097

Le King wrote: »

PMSL. Don't ever change.

I like to think I've gotten nicer...

VW 1

keane2097 wrote: »

I like to think I've gotten nicer...

In danger of becoming a carebear.

curry-muff

"Darren is 100%. I spoke to him on Monday night. He played 90 minutes of a reserve game the previous week and he played 90 minutes last night.

"I had someone at the game and he is looking great and he is telling me this is the best he has felt for almost a year.

"I'm delighted to have him back and the way I'm looking at it is that he will be fit to play in both matches."

"I'm thrilled," said the coach. "He's arguably our best player and a perfect role model and example to the rest of the guys in the squad.

Quotes from Craig Levein.

Great to see Fletch finally getting back to fitness

daveyboy_1ie

To be honest with you, I would love another midfielder signed, however doubt its going to happen this summer. I will know more after the weekend how our new midfield will fare against the big boys and will reserve judgement till then. Lets not be rash, Arsenal are a team that needs to be respected, regardless of how their summer has gone.

One thing I do beleive, the money is there to spend if Fergie wants to (although wages will always be an issue with top class players who can earn more elsewhere) and if Fergie totally believed we need another signing he would be pushing hard to make that signing. The fact he is not either means he believes in this team or at least thinks they may do the job he wants and wants to wait and see if they can fulfill their potential. The one thing about Fergie when he is building his teams is he rarely panics and recognises the long term goals of him and his club. He may well be using this season as a test to see where he needs to buy or he may be satisfiied he has the finished article team already. Time will tell.

I for one can easily sacrifice this season if I believed truly he is building another team to dominate again. Lets face it, this summer was unique in terms of squad development and was always going to be an important one. Lets see how we are in a few months. The one thing thats right is the right man is there to build that team and he will do it again with the right backing, and hopefully that continues.

markc1184

Platini trying to change more rules by the looks of things.

Uefa president Michel Platini is keen to introduce a new nine-plus-nine system regarding the number of foreign players in squads.

Platini has called for a rule change that will see clubs forced to name at least nine home-grown players in their 18-man matchday squads.

Currently, a minimum of eight players in a club's 25-man squad registered for European competitions have to be home-grown.

The European Commission have already blocked Fifa president Sepp Blatter's attempt to limit the number of foreign players in a team to five, but Platini believes the new proposal could work.

Platini said: "We understand the Commission's position but still want to try to protect the local identity of clubs. We have studied this more carefully and have now come up with the idea of nine-plus-nine.

"But before we propose this to the commission, we have to make sure the whole football family support it."

Alarmist

That may not be easy - European Clubs Association chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge is understood to be against the plan.

Platini also warned that the financial problems of European clubs were worsening.

He said: "I can see lots of red lights flashing and I am afraid for the future of football which is going pear-shaped in some areas.

"Perhaps I am being alarmist, but we have to face up to match-fixing, corruption, illegal betting, violence on the pitch, racism and hooliganism. Of course there are many good qualities and values about football, but we ignore the problems at our peril.

"I am very worried when players are going on strike in Spain and Italy because they are not being paid properly by their clubs."

G.K.

Don't think the EU'll allow it.

smokedeels

G.K. wrote: »

Don't think the EU'll allow it.

Probably not, but it's interesting that the FA and UEFA are using "home grown" and not "x nationality" like they think it's a way around it.

Jax Teller

Anyone know if the squads picture has been taken yet ? Need a wallpaper on the laptop

Le King

Actually they can there are millions of ways around it. But it will get to the stage where the clubs will break away from UEFA if the money pot dries for a couple of the big teams. If Madrid, Barca, United, Milan, Bayern Munich etc. took a stand it would be game over for the Champions League.

Discodog

I don't think that SAF's direct style may suit transfer negotiations especially with continental clubs. I can imagine SAF, in a middle eastern market, refusing to haggle & naming his maximum price. It is claimed that we offered 20m for Nasri but made it clear that we would not increase the bid. I would not be surprised if we did the same with Sneijder. United seem to refuse to be drawn into protracted negotiations.

My only big concern is that we don't get some key injuries in our already light midfield. If so then we may need to buy in January.

PHB

Le King wrote: »

Actually they can there are millions of ways around it. But it will get to the stage where the clubs will break away from UEFA if the money pot dries for a couple of the big teams. If Madrid, Barca, United, Milan, Bayern Munich etc. took a stand it would be game over for the Champions League.

This.

Ultimately, the FFP rules came in because teams like United, Arsenal, Chelsea supported the move. It means that they can only be beaten by actual well run clubs, rather than some random billionaire. If it had come into play 3 years ago, City would still be their mid table selves. Now they are a threat to these clubs.

The home grown rules also benefit some of those clubs, which is how they got enough support to get through. 9+9 would very very very much hurt those clubs. Only United and Arsenal in the PL could be close to being able to do that.

Pro. F

markc1184 wrote: »

Platini trying to change more rules by the looks of things.

It's annoying that of the six things he lists as problems with the game diving and feigning injury and players abusing the referees aren't among them. No wonder the game is in such a state when the suits don't even acknowledge all the important issues.

PHB

Pro. F wrote: »

It's annoying that of the six things he lists as problems with the game diving and feigning injury and players abusing the referees aren't among them. No wonder the game is in such a state when the suits don't even acknowledge all the important issues.

He ignores the biggest issue of all. Debt.

Pro. F

PHB wrote: »

He ignores the biggest issue of all. Debt.

ha, I thought he had mentioned that. Well at least they are trying to do something about that.

Mikeyt086

keysersoze_88 wrote: »

Anyone know if the squads picture has been taken yet ? Need a wallpaper on the laptop

Dont know about that but im working on a Phil Jones wallpaper over the weekend. Not sure weather to go with a tank or a wrecking ball in the background but it should be similar to the Chicharito one I did a while back. I dont mind sharing if anyone wants to PM me their screen resolution.

Jax Teller

Mikeyt086 wrote: »

Dont know about that but im working on a Phil Jones wallpaper over the weekend. Not sure weather to go with a tank or a wrecking ball in the background but it should be similar to the Chicharito one I did a while back. I dont mind sharing if anyone wants to PM me their screen resolution.

I'm still using that chicharito one

TheTownie

keysersoze_88 wrote: »

I'm still using that chicharito one

Speaking of Chico;

Chico on his return: "It was great to play again, unbelievable," Chicharito told MUTV.

"I had one month off after the Gold Cup, and then the thing happened with my head, so it was two months without games.

That was difficult but I talked to my family and friends every day when I was out, and made sure I was ready.

Thankfully, for the last game against Spurs I was on the bench, then I played 10 minutes and I enjoyed it a lot."

Chico on CL draw: "It’s a good draw for us but we can’t think it’s easy – we have to respect the other teams," Hernandez continued.

"But we must aim to win each tournament. We know what happened in May and we want to win this trophy. We were so close and that will make us more motivated and hungry."

From a positive perspective it was good for him to get an extended break after the Gold Cup so at least he'll be well rested for the remainder of the season.

Mikeyt086

Me too.

d22ontour

Mitch Connor wrote: »

Well said - the same people claiming anyone who wanted United to sign Sneijder was 'a muppet' or that anyone claiming we need to sign someone is 'a muppet' will be the people saying our midfield isn't good enough in 2 months.

These same people thought Carrick & Giggs was good enough for Barca now seem to think the current midfield/front 6 should start every game...Kinda ironic considering none of the midfield who started against Barca are in the current front 6....

Muppets indeed.

Mitch Connor

d22ontour wrote: »

These same people thought Carrick & Giggs was good enough for Barca now seem to think the current midfield/front 6 should start every game...Kinda ironic considering none of the midfield who started against Barca are in the current front 6....

Muppets indeed.

i thought Giggs and Carrick was the way to go based on the players we had/have. I still do. It didn't work out but I think the players were correct.

KombuchaMshroom

G.K. wrote: »

Don't think the EU'll allow it.

I don't know about that, i had a module in European Union law last semester in college and had to do an essay about the legality of these sort of rules and it seemed that they are legally allowable.

Though i'm a pretty crap student so don't take my word for it.

Blatter

The first proper interview with Hargreaves in years, it's very sad reading it.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2030501/Owen-Hargreaves-fights-The-moving-story-gifted-footballers-refusal-up.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Owen Hargreaves fights back: The moving story of a gifted footballer's refusal to give up

Owen Hargreaves is a reluctant interviewee. As reluctant to reflect on three years of misery as he is to declare himself back before he actually is. Before his body has survived that first week of full training, that first 90 minutes of Barclays Premier League football.
He is cautious because you would be after the obstacles he has had to overcome. The search, first of all, for the correct treatment for his condition, the months of intense rehab that turned into years and then the setbacks; the cruel, crushing setbacks that at one stage left him so desperate he actually offered to play for Manchester United this season for nothing, just to extend his stay with them. Just to recover lost time.

Bad luck isn't the half of it. Hargreaves has been to hell and back via Sweden, Colorado and Vancouver, visiting faith healers and acupuncturists in his desperate search for salvation before meeting a physiotherapist who said to him what they said to the Six Million Dollar Man. Alex McKechnie, hired by the LA Lakers after saving Shaquille O'Neal's career, said he could rebuild him, and he has.
United paid for much of the treatment and surgery but it was Hargreaves, now a free agent after being released by the champions in the summer, who sought out the best specialists to cure him of his problems. That he has done so alone - he chooses not to have an agent - makes his story all the more remarkable.
He is an intelligent man; articulate even if he does like to use the F-word for emphasis. 'What's the alternative?' he says at one point in his soft Canadian accent. 'Give up? F*** that!'
It was what he said in that first meeting with McKechnie. 'I told him I just want to be able to walk away from football when I feel like it, and not have it dictated to me,' he says.

Star of the show: Hargreaves celebrates a memorable goal against Arsenal in April 2008
Hargreaves says he is fit and the medical experts who examined him recently at West Bromwich Albion would appear to agree. There is an offer on the table from Roy Hodgson, who said earlier this month that the 30-year-old midfielder, England's outstanding performer at the 2006 World Cup and a two-time European Cup winner, is 'going to be a very good player for someone'.
'I'm going to blow people away,' says Hargreaves after meeting up for a spot of lunch in a pub near his Cheshire home. 'I'm coming back believing I can return to the level I was at before. My body feels great and my knees are perfect. I've just got this huge chip on my shoulder because I've been out for three years and people think I'm dead and buried.
'I can understand why. I can see why people would be sceptical. When I walked off the pitch after five minutes in that game against Wolves last season, people must have thought, "What is it with this guy? Is he made of f*****g glass? Is he kidding?" It was my first game in two years.


'I don't want to get ahead of myself. I'd like to get some proper football training and a few games under my belt before I get too excited.
'But, right now, I'd like to think I can play 40 games this season and with the right care I believe I can train every day. I hope to be back in the England side for the European Championship next summer. You have to have ambition.'
Aware of Hargreaves' ability and as hopeful as the player that his troubles are behind him, Fabio Capello and his staff have remained in contact. 'I still have a lot to offer,' says Hargreaves. 'When I watched Match of the Day I felt I could improve most of the teams I saw.'
There has been interest beyond West Brom, but Hargreaves is not going to rush into a decision when there is so much to consider. '
Just this summer, I've had maybe 30 agents getting in touch to say they can help,' he says. 'But I've turned them away. I don't see why some middle man should make a fast buck out of me. If clubs are interested, they will be able to see for themselves if I am fit.'
Anyone can see because Hargreaves has posted some of his training sessions on YouTube.
'For the last three years I have had every training session videoed,' he says. 'It's been helpful in monitoring my progress. It was also used to let United know how I was doing when I was in Colorado for eight months undergoing rehab.
'It ended up on YouTube because the files were too big to email to specific people; specific clubs. So I put them on YouTube so they could see it. I know it became a bit of a story when people found it in the public domain but I really don't care. No big deal.'


Why would it be after everything he has been through, after struggling for so long with a problem that began to develop before he even joined United for around £17million in the summer of 2007?
Hargreaves was playing for Bayern Munich when a foul challenge left him nursing a broken fibula in his left leg.
'When you suffer an injury like that you go into plaster and you lose a lot of muscle,' he says. 'And even when I was finally ready to come back, I probably didn't have the same bulk.
'That was probably when I started to damage the patella tendon on the outside of my knee joint. I played 10 straight games for Munich and then one day we did some sprint training and it went pop.
'It was probably a month before the end of the season. It settled down and I got through the medical at United but now I realise the problem was probably developing quite rapidly. The quadriceps is the shock absorber for the tendon and when the tendon starts to break down it doesn't have the ability to heal itself.
'When I join United I'm not going to let it bother me. I'm the new guy, there are high expectations, I want to play. The niggle is there so I sit out an England game. We started doing double sessions and my knee flared up. So I dropped out of a few sessions; did a bit of maintenance. But I just lived with the discomfort.

'That season I could always play but I would be able to feel the knee, I'd struggle a bit in training and after a game it would be sore. I guess the tendon slowly deteriorated and I didn't even celebrate winning the Champions League in Moscow because I wasn't content. I'd won a European and domestic Double but it wasn't the season I'd anticipated. I had higher expectations. I knew I was capable of playing better.'
After the Champions League final he did represent England against the USA and he played well. 'It was the last time I didn't feel pain in a game,' he says.
By the start of the following season, he was in trouble. 'It was killing me,' he says. Prolotherapy injections from a specialist in Leicester didn't work. In fact, he says, it made the condition worse.
'There were days when I couldn't even walk. I was involved at the start of the next season. I played against Villarreal, 50 or 60 minutes - felt all right actually - but then after 20 minutes against Liverpool I was off. A week later I started at Stamford Bridge. I took five or six painkillers but it didn't do me any good. That day I played the full 90 but I couldn't walk for three days after.'

Getting to the root of the problem was proving difficult, though. Until, that is, Leif Sward - at the time the England doctor - recommended a specialist in Sweden.
'I'd been doing a lot of research on the internet, trying to establish exactly what the problem might be,' he says. 'I'm an explosive guy. My speed and athleticism are a big part of my game. But it seemed I didn't have an injury that was that common to football. It was more common in basketball and handball.
'As I'm reading, this guy's name keeps coming up. Hakan Alfredson. So I called Leif and he told me he was like the Godfather of tendons.
'I went to see him with the Manchester United doctor. He's right up in the Arctic tip of Sweden. It took three planes to get there. Anyway, this guy gave me a scan and examined me. He said the tendon in my knee was really bad. It's full of dead tissue. But he felt there was an 80 per cent chance that surgery would be successful and I would play again.'
He told Hargreaves he needed surgery, so his next stop was Vail in Colorado for a consultation with Richard Steadman, the world famous knee surgeon.
Steadman, says Hargreaves, was terrific, although in the end he had to operate on both knees. In trying to compensate for his left knee he had managed to damage the tendons in the right knee.
'Only I couldn't have the surgery right away,' says Hargreaves. 'Steadman said my tendon was like apple sauce and it needed time to recover a bit before he could operate. It was November 2008 before he operated on the right knee and January 2009 when he did the left one.
'While I was there I met this guy Luke O'Brien, who worked with Steadman on the rehab side. I liked him and I trusted him. He's become a good friend. I called United and said, "I'm not coming back. I'm going to do my rehab here".'
Even then, it was a long, slow, often torturous battle. What was meant to take eight months took 18, not helped by yet further setbacks.
Back then there was a desire, naturally, to make it back in time for the 2010 World Cup. Capello was desperate to have him there and he told him he would give him every chance to prove his fitness, waiting until the very last minute until finally concluding - because he had played so little football - that it would be too much of a risk to take him to South Africa.

Fighting for glory: In action against Frank Lampard during the triumphant Champions League final in 2008
Hargreaves had tried everything to answer England's call. 'I was desperate to play,' he says. 'And desperate to find any way of accelerating the healing process. I even read this book about the brain; about how this triathlete guy had used positive thinking to make himself better after being hit by a car while out on his bike.
'It was during that time, though, that a friend recommended Alex. He was based in Vancouver but I went and spent a load of time over there with him. "By coming here you're taking ownership of your health," he said. And he said there is no such thing as an injury-prone athlete. That's only something a physio would say when he can't find a solution.'
Now he is into the early part of last season, and finally feels like he might be able to play again. After two years on the sidelines he is starting to train well, and there is a game coming up against Wolves he has a chance of starting.
'It was going OK until I felt a bit of tightness in my calf a few days before the game,' he says. 'But it was the last session, on the Friday, when it went badly wrong.
'I'm chasing back Chris Smalling and I feel my hamstring go. I'm obviously compensating because of the calf. And I'm thinking, "What the f***?" I'm just sitting there on the pitch.' The next day, it was a dilemma for everyone involved. There was a desperation to see him play, from his team-mates to the medical staff to Sir Alex Ferguson, so he did.

Hargreaves holds no animosity towards Sir Alex Ferguson over the way his United career ended
'I lasted five minutes,' he says. 'Before I tore my f*****g hamstring,' he says. 'And when I had the scan afterwards there were two tears in my calf, too.
'Walking off the pitch that day was the longest walk of my life. It took all my energy just to make it back to the dressing-room.
'It's my first game in two years, I've had a standing ovation and I've now got 70,000 people looking at me - millions more on TV - and all I can think is, "Try not to limp". I look like a joker.
'I wanted to try to keep playing. I think it shows how desperate I was, trying to battle on with two muscle injuries. I wanted to at least get to half-time. But I last five minutes!
'I'm not an emotional guy but when I finally made it into the dressing-room, I just cried. I was sitting there with one of the physios and I was so overwhelmed. I had put so much into it. For two years I had been visualising the moment in my mind.'

Keep on smiling: Hargreaves insists he will make a full comeback
His team-mates were as heartbroken as he was. That night Edwin van der Sar went to his house and sat with him. 'Edwin's a good guy,' says Hargreaves. 'It was very nice of him.'
It was January this year before he returned to full training and again things were starting to go well. A match against West Ham had even been pencilled in for his comeback.
But then came a training session with the youth team. 'It was international week so I joined the kids one day,' he says. 'I go up for this header and as I try to push this kid away in the air we get tangled up and I put my shoulder out.
'Suddenly I'm in the worst pain I've ever felt. It's a full dislocation and it hurts like hell. I'm thinking I am seriously f*****g cursed and then I almost passed out.'
A physio pops the shoulder back in and the pain immediately subsides, but sitting down with United's medical staff he now has two options: surgery that pretty much rules him out for what remains of the season or intense rehab in the hope of coming back sooner.
'I went for the second option because I'm aware my contract is coming to an end and I need to prove I can play again,' he says. 'But there were other niggles associated with the problem and before I could get back playing, the season had finished.
'I actually opted to have the surgery done in Vancouver with the aim being to be ready for this season. I said my goodbyes to the boys before the Champions League final. That was it. I was gone.'
He says he feels no ill will towards United or towards Sir Alex Ferguson. 'I don't blame them for letting me go,' he says. 'I can understand it. There comes a point when you have to say this hasn't worked out. The game has moved on. See you later, all the best.
'David Gill's a terrific guy and a terrific chief executive. And with the boss there is no animosity. There was probably a lot of frustration on his part even if there was a lot more on mine.

On the way back: Hargreaves puts in the effort on the training ground this summer
'I told the boss I will play 40 games this season. He said he could see me playing again, but he wanted to start bringing the younger players through. When I played for him he was fantastic.
'He's a great manager. He knows the players who can win a game for him. He's the best at that.
'The guys were great, too. It's a wonderful club. The people behind the scenes are terrific. Some of the guys on the medical staff have become great friends. At one stage I did offer to play for nothing this season, just to stay on. But they said, "You don't want to do that" and they were probably right.'
After nine weeks in Vancouver with McKechnie, the shoulder is good, the knees are perfect. Steadman has said his body could take the impact of 'jumping from the Eiffel Tower'. He's ready to go.
'Scholesy said he would have retired long ago if he'd been me,' he says. 'But I'm a competitor and I was never prepared to quit when I was only 26, 27 when things started to go wrong.
'I was obviously blessed with athletic ability but my talent is to compete. That's why, in the big games, I've always been among the best players. Better sometimes than the world's best. That's not a coincidence. I have the ability to dig deep and it's probably why I'm still on this path.'

If anyone now deserves a break, it is Hargreaves.

It brought a tear to my eye when he talked about going off after 5 mins in the Wolves game, really sad.

Great to see he still has high hopes for himself, nothing would give me more pleasure than seeing him back playing football regularly again.

Professey Chin

Really good read about Hargreaves.
Think its too late to take him back? :pac:

Professional Griefer

MOgdenTelegraph Mark Ogden



Man City offered Sneijder by Inter for a second time during Nasri delay. City said no. Inter clearly looking to move him on. #mcfc

Interesting, was there every any solid evidence we were interested in Sneijder?

TheTownie

Blatter wrote: »

The first proper interview with Hargreaves in years, it's very sad reading it.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2030501/Owen-Hargreaves-fights-The-moving-story-gifted-footballers-refusal-up.html?ito=feeds-newsxml



It brought a tear to my eye when he talked about going off after 5 mins in the Wolves game, really sad.

Great to see he still has high hopes for himself, nothing would give me more pleasure than seeing him back playing football regularly again.

Good luck to the guy but I find it hard to believe his knees are "perfect". Put aside all the problems he has been through its just a widely accepted fact that once you damage a tendon, while it is possible to recover it to a very good condition, it will never regain its full strength prior to injury.

Maybe its just them being as optimistic as possible but anyway as I said, best of luck to him.

Le King

Ix Deadmau5 wrote: »

MOgdenTelegraph Mark Ogden



Man City offered Sneijder by Inter for a second time during Nasri delay. City said no. Inter clearly looking to move him on. #mcfc

Interesting, was there every any solid evidence we were interested in Sneijder?

Nope, just Inter trying to flog him is what we end up with. Not what we really need tbh.

I'm fairly happy with the squad. Barring injuries in midfield we will be doing ok. The last thing we want is having to rush Pogba through in November because of injuries.

I have faith in Anderson and Cleverley though. We are light in quality not numbers through the middle.

bucketybuck

I genuinely believe that a fit Hargreaves and we may just have had a different result in the champions league final in Rome. (Last years not so much) Anderson and Carrick choked big style that day while Hargreaves was always a big game player. Its a shame for the club, if he had stayed fit this past few years, I believe he would be considered a club legend. His style of play has been exactly what we needed in certain games and we still havent a single player who can do it. (Dont even think about saying Fletcher)

Nailz

I will say Fletcher, he was immense that season, and Darren unjustly getting a red card against Arsenal in the semi's was almost as sickening as it was great to get through. He would have been massive against Barca in Rome, I really do think that was the difference between the teams that day, having no Fletcher to call upon was sickening. A fully fit Fletcher is a great player to have.

Cantona's Collars

Set a reminder on yer Sky boxes-there's a documentary about the Busby Babes on National Geographic Monday night at 10pm.It's called: Munich Air Disaster,I Was There.

http://natgeotv.com/uk/munich-air-disaster-i-was-there

Sean Bateman

If Inter want to get rid of Sneijder, we should sign him. As I've said before, Modric would be my choice but if we can't get him then we should opt for Sneijder. I'm delighted that we didn't sign Nasri...he's a good player but that transfer fee is utterly ridiculous.

People are jumping on the Anderson/Cleverley bandwagon too quickly. Anderson's United career has been characterised by inconsistency and unreliability and Cleverley is completely unproven at this level. A lot of United fans (myself included) were too smug about our second half performance against Spurs. We shouldn't forget that we weren't too hot in the first half and Spurs were pretty gutless throughout the game.

Despite Cleverley's elevation, with retirements and departures we're understaffed in the midfield department and we've a real lack of quality in that area when compared with the rest of the side. In my view we should move heaven and earth to bring in a real quality creative midfielder a la Sneijder or Modric and we should also snap up Scott Parker. The guy would be a super addition to the squad for relatively little outlay and signing him shouldn't necessarily mean stunting the development of guys like Cleverley or Pogba. With our commitments, there are plenty of opportunities to go round.

Patsy fyre

Interesting to see will Fletcher get game time vs Arsenal. Badly needed, hes had a rough 6 months.

Blatter

Patsy fyre wrote: »

Interesting to see will Fletcher get game time vs Arsenal. Badly needed, hes had a rough 6 months.

If we are leading 2 or 3-0 with 10/15 mins to go he might make an appearance from the bench if he's included. No chance otherwise.

adox

Sean Bateman wrote: »

People are jumping on the Anderson/Cleverley bandwagon too quickly.

yes it's really annoying having people making instant judgements after a couple of games isn't it?

Jax Teller

Leeds away in carling cup

jaykay74

keysersoze_88 wrote: »

Leeds away in carling cup

Not a bad draw. Should be a good atmosphere and good test of 2nd 11.

IvySlayer

keysersoze_88 wrote: »

Leeds away in carling cup

Woo, maybe some vengeance for them beating us in the FA Cup :mad:

Blatter

Baptism of fire in the first team for some of our youngsters! A few experienced heads will be playing with them in that I'd say.