Thursday?s draw for the Champions League group stages threw up some intriguing looking clashes, and for once I can honestly say that I don?t envy Chelsea. Their group with beautiful artists of Barcelona, the cavalier German side Werder Bremen and the rather unknown quantity of Levski Sofia of Bulgaria will not make Jose Mourinho happy (but then, what would?) but it will be an interesting test of his new-look Chelsea team.

The draw was much kinder to United, and a group made up of Gordon Strachan?s Celtic, Danish side FC Copenhagen and our conquerors of last season Benfica does not look too troubling (but then I thought the same of our group last year?)

I would bet that newspapers around the country are preparing their hackneyed ?Battle of Britain? headlines already after we were paired with current Scottish champions Celtic. They won?t provide any surprises for us, though, as we?ve played them twice fairly recently, for Roy Keane?s testimonial and in a pre-season friendly this year. Even though you can?t read too much into the last friendly (which we won 3-0) because both sides were missing several key players (and it was only a friendly) it is hard to see Celtic beating us, despite a squad containing some very talented players and boosted by the recent signing of Dutch striker Jan Venegoor de Hasselink.
(more…)

Chelsea and Champions League holders Barcelona will renew their rivalry after they were drawn together in the first phase of this year’s competition. The two sides, who have now been paired for the third time in three years, also face Werder Bremen and Levski Sofia.

Manchester United will meet Celtic in Group F with Benfica and FC Copenhagen.

Last year’s finalists Arsenal take on Porto, CSKA Moscow and Hamburg while Liverpool face PSV Eindhoven, Bordeaux and Galatasaray.

British teams in bold and the top seeds in CAPITALS.
(more…)

“Desperado, why don’t you come to your senses? ” sang The Eagles in their classic song Desperado and it’s not only that opening line that had me thinking of Owen Hargreaves as I listened through the rest of the song this morning. To the untrained eye, Herr Hargreaves would seem to have pretty much everything that a young man in his mid-20s could ever want.

He silenced his critics at the World Cup when they doubted the merits of his very inclusion in the 23 man England squad and forced them to eat humble pie as he put in several accomplished, if understated, performances to come away as many England fan’s Man of the Tournament.

He plays his club football for one of the world’s biggest and most famous clubs alongside some of Europe’s finest footballing talents at Bayern Munich and has risne through the ranks of that club since he was 16 years old to command a first team spot with added responsibilities following the departure of captain Michael Ballack.
(more…)

Well the first weekend of the new Premiership season is over, and I could hardly have wished for a better start than our 5-1 victory over Fulham on Sunday. I just hope this result is not an anomaly, and we’re starting as we mean to go on.

However, I?m not about to get ahead of myself here. Let?s not forget that Fulham were dire, and we?ll not find many defences quite as generous as theirs this season (on a side note, can anyone tell me exactly why Ian Pearce continues to play as this level?).

Despite this, it?s fair to say that our football (especially in the first twenty minutes) was a joy to watch. At times we looked like the United of old, with fluid movement, slick one-touch passing and great width provided by Giggs and Ronaldo as well as our two flying fullbacks Neville and Evra. Rooney and Saha showed signs that they could strike up a fearsome partnership up front this season, although that will have to put on hold for a while thanks to Rooney?s ridiculous 3 game suspension. We?ll certainly miss him, as he was at the hub of much of our good play in the game, and deservedly grabbed himself two goals.

Talking of suspensions, it should not be forgotten that we will also be with Paul Scholes for 3 games. We?ll miss him greatly too, though his suspension appears to have been rather overlooked in the furore over Rooney’s. Scholes looked back to his impish best in pre-season and took that form into the game at Old Trafford, using the ball intelligently and sometimes dropping deep to help us keep possession. He was also, for once, ably protected by the much-maligned John O?Shea in the holding midfield role. But even though Scholes is out, it looks as though Michael Carrick will be back by the weekend and ready to make his competitive debut, although sadly not in time for the Charton match in midweek. He is obviously a different type of midfielder, but his presence should help ease the disappointment of losing the seemingly rejuvenated Scholes.

The emphatic victory meant that Ferguson?s week ended well after what must have been a frustrating few days. As well as being (rightfully) annoyed with the FA over the Rooney and Scholes issue, he has also encountered stubborn resistance from Bayern Munich a he tries to sign everyone?s new favourite player, Owen Hargreaves.

Of course, it was never going to be easy to convince Bayern to sell Hargreaves, especially considering they have already lost Michael Ballack this summer. Personally, if I was in Uli Hoeness? position I would bite the hand off any club willing to pay ?17m for him, which is allegedly what we?re willing to offer. I would hope everything would be sorted one way or the other soon, but it’s unlikely. This could go on all the way to August 31st.

One thing that I found odd about this whole saga was when Fergie said recently that he has been an admirer of the player for a long time. I?m not sure I believe that. If that is the case why did he wait until now - when Hargreaves? value has been inflated by a good showing at the World Cup - to make an offer? Where were we when the player was being linked with ?5m moves to the likes of Middlesborough a few years ago?

It?s a similar thing to the Carrick situation, when Fergie said he had been a long-term admirer of the player, yet this belies the fact that we didn?t move in for him when Spurs did. Back then we could have got him for some ?2.75m rather than the faintly ridiculous ?18.6m we eventually coughed up to Spurs. I would hope that we won?t be paying a similarly inflated fee for Hargreaves, but it?s almost certain that we will (if we sign him). Fergie seems fairly desperate to sign the player, perhaps because he knows that if the Hargreaves transfer doesn?t materialise we may not have a back up to turn to. Villarreal appear to have called of negotiations over Marcos Senna due to the constant delays, whilst a long-term target, Lyon?s Mahamadou Diarra, is set to sign for Real Madrid.

All in all though, Fergie has little to complain about today. If he was offered the chance of winning the first game but not signing another player, or losing the game but bringing in a player, I think I know which one he?d pick. It was always going to be vital to start this season strongly, and this game was a great start. I just hope we can keep it up. I guess we?ll see at The Valley on Wednesday.

In their greedy pockets that is. Wayne Rooney has really taken it personally over the three game suspension dished out to him by a collection of over officious amateurs at the FA and has sent a letter through his representative Paul Stretford informing the FA of his decision to consider withdrawing his consent for his image to be used in any further FA commercial marketing programmes.

What this amounts to is financial withdrawal of service as Rooney knows he is the most recognisable figure left in an England squad bereft of David Beckham and that it is commercial suicide for the FA to consider any marketing campaigns, either for themselves in concern of ticket sales or for their strategic partners and sponsors, without being able to use either images of Wayne Rooney or have Rooney available for public events.

It seems like the modern day footballer has finally found a way to hit back at the institution running the game when they subject them to unfavourable (and plainly wrong) disciplinary action. Steve McLaren has said what a mistake the FA has made and how it has hurt his attempts to forge closer links with big clubs like Manchester United and both players and staff within Old trafford are seething at the blatant attempt to punish Wayne Rooney more because of his public image than because of his indiscretions (or lack of them) on the pitch.

This could really come back to hurt the FA in more ways than one and there could be a few red faces at Soho Square before the latest Rooneygate scandal is concluded.

Manchester United and Sir Alex Ferguson are absolutely livid over the FA’s decision to uphold the red cards dished out to Wayne Rooney and Paul Scholes in the Amsterdam Tournament and are claiming victimisation of Rooney and the club as both players face a three game suspension going into the new Premiership season.

Both players had already found the net against Porto in Amsterdam when they received their marching orders, Scholes for a tackle from behind leading to a second yellow card and Rooney for an alleged elbow in an aerial challenge with Porto defender Pepe. While Alex Ferguson had no complaints at the time over Paul Scholes dismissal he was adamant that Rooney’s was undeserved and that the player’s reputation, rather than the challenge, had led to his dismissal.
(more…)

Most football fans love this time of the year. Just after most of the friendlies have been played, but just before the start of the season proper. It?s always time for optimism ? if your side won most of your friendlies, then great, they?re bound to take the league by storm, right? If your side lost most of your friendlies, then that?s alright because they?re only friendlies, and all the bosses? new signings need time to gel. Then, of course, you?re bound to take the league by storm.

Of course, I say most football fans. There are other football fans that see this time of year as a time for bleak pessimism. If your side won most of your friendlies, then it doesn?t matter anyway because they?re only friendlies, but if you lose all of your friendlies then you?ve started in the worse possible way, and of course, things can only get worse from thereon in.

Personally I?d like to think I stand more-or-less in the middle. Actually, it?s more the case that I veer wildly between the two. Finally signing a decent midfielder in Michael Carrick made me optimistic, until his injury and my realisation that we still have Darren Fletcher in the squad (I had used hypnotherapy to block it out) made me pessimistic again. And so on and so forth until the first day of the season, when I will be delirious with optimism of what the current season will bring?.
(more…)

This weekend saw the completion of two of the longest-running (and for neutral fans, dullest) transfer sagas of the summer as we waved goodbye to Ruud van Nistelrooy, one of the highest scorers in our history, and welcomed Michael Carrick in from Spurs.

Naturally I?m sad to see van Nistelrooy leave, but it?s not as if this is a surprise, I?ve had plenty of time to come to terms with the fact that he won?t be starting the season with us, and I wish him well at Madrid. I think the fee (of around ?10.3m) is quite a good one for a 30-year-old striker on the back of a poor World Cup, and for all Fergie?s talk of van Nistelrooy being worth as much as Shevchenko, he must have known we would never get anywhere near that price (unless Chelsea decided to make a surprise bid).

No, what worries me about the Dutchman?s sale is not the price, but rather the thought that Fergie might not be able to (or even want to) replace him. With our main striking target Fernando Torres indicating that he wants to say with Atletico Madrid for one more season at least, it looks likely that we?ll start the season with Wayne Rooney, Louis Saha, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Alan Smith and Guiseppe Rossi (provided he isn?t loaned out, a prospect that?s not out of the question) as our first-team strikers. I think that these 5 between them should score enough goals to keep us in contention for a top four spot (I?m still finding it hard to predict where we?ll finish) but none of them look as if they?ll be as reliable a goal scorer as van Nistelrooy.

However, in happier news, we?ve finally signed a decent central midfielder in the shape of Michael Carrick. Personally, I think the price (revealed to be ?18.6m this morning) is too much for a player who is undoubtedly good, but not quite the finished article either. He will really have to raise his game to justify such a large transfer fee and I worry that the fee will be a millstone around Carrick’s neck, that the pressure of living up to the fee will be too much for him. Still, I shouldn?t complain, he?ll certainly be better than Darren Fletcher.

I only hope that the strengthening of our midfield does not begin and end with the signing of Carrick. If it does, we?ll be in trouble, simply because although Carrick possesses a lot of ability, he?s by no means a great tackler. He?s going to need someone beside him in the midfield to close down the opposition and win the ball, and it?s well-known that we don?t currently posses anyone who can do that well enough. To that end, it does seem Fergie is intent on signing a ball-winner to compliment Carrick, and in the last few days we?ve been linked with moves for Corinthian?s Javier Mascherano and Villarreal?s Marcos Senna. I know which of the two I?d prefer, but equally I know which is more likely to happen, and the two are not the same. I don?t know how much money we have to spend this summer, but there?s a good chance we could be priced out of a move for Mascherano on the back of his excellent World Cup (although Corinthian?s current struggles in the Brazilian championship give me some hope).

At around ?3m - ?4m, Senna, although 30, would represent good value for money. He may not be flashy or the most skilful player around, but he?s very good at what he does, and I would welcome him into the squad.

So it seems that even though it took us a while to get going in the transfer market, the signs are we?re not finished just yet, and there could be an interesting couple of weeks ahead.

There has been a lot of talk recently that the club would have to restructure its large debt accrued during the takeover by Malcolm Glazer and his family some 14 months ago, and today its been announced that the club have finalised a ?660 million pound debt restructuring. This now means that the clubs? annual interest charge will fall from ?90 million to ?62 million, while the overall amount borrowed could rise to ?660 million (from ?580 million).

Ok, so what exactly does this mean? Well, I should preface this my saying that I’m no economist, but it seems that the Glazer?s hold on the club has been yet further strengthened. This is because as part of the deal the club has also halved (to ?135 million) the amount it owes in PIK (payment-in-kind) notes. PIK’s have very high rates of interest, and if they were not repaid then the Glazers could have been forced to handover part of their stake in the club. Basically, now that the amount owed in PIK?s has been halved there will be less interest to repay, meaning the Glazers are less likely to have to give up part of their stake, which in turn means that they will feel much more secure in their ownership of the club.

Obviously that news isn?t exactly music to the ears of United fans, myself included, but despite my concern that the amount of money the club could end up borrowing has increased, the debt restructuring does put us on a (slightly) more solid financial footing, which can only be a good thing. We can?t control who owns our club, unfortunately, (just ask any Villa fan) and while things like debt restructuring may be alien to fans used to the club being among the richest in the world, it?s certainly something we?ll all have to get used to.

The club themselves have - at the time of writing - yet to release a statement on the matter, but a Glazer family spokesperson said that the debt restructuring deal, along with the recent increase in Old Trafford?s capacity and the new sponsorship deal with AIG, means that there will be ?sufficient funds in the transfer market? for Fergie to spend - note the word ’sufficient’ rather than, say, ‘ample’. Let?s hope he spends whatever money he’s given wisely, because if we don?t succeed on the pitch, our financial situation would leave us in deep trouble, and not having funds for transfers would be the least of our worries.

We all know that for years now Manchester United have been searching for a new Roy Keane, and for many years the man Fergie considered best to fill the Irishman?s boots was Patrick Vieira. However, in his final season for Arsenal he looked a shadow of his former self, no longer the rampaging dynamic midfielder he once was, he seemed slow and lugubrious, at times almost disinterested. Like the ageing Keane it seemed that even on the occasions that the spirit was willing, the body was not, and so Arsene Wenger sold him to Juventus at the beginning of last season for around ?13m (a deal I personally felt was a shrewd piece of business, considering his form and the fact that he was originally signed for a fraction of that price).

And so as Vieira toiled away rather sluggishly in Turin (the clubs? nickname of The Old Lady seeming quite apt at times), his name was barely even mentioned when Man Utd?s midfield shortcomings were discussed. Now 30, many feel (with good reason) that he is past his best and in any case, with Juventus so dominant in Italy it seemed unlikely he would have any reason to leave.

But then, of course, came the match fixing scandal and Juve?s relegation to Serie B (as well having to begin next season with ?30 points). It seems that most ? if not all ? of Juve?s top players are up for grabs, Vieira among them, and so I?m not really surprised to see his name linked with us once again, as it seems we?re ready to offer him an escape route out of Serie B. What?s more, with Keane gone and van Nistelrooy likely to be on his way to Real Madrid very soon, the two Utd players who bear the most animosity towards Vieira (dating back to his Arsenal days) would no longer be present should he arrive at Old Trafford.

The question is would Vieira really make a good addition to our squad? I?ve said many times that we need one, if not two, top-class central midfielders (and I?ll keep saying it until we buy some) and Vieira fits that bill, at least reputation-wise, if perhaps not form-wise in these past couple of domestic seasons. I think it was probably the World Cup rather than Juve?s relegation that resulted in Vieira re-appearing on Fergie?s radar. His form for France was like a microcosm of the team as a whole, poor in the first two games but then, once his goal flew in against Togo, both player and team seemed transformed. As brilliant and mercurial as Zidane was in those games against Spain and Brazil, it was Vieira who was the real driving force behind France?s unexpected run to the final. He looked suddenly full of energy and vigour, crunching into tackles like it was 2003 again, and proving that he was still as comfortable as anyone in possession.

Despite his ties to Arsenal, if he could re-create this kind of form in a Utd shirt I would gladly welcome him into the team and he would be a great addition to the squad. My worry is, though, that he won?t be able to be as consistently good as he used to be for Arsenal in his heyday, and at 30, its highly likely he will only get worse. Age will certainly limit him, as like Keane he relies on his athleticism and energy to play his game, and as we saw, injuries and age caught up with Keane is his latter years and he was no longer the box-to-box midfielder of old, preferring instead to stay deep in what now appears to be universally known as ?the Makelele role? which limited his role ? and influence ? quite considerably.

This reminds me a little of the time we signed Laurent Blanc. He had been one of the best central defenders of his generation as was a player Fergie had coveted for many years, so when an opportunity came along to sign him, he took it. Sadly for us, we signed the great Frenchman a few years too late, and even though it was wonderful to watch him react to every single situation with almost ridiculous calm, Blanc, at the time, was no longer a great player. The same, I think, could now be said about Patrick Vieira. Already as I?m writing this I fear these words will come back to haunt me, and should he sign for Utd I hope they do, but right now I?m not convinced that this will be an astute signing for the club, and believe we?d be better off going for someone younger.