Charlie Klein
I'm going to say this right now with my hand over the United crest over my heart, I am honestly very pleased with United's work in the transfer window thus far. I do not long for some big money move for an overrated-by-the-press player nor do I believe that United have done anything to damage their chances of winning the English Premier League for a record fourth consecutive season.
The player market as it stands now has been ridiculously inflated by the work of Chelsea, Real Madrid, and to a certain extent, Manchester United. This summer every player who is of any international acclaim has seen his transfer value raised by Madrid breaking the world transfer fee two times in a period of a month. Players like Klass Jan Huntelaar have now been valuated at 20 million pounds by a team that barely played him last season and obviously does not think enough of him that they signed Karim Benzema for at a minimum of 35 million euros. I'm not trying to say that Huntelaar is not a very good player, which he is, and I'll always support him since he plays for the Oranje, but he is not worth 20 million.
The same story is true for Franck Ribery of Bayern Munich. While no official number has been stated as far as an asking price for the French wizard goes, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has commented that it would take a crazy offer for them to consider selling their man. It is well known that Bayern hold Ribery in the highest regard placing him on the level of Kaka, Ronaldo, and Messi as one of the best in the world.
Given all of that, I am incredibly pleased to say that United have yet to overpay for a player this offseason. United signed Luis Antonio Valencia from Wigan Athletic for an undisclosed amount, but is believed to be approximately 17 million sterling. Valencia was also a target of Madrid, but preferred a move within England. Valencia is thought to be a player with bags of potential and at only 23 years of age is poised to become a great player under the tutelage of Sir Alex Ferguson.
Sir Alex's signing of Michael Owen has raised many eyebrows around Europe. Many believe that Owen is too old or too injury prone to offer United a return on their investment. Too much of a risk to provide any reward. People who say that are straight up ignorant. First of all, Owen required absolutely no investment in terms of money. His contract is littered with incentives and little guaranteed money. Based on his contract he is set to make 50,000 a week which is chump change for United.
Paul Merson wrote for Sky Sports
"At United he will get plenty of chances and he will score plenty of goals. How many times do you see United dominate teams for the whole game? Practically every week they have 70-80 per cent possession, but sometimes they just need someone to stick the ball in the net - and there are none better at that than Michael Owen."Aside from the brilliance of those two signings, allowing Ronaldo to leave United will have a positive affect on the squad as a whole. First and foremost, the 80 million pounds that United received from Madrid will help them invest in the present and future of the club in whatever ways David Gill and Sir Alex decide to do. It would be unwise for them to spend half or all of that sum on one player, which they have thus far refused to do. Secondly, it prevents any bad blood developing in the changing room from having an unhappy player polluting the minds of his teammates. Ronaldo has done everything he could for United and both sides reached an amicable settlement that will work out for both parties.
Then came the news today that United are set to lock up the services of 20 year-old Bordeaux winger Gabriel Obertan. Obertan has been receiving comparisons to Thierry Henry and at only what is believed to be three million pounds, why not take that risk? Obertan was being tracked by Arsenal, AC Milan, and Inter Milan but appears to favour a move to the European Capital of Trophies. Obertan scored against England Under-21s in March and took the Most Valuable Player award at last month's Toulon International youth tournament.
United are not only investing wisely in the players they buy, but also in the players that are currently on their roster. News broke today that United signed keeper Ben Foster to a four year extension, locking up a player many claim to be one of the best young keepers in England. His performance against Tottenham Hotspur in the Carling Cup Final which ended in a penalty shootout will be remembered by United fans for years to come.
The Real Madrid model works for some people, well I should say, the Real Madrid model works for Real Madrid, but for few others. It is not the policy by which every club should go about their business. Manchester United has gone about theirs in a smart and prudent fashion, one as a United supporter I applaud.
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