Manchester United Banter Archive June 09 2014

09 Jun 2014 10:22:51
First time poster. Read the site religiously for the past few years now, so thought I'd better pull my finger out and join in.
I'm currently cycling around the world for charity. I left Manchester in September and have cycled 9000km to where I am now, Istanbul Turkey. From here we will cycle to Iran and then keep going east to China. As a massive utd fan and former season ticket holder I thought it would be a nightmare not knowing all the latest news (i only have Internet every few days). However foreigners knowledge of utd is pretty amazing, never been a day without hearing something or some kind of rumour. I remember we were at the Kosovo border control 2000m high with snow everywhere and we got told that we had beaten Olympiakos 3-0 the previous night. We went crazy, probably the reason why we got stopped for extra checks by the police. But we didn't care utd had won!
Utd is our go to topic of conversation as everybody knows the players and has an opinion. This in turn benefits us as we have been given many places to stay as a result of striking up conversations about football (anywhere beats sleeping in your tent).
We write a diary everyday and have a fb page where we blog and post pictures. And I was thinking that if people were interested I could do a similar thing for this site, except just say what utd related thing we have encountered (may include pictures if you want). Don't know how often it can be done, but I can try to do one once a week. Might be interesting to see what things are like when we go through Turkey then Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and China.

I am here in Istanbul for 2 weeks, so I'm doing a World Cup dream team. Which one is everybody doing?

Facebook - wow charity cycle
Website - wowcharitycycle.wordpress.com
Instagram - cycling_clown

{Ed002's Note - Good luck with this.}

09 Jun 2014 19:13:21
Love the sound of that trip mate, love travelling. Have a great time and good luck!

Great effort
You should defo post

10 Jun 2014 09:49:08
Good luck, enjoy and keep us posted. A great effort, fair play to you.

All the best with the trip, it sounds fantastic. Will check you out on FB

09 Jun 2014 10:11:26
Good morning all,

Ed002 I was wondering if you could help carify something, apologies if you have been through this before but I can't see it in the archives
You often say 'united or indded other clubs hold an interest in x player.
Can you explain as best you can what this means? Have the contacted the owning club to register their interest or have they made a bid? or is it just that you know he has been scouted by the club.

I think some people here think that when you have said we hold an interest in the player that a bid has been or will be made but I am not sure that is the case.

Many thanks in advance i'd just like to have a better understanding

Cheers

Ken

{Ed002's Note - This might help Ken - let me explain about "confirmed interest" in players and "unconfirmed interest". The "confirmation" would have been provided by a club representative, or someone trustworthy (some reliable agents, some reliable media folk) etc.. In most cases it will be correct. "Unconfirmed" interest would be some sort of reasonably-well trusted media source or an agent. Sometimes correct but sometimes way, way off the mark and speculative. Otherwise things generally fall in to the category of being "reported" which typically can be traced to a blog, a site like this, or something like tribalgoaloffside.co.uk - pinch of salt but may strike luck now and again.}

10 Jun 2014 09:19:59
Thanks for that Ed much appreciated

08 Jun 2014 16:33:17
Hi Ed002
I cannot imagine how busy you are at the minute but I will be cheeky and ask anyway are you planning on doing one of your transfer info roundups for our page anytime soon as I think we have been linked to everyone from Pele to Jason Statham so far and it would be great to actually know where our interest lies.

thanks

{Ed002's Note - I am not planning on doing one Dean. Sorry.}

Why is everyone so stressed and why not just wait and see how things pan out.

We will not be able to influence any of it, but I suspect t will be a very long summer with lot's of twists and turns:)

Jason statham would be good in goal as the "monk".

No problem ed just thought I'd ask.
GCU I'm not stressed mate just interested in getting an insight into what the club is looking to do and in which direction we will be going in terms of personnel and systems, I'm more excited than worried .

{Ed002's Note - Feel free to ask decent questions Dean.}

Cheers ed much appreciated :)

Nothing was meant by it. I honestly spend almost no time in the summer transfer window on the news because it is quite wrong and quite a bit of it is people planting stuff as one PL manager explained to me.

I just do not buy 90 percent of the players we are linked with ad believe we will have 4 to 5 new arrivals. I have always said Shaw will come since january :) and I also believe we will make a bid for Vidal depending on if Juve hold on to Pogba.

I think we will end up spending money on a few defenders and another cm and might keep the wingers we have and no new arrival on the wings.

09 Jun 2014 14:23:34
Quite a few journalists saying that Sanchez is getting closer to us for around £25 million. Would be my ideal signing and will add that goal threat that we have been missing from wide areas. Really hope this one comes off and he doesn't go elsewhere - would finally feel like we have gone part of the way to replacing Ronnie. Maybe he can have a word sort his Chilean team mate Vidal as well ;)

{Ed004's Note - I think a three of Januzaj Mata and Sanchez behind RVP would be fantastic. Also think Kagawa would get a lot of game time under LvG he can cover both Mata and Sanchez}

I agree ed, that would be brilliant. I would choose all 5 of those over Rooney.

Sanchez would be a top signing.

I think the guy scored around 17 league goals last season, so he has an eye for goal. Couple that with his ability to assist and we have a real threat with bags of pace.

Sanchez would be a fantastic signing. He plays with a great attitude, as well as all natural talent.

I have never thought of Rooney as intelligent but we will soon see once Van Gaal is ensconced in the job

09 Jun 2014 13:40:15
I see that utd have announced yet another sponsor if only Woodward was as good at negotiating transfer deals

09 Jun 2014 09:36:16
Ed's, is Evra signing an extension likely to hamper our attempts to sign a replacement? If I was Luke Shaw I would have doubts about the amount of game time I would get. Or even Evra must wonder how many games he would get as we are looking at his position.

It is a simple case of MU needing to pay Southampton what they want for the player.

That's why it isn't simple Sydney. United don't pay what other clubs want. Hence, no signings! (except Fellaini)

I'm honestly thinking that a deal for Shaw is already done. Expect it will be announced once LVG is finished as Holland manager.

OT7, and Mata :)

Evra signing a new deal seems like a contingency play incase we don't sign a new LB

I don't buy this "we already signed him" talk. He would have been announced by now if that were the case, IMO.

Samthered - Why would we have announced Shaw already? As it stands we technically don't have a manager and Shaw is on the other side of the world. Announcing the signing before the manager is in place would lead to questions about whose signing Shaw actually was. Announcing him when LVG is in office shows that Shaw is a player LVG chose rather than the club.

I expect Shaw and one or two more signings to be announced at the same time after the World Cup. I'd rather it be announced now to ease the suffering of the fans - but from a commercial point of view - being able to call a press conference and announce say - Mueller, Shaw and Kroos - will be a lot more effective . impressive than a post on the club's webpage about the signing of Shaw.

I think Evra is staying at the club due to the massive amount of experience we've lost on the pitch in the past 2 months. Vidic, Giggs, Evra and Ferdinand have probably made more appearances for the club than the rest of the squad combined. Letting them all go at the same time would have been a huge mistake. I'd rather we'd hung on to Vidic if I'm being honest - but Evra will serve as back up to Shaw and will help his development.

SYD Supposing shaw is priced out of a deal, who else do you see as a possible target?Also, don't you think that if chelsea refused to pay what southampton were asking, we should follow suit?I know we are in dire need of a decent LB but why are we so obsessed with that particular position that we will not settle for anything but the best(that too potentially).

Correct Sydney!. but no others :-(

LvG wanted to keep Evra, he wants both Evra and Shaw next season. Fullbacks play a big role under LvG and Evra nor Shaw can play every game, both will be used regularly.

MU will pay what it takes eventually. There are a few more complexities than just a fee. There will be add-ons, payment structures to agree on and a couple other things, but I think it will be sorted eventually.

I read on bbc that shaw actually wants the move so If that is true that's some good news

Redseven,

I don't think we have yet to reach a deal for shaw, for a couple of reason - namely the fact that they sold Lambert and probably want to appoint a new manager before they let go of any-more players': By letting go of some of their established stars before appointing a new manager - might deter the person who they are going for.

If Shaw wants the deal, and the club are willing to meet Southampton's demands, we will sign the player.

I agree that Evra was given a new contract because of the amount experience we have lost, but I also think the club thought that by giving him a new contract, it would mitigate the need to pay through the nose for Shaw: If we just had Buttner for the LB spot, Southampton would be in a position of strength - knowing how desperate we were.

"If Shaw wants the deal, and the club are willing to meet Southampton's demands, we will sign the player."

Exactly, therefore the manager thing is nonsense then isn't it? MU could sign him tomorrow if we met Southampton's valuation. Same goes for Lallana, if Liverpool pay what Southampton want, they will get the player, manager or no manager.

No Sydney, the manager thing is the reason, IMO, Shaw hasn't been signed. Same goes for Lallana.

when Southampton appoint a new manager, he will be informed of what is going on. The new manager might want a chance to talk to Shaw. He might not want to sell him. If Shaw has his heart set on joining us, he will tell the new manager and Southampton he wants out. Then if we meet the valuation of the player, we will sign him.

It seems completely illogical to me that if a deal could have been done before Pochettino left, it would have done as soon as the season ended. What would be the point of prolonging everything, if we were going to sign him regardless of who out new manager was going to be?

Samthered - I don't understand your argument. If the club didn't want to sell before a manager comes in then why was Lambert allowed to leave? It seems as though our interest in Shaw was made clear well before Liverpool bid for Lambert and so if they only planned on rubber-stamping one deal before the new manager came in surely it would have been ours?

Ultimately if Shaw wants to sign for us and we're willing to pay what it takes to sign him then we will get him. Everybody seems to be in agreement on that one. Surely anybody taking the managers job will also know this and so whether the deal has been done or is imminent will make no difference to them in the slightest.

If anything they'd probably prefer the deal to have already gone through so that they do not have to be perceived to be the person green-lighting the sale of one of their best players. If Llalana and Shaw are sold for £50m+ it would also increase the transfer budget the club are able to offer and perspective new manager.

Apparently the Lambert transfer fee was agreed before Pochettino left. We haven't agreed a fee with Soton for Shaw.

Don't always work like that, Redseven; and I am sure the Lambert deal was done before the previous Southampton manager left. Besides, Lambert was never going to command a 20 + million figure, with the corollary complexities that manifest with a deal that size; plus Lambert was probably surplus to requirements as far as Southampton football club was concerned.

In short - I don't believe we have tied anything up as far as the Shaw deal goes. That is just my opinion. I could be wrong.

Yeah Sam, or it could be that ourselves and Liverpool haven't offered an acceptable amount for Shaw and Lallana yet, therefore no deals being agreed. Whoever the new Southampton manager is will have no say on Lallana and Shaw. Both have expressed their desire to leave and will do when an acceptable offer is made. MU could have agreed to sign Shaw anytime they wished by paying what Southampton wanted.

Samthered - I'm not sure there are many clubs who would deem their second highest scorer 'surplus to requirements' - especially given the fact that two of their best players look likely to leave as well. I'm sure the club would have preferred to keep him but realised he wanted the move.

The Lambert deal went through a week after Pochettino had been announced as Spurs boss. The deal might have been agreed in principle before Pochettino left - but assuming the Shaw deal has also been agreed in principle (which I fully believe it has) I don't see how the next managerial appointment could have any bearing on the deal.

The only way it could is if the new manager signs up on the proviso that Shaw stays; but why would he want to keep a player who wants to be playing elsewhere when he could have £25m+ more to spend? He wouldn't. The deal will be announced when Manchester United decide it is best to announce it. No sooner, no later.

Where is the sense in agreeing a deal to sign a player after the world cup, when we could have signed him last week?

We made a bid for the lad, and they rejected. We obviously haven't increased that offer yet.

If we were that hell bent on signing him, why not pay the asking price? I can't follow this logic of deals being agreed, and being announced at a later date, when we could have signed the player when the transfer window opened on June 1st.

As for Lambert: Southampton were not that bothered about letting him go at such a cut price, which tells me that they at no stage put up a fight to keep him.

This is just my opinion Redseven.

Samthered - the transfer window doesn't open until the 1st of July - so regardless of whether a deal is agreed or not the best we could do right now is announce it. It can't be ratified by the FA until the window opens.

You asked what the sense of waiting to sign him until after the World Cup was? I answered this question a few replies ago - but I'll do so again.

For starters (as just mentioned) we can't sign him until July the 1st. We could announce the deal - but it makes more sense to wait.

Given that he is on the other side of the World preparing for the World Cup the best we could do from a publicity point of view is a block of text and maybe a photograph of him in a United top if we're lucky. I'm not sure that Roy, Luke or the FA would be too happy about the press attention right before our first game, mind.

If we wait we can call a press conference at OT / Carrington and unveil the player with the new manager and maybe even some other new signings. I suspect that last part is the main reason why we're yet to announce the deal. Can you imagine the effect of announcing 3 top players like Shaw, Kroos and Muller at the same time? It would certainly answer any questions as to our ability to attract top players as well as signaling our intent to regain our former status.

09 Jun 2014 04:29:37
Have you guys seen the Gundogan pics today? He's piled the pounds on during his time injured.

We could've ended up with another Anderson.

Plenty of time till the new season.

Anyone that has seen him play knows he will be match fit and weight ready as soon as possible. Would still go for him if realistically available.

To be honest I think that picture happens to be a look alike and not actually really gundogan