There have been varied responses to RVP's signing which should be completed soon. Most fans are ecstatic, and rightly so. However there are some grumblings regarding the transfer fee paid for someone with only one year left on their contract. (Sources quote different figures, let's just assume it's approximately 22mil for argument's sake.) We can't turn the clock back, but I feel that these are the options that faced SAF and David Gill, and I believe that they did the right thing in signing RVP now. Option 1. Sign RVP now. Pros: Available from the start of the season, can integrate him into the team ASAP. Stops the media circus. Cons: Higher transfer fee. Option 2. Hold out until the end of the transfer window & hope to sign him then. Pros: Slightly lower transfer fee (would save a few million probably). Cons: Not 100% guaranteed to sign RVP, we could lose him to a rival (Man City if they sold Adebayor, or foreign clubs). Not available for the first few matches, will take longer to setlle. Option 3. Wait for a year and hope to sign him for free. Pros: No transfer fee, so much cheaper (although signing on fee and agent fees would no doubt be higher) Cons: Not guaranteed to sign him, City would undoubtably offer higher wages than we would. Plus all the other vultures would be circling (Italian clubs, PSG, etc). He would be a year older, and he would probably not have had a very productive season if he stayed at Arsenal where he didn't want to be. Option 4. Don't sign him at all, we have Rooney, Welbeck and Chicharito. Pros: No expense at all. Cons: No RVP at United, obviously.
Option 1 for me. I don`t think these days approx £20 mil is a lot of money for a player of RVP`s talent. If we can keep him fit for a few years it`s a steal, if not it will hardly bankrupt the club.
Option 1. The sooner he signs the better. Option four is never an option, if either Welbeck or Hernandez had scored enough last season we might have won the league on goal difference. As it goes, they didn't, so we need a proven goalscorer while they both develop further. It's a squad game, I'm fairly sure they can get their heads round that. If Ole Gunnar Solskjaer can, they can. Now, hopefully, we have one.
Option 1. Only real option imo. If option 2 or 3 then you run the risk that someone else will come in, or Arsenal will draw some arbitrary deadline and refuse to deal. Also, doubt RVP would have stayed at Arsenal for another year given how hungry he must be for success by now. Option 4 would only be reasonable imo if we spent the RVP money on someone else, ideally a top class midfielder. As there don't seem to be any available at the moment, that's another non starter.
