What keeps you motivated?
A lot of factors come in to it. The most important thing is I’m at the right club. It’s a fantastic football club which demands the challenge all the time, every day and every year. We have the challenge of being at the top, I think that helps me. The second thing is you need good energy, natural energy which I’ve been blessed with and been fortunate enough to have. And the third thing is, I can keep going as long as my health keeps going and the same applies to every person. I’m 68 and so far my health has been standing up. And also the opportunity to work with very good footballers, with good desire and purpose about themselves. At Manchester United we don’t just build footballers in terms of just ability, we try to build their character and make them better human beings, in terms of standards and responsibilities. The response I’ve had over the years has been good. People have worked with the younger players, like the older ones, and they have a great response to the demands of the job, and I think that’s important.
And what about transfers?
I think it effects the supporters’ mentality over how a player handles the transfer fee, but not just that, the enormous amounts of money they are paid. I don’t think it rests easy with supporters. But we’re in such a competitive world now and the borders of how much people will pay to get the best players is changing. But we’ve bought players for quite high amounts, like Berbatov, Rio Ferdinand, Veron, Wayne Rooney. We try equate how we can get proper value before we do it. We take quite a good view on it, where we say, ‘Let’s look at our own young players, do they have the ability? How much can we trust them? And do we see a top player in them?’ I think the position we’re in now, I see some players and the values now, £40 million, £30 odd million, then we have to assess our own players first and we’re not bad. We’ve got some good young players who’ve come through the system, who understand the club, who are loyal to the club, and we can build on that.
And the debt?
The debt came about because the club was bought by out by an owner and no business bought these days is bought without debt. So because it’s a football club it seems to attract a different sort of negative reporting, via the media, and some of our fans. When Manchester United football club went plc it was without doubt that it was always going to be bought. Somebody was going to buy it, it was inevitable. It’s unfair for the Glazers that they should come under criticism for it when anybody could have bought it. I have to say they’ve done their job well, they support myself, the manager, they support the players, I’ve never been refused when I’ve been asked for money for a player, so what can I do, other than carry on the way I’m doing it. I’m allowed to carry on. I have no complaints.
The future?
What you have to do is maintain the success of the club and make sure that no matter when I quit the club is always in good hands, which brings me back to the point of having young players, so there’s no need for a complete overhaul of the playing squad. Looking at the squad I’ve got at the moment, I’ve probably got 12 players all under 21, which is fantastic, and the future should be pretty secure with them. Going back to my health, if I’ve got that, I can carry on, and obviously there will be a point when I do quit, but when that is, I have absolutely no idea, because I tried it a few years ago and it was an absolute disaster. Oh christ, it was agony. It was absolute agony. My wife made me change my mind and she was dead right. She would have been soon fed up of me in the house! But now, when the time comes, I think the club should be OK.
Interview with CNN.
Sir Alex is GOD.
i really hope you’ll be here 5 years from now fergie.really good points
And his wife is Goddess
Glazers helpful? I doubt it. Fergie should really stop backing them and say we have NO money, and there IS value in the transfer Market. Hell, Ozil is available for 12 Million!
After we signed Chicharito and Hernandez, Fergie said we’ll make 2 signings atleast. Then he said one signing, and now NO signing? It’s all becoming very clear.
Yes, he’s right business without debt is hard to find nowadays… but 1.5 Billion?!? And this is the one of the biggest sports team in world, if the not the biggest.
The Glazers are here for the $$$$. Nothing else! I’ve seen a video about him, described by his colleagues that he doesn’t care about sport.
And Gill’s just a liar.
Eight08 – Oh get a grip pal. Why the fuck would Fergie lie ? He is fucking nearly 70, he would walk, what would he gain from covering up? There are dozens of clubs in for Ozil, do you seriously think he would go for 12? Bollocks. By the way stop believing all you read in The Sun. Where the hell did you muster up a figure of 1.5 billion? Don’t let facts get in the way eh mate?
Anyway see you in two weeks as off to Rhodes now!
Laters lads
8-08
chicharito and hernandez are the same fella. you mean smalling i imagine…
as many have said before, the only time i will be concerned for United is when this man leaves…
Fergie had no right to protect this club. When he retires, he know he has done a good job and the rest is for the supporter and the owner to think. Fergie is not boss or owner of the club. Why should he care?
@Eight08
No-one knows that Ozil is available for £12mill. There is paper talk about it being the case BUT nothing official. And we all know how reliable paper talk is when it comes to rumours. Personally I believe its way too early for his price to have dropped so low so either its made up bullshit from the papers or its an intentional leak from Werder with the intention to get a bidding war started quickly so they can spend a month playing clubs off against each other to get the kind of fee he should command in the current market rather than the fee for a player who is almost out of contract and won’t sign a new one. If no bids are in place by the last week of August then that’s the only way I can see them accepting 12mill
At the end of the day anyone who claims SAF is telling lies about the lack of value in the market is deluded. The odd exception (For example Sneijder thats always brought up) doesn’t prove his claim as wrong. There is very little value in the market atm and the odd exception doesn’t mean the club should sign them. A player has to be considered the right player who enhances the squad and that SAF feels will fit into the setup. Certainly even if the situation was as bad as the Media and MUST would like people to believe players like Sneijder last year and the paper talk of Ozil are in Uniteds range, as shown by the money that was spent on Smalling
Oh and as King Eric mentions your debt figures wrong. And not a little wrong but 1bn too much
Eight08 – completely agree, anyone who doesn’t find the debt abhorrent obviously hasn’t looked at the accounts.
King Eric – Try reading http://andersred.blogspot.com/ and see if you head is still in the clouds!
LUHG!
Folks off topic big style but hopin somebody in here can help. Anyone have an idea about where to get match tickets from? I live in Belfast and usually youngsve to travel with a supporters club and you never get the big matches on top of that the spurs match at the end if the season cost me 50 quid for a 35 quid ticket. I have my heart set on the scum in the middle of September so if anyone has any advice or info it would be great cheers.
really annoys me how some people deem themselves qualified to attack the integrity of our manager.
does he understand the club’s situation better or do you, with your daily mail and tabloid journalist reports?
God bless Cathy Ferguson.
as for Ozil, he maybe available for 12 mill but thats only the starting bid mate
Well I had and still have my doubts about how much we can spend. Consider this. If this summer were in a similar position we were in the summer of 2006 and we needed to buy a CM, would we pay 18 million for Carrick?
@King Eric
Enjoy your vacation mate!
Of course given the recent inflation of transfer fees, Carrick’s tag today would be around 20-25 mil, but you get the idea…
off topic, but regarding the recently quoted Fergie’s worry for the 25 players list, this is a good read
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=810540&sec=england&root=england&cc=4716
@Eight08 and evratheking.
Does SAF strike you as someone who lets others put words in his mouth? Do you honestly believe that if it truly is his opinion that the Glazers have fucked up the club, that he would sit under it quietly and watch them destroy his own masterpiece and creation? And what gives you the right to question his knowledge and wisdom regarding transfers? If SAF says that there is no value in the market, there IS no value in the market, mates.
Value is measured in price vs. performance. Price is a variable that is known in the beginning and is based on performance in the past with prediction of what could happen in the future. But performance often doesn’t show up. To perform well other factors have to come in like adjusting to new facilities, players, staff, lifestyle and so forth. Not to mention, either you are a United player or you are something else. What SAF is saying is that the price doesn’t fit these factors. Clearest example of that is the ridiculous spending of the blue bastards. They are absolutely clueless in their estimation of what is value.
lord alex ferguson> the greatest coach i’ve ever known. his words are the best i have ever heard from the mouth of a coach.
long live lord alex ferguson and i wish him happy many more years.
lord alex if u can hear me, u are perfect
Asite. You know Sir Alex?
I meant Smalling in my first post, sorry… Honest mistake.
@King Eric
But Ozil is available for less than 20 Million, I’m sure. Around 15 Million, maybe.
Then again, I love Fergie and I not criticizing him. I love what he has done but he is no God. And I never read The Sun, and never plan on to either.
We bought Carrick for 18 Million. And If Ozil’s available for less than 20.. that shows Value.
there IS Value in the market. The way City and Madrid buy, just shows there isn’t.
I think its pretty obvious, that we have NO money. But yet every time Fergie keeps on saying there is, and saying The Glazers have been fantastic owners… how?
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=158410515904690959# : Have a look at that video.
And our debt is over 1 Billion, it’s been proven.
enjoy your vacation mate!
*I’m
Great interview with the gaffer, who once again reaffirms his excellent grasp on all matters Manchester United.
It’s becoming clear now that supporters fall into one of two camps now, those who believe and trust Sir Alex’s unwavering ” I have to say they’ve done their job well, they support myself, the manager, they support the players”…
…and those who are basically calling him a liar. Who frankly, should hang their heads in utter shame.
@Tony Starks
Exactly what i was thinking mate…very well said..i agree with you a 100%…how can people actually question Sir Alex when he knows what is best for the club…i can bet my last dollar, if someone comes in and wanted to destroy the club by just piling up the debts and pocketing money for their own use at the expense of our beloved club…do anyone here really believes that our gaffer would keep quiet and not do anything about it?? After all he has done to bring the club to where it is today, would you really think he would not at least give them a mouthful or do something about it instead of being relaxed and for the umpteenth time says that he backs them? Please go home, sit on your toilets or where ever that you people think about these things and be logical about it…i am so bloody fed up with all the friggin’ so called experts in the bloody tabloids who are blowing things out of proportion….i believe in sir alex and will always do so..please stop questioning his integrity…whatever he does..he does for the betterment of the club..nothing else…
I was wondering when the cavalry was going to show up.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not calling him a liar. It’s just, I feel he should stop backing the Glazers. That’s it, nothing else.
and no way am I attacking him.
@phill
yesssssssssss i do . in the field
If the boss is saying this is the way it is, then we should believe him. Has he not earned our trust?
@ King Eric You lucky cunt lol.
einsi01 says:the blue bastards dont know the value of players
well some news for you pal, they dont need to know maybe if
they owed hundreds of millions they too might talk about value
I’d love to believe SAF is telling the truth but I just can’t. This “there’s no value in the market” is frankly bollocks. Prices are no higher than they were five years ago (we’ve had a recession!) and in any case SAF was always the last person to worry about that sort of thing. How much did he worry about value when he kept increasing his bid from from £22m to £31m for Berbatov? Ferguson’s not always had the money he wanted but one thing has always been constant – when he gets it he spends it. Quickly. Remember he couldn’t get Hargreaves first time round so rather than wait he bought Carrick instead? And then bought Hargreaves as well the next year! This is not someone who lies awake at night worrying about getting value for money. So long as the money keeps on flowing he’s quite content.
Anyway, the last people to worry about value in the market are a club that received an outrageous £80m (!!!) for a player. The one consolation for losing Ronaldo was that surely (we thought) we can outbid anybody now. Hasn’t worked out that way, has it?
The change occurred last summer when there was an announcement that we would henceforth make no big signings of players over 27 years old (just a year afrer signing Berbatov who was 28). This is the exact strategy the Glazers used at their US football team – concentrate on young, cheap players and save as much money as possible.
Ferguson is legitimising the Glazers plans by going along with them. He should call their bluff – insist they give him money to spend or leave. He’s the only person with the clout to influence them.
fergie is starting to piss me off now, im sick of his lies. there is no doubt that we need players, and he claims we have money but won’t spend it. thats like having £100 and going into a chippy and ask for chips and they say £2.00 and saying no its okay i will starve
city are paying over the odds but they are still improving. we claim that we can but won’t so we are refusing to improve
@Eight08: When Sir Alex says he has the money but chooses not to spend it, and then you say he doesn’t the money because there is none available, then you are calling him a liar. You may not have used that word, but the bottom line is the same. And you did use that word to describe Gill, even though what Gill is saying is not materially different to what Sir Alex is saying.
There are two parts to this issue: whether there’s money, and if so, whether it’s worth spending it, given the talent that’s available and the prices that are being asked.
On the first part, I’m prepared to take Sir Alex’s word for it. Not because I think the sun shines out of his arse (even though it does!), but because he’s a smart guy and anyone who’s that smart and that experienced in business could find a million ways to avoid the question or work around it, without resorting to telling a blatant untruth. Business leaders, politicians and almost anyone in the public eye, does this all the time. If he says the money is there, then it’s there. If the money really wasn’t there, he would be a fool to blatantly lie about it when there are so many other ways to avoid the question — and Sir Alex is nobody’s fool.
On the second part, the issue of value, that’s a subjective call. It’s a matter of opinion — and so it doesn’t make sense for anyone to say that’s “untrue” or “wrong”, because “fact”, and “truth” and “right” doesn’t come into it; it’s just an opinion. And furthermore, it’s *his* opinion, only the best fucking manager who ever lived!
Personally, I think Ozil would be a snap at 15m (if in fact he can be bought for that). But that’s just my opinion, and Sir Alex’s opinion is worth a whole lot more than mine. What I heard was that Ozil’s current club have failed to reach a new deal with him, and in another year he’ll be available for free (in fact, he would be able to sign a pre-contract agreement in January for free transfer), so they’ll take whatever they can get (so the story goes). But I am sure others will be after his signature too, and since some of those clubs are fools with more money than sense, and might be prepared to drive the price up to stupid levels just to “get their man”, it would idiotic of Sir Alex to come out now and say “yes, we want Ozil”.
So only time will tell.
i understand and agree to a certain extent with the anti-glazer sentiment…i’m not a big fan of the debt totals they are running either, but i personally feel like enough is enough. The overall value of the club still makes it the most valuable sports club in the world…they will eventually sell and the debt burden will be lessened.
however, the glazers are not going to sell until they can get the price they want…when they do sell there will probably be two options for potential buyers 1.) a billionaire with a fortune in the oil industry who may or may not be a ruthless cunt of a human being or 2.) someone who will run the debt total the same or possibly even higher than the glazers are currently. if you want them out, let them make their money and leave…as unfortunate as it is, sports are a business these days (full disclosure, as a yank i see it in our sports every day), and unfortunately money comes before what the fans want/deserve. this is simply a sad fact of life. i’m also beginning to get the feeling again that it’s more of an anti-american sentiment than an anti-glazer sentiment (again, full disclosure, as a yank i may be biased in the way i see this.) i’m 29 years old and started supporting united since king eric was still the captain…i’m used to the “glory hunter” jibes from our enemies, but lately a lot of these anti-american comments i’m reading from our supporters (not necessarily in this very thread, but overall) have me feeling like i’m not wanted as a supporter.
sorry for the long rant, but this is something i’ve been thinking of for awhile now, and it’s a slow day at work!
one love
ps…a lot of the things i’ve been reading have suggested united would be better off with the “barcelona model”….has anyone seen in the news today of barca’s debt totals (which have resulted in their inability to pay their employees?)
Jaysus when you read back and think, a fucking fight/disagreement over Horse Sperm literally started this ball rolling( no pun intended).
Fuck the open market, bring back Communism and being capable of sending traitors to Siberia.
Keep fighting the good fight Sir Alex, ffs what a fucking pickle we would be in if we did not have you.Icon***
@evratheking
And please remember that
1) Andersred is an attention whore who isn’t far off Keith Harris level.
2) He works for MUST. Hardly makes him impartial which is shown by his analaysis. While he never lies and his figures can be seen in black and white the problem is the way he interprets them and the way he chooses to ignore facts that don’t play into his view or fail to explain anything to a normal reader that add context to his points and hence weaken his argument
While we shouldn’t ignore the fact there is debt its not critical. At club level a good profit is made AFTER servicing the debt. And our revenue figures are increasing and becoming less reliant on Match Day and Prize Money
@Wakey evening mate, how are you, well i hope? See you are still on the same tack mate.
I know you and I and most lads will never agree on this.We have made our beds so to speak.
I dont want to get into the Financial aspect mate i just find it difficult to type and react over a written page on a blog this serious area of the club.When you are debating monetary points.
What I cant get, and must ask you this slur you loosely through out regards Mr Green and Mr Harris. In your own words ” Attention Whores” please back this up with FACTS.
Cheers.
@Eight08
He should stop backing the Glazers because people like you who listen to MUST and the tabliods think he should? Do you not think he knows better about the situation and how it impacts the team than we do
@Chrisw
Value is subjective on the player in question though. To say prices haven’t increased is complete bullshit because the same kind/level of player is now nearly double the price.
And this whole “Cheap Young Players to save money” is certainly bullshit as young players who have the potential to be United quality aren’t cheap. Is 12-14mill for Smalling Cheap? ofc its not and young players will have a fairly high fail rate
The polciy on over 27 year olds does make sense (And was actually in place when Berba was signed as well) because you are approaching the last few years of a players career. Sure they could be like Giggs and play for many more seasons but the chances of that aren’t great and certainly not to keep their level. And should they flop the resale value is going to be nowhere near what you have paid if you are silly with over 27 signings. Either they need to be a player that Fergie thinks is really special or the price has to be resonable for an older player. It makes perfect sense (And even more so in the NFL where the Injuries end a high percentage of players careers before they are 28)
On Berba for a minute the fee didn’t really keep increasing. He was a player the club had pursued all summer and the deal was by all accounts a done deal at £24mill UNTIL the Fan Site incident. If they hadn’t made their site look like the official site and if they hadn’t posted a made up story about the Berba deal being done which then wasn’t picked up by the sun and reported as an official site it would have been 24mill. Even after that caused Levy to dig his heals in the final price only got so inflated because it was transfer deadline day and City then got money and tried to beat us to him. It was pay up or have wasted the whole summer chasing our target and end up empty handed. TBH its why I’m personal glad we are taking a “Won’t be ripped off” stance now because we shouldn’t be overpaying, if rather like we saw last summer with Costa the club have a valuation, a relistic amount over that which they will pay and if they get greedy we just walk away.
I would also add that when people say “He never used to mind”. Theres been some big money transfers for players considered special but most of the transfer activity has been in the lower ranges for players who have then been made into stars. ATM the special players are hard to get because the midrange players are going for special player amounts so the focus has been on picking up mid range players who can be made special
jesus what the fuck!!! how many times has sir alex got to repeat himself and people still call him a liar @08 eight your just talking bollocks first the glaziers bought utd for 750mill its now worth 1.84bill thats the biggest growth of any football club since they took over,then you call sir alex a liar then your not calling him a liar all the antis just don’t want to believe anything but utd are in trouble, i’m convinced now if sir alex showed a bank statement showing 60mill to spend on players the antis would still call him a liar.this is getting fucking stupid were man utd fans we should be supporting the club and it seems people have been brainwashed when they have no idea.i vowed i’d avoid getting into these discussions but calling sir alex an out and out liar with abouslutly no basis makes my blood boil.
@thewhitepele10
I have been arguing against the Barca setup since Keith harris mentioned it back in his first interview about the Red Knights. It appeals to football fans who are clueless about business and finances as it gets them cheap tickets and allows them to push the club into buying names for the sake of it BUT its a model that only really works because of the governmental and banking help they get over there which they wouldn’t get in the UK (Just look at the Inland Revenue with Pompey. If this was spain they would get help to pay this off through a shady deal at regional gov level or by pressure being put on banks to give interest free loans)
The problem with Football fans seems to be that when it comes to football they just refuse to live in the real world. They expect big money spent on players but them to not have to pay ticket prices that are in line with other entertainment. Perhaps that was viable 40 years back but these days its cloud cookoo land. Football clubs have to be run like real business’s and that means using real business techniques and practices and maximising revenue streams.
@RedScot
First with Harris, he is well known for being an attention whore. Even Gill pretty much said it when asked about the Red Knights. If you have a look into him you would see he likes to stick his nose into football and pretends he is some expert but his track record really is far from good.
TBH you don’t have to look further than the Red Knight Interviews he gave to see this. Everyone was different and told a different story of what the Red Knights wanted to do but each would contain some new headline grabbing comment that engaged the fans and the media but would in his next interview be backtracked on but which was reported in the small print as he had another headline comment.
If you look at his record he has two that went fairly well (Chelsea and Villa) two that were a disaster (Thaksin Shinawatra at Man City andEggert Magnusson at West ham) and atleast two he totally screwed up and hence the takeovers never happened (Everton and Newcastle, Newcastle especially where a deal was on the table). There are probally some I’m missing.
He was also in Charge of the Football League when the ITV Digital callapse happened. ITV Digital’s co owners Granada and Carlton offered to settle for £50mill with the league, Harris demanded no less than £130mill more. He took them to court, lost and the league got NOTHING from the bankrupt company putting many clubs on the brink.
At the end of the day he cares about 2 things. 1) getting his name and face in the media and 2) Making sure he maximises his fixers fee
With Andy Green its a personal observation. At the start while his articles were still a little skewed but they were more rounded. Everyone will have a slant so that’s acceptable as long as there is some attempt to be balanced. As he has become more well known and since he started working for MUST he has got more extreme seemingling because he has realised the more extreame he gets with his posts the more he get his face and name in the media
I sorta get the idea i dont know why, but someone is challeged on proof fails all the time.lol
A tad Rehetoric and sound bites me thinks.
But what do I know a simple Scots lad with a razor sharp Math brain just not so smart with language.
Cmon United getting excited as fuck.
Well I back Sir Alex firstly, The Club secondly, The Likes of Mr Green and Mr Harris Thirdly My judgement Fourth.
@ Costas
‘Cavalry’……lol..On cue and in full force!
@chrisw
Hello mate…i would just like to point out something to you about what you said :
“Remember he couldn’t get Hargreaves first time round so rather than wait he bought Carrick instead? And then bought Hargreaves as well the next year! This is not someone who lies awake at night worrying about getting value for money. So long as the money keeps on flowing he’s quite content.”
Just like to mention that Sir Alex did spend because he was actually building a team during that time. Of course he would spend and he has built a team which he feels is good enough to challenge for honours this season..and it definitely makes sense if he feels the team is good enough that he does not actually need to add to it with quality that is on par with what we have now…i think he is saying that the players who are priced out of this world is actually not worth the price coz they are good but not extraordinary..he did actually try players like villa, benzema and a few others but they all seemed to go somewhere else..other players i guess are not really worth it in his eyes..who are we to say that those players he must sign?? who are we to say that he does not know what he is doing and trying to lie to us the fans to uphold the glazers plans?? I feel that is total bollocks. In his eyes..there is no value and i believe him coz he has tried to sign players whom the whole world feels would add a different dimension and give manchester united the edge…why does he have to sign players and waste money on players who would not give anything different to improve the team? But maybe, he still has a trick up his sleeves, the transfer window is not closed yet….you never know if Sir alex sees someone who can still add to the squad? If you think you know better then him…maybe you should find a way to prove yourself and maybe take over his place..then man utd will be even more glorious then what we already have at this moment…:-) just kidding mate on the last sentence!
Listening MUST and tabloids? I’m not against Fergie. I’m against his words, which are saying the Glazers have been good owners? how? You explain that to me. Over 1 billion in debt for fuck’s sake!
And if you expect me to believe United have money to spend, you’re out of your head! I clearly remember him stating that there are little tweeks here and there and Will make a few signings (after signing Smalling and Hernandez) . A month later He said one more signing, now he’s saying no more signing… surely something is up?
The Glazers have been shit owners! Are you telling me you’re happy with the Ticket prices? Thanks to that no good local fans can go nowadays and it’s filled with daytrippers… Are you telling me you’re happy with Debt? Are you telling me you’re happy with United spending around 20 Million every summer transfer window? HOW THE FUCK CAN SOMEONE BACK THE GLAZERS!?
Fergie – you’re a lying old bstd! There I’ve dared to say it. He’s lining his pockets and leaving a great legacy – for his kids and grandkids. Yes, he’s done fantastic bringing us all the trophies over all these years, he’s a great manager. But he’s trying to fool us into believing all this debt doesn’t matter. It does.
When he retires and puts his feet up with all his millions, who’ll be here to pick up the pieces?
There’s so many short-sighted fans who only look at the trophies.
For me, by supporting the Glazers, his legacy is tainted.
@Red Devil
He never disappoints, does he?
@frank: You say that the blue bastards „don‘t need to know about value since they don‘t owe hundreds of millions.“
First of all: all clubs sooner than later have to consider value in market. Look at Chelsea. Abramovich first approached the Prem by oozing cash to Chelsea. You can argue that it worked but it didn’t take us (United, since I’m not sure where you come from) long to knock them down again. If the theory about “cash equals success” is true, then Chelsea would be dominant. But that’s not the case, is it? Chelsea has stopped their mindless spending and is starting to realize that success is built on other factors. The money has to be there yes, but they are meaningless if they don’t correlate to other things.
Secondly: When players sign for “the club of the hour” like Real Madrid, they tend to lose value as soon as the statement has been released, much like a new car driven from the lot. They are now part of group were talent is equal to theirs, and hence are no longer the wonder kid of the team. One would think that a “galácticos” of 11 would sum up as something unbeatable. But that rarely happens and instead of having excellent men of 11, you got good men of 11.
And this is where the blue bastards come in. They signed Bridge, Lescott, and Santa Cruz, way over the odds last year, players that made no impact at all last season. They furthermore got Bellamy and Adebayor which I would bet good money are leaving the club. The everlasting Wright-Phillips is also been shown the door. And the bidding-price for these players? Next to nothing. They have limited their change to sign for good clubs and have put their own career in jeopardy. Good player all of a sudden became merely an average one. And you think that this will not be a factor, Frank?
Last year their record-breaking expensive squad was in the common City-fan’s mind good enough to break for honors. It didn’t go as planned, otherwise they wouldn’t be selling them. The blue bastards are still paying over the odds in their recent signings. Some people never learn, do they?
Frank, this has everything to with value. But the blue bastard’s problem is much bigger than all this. They just got so small mentality.
@RedScot
First of all I have given you plenty proof on many things, you just refuse to accept any facts whatsoever.
On proving people are attention whores all you can do is show their actions which I have done for Harris and on Andy Green (Seriously stop treating him as the gospel, learn something about finance and the real world and then go and read his blog from post 1 again. You will see what I mean about him becoming an attention whore. The more fame and money he has made out of his stance the more one sided and extreame he has become as it maximises his exposure in the media AND exposure for his blog. As I said when he started I didn’t usually agreee with his interpretation but he did atleast try and give people most of the facts to make up their own mind. Now he force feeds people sound bites for the media to enhance his own profile. Anyone can see this just by reading his blog)
@Eight08
Lets explain it again, Perhaps this time you will get it into your small brain. The debt is £509million. If you really want to skew it you can include the PIK’s which pushes it to about £730mill but these shouldn’t be included as they aren’t club debts. Thats a fair bit below 1bn.
Debt in business isn’t unusual or infact a bad thing. Its usually a lot more cost effective and profitable to run with some debt, the £509mill is slightly on the upper end of the acceptable level of debt but its serviable without any problem. I would actually rather we were operating with a managed debt that allows the club to maximise profits than to operate without debt and waste money. I know when you are told as a normal person about debt being bad its hard to understand how in business it can be a good thing but as long as its servicable then it is
On the transfers you always have to take comments with a pinch of salt as its about negotiating tactics especially in today’s inflated world. If you should that you are desperate for a certain player then you may as well birn 10mill. And its about finding players than ENHANCE the squad, how many players seriously are out there that you can say with certaintly would add to the squad. How many of those are available and are so at realsitic fees? There isn’t many as you can see by the fact the only club really buying players is city and they are just buying up avergae players for world class fees. I would also add that when SAF talks about Andersons and Hargreaves being left out of the squad it doesn’t show a manager who thinks he is done in the market, rather one who is being smart and playing down the speculation rather than encouraging the likes of city to steal any potential target.
As for 20mill, we have generally spent more than that most seasons. I’m not concerned if we do only spend 20mill however, we aren’t city, real or chelsea buying for the sake of it and any fan who thinks this is how we should operate should just piss off and support one of these soulless teams. United always been about building the best squad not the best collection of individials and they shouldn’t be spending money on anyone but those they feel are or could be the right player for the squad. If that means putting 30mill+ bids in for Benzema or Villa or 7mill bids for Hernandex then it doesn’t matter.
On Ticket prices, if we lived in cloud cookoo land where everything was perfect then ticket prices are too high BUT seriously what exactly did the Glazers do. They took a look at our rivals and did exactly what all the shareholders had been demanding the PLC did for the previous 10 years and actually bring prices inline with both their rivals and other entertainment areas. The season tickets were underpriced significantly and they were risen to around the price of Liverpools tickets and closer to the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Spurs (Even when applying the North/South cost difference United tickets are a lot lower and in actually terms massivly lower). They also brought them inline with the costs of going to a concert or a show. I mean seriously here you are wanting united to blow silly money on players who are worth a fraction of the fees and wages and then you bitch about tickets being priced at the GOING RATE FOR ENTERTAINMENT. Do you want United run into the ground like Barca and Real when we live in a country where the club would get NO help from the Banks or local and national government if they did. If you do then you are a bigger idiot than I thought.
It is a shame that it does push some supporters away as it moves the prices outside what they can afford but sadly that’s sport these days. TBH I think a lot of season ticket holders complaints however come from the fact it seems so much in one sum but when broken down by match on match the prices just aren’t higher than equivalentent entainment types and a bit of forward planning with budgets would mean a lot of those who say they can’t anymore afford it probally could
Are you David Gill in disguise?
@Eight08
No i’m just someone with a brain who isn’t living in a dream world but lives in the real world,
Sadly too many football fans are like you and they live in some fantasy land that isn’t realistic or consistent with the way business works
A brain against more than 50,000 fans at Old Trafford. Dear me, well done.
@Wakey
Care to substantiate any of that crap about me? It would be great if I was making a single penny out of any of this, but sadly I’m not.
As for being an attention whore, I’m sorry you think that, but the two main pieces of work I’ve done; the first full analysis of the bond issue in January and the First Allied work got attention because people thought they were interesting. That’s why they got coverage in the broadsheets and on TV and radio. Now journalists ask me for my views on things and I tell them. No doubt you would do the same if they called you.
Andy