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"United to sell?"

This from Football365.com

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FERGIE TO SELL STAR TURN
Sir Alex Ferguson is likely to sell one of his big-name players to help finance a £40m transfer splurge this summer, according to the Daily Express. With the club only likely to provide £15m in funds, he will have to find money from sales to fund a shopping spree. Favourite for the exit door is clearly Ryan Giggs, who has been continually linked with a move to Inter Milan.

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Opinions?

If there's *any* truth in this, then...

Who will he spend £40m on? Will it be one or two big-name stars? Or has he finally learned that big spending on big stars doesn't bring success?

Given two seasons of being flops (relatively speaking, by United's standards), can they justify - to the fans and shareholders - spending multi-millions on just a couple of players?

What would the fans prefer? Do they expect big-name stars now, who - as we've seen - may have a negative effect, rather than a positive one? Or would they rather the Arsenal-style route of buying quality players at comparative bargain prices, and turn them into big names? (Rio Ferdinand - £30m; Pascal Cygan - £2.5m; no discernable difference in ability, and some would say Cygan is actually a better defender.)

Or should Fergie be allowed to buy players at all? Has he lost the plot? Should someone else make the decisions? Should Fergie make way for new blood where some have said it's most needed?

That's one heck of a rumour!! :D

Although, after having his loan-spell extended with Reading I can see Luke Chadwick leaving this Summer, as he obviously isn't wanted that-badly by Sir Alex. Likewise with Webber, who'll surely go-to-waste, like David Healy. But even if he barely starts, I don't see Solskjaer leaving, or Veron; and I also doubt Giggs would leave if given the chance. Veron has a great ambition to succeed in European football, and the other 2 just seem to love the club too-much. And I also think Fergie sees something positive in Michael Stewart, so I doubt he'll be going.

But I can see him moving for Escudé - once again! And maybe he'll actually completed the deal for him, this time, too?!?
Simon Davies will stick with Spurs. And even is he does leave Leeds, I doubt Fergie'll show too-much interest in Kewell with Giggs still around. And there's no-way 'Milan would be willing to even consider a bid for Schevchenko! Likewise with Ballack, at Bayern Munich.

And as for Roy Keane dropping-back into defence...
I doubt it'll happen permanently. And even if it did, Nicky Butt would be the obvious choice for a replacement in midfield. But Keane and Rio Ferdinand didn't seem to work-together too-well the other day, and I honestly don't really see how they'll ever be able to form the kind of partnership that Rio has already had this season with Silvestre and Wes Brown -- 2 other players who I'll expect to see at Old Trafford next-season, also.


Just out of interest, where did you hear this rumour??

I've heard that the clear out this summer will be Giggs, Solksjaer, Veron, Chadwick, Stewart and Webber...

...And that with the cash made Fergie will be buying Escude, Shevchenko, Simon Davies, Kewell, Bellion, Ballack and Roy Keane will move to playing Centre back along side Rio Ferdinand, pushing Wes Brown onto the bench.

Ferguson's talked about playing O'Shea in Keane's midfield position, but I've always wanted to see what Rio Ferdinand's like there... I reckon he could have a lot of potential there.

And it doesn't look like he and Keane play together at the back too-well, so perhaps they could, on a future occasion, swap-place between midfield and the defence?

O'Shea is class. He's young yet and he hasn't even begun to acheive his potential but he's looking very good, indeed.

thought it was funny when the commentator, can't remember which one, said "are you sure he's a defender?"

Same can be said of O'Shea on occaision. He seems to change his name to "Giggs" every now and then...

FIFA 2003 isn't real either, but I can still beat every-last man with Rio Ferdinand racing-forwards from the back, and no to hit the back-of-the-net. And just look at him last-night... - He's half-way there! :D

Mooniaruck.

He's currently rocking the casbah in my CM game. the year is 2006, and Kalam tops the Premiership and Champion's League score table.

He has a habit of scoring straight off the bench too.

Of course, this isn't real, but I'd like it to be...

I've heard a lot about Kalam Mooniaruk, yet I haven't even seen him play once. He sounds like the kind of right-sided winger/attacker that can really run at defenders, and tie their legs in knots - kinda like Giggs!
I'l definitley be looking out for him, and I think he could quite easily come into the team very-soon and do a good job - just like Darren Fletcher did last night.

I've seen Danny Webber play a bit too, but I have a bad feeling he's gonna be sold in the Summer, unfortunately. He's been asking for a first-team chance for ages, but he just doesn't seem to get it! And like with David Healy, we could be missing out on great potential here, with Webber.
I saw him come-on and make his first-team debut against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light a few years back, and he did look quite impressive. He also came very close to scoring, and giving us the one-goal we needed in that match - hitting the frame of the goal with his header -- just like another youngster did in that same match (O'Shea, I think?).


But if anyone's got to leave Old Trafford this Summer, I think it has to be David Beckham. He's a world-class player, and he can bend the ball like no-one else (well, maybe not-quite-as-good as Roberton Carlos...), but he just isn't... 'doing-it' anymore. It seems to me that he'd rather just prance around the pitch like a fairy with his "guarrenteed" first-team place, and walk-away every-7-days with an extra hundred-grand in his pocket! In short... I think the money's gone straight to his head, and that he really doesn't give a dump about football and his 'beloved...' Man United.

He needs to be reminded that it's not all about money.
We should either sell him on and let him be dealt with by others who don't really care how-much a player earns; or Sir Alex and Peter Kenyon can both sit-down, slash 50% of his wages, and tell to wake-up and take that blonde plastic lump off his head (...that's his hair, incase you haven't noticed how helmet-like it looks!)!!

If Fergie's worried about his big players' form, he should do what he did in the mid 90s when Robson, McClair and hughes were getting a bit old- Bring in the kids from the reserves.

He could bring in...

Kalam Mooniaruck
Darren Fletcher
Matt Williams
Danny Pugh
Kieran Richardson
Danny Webber
Paul Tierney

And several others if he needs to. Yes, I know they are all young, and not as skilled as Becks et al, but they have raw talent- REMEMBER how the Nevilles, Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs and many others came through this way- as has John O'Shea this season. And most of these chaps won't leave- they've all been at the club since the late 80s and early 90s via youth systems.
This system is cheap, effective and keeps the production line going for the national team- think of all the teenagers who have played for England, players such as Finney, Prinstep (Second youngest ever, not a great player BUT worth mentioning, Stattoes), Owen, Rooney... the list goes on. Foreigners have some impact, not always positive. I say bring in the kids, you never know what'll happen...

And anyway, since when did we believe what we read in the papers? If I did, we would be about to be attacked by 67 ft high Lara Croft figures that killed all that came anywhere near them with a giant moose-gun.

WòókieeMøn§†€® wrote:
> (Rio Ferdinand - £30m; Pascal Cygan - £2.5m; no
> discernable difference in ability, and some would say Cygan is
> actually a better defender.)

I liked the way Cygan and co were ripped apart by a simple ball over the top for Cassano's goal last night :P