hang on hang on.... we spent 35 mil on f'n carroll..... context different but its only 12 mil more than budget
I think the Mata signing is similar to Ozil - not a player they badly needed but having that big name signing can galvanise the squad and raise morale within the club and for the fans. Also, does anyone think that Lucas's injury may be downplayed as it could affect negotiations for a DM? i.e. Lucas is only out for a couple of weeks so we're not desperate ...
i agree. the reality check here is you get rvp and rooney on the pitch and they are to p4 contenders.. add mata boost and you can live with crap defenders. we do... come on guys we do... I cannot believe chelsea are willing to strengthen utd that much for future years, to cut off any chance of rooney in 12 months time... just to fund a deal of their own for a striker.
I'll tell you why - because Mourinho will end up leaving after 2-3 years after he wins a couple of titles. He's a short term manager. He's incapable of creating a legacy and rebuilding squads. What he does do is spend is millions on stars, give them massive contracts, regardless of their age, win a few trophies and then leave. The way he sees it now is help Man Utd to beat the rivals so Chelsea can win the title this season.
I feel sorry for Mata. I like him as a player but I think he's making a big mistake. It's not at all like Ozil. Ozil joined a club that was stable, had pretensions of winning the league and was positive. Mata joins a club and dressing room that has a very depressed gloom about it. Mata can run around like a lunatic and play out of his skin but if the rest of the team continue in their present style, Mata alone isn't going to change the situation. Even the little high from his signing could be quickly lost if Rooney or RVP leave (they have both been very quiet over this window). As for our own dealings then I have no idea as to what is going on. Perhaps that's a god thing as neither will a lot of other people!
I'm going to laugh at the chavs... Ozil got f'd out of real when the fans and players didn't want him to go but the president in his infinite stupidity or wisdom decided a player to set up chances was not important compared to a running kicking mule... thats not the same as mata. mata is an outsider with the chavs, he's screwed as long as mourinho is there so to go to utd... get massive wages... be a hero? he's loving it, the dirty manc... rooney and rvp up top and him in behind.. thats going to get top 4 to my mind. we talk about our front 3 like that.. and we say our backs are crap. so are utds... Utd win and by extension the chavs shoot themselves in the foot.
This will raise confidence and they'll win their next 3 league games comfortably. I think that will leave them 1 point off 4th unless we start winning big games i.e. Tuesday.
I agree we should have bid for Mata, but given our shoe-string transfer budget (25million tops, lets be honest), it's not a priority. As I've said on the other thread though, Mata is worth 37million. a very talented 25yo with proven prem experience
Far far too simple MITO. There is no guarantee even with Rooney and RvP joining him that Mata can get United back into contention. The malaise around the club is just too big.
I think it depends what Chelsea do with the money. If they use that money to bring in a top quality striker like Falcao, Ibramovich, Cavani, etc (examples only) then wouldn't it have been good business for them?
If they get those three up and running, then they're pretty much the same as LFC - world class attack, sh*te everywhere else ...
And spend 15m on Salah ... fuming!! It's funny because he's not a player we desperate need but I think it would be a kick in the teeth psychologically if we missed out.
Mata is currently ranked the 193rd best player in the PL (between Taarabt and Assaidi). In 13 appearances this season he has 1 goal and 2 assists. Getting him back in #form might not be trivial for a dinosaur anti-football manager like Moyes.
As I keep saying, I don't care about that one. Salah isn't going to be picked ahead of Oscar, Hazard and Willian so he'll be a back-up player. If he wants to go there to do that rather than play then, IMO, he's more interested in money than football. We don't need players like that!
What is it with you and MITO? There's a world of difference between us and United. Put simply we are on the way up and they are on the way down. Bluster all they want there's now't that they can do about it. Sure there are similarities. If you look hard enough you can find them between every team in the league! Rvp and Rooney have already proved that they haven't been able to drag United round by themselves. After the little blip the same will happen with the addition of Mata - their defence is far worse and their midfield is uaeless!
I agree. The medical at LFC is booked for today so it's really down to the player himself. He turned down Zenit before because he wasn't interested in money - let's hope he makes the right decision. And also, whilst it's romantic for players to turn down lucrative offers in pursuit of playing time, can we really afford to let the 'mercenaries' go? Man City, PSG and Chelsea have a lot of 'mercenaries' but does that stop them from being professional and playing well for their club? .. Playing Devil's Advocate here
Don't get me wrong - our club as a whole is definitely on the up compared to MUFC. I'm just looking at the first XI - and there are similarities. Weak defence, poor midfield but top class attack. Difference is our attack has been firing on all cylinders whilst MUFC's has the potential to do so in the second half of the season.
Those clubs can afford to buy a lot of them so anyone not performing can be dropped for another top class player. We don't have that luxury
There's no reason why we shouldn't continue to fire in attack - even if we don't score as many! Plus we still have that 6 point cushion.
