Ed Woodward, apart from having the same name as a late actor who used to portray, amongst others, a character known as “The Equalizer“, (yes, it was an American series, although the actor was English), has nothing else whatsoever in common with that persona.
A man who spent his waking hours righting wrongs, looking after the poor people who couldn’t afford protection and didn’t trust the police, he was a mixture of Robin Hood and the A-Team and always came out on top. (more…)
For the first time in a long time, if not for the first time at all, I feel the need to add a little background to this article.
I have just watched Manchester United’s Europa League game against Fenerbahće in an Irish bar in Granada, Spain.
I mention this purely as an excuse for any inaccuracies you may spot while reading said article. It was, in fact, a very noisy music night where a quartet of Spanish musicians played Irish tunes, virtually non-stop, for the entire evening. There were only two of us in the entire bar interested in what was happening at Old Trafford! (more…)
The first, and probably most obvious, is that he is a tall target man with talent. This is not to say that United have not had this type of player in the past, it’s just something they have been short of for a while.
Robin van Persie, although 6’2″ in height was never a prolific goalscorer with his head and the same can be said for United’s other “tall” strikers in the recent past. (more…)
Despite the moaners and the harbingers of doom, Manchester City should be able to qualify from the group stages of the Champion’s League for the second year running.
As expected they will come up against one of Pep Guardiola’s old clubs almost immediately when they meet up with Barcelona.
As usual, and purely because Barcelona are present in the group, this is being called the “group of death”. It is the group City get every year according to all those “in the know”. (more…)
(Mata keeps his distance while Rooney, as usual, creeps up to the boss)
This is a perfectly reasonable question and yet the answer, for some unknown reason, appears to be quite complicated.
Certainly, over the last couple of years Juan Mata has contributed much, much more to the team than has Rooney. He is not a volatile character and represents the club in a much more positive and favourable way than Rooney.
Last season, for example, Mata made 49 appearances and scored 10 goals whereas Rooney made 38 appearances and scored 15 goals. Mata was also responsible for assisting many more goals than Rooney. (more…)
So Zlatan Ibrahimovic is available at the end of the season. He can even go to the Premier League if he so wants. He will have a choice of top clubs just waiting to welcome him with open arms and open cheque book.
Well I, for one, hope that is not the case. I don’t have a lot of time for him and his arrogant ways. He is a vastly overrated footballer who, similar to Wayne Rooney, occasionally does something brilliant. He is 34 years of age which makes him two years older than Robin van Persie when he was deemed “not good enough” by the Manchester United manager. Ibrahimovic will certainly add nothing to a top six team.
Maybe a year at West Ham or Southampton if those clubs are not beneath the conceited one, which I feel sure that they are.
Having just mentioned Rooney, apparently Manchester United are considering an offer from China for him. I hope this one is true because he has certainly long outstayed his welcome as far as I am concerned. As anyone who has followed these chronicles for more than five minutes will know, had it been up to me he would have been sold the first time his toys came out of the pram, when he had the audacity to hold the club to ransom. (more…)
Shortly before the transfer window officially opened Louis van Gaal told everyone who would listen that he wanted ALL his transfer business concluding before the pre-season tour to the US of A.
This makes sense in many ways. It gives any new signings the chance to get to know their new team mates on and off the pitch. It gives them the chance to get to know the club and the way it works. It also gives them the opportunity to play some games where the result doesn’t really matter. All of this culminating, hopefully, in a harmonious and reenergised team returning to the UK raring to go. (more…)
WHY SAY ANYTHING? 