Manchester United

[nev]

Fair play to you spurs fans and good luck wrapping 4th spot up,and can we have modric in the summer he is class! we will give you carrick and berbatov back.

[smokie36]

Fair play to you spurs fans and good luck wrapping 4th spot up,and can we have modric in the summer he is class! we will give you carrick and berbatov back.

Nah mate the only player I'd want from Utd is Rooney....Scholes and Giggs for sure if they were 10 years younger. The rest? Forget it.

[MSingh]

No complaints Utd....simply better than us yesterday. Scholes has to be what 36 by now or something....outstanding performance and Giggs penalties were well placed.

Fair play to you hope you beat Chelsea to the title.

I have no complaints about the penalties Smokie, they were clumsy mistakes. Apart from that Gomes had little or nothing to do and i think there was little or nothing to choose between the sides, but we only have ourselves to blame

Bwahahahahaahaha

[nev]

Fair play to you spurs fans and good luck wrapping 4th spot up,and can we have modric in the summer he is class! we will give you carrick and berbatov back.

Nah mate the only player I'd want from Utd is Rooney....Scholes and Giggs for sure if they were 10 years younger. The rest? Forget it.

Come on mate we will give you them for free and pay what you want for modric

[rixalex]

No complaints Utd....simply better than us yesterday. Scholes has to be what 36 by now or something....outstanding performance and Giggs penalties were well placed.

Fair play to you hope you beat Chelsea to the title.

I have no complaints about the penalties Smokie, they were clumsy mistakes. Apart from that Gomes had little or nothing to do and i think there was little or nothing to choose between the sides, but we only have ourselves to blame

Yep. Both sides weren't that great. We had one moment of Nani brilliance and that was about it. 3 - 1 was harsh on you guys.

[smokie36]

Come on mate we will give you them for free and pay what you want for modric

We don't need a midfielder but I hope we bring in a top quality striker in the summer. As for Utd I reckon there will be a lot more transfer activity there this summer than in recent years. How much longer can the Scholes and Giggs show last?

[MSingh]

Come on mate we will give you them for free and pay what you want for modric

We don't need a midfielder but I hope we bring in a top quality striker in the summer. As for Utd I reckon there will be a lot more transfer activity there this summer than in recent years. How much longer can the Scholes and Giggs show last?

Here we go already !!

How's abotu Messi Smokes, or Benzema, or Higuain maybe ???

[smokie36]

Here we go already !!

How's abotu Messi Smokes, or Benzema, or Higuain maybe ???

Remember Klinsmann singhy? Well maybe CL quality is heading back to the Lane.

[MSingh]

Here we go already !!

How's abotu Messi Smokes, or Benzema, or Higuain maybe ???

Remember Klinsmann singhy? Well maybe CL quality is heading back to the Lane.

Yeah i remember him, big nosed Blonde Fella who used to dive everywhere & left Spuds after a Year when he realised what they were really all about...

[imola]

Here we go already !!

How's abotu Messi Smokes, or Benzema, or Higuain maybe ???

Remember Klinsmann singhy? Well maybe CL quality is heading back to the Lane.

Yeah i remember him, big nosed Blonde Fella who used to dive everywhere & left Spuds after a Year when he realised what they were really all about...

are spuds trying to arrange a pre season match with shamrock rovers then?

[smokie36]

are spuds trying to arrange a pre season match with shamrock rovers then?

No but we wouldn't mind drawing them in the Qualifying round.

[NADTATIDA1]

Rooneys best mate Steven Gerrard stating Liverpool have still got a chance to finish in 4th and will not rollover against Chealsea.

And the same from Chealsea's Frank Lampard although i think Chealsea seem to be thinking of goal difference a tad to much with only two games to go! Ok 7 -0 has cracked that one and there is only one really possible scenario that it could end that way.... a win and a draw for United and a win and a defeat for Chealsea.

We will see come Sunday!

Edited April 27, 2010 by NADTATIDA1

[StevieH]

so presumably among all this talk of liverpool rolling over for chelsea there's an equal chance of steve bruce bending over and taking one for his old club when united play sunderland yes?

[NADTATIDA1]

Point taken Stevie....am sure by the end of the week this one will have been aired also

[dave111223]

It seems like every post i'm on here ranting about how crap Berbatov is...

BUT COME ON!! How many 2 yard sitters can you miss in 1 match? Did you see Rooney's face after some of those shocking misses that he setup for Berbs? It looked like "oh my god why am i playing with clown".

You are no longer fit to wear the shirts Berbs...you have proved that without a shadow of a doubt...!

[rixalex]

It seems like every post i'm on here ranting about how crap Berbatov is...

BUT COME ON!! How many 2 yard sitters can you miss in 1 match? Did you see Rooney's face after some of those shocking misses that he setup for Berbs? It looked like "oh my god why am i playing with clown".

You are no longer fit to wear the shirts Berbs...you have proved that without a shadow of a doubt...!

Definitely felt like an "end of the road" type game for Berba. If you listened closely during the game you could almost hear Boyz to Men playing in the background.

[LeungKen]

Nice to see Owen Hargreaves have a little run-out.......

[carmine]

It seems like every post i'm on here ranting about how crap Berbatov is...

BUT COME ON!! How many 2 yard sitters can you miss in 1 match? Did you see Rooney's face after some of those shocking misses that he setup for Berbs? It looked like "oh my god why am i playing with clown".

You are no longer fit to wear the shirts Berbs...you have proved that without a shadow of a doubt...!

Definitely felt like an "end of the road" type game for Berba. If you listened closely during the game you could almost hear Boyz to Men playing in the background.

How can such a quality player become so bad I thought it was almost embarrasing!

[NADTATIDA1]

They shoot horses don't they!

[rixalex]

How can such a quality player become so bad I thought it was almost embarrasing!

Indeed. He does still possess the deftest of touches - just can't put the ball in the back of the net for us. If he goes elsewhere next season, whoever he plays for you can almost guarantee he'll be back slotting them away. Just the way it goes with some players. Forlan was a bit like that.

[NADTATIDA1]

No Forlan was a tryer,and actually scored goals when he played.

[rixalex]

No Forlan was a tryer,and actually scored goals when he played.

Yes he was a tryer (or perhaps "worker" would be a better word because i do think Berba tries, he just doesn't put a lot of work in in the process), and in that regard obviously not like Berba, but the similarity i do see is in terms of not scoring to their potential. I don't think either did judging by their scoring records elsewhere.

[NADTATIDA1]

I see where you are coming from but Bumble has been given the oppurtunity with a long run of games,Forlan was never given the same head...he was mainly used as a substitute but delivered quite regularly when called upon.

United fans did not want Forlan to go most want bumble to go today!

Rooney was one of them after seeing his face yesterday...jing jing!

[rixalex]

United fans did not want Forlan to go most want bumble to go today!

I wouldn't say i wanted Forlan to go but wasn't too disappointed when he did. Apart from his goal against Liverpool, what i remember most about him is missed chances really.

Tevez is another one for me that failed to live up to his billing in terms of goal-scoring, but has done great elsewhere.

[bkkjames]

Glazer family reject secret £1.5bn offer for control of Manchester United

• Bid from Middle East consortium rebuffed

• Glazers planning to stay in control for another 10 years

Manchester United

The Glazers have turned down several offers for United, each of which values the club at more than £1bn. Photograph: Christopher Thomond for the Guardian

A secretive Middle East consortium has bid £1.5bn for Manchester United only to be firmly rejected by the club's owners, the Glazer family, it emerged last night.

According to information passed to the Guardian this was one of several covert offers which have been made for the club, all valuing United at more than £1bn and all of them rebuffed.

Despite the antagonism facing them from United fans, the rejection of the bids appears to signal the Glazer family's seriousness about not selling the club – at least for the medium term. The Glazers are now talking about staying at Old Trafford for another 10 years.

The news will come as a blow to the Red Knights, the group of businessmen who have been preparing a bid for United and have carried out their activities more publicly. The biggest concern will be that the apparent valuation that others put on the club far exceeds their own, which has been put at around £800m.

The offer from the Middle East that valued the club at £1.5bn was made towards the end of last year. It was flatly turned down and the bidders were discouraged from returning with a second offer, despite being willing to pay significantly more than United's £1.19bn valuation in the Forbes football rich-list.

The revelation represents depressing news for those fans who have been campaigning for the Glazers' removal and had hoped that the hostility shown towards the Americans would help to persuade them to sever their ties with the club. More than 150,000 people have joined the Manchester United Supporters' Trust, the group co-ordinating the anti-Glazer movement, and the protests have become increasingly voluble since the release of a bond prospectus in January that laid bare the Glazers' business model.

The Glazer family are said to be unmoved by the animosity and thick-skinned enough not to allow it to affect their planning. They are described as enjoying the prestige of being associated with a winning team. That paints a bleak picture for the former United director Jim O'Neill, now the chief economist at Goldman Sachs, who had been hoping to move into power at Old Trafford via the Red Knights, the group of "high net value individuals" that also includes the former Football League chairman Keith Harris.

An offer from the Red Knights is anticipated in the coming weeks but, even if it is substantially higher than the £800m initially discussed, the Glazers will reject it out of hand and offer no indication of a price that might tempt them to consider a sale. This could be seen as a negotiating tactic, but the Glazers' message is "thanks but no thanks".

O'Neill and his associates have already inquired about the Glazers' position via Rothschild, the investment bankers who helped the Americans with their takeover in 2005, and were told that the club was not for sale. That position is unlikely to change. "It's like having the most beautiful house," according to one top-level source. "They could sell that house but why would they want to sell it if it were the most beautiful house around?"

On the contrary, the Glazers are already thinking far enough ahead to be talking about refinancing their debts in 2017. They accept they could have been more open with the supporters and are aware of the misgivings about the £700m worth of debts they have brought to the club. They also hope to be at Old Trafford more next season. Avi Glazer has been a regular visitor but his brother Bryan has found it harder because his children are younger.

But they reject criticisms about the average 48% rise in season-ticket prices, pointing out that Old Trafford sells out for every game and is cheaper than Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur. Many supporters are planning to boycott the club next season, effectively going on strike until the Glazers have moved on, but the Florida-based owners are said to be relaxed about the possible financial implications, believing it will make little difference to their annual results.

They have also reiterated to Ferguson that he can spend significant sums in the summer transfer market if he wishes. High-ranking sources at Old Trafford have confirmed that Ferguson is satisfied with the financial position and is genuine when he says he has a strong relationship with the Glazers. However, he has resisted the temptation to pay exorbitant prices and has adopted a policy of bringing in young, up-and-coming players.

The Glazers, nonetheless, are satisfied with the financial backing they have given Ferguson during the last three title-winning campaigns, which also brought two Champions League finals, and believe they would not have come under such scrutiny had it not been for the huge sums of money being spent at Manchester City under the Abu Dhabi United Group.

They believe the criticisms of their regime have been exaggerated and have taken encouragement from the fact their bond issue, raising £504m, was twice over-subscribed. They are also unimpressed with the manner in which the Red Knights have waged an aggressive media campaign aimed at undermining their ownership and attracting support from the club's phenomenal fan base.

[LeungKen]

Well here we are at the last game of the season. I keep thinking to myself "If only we'd beaten Burnley in the first game, we wouldn't be 1 point behind now"

So it's fingers crossed for a win for United and a win for Wigan.

If any of you have any superstitious routines you do before a game, be sure you carry them out to placate all the footballing gods.........

Cheers & Good Luck

[StevieH]

i'm doing my superstitious routines ken. i just sacrificed a chicken at the altar of the rory delap long throw and stuck pins in my roberto martinez voodoo doll.

[LeungKen]

i'm doing my superstitious routines ken. i just sacrificed a chicken at the altar of the rory delap long throw and stuck pins in my roberto martinez voodoo doll.

erm, that's not quite what I had in mind Stevie....

Where's your Lancashire solidarity mate ?...

[mrbojangles]

I keep thinking to myself "If only we'd beaten Burnley in the first game, we wouldn't be 1 point behind now"

I keep on thinking "If only we had taken those 6 points off you"

[LeungKen]

I keep thinking to myself "If only we'd beaten Burnley in the first game, we wouldn't be 1 point behind now"

I keep on thinking "If only we had taken those 6 points off you"

Who let you in Jangles ? I thought I'd put snib on t'door, now all the riff-raff will be in blatherin' on.

Put wood in hole on yer way out....