While their bitter rivals Liverpool are sweating over a takeover that could decide their future, Manchester United have today revealed some worrying financial results of their own.  The club which for so long was the financial powerhouse of the Premier League lost a staggering £79.6 million.

The news will only add further pressure on the clubs controversial owners. Ever since their takeover of the club in 2005 the Glazer family have hardly had the most welcoming reception from United fans, with a ‘Green and Gold till United are sold’ protest launched last season.

But the Glazers have always insisted a sale was never going to be an option and it seems as if the figures released today haven’t changed their mind. Current Chief Executive at United David Gill even described the figures as “very good”.

He said: “There is no pressure at all to sell any star player whether it is Wayne Rooney or X, Y or Z. I can categorically say that. I can’t speak for any other club but the United fans should not be concerned.

“We have a long-term financing structure in place, excellent revenues that are growing, we are controlling our costs – total wages are 46% of turnover – and we can afford the interest on our long-term finance.”

Now I’ll admit that I am no financial expert but to me a loss of nearly £80million doesn’t sound “very good”.  What made the Glazers so unpopular in the first place was that their proposed business plan accepted that there would be a big debt and therefore the club would make losses as they looked to pay back the debt.

This threatened United’s on the field point of view. It meant that the big name signings might dry up and that they would have to find a new way of staying at the top of the English league.

In many ways this is exactly what has happened. In the Glazer era only Dimitar Berbatov has arrived for a top end transfer free, and United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has turned his attentions to younger players for the future, as well as the development of his academy graduates such as Daren Gibson and Johny Evans

But in my opinion two things have probably prevented failure during the Glazer ownership. The Glazers arrived at a time when Ferguson was building the Cristiano Ronaldo era and in many ways success was inevitable, couple that with the longevity of the likes of Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs, and Ferguson has been able to cover up the lack of big name signings.

However Scholes and Giggs are ageing, and Ronaldo has already gone, you have to feel that United will need to find funds for replacements. This will lie with the Glazers which will mean them digging in to their pockets.

When the Glazers have to dig in to their own pockets I highly doubt they will be saying a loss of £79million is good.

Bebé in action for United

The decision made by Sir Alex Ferguson to bring the previously unknown Tiago Manuel Dias Correia, commonly known by his nickname Bebé, to Manchester United has come under a lot of scrutiny by the press, but has Fergie unearthed another gem?

The Bebé transfer was an interesting and peculiar one right from the start. He began his career with amateur side Loures before signing for Portuguese second division side Estrela da Amadora in the summer of 2009. Estrela struggled to pay his wages and looked to unload him to dutch giants PSV in May 2010, however Bebé’s former agent Goncalo Reis revealed that PSV had turned down the offer as ”they did not know him”. He was then snapped up by Vitória de Guimarães in the summer of 2010 on a free transfer. He signed a five-year contract with Vitória witha £7.4 million release clause, but didn’t play a single competitive match for the Portuguese side before United pounced.

After recommendations from former assistant at Old Trafford, Carlos Queiroz, and after an impressive pre-season with Vitória, where he scored five goals in six games, Sir Alex Ferguson began to show interest in the 20-year-old, and on the 11th of August 2010 Manchester United signed Bebé for an undisclosed fee thought to be in the region of £7.4 million. When the press got word of this deal a media circus ensued. Surely Fergie wouldn’t pay over the odds for a player he has never seen play before, a player recommended to him just one day before the deal went through by a former member of staff, a player who spent most of his childhood in a homeless shelter and whose only previous notable footballing experience before 2009 was appearing for amateur club Loures on occasion and the CAIS team in the European Street Football Festival in the Bosnian town of Foca. Or did the United boss know something we didn’t? The rumour mill went into overdrive and stories began to leak. A former coach at Bebé’s old club Estrela, Jorge Paxaio, revealed that in January this year Bebé was in the shop window for as little as £125,000 in attempt to save the club from going into liquidation.  He explained:

”Last season we had no money at all. We were trying to transfer Bebé to other clubs. We had to raise money desperately. We told everyone in England and in Europe: “For 150,000 Euros you can have him”. We couldn’t get anybody interested. Nobody trusted him. None of the clubs were interested because he had never played at a high level. I was surprised with the sudden way it happened with United. I was hoping he would move to a bigger club in Portugal or to a medium-sized club in Europe. I didn’t expect Manchester United.”

Bebé’s former agent Goncalo Reis was, like most in the footballing world, equally shocked at how the deal progressed. He went on to say:

”A scout from United could have contacted me or the club last season. There was no secret. But I understand that the United scout just saw certain games in Portugal and only realised Bebé was a great player when he saw some pre-season games involving Guimaraes.”

Bebé in his Guimaraes Vitória days

It looked to everyone that United had paid over the odds for the attacker. Everyone was asking themselves why Ferguson had dished out such a large sum of money for such an unknown, inexperienced youngster. Although the majority in the media allowed themselves to be drawn to the idea that another overpriced flop was on his way to Old Trafford, some were less scrutinous. It is now widely believed that although Ferguson would have preferred Bebé to stay at Vitória and gain a little more experience, as well as giving him a chance to scout the player more extensively, the United boss was pressured into triggering the £7.4 million release clause in his contract amid speculation that some of Europe’s top clubs, including Real Madrid and Benfica, were courting the Portuguese prospect. If the youngster possesses the skills required to interest some of Europe’s top clubs, along with a number of world class coaches, you begin to think that £7.4 million isn’t a whole lot of money for an apparently promising talent, by the standards set in today’s footballing market.

The Bebé transfer came under even more scrutiny recently when Manchester United revealed that Jorge Mendes, and not Goncalo Reis, was the agent involved in the deal that took him to Old Trafford. Mendes, who is the agent of former United assistant manager Carlos Queiroz and was also involved in the deal that took Cristiano Ronaldo to Old Trafford, was involved in accusations made by Reis that he had ”poached” the players contract. Reis insisted that at the time of the transfer he had a written contract, between himself and Bebé, to act as his agent. It is reported that Bebé had written to Reis to terminate their relationship, although Reis has claimed that he didn’t receive the letter until The 13th of August, two days after the player had signed for the Red Devils. FIFA regulations forbid an angent from contacting a player while he has ”an exclusive representation contract” with another agent, and Reis may present his case for further investigation.

Bebé gets a run out for the reserves

Amid all the stories and controversy involved in the deal, it would be understandable for Bebé to feel apprehensive and overwhelmed by his new surroundings, but he seems to have taken to life at Old Trafford quite comfortably. The Portugal under-21 international made his debut for the United first team against Scunthorpe on Wednesday the 22nd of September and has already began to impress the backroom staff and his new teammates. United assistant Mike Phelan believes Bebé showed plenty of promise on his debut in the League Cup clash.

“The scoreline gave us the opportunity to give Bebé a little look at what Manchester United is all about. I thought he responded very well. There were fleeting moments of pace and power, and he got a little bit excited now and again. But it’s important that players like him get these opportunities.”

Teammate Chris Smalling was also impressed by Bebé’s bit-part display.

”Since he’s come in, he’s become sharper every day. He’s really improving and working on his fitness. Tonight he really caused their full-back problems, coming in from the wing. Hopefully we’ll see him produce that kind of form in many games to come.”

Bebé was surprised to make United’s 25-man Champions League squad, but is keen to impress.

”I’m surprised by my inclusion in the Champions League squad, it’s a dream for me. I never thought I would have made it, but now I am a very happy man. I only hope that my confidence returns when I start playing some games and scoring goals, like I know how. At the moment I am working very hard each day in training. I intend to make the most of my chance and hopefully profit from the opportunity given to me.” He told reporters in Portugal:

”I am working hard, everyone has helped me a lot, I have adapted well, given the short time I have been there. The older ones help me a lot.”

Following a slightly more personal question from one particular journalist, Bebé smiled and added:  ”Did Ferguson make me cut my hair? More or less…”

Before even kicking a ball for Manchester United, he was criticised, scrutinised and deemed unworthy by many. Will he join the list of expensive flops that have come and gone at Old Trafford, or will he prove his worth and repay the faith shown in him? With the media spotlight shining directly on Bebé’s rise from the streets to stardom, will he shine back?

Leave a comment and have your say.

It has been a quiet season on the transfer front if your name isn’t Roberto Mancini. Of the teams who finished in the top 4 very few ‘big’ transfers have been made. Sure we are excited by the prospect of Chamakh and Chicarcito (who scored AGAIN last night against Spain) but their transfers do not create the same commotion as the saga’s of Ashley Cole, Dimitar Berbatov and Cristiano Ronaldo. This has been the summer of the non-transfers, the fact that Gerrard, Torres and Fabregas have not moved is more important that those who have moved. However amongst the hustle and bustle of the world cup and the aftermath there have been a few key transfers you may have missed. We start at a fairly recent one and one of the biggest fees paid this summer.

1. Kenwyne Jones: Stoke have paid 8 million for the Trinidad and Tobago striker. Jones was a transfer target for Liverpool in January and this move is a sign of ambition from Stoke. 8 million is a lot of money but Pulis obviously feels Jones can add something to a strike-force which has often relied on the quality of Matthew Etherington rather than the strikers. Jones would find time limited at Sunderland behind  Darren Bent and  boss Steve Bruce has indicated that he and Jones had not seen eye-to-eye and felt that he was not achieving his potential under him. Jones has been at Stoke before but that was as a raw 20 year old. Jones will be the starting striker for Stoke as Beattie and Kitson are both on the transfer list at the moment.

2. Ivan Klasnic: Klasnic has rejoined Bolton on a free transfer which has been the story of Bolton’s off-season. With a few free transfer pick-ups Owen Coyle is hoping to fashion a budget attacking side. Klasnic was not prolific in the previous term with only 8 goals in 27 games. However that was his first season in the Premier League and in a team that was not performing well overall. With an increase in the attacking nature of Bolton and the better delivery from someone like Martin Petrov the 30 year old may prove to be a bargain.

3.Sandro: Formally signed in March Sandro’s transfer has probably been forgotten over the course of the summer as Harry Redknapp chases all and sundry. Tottenham have been uncharacteristically quiet in the summer with very few players moving in or out. If Sandro proves to be their only signing then it is not a travesty. With competition at almost every position Sandro could provide some quality in midfield alongside Palacios and Luka Modric. Sandro is a physically intimidating midfielder who at 21 has youth on his side. With only one cap under his belt so far it is tough to know exactly what to expect from Sandro as he has only played in Brazil so far in his career but has proved to be a vital player for Internacional. Sandro won’t join Tottenham until 18th August so don’t be putting him into your fantasy team just yet.

4. Mauro Boselli: Wigan have splashed out big on the Argentinian striker, officially listed as 6.5 million. Often known for their America’s scouting regime Wigan have often brought in quality from the other side of the Atlantic. Boselli is a striker with an excellent goalscoring record, in the pre-season he has been banging them in albeit against weaker opposition. Boselli was the top scorer in Argentine football in the previous season so comes with a certain aura of expectation. Don’t expect him to light up the ground with skillful play though, Boselli is a goal-scorer first and foremost so expect to see him bungling it home from 2 yards rather than beating a few players. They all count though.

5. Stephen Hunt: Probably the player that you know the most about on this list. Wolves got their signings made early this season picking up players from the cash-strapped relegated clubs. Stephen Hunt should help alleviate the aura of negative football that hung around the Molineux last season. Stephen Hunt has played for several relegation candidate teams but continues to be one of their better players an out-and-out left winger Hunt can deliver an excellent cross, beat his man and often goes over the line of determination into outright aggression. These qualities are always needed for a relegation-threatened team as he very rarely gives anything other than his best. Hunt will take the left wing spot for Wolves and should provide many assists over the coming season he is for Wolves what Chris Brunt and Charlie Adam are for their teams, the main attacking outlet.

I appeared on a CBC TV news program in Canada Monday night and was asked to defend the theatrics of soccer. The diving and the cheating that are so woven into the fabric of soccer and are most evident to the public when the World Cup takes center stage every four years. To be fair, the diving and cheating is indefensible other than the fact that this is what countries often do to gain a edge in soccer. And oftentimes a slight edge is all it takes to win a game.

In the past few days, I’ve spoken to many North Americans who have enjoyed the World Cup but would be much more interested in the sport if the cheating and diving could be eradicated from the game. And they’re absolutely correct. The diving that we’ve seen by footballers has been disgusting such as Italy’s Daniele De Rossi (to win the penalty against New Zealand), Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo (to win free kicks in dangerous places on the pitch against Ivory Coast), Chile’s Jorge Valdivia (who received a yellow card Monday for diving to try to win a penalty), Ivory Coast’s Fadel Keita (who charged at Kaka on purpose to draw a foul, which ended up being a second yellow for Kaka and he was sent off), etc.

Several people I speak to say that they would love the sport if only the diving and cheating could be eliminated. They blame the referees for not seeing the fouls. They blame the players for faking and cheating. I blame FIFA for not being strong enough. Here’s why:

The referees are at a disadvantage. We get to see every controversial incident on replay as well as from different camera angles (including overhead cameras at times). Plus, we see the incident in slow-motion and we can watch it over and over again in a couple of minutes while the referee and his assistant referees are handicapped by only seeing it once without the aid of TV replays. When we as the TV viewer have so much more evidence at our fingertips, how can we expect the referee to make a fair and accurate result unless he sees the same things we see? Simply put, FIFA needs to introduce video technology to the modern sport of soccer.

FIFA has so far not introduced the chip technology in the ball and the addition of two assistant referees behind goals to help referees in World Cup matches. They’ve also resisted introducing video technology. The reason they are so archaic when it comes to the question of introducing technology is because they’re fearful of losing control and power. Once the decisions are made by people with video monitors, the balance of power and authority has shifted from the referees to a man in a TV studio or press box. Getting a decision correct with the aid of video technology should be the way FIFA is heading, but it undermines their authority and it undermines the authority of the referee.

FIFA wants to maintain as much control as possible. The best example of this was the controversial incident involving referee Koman Coulibaly who disallowed USA’s third goal against Slovenia. After the incident happened, no one knew what the call was. Was it offside, or was it pushing? As is FIFA’s policy, the referee didn’t conduct a post-match interview to explain his decision. And there was no word from FIFA regarding what really happened. This was on Friday. Over the weekend when the video highlights were added to the FIFA.com website, all evidence of the controversial incident was not included in the video highlights section. All we knew that FIFA was going to make a statement on Monday. So, for 3-4 agonizing days, FIFA said nothing until now when they announced that Koman Coulibaly would not be refereeing any more matches in the World Cup. And what did the head of referees think of their performance so far? “We are very, very satisfied with the performance of the referees,” Jose-Marcia Garcia-Aranda, head of refereeing for FIFA, said Monday.

FIFA is walking a tightrope. I’m convinced that between now and the final a very controversial incident will happen again and a referee will make an incorrect decision which will lead to a country being knocked out of the tournament and injustice being served. This is the sort of thing that turns fans off soccer. It can be corrected, but FIFA is too stubborn and too protective of the power they maintain to let anything go. Unfortunately it’s going to take a controversial incident that will get people incensed to encourage FIFA to change. And even then, FIFA will only change on their own time and when they feel like it.

Bottom line, FIFA needs to be more transparent and needs to be seen as doing everything they can to make the game fair. They also need to stamp out cheating and allow referees to come down hard on players who conduct that behavior. For the sake of soccer, let’s hope FIFA does something after this World Cup to improve the game.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United. Drawn by Nicholas Buchel, using a Sharpie for the red lines and a fancier pen for the yellow.

Since Real Madrid’s £80m swoop on Cristiano Ronaldo, I’ve read plenty of responses by United supporters insisting this was a positive move for the team. Man U is not one player. We’ve got 80m to spend.  We’re fine. No, really.

While the Ronaldo move was inevitable and £80m is a handsome bundle of cash to take in, I cannot accept the idea that United are better off without him. Don’t get me wrong: he was going to leave no matter what and with the chance to secure such a huge amount of money for his release, nobody can fault Sir Alex or United for the move.

But while United is not just one player (an obvious notion in a team sport), we can all agree, this particular player was a pivotal cog in the trophy-winning machine.

Look at it this way: Giggs is fading. Scholes is fading. Ronaldo is gone.

Three players who have shaped Manchester United’s form and directly fed their winning fires will no longer be able to exert their influence to the full extent the Red Devils have enjoyed for so long.

Manchester are still bursting with top talent, but none of their players, save perhaps Rooney, can change a match the way Ronaldo, Giggs and Scholes have done so consistently for United.

Replacing Ronaldo (or Giggs, or Scholes) is a Himalayan task no matter how many millions of pounds one has in the kitty. How often did his dead ball kicks seem a foregone conclusion? How often did he create that critical spark in motion to carve out a chance from the deepest of dead ends? From his ability to twist a ball around the wall from daunting distances and angles, sending that heat-seeking missile to its preordained home to his ability to dance through defenses and set up the perfect service or goal in nearly any circumstance makes him one of an elite few.

The act of finding someone that good who is established and prying him away from their club exists in a sliver of likelihood. And finding an unknown who happens to blossom into the next C. Ronaldo will be an expensive spin of the roulette wheel. Fergie could feasibly strike oil again as he did with Ronaldo, unproven when he joined United, but even if he is so fortunate, any new promising signing will take time to blossom into greatness, if at all.

Right now the £80m is merely potential energy. Ronaldo was proven beyond all doubt.

Fergie will spend the fresh cash. And he’ll get quality for it. But I doubt he’ll find anything on the level of Ronaldo.  If he is so fortunate, though, we cannot say Manchester United are better off until the deal is actually made. For now: they are not.

Yes, Ronaldo was just one part of the team. But just as Liverpool don’t want to play without Torres or Gerrard, Chelsea don’t want to play without Lampard, and Arsenal have not looked as imposing since Henry’s departure, sometimes that one part of the team is the consummate talisman, a lighting rod who channels an essential spark for those around him.

United need lighting to strike again. Until then they are worse off from this unavoidable transfer than they’d like us to believe.

Surely Manchester United must sign Carlos Tevez now.  With Cristiano Ronaldo off to Madrid, the Red Devils need a replacement that cannot be found in one player.  CR7 is a complete footballer, blessed with pace, power, dribbling, shooting, heading, free kicks, etc.

He is one of a kind.  If United let Tevez go, they will have an underperforming Berbatov and Wayne Rooney spearheading the attack with no one of real pedigree on the bench in case one gets injured or banned.  Manucho looks set to leave for Hull, Macheda is still 17 and Welbeck is just 18.

Tevez brings the class, the important goals, and the energy.  He can help reclaim a few of the qualities Manchester United lost with Ronaldo, but not all.

He works well with the team, and up until recently said he wanted to stay if Fergie would sign him.  In 2007-08 the Rooney-Tevez-Ronaldo partnership produced what Barcelona did this past season – free flowing, attacking football capable of winning the Champions League.

He has the quality; Manchester United have the money.  The reported £80 million gives Manchester United enough money to buy fantastic replacements.  Carlos Teves costs £25 million, leaving United £55 million to buy a winger, pay off some debts, and probably buy a small island nation.

Where else will United find a striker like Tevez for £25 million?  The mystery man would need to be physically tough, willing to come back and defend, and have a host of other not-so-obvious traits, some of which I mentioned above.  Scoring important goals is one.  Others include injecting energy into the rest of the team, winning over the fans, as well as complaining very little (up until the end of the season for Tevez) about lack of playing time.

David Villa will be sold by a financially weak Valencia, but he has stated his desire to stay in Spain.  Alexandre Pato might leave Milan for the right price and has the pace, but might not be physical enough for the EPL.  Eto’o might leave Barcelona, but after this prolific season might cost more than £25 million.

Another option is Klaas-Jan Huntelaar of Real Madrid, who probably will see a lot less playing time.  The van Nistelrooy-lite had a good opening few months after his winter trade but faded with the rest of Madrid at the end of the season.  He might be revitalized in the new Florentino Perez-era, but is he galactico enough for Madrid?  I doubt it.  Additionally, Madrid now have at least 5 forwards, not including members of the youth team.  Clearly someone is leaving, and £25 million might be the right price for Huntelaar.

There are still no guarantees that he would fit with either United or the Prem however, and he certainly doesn’t bring the same qualities that Tevez does and that Ronaldo is taking with him.  He does provide a start though, and with the inclusion of a tricky, creative, attacking player such as Ribery, United might go some way to recaputring the glory of 2008.

Just when you think you’ve seen it all, Torino have shelled out £100,000 to lure Dennis Law from Manchester City. Yes, it’s 1961 and the record transfer fee paid to or by an English club has broken the hundred thousand mark.

Shocking.

The previous record was £65,000 when John Charles moved from Leeds to Juventus in 1957.

Law will move back in a year for a fee of £115,000 to play for City’s rival in-town club, Manchester United. But, it will take until 1970 for the record to reach the £200,000 mark when Martin Peters moves from West Ham to Spurs. And seven years after that, it’s half a million pounds from Hamburg to pry Kevin Keegan away from Liverpool.

By 1979, the million pound mark will be obliterated with Trevor Francis’s £1,180,000 move from Birmingham to Nottingham Forest. Thankfully, it will take until 1986 for the record to break the two-mil mark when Mark Hughes leaves Manchester United for Barcelona for £2.3 million. But then we’ll only wait one more year for Ian Rush’s move from Liverpool to Juve to raise the bar to £3.2 million. I know. It’s insane.

Pause. Drink of water. Gulp.

David Platt’s move from Aston Villa in 1991 to Bari will hoist the record up to £5.5 million. A fee which will also see Paul Gascoigne move from Spurs to Lazio the following year.

Now comes the Premier League era. Things are about to get crazy.

Want yourself an Andy Cole? Only £7 million at 1995 prices.

And then it’s time for Alan Shearer to move from Blackburn to Newcastle. £15 million, my friends. 1996.

Nicolas Anelka from Arsenal to Real Madrid: £22.5 million, 1999.

Rio Ferdinand will change Uniteds: Leeds to Manchester for £29.1 million, 2002.

Where does it end?

Now, look at the sardonically titled graph above.

Everybody up until 1979 looks like they cost nothing. Through the long lens of time, it seems like Keegan, Peters, Law, etc went for pennies. Even the shock of Alan Shearer costing more than 10 million now seems like such a bargain basement price in light of Robinho’s £32.5 move from Real to Manchester City last summer.

Things looked really scary when City were rumored to be offering as much as £130m to try and lure Kaka away from AC Milan. But the move never happened and it looked like the 30-40m mark would hold steady.

But all it would take would be a specific series of scenarios for the stars to align and some ridiculous fee will come along and totally eclipse everything that’s happened so far.

Like, say a Spanish superclub gets all frustrated because their big league rivals go on a tear and snatch up the triple and are anointed the Best Club In The World by gushing pundits and supporters everywhere. Though they’ve set the standard for other outrageously rich clubs,  spending millions over the years on Zidanes and Figos and Beckhams and van Nistelrooys, they’ve hit a massive rut. Unacceptable.

Say right around that time, one of the biggest stars in the game, who’d been linked with a big money move to the same Spanish superclub the summer before, who’s clearly been itching for a move as he’s won just about everything possible with his own English superclub as well as the top individual awards… well, say he’s had just about enough of the dreary Mancunian weather and longs for the Iberian climate of his youth. His club losing the Champions League to a Spanish side might just be the hair that breaks the winger’s back.

But he’s so damn good, his current superclub sure don’t want to give him up.

What would it take to scoop this superstar up? About £80 million?

That’s a ridiculous price. Even by recent standards, a jump that high in the valuation of any one player is unthinkable.

I don’t even want to imagine that eventuallity.

I’m still getting over Dennis Law’s whopping transfer fees.

So its official, Manchester United’s board have accepted a world record shattering bid of £80 million this morning from Real Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo. I don’t know about you, but I couldn’t face another summer of every news outlet boring us to tears speculating on Ronaldo’s future as we had last season. Day after day, hour after hour, miniscule item after item of droning with ultimately no end product.

This means at last Ronaldo can get the move he claims is a dream for him, United can get £80 million for a player who is clearly nowhere near the level he was in 2007-2008 and Real Madrid can keep signing attacking players that won’t win them anything next season. I wonder if Michele Platini is about to launch a stinging attack on Florentino Perez as he clearly spends money the club don’t have. Of course not!

I’m sure some Manchester United fans will be devastated to be losing Ronaldo, there’s no doubt on his day he is a fantastic player, but last season saw his performance fall away from the level he’d set himself. Of course, Madrid’s courting of him all summer only for Ferguson to dig his heels in would have affected him and he once again failed to deliver for Portugal in a major tournament. Missing preseason with an injury didn’t help, but the Champions League final saw him completely outshone by Iniesta, Xavi and Messi.

No doubt Ferguson will be getting some criticism of some of Manchester United’s more uneducated fan base, but there’s no way you can turn down that amount of money for any player. If anything, United are probably selling him at the right time, its doubtful anything he does next season would increase his value, so Ferguson and United are right to sell him now. Ferguson has been slatted before for selling players certain fans thought were irreplaceable but three titles and two Champions League finals in the last 3 seasons answers any criticism the doom mongers may offer up.

United will now probably push on for a replacement, Franck Ribery, Antonio Valencia and Karim Benzema have all been touted as replacements, though United may take two of those with the funds they receive from Madrid. With Madrid buying Kaka and Ronaldo, it probably frees up those three to join other clubs and United will be jostling with Chelsea and Barcelona to sign them up. As for Madrid, Perez’s ill feted galactico scheme seems to have been brought back for the dead and it wouldn’t surprise me if they go after one other massive signing soon. Shame they’ve forgotten how bad the defence was at Madrid last season, so Perez would a fool to ignore strengthening the back line.

The additional aspect of this is that the transfer merry go round should begin to kick off all over Europe now, with the Kaka, Diego and Barry deals being the only 3 major transfers since the domestic season finished all over Europe. The bubble is well and truly set to continue growing in the Premiership and La Liga, and most of the major clubs in both countries yet to start spending, the silly season could be just around the corner.

As for Ronaldo, sure, it’ll be a shame to see him leave the Premiership, but Spanish football and La Liga isn’t far behind in popularity so he’ll not disappear from view. Over the time he spent at Old Trafford, he’s thrilled as many people as he’s annoyed. His performances over the years at club level have propelled him to the forefront of football fans all over the world and his superb season for United in 2007-2008 will live long in the memory. It’s been a privilege to watch him for the last 3 or 4 seasons, but the Premier League and Manchester United will survive and flourish without him.

If you would believe various pundits, the annoying debate that many football fans have been subject to this year and last – Ronaldo vs. Messi – will come to its conclusion in the UCL final in Rome.  On the biggest stage in club competitions, the two most complete players in attacking football will meet head to head.

The winner will be crowned the best in the world, the loser will claim second place.  Fans of the loser will say he was robbed, the winner’s supporters will smugly proclaim that the final underscored the gulf in quality.

To boil the final down to this issue would be a mistake, and would ignore the other much more important battles that will happen on May 27th.  While Ronaldo and Messi are both elite, I doubt the Champions League trophy will really go to whoever plays better on that day.

First of all, neither the Argentine nor the Portuguese has an impressive record against clubs from England and Spain, respectively.  An injured Messi was pretty much ineffective against Barcelona last season in the semis, and Ronaldo was marked out of the game by Barcelona, notably Gianluca Zambrotta, who ironically teed up Paul Scholes for the long range, tie-winning goal.

This year in the final however, I see more of a Barcelona’s attack vs United’s back four.  Vidic and Ferdinand, as it has been repeated so often, are the best two in the game.  Evra looks to be back on form.  The only suspect position, and I use that term only in comparison with the other members of the back-line, is right-back for United.

This is not to take away from the offense, but the free-flowing stuff of last season has been slowed down, maybe by Berbatov’s inclusion (didn’t the United vs. Arsenal meeting last week look like the 2007-08 campaign, with Berba notably on the bench?).  This season the defense has really outshone the offense, not just in the club but in the whole EPL, 4-0 loss to Liverpool excluded.

Barcelona’s attack is frightening, but currently weakened.  Henry and Iniesta both are having problems with fitness, Dani Alves and Eric Abidal (unfairly) are suspended, and Rafa Marquez is out for the season.  These weaknesses in defense force makeshift changes and weaken the midfield, already less flowing and lethal when Iniesta has to play as a forward for the injured Henry.  If neither Iniesta nor Henry play, Pep Guardiola will have to change his “Tridente” formation for the first time this season (or else play out-of-form Bojan or Gudjohnsen), which brings me to my next point.

Everyone playing Barca since late September has known that they will run a 4-3-3 with Messi on the right, Henry on the left, and Eto’o in the middle.  The midfield will include Xavi, Iniesta, and Keita or Yaya Toure.  Dani Alves plays at right back (in reality reality he is an attacking midfielder), Puyol and Marquez stay in the center, unless Pique plays in which case Puyol moves out left.  It’s a formula, and it has worked, but against master tacticians, it won’t.  It literally came within seconds from failure against Chelsea, but a combination of slack finishing, suspect calls, and a non-existant clearance from Essien allowed Iniesta one chance that he buried in style.  Hiddink knew how to shut down Barcelona, and my bet is that Sir Alex will too.

The Scot should be able to field a United side that can take advantage of both the weakness in attack simply by keeping the defense as he has all season, and exploit Barcelona’s defense problems.  The right and left wings will be open all night to  players with pace now that Alves and Abidal are gone, and judging by the Chelsea game, the midfield looks like it can be muscled out by the likes of Carrick and Anderson.  Most importantly, if Puyol moves out left or right, the center will be horribly exposed.

Barcelona are hobbling right now, and certainly cannot field a full strength team.  Messi on his day is the best in the world, but he cannot make up for the obvious defensive weaknesses.  If Iniesta and Henry do return for the final however, it might not matter how weak the defense looks.  If Barca show up to Rome limping in both the attacking and defending third though, I feel that Sir Alex’s carefully planned team will be celebrating at the end of the night.