Manchester Utd 2023/24 (Part 1)

So Rio Ferdinand wouldn’t gave been the highest paid player defender in England when he joined? I guarantee you he was among them.

You have this concept in your head of ‘value’, its not about that. Its about signing the right players with the attributes to succeed. That can involve paying big money. Arsenal haven’t overpaid for Rice the same way United didn’t when they bought Ferdinand and Rooney.

Buying guys like Antony and Sancho was never right at any price due to their lacking attributes such as pace. They could never succeed.

I was on the fence on Alexis Sanchez as he had shown very little form for Arsenal over the previous 6 months and had huge mileage. It was an exciting signing though and I can see why they did it. If I had seen Antony play, I would never see him as United level and that is the problem ETH has now. A lot of problematic players he has signed in gilded cages. He has a glass eye for players.

On Hojlund, he is doing well lately, but needs to learn to play with his back to goal for the good of the team. Sharpen up technically and handle the physical stuff better, he was like a small child against Liverpool, miscontrolled or beaten to every ball, shit the togs as you might put it.

Rio Ferdinand was 23 when he signed not 29/30.

Signing Harry Kane at 23 is a no brainer. Signing him at 30 for a 100 million is not comparable.

Anybody that new soccer new Alexis was a terrible signing.

And of course it’s all about value. You don’t see any successful sides whether it be man city or Real Madrid sign Kane.

Because at the money involved he costs way too much.

You want to sign young players. Not old ones on massive contracts and huge wages. It simply doesn’t work.

I guarantee you whatever manager comes in at Chelsea in the next 10 years, Enzo Fernandes will play every game. Enzo has his World Cup medal and proved it in probably the greatest World Cup final of all time. Watch the first half of that, watch Enzo and come back to me. Argentina were electric and Enzo was central to it. The problem isn’t Enzo, the problem is Chelsea.

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Kane is as slow as a wet week in tramore now.

He’s been largely crap for the bones of 18 months now. There is absolutely no way he’s good value.

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Kane is a centre forward, the modern cf is about touch, clever movement, vision, ball striking and hold up play.

He isn’t, he puts them in them in; they do nothing. Also, Pochettino is playing him too far forward.

The modern centre forwards are
Nunez, Haaland, Mbappe who are way more mobile than Kane.

Hojlund is the modern centre forward.

It would have been incredibly an incredibly dim signing. You’ve never ever overpay wages and transfer fees. It doesn’t work short term or long term.

He’s been a bad signing and that’s it.

Going forward man United need to make signing likes hojlund and that profile and not signings
Like Kane, Alexis, di Maria, falcao and the likes. Varane and cas too.

Different types, they are outlets; Rashford is United outlet. Kane, Lewandowski, Benzema are the classical centre forward that link play. The above lads are different albeit also excellent. Haaland and Nunez are unicorns really. Hojlund is powerful, but not sure he is on that level physically

At the same time, buy players for now; to help the guys that are there because they need help.

Uniteds last great

Rio
Vidic
Evra
Carrick
Rooney
Tevez
Ronaldo

All signed for big money and were young and hungry with plenty to prove. Those are the lads you target not old lads like kane.

Even city who have the resources have completely stopped signing the older established stars.

Haaland, de bruyne, Alvarez, Dias, rodri all the proper profile.

Madrid have gone that way too.

It’s the successful way.

Ideally yes; but there are exceptions.

Batistuta to Roma, RVP to United and so on. These were to teams ready to win…but United are so far off it, they need a couple of guaranteed hits just to made them competitive.

If Newcastle are in trouble with FFP, a guy like Isak, Botman or Bruno G, EPL proven vould be shrewd acquisitions.

This summer’s signings have to work. There can’t be another Mason Mount or Antony.

Mount has been injured for the majority of the season. He can prove himself to be an excellent signing.

A lot of those were huge money too though, KDB was 60 odd million in the mid tens after blowing out at Chelsea.

Rodri and Dias were both near 60 million each. These guys were entitled to be good.

Rodri would transform Manchester United completey, he is that good. He would give the team control.

Also they passed over lewandoski apparently to sign van persie.

Van persie was signed for one season and one season only. He won the league yes but in the long run he didn’t work out.

That’s what signing kane is similar to but there’s no chance he’d do that with this side.

Yes but they are the right age.

Hopefully. I just think this summers signings are pivotal. They have to work. Then hopefully the key young lads train on and Martinez/Shaw stay fit. Casimiro can do the job but needs ghe right guy in there with him to either cover ground or control the game on-ball and save his legs.