Is The Party Over Already? …
Is the party over already for Sir Alex and the Premiership champions?
The manager will return to his desk after holidaying in the Cote D’Azur to face an in-tray suddenly filled with files stamped ‘Urgent.’ It was not meant to be this way.
The manager, the team and fans were entitled to the mother of all long celebrations after United won the title, drowning the disappointments of Milan and Wembley in a sea of champagne and good cheer.
The daring post-FA Cup snatch of Nani and Anderson, plus the positive outcome to a year-long pursuit for Owen Hargreaves, had left Sir Alex contemplating possibly his best set of players for six years. Most observers hailed the transformation. With three astute purchases, Sir Alex had a squad at his disposal blessed with precocious youth, variety, depth, strength and cover in almost every position. The final two years of Fergie’s reign could yet be his most glorious.
A month on and instead of blue skies, United’s pre-season forecast is suddenly cloudy.
The United manager should be braced for a deluge of criticism if he fails to address and quickly, the threadbare state of United’s attack. Wayne Rooney is United’s only recognised goal-scorer. Louis Saha is no more than a porcelain ornament these days, whilst Alan Smith is on the verge of mutiny. All this, at a time when national and European competition for forwards has rarely been so fierce.
Sir Alex must have relished watching Thierry Henry posing for the cameras at the Nou Camp, given that it weakened a rival and shortened the odds on United retaining the title. At the same time however, Henry’s departure surely signals Arsene Wenger’s imminent return to the transfer market, with both managers likely to be chasing the same players.
At the last count, United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Spurs, Newcastle, Real Madrid and AC Milan had good reasons to augment their firepower. United considered Nicolas Anelka last month but opted not to pursue an £8 million deal for the Frenchman. Should Sir Alex revive his interest again, he will find the fee has jumped to £11 million, according to press reports, with Arsenal now rivaling United for the player’s signature and able to offer the most emotional of returns to the big time.
Negotiations for Barcelona’s Eto’o went nowhere, leaving Sir Alex needing to elbow past Benitez or Wenger with a sizeable war chest if he is to reel in either Huntelaar or Torres.
If the manager fails, it will be demeaning and very public and will take the shine off what should be a glorious summer. Sir Alex may have to look again at the ageing David Trezeguet, at the recovering Michael Owen or at Eidur Gudjohnsen, a forward entitled to be wary of swapping Catalonia for the isolation of the Old Trafford substitute bench.
Thus, Ferguson could do without the showdown talks due at the month’s end with Alan Smith. The manager may not deem the forward worthy of an improved contract but the public fallout has alerted every selling club to United’s need and consequently added substantially to the usual United surtax.
The new tactical disposition of the team moves emphasis away from attack to midfield but Sir Alex can not relish a title defence with just Wayne Rooney in attack. Saha’s fitness can not be relied upon, nor the contribution of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer be guaranteed beyond the next match.
And what of Giuseppe Rossi? United have maintained complete silence as interest in the player has risen. Rossi may soon be the subject of a tempting £6 million bid from Italian clubs. This would be excellent business for United but represent another nail in the coffin of United’s youth academy.
If the forwards provoke heartburn, Sir Alex will find no comfort in surveying the ranks of his goalkeepers.
Edwin Van Der Sar looked less commanding last season with every promise that Ben Foster would return to inherit the number one jersey. The England keeper’s cruciate ligament injury is not only bad luck but an upset to the manager’s planning, leaving him reliant for another year on 37 year old EVDS and Tomasz ‘Calamity’ Kuszczak, a disaster waiting to happen.
Behind the scenes too, there is the rumbling public relations controversy of the Automatic Cup Ticket scheme. Ferguson can hardly be held accountable for the club’s shoddy attempt to gain an extra few quid but it could be the manager who finds himself being button holed on the subject by a disgruntled fan at 2am on the way back from a European game.
United are far from a crisis and look well equipped to test the resolve of Chelsea and other pretenders to their throne. Yet, Sir Alex will have to move sharply to maintain the lead over his rivals and ensure that the valiant efforts of last season are not slowly undone.
(On Jun 26th, 2007 at 8:20 am)
what a pile of alarmist bilge. Are you trying to get a job on the Guardian or what?
If there’s cause for concern at Old Trafford, God help their rivals. You forgot to mention Chelsea in those short on firepower - also the fact that they’ll be missing Essien and Drogba for several weeks as the African Cup gets underway. Nobody other than Chelsea are even worth a mention. Get a life.