The Next Big Thing …
Goalkeepers Edwin Van Der Sar and Tomasz Kuszczak face an anxious wait whilst Ben Foster decides whether to accept Sir Alex’s offer of a return to Old Trafford.
The manager announced that he wanted Foster back next summer, after receiving glowing bulletins on the form of his loan star from Watford’s manager Aidy Boothroyd.
Ferguson said: “I get a report on him every month from Adrian Boothroyd. It covers everything - Ben’s form, training and development. Ben will be England’s next goalkeeper - if not very soon. He will come back to us next season. Bringing him here from Stoke was fantastic. I think we’ve done great business in bringing both Ben and Tomasz Kuszczak to the club.”
“Without question, Ben will come back here. All we have done in terms of the goalkeeping situation is identify really good talent and secure their future. We know Ben has a good future in the game. He is doing well at Watford and, at his age, has everything in front of him, because I believe him to be England’s best young goalkeeper.”
Sir Alex’s announcement should provoke disquiet among the Old Trafford goalkeeping ranks because Foster has already declared that he has little taste for a return to United if that means watching the first team from the bench. “I just want to play first-team football,” he said earlier this month. “If I’m going to be back at Manchester United, I want to be trying to push Van Der Sar all the way to No.1.”
“This year has been magic for me. If you’d told me last January that I’d be a regular in the England squad and playing week in, week out in the Premiership I wouldn’t have believed you. But it’s gone very well. I’m playing with a lot of confidence and I just want to keep on pushing my way up that ladder and aim for the top for 2007.
“My objective as a footballer is to reach the very top of the game, whether that’s for Watford or England. I want to be the No 1 keeper in the country. I don’t enjoy being the No 2 or the substitute. So I’ll keep working hard and hopefully that will come.”
Foster’s displays so far have revealed the necessary authority and agility of the best of keepers and he has flourished even as his side has been devoured. Foster and his advisers will weigh the propspect of understudying Edwin van der Sar in his last year at Old Trafford against that of continuing his development at Watford or elsewhere as the numer one net minder.
It would seem unlikely in the short term at least that Foster would return to Old Trafford to displace Van der Sar, given the Dutchman’s solid displays this season. The manager’s proposal of an 18 month contract extension to his number one stopper just last month, would also seem to guarantee his continued tenure between the United sticks.
It can only be to United’s benefit that the club is able to call upon two top keepers. Foster’s progress and the continued excellence of Van der Sar, places Sir Alex in an enviable position and allows for a seamless transition when EDVS eventually moves on.
United should also be pleased by the fact that at last, the loan system appears to be paying dividends. Foster’s brave performances have already caught the eye of Gunners boss Arsene Wenger, who said he was “impressed” by the keeper. Sir Alex shares this view but was cute enough to refer to the “great business” done by the club in recruiting both Foster and Kuszack.
In reality, his tribute to Foster should raise questions in the mind of the Polish stopper. The ex-West Brom sticksman was recruited on loan during the last close season, with a view to a near £3 million permanent signing this summer. He opened his United account by conceding a penalty against Arsenal but redeemed himself by saving Gilberto’s tame effort. Since then, he has been limited to Cup games and has acquitted himself competently. However, if Foster agrees to return, the Pole would slip further down United’s pecking order and would have reason to worry for his long-term Red career.
No such fears exist for Tim Howard, who understands well enough that he has no future at Old Trafford. His loan deal is up at the season’s end and the American may have done enough already to earn a permanent contract at Everton, especially if the Merseyside club can win a European place. Certainly, he will not be needed by United and in any case has burnt his bridges by questioning the ambition of any goalkeeper willing to accept long term the number two slot at the club.
“United have made their move and it tells me what I need to do,” Howard declared. “If it doesn’t happen at United it can happen somewhere else. I don’t do very well on the bench. You need someone who accepts that position and doesn’t rock the boat. Raimond van der Gouw was a fantastic deputy goalkeeper. He came in, did a job and shut his mouth. I don’t think I am the type. It’s not in my blood.”
Rarely has a suicide note been so defiant in tone. AU
© Copyright: Absolutely United 2007
