As Ed Woodward’s fumbling in the transfer market looks set to destroy any ambitions Manchester United may have had in regards of a 21’st title, questions have to be asked of just what the hell is going on?
Last summer’s debacle when Woodward’s pursuit of any player half decent with a pulse ended with a monstrously overpriced Maroune Fellaini, in all but ‘Fergie time’of the transfer window has in many ways been put in the shade by this year’s shambles.
Following the early summer capture of Luke Shaw and Anders Herrera and then a chest thumping ‘biggest club in the world. We can buy anyone we want’ speech by Ed Woodward on MUTV, United fans sat back, smiled and waited with baited breath for others of a similar calibre to arrive.
Suddenly Ed was golden boy. He appeared on a mission to erase the memories of the Moyes era, when the ‘chosen one’ was promised riches such as Fabregas and had Ronaldo and Bale dangled before him. Only to end up with a £27 million plodding midfielder whose barnet is all that will be remembered when he is soon gone.
Players have left, Vidic and Ferdinand said goodbye and headed for pastures new. Giggs has retired to assist Luis Van Gaal and probably hold Woodward down as Luis strangles him any time now. The wages of Herrera and Shaw easily covered. The £60 million paid hardly a raindrop in a shower for the self-styled biggest club in the world. The list of players lined up to come to Old Trafford immense in both stature and class. Kroos, Fabregas (again), Muller, Di Maria, Vidal, Schweinsteiger, Benatia, Vermaelen… It goes on.
And yet nothing? Plenty of record breaking commercial deals. Millions upon millions came into the coffers as the Glazers rubbed their hands with glee. The luckiest day of their lives when an argument over a damned racehorse almost destroyed my club and brought that rabble through the door. But that is another story. Back to Ed.
No new faces. No dreaded breaking Sky news, no twitter love meltdown. No house hunting in Bowdon or Alderley Edge. No heart rendering, ‘the boy in me said sign for United.’ What was, is Woodward doing? How can a club of Manchester United’s size and stature and currently needing the biggest makeover of players in a generation mess this up?
As Chelsea, Arsenal, City and Liverpool strength immeasurably for the new campaign United appear set to begin the season with a squad even weaker than last. Van Gaal maybe a great coach but he cannot play centre midfield or dominate a back four (or five). With supporters worldwide frustrated to the point of despair, a side and club once feared under Ferguson are only one or two more injuries away, in my opinion set for another nine months of Moyes style mediocrity.
And who is to say now when realising the full extent of what he is up against that Van Gaal will even hang around? Surely his patience must be wearing thin as he ponders the coming months and what he has to work with. The comments of ‘we do not have a winger in the class of Ze Maria’ could not have been more pointed if he had fired a bow and arrow at the Glazers and their puppet Woodward.
Whether Van Gaal was lied to or Ed is unlucky or just simply a negotiating version of Mr Bean is not known. But whatever scenario is occurring there is no doubt a storm is coming. A red storm. A bad start and no signings will galvanise the ‘Glazer out’ campaign beyond all measure. No Norwich shirts this time around for feelings are running high and as the Glazer family continue to pillage and plunder their Mancunian red cash cow from across the ocean, they may well feel such will be the wrath soon placed them, it will simply not be worth the hassle. And sell up.
Anybody got a red knight phone number?
Hopefully in the next week or so this article will be viewed as simply over acting and stars, top players will be signed. A huge intake of breath by the red army and United will be back challenging for honours once more, and all this summer will have been just a bad dream. Sky Breaking news…………..still nothing has happened. But don’t despair because we are still the biggest club in the world and have loads and loads of money. What is going on?
While there’s still time left,albeit not a lot.it is very concerning the lack of activity.week on week the same rumours being recycled (we were on the verge of signing Vidal a month ago!)the squad meanwhile is hugely unbalanced.the idea of going into a season playing a back 3 comprising of just 3,very injury-prone,wavering form players is nothing short of ludicrous.
When the classy DeVrij went for a paltry £8 million and we showed no interest I was sure that a Hummels type signing must have been on the cards,but no,a rather odd obsession with Vermaelen aside (just what we needed another injury prone centre back);nothing has been forthcoming.
I cling to the hope that deals for the likes of Blind or Benatia are progressing behind the scenes but it’s lessening daily.Whatever happens now there’s a big need to relieve woodward of any transfer responsibilities and bring in a specialist to get the job done in future.
As it stands,I feel top 4 is still possible with this squad,as long as we’re very lucky with injuries (when have we been lucky with injuries lately?) that said we already have a lengthy sick list and we’re yet to kick a ball in anger!
All we can do now is hope!
Just seen on SSN that we’re bottom of the summer purchases table, even when you include the 17 year old keeper. Season stars tomorrow and we’re going into it with a formation that demands three centre halves, not the two we’ve used in the past. And two of our centre halves have left and Johnny Evans is injured. So GAME ONE of the season and our manager doesn’t actually have enough experienced players to fill the team sheet. Instead he’ll likely have to give a debut to Keane or Blackett. Or stick Fellaini in there. It’s an utter fucking shambles but more so than last summer. Last summer we were trying to improve a team that had won the title, this summer we’re trying to resuscitate a critically injured patient who’s been losing blood for 12 months.