The days of winning the title with little more than a dozen players as Liverpool did in the eighties are long gone. For many years clubs were forced to build large and deep squads in order to have any realistic chance of success but that is now about to change dramatically. As from the beginning of September, every Premier League club must nominate a squad of up to 25 players, of which no more than 17 can be over the age of 21 and not home grown. Will this rule worry Manchester United? The short answer is NO.
Read the full story

It’s a well known fact that Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs is the most decorated footballer in England, possibly anywhere. But his team mate Edwin van der Sar is not all that far behind. The former Netherlands goalkeeper who will hit the big four 0 in October made his senior debut for Ajax Amsterdam in 1990-91, the same season that 17 year old Giggs made his breakthrough into the first team at Old Trafford. Since then, the 6ft 6inch Dutchman has won 7 League titles and 2 European Champion League winning medals between the two clubs but he has made it clear that he’s still hungry for more.
Read the full story

One of the saddest things in football is the obsession by some fans to look back at history as a way of replacing a lack of hope for the future. Being mindful not to fall into the same trap, memories of the wonderful season Manchester United enjoyed in 2006-07 following a three year Premier League drought is only brought up in response to a comment made by one of our readers. History alone can never win silverware but it can be help to point the way to the future.
Read the full story

It’s hard to know whether it’s old age catching up or whether the rumors during the off season are becoming more stupid and harder to believe as years go by. This week’s reported interest by Manchester United for Dutch Inter Milan midfielder Wesley Sneijder is a case in point. The story was headline news in all the media both in the UK and Italy on Wednesday without either Sir Alex Ferguson or anyone from the club acknowledging or denying such interest.
Read the full story

Nobody can ever accuse Sir Alex Ferguson of sitting on the fence about anything so it was no surprise to hear him predict that Wayne Rooney will be one of the biggest stars of the next World Cup. The Manchester United manager also feels that England may have had it too easy in qualifying for the 2010 Finals and that the only regret he has about showing Diego Forlan the Old Trafford door in 2004 was that he sold him too cheaply.
Read the full story

With the chances of Manchester United making a big name signing this summer receding faster than England’s chances of ever winning another World Cup, attention should turn to some of the outstanding young talent on display in South Africa. A handful of good performances in the tournament will obviously not guarantee long term success at Old Trafford but just like new signing Javier Hernandez made a huge impression for Mexico, there are others who have shown the sort of potential that Sir Alex Ferguson may be searching for. These are just three of them.
Read the full story