Hughes says Carlos Tevez poster was meant to annoy Sir Alex
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It has hardly been a summer to cheer many Manchester United fans, but this may have been a break to gladden the hearts of the Glazers. The Premier League champions' absentee owners require a vast income to service their debts after borrowing heavily to buy the club. The transfer window has, so far, revealed one guaranteed revenue stream. Selling Cristiano Ronaldo ensured the small matter of a £68m profit although, while he has pronounced himself reluctant to spend again this summer, that is apparently at Sir Alex Ferguson's disposal.
In addition, in keeping with a United tradition, fringe players have displayed their ability to boost the bank balance. Lee Martin has joined Ipswich (where there may soon be a contingent of exiles from Old Trafford thanks to Roy Keane's arrival), and Fraizer Campbell has signed for Sunderland, where there already is one. Among the British products of United's youth system who never became a first-team regular, Kieran Richardson has proved the most profitable, yielding £5.5m when he moved to Wearside. Should Campbell, whose £3.5m fee could rise to £6m, succeed at Sunderland, he will displace him.
But Campbell's credentials are questionable. He played a huge part in earning Hull promotion to the Premier League and threatened for England in the recent European Under-21 Championships before spoiling his contribution with a senseless sending off. However, he only mustered one league start in a season on loan at Tottenham and the sole occasion when he made Ferguson's initial 11 ended with his replacement by a right-back, Rafael da Silva, at a time when United were chasing a winner. So why, therefore, did he command a larger fee than Matt Derbyshire, an England Under-21 colleague with a superior record in both international and top-flight football?
The answer probably lies in the United factor. An education at Old Trafford is highly valued, and some managers appear to take it as a guarantee of prowess. Since Fergie's Fledglings emerged a decade and a half ago, presumptions have been made that those who have trodden the same path have similar attributes. A look at the graduates of United's academy suggests otherwise: they sometimes produce footballers of quality, but they invariably develop players in quantity. Having Manchester United in a prominent position on a CV, however, can be deceptive.
For instance, as wholehearted a competitor as Paul McShane is, there is nothing in his game to suggest he used to train with as classy a defender as Rio Ferdinand. Danny Higginbotham's enthusiastic but erratic attempts at passing do not immediately identify him as a former team-mate of Paul Scholes. Between them, however, they produced £4m for the club's coffers.
Both are among a group of yo-yo players that also includes Jonathan Greening, David Jones and David Healy who have spent their subsequent career veering between the Championship and the Premier League, the first team and the reserves (at least the latter has the consolation of an outstanding international record).
Others fare worse, their departure from Old Trafford precipitating a swift decline. John Curtis, a former England B international who is only 30, plays for Wrexham; Phil Mulryne is also in non-league football with King's Lynn; Ben Thornley, Michael Clegg, John O'Kane, Simon Davies and Alex Notman, were hampered by injuries and all retired from the professional game at comparatively early ages. In each case, the biggest fee they commanded was that paid to United. It is something the tribunal who determine Richard Eckersley's fee for his move to Burnley may consider.
Because men such as Ryan Shawcross and Chris Eagles, who have both benefited from transfers, are comparatively rare success stories. Like Martin, who had six loan spells while a United player, both were evidently surplus to requirements.
Nevertheless, there is a skill in coercing such sums for players who can barely glimpse the first team from their place in the pecking order. Campbell was, at best, sixth-choice striker, Martin still less likely to figure among the wingers. United are presumably the envy of their rivals in their ability to sell unwanted players for useful amounts.
But they are helped by Ferguson's considerable influence and the number of his charges with jobs in management. United, like most great clubs, can display an acute superiority complex. That is not meant as a criticism - a confidence bordering on arrogance has its advantages - but it can lead their former employees to assume all things United are preferable and that one of Ferguson's reserves is better than a first-team player elsewhere.
Steve Bruce has signed Campbell, just as first Bryan Robson and then Roy Keane bought McShane. Indeed, the new Ipswich manager's fondness for the familiar is at odds with his fearless persona. Despite his United reunion at Sunderland, perhaps the most misguided piece of recruitment may have occurred at Middlesbrough. One of Steve McClaren's first acts upon taking charge was to pay £1.5m for Mark Wilson, when he also purchased Greening. The former left on a free transfer and only eventually flourished at Doncaster. Terry Cooke, who took six years to settle at another club (Colorado Rapids, in his case) is further proof that leaving Old Trafford can be a shock to the system.
The exceptions to the rule were two players who escaped United's old boys' network. Gerard Pique and Giuseppe Rossi, perhaps unlike some others schooled in Manchester, were not overrated on the basis of their old club. Unlike many others who left Old Trafford, they were undervalued when sold.
That cannot be said for the majority, and that suggests another windfall for United. Ferguson has a huge pool of players, many of whom may have to recognise the reality that they are unlikely to command a place at Old Trafford. Darron Gibson and Danny Simpson are the most obvious candidates to emulate Campbell and Martin and increase United's funds, but lesser-known players such as James Chester, David Gray, Tom Cleverley, Sam Hewson and Febian Brandy could do likewise.
However, would-be buyers would be advised to remember this: there is such a thing as a Manchester United player, but some are merely players who spent time at Manchester United.
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The Glazers are not concerned by Sir Alex Ferguson's lack of major activity in the transfer market despite a summer in which Manchester City have outspent United four to one.
This summer Ferguson has paid serious money only for Antonio Valencia to fill the gap left by Cristiano Ronaldo's departure to Real Madrid. Whereas Mark Hughes has paid about £79m at City for Carlos Tevez, Emmanuel Adebayor, Roque Santa Cruz and Gareth Barry, Ferguson is around £60m in profit after Ronaldo's departure for a world-record fee. That £60m is, the Glazers say, available for investment.
"The manager has a significant amount of money to invest if he wants to," said Tehsin Nayani, the spokesman for the Glazer family, whose ownership of Manchester United is in its fourth year. "The delay has been because the manager has not been able to locate the players he believes fit the Manchester Unitedmindset – players who are motivated to play for United. You don't want mercenaries and you don't want to pay over the odds for players not willing to give their all for the club."
Ferguson's signings apart from Valencia, who cost about £17m from Wigan Athletic, have been Michael Owen and the young forwards Gabriel Obertan and Mame Biram Diouf.
Nayani said that, although the Glazers accepted there would be a downturn in corporate spending at Old Trafford because of the credit crunch, the interest payment on the club's vast external debt – estimated at £666m – is serviceable.
"Manchester United are so far unaffected by the downturn," he said. "It would be foolish to say there would be no impact because you never know what is going to happen down the line but our season-ticket sales stand up well, in comparison to previous years.
"I have been saying that one should expect a downturn in our corporate sales but every club is faced with that. We do have a debt to service and that debt is significant but our interest payments are £43.3m a year while our operating profit was £80m topped off by an extra £25m from transfer sales. We are talking about a net amount of £60m and that is cash that can be reinvested in the squad – or if you prefer doing up the toilets or new carpets.
"The point is, there is money coming into Manchester United and one thing is certain that because of globalisation and the growing middle classes in India and the Far East, the appeal of football is set to grow and we are part of that story."
Federico Macheda, the striker who came to prominence at United last season by scoring two key goals as a substitute, feels he will benefit from working with Owen. "It is very important for me to learn from Michael because he is one of the best strikers in the world," the Italian said.
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Hopefully SAF sign 1 known star lol. As in the likes of aguero and etc.
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Originally posted by ViNnO:
Hopefully SAF sign 1 known star lol. As in the likes of aguero and etc.
no chance liao lar this season lol
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Originally posted by marcteng:
no chance liao lar this season lol
Lol u never know lor, 60million can pia for villa LOL.
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David Gill has pledged that none of the £80million received from Real Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo will go towards tackling Manchester United's spiralling debt.
As interest continues to mount on loans taken out by the Glazer family to purchase the club four years ago, it is estimated that United are now more than £700million in the red.
Under the circumstances, it must be tempting to use some of the world record windfall paid by Madrid to lure Ronaldo to the Bernabeu to pay a percentage off, especially as Sir Alex Ferguson does not feel there is sufficient value in the transfer market at present.
Long-time critics have insisted that is what will eventually happen.
However, following up a statement from the Glazer family's person public relations chief, Gill has left no doubt that Ferguson has all the Ronaldo cash at his disposal should he want it.
"No. It does not have to go against the debt," said Gill. "You cannot be more clear than that.
"We did not budget for it and it is there to be used."
Gill admitted he had mixed feelings as he checked to ensure the cash had been paid by wire transfer.
On one hand, it was hard to believe anyone would pay such a staggering sum for a single player - yet, like Ferguson, Gill was also aware United were losing a supreme talent.
"It was a phenomenal amount. Totally unprecedented," he said.
"But you don't get that sum of money for a run of the mill player.
"Ronaldo is one of the best in the world and there is a sadness he has left us.
"But he gave us six years' service, the last three of which were absolutely fantastic.
"He was professional about the way he went about his job and we wish him every success."
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actually, in finanical sense, I do hope the money helps to service the debt.
I don't wish MU to implode with debts and be a leeds.
better clear it asap.
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Manchester United chief executive David Gill has ruled out any attempt to match Manchester City's surge to the top of the spending stakes.
City have forked out some astonishing sums already this summer and it is claimed they are willing to offer John Terry £250,000-a-week in a desperate bid to entice him north from Chelsea.
Aside from finding Sir Alex Ferguson's successor when the most successful manager in Manchester United's history eventually decides to call it a day, Gill would probably concede wage inflation is the biggest medium-term problem he is likely to face.
Just as Liverpool and Arsenal are trying to wrestle with major financial issues in addition to putting a winning team on the pitch, so must United given their near-£700million debt.
So Gill has no interest in attempting to match City, or Real Madrid, the summer's other colossal spenders, for that matter.
"It is highly unlikely that we would want to go to those levels," said Gill.
"We don't think it's necessary because we are looking to the medium and long term.
"United has been around since 1878 and our job is to make sure it is still around for many more years in a sensible fashion.
"That is by generating our own income. There will be ups and downs but, overall, we think that what we are doing is having a sustainable business model for the long-term."
With City, the motive is fairly obvious. Mega-rich owners wanting to make a big impact.
At the Bernabeu, Gill senses a flaw.
"I don't understand the economics of what Real Madrid are doing," said Gill.
"Their turnover is not materially different to ours so I am not quite sure how they can make the profits to justify the salaries.
"It's none of my business I suppose but I don't think they can."
The departures of Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo, plus the refusal of Karim Benzema to entertain a move to Old Trafford once he knew Real Madrid were offering more cash, proves the lure of United cannot conquer all.
However, Gill is confident the attraction is still there, enough to ensure they can continue to recruit the players to keep them at the top.
"Not everyone wants to come. Not everyone loves Manchester United," he said.
"But if we continue to grow our revenue, that will deliver more profitable income, which we can then put into the players. Then we can continue to attract and retain the best players in the world.
"We should not under-sell our key assets. We have the history and heritage of Manchester United and 76,000 people in the stadium every week.
"I still think we are a major attraction."
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Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has slammed Manchester City over a poster campaign in the city, claiming they are "arrogant".
It is part of a long-running tactic from City fans to emphasise that they play in Manchester, while United's ground is actually in the borough of Trafford. No one has admitted responsibility for the poster.
The poster has got Sir Alex riled, who feels they have taken it too far. But he was quick to point out that City are only doing it as they feel inferior to the Red Devils.
The huge poster was erected at the bottom of Deansgate, which just so happens to be one of Manchester's busiest shopping areas. The poster reads: "Carlos Tevez, welcome to Manchester."
It is clearly meant to cause a reaction from United fans, who were desperate for Tevez to remain at Old Trafford after spending two years on loan at the Premier League champions.
There is also a spoof email which shows Michael Owen on crutches with the slogan "Welcome to Stretford".
''It is like one of those war adverts - Your Country Needs You,'' said Sir Alex. ''Arrogance comes in lots of different ways. I think it is daft.''
City have expressed similar sentiments on official merchandise in the past. 'This is our City', 'Greater Manchester' and 'Pure Manchester' were all the brainchild of advertising agency Grey London and depict City's pride in their roots.
''They were having a go at Manchester United,'' he said. ''They have had a problem ever since I came down here - Manchester United.
''You have to understand, when they get their moment to grasp for and to seize for, they are going to take it.''
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The billboard stands squarely where the road from Salford meets Deansgate, the commercial centre of the city. It shows Carlos Tevez, his arms outstretched above the slogan: "Welcome to Manchester". Like all good advertising, it has a number of subtle meanings. First of all, it points out that Manchester United are not technically based in Manchester, but the neighbouring borough of Trafford and there is the suggestion that the Argentinian is welcome at Eastlands in a way he was not under Sir Alex Ferguson.
All good advertising hits its target and Ferguson, many thousands of miles away in a hotel room in Malaysia, is certainly stung. "It's City isn't it? They are a small club with a small mentality," Ferguson retorts. "All they can talk about is Manchester United; they can't get away from it. That arrogance will be rewarded. It is a go at us, that's the one thing it is. They think taking Carlos Tevez away from Manchester United is a triumph. It is poor stuff."
Manchester City may have provided Ferguson with one of his bleakest experiences, the September day 20 years ago when, after a 5-1 defeat at Maine Road, he drove home and with barely a word to his wife went to bed and put his head under the pillow, "feeling like a criminal".
But until now they had been little more than a minor irritant. When, under Sven-Goran Eriksson, they did the double over United, it only slowed rather than blocked the Reds' path to another title. Now, funded by the oil of Abu Dhabi, and with a squad of 10 strikers, they see themselves as equals in a way they have not for a generation.
In Ferguson's eyes, there is only one reason why someone would swap the Premier League title holders and world club champions for a team who have gone 33 years without a trophy and finished ninth last season. Manchester City can now offer £7m salaries.
"Do you know what City's biggest triumph is? It's getting those players there. I don't know if they will do anything with them," he says. "It is not easy to get into that top four, so the biggest success of all is to just get the players there. They might not get beyond that.
"When someone offers you that kind of money, it is a big attraction to people nowadays. That is the reason they have gone there. At the last minute, from what I can gather, either Emmanuel Adebayor or his agent phoned us after they had agreed a deal with City and then did the same with Chelsea. He was desperate to get to either Chelsea or us."
Ultimately, Ferguson says, Manchester United "are protected by our titles". But he concedes that David Moyes and Martin O'Neill, who at Everton and Aston Villa dragged small squads tantalisingly close to the Champions League on resources they would consider laughable in the Gulf of Arabia, might find it a dispiriting summer. Moyes cannot afford £20m to make Jo's loan from Eastlands a permanent transfer, let alone the £200m Mark Hughes has spent in 13 revolutionary months.
"Manchester City's spending is demoralising only if you panic about the buying," Ferguson says. "At the end of the day, Everton did well against us, did brilliantly against Liverpool and well against Chelsea. It will not be easy for City and, to me, they don't even come into the equation.
"I don't look upon City as my biggest challenge. For all the buying they have done, they still have to pick a team with balance. That won't be easy for Mark. What's he got, 10 strikers? So if he picks a squad to go to Chelsea he has to leave seven behind, or five at least. And you don't expect Liverpool or Chelsea to die."
Ferguson is, however, concerned for Arsenal, which given the bitter history between himself and Arsène Wenger might seem surprising. But it happens. You can read Tony Benn's diaries and see his attitude to Enoch Powell change over three decades; by the end he calls him "Enoch" and goes to Powell's funeral describing him as "a friend who made a mistake".
So it seems to be with Wenger and Ferguson. Whereas once he would spit out the surname, Ferguson now calls his rival "Arsène". They are survivors with shared values of how football should be played, even if the cynic might say it is a sign that Arsenal are no longer a threat to United.
"The one who has the challenge this season is Arsène," says Ferguson. "He doesn't have the money and how he uses the £25m from Adebayor will be very, very interesting." He admits there has been a warming between the two and the old battles are now looked at with a veteran's nostalgia.
"Arsène is a winner," he says. "When Manchester United and Arsenal were going for those titles at the same time it was a competitive situation, not just between Arsène and myself, but on the pitch. It was volatile with Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira in the tunnel at Highbury and the incident at the end of the game at Old Trafford when they attacked Ruud van Nistelrooy. It was quite volatile, but they are different teams now.
"But Arsène will stay," says Ferguson, because Arsenal are "his club, built in his image" and it is hard to leave. "He is 59 now and he will not have the time to rebuild another club if he went off. Is Real Madrid his kind of club? I don't think so."
Real Madrid are assuredly not Ferguson's kind of club. Throughout last season he maintained a verbal guerrilla war against them – whether at United's training ground at Carrington, where he highlighted their links to Franco's grisly regime, or at a press conference in Yokohama during the Club World Championship, where he said he would "not sell that mob a virus". It is perhaps part of Ferguson's gloriously contradictory nature that he eventually sold them the most expensive player in world football.
"It has been a crazy summer," he sighs. "I would have been interested in some buying, but not when they talked of £50m for David Villa or £55m for Sergio Agüero. That does not seem sensible. But maybe the Ronaldo transfer and Kaká's move to Madrid for £56m sparked something off. Then you had Karim Benzema for £42m.
"But that is Madrid, that is their culture. No other club in the world has their flexibility to do that. Manchester City might have the money and, when they offer it, most of it will be cash.
"But Real Madrid don't deal in their own money. They are protected, obviously, by the banks and the Spanish government. It is a different, unusual system. When you look back a few years to when they were £250m in debt, yes, they sold their training ground, but they had a new state-of-the-art training ground built for them. And on their old training ground, they built four apartment blocks and gave one of them to Real Madrid. That is some deal."
However, every sale has its price. When David Beckham left for a £23m fee that officials at the Bernabéu described as "peanuts", Manchester United were expected to cope, but it took three years for them to win another championship, partly because the day Beckham was presented at Madrid was the day an unknown governor of a remote Siberian province decided to buy Stamford Bridge. The loss of Ronaldo has ripped a hole in United's squad bigger than that left by Beckham's departure – and for Roman Abramovich read Sheikh Mansour and Manchester City.
"The area that does concern us is where do we get 26 goals [that Ronaldo scored last season]?" Ferguson says. "That is a concern because I don't have a midfielder like a young Paul Scholes or a young Ryan Giggs who can give me 15-plus goals from midfield areas. We will have to redirect our play a bit more.
"Nani will improve, although he is not as mature as Ronaldo was at his age. I expect Anderson to improve and Darren Fletcher to establish himself as a big player in our squad. [Michael] Owen will get me goals, [Dimitar] Berbatov will be much better. And I don't have to deal with a certain person who is miserable because he is not playing."
Manchester United will change. Wayne Rooney will have to become more of a central striker. On last year's tour to South Africa, Ferguson said this would have to happen and yet, sometimes through necessity, Rooney often appeared on the left wing. It was where he found himself during the European Cup final, forced deeper by Barcelona's sweeping midfield moves, increasingly isolated and irrelevant. The disappointment must sting still because throughout the tour of Asia it is one subject Ferguson will not discuss.
"There will be three teams to beat," he says of the domestic season ahead. "Ourselves, Liverpool and Chelsea will be very close together. They will be encouraged because we have sold Ronaldo. The direction of our game will change because of that, but we will still be very difficult to beat. Rooney will go through the middle. Last season was a lot to do with Berbatov coming to the club and trying to understand what he was best at. You have to utilise what you have available. Some games Rooney did play wide left and in some matches it worked, but in others it was not a good position for him to be in. We will change that. He always wants to play – he sometimes thinks he is a centre-half. Have I toyed with the idea of making him skipper? Toyed is a good word. I don't think he is ready."
Ferguson adds: "Ben Foster, if he stays free of injury, is going to be top-drawer. He will be England's goalkeeper in South Africa next summer. He has to be, he is streets ahead of everybody else."
Foster, to his manager's mind, is potentially England's best goalkeeper since Peter Shilton retired in 1990, the year Ferguson's regime at Old Trafford began to flourish, the year Liverpool won the last of their 18 titles, a figure United have now equalled.
Ferguson did not make much of that, but now, perhaps because of his conflict with Rafael Benítez – whom he very rarely calls "Rafa" – he does sound enticed by the prospect of overtaking them. "There is a record there to be achieved, just as we have won the FA Cup more times than anyone else. But Liverpool winning the European Cup five times doesn't concern me. We have won it three times and had a chance of a fourth, but we will have another, you can be sure of that."
Ferguson claims Benítez, whom many Premier League managers consider aloof, is obsessed with him rather than the other way round. "I have never said a word about him. The only time I responded was when he made that gesture with Sam Allardyce [the crossing of the hands to suggest that Liverpool's game with Blackburn was won the moment they went two goals up].
"There was no doubt he was doing that. Liverpool were too quick to come out and respond that he was signalling they should take a free-kick a different way. That was bollocks. Absolute bollocks
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Mark Hughes has admitted Manchester City were deliberately trying to antagonise Manchester United with their now‑infamous Carlos Tevez poster campaign but insisted it was just "a bit of fun" and expressed bemusement about Sir Alex Ferguson's increasingly hostile attacks on the club.
From describing City as "all talk" at the time of their takeover to questioning their summer transfer spending, Ferguson has become increasingly outspoken about United's nearest rivals in the last few weeks, culminating in an interview over the weekend in which he branded them a "small club with a small mentality". The United manager was incensed that City had put up a poster in the city centre showing Tevez, his arms outstretched, above the slogan "Welcome to Manchester" – as if he was new to the city.
"It's City isn't it? They are a small club with a small mentality," Ferguson retorted. "All they can talk about is Manchester United; they can't get away from it. That arrogance will be rewarded. It is a go at us, that's the one thing it is. They think taking Carlos Tevez away from Manchester United is a triumph. It is poor stuff."
Hughes, however, pointed out there was a banner in place at Old Trafford since 2002 to poke fun at the number of years since City last won a trophy. "33 Years" is draped behind the goal at the Stretford End, and has changeable numbers so it can be updated at the end of every year.
"The poster campaign in Manchester is a bit of fun between the fans," Hughes said. "It is in a similar vein as the banner at Old Trafford which counts the time span since City's last trophy win. We're glad it's got so many people talking."
Privately, Hughes and his staff regard the fact Ferguson has felt compelled to attack City as a sign that he is taking them more seriously this season than he is willing to let on. Ferguson has questioned whether City have a realistic chance of breaking into the Premier League's top four, insisted that Tevez was not worth his £25m transfer fee, and claimed that players had gone to City purely for the money. He also alleged that Emmanuel Adebayor had invited United and Chelsea to sign him before finalising his move to City.
"Sir Alex Ferguson is a man I hold the utmost respect for and he is fully entitled to his opinion," Hughes responded. "I am very happy with the transfer business Manchester City have conducted this summer, and that the players we have recruited are as excited as I am about the season ahead."
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Lol hughes is such a joker, think he got financial banking jitau very big lol..
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When the advertising campaign was launched in town, I wasn’t alone in pointing out how small time it was for City to attempt to wind up United fans. Had a fan got out a pot of sky blue paint and made the same point you would have to applaud them for it. But for a football club to sink to such behaviour highlights more strongly than ever just how small time Manchester City is.
MCFC employed a London based advertising agency, Grey London, to come up with the slogans to get under the red half of Manchester’s skin. This is the company that does the advertising for Hugo Boss, Flash, Samsung, Pringles, Toshiba, Bold, Febreze and Fairy Liquid, amongst others, so would have cost an arm and leg. Apparently they can’t put a price on trying to wind up United fans though, sadly.
‘There’s only one team in Manchester!” is a favourite bluenose retort. Either denial or ignorance prevents them from acknowledging that Manchester United were given their name as a club from Newton Heath, before moving five miles to Old Trafford. City themselves have moved a similar distance from the crack den that is Moss Side to the Wastelands they now call their home. What a waste of council tax.
City don’t have any advertising boards for Adebayor, Santa Cruz or Barry, just their £25m striker who scored five league goals last season. The only player they have “advertised” is Tevez, using a picture of him joyfully running towards United fans, who he claims he will always love. They seriously forked out thousands of quid just to try and wind us up. I really struggle to think of such small-club mentality shown before. Sir Alex agrees.