Not going to say much since my thoughts have been expressed here time and time again, so no sense in me drumming in the same 'o same 'o.
Here's the link.....and good riddence to a piece of human thrash. And what a great piece of business too at £8m!
Heinze agrees move to Real Madrid
The 3 man panel from the Premier League has ruled that the letter signed by David Gill was not a legal undertaking, hence Heinze has to see out his 2 year contract.
Honestly, I'd rather see Heinze gone. The sooner the better and to who, it doesn't really matter. The last thing we need is someone who's not happy to create trouble in the locker room. Already tension should be quite high after our recent results and any potential disharmony is not welcomed. Ideally, Heinze doesn't ever report for training with the first team and rots in the reserves for the next 2 years. I seriously doubt anything he does from this moment on is going to endear himself to the fans. I know for certain that he's a permanent fixture in my blackbook.
Argentine Aggravation 1:
Looks like Heinze is detemined to move to Liverpool despite Fergie's and the board's protestations. An arbitration panel by the Premier League looks set to decide the validity of Heinze's proposed move.
This is not news to most of us who have been following the latest on goings of our want-away Argentine left back. What smacks us in the face is his insistence on moving to hated rivals Liverpool, especially after most fans had loyally stood behind and supported him during the past two injury ravaged seasons. Judas!
Argentine Aggravation 2:
Not exactly in the same mold as the whole hate-inducing Heinze-gate, but according to Skysports, the Premier League maybe dragging their feet in mud with regards to Tevez's registrations. Latest speculation notes that Tevez may not even be registered in time for the weekend opener against Reading, let alone the friendly he was scheduled to make his debut against Dunfermline in 24hrs.
Once the Premier League get their act together and remove their collective heads out of their collective arses, I'm sure the Tevez deal will go thru. However, when that will happen is another question altogether. The saga has dragged on for long enough (ie, we're all rapidly getting bored by it all) and hopefully it will go thru sooner rather than later, so we can get on with the title defence proper. As mentioned in previous entries, we currently only have Rooney as the only recognised frontman and I would hate to see Giggs pushed forward as Fergie so loves to do time and time again.
Looks like it's official. Heinze has set his lawyers loose and is trying ways and means to force a move to Liverpool at the risk of alienating an entire fanbase. Come to think of it, it doesn't really matter right now. The fanbase has been alienated.
Even if it doesn't go thru and he remains at United, I would never ever want to see him in a United jersey again. I don't really care how well he plays or how he endears himself to the club. To me, he has gone further down that slippery road than Rio. Some sins are forgivable, some are not.
There are a few things in English football that you never ever initiate. One of which is to do a Sol Campbell, move from Spurs to Arsenal. The other which will bring this amount of hatred is to move between United and Liverpool. I'd be really disappointed with Fergie if he selects Heinze for the first team ever.
If I were the club, I'd let him go. I don't particularly care about him anymore. Let him be Liverpool's problem. I'd be surprised if the Liverpool fans even want this problem child on their hands. I'd gladly switch my allegiance to Evra, or even Silves. While they may not be world beaters, at least they know not to upset the apple cart.
Which brings me to the point out that Liverpool will never be a threat to the Premiership title, now or ever with Benitez at the helm. A manager that has absolutely no sense of tradition has no place in history. To go after a second-rated Heinze is testament how far down the ladder Liverpool has come since the glorious 80s. Heinze was a world class left back when he first joined United, but he's never been the same since his knee injury.
I'll reinterate again, I don't really care what Heinze does or goes from now on. The fact that he initiated a move is enough of a betrayal for me. Fuck you, Heinze.
Tevez Saga Goes To Court - There are more twists and turns to the Tevez saga than the latest Harry Potter book. The latest twist comes from FIFA 'recommending' that the whole affair should go straight to the Courts of Arbitration for Sports.
What this effectively means is that Tevez and West Ham are involved, and we're effectively out of the picture. If the courts rule that Tevez has only a one year contract with West Ham, then Tevez is free to join Manchester United. Otherwise, we have to deal with West Ham. Either way, depending on the fee involved in the latter scenerio, we're probably still going to get Tevez. Although it sounds tedious, it's probably still good news to me. The journey maybe long, but we'd get there eventually.
Scholes And Park Injuries - Scholes was sent back to Manchester before the kickoff to yesterday's friendly against Shenzhen. Apparently he sustained some knee injury playing against FC Seoul and is set to be out for a month.
Park, on the other hand, has more serious knee injuries. He's already been ruled out till the next calender year.
Heinze Needs History Lesson - Great commentary on the whole Heinze saga. Until I see Heinze actually quoted that he wants to join Liverpool, I refuse to believe he's stupid enough to want to play for Liverpool. Then again, footballers are not exactly the brightest lot around.
What makes this taste particularly bad is that Heinze was voted the fans' player of the year in 05. If he forces his way to Liverpool, it adds injury to insult.
Liverpool Heinze Bid Rejected
Glad to know that United have outright rejected a Liverpool bid for Heinze. Good to know both Ferguson and Gillman are on the same page on this issue. However there is a cautionary note here, it probably also means that in the not too distant future, our rival clubs would not be selling their players over either. Not that it's a huge issue right now since there isn't anyone out there that I think fits into the squad.
More Summer Sales?
Ferguson has hinted that Rossi and Smith could very well be the next to go. This is especially so if the Tevez deal goes thru. While the fans would love to have them both in the squad, it is increasingly likely that neither would be able to play regular football in the next season.
I personally would hate to see Rossi go. After his loan spell to Parma, I've been watching a few Parma games and I loved what I saw. I'd go as far as saying that he single-handedly transformed the team and pulled them out of relegation. He gave the team a zest that was missing, not to mention scoring a boatful of goals in the process. I really hope there is someway to keep him with the team.
New Man Rio
Nice little fluff piece by the seagulls. Would be really sweet if he's a new man, but the scars of yesterday still run deep with this blogger. Unfortunately the article conveniently leaves out a number of crucial details on why he was booed so blantantly by United supporters.
He was booed by his own supporters in Tokyo, rowed with Ruud van Nistelrooy on the field and was accused of dragging his heels over a new contract. One of England's most gifted players was in danger of being labelled 'a big time Charlie'.Let's not forget he stupidly missed a dope test, resulting in a 9 month ban. And perhaps most insidious of them all, he's 'chance' meeting with judas, Peter Kenyon, in 2005.
King Wayne - Denis Law handed over the no. 10 jersey to Rooney in a symbolic gesture. The jersey had been left vacant since the departure of Ruud, and Rooney aims to fill those large shoes. There is also speculation of the new jersey numbers the newcomers, Nani (no. 12?), Anderson (no.8?) and Hargreaves (no. 23?) will wear in the coming season.
Anderson Gets Work Permit - Anderson gets his work permit after the original application was denied. This is going to be good news for Ferguson, Anderson and the fans. No doubt Anderson will take a while to get used to United's culture and the sooner he gets here and trains with the lads, the better.
Pool's Cheeky Attempt At Heinze - No doubt this rumour is going to grab the headlines, if it hasn't already done so. It's nothing but a cheeky attempt by the seagulls to sensationalize. I would be surprised if United even accepts a bid and I trust Heinze to have the integrity to turn down the bid. Be sure if it comes to past, we'd be burning effigies of Heinze from Manchester to Singapore.
Tevez Loan Unlikely - A summary of all the above United news and rumours. The most sobbering piece claims that a Tevez loan deal is unlikely. Apparently the owners of the rights to Tevez are looknig to cash in this coming season. Also in the article, Everton has expressed interest in Richardson.
Nothing much has been brewing the past week or so. Most of the newsworthy sites have been devoting their time and effort on Theirry Henry's departure (big time bottler) and speculation on the impending collapse of Arsenal.
Admist all the excitement and grief, depending on who you support, apparently a bid in the region of £6million has been accepted by United. Given how hard Newcastle has been chasing Smith this summer, I don't expect them to lie down and play dead, despite it being part of their culture. Portsmouth is apparently in the chase for Smith's signature as well.
However all this is dependent on Smith approving a move North. Smith has shown a stubborn streak and has refused a loan move out of Old Trafford this season. There might be a chance he would scupper the deal and take his chances of fighting for his place in the team.
If anyone cares to remembers, Ole did it once quite a few years back. Spurs and United had agreed on a £5million deal to send Ole to London, but Ole, being the loyal servant he was, rejected the transfer much to the relief of the entire Red Army. As you know, he became an integral part in us winning the Champions League, forever immortalising his name in United lore.
Unfortunately Smith is not Ole. If Fergie can find another striker of pedegree, it would be in Smith's best interest to agree on a move. I personally would hate to see him go, yet at the same time feel he's not exactly what we need up front.
Heinze
I have no links for this, but according to a reliable source working for the local papers, Gabby Heinze has signed a pre-contract and is bound for Real Madrid in the region of £3.5million. I have no reason to doubt the person who told me, yet at the same time I have no idea what a pre-contract means or why it's so cheap. So don't shoot the messenger.
I would dread to see Heinze leave, especially given the dearth of good and experienced left-backs in the club. The thought of Evra starting next season is enough to send shivers down my spine.
I'm trying really hard to contain my excitement here. As everyone knows, I'm a ridiculously huge Carlos Tevez fan, and have been following his career for the last few years since he was a prodigious teen.
Nothing has been cast in stone yet. Apparently discussions have taken place to bring Tevez to Old Trafford for a year's loan.
Just the prospect of Tevez wear the red of Manchester United is already giving me a hard on. I'm pretty sure I'm going to watch some Paris Hilton porn later.
Perhaps it's just as well, I'd be away for a week without any news. If this deal doesn't go thru, I'd be disappointed as hell. And I suspect there's a really high chance of it not happening, especially since the source of the news has only appeared in the Daily Mail.
In other news, it looks like a Heinze departure is imminent. The fee is £7 million and the destination is Real Madrid.
Nothing much going around these few days in terms of solid news. Mostly just seagulls droppings around the trawler, which is the annual summer fare.
Giggs Retires from International Football - Glorious Welsh career has finally come to an end. It's a pity that one of the greatest names in football has never been able to perform on the biggest international stage. Anyway his retirement here is a boon to Manchester United fans all around the globe. It means Giggs will now wholeheartedly concentrate his career at Old Trafford, just as Scholes has done.
Larsson Picks Up Premiership Winners Medal - Looks like Larsson did eventually pick up a premiership medal. However the article was found on the notoriously rumour-mongering Tribalfootball.com, which somewhat adds a negative slant to it. It's unfortunate that this is the only site that reports it, so it's all I have to work with at the moment. Would appreciate it if someone, anyone can confirm this.
Transfer Rumours
Spurs Pip United To Bale - Not good news, but not exactly bad news either. I haven't seen enough of Bale to exactly have an opinion. Given the current market situation, £10m isn't alot to give for someone with the kind of potential Bale possesses. Moreover, it bolsters a position we're presumably lacking in and provides options for freekicks in dangerous positions, afterall Ronaldo's freekicks are just not consistant enough for me.
Heinze In Real Talks - Not biting this one. Given Evra's erratic performances and the inability to sign Bale, I don't see how, why United will let him leave. He's the best option amongst the worst available to play on the left. Unless something dramatic happens, I just don't see this happening.
United Plan £39m Berbatov Bid - Seagull shite. United would be fools if they really offered that kinda stupid money. If it were true, Spurs would be fools to reject it. They would be laughing to the bank, just as they did with Carrick. Hell, while we're at it, why not offer crazy money for Lenon and Dawson as well, afterall we were linked with them in the past. I'm sure the seagulls can get creative here.
Reds In Hunt for Huntelaar - A more realistic rumour. Buying Dutch always seems like a good idea, considering how well both Ruud and Stam did for us. This rumour's an interesting one. The article also mentions Reading's Leighton Baines and Spoting's Nani.
Spurs and United Battle for Nani - Having already lost Bale to Spurs, I would be pissed to lose Nani as well. Nani's been a long term target for us and is billed as the next Ronaldo. Quite frankly, from what I've seen of him, he's better than Ronaldo at the same age. Same silky skills and pace. He's just as raw, but seems more mature. At least I didn't see the same amount of whining. Amongst the London teams, I've always disliked Spurs the most (it helps to have a cousin who is a Spurs fan), but this time, they are really pissing me off. Looks like all their scouting department does is read the papers and pick our pockets.
Anyway I wouldn't dwell on the rumours too much. As with any other summer/transfer window, we're linked to a dozen players and signings almost never ever happen. Even when they do, I'm usually bitching about it. If I had things my way, we just buy Tevez and win the Premiership next season. He's the only one that's special.
From top to bottom, from the manager to the fans to the bloggers to the mailing lists, everyone was to blamed for this one. The only exception being Scholes who played his heart out, and probably the only one to deserve any sympathy from anyone. Everyone else was counting their chickens. All around the blogs were people getting ready for the showdown with Liverpool, the mailing lists that I was involved in were debating who to support for last night's semis, Pool or Chelsea, to eventually meet in the finals.
Sir Alex Ferguson and Carlos Queiroz were major culprits, playing scared again away in Europe by playing one up front. Time and time again we've failed to get the result desired by going away from what the players are familar with. As long as we go in with that mindset, we're simply going to be outplayed and outclassed by teams like AC Milan.
We also took a gamble and played a semi-fit Vidic in the centre of defence and right from the kickoff he's lack of fitness and sharpness was nearly exposed by Kaka. 3 minutes into the game, Seedorf hit a screamer and Van der Sar did well to push it over his bar. Milan were out of the blocks fast and we struggled to cope.
10 minutes into the game and Milan took the lead thru Kaka with a precise strike into the bottom left corner. Nothing more than Milan had deserved. They were hungrier and significantly better in every department on the pitch. I was surprised it took them till the 30th minute to add a second thru Seedorf. Again it was a sweet strike into the same corner of the goal. Quite frankly, they should've been at least another couple of goals ahead. The gulf in class was apparent for all to see.
We were no better in the second half. Although we showed abit more urgency trying to win the ball, Milan were still by far the better team. I can't remember a save that Dida had to make in the second half. That was how bad we were. It wasn't a surprise that Milan added a third via a counter attack thru Gilardino in the 79th minute. That knocked away whatever fighting spirit we had left, not that we had much to offer in the first place.
On a night when we needed to bring out our best, we produced our worst. Key players like Ronaldo and Carrick played like they were in awe of the Italians, totally gutless and disgusting. The entire defence was poor as well, giving the ball away cheaply. Heinze and Vidic combined to gift Milan their second goal. Rooney and Giggs squandered away possession. Brown and O'Shea were pumping long balls upfield to no one. All in all this was a pathetic performance. At least it gives us a taste how we play a division 2 side, except this time round, we were the division 2 side.
Only Scholes, and probably Fletcher, had average games. They were the only 2 United players who showed any semblance hunger.
Well, looks like AC Milan has gotten their wish to face Liverpool in a grudge match. It would sicken me if Pool were to win, not to mention, we're probably going to get it shoved down our throats again if they do. And it's probably going to make me puke in my mouth if Milan wins, considering they shouldn't even be in the competition in the first place. Shameful that someone has to win it.
I hope we go on to whip that 'massive' club in the weekend and take another step closer to the title. And for fucks sake, let's stop counting our chickens!
My god, what a game! Actually it wasn't much of a game.....but what an ending! It's not over, we still have to face Milan at the San Siro, but we're going there with a slender lead.
We started off with a fluke goal by Ronaldo in the opening 5 minutes. He headed a corner right at Dida and it carromed off him upwards and subsequently into the empty net. It was a fluke goal, not that we're complaining here.
Despite going a goal up, Milan looked comfortable. They passed the ball around efficiently and did not panick, slowly building up the play. It was much like when we faced them 2 years ago. They eventually equalised with a superb goal by Kaka in the 22nd minute. He ran past Carrick and Gabby and slotted the ball past Van der Sar to score.
15 minutes later it got worse. Evra who made a 'timely' return to the team in defence, ran into Gabby and exposed Van der Sar to Kaka. Kaka didn't need a second invitation to score his second of the night. Evra has been give a free pass and sometimes generously given a couple of praises in this blog. But on this occasion, he was simply awful! I cringed everytime he got close to the ball, and cringed again when he was making passes to the Italians.
Speaking of awful, the Greek referee was awful as well. He seemed to be doing his darnest to keep United away from Athens next month. He was on a one-man mission to keep his capital safe from the marauding United fans who have been creating 'havoc' in other lands. He booked Evra for a seemingly innocent challenge ruling him out of the second leg. Given our defensive deficiencies, it should have been a great blow, but in the context of today's performance, there couldn't have been a better gift. I rather have Fletcher in defence than Evra screwing it up again. There are some things that you do not leave to chance.
United came out of half time playing like the way they did in the first half....being dictated by a very composed Milan side. To put things simply, there was no movement whenever we got the ball. We passed the ball, but we were not moving. It made defending against us very easy. Needless to say, Kaka should have gotten his hattrick. At this point in time, I had given up on the cause. Damage limitation seemed like a good thing.
Rooney and Scholesy, however, had other ideas. Right on the hour, Scholes flicked a brilliant ball which caught the Milan defence napping and Rooney was on hand to level the scores.
Suddenly the team woke up. They began passing the ball and running into spaces. On a couple of occasions, they put Milan on the backfoot. The Italians, unable to cope against wave after wave of the Red tide pounding on their defensive walls, started to give away freekicks at the edge of the penalty area. Strangely enough, some of the tackles put in were pretty cynical and yet the referee from Greece did not book anyone. Despite the number of freekicks given, Giggs and Ronaldo combined to miss all of them.
Just when all look lost, Giggs threaded a superb pass to Rooney in the box and Rooney unleashed a thunderbolt from a narrow angle into the goal in injury time. It suddenly felt like Gigg's goal against Juve that drew us level at OT in 95!
Like I mentioned, the job's not done yet. We must not let our guard down next week. If we played like anything in the first half, we're doomed. We need to take the game to Milan and let them adjust to our style.
Man of the Match : Rooney. Had he not scored that last minute goal, I would have given it to Fletcher, who was outstanding in midifeld again. He must love playing against the Italians, having done the job against Roma and for Scotland against Italy.
Two early goals, one in each half settled the game. We never really gotten our engine started when Carrick took on a beautiful pass from Ronaldo and lifted it deftly past Kenny in the 3rd minute of the game.
Rob Styles, as usual, was ridiculously inconsistant with his yellow card decisions. For most parts of the first half, he let Sheffied United get away with murder. The tackle on Evra which resulted in his substitution was horrendous. It could have broken a leg, yet Styles let the perpetrator off with a warning.
Smith too got a huge kick in the buttocks and his perpetrator got off with a warning. His shorts was almost ripped off in that tackle. Yet almost comically, Ronaldo's marker Geary was booked for a foul that looked really innocent. I never understand Rob Styles when he referees.
Anyway, early in the second half, Giggs made a sublime pass to Rooney and he swept it into the goal. Sheffield United, quite truthfully, never really looked like threatening our goal. They looked like they spent the entire game in a damage limitation exercise.
After going two goals up, we were also conserving our energy passing the ball around. It wasn't much of a spectacle, just a convincing win. Both sides knew there were more important games to expand their strength in the coming weeks.
Oh, and Rob Styles probably stole the show again in the second half when he denied a penalty to Sheffield United. Their chief striker, Luton Shelton, was blatantly brought down by Heinze, but Styles swallowed his whistle. Shelton's really impressed me. He gave our make-shift central defenders, Heinze and Brown a torrid time whenever he had the ball. Thankfully there weren't many opportunities for him to get the ball.
We've put the pressure back on Chelsea who faces relegation threatened West Ham tomorrow. Let's hope West Ham are desperate enough to make a fight out of it. It would be really sweet if they could do what they did to us to Chelsea.
And in the weekend, we face Boro in another late kickoff. Let's hope we fare better this time round.
FA Youth Cup
We beat Liverpool at Anfield 2-1. Couldn't catch the game yesterday. No torrents available either, so it kinda sucks all round.
PFA Awards
Ronaldo, Giggs and Scholes are in contention for the main award and Rooney and Ronaldo are in for the young player award. Quite frankly this year's awards are farcical at best.
I can't freaking believe Gerrard and Fabregas were even nominated. Gerrard isn't even the best player for Liverpool this season, and Fabregas was much better last season. Not to mention it's a travesty that Michael Essien isn't even nominated. And I haven't even mentioned players like Berbatov or Carragher, who have been outstanding for their respective clubs.
And don't even get me started on the young player award. Kevin Doyle!?!?!??! I would expect someone nominated in this category to be at least 21 or younger at the start of the season. I just don't get it.
FWIW, Ronaldo should sweep both awards. It's not a given, although the voting is done by fellow professionals, and they ain't exactly rocket scientists either. But I'm not expecting any surprises here.
On paper it was David vs Goliath and the scoreline suggested so, but in truth for 67 minutes, Watford gave us a harder time than we had expected. What they lacked in quality, they made up with endeavor and determination.
Rooney belted in a stunner in the 6th minute and it looked like United would run away with the game. We were comfortably in control and threatening to score more while not even getting into second gear. Then Edwin Van der Sar probably broke his nose again, and after a lengthy treatment, Watford took advantage of our confusion and equalised thru Hamuer Bouazza's beautiful bicycle kick.
But their joy was shortlived when Ronaldo celebrated his new contract by popping up to put United back in the lead in the 28th minute. Parity was broken only 2 minutes after it was achieved. However brave Watford did not hang their heads down. They came at United with vigor and perseverance. An injury to Rio resulting in us reshuffling our backline, gave them more hope.
Cream has a way of rising to the top and on the 66th minute, Rooney scored his second of the night to effectively put an end to Watford's night. Up to this point, it was a tough fought game, and we had a hard time controlling the game, only relying on swift counter attacks.
With the cup tie firmly in our grasp, the rest of the night was spent by the players trying to get Rooney his hattrick. Richardson did eventually add to the scoreline in the 82nd minute with a delightful goal. It probably could and should have been more if Ole and Smith didn't only have eyes for Rooney.
In any case, the scoreline reflected the gulf in quality between the sides. We're going to Wembley for our third FA Cup finals in four years, quite an achievement.
Couple of things to note in the game:
1. Evra started in right back and was later slotted back to his usual left back. He looked terribly uncomfortable in right back.
2. Heinze started in left back and was moved to central defence to pair up with Wes Brown after Rio left injuried.
3. Fletcher came on as a substitute and played in right back. He had a pretty credible game there. Let's hope Fergie doesn't get any weird ideas playing him there long term.
4. Alan Smith was awesome today. He's probably my personal man of the match today. Some of his passes was pretty darn good.
5. Carrick is beginning to grow on me. He started off as Mr Invisible, then progressed to Neil Webb status, and now he's pretty much no longer my whipping boy here. That's quite an achievement in less than one season.
6. Off the ball movement was pretty awesome. If we can keep this up, we're going to out-score alot of the teams we're going to play in the next couple of weeks.
7. Injuries are hitting us hard and fast. As much as I dislike Rio, I hope his injury isn't too serious. Ditto Van der Sar. The squad is thin enough as it is.
