Manchester United Banter Archive February 21 2014

21 Feb 2014 22:48:20
Is it possible that Rooney has asked for a larger basic salary so that his income isn't largely based on goal scoring bonuses and incentives? That will enable him to play in a deeper a role without watching RvP pocket all the bonus money when he scores. I will be interested to see where Rooney lines up for the rest of the season. Hopefully it's slightly behind Van Persie with Adnan and Mata either side of him. It will be interesting to see if an extra bit of money makes him happier about playing deeper.

Sydney how would you know what his previous contract paid and if it did have a large goal related bonus would you be happy with poor players like Cleverley feeding you?

Sydney, why do you want rooney as our number 10 when he, s a better centre forward and we have better no 10s than him?

I agree with Andrew. For the rest of this season I would prefer to see Rooney either in the middle or upfront with Jan, Kags and Mata as the 3 behind the striker.

Then next season once we have purchased a new cm or 2 Wayne can contest for the strikers berth

Rooney has played in the hole all season

Rooney loves the good old hole.
Sorry.

Will Janujaz ever play again?!

Jred, Rooney has been playing alongside RvP, not behind him. 442, you have been saying the same all season.

Andrew, so are you saying you want Van Persie dropped to accommodate Rooney? Van Persie is a much better out and out striker than Rooney. So in other words you want us to become weaker?

Syd, he may start beside RVP, but he then plays basically anywhere he feels like.

StevieK, exactly, and that was what Danny was saying yesterday about why SAF didn't want him as an out and out striker. He naturally likes to drift deep. Which is why I think he's best in the hole. MU were on the hunt for an out and out striker. Van Persie and Lew were the targets. We signed Van Persie. This season Moyes has been playing a 442 and 90% of the time Rooney has been beside RvP as opposed to behind him like last season. Moyes has asked Rooney to drop deep at the end of some games this season, but he has been playing as an out and out striker just like RvP this season. For me he's a better number ten and needs to drop behind RvP for us to move forward. Just my opinion of course.

Agreed Sydney. Danny made a good point yesterday with regards Rooney getting bored when he's up front on his own, he seems to lose patience and starts coming back to get the ball.
When you watch barca with no out and out strikers but a lot of midfielders with an eye for a pass and two willing full backs, it really surprises me that Moyes hasn't tried to copy it. We have Rooney mata, kagawa, fletcher and carrick who can all play centrally together leaving januzaj or rvp to fill the other position. This will make us more solid down the middle and will allow evra and Raphael to attack without leaving holes behind. We need to try and play through the middle more often, we do have the players, we just need the manager to make the change. What have we got to lose?

NM, personally I would opt for a 4231. Van Persie being the 1, Mata, Adnan & Rooney being the 3, and Fellaini & Carrick being the 2.

{Ed004's Note - De Gea; Smalling, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evra; Carrick, Fellaini; Mata, Rooney, Januzaj; van Persie. Got what you wanted. Rafael injured? Worry about our slow defence}

It's what I was hoping for 004, swap Jones for Ferdinand and that's probably our strongest line-up (on paper).

{Ed004's Note - And Rafael. I'd also prefer Cleverley in midfield for one of Fellaini or Carrick. I think we attack so slowly}

Sydney, for 60 games a season RVP and Rooney need to share the centre forward position.

I keep banging on about it but Cole, Sheringham, Yorke and Solksjaer shared two positions up front and that worked out quite well for us and them.

Droppping Rooney into the no 10 position when RVP plays weakens us as a team because he's not as good as Mata in that position.

Also, if one of Rooney and RVP starts we have the other one to bring off the bench and its often the quality of the bench which defines the quality of the squad.

Andrew, I have never read so much nonsense in all of my life. You think leaving Rooney or Van Persie on the bench is better for us just because Mata is slightly better in the hole than he is on the right or left? Crazy talk. When you have Rooney, Van Persie and Mata at your disposal, you play them ALL!

004, We certainly need a Cleverley type player next to Fellaini next season. Someone who is very busy, just all round better than Cleverley.

21 Feb 2014 19:36:49
Can ed or anyone answer this please, as I couldn't find it anywhere in the UCL rules.If we beat Olympiakos and go through to the round of 8 and Chelsea get knocked out by Galatasaray (not very probable I know), will Mata be eligible to play for us in the competition?

{Ed004's Note - No}

21 Feb 2014 20:46:15
Now there is something I'd like to talk about. It seems as though Rooney is staying for the next couple of years at least. I'm not too happy about that, mostly because I don't rate him that highly as a number 10.

But Sydney has said, and more than once, that Van Persie is a much better striker than Rooney. While I think Rooney is a better overall player, and Van Persie just edges it as a pure striker, it might be much better for us to use Rooney in that role.

Van Persie is more technically capable than Rooney, and he's a more intelligent footballer ( granted, that's not saying much ) and tends to make smart runs and bring others into play. But Rooney offers a whole set of different qualities than Van Persie does not. First of all he covers more round, works harder and allows us to start defending from the front. He's also more mobile ( much more in fact ) and will drag defenders out of position on a more consistent basis. He can pass better, thus allowing our ( hopefully narrow playing ) attacking three behind him to move into the space he creates. He's just as good in the air, more aggressive and is a better finisher. He can't score as many haf chances as RVP, but he is better at scoring easy goals ( something Van Persie notoriously fails to do in big games ).

Also Rooney offers a tactical advantage than Van Persie never have. When we need goals, and we're failing to score despite creating chances ( a la Fullham ) Rooney can play as a number 10, and finish the chances he gets.

Most importantly, Rooney offers pace. We've been so dire in counter attacks ( we have a grand total of 0 goals from counter attacks ) and is more likely to keep up with the speeding players running towards the box.

Now that Rooney is staying, I wish Van Persie the best and send him on his way. He's on the wrong side of 30, proving to be very injury prone not to mention playing two relatively similar strikers will not be getting us anywhere. Now I imagine Kagawa, Mata and Januzaj ( with the very hopeful addition of Draxler ) running into space, interchanging with the others, behind Rooney.

We need Van Persie upfront, Rooney in the hole and Mata and Adnan/Reus/whoever either side. One of the reasons we have been struggling is down to the 442 formation. We need Rooney to sit behind RvP and link up the play between midfield and Van Persie. If we do this we will go back to how we were last season.

Back to how we were last season isn't good enough, everyone else has improved.

Hmmm Carloto, that does look like something Jred would say ;)

What's the bet you are using a phone? That would explain the better grammar ;)

21 Feb 2014 19:46:01
My best mate has signed a new deal I see :-)

I'm pretty sure he is on no where near the £300k basic everyone keeps talking about, do any of the eds have any idea on an actual figure?

Now, as long as he keeps his head down, puts in the work needed on and off the pitch and performs, he will get my support. It worries me how we will set up if he and RVP are fit and RVP stays though. Surely we haven't spent £37m on Mata to play on the left? He has to be played through the middle where he is at his best. But that would mean one of Rooney or RVP playing up top and the other elsewhere or not at all. I'm getting a bit confused with how Moyes wants us to play going forward, but I hope it isn't by playing Mata wide left, so that he can have Rooney and RVP up top with a winger on the right. Definately not going to get the best out of our best players that way, in my eyes.

Brendan O'Brien, it would never have happened without your unwavering support for Saint Wayne. I think he mentioned you in the Q&A after signing his contract ;-) . On a serious note, I think Van Persie is a goner and NO I don't want it to happen. let's see what Moyes has got in store.

Deeps.

Apart from getting a lot of crosses in every game, I honestly don't think Moyes knows what he wants to do. He just looks confused as do the players, and the fans.

I'm also a little worried about what this means for the way United sets up if RVP stays. However, there's no guarantee that RVP will stay fit in the future, which would allow Mata to play centrally. Also, I believe Moyes might be trying to shape a very interchangeable front line, which would mean Mata would be able to drift into the middle. I personally hope Moyes can somehow get Rooney to play at centre mid, but I doubt he would be happy with it.

Ruud, Moyes has said that Rooney is important as if RvP gets injured he can go straight into the striker position. So he too must see that RvP is the number one striker. I think now Rooney has signed we may see him play in the hole again. Perhaps that's what the pay-rise was for ;)

21 Feb 2014 20:02:01
Well that's it signed and sealed, Rooney has committed his best years to us. Great news for the club and fans.

21 Feb 2014 18:07:58
We will never know for sure, just like nobody knows the exact terms of anyone's contract. However I would be beyond surprised if Wayne Rooney's take home pay is anywhere near £300k per week.

Regardless, he will be our most experienced player come the summer and probably our captain. He is and has been our most important player for many years, he is worth being our highest paid player. He is a world class player with a work rate that is second to none and he is also an experienced leader. He has proven with his performances on the pitch that this is where he wants to be, regardless of the noise from outside.

And that's just from a playing point of view. Manchester United is also a business, and that's business' biggest staff asset is Wayne Rooney. His face is the main face of Manchester United worldwide and is therefore worth a lot of money to the club, regardless of how ugly it may be lol. This all means that Wayne Rooney is worth a hell of a lot of money to United every year and all this will be considered by those offering the contract. The numbers obviously add up in his favour.

All things considered, I am delighted he is staying. We are in the midst of a rebuild, we need to keep our best players and Wayne is undoubtedly one of those.

Get behind Wayne, get behind Moyes, get behind the rest of the lads and let's see what we can achieve in the rest of this season and see what the summer brings.

GGMU

21 Feb 2014 17:37:44
Hi guys,
Do you think that offering Wayne Rooney that kind of money for a new contract will be detrimental in the long run to the club as regards; a)negotiating with other up and coming star players already at the club and b) potential new signings to be made in the summer and beyond.
Huge wages can very quickly spiral out of control.
I've noticed at Liverpool that we had to cut a lot of the wage bill recently and move towards a more performance related structure, not just as regards FFP but also to get better value for money re wages.

I hate the glazers but have to admit when it comes to finances etc they seem to know what they are doing and I'm sure they are comfortable with the deal .

It's important we keep Rooney. I am not concerned by these figures being bandied about by the press. Rooney leaving at a time like this would have a bad effect on the club. We need to keep all of our best players and add to them.

Sorry Jred maybe I wasn't as clear as I wanted to be. I wasn't talking about the financial elements of the deal in itself. I meant if other players or potential players coming to the club might try to force the clubs hand in the wages they would now expect to be paid to either renew or to sign.

Simon

I don't know about other players, but I think Suarez will be the first to throw up a strop about it.

Deeps.

Ha ha Deeps,
not unless he's going to sign for you guys lol

Simonpw
Ultimately it will mean that the average wage for players going forward will go up. New players or existing players negotiating will ask for more. It happens in any industry or proffesion. Moyes will counter that by reducing the squad size, and in all honesty we do need to streamline numbers; less players but better quality and outlay stays the same. Less first teamers also means we can expose our younger lads a bit more.
Its up to Rooney now; top earner, an almost shoe-in as skipper. He needs to stand up

21 Feb 2014 13:58:23
Shahram

So one part of my Wayne Rooney bet falls in place. Would you bet against the others ;-)?

I still remember the Bye Bye Rooney posts after Fergie dropped him for the last 2 games. I was certainly in a minority. Well, like him or hate him, he is here to stay.

Deeps.

There is little doubt SAF tried to offload him during the summer and if he was still manager then Rooney would be gone. SAF clearly wanted him to play in midfield and Rooney refused. I think SAF wanted Rooney in midfield, Kagawa in the hole and RvP upfront. When Rooney said he doesn't want to play as a striker, I think SAF tried to lay the foundations for his sale. Then Moyes took over, Moyes clearly wants him to stay and that means if he has to play a 442 to accommodate him, much to RvP and Kagawa's displeasure, then he will play a 442. I can fully see why people still want him sold, he isn't as good as RvP as an out and out striker and the way we are playing is not the best formation with the personnel that we have. That being said, I was all for selling a fat Rooney last season. This season he has pulled his finger out, got fit and has played well. I think we need to keep Rooney and RvP and try and get them playing well together. There is clearly issues behind the scenes and they can be sorted if Rooney agrees to play in the hole allowing Van Persie to do what he does best.

"When Rooney said he doesn't want to play as a striker"

I meant midfield. What is wrong with me today :(

Deeps

I am not sure what you are referring to what other bets?

Has Rooney renewed and don't believe everything you read on the numbers:)

I will say I am not a big fan of our football if we are going to build a team around him.

Whilst he is by far one of our better players at the moment, he is not the guy I believe you can build a team to win the PL or Europe in the next few years.

Syd playing Rooney in hole would mean us spending a club record 37.5 million on a player who will now be played out of position. That makes little sense.

I'm not sure but I just get a feeling that RvP will be sold at the end of this season.

I agree with you that while we are rebuilding and making changes for other positions we should try and minimize changes in our striking department but I just feel RvP might leave.

Syd

I won't lie mate, I really think RVP is gone in the summer by the looks of it. I don't want that to happen though, but looks like we will have Mata behind Rooney and quite frankly it may provide better balance to the side.

I agree if SAF was around, Wayne would be wearing the Chelsea colours by now. Just one thing man, if there is someone Kagawa should be upset with, its himself and noone else. Sorry mate, no more excuses.

Deeps.

Syd

I would rather RVP go than Rooney.
Lets look at the facts, he's nearly 31 years old. Injuries have plagued him this season, I think the injuries will strike again this season and the older he gets the longer he will be out.
Looking at his body language he doesn't look happy and we keep hearing that he doesn't get on with Rooney, he doesn't like the way Moyes sets his team out, he isn't impressed with our wingers etc.
I would sooner have Rooney right up top, two in behind, Mata and Janujaz and three midfielders.
Imagine Kroos, Vidal and Carvalho.
Wow.just need a decent centre back and a decent left back now.

Deeps, I think Kagawa may be upset as I imagine SAF would have told him about his Rooney plans and that would have meant Kagawa playing in his position. I genuine believe RvP was signed to replace Rooney as the out and out striker and that Hazard/Kagawa was earmarked for the hole. Rooney is not good enough to be our out and out striker. He simply isn't the player he was in 2010. Huge mistake if Rooney is played there as we will continue to decline.

Simmo, I would bet Rooney has been injured more than RvP has been over the past two seasons and I would say RvP's body is in better shape than Rooney's despite their age difference. Van Persie is a MUCH better striker than Rooney. It's not even close. If we go with Rooney upfront we will struggle for goals. Van Persie is a goal machine and MU would be crazy to sell him and play Rooney upfront as the lone striker. If that's Moyes' plan then we are quite frankly f***ed.

MB, who would you prefer:

Adnan-Rooney-Mata
____Van Persie

or

Adnan-Mata-Young
_____Rooney

exactly.

{Ed004's Note - I'd prefer sell Rooney play Mata in the hole Reus out left}

Are you serious Syd.

RVP has only had two maybe three injury free seasons in his whole career.
Didn't Rooney score 34 goals 2009-2010 season when he was played up front as the main striker?
Rooney will always score goals wether he plays as the main striker or behind the main striker. it's a no brainer.

004, I believe Adnan will be carefully managed and I think will be used sparingly over the next couple of years. I think we could buy a Reus type player without selling Rooney.

Mata-Rooney-Reus
____Van Persie

{Ed004's Note - Just not sure that formation works with Rooney I am not sure he is intelligent enough to play in the hole}

Simmo, the days of Rooney playing like he did in 2010 are well and truly gone. Van Persie is far superior to Rooney as an out and out striker. There is a reason Rooney was moved to the hole by SAF you know. You don't just stick a player who gets you 34 goals further back. He was losing his speed and the manager could see that MU needed a better main striker than Rooney. That hasn't changed. Selling RvP and playing Rooney as a lone striker is a backward move. Rooney will get goals, but Van Persie would score many many more.

Syd ideally i'd sell Rooney and play RvP as the striker and Mata behind him.

But with Rooney signing a new deal I can't see him being sold and I genuinely feel playing Mata in the hole would be best for us. That means unfortunately I would sell RvP and play Rooney as striker.

Syderman

I am sorry, I can't agree with that. I think SAF has said many times that the availability of Persie came in rather late. The original plan was Rooney up top with Shinji playing the number 10. Anyways Wayne had scored 34 goals the season before(2011-12), so I don't see a reason why Fergie would bring Van Perise in to replace Rooney up top.

By the way Rooney and RVPs fitness records should not even be debated. RVP has 2 injury free seasons over the last 10 years and Rooney has a far superior record. I would still not entertain the thought of selling Van Persie. You don't sell your best players, but this is what looks like happening. I also think Rooney's finishing is underrated. RVP misses numerous sitters.

Deeps.

Syd

If Fergie had his way he would be stuck in midfield wasted. Fergie had a problem with Rooney end of.
You keep waffling on about rooney loosing his pace, speed etc but he keeps proving you wrong doesn't he?
He keeps scoring goals, creating goals and is still the best player at this club.
I don't know what this obsession is with rooney not being good enough.
He's world class when fit and playing well.

There's a reason why SAF stopped playing Rooney as the sole striker: Rooney gets bored far too easily and starts to migrate toward the middle of the pitch if he doesn't have the ball. SAF saw the need for a striker who focused on running behind the defence and moved for Lewandowski and RVP. We got RVP and he gave us a completely different dimension up front, plus scored bags of goals with direct incisive running.

If Rooney is played as the sole striker, we will have to start playing like Barca, without any designated centre forward. The issue isn't that Rooney couldn't become a bonafide centre forward, it's that he doesn't want to: he gets annoyed when he doesn't have the ball and runs back toward it. As SAF says in his book, Rooney would make attempts to develop his game but he is always more comfortable reverting back to his instincts.

I agree, Danny. He's not disciplined enough to be that out and out striker, by which I mean staying in the area he's supposed to, yet doesn't have the first touch or intelligence to be a number 10.

He'll run himself into the ground for you, but when you're counting on positional discipline, Wayne's not the man.

He just wants to play everywhere, and while there's a lot to commend about that, this isn't the school yard.

Deeps
I have made the same point myself, I don't think fergy would of bought kagawa if he knew he was going to get rvp.

The truth is how many times did fergy play kags in the hole?
Kags has looked like a spare part since the day we bought him.

Syd
I love the fact your still trying to preach to people about Rooney, you where completely wrong about Rooney leaving last season but as always I'm sure you have a perfectly good excuse .
I love the fact your always right even when your wrong

Danny, exactly, Rooney is best in the hole. He isn't even close to the level of Van Persie as an out and out striker. It makes little sense to sell RvP and play Rooney as an out and out striker as it is a backward move. Sure Rooney will score goals, but the fact remains Rooney is BEST in the hole and Van Persie is BEST upfront. Moving Rooney upfront is a backward move. IE, it means we would be weaker than we are now. The problem with one or two on here is they cannot see past their love for Rooney. It's funny that the very people that love Rooney are the very people that dislike or heavily criticise Kagawa and RvP (Rooney's competition).

I think Rooney would do well as I think he presses the ball more than rvp and I believe that is another factor moyes will look at. Rooney dropping deeper to get the ball is ok as long as he stays in front of the more defensive mids if your playing with the likes of kagawa/januzaj/mata behind him. Should this happen the defenders may follow him creating space for the attacking three to exploit.

Danny

Good point. I think he is by far one of our best players and most influential at the moment. The fans applaud his effort and work rate for coming back and helping given our anaemic state of our midfield.

The question would be, assuming we fix our midfield and he is no longer is needed to drop deep and look for the ball, how do we play as a team if he is utilised as an out striker or a number 10.

Whilst every one can have a view on who is our best number 10 and who is our best strikers, for me I would prefer a striker who is bigger and has more pace in the form of a Cavani or technically a better number 10.

I can see why the club has extended him depending on the structure of the deal as it is a cheaper solution when you factor in RVP injury issues and state of mind, Hernandez being most likely sold this summer and the need to have a clear transfer plan come this summer which we lacked last summer.

StevieK, Exactly, Rooney in the hole is a no brainer and Van Persie upfront is a no brainer. Rooney upfront is a backward move and we will suffer for it.

Jred, I believe I am spot on with what I said in the summer and now.

I believe initially SAF wanted to move Rooney to midfield, but Rooney refused.

I believe SAF wanted to sell Rooney. Moyes doesn't, that's why he's still here.

I believe Van Persie was signed to replace Rooney as the out and out striker.

I believe Kagawa was bought to replace Rooney in the number ten position.

I stand by all of these.

"The problem with one or two on here is they cannot see past their love for Rooney. It's funny that the very people that love Rooney are the very people that dislike or heavily criticise Kagawa and RvP (Rooney's competition)."

Syd, I hope you understand on a similar note what exactly people think about your unabated dedicated love for Tom Cleverly? Pot Kettle Black? The fact remains Rooney has done more at this football club than anyone else in the current squad except for Giggs of course. No one hates RVP mate, look at the posts. When you bring Kagawa into the discussion it just shows how you are trying to digress when you have been found out or shown up on something. There are some people who just can't take it on their chin and admit THEY WERE WRONG.

Deeps.

MU would have been courting Van Persie all summer behind the scenes. SAF would have been well aware that there was a very good chance RvP will sign and secretly behind the scenes RvP would have agreed the move in advance subject to Arsenal agreeing to sell him. let's not be naive here. There was some serious tapping up going on here, but SAF or RvP are not going to admit that are they. I think SAF would have been well aware that RvP wanted to sign well before we even went in for Kagawa. Hence the reason we were also looking at Lewandowski (in case RvP didn't come off). Rooney wasn't part of SAF's striking plans for a while. It's pretty obvious to most. SAF wanted Rooney in midfield. When he made it clear he didn't want to play in midfield, SAF laid the foundation for him to be sold this summer. Hence the "Rooney asked to leave comment".

Shahram

I applaud you for sticking to your view right from day one and being objective throughout the Rooney discussion. Well done mate considering you don't quite like the chap.

Deeps

Deeps, I think all MU graduates deserve a fair crack of the whip at this club without being used as a scapegoat for our previous manager's neglect of the midfield. I would defend any of our ex-youth players from undeserved treatment. You will never get me saying Cleverley should be playing as our main central midfielder and you will never see me saying we shouldn't buy a better central midfielder. He is a MU player who deserved his chance, nothing more, nothing less.

Mata - kagawa - rues

rvp

Deeps

I am reading Rooney's book at the moment believe it or not. It is quite interesting reading the book as it gives you some insight into the player.

I think it is good to put this whole thing to bed early because it allows us to go about our transfers this summer with a clear plan.

Deeps, wrong about what? Kagawa being signed to play in the hole? You and myself both agree with that. Do you mean SAF planning on playing Rooney as an out and out striker? Of course he wasn't. Hence the reason SAF was looking at Van Persie and Lewandowski if that fell through. Danny has just said what SAF wanted to do with Rooney and why he didn't want him as an out and out striker. The editor made it perfectly clear that Rooney was being earmarked as Scholes' replacement. I'm sorry mate, but I am not wrong here. Deep down you know it. SAF wanted Rooney in midfield, not as an out and out striker.

Syd, Find me a post mate where I have called you out for that? In fact you would find me backing Clevs as much as anyone does on this site. Both of us are avid viewers of how our young guns are developing and hence share the sentiment. I only had problems with you bringing the "Love Rooney, hence hate Perise/Kags" logic into this.

Deeps.

Syd, by the way do you think there have been some behind the scenes reconcliation between Wayne and SAF? With the official website saying Wayne will be an ambassador for the club post retirement? Wow!

Deeps.

"I didn’t feel like I got a consistent run of games up front, ’ he said. ‘I actually felt when I played in midfield I did OK, but I didn’t want to play there."

Rooney added: "Everyone at the club knew that’s where I wanted to play (up front) and that’s why I was disappointed because I got told to play in midfield and I didn’t want to. But I’d always go in and try to help the team, so I think there had to come a point where for my own career I had to be a bit selfish."

"In the past I’ve had no problem playing out of position, but I felt I deserved to play in my position, which wasn’t happening. Naturally I was disappointed and maybe that affected some of the games I played. Maybe when I’m a bit older, losing my legs a bit, I can go back there (to midfield)."

I would say it's pretty obvious that SAF planned on moving Rooney to midfield to replace Scholes like the editor told us well in advance. And Kagawa/Hazard and RvP were signed to play as the main striker and hole. Then Rooney kicked up a stink saying he wanted to play upfront so SAF planned on selling him in the summer. Moyes wants Rooney to stay and has been playing him upfront as a striker in a 442 to keep him happy, this is upsetting RvP. And although this isn't Rooney's fault (as any striker wants to play as a striker), it's certainly making our season harder than it needs to be. I guess Van Persie will be offloaded to keep Rooney happy (again not Rooney's fault) and we will continue to struggle ;)

Syd

I am sorry, I must have missed Ed 002 saying that Rooney was being ear marked as Scholes' replacement. I still think RVP was "someone who we had to buy once he was available". Tell me how many games did Kagawa manage in the No 10 position with the 3 of them being in the team? It was almost like after RVP was brought SAF had no clue where to play Kags. let's just agree to disagree here. I just thought you were wrong with your predictions on Rooney falling to pieces from a physical standpoint effective this season.

Shahram

Rooney's book? Did you come down to India sometime for some spiritual gyan and therapy sessions ;-) I am glad the issue is put to rest, let's just go and buy a proper midfielder for a change. By the way, if KLOOT was around he would write a revolutionary post talking about apocalypse and Rooney's contract going hand in hand.

Deeps.

Deeps, it's a good point about Kags not featuring much in the hole. I can only imagine it was because Rooney was kicking off about playing in midfield and SAF let him move back to the hole. We know Rooney has been kicking off about not playing as a striker, my post above proves that. SAF saying "the chance for RvP came along", personally I think he is telling the truth, but SAF would have been aware of RvP becoming available well before Kagawa was signed. SAF in another sentence has said that it went on for months. So I think SAF knew before signing Kagawa that RvP wanted to join. Also perhaps that's why we went for Kags and not Hazard. Perhaps we couldn't afford Hazard and RvP, but we could afford Kagawa and RvP?

Deeps

I am not a vindictive type like some of the lot here. DM has clearly made up his mind that he will build a team around wayne and most likely give him the captaincy. It will be interesting to see how we go forward and who stays and who goes. He will look like a genius and win peoples respect for doing his own thing if it works out or probably be out of a job if it does not :)

I am not going to pretend I am expert manager and will wait and see how he can get us playing better in the remaining part of this season and after the summer when by all accounts he should be able to put his fingerprint on this team.

As I said sometime ago, rvp will go at the end of the season. But even if he goes, then we need another world class striker. Injuries are always a worry, and if we only have Rooney and he gets injured, then we'll struggle.
I am all for playing Rooney further back in a three behind rvp, with no wingers in site. I think the three have to interchange and be flexible.
I'm a lover of the way barca are playing. The full backs are both excellent footballers and the width comes from them. Leaving midfield of five to compliment messi. With a couple of additions, we can play this system.

NM, I don't know, maybe now Rooney is tied down, we will concentrate on RvP for the rest of the season. I wouldn't be surprised if RvP is the next player tied down, not a new deal, but our PR will make sure RvP is seen as happy. perhaps an interview with him saying he is here for good. I cannot see us letting him go this summer even if he wants to go. Like you said we would need to replace him and that will cost a bomb. Then who will want to play second fiddle to Rooney? We would be in the same boat. What we need is Rooney to play in the hole with Van Persie upfront, then build around the pair of them.

21 Feb 2014 13:12:06
Well Rooney signed.

Last night I watched Porto V Frankfurt mainly because a few players have been linked with us over the last year. Oczipka was given a torid time by Quarezma did not get forward much.

Fernando I hardly noticed he was playing.

Mangala can really climb and, apart from the misheader that led to Frankfurt second goal, did not put a foot wrong. Reads the game very well solid tackler not worth the price quoted though.

Sandro again played well got forward often, crossing was not great last night so he'd fit right in here, good rather than great performance Pity he did not score from Mangala's header at the other end.

I think Mangala or Garay are the best options out there. Garay is a bit more of a ball player so I would prefer him and would think that he would make a good partnership with either Smalling or Jones.

Grund

I agree and have always said no way we would pay that much for Mangala.

It is the usual hype and dump stuff coming out of portugal.

BTW Sporting Lisbon is also dreaming if they think any of the top teams would pay 37 mill for carvalho. Mata was suppose to have a 40 or 50 million price too.

21 Feb 2014 02:52:31
I believe we may be heading for an interesting moment, season ticket renewal.
At the moment there is no indication of whether the automatic cup scheme will be applied, at full price, to the Europa ties should we qualify. The idea that renewal means a very costly outlay for the likely even more Europa games than CL, may cause some or even many not to renew. Then we have to factor in the actual football on offer, will people buy into Moyes for next season? No doubt many will renew but the combination of expensive auto cup for Europa and the thought of more of what we have seen this season is going to make it far harder to sell those tickets no matter who we will be rumoured to buy. Of course buying expensive players will mean the owners have to get the money back at every opportunity, can they afford not to implement the auto scheme? Playing unknown minnows in the Europa will not fill the ground without forcing attendance. I think we should watch the decision on this with interest.

Agree red man. Very interesting times ahead. It will be difficult to attract the likes of Kroos or Vidal, these guys will want to join a top club playing top football. We are neither at the moment i'm afraid.

That's a really good point, can they rely on day trippers to fill the stadium against the weaker European tems? I don, t think they can.