FCUM

Then sit back and watch a mass exodus of the best players to Spain and Italy. In the overall scheme of things how much does that really matter? Plenty on here will remember the days before we did attract the best players. All that mattered was if your team was winning and where they were in the league. Has it changed that much now? If the same status quo remained the same without some of these top players would fans desert the game. Is it not still relative, does having the top stars matter that much? It would probably help Ingerlund (and Scotland etc) and a lot of the smaller clubs who got by developing players for the top clubs. If it brought back some sensibility, lower wages and ticket prices the average working man can really afford then I'd be all for it. Germany doesn't seem to be doing to bad on it.

You may be right, Renton. I wouldn't write them off whilst Fergie is still there though, debt or no debt. Rooney is replaceable just like every other player who's gone before him. I've just got a sneaky feeling that Fergie wants to do one more rebuilding job before he puts his slippers on. It will be a lot more difficult given the debt but I wouldn't put it past him.

To put it into context, that 23% of their total revenues for Rooney alone, they will be turning out a 5 a side team when the new regs kick in

I'm not convinced, Fergie doesn't like his off field antics and I think he'll go. Key though is ideally Man Utd need him to sign a new contract befoe offloading him, just as they did with Ronaldo. We tend not to see real big money moves in Jan as the players won't be eligible for the champions league. If it gets to the summer with only 12 months on a contract then his price will plummet! Gill & co have cocked up big time here, they never usually let star players get to even 2 years on their contract let alone 18 months!

The situation ain't quite as bad as that Stevie. Much as it pains me to say it, I can see the Glazers pulling this off thanks to the £500m bond issue which was oversubscribed. They have bought themselves breathing space until 2017. There is the £500m bond debt & £250m PIK debt due in 2017, which means (assuming they can maintain the PIK debt at £250m) they need to refinance in 2017 for £750m. The last accounts show £163m cash on the balance sheet and a revolving £75m credit facility for player capex. Experts reckon they need £45m of that cash for operating costs so there is around £120m surplus cash mainly thanks to the Ronaldo money and a big wedge up front from the sponsors. Key question is, will that cash surplus go on player acquisition or into the Glazers pockets as dividends? We probably won't know the answer to that until next summer. Glazer, Gill & Fergie all say that cash will be spent on players, they want to keep the wages steady but as high earners (VDS, Giggs, Scholes, Hargreaves, Neville) all leave the payroll then other high earners will be bought to replace them. Time will tell. If the Glazers have a plan, then it's to maintain the debts until 2017 whlst growing the value of the club, refinance £750m of debt, sell for between 1.2 & 2 billion and walk away with a big wedge. The only way they will pull that off is to keep the club succesful, so maybe the cash surplus will go on players with some in dividends to service the PIK debt. It's the only option that makes any sense. If the Glazers get to 2017 and can't refinance £750m worth of debt, they and Man Utd are fucked.

I think you're right about one of the Sunday league teams Steve but I'm buggered if I can remember which one I can remember him managing Willington in the Northern league after Boro but then I think he went out the middle east somewhere after that. Brilliant coach according to those who played for him but like Peter Taylor (with Cloughie) he needed a management foil which he only really got with Joe Mercer. Widely recognised as being the one who first created the famous Wist Am academy of the early 60s. A real character in his time, always sticks in my mind for the episode with Fiona Richmond in the bath at Citeh

That sounds like it could lead to even more fun & games down the line. Shirley the premier league can't stop anybody buying a club, all they could do would be to withdraw their rights to participate in the premier league

Sounds to me like Hicks is getting his ducks in a row to fuck over the other directors. If he loses the case for this injunction granted in Texas then he simply sells to Mill Financial who repay RBS before Friday, take over the club and get rid of the other 3.

Pacino Fan, As I'm sure you're aware, your mate Tom Hicks has a bit of 'history' on Tyneside after he got rid of hundreds of workers at Via Sytems South Shields & Longbenton sites and tried his damnest to wriggle out paying them any compensation or redundancy. I know people (both Newcastle & Sunderland supporters) who protested against this both on Tyneside and in Liverpool before matches against you. Both sets of supporters have told me that in every case the scousers laughed at them, took the piss and waved their stars & stripes flags in their faces. If you're looking for sympathy from the geordies & mackems then you'll have a fucking long wait I'm afraid.

This could get even more scarier than a lot of Man Utd supporters realise. If Man Utd go bust then everybody knows the FA will pretty much roll over as they have done with other clubs, it will be a 10-20 point deduction which would probably mean no European football for a season but then they come back completely debt free under new owners the following season. Result really!! However, from what I'm led to believe, if the Glazers go bust in the USA then the US government can basically seize all their worldwide assets, including Man Utd, and do as they want with them. They won't give a shit what the FA or anybody else wants, they could offload players in their own time at their own price and if Man Utd don't have new owners or enough players to start a new season or fulfil their fixtures then tough shit. Scary stuff indeed.

As a complete neutral, I'd take Carroll before Agbonlahor every time. Different type of player maybe but there are a few around that can do what Agbonlahor does but not many with the physical presence of Carroll. I'd certainly give him an early call up to the England squad. He offers something that nobody else offers with the possible exception of Crouch and I think he's better than Crouch even at this stage of his development.

Interesting. First time I've seen Ashley's Son

Hughton needs to have a word with Carroll sharpish! He can't go putting in performances like that in before the transfer window closes. Ashley is counting the cash as we speak Seriously, he looks a player. Always knew he was good in the air but last week his workrate impressed me and this week he showed he can play on the deck.

Freudian slip, I obviously meant Gosling Though if you do get Rodwell at some point I'm coming back to claim super duper ITK status

Match went pretty much as expected for me. Man Ud dominated without being really able to turn their superiority into goals. For you I think there were some positive signs. Carroll will be a handful for a lot of teams this year, I was particularly impressed with his workrate. His finishing will improve with experience but he could do with a bit more pace down the flanks pinging in the crosses. Your problems, for me, are identical to the problems you had 2 years ago. That midfield triumverate of Barton, Nolan & Smith are past their sell by date. No energy or passion. The pace of premiership football passes them by. You need rid of them all but they are not going anywhere because of the money, you're stuck with them until their contracts expire. The time Man Utd's midfield had on the ball was frightening. You need some younger blood in midfield harrying the opposition. As far as Man Utd go, they will be thereabouts again this season but they really need to offload Berbatov quickly, he's killing their game. He's a tidy footballer but he wants to slow everything down 'continental style'. Man Utd are at their best attacking with pace and it all grinds to a halt when Berbatov puts his foot on the ball. Good luck for the season. Guthrie and Rodwell later in the season might just give you the midfield energy you need provided Hughton has the balls to drop the has beens.