Manchester United Must Learn From Madrid Mistakes

So here we are, the end of another long and very fruitful footballing season, but before you wonder what on earth your going to do on Saturday evenings at 10:20 pm all summer, there is the destination of one last trophy to still be decided. That trophy is of course, the champions league, which will see FC Barcelona taking on Manchester United at Wembley on the 28th of May. 


For Sir Alex Ferguson's side to not only be premiership champions (for a record 19th time) but also looking forward to a champions league final is an incredible achievement for the club as a whole, and also one of Sir Alex's finest achievements in management. I refuse to go down the route of claiming this united team is 'not as good' as others previously, a view which many in the media have taken. Rather, I would prefer to concentrate on what this team has achieved already and what could be achieved in the future, in my view, you shouldn't be comparing teams from different era's until the era is over, this Manchester United team is very much still alive.


In the way of Manchester United completing the double this season is arguably the best team the world has seen over the last 20 years, FC Barcelona. For Manchester United to have a chance of winning the final they need to do what Real Madrid failed to do, believe they can win. For all Mourinho's complaining and play acting during the semi finals, one thing stood out above all the rest, that Real Madrid and Jose Mourinho in particular feared Barcelona, they didn't believe they could win and it showed. From the criminal lack of ambition shown in the first leg by selecting Pepe in the centre of midfield and playing Cristiano Ronaldo as a exceptionally lonely centre forward, United must avoid planning for the opposition too much and play their own, fact paced, counter attacking game.


This is of course all very easy to say, forget about the opposition which includes Messi, Iniesta, Xavi, Dani Alves and David Villa, but that it the point, if you tried to make specific plans for barcelona you would have one for every player!Sir Alex Ferguson has already stated that Utd will 'play their own game' at Wembley on the 28th, but he must stick to his word for Utd to stand a chance of an upset. With the game being on 'home soil' and Barcelona looking increasingly tired with every game they play, stranger things have happened...

What Next For Manchester United?

With the 'Rooneygate' saga now behind us, it seems the burning question is where do Manchester United go from here? With the future of Rooney secure (for now at least) United have the chance to silence the doubters who claim that there is no money to spend at Old Trafford. With the £80 million the club received from Real Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo still (apparently) lying unspent surely United must now strengthen there squad. Here we are going to have a look through the possible transfer targets of the Old Trafford club.

Wesley Sneijder (above) - Linked with Manchester United over the summer after a sterling world cup where he finished joint top scorer. Would seem to be able to adapt to the ELP if the form of his fellow Dutch international Rafael Van Der Vaart is anything to go by, it begs the question as to why there wasn't more interest in Van Der Vaart before he signed for spurs. Can play either central midfield or as the 'link' between midfield and attack, would seem to fit the perfectly for what United need at the moment with their midfield struggling to impose themselves on games. Scholes and Giggs can not be expected to produce performance after performance anymore and with Hargreaves still struggling to gain fitness it leaves Anderson and Carrick - enough said. Fergie has bought on reputation before and been bitten (Veron, Kleberson), therefore its unlikely he will splash the cash, preferring in my view to buy potential and develop it, like he has done so successfully over the past 24 years.

Arjen Robben - Teammate of Sneijder and fellow World Cup runner up, talk seems to have died down linking Robben with a move back to the EPL since it was first mooted early in 2010. Robben's sparkling form for FC Bayern, lifting them to the final of the Champions League almost single handily last season, raised his credibility once again after a indifferent spell at Real Madrid. Robben's reputation as being a difficult personality to control may count him out of a move to Old Trafford.

Kaka - I am sure i am not the only one who would love to see Ricardo Kaka strutting his stuff on Match of the Day on saturday evening, but i cant see this move ever happening. In my mind if Kaka wanted to move to England he would have signed the golden and oil smelling cheque Manchester City offered him last year. With Jose Mourinho now in charge at Madrid it seems unlikely any player in their right mind would leave the club unless told too. 

Steven Defour (above) - The Standard Liege midfielder has been out of action for more than a year after breaking his foot, but now coming back to fitness United seem ready to pounce. A Belgian international renowned for his physical pedigree is exactly the type of player United require and desire. In my eyes highly likely to make the move to Old Trafford sooner rather than later, providing he proves his fitness.

Alexis Sanchez (above) - A highly rated front man who prefers to operate from wide positions, Sanchez has been in europe for more than 4 years and is only 21 years of age. After a good world cup showing for Chile it seems the stage is set for Sanchez to make a move from Udinese to one of Europe's elite clubs. His size may count against him moving to England, with spain a preferred destination for many of the world's smaller, more skilful players. Having said that he is exactly the kind of player Fergie loves, quick, an eye for a goal and mature beyond his years, dont be surprised to see Sanchez end up at Old Trafford.

Ibrahim Afellay -The highly regarded 24-year-old playmaker is another player off the conveyer belt of production at PSV. Blessed with two strong feet and an eye for a goal this is another who seems to be destined to play in the EPL at some point, whether or not United are willing to pay a large fee for him remains to be seen, must impress in Europe over the coming months to gain a move away from Holland.


In conclusion, dont expect Manchester United to splash the cash in January or the summer of 2011, Sir Alex will do what he has always done in my mind, have faith in the development of young players (Hernandez) ready to create his final team to take on the ELP and Europe. The next question is really how long does Sir Alex have left in him... 


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