Manchester United - Ideal January Transfer targets

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It's that time of year with the January Transfer window just round the corner - there have been bizarre rumors with the likes David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo et al. being linked to their former club to the even more likely Fellaini/Baines/Strootman/Lewandowski/ etc. 

The below is my personal wish-list based on need and not for reasons of glamour: 

1) Defensive Midfielder -  Fellaini/Strootman : I have been praying for a player in their mould for a long time now and for those of us who have been watching the games this season we know that ManUtd really lack a player who can stop the opposition in attack as well as create chances or himself score. Our current options are Carrick who himself is having one of his best seasons so far but is still not the Defensive Midfielder we need. He is better in the Central midfielder position. Fellaini and Strootman are both above 6 feet tall and their presence would surely be felt. 

Personally though I'm a big fan of Fellaini - I would prefer Strootman who is as good in terms of talent and IMO would come cheaper than would Fellaini who is already now an established star in the EPL. 

A dark horse in this race in an unkown Victor Wanyama of Celtic : He is tall, strong and scores goals. He can substitute as a defender as well and is better than having Carrick at that position. 

2) A defender - Shawcross/Hummels/Forren : We are talking about a team that is on top of the league by 7-points but has also let in as many as 28 goals so far this season. As football 365 rightly pointed out -"ManUnited have now exceeded the number of goals(28) as they conceded in three of their most recent title winning seasons - 2006/07, 2007/08 and 2008/09" (Link here). I really miss the days when Evra, Vidic, Ferdinand and Van der Saar would go three months without conceding. ManUtd really need another good defender - firstly to challenge for all trophies and also because Fergie would rather play Carrick out of position rather than give a youngsters chance. 

Among the mentioned three personally I would go for Hummels because of he is a finished product. Shawcross is another top option because he is now among the top defenders in the EPL and also knows how ManUtd function(tough to imagine he was allowed to go at such a partly sum), I'm sure the clause in his contract with Stoke has something to say about his potential - did Fergie know of his potential - moreover Shawcross is a part of the most miserly defense in the EPL this year with letting in only 14 goals so far. Though Begovic has a major role to play in this part too. More on him later. 

Thirdly Vegard Forren is doing very well at Ole Solskjaers Molde and I'm sure he is an option too. 

3) A goalkeeper - Begovic : He's been one of the best keepers in the Premier League so far and I would swap him for Lindegaard. De Gea is still learning and I'm a big fan of his reflexes. He will be a great keeper in the years to come. I am not saying Lindegaard is bad but he's too good to be 3rd choice or even joint 2nd choice and De Gea can grow very well under Begovic by being a good understudy with ample game time. 

4) Lewandowski : Initially I was complaining about even buying RVP but after seeing the effect he's had on our scoring rate - I've changed sides - we need the attack to score 5 even if the opposition score 3. Also Lewandowski would sit perfectly well at the top of a 4-2-3-1 with Rooney, RVP, Kagawa or one of the Wingers in the 3. Chicharito would play a good substitute at any of these positions. There have been talks of a misunderstanding between Kagawa and him but Fergie is a master of egos and I'm sure will handle it well if it is true. 

Mario Goetze could possibly be a summer move and also Jurgen Klopp would be a good replacement to Sir Alex but my favorite would still be David Moyes - here's why. Okay maybe we should just buy out the whole Dortmund team. 

If these additions are made esp. with the ones that aren't cup-tied with the Champions League then there is no reason why ManUtd cannot win the UCL as well as the Premier League. Lewandowski could be solely used in the league and with the others rotated well. 

Should Chicharito start?

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The debate has been raging after the loss to Norwich and some self-proclaimed hardcore fans are now calling for Fergie's head. It looks like they lost theirs themselves.

Now coming back to my point should a player like Chicharito start? I would say no and here's why...

To be a footballer you need a good mix of two skills - mental and physical. You need to have the skills to dribble/tackle etc. and the mental skills to read a game and position yourself at the right place at the right time. A mix of both is what makes complete footballer. Having them in the right mix separates the Messis' and the Ronaldos' from the rest.

Again some are acquired skills which come with practice and some are inborn.

So what sets the 5'9" striker apart from the rest? Is it his physical strength or skill? Or is his mind with the ability to read a game? In my opinion it's the latter that he reads games so well. He is above average when it comes to skill but there are many with above average skill and that's not what makes him what he is.

He seems to be the kind who takes time to read games(though there maybe exceptions like the 1st minute goal against Chelsea) and in my opinion his best place when a game starts is on the bench. That may sound bizarre but him being my favorite player in the line-up I have always noticed the intensity with which he watches games. He's not the type who's just ready when warming up, he's the type who's reading every move of the enemy from afar and when called to fire all cylinders he seldom disappoints.

It somehow seems to me that he reads games from a holistic perspective, more like looking at the forest and finding the anomalies rather than getting in and looking for holes which would be tougher. Once he's read a game he seems to know what to do to take a man-marking or zonal defender out of position and such a strategy results in either him scoring or providing a teammate with a scoring opportunity.

So he's the kind of player who would thrive if he's allowed to watch the game for a while and then told - here your turn now - go for the kill.

You must also notice his success against teams that have a very rigid strategy. That is again his ability to find a flaw in the system that he can exploit. Of course it could be the manager or coach that is spotting this flaw and asking his to just carry orders out but again I haven't seem someone since Ole Solskjaer do something so often and with such a high success rate. So it has to something about the player too.

I have been hearing rumors of him being sold due to Uniteds excess in his department - personally I would say that would be a big mistake by United and hoping they don't do that. The only other player who seems to be matching him in this aspect of the game as of today is Edin Dzeko.

Cheers to the Little Pea.

Related Reading :

Javier Hernandez should not be used in the United Starting XI : Link here

Where are your clubs fans actually from?

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The heading of this blog is actually taken from a post(link here) which I would say was the very reason I wrote this blog.

The post went like this

Where are your clubs fans actually from? This is shocking, or not so shocking depending on your views. 

The list below shows the percentage of fans who support the club who live within a local postcode. 

No prizes for guessing which club are at the bottom of the table. 

1. Wigan Athletic: 64.7% 
2. Norwich City: 60.8% 
3. Southampton: 51.2% 
4. Reading: 49.4% 
5. Swansea City: 47.6% 
6. Stoke City: 46.1% 
7. Aston Villa: 37.4% 
8. Newcastle: 35.3% 
9. Fulham: 33.8% 
10. West Bromwich Albion: 29.4% 
11. Sunderland: 24% 
12. Queens Park Rangers: 23.4% 
13. West Ham United: 23.2% 
14. Everton: 19.3% 
15. Arsenal: 14.4% 
16. Tottenham Hotspur: 14.4% 
17. Manchester City: 13.2% 
18. Chelsea: 12.5% 
19. Liverpool: 10.5% 
20. Manchester United: 8.6%

End of post.

Are we really shocked to see that list? The pun in the post if you have noticed though is the line that goes

"No prizes for guessing which club are at the bottom of the table"

This would partially take me back to my previous blog on the best supported clubs in the Europe(Link here) and we'll do some math with it.

So from that list the clubs in the EPL and based on these two posts the approx number of supporters in each of the local zip codes would be a product of the total supporters multiplied by the % of supporters in the local zip-code.

So lets begin.

1) Manchester United : 354M x 8.6% = 30.44M

2) Chelsea : 135M x 12.5% = 16.8M

3) Arsenal : 113M x 14.4% = 16.27M

4) Liverpool : 71M x 10.5% = 7.51M

5) Manchester City =18Mx13.2% = 2.38M

6) Tottenham : 11M x 14.4% = 1.58M

7) Newcastle United = 6M x 35.3% = 2.18M

Something tells me either one or both of these numbers don't look right and considering the numbers are right the pun gets negated. The club right at the bottom of one list is now sitting right at the top of another.

By the way ManCity fans - I hope that number is not true. 

Best supported European Football clubs

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1) Manchester United : 354M fans

2) Barcelona : 270M fans

3) Real Madrid : 174M fans

4) Chelsea : 135M fans

5) Arsenal : 113M fans

6) AC Milan : 99M fans

7) Liverpool : 71M fans

8) Inter Milan : 49M fans

9) Bayern Munich : 24M fans

10) Juventus : 20M fans

11) Manchester City : 18M fans

12) Tottenham Hotspurs : 11M fans

13) Newcastle United : 6M fans

Source : www.talksport.co.uk 

Will the diamond work against Chelsea

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We may have a noticed a new strategy by Sir Alex for the last three games.

He has been trying an attacking formation and as it's called in some quarters the diamond.

Manchester United have been successful in the last three games that they have employed this tactic - beating Newcastle, Stoke City and Braga on the trot and in the process scoring as many as 10 goals in these three games.

I would always welcome an attacking minded team than a Chelsea that would toil for the first goal and then sit back and absorb the pressure(park the bus) but my point that how long would such a strategy work.

So far we have conceded 4 goals and it's a matter of having the likes of Rooney, RVP, Kagawa, Hernandez etc. that have saved face by simply outscoring the opposition.

Coming to the next game against current table toppers let me play Mr. Obvious and call it a 6 pointer.

Now both against Stoke and Braga, we have conceded first and it took the toil of Rooney and co. to claw back into the game, would such a strategy work against a Chelsea squad that has let in just 9 goals so far this term? Or against a Chelsea team that would go all out and defend like their lives depended on it. You will know what I'm saying when you think of their Champions league 2011/12 season in spite of finishing a lowly 6th in the league.

If we let the first goal in against Chelsea then coming back against them would be a herculean task, let alone conceding a 2nd like against Braga. So the defence has to be plugged with support from Carrick and not Carrick as the CB. So it would be vital for us to play 2 regular and not make-shift CBs.

Whom would I choose against Chelsea?
De Gea
Rafael, Rio,Evans,Evra/Buttner
Welbeck,Carrick, Anderson, Rooney
RVP

Yes Buttner or Evra would be okay. Buttner for his energy or Evra for his big game experience and please no Carrick as a CB - whoever is fit or one of the youngsters. Kagawa's creativity will surely be missed, what a buy he is turning out to be. I would've had him instead of Anderson in the team and have Rooney partner Carrick in the CM role.

I reckon Fergie is going to play Scholes in midfield given Chelsea don't have an express midfield either and Scholes offers a new dimension to the whole game, in that case Anderson would have to be rested and brought on once a lead is established.

Lastly I've mentioned it before(link here) on why we need a DM and recently heard rumors of the possibility of signing Kevin Strootman(Link here). I hope it's true. It would almost complete this team. Anyway till the metamorphosis is complete we have to make do with whatever is on the plate.

GGMU

Call a spade a spade - John Terry

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I have seen Chelsea fans over the last few days make a big hue and cry over the fact that FA has overruled the decision of the courts and punished their beloved Captain Flawless aka John Terry.

Firstly lets try to see the reason behind the now famous sentence that contained the word "untenable" (which incidentally means incapable of being defended or justified). In court this is what happened "Mr. Terry DID NOT DENY USING THE WORD "BLACK" AND SWEARING AT Mr. Ferdinand" (Link here). It goes on to say that "His defence was that he had thought Mr. Ferdinand was accusing him of using the words, and was simply repeating them when he was caught on camera." Now I would want to agree with that but how many times do u repeat the same words that someone accuses you of saying? Here's a video of that and think about it - even if you did, would this be the way you would say it? (Link here)

Following that the FA had made it very clear by saying - "The FA notes the decision in the John Terry case and will now seek to conclude it's own inquiries". So John Terry very well knew it was not over.

Now a few days before the trial before the FA which earlier had not let Luis Suarez without a ban and fine, Terry maybe had a premonition of his doom tried to play like the spoilt kid(well he plays for Chelsea) and decided to retire from international football. His timing was perfect and his fans were so satisfied by the fact that they had their revenge in advance with the "Ahh you guys don't give Terry the special treatment he won't play for you" feeling. Well I'm sure they are hurt but if someone is racist then he/it has to be kicked out. If it has hurt his ego then too bad.

After he was banned for 4 games and fined about 3 times what his predecessor and partner in crime Suarez had to pay, the fans again went berserk like they had been abused and now were being punished. So much for their logic which I would not wish to go into. I'm also waiting for what CFC would officially say about this ban and moreover Terry has time to appeal as well. Will Chelsea stand by their player like Liverpool did and give out a subtle message saying that racism is okay and bring on another PR disaster or would they just maintain a calculated silence.

Is the punishment enough - given he plays for Chelsea the fine would not make too much of a difference but 4 games? I guess not. Here's what the others have to say.

1) Lenient John Terry ban may concern Black players - Paul Davis ( Link here)

2) Footages dont lie - Anton Ferdinand himself (Link Here)

and one from our very own Joey Barton

3) What an absolute farce (Link here)

It's for you to decide which side you are on - equality or racism.

Take your pick.

All I have to say is, John Terry - if you said it - you said it.

Are Manchester United a one man team?

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After the way RVP saved ManUtd from defeat against a struggling Southampton there have been talks by fans and others about whether they are turning into a one man team.

I would like to say "Manchester United are and were for the last 26 years a one man team" and you know who the one man is - Sir Alex Ferguson.

He has had multiple challengers, Arsene Wenger, Jose Morinho and Chelsea, ManCity, etc. but he has always reigned supreme. Nobody has been able to surpass his achievements and and given the lack of patience in football today it looks unlikely anyone would in the near future either. He has on most occasions been able to spot the best talent, in Ronaldo, Valencia, Rooney, Kagawa etc. and aided by a strong academy has been able to produce successful teams for years now.

Who would have expected Rooney to be out of form and then as he was trying to get back to his best would get injured and be out for 4 weeks. Following his injury he would still take a few games to get back to what he is capable of. I too was very skeptical of ManUtd getting van Persie of the motives behind the deal(Link here). Who other than Rooney would've been able to score a hat-trick after missing that penalty. You know who did and who was responsible to bring him in.

So to keep this short and sweet - I would say "FERGIE KNOWS".