Man Utd Thread:

[Geoff Tipps]

Is Rodwell that good?

It's hard to know. He didn't start for the u-21's the last night and has been used very sparingly by Moyes so far. He would be a gamble.

[magpie seanie]

Yeah, I have my doubts and it looks like they are shared.

[laoislad]

. Could a red knight grouping get hold of 50%? Would be great if possible.

Are they a feasible option Magpie Seanie? Admittedly I've only followed them loosely, but always got the impression that it was a bit of a propaganda ploy and if push came to shove they wouldn't be available - I don't know a lot about them so could be talking dung!

You'll fit in nicely on this thread so.

[Goats Do Shave]

Heard on Talksport this morning that David Gill met with the Udinese Chairman in Barcelona, UTD now favourites for Sanchez. Seems strange after seemingly lined up Ashley Young??

[norabeag]

. Could a red knight grouping get hold of 50%? Would be great if possible.

Are they a feasible option Magpie Seanie? Admittedly I've only followed them loosely, but always got the impression that it was a bit of a propaganda ploy and if push came to shove they wouldn't be available - I don't know a lot about them so could be talking dung!

You'll fit in nicely on this thread so.

yep you're on here very often

[nrico2006]

Heard on Talksport this morning that David Gill met with the Udinese Chairman in Barcelona, UTD now favourites for Sanchez. Seems strange after seemingly lined up Ashley Young??

Whats more strange is that United are being linked with so many wingers and defenders, not exactly problem positions.  Its the creative midfielders that should be the priority.  As for Rodwell, for all the talk is he that good?  Considering his age and his apparent talent, would he not have had more of an impact by now if he was as good as journalists across the water would have you believe, and again if he is that good why is he only a bench warmer for the England u-21's?

[Keyser soze]

Think united should go for Jack Wilshere, he's exactly the type of player MU need imo. For me a much better option than Nasri, Modric etc.

[supersarsfields]

I still reckon there was something a bit weird with this signing!! Looks like they are cutting their losses on him.

<sup>The curtain closes on the curious case of Bebe, Manchester United's lost boy
By Rory Smith Football Last updated: June 16th, 2011

22 Comments Comment on this article

Almost a year on, Manchester United today appeared to admit that some things may be too good to be true. In a curt, innocuous statement on their official website, the Premier League champions confirmed that Bebe, the Portuguese winger Sir Alex Ferguson signed for £7.4 million from Vitoria Guimaraes last summer, would spend the coming campaign on loan at the Turkish side Besiktas.

There was nothing surprising about the statement, nothing to distinguish it from the raft of similar declarations that will be made this summer. There was a brief description – perhaps a defence – of his year at Old Trafford. "Now his development will continue at Beskitas," it read. Business as usual. There has never been anything usual, though, about Bebe's story.

To ascribe his signing to a brief moment of folly from Ferguson, usually so calculated, is anathema, and it would be foolish to subscribe to the conspiracy theories which cast the deal in a rather darker light. But there is no question that, from the moment last August that Bebe completed his journey from homeless shelter in the dusty, downtrodden outskirts of Lisbon to Old Trafford, to a £12,000-a-week salary to the minute he agreed to join Besiktas – who can make the deal permanent for £2 million – this has been one of the most curious transfers of recent years.

It is a story good enough to stand retelling: Tiago Manuel Dias Correia, nicknamed Bebe by his older brother, was born to impoverished Cape Verdean immigrants in Portugal and, at the age of 10, he was taken into care by the Casa do Gaiato in the village of Santo Antao do Tojal. He joined the local junior football team, Loures, and was spotted by the semi-professional side Estrela do Amadora in 2009, just months after joining seven players from his shelter in representing Portugal in a street football tournament in Bosnia.

He quickly emerged as the third division side's star – he was the only player paid for much of his season there – and, as his club desperately tried to stay afloat, was offered around Europe for as little as £125,000. There were no takers. Instead, Estrela's dire financial straits forced them to stop paying his wages and, on a free transfer, he moved to Vitoria Guimaraes, a club in Portugal's top flight but rarely a threat to the hegemony of Porto, Sporting and Benfica.

Then, after five goals in six pre-season games, he moved to Manchester United. For £7.4 million, amid rumours that Benfica and even Real Madrid had been alerted to his emergence. It was a signing, it is fair to say, that was some way out of the ordinary. Ferguson admitted he had never seen him play, even on tape.

"It is the first time," confessed the United manager. "Normally I see plenty of video footage of them, [but] you've got to trust your staff at times and our scout in Portugal was adamant we must do something quickly."

The speed of the move, though, was as undeniable as it was remarkable. Even David Gill, Old Trafford's upstanding chief executive, hardly a man given to the rash outlay of money, admitted Bebe had "come from nowhere" to join United. "He's a player we've been following, but he really came on the scene in the last week or so," Gill said. "We looked at him, spoke to a number of people about him and then went out and secured the deal yesterday."

Initial reports from training were not positive, but Ferguson continued to swat away any intimation he might have erred, railing against "vicious attacks" from the media. "Ability-wise he's really good, a terrific finisher and we've been very impressed with that," said the United manager. "It's just the right fitness levels he needs to get to."

And yet the Scot's actions said rather more than his words. Bebe made his debut in the Carling Cup against Scunthorpe and in the Champions League against Bursaspor, registering his first goal in the competition at the same time. And yet he remained firmly on the fringes of United's squad, making just two appearances in the league. That, rather than Ferguson's vociferous defence or United's innocuous statement, tells the tale. Bebe's rags to riches tale was too good to be true.

That should not drain all the romance from his story. Bebe is still the kid from the shelter who went on to become a professional footballer. He was a lost boy on the drug-addled streets of Lisbon's impoverished outskirts; a life as a journeyman pro, at one of Turkey's biggest clubs, is a considerable success. Bebe is assured his happy ending. But, it seems, there will be no fairytale.</sup>

[attheraces]

Think united should go for Jack Wilshere, he's exactly the type of player MU need imo. For me a much better option than Nasri, Modric etc.

United will never get Wilshere, it's one thing selling a French man with 1 year left on his contract who openly flirts with Manchester United, to one that is England's brightest midfield prospect at the age of 19 and contract runs until 2015.

I think Nasri is more suited to United anyway, United's play is all about energy/pace/counter attack and Nasri is more suited to that style of play. While Wilshere is perfect for Arsenal with the intricate passing. Nasri would bring a touch of both to United. I would rather see Nasri than Modric, he can probably be got for cheaper than Modric, he scores more goals than Modric and is 2 years younger.

[Dinny Breen]

Arsenal haven't sold a player to Man United since the 80s, not a hope in hell of that changing anytime soon.

[Boycey]

Very strange set of fixtures for United with games against all the other "top 6" clubs in the first 9-10 games before the season has really taken shape and then another raft of big games in Jan-Feb with only City of the top teams to play in the last 11 games.

[attheraces]

Arsenal haven't sold a player to Man United since the 80s, not a hope in hell of that changing anytime soon.

To be fair times have changed and now the player has the power when his contract is running down. If Nasri wants to go to United he will go, Arsenal would rather sell him for £15m than lose him for free. Though I suspect Nasri is doing a bit of a Rooney/Tevez to increase his salary offer on a new contract anyways.

[Geoff Tipps]

Very strange set of fixtures for United with games against all the other "top 6" clubs in the first 9-10 games before the season has really taken shape and then another raft of big games in Jan-Feb with only City of the top teams to play in the last 11 games.

Yes very strange that all 6 of Man Utd's PL games following a CL group stage matchday are at home, while all 6 of Man City's are away.

[GalwayBayBoy]

Very strange set of fixtures for United with games against all the other "top 6" clubs in the first 9-10 games before the season has really taken shape and then another raft of big games in Jan-Feb with only City of the top teams to play in the last 11 games.

Yes very strange that all 6 of Man Utd's PL games following a CL group stage matchday are at home, while all 6 of Man City's are away.

Fergie must be on the fixtures committee.

[mountainboii]

I still reckon there was something a bit weird with this signing!! Looks like they are cutting their losses on him.

Football agents are a dodgy bunch, and this Jorge Mendes character, who was at the centre of this deal, seems dodgier than most.