Man United Thread

[Jonny D]

I highly doubt Chelsea would sell him to us. I expect him to move to somewhere in Italy.

[MDK]

...You honestly think Chelsea would be willing to sell a top keeper to they're rivals?

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Everyone has their price and if I was Carlo I would want a move, considering that he didn't play all that much during the season. Either way, its just a thought.

[TMM]

You're being linked with Edwin van der Sar in the Mail on Sunday. I reckon he or Niemi are the most likely ones for this season for you.

Besides, Frey's coming Arsenal.

[MDK]

Anyway, all this talk of goalkeepers going to clubs is overshadowing the BIG goalie move. Glyn Garner from Bury to Orient. Damn, I never saw that one coming >_>

[public enemy]

Cudicini has stated he is perfectly happy with his current role at Chelsea. Not surprising considering the much money he’s making.

If he were to leave it would be to a foreign club, probably one of the lesser Italian clubs. As much as I’d like to have him, it’s extremely unlikely as long as he’s still under Chelsea contract.

To be quite honest, I’d settle for any of the keepers we’re being linked with. They all seem quality but we need someone who is more than a 'normal' keeper, someone who can from time to time pull off the spectacular. In most premiership games, we’d settle for a normal keeper and the Tim Howard’s and Roy Carroll’s of the world would do, but in other competitions such as the Champions League and even the more difficult Premiership games, we need someone who can be relied upon. Unfortunately that’s easier said than done and to find that keeper is a more difficult job, all things considered.

[Malenko]

...You honestly think Chelsea would be willing to sell a top keeper to they're rivals?

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Everyone has their price and if I was Carlo I would want a move, considering that he didn't play all that much during the season. Either way, its just a thought.

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[shaneo]

Fulham's Edwin van der Sar is all set to complete a move to Manchester United, skysports.com can confirm.

Speaking exclusively to skysports.com, van der Sar's agent Rob Jansen confirmed the transfer was almost done.

"The deal is done in principal," Jansen told skysports.com.

"It will be finalised in a week.

"Edwin is very happy, it is an honour for him to play for a club like United."

Van der Sar is set to sign a two-year deal at Old Trafford, once he has returned from international duty with Holland.

The 34-year-old claimed his 100th cap for the Oranje on Saturday as he helped his country to a 2-0 win over Romania.

Van der Sar will in Finland on Wednesday before returning to England when he will complete the formalities of the deal.

Sir Alex Ferguson has moved quickly to land van der Sar, after Roy Carroll left the club last week.

The move represents the end of a long chase for Ferguson who first moved for van der Sar in 1999, but he was pipped to him by Juventus.

Ferguson has opted for van der Sar, ahead of the likes of Antti Niemi, Shay Given, Paul Robinson and Andreas Isaksson.

Tim Howard, who signed a new deal recently, will be number two to van der Sar next term - although Ferguson may yet add a third senior goalkeeper to his ranks over the summer.

[public enemy]

Great news, Van Der Sar’s still a good keeper and probably the best buy considering our limitations in the transfer market.

In my opinion, he’s just the kind of keeper we needed. He’s experienced and already proven to be one of the best in the premiership and just the right level of discipline to marshal a back-four such as our own.

He comes on Peter Schmeichel's recommendation along with Friedal and Isaksson so obviously there’s a lot of confidence in him even as a short-term resolution. He’s still got a good two year’s left in him, let’s just hope that’s more than enough time for Tim Howard to gain back his confidence.

[Liam]

.....bollocks.

[G-O-D]

Van Der Sar is a reliable keeper, even though he's in his thirties, and he'll fare better than Roy Carroll and Ricardo, that's for sure.

You guys have been linked with Park Ji-Sung of PSV, he's a good player, with tremendous workrate, but I have doubts over whether he can adapt to English football.

[Guest Red Devil]

I'm happy that Van Der Sar is coming to us this season. He's an awesome keeper and even though he's coming to the end of his career he's still looking good. He was one of the main reasons Fulham stayed up this year! Hopefully this gives Howard a few years to gain the experience and take over from Edwin when he leaves.

[Malenko]

Van Der Sar is a reliable keeper, even though he's in his thirties, and he'll fare better than Roy Carroll and Ricardo, that's for sure.

You guys have been linked with Park Ji-Sung of PSV, he's a good player, with tremendous workrate, but I have doubts over whether he can adapt to English football.

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[Dan]

Van Der Saar is 34.

Suprising they have brought someone in so old, might make a good coach though.

[Lord Nibbler]

£2m for a good, experienced keeper is nothing. Hopefully Howard will improve enough over the next year or two to be worthy of the #1 shirt.

[sahyder1]

Report: Man U tickets to get 54% hike

Associated Press

6/10/2005 9:32:10 AM

MANCHESTER, England (AP) - Manchester United fans say they could be "leaving in droves'' following a report that new American owner Malcolm Glazer plans to raise ticket prices by 54 per cent over the next five seasons.

The Times of London also reported in a front-page story Friday that the cost of tickets for Champions League games next season would go up by 25 per cent.

Glazer, the owner of the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers, became majority shareholder of United on May 16. He owns a 76.2 per cent stake as part of a 790-million-pound ($1.8 billion Cdn) takeover - most of it borrowed money - of the world's richest soccer club.

Glazer is offering to buy out the remaining shareholders and hopes to take the club off the stock market by June 22.

The Times based its report on "previously unseen documents'' outlining Glazer's plans for the club.

According to the Times, Manchester United will stage exhibition games in Tampa each year, raising two million pounds ($4.6 million Cdn) in revenues.

The price of an average United home game ticket is currently 30 pounds ($68.50 Cdn). Under Glazer's plans, that would increase to 46 pounds ($105.72 Cdn) by 2010, the Times said.

The 2010 prices would still be just below the current cost for a ticket at Chelsea, the most expensive in the league.

But United fans' groups, which have fiercely opposed Glazer's takeover, said the prices will be out of their reach.

"People are so disillusioned with the massive increases they are being asked to pay, it will just turn more and more fans off,'' Nick Towle, chairman of Shareholders United, told BBC Radio Five.

"And how is (Glazer) going to fill an expanded stadium when people are leaving in droves? It's very bad for his business plan.''

The club has already announced plans to expand Old Trafford stadium from 67,800 to 76,000 within the next two years.

"The drive for commercialization is becoming too much for most fans,'' Towle said. "It's really beginning to create a big problem, and that's just before fans stop buying the products and merchandise, which will also increase in price.''

Glazer has appointed his three sons - Joel, Bryan and Avram - to the United board.

Reacting to the Times report, an unidentified spokesman for Joel Glazer, who is also an executive vice-president of the Buccaneers, told the BBC that nothing had been finalized.

According to the Times, manager Sir Alex Ferguson will be limited to spending a maximum of 25 million pounds ($57.1 million Cdn) per season on recruiting new players. That's well short of the 30 million ($68.5 million Cdn) he paid last season for just one player, England striker Wayne Rooney.

Glazer also hopes to raise annual revenue from a current 173 million pounds ($395.3 million Cdn) to 246 million pounds ($561.2 million Cdn) by 2010.

Edited June 10, 2005 by sahyder1

[Jonny D]

Personally, I think raising the ticket prices by 54% is way too much, but the fact was, are ticket prices were very low for a top club, and even a number of mid table clubs have higher prices than us right now. And even after this 54% rise, our prices will still be cheaper than Chelsea's.

[pigeon]

£46 for a Northern club? Ridiculous.

[Guest Pirate Chasin' Booty]

90% of Man Utd fans have never and will never watch a game at Old Trafford, so most people can't complain.

[therockbox]

Manchester United Supporters' Association (IMUSA) want the club thrown out of European football due to the debt Malcolm Gazer is placing the club in.

IMUSA are keen to force the American tycoon out of The Red Devils and want Uefa to look at the strain Glazer's takeover has exerted on United.

Around 30 fans interrupted a Uefa meeting on Saturday to stage a peaceful demonstration at the City of Manchester Stadium.

Nick Clay, of the Independent Manchester United Supporters' Association, is hoping Uefa can review whether United are allowed to compete in the UEFA Champions League.

"Malcolm Glazer is saddling Manchester United with a huge debt and 98 percent of supporters are against him," explained Clay.

"We want Uefa to look at whether the clubs in debt should be allowed to continue in European competition."

Uefa chief executive Lars-Christer Olsson has revealed they can make their views known, but it does not contravene any rules that clubs have debts.

"We can voice an opinion but we do not have any right to intervene," explained Olsson.

"If clubs are allowed to have debts under their domestic legislation then that is okay. They are not allowed to have debts to others in the football family."

[public enemy]

It's this minority that gives us other fans a bad name.

If they really love the club as much as they claim then why would they go to such an extent to where the club is run into the ground just to get rid of an owner? Surely, seeing the club ran into the ground like so many are preparing it to do would be the biggest heartbreak to the fans, no? A lot of these 'idiots', as you so rightly called them, seriously need to rethink they're logic on the whole situation, either that or jump on the Chelsea bandwagon and associate themselves with another crowd.