So the pre-season's over, come Monday night we'll be into the new season, the summer always seems to be over in two seconds flat. To be fair it hasn't really felt like that for me this summer. A summer of international football, that for once was reasonably entertaining, cricket and an olympics that the cynic in me will have to admit was also pretty enjoyable.
Once that fucking awful final day of last season finished i just switched any sport off the goggle box, and left the sports pages alone. And as unwelcome as Chelski's champions league win was, at least it meant it didn't take long for City's title win to be yesterday's fish and chip wrapping paper.
England's performance in the European championship were as bad as ever, the difference between the world cup in South Africa under Capello and England's achievement in getting to the last eight was largely down to luck and a happier atmosphere in the squad. As for tactics or an ability to keep the ball, it was deja vu.
Wednesday's victory over Italy, even if Italy played a weaker team showed the folly of leaving Carrick at home and how England were probably affected as much as England by Cleverley's injury plagued season. At least Welbeck did himself no harm on the European stage.
As for us, the more i look at our pre-season, the players already in and todays addition of Van Persie, the more i am pretty content with the squad and the more i'm looking foward to the season ahead. I know we've all banged on about the need for midfield reinforcement, me included, but with fingers crossed over injuries, it looks stronger than it has for a while. It will definitely be strong enough to see us attempt to reclaim the premier league title form the berties, and there's no reason to believe it won't be tight again. I would have liked a left back, Barca have bought a gem in Alba, but other than that we should be stronger than last season at the back with Vidic back and with De Gea having a season under his belt at the club.
As for the games that we seem to struggle in our domestic games, against City and our trips to Anfield, where we have been abysmal in performance and in results over recent season's, if lessons are learnt tactically, there's every reason to go into those games with a bit more belief. Fergie admitted he took the qualifying stages of Europe too lightly last season, so it will be interesting to see ho we fare this year in Europe. I'm trusting given the players bought, a rigid 4-4-2 will go out of the window to a 4-2-3-1 or some variation of 4-3-3. Kagawa will probably turn out to be a more important signing than Van Persie, he looks like he will be a top draw player and make us less predictable.
I'll admit i was sceptical all round about us going for Van Persie, i couldn't see why we would go for a forward, even a top rate one, given the need for strengthning in other areas, but if our summer transfer dealings are done i'd be content with it. What we seem to have now is a bit more strength in depth and a lot more options, both in personnel and tactcial variety. Red Iss better watch out because tinkerbell will be back in a big way this season. I'm not sure how Van Persie will be used but agree with Andy Mitten that his signing is a challenge to Wayne Rooney in more ways than one. Let's hope he rises to it, he may have been prolific in front of goal since Ronaldo went, but his actual level of performance over the last couple of seasons has been so so really.
Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister both see Van Persie's move to United providing the divisions centre backs with sleepless nights thinking about how they will cope with a formidable United spearhead. Mark Ogden sees that possibility but also ponders Rooney's inability to gell in any forward combination over recent seasons. There's something in that, though i thought he linked up well with Tevez and looked good behind Hernandez in the Mexican's excellent first season at the club.
The other worry for some is how the Dutchman's arrival will affect Welbeck and Hernandez's progress at the club. Now Welbeck's future is sorted i don't have any worries that he will thrive and meet the challenge. I can't really say the same about Hernandez, even after a summer off, at Fergie's insistence, he hasn't shook any trees in pre-season, his first touch and passing ability just doesn't really seem to improve. I'm not saying i expect him to go, as the tabloids have alleged, but if a big enough bid comes in for him eventually, it wouldn't amaze me if United accepted a bid. If Will Keane hadn't have suffered that bad injury it would have been interesting to see what Fergie would have done with him.
It had been a pretty depressing month, before this morale boosting move and as David Conn argues in the Guardian can't hide the fact that our glorious owners are steadily assett stripping our club. Jim White argues that if our floatation price sinks as many anaylysts have predicted, the Glazer's will be in no hurry to sell the club off. That's contrary to others who have argued that if the price starts to go south at a rate of knots, that is excatly when they will bow out before United loses all value. After the price sinking below the $14 valuation for the first time today, the weeks and months ahead should give us an idea. The loathsome David Gill argues United are in a league of their own, true enough, keeping the Glazer's in the lifestyle they are accustomed to, clinging onto hopefully?
A decent first day at the deciding test match at Lords, though South Africa will be reasonaly happy with their score after being 121-5. After all the shit eminating around Pietersen i'd love England to square the series, they have given themselves a chance. I'm not that nationalistic but i would go along with Peter Obornes analysis of the furore, it doesn't really sit right with me either, that South Africans should want to come to this country and play for England. If you were born in a cricket mad country such as South Africa, why on earth would you want to play for England. As for Pietersen, as Bob Willis said on Sky the other night, he has destroyed almost every changing room he has been involved in, to the extent that his kit bag was thrown out of the changing room at his first English county Notts. As devastating as he can occasionally be, i wouldn't cry if he never played for England again.
Once that fucking awful final day of last season finished i just switched any sport off the goggle box, and left the sports pages alone. And as unwelcome as Chelski's champions league win was, at least it meant it didn't take long for City's title win to be yesterday's fish and chip wrapping paper.
England's performance in the European championship were as bad as ever, the difference between the world cup in South Africa under Capello and England's achievement in getting to the last eight was largely down to luck and a happier atmosphere in the squad. As for tactics or an ability to keep the ball, it was deja vu.
Wednesday's victory over Italy, even if Italy played a weaker team showed the folly of leaving Carrick at home and how England were probably affected as much as England by Cleverley's injury plagued season. At least Welbeck did himself no harm on the European stage.
As for us, the more i look at our pre-season, the players already in and todays addition of Van Persie, the more i am pretty content with the squad and the more i'm looking foward to the season ahead. I know we've all banged on about the need for midfield reinforcement, me included, but with fingers crossed over injuries, it looks stronger than it has for a while. It will definitely be strong enough to see us attempt to reclaim the premier league title form the berties, and there's no reason to believe it won't be tight again. I would have liked a left back, Barca have bought a gem in Alba, but other than that we should be stronger than last season at the back with Vidic back and with De Gea having a season under his belt at the club.
As for the games that we seem to struggle in our domestic games, against City and our trips to Anfield, where we have been abysmal in performance and in results over recent season's, if lessons are learnt tactically, there's every reason to go into those games with a bit more belief. Fergie admitted he took the qualifying stages of Europe too lightly last season, so it will be interesting to see ho we fare this year in Europe. I'm trusting given the players bought, a rigid 4-4-2 will go out of the window to a 4-2-3-1 or some variation of 4-3-3. Kagawa will probably turn out to be a more important signing than Van Persie, he looks like he will be a top draw player and make us less predictable.
I'll admit i was sceptical all round about us going for Van Persie, i couldn't see why we would go for a forward, even a top rate one, given the need for strengthning in other areas, but if our summer transfer dealings are done i'd be content with it. What we seem to have now is a bit more strength in depth and a lot more options, both in personnel and tactcial variety. Red Iss better watch out because tinkerbell will be back in a big way this season. I'm not sure how Van Persie will be used but agree with Andy Mitten that his signing is a challenge to Wayne Rooney in more ways than one. Let's hope he rises to it, he may have been prolific in front of goal since Ronaldo went, but his actual level of performance over the last couple of seasons has been so so really.
Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister both see Van Persie's move to United providing the divisions centre backs with sleepless nights thinking about how they will cope with a formidable United spearhead. Mark Ogden sees that possibility but also ponders Rooney's inability to gell in any forward combination over recent seasons. There's something in that, though i thought he linked up well with Tevez and looked good behind Hernandez in the Mexican's excellent first season at the club.
The other worry for some is how the Dutchman's arrival will affect Welbeck and Hernandez's progress at the club. Now Welbeck's future is sorted i don't have any worries that he will thrive and meet the challenge. I can't really say the same about Hernandez, even after a summer off, at Fergie's insistence, he hasn't shook any trees in pre-season, his first touch and passing ability just doesn't really seem to improve. I'm not saying i expect him to go, as the tabloids have alleged, but if a big enough bid comes in for him eventually, it wouldn't amaze me if United accepted a bid. If Will Keane hadn't have suffered that bad injury it would have been interesting to see what Fergie would have done with him.
It had been a pretty depressing month, before this morale boosting move and as David Conn argues in the Guardian can't hide the fact that our glorious owners are steadily assett stripping our club. Jim White argues that if our floatation price sinks as many anaylysts have predicted, the Glazer's will be in no hurry to sell the club off. That's contrary to others who have argued that if the price starts to go south at a rate of knots, that is excatly when they will bow out before United loses all value. After the price sinking below the $14 valuation for the first time today, the weeks and months ahead should give us an idea. The loathsome David Gill argues United are in a league of their own, true enough, keeping the Glazer's in the lifestyle they are accustomed to, clinging onto hopefully?
A decent first day at the deciding test match at Lords, though South Africa will be reasonaly happy with their score after being 121-5. After all the shit eminating around Pietersen i'd love England to square the series, they have given themselves a chance. I'm not that nationalistic but i would go along with Peter Obornes analysis of the furore, it doesn't really sit right with me either, that South Africans should want to come to this country and play for England. If you were born in a cricket mad country such as South Africa, why on earth would you want to play for England. As for Pietersen, as Bob Willis said on Sky the other night, he has destroyed almost every changing room he has been involved in, to the extent that his kit bag was thrown out of the changing room at his first English county Notts. As devastating as he can occasionally be, i wouldn't cry if he never played for England again.
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