johnny_87 said:
A few things:
Copious - Stam was a mistake, but Ole was playin better than Beckham on the right wing and Beckham was more concerned with how he looked on the pitch than played on it. Sure, he was good for our marketing department but it was the right move.
Keane was kept for so long to try and help make the transition easier, but he dug his own grave when he made such an outburst. His passion and desire were just too great and he had to let his feelings be known.
Strikers I would replace Ruud with (if he does leave):
1) Ronaldo - He's looking fit again before the WC and MAYBE Fergie's discipline could keep him fit and playing well. Ruud --> Inter, Adriano --> Madrid, Ronaldo --> Man Utd?
2) Torres - 22 yrs old. 88 goals in 146 games for Atletico and 14 in 21 for Spain, where he constantly has 2 players marking him. Tall, pacy, good with the ball at his feet, can beat defenders, can shoot from anywhere and can head the ball. In a few years should be a complete striker.
3) Huntelaar - 33 goals in 35 games this season in the Eredividisie. Ajax paid about $14m for him so could cost about $25-30m
Personally, I wouldn't mind either striker, however Torres would be expensive. I have a feeling that after a quiet off-season last season, this year we will spend the $.
Would like to see:
Diarra/Mascherano
One of the 3 strikers above
Mikel join us (or if not, let Ch€₤$ki have him in exchange for one of their wingers)
If Mikel doesn't join us and we don't sign one of Ch€₤$ki's wingers, then we could go after Lennon, Quaresma or someone similar
I'm not so sure we need Carrick after the way Scholes played last night. Also, Mikel and David Jones (if he returns from loan) could do a job too.
1. Torres is possibly the most overrated striker in the world right now. He's Owenesque in his inconsistency. You might see a decent goal to game return ratio, but he'd have achieved that ratio by scoring a hat-trick in one game and then go missing for 6 matches, good enough for a medium sized club like Athletico maybe, but United? Probably not
2. Huntelaar- Looks to be a good prospect, and I think Liverpool are looking at him as a possibility as well. I'd rather if he stayed at Ajax for another season though, he'd probably cost up to around the £8m-£10m mark, so it's a decent sized investment for a player unproven in one of the big leagues. I know Dutch players tend to adapt well to the PL, but you do occasionally get a Kezman here and there.
3. Ronaldo- Best bet for MUFC or LFC I think. He's scored 14 goals in the league alone while being unfit and out of form, which is about as many as most strikers could hope for even when they're flying. He's complained about the fans not giving him enough support.. well Liverpool fans would most definitely give him the love he craves, provided of course he can come to like the city, it mightn't be quite exciting enough for a playboy used to living in Milan and Madrid. London on the other hand, he might enjoy. A good, cheap replacement for Henry?
4. Quaresma has as many tricks as Ronaldo, just less final product...errrr
5. Didn't Lennon just resign for Spurs? I don't think he'd want to leave anyway, despite not getting a CL spot, Tottenham have had a good first full season under Jol and certainly should have showed enough promise to persuade its young stars to stay at least another season...
6. In any case, wingers are not a priority for United. Now that Ballack is going to Chelsea, I think you'll really have to pay top ££ for not one, but 2 CMs, at least one of which will have to be a potential stalwart in years to come. Gattuso's the cheapest option I guess, followed by Mascherano, then Diarra if you really feel comfortable with every other position.
Oh and has anyone actually seen Mikel play? Hard to believe that you'd have so much in a faith in a 19 year old who hasn't played outside of Norway
How far United have fallen
