http://www.joinmust.org/forum General news archive - Manchester United, MUST, general football finance etc. en Mon, 06 Sep 2010 09:05:50 GMT vBulletin 120 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/images/misc/rss.jpg http://www.joinmust.org/forum http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69274&goto=newpost Mon, 06 Sep 2010 08:58:51 GMT Darren Fletcher set for Scotland half century
By Colin Moffat
BBC, 5 September 2010 16:57 UK


With a hat-trick of English Premier League titles and a Champions League winner's medal to his name, Darren Fletcher would be forgiven for not getting too excited about a match against the footballing minnows of Liechtenstein.

However, when the Manchester United midfielder leads Scotland out at Hampden on Tuesday it will be his 50th international appearance.

And it is sure to be a proud moment for the 26-year-old from Dalkeith.

"For such a young guy I think it's a huge achievement," said Scotland assistant manager Peter Houston.

"He is the captain of his country and at this early age he is getting 50 caps, so great credit to him and I'll be delighted for him if he is taking the team out."

Fletcher has only ever known the famous red of Manchester United and has locked horns with many of the greatest players on the the world stage but the Scotland skipper remains a down-to-earth character.

Refreshingly modest and articulate, he is a player with incredible energy, fierce in the tackle, with a wide range of passing and an eye for important goals.

Yet there is nagging criticism that his club performances are not matched by his international efforts.

It is an overly harsh charge that Fletcher has grown weary of hearing and one that was inverted early in his career, with United fans asking when he was going to demonstrate the skills he was showing for his country.

Of course, now he is an integral member of Sir Alex Ferguson's team.

"I am my biggest critic," Fletcher said ahead of Friday's 0-0 draw in Lithuania. "I know that myself. Maybe my form just now for Manchester United is better than my form for Scotland. But that is something that I have to try and put right.

"I have had the reverse said about me. People claimed I did not produce international form when I played for Manchester United. At the start of my career that was said.

"In an ideal world you would like to play brilliantly for both. Sometimes that does not materialise for whatever reason. It's not a case of my trying harder for one rather than the other. I go in with exactly the same desire. You will always get 100% from me."

In the blue of Scotland, the onus is often on Fletcher to provide the creative spark, while at club level he can rely on a host of other stars to help unlock defences.

It is also true that Manchester United enjoy being in the ascendancy more often than Scotland and he is afforded ample opportunities to get forward and join in attacks.

Fletcher, who has scored four international goals, may not have shone in the frustrating draw in Kaunas but Houston was pleased with the midfielder's contribution.

"We feel that he does a smashing job for his country," added Craig Levein's lieutenant. He passes the ball well. His energy levels show he is fully committed.

"He plays in a club side every week who are one of the top teams in the division. We are a small country in many ways. We find it difficult at times to play against top countries with bigger populations, but one thing that Darren has shown for Scotland is that he is fully committed, he is always here, always wanting to play.

"We can't expect Darren to play well every single game but certainly if he gives us a performance like the other night we'll be more than pleased."

Berti Vogts is not recalled with much fondness by the Tartan Army but it was the German who handed Fletcher his first cap.

A skinny teenager came off the bench to replace Maurice Ross for the final half hour of a goalless friendly in Norway.

Fletcher has made amazing progress since that Oslo outing in August 2003, amassing a glittering haul of trophies for his club.

His Champions League medal came as an unused substitute in 2008 and a cruel red card denied him the chance of playing in the following year's final.

In characteristically determined fashion, he did not allow the disappointment to unsettle him and his consistent performances earned him a place in last season's PFA Premier League Team of the Year.

Tuesday will be the 12th occasion Fletcher has captained Scotland and he will be equally resolute in his quest to add significantly to that tally.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/scotland/8970454.stm ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY TanyaT http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69274 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69273&goto=newpost Mon, 06 Sep 2010 08:52:59 GMT Blackburn Rovers takeover man Syed left UK debt trail By Adrian Goldberg Presenter, 5 live Investigates BBC, 5 September 2010 Last updated at 06:02 The Indian businessman hoping to take over Blackburn Rovers has left a trail of unpaid debt in the UK. Records show Ahsan Ali Syed has failed... Blackburn Rovers takeover man Syed left UK debt trail
By Adrian Goldberg Presenter, 5 live Investigates
BBC, 5 September 2010 Last updated at 06:02


The Indian businessman hoping to take over Blackburn Rovers has left a trail of unpaid debt in the UK.

Records show Ahsan Ali Syed has failed to pay a county court judgement of £61,500. Other debts include £7,800 in unpaid rent and nearly £1,000 in unpaid council tax.

Mr Ali is also listed as director of two UK companies which were dissolved for non-compliance.

The businessman did not respond to the BBC's request for comment.

Mr Ali lived in England between 2001 and 2005, saying he was here "enjoying family life".

Companies House records show one of his earliest listed addresses was in Colchester, Essex. However, the owner of the property said that Mr Ali has had no connection with the address.

Congestion charge

Mr Ali did live in a rented flat in London's West End. The letting agent, Abdur Karim Ali, said Mr Ali "was a very good tenant, very quiet, until 2004 and he started delaying paying his rent."


The London flat vacated by Ahsan Ali Syed Ahsan
he left his London home in 2005, owing £7,800 in rent

Mr Ali suddenly vacated the London apartment in May 2005 owing approximately £7,800 in unpaid rent.

The letting agent said the man now hoping to buy Blackburn Rovers also left the flat littered with unopened mail and shredded documents.

"It was in a very, very bad condition. Everything was turned upside down."

Mr Ali did not leave a forwarding address, and the agent said he had hired solicitors to try and track down his former tenant, but they could not find him.

The BBC has discovered that other parties were also seeking Mr Ali for unpaid debts.

Registry Trust records show that Mr Ali is yet to settle a £61,500 "unsatisfied" - or unpaid - county court judgement made against him in 2007. Specific details of this judgement are not known.

Other debts that appear to be outstanding include an unpaid London congestion charge fine. Bailiffs were also seeking Mr Ali for unpaid Council Tax totalling £932.25.

Dissolved companies

Mr Ali says he has assets of about $3bn (£1.9bn) and the website of his Bahrain based company, Western Gulf Advisory, says he "plays a role in the management and the boards of over 133 companies worldwide".

As far as Mr Ali's UK business interests, the BBC could only find records linking him to two companies in London.

In 2001, he registered as a director of Grovebridge Investments. Five years later Companies House wrote to the company's directors, asking if it was still trading because no returns had been submitted.

Grovebridge Investments Limited was struck off in September 2006.

Mr Ali was also a director of All Star Foods, which was dissolved in 2004 - again because no returns were filed.

According to information published by Mr Ali's company, Western Gulf Advisory, he purchased a Canadian company between 2003 and 2004, for C$565,000 (£352,000) and sold it 16 months later for C$8m.

When asked about his Canadian interests, Mr Ali told the BBC that he had two Canada-based businesses: Western Gulf Petroleum and Western Gulf Investments, which were founded in 2004/5.

Just as in Britain, official records show these companies were dissolved for failure to file returns.

'Royal adviser'

Earlier this week, the BBC revealed that Mr Ali's Bahrain based investment company, Western Gulf Advisory, was ordered to cease trading by the country's Ministry of Industry and Commerce.

While the company initially denied the claims, Mr Ali has since been quoted as saying that he is co-operating fully with the authorities in the Middle Eastern state.

Mr Ali has stressed that it is not his Bahrain-based company that is leading the takeover bid, but his Swiss based firm, Western Gulf Advisory-AG and his takeover bid remains unaffected.

According to his company website, Mr Ali has been self-employed since the age of 16, following in the footsteps of his family, which has 150 years' experience in private sector lending across Asia.

His company CV says Mr Ali's expertise is highly recognised in the financial world and that he acts as adviser to royalty and many high net-worth individuals.

Mr Ali has told the BBC he hails from Bhongir, a town with a population of 50,000, near Hyderabad in India. It is here, he says, his family owned 900 acres of farm land, making their money through agriculture.

However, Joseph Antony who writes for The Hindu newspaper says that Mr Ali is seemingly an unknown figure in his hometown - surprising given his apparent wealth.

'Responsibility'

He was told by a director working in the Government of Andhra Pradesh, that Mr. Ali's name does not figure in any of the records pertaining to the Bhongir area.

Sources in Bahrain suggest that he is similarly unheralded in Bahrain's financial circles.

Reports suggest that Mr Ali plans to invest £300m at Blackburn Rovers, who have fallen on hard times since winning the Premier League in 1995.

The club's success was bankrolled by local tycoon, Jack Walker. In recent years, Rovers have been financed by a trust set up by Mr Walker before his death in 2000. The club is now rumoured to be £20m in debt.

A number of overseas investors have shown an interest in buying Rovers, but Mr Ali's bid has made the greatest progress.

His representatives are currently examining the football club's accounts, with a view to completing the buyout by the end of September.

Over the past week, the BBC has submitted repeated requests for an interview with Mr Ali, but was told he was unavailable for comment. Western Gulf Advisory also failed to respond to a request for a written statement.

A Blackburn Rovers Football Club spokesman said: "The club has been for sale for some time and, for it to remain competitive in one of the world's toughest sporting competitions, we accept that new investment is required.

"Equally, the trustees of the late Jack Walker, who are being professionally advised, and the club's board of directors are acutely aware of the responsibility involved in passing the club to a new owner."


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11163004 ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY TanyaT http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69273 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69272&goto=newpost Mon, 06 Sep 2010 08:44:27 GMT Queiroz has to pay his own way in Portuguese farce

Sam Wallace
The Independent
Monday, 6 September 2010


Portugal's national team manager Carlos Queiroz is paying for his own flight and tickets to watch his team play in Norway this week. The wrangling over his six-month suspension and the stand-off between the Portuguese federation (FPF), who want to sack him but do not want to pay compensation, is a joke.

The Fifa inspectors were casting an admiring eye over the joint Spain-Portugal 2018 World Cup bid last week. You have to wonder if the debacle at the FPF will attract as much attention as the English FA's problems have with the likes of the Uefa president, Michel Platini. The English are not the only ones capable of making a pig's ear of it.


http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/f...p-2071319.html ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY TanyaT http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69272 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69271&goto=newpost Mon, 06 Sep 2010 08:43:33 GMT Harvey goes from central midfield to out of the picture

Sam Wallace
The Independent
Monday, 6 September 2010


Sitting in the Wembley press box before Friday's England game I noticed Colin Harvey take his seat over to my right. A few minutes later a father and son approached with a camera for what the casual observer would expect was a photograph with one of Everton's "Holy Trinity".

No, what they wanted was Harvey to take their picture with Wembley as the backdrop. They had not realised that the obliging gentleman behind the camera was one of the best midfielders of his era. That is the cruel march of time, I suppose. But does it say something too about the football knowledge of some of the people you get at Wembley these days?


http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/f...p-2071319.html ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY TanyaT http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69271 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69270&goto=newpost Mon, 06 Sep 2010 08:42:11 GMT Sam Wallace: He's been a naughty boy – but would we really care if he'd won the World Cup?

Talking Football: The current open season on footballers allows people to feel morally outraged without having to think too hard about it


The Independent
Monday, 6 September 2010


The England team hotel yesterday looked, in every yard of its well-tended grounds, the archetypal English weekend retreat. There was a wedding reception in the Ivory Rooms, golfers on the fairways and the expensive cars outside reception. What could possibly go wrong?

The Grove in Hertfordshire has not just become a team headquarters in the last seven days, it has also served as a sanctuary for some very famous footballers on the run from embarrassing headlines. Yesterday was the turn of Wayne Rooney, who was the subject of allegations about his private life which will have made a few days away from home seem like a good idea.

Like his team-mate Peter Crouch, Rooney was hit with the classic News of the World kiss and tell, alleging infidelity. The five pages devoted to the Rooney story in yesterday's News of the World, among others, caused the fairly conservative BBC Radio Five Live to claim that Rooney would not travel to Switzerland today with the England squad for tomorrow's World Cup qualifier. This was dismissed by the Football Association.

Such is the appetite with which these stories are devoured and then reproduced across the internet and magazines that by this morning there will be few people who, whether they like it or not, have not heard some of the allegations against Rooney. In fact it would not be a surprise if, when they emerge around Christmas, those trapped Chilean miners do not press their rescuers for details of life in the Rooney marital home.

The sensible rule to apply to these situations is that what goes on in the private lives of footballers, or anyone else, is their business. That changes when it has an effect on their professional lives – as in the Vanessa Perroncel saga which ended with John Terry's dismissal as England captain. Equally, the News of the World's speciality is this kind of sting and it is a very naïve footballer who does not know the rules of engagement.

The modern England international must by now have noticed that the stakes have been raised. For the millionaires holed up in their Hertfordshire hotel the message is clear: it is open season on footballers' private lives and there is a public appetite for these kind of revelations.

One of the many consequences of England's dismal performances in the World Cup has been a backlash against them where it hurts the most. Rooney's struggle in South Africa to live up to all the hype around him that preceded the tournament made him the obvious target. Had he been a success at the tournament then the kind of embarrassing allegations that surfaced yesterday would not have fitted the public mood.

The England team failed at the World Cup and therefore the projection of them as feckless, greedy and disloyal fits with the public mood. The allegations made yesterday against Rooney date back to June last year. How recently the woman in question took her story to the News of the World is not a matter of public record but it would have been unimaginable for the paper to run with it before the World Cup and risk alienating potentially the country's biggest hero.

Very occasionally a newspaper judges the mood wrongly, as when the Mail on Sunday ran the story that kippered Lord Triesman and could have done damage to England's 2018 World Cup bid. The paper forced a resignation but was widely condemned for doing so. Generally, targets are picked much more carefully.

This current England team finds itself embattled and under siege. There are injunctions in the High Court from high-profile players in order to stop disclosures. Public sympathy is in short supply for rich, young footballers who are perceived to do what they like. The players, and their lawyers, fight for their own privacy. The News of the World will continue to pick off those who stray. And at the centre of it, the sadness is that the England team just seem to be getting more and more unpopular.

The crowds keep turning up at Wembley but increasingly, as they did for a couple of Rooney's touches against Bulgaria on Friday night, they do so to boo. The relationship between players and fans is fractured even more. The players disappear behind blacked-out car windows and roped off VIP areas, unable to trust anyone. The fans become ever more resentful.

No one supposes that professional footballers only started having affairs in 1992. It was not introduced overnight, like the Bosman rule or the law banning the back-pass. There have been plenty of famous footballers from the past who were portrayed as rogues rather than the "love rat" of current tabloid parlance. There are plenty of players from the past who just got away with it.

The current open season on footballers allows people to feel morally outraged without having to think too hard about it. It gives the football public another dimension to their feelings of disappointment about the World Cup. It allows them to buy into the mistaken belief that all footballers are overpaid and uncaring.

There are certainly many of them who have made crass mistakes and – like a lot of people – have made bad decisions. And those who have made mistakes are forced to endure their humiliation in full public view. That is not an appeal for sympathy for footballers. Just the recognition that if they had come back from South Africa as heroes, no one, least of all their adoring public, would care about any of this.


http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/f...p-2071319.html ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY TanyaT http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69270 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69269&goto=newpost Mon, 06 Sep 2010 08:35:15 GMT England striker Wayne Rooney should turn to Sir Alex Ferguson for help, not Fabio Capello By Henry Winter Telegraph: 7:30AM BST 06 Sep 2010 When faced with the latest allegation about an England player’s indiscretion, the Football Association could probably have chosen a more judicious... England striker Wayne Rooney should turn to Sir Alex Ferguson for help, not Fabio Capello

By Henry Winter
Telegraph: 7:30AM BST 06 Sep 2010


When faced with the latest allegation about an England player’s indiscretion, the Football Association could probably have chosen a more judicious comment than “it’s business as usual’’.

Indeed. Some England players do tend to get dragged across the front pages on a regular basis. Some really are fools as well as knaves.

For Rooney, it cannot truly be business as usual. On the plane to Basle on Monday, at training, he will inevitably be distracted. A glimpse of a newspaper headline, a caustic shout of a punter and the click-click-click of many cameras will provide a constant reminder of the maelstrom back home.

Having made the decision to board the flight, as the FA indicated he would, Rooney has already made one important call, that he feels bound to do his England duty. Unless the situation has changed overnight, and he is summoned back to the North-West, Rooney must go to Basle and deliver the performance of his life.

He should do what he does best, what he reminded the fans of against Bulgaria on Friday night: dismantle an opposition defence.

Earlier in his career, Rooney might have responded to such pressure with either a hat-trick or a red card. He is certainly a determined soul, a sporting warrior, and he should do to Alexander Frei and company on Tuesday what he did at Euro 2004. Destroy them with the brilliance of his footwork and intelligence of his movement. He should face the Swiss away from home, then face the music at home.

He should take some fatherly advice from his manager. Not Fabio Capello, whose reputation as an unyielding disciplinarian is even less helpful in this troubled situation. Rooney should talk to that master of man-management, Sir Alex Ferguson, for proper counsel. The Manchester United manager has a sound way of steering young men through life’s storms.

The claims about Rooney stir only sadness. Sadness for a young couple that very private issues have become so very public. Sadness that those who admired Rooney will feel such reverence slightly tarnished by the tacky nature of his alleged behaviour.

Away from the legitimate moral debate, there is the very real issue of did it affect England’s World Cup campaign? Rooney was clearly not himself in South Africa, perhaps distracted about whether these claims might surface. He was fractious at times, falling out with a South African referee and England fans.

Yet his movement on the field seemed hindered most by the injury he suffered against Bayern Munich, a problem exacerbated when he rushed back for the second leg of the Champions League tie.

If the allegations were really going to affect him when he had a ball at his feet, Rooney would not have contributed so expertly to England’s defeat of Bulgaria. Jermain Defoe was named man of the match but Rooney could comfortably have received the plaudits. His vision and quality of passing in engineering all four goals were immense. Rooney should look to repeat those good headlines in Basle.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/foo...o-Capello.html ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY TanyaT http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69269 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69268&goto=newpost Mon, 06 Sep 2010 08:33:00 GMT Switzerland v England: the team is Swiss, but not as we know it When England travel to Switzerland for Tuesday’s Euro 2012 qualifier, they will find a nation refusing to conform to cliché: the Swiss have gone all controversial. By Duncan White Telegraph: 6:30PM BST 04 Sep 2010 Not... Switzerland v England: the team is Swiss, but not as we know it

When England travel to Switzerland for Tuesday’s Euro 2012 qualifier, they will find a nation refusing to conform to cliché: the Swiss have gone all controversial.


By Duncan White
Telegraph: 6:30PM BST 04 Sep 2010


Not content with having arrested Roman Polanksi this time last year, in February they managed to 'provoke’ Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi into declaring a Holy War on them, ostensibly for the ban on building of minarets in the country, but really dating back to a feud over the arrest of his son, Hannibal, and daughter-in-law for supposedly abusing hotel staff in Geneva two years ago (they were cleared and compensated, but Gaddafi withdrew £3.2 billion from Swiss accounts and had two Swiss businessmen arrested).

They have been making headlines for their football, too. In November, they stunned international youth football by winning the Under-17 World Cup.

The Swiss had never even qualified for the tournament before and one Swiss newspaper compared it to Roger Federer’s first Wimbledon victory. Then the senior side inflicted the biggest upset of the World Cup finals in South Africa, beating favourites and eventual winners Spain 1-0 in their opening game.

Ignoring the posturing of Gaddafi, Switzerland, famous for its neutrality, has in the last decade been sliding to the intolerant right. The far right populist Swiss People’s Party gained the largest share of the vote in the 2007 elections and some of their advertising campaigns, including one of white sheep kicking out a black sheep, have barely concealed their racism.

As the SPP push for stricter immigration laws, Swiss football is going the other way, reflecting the increasingly ethnically and cultural diverse state of modern Switzerland.

While Swiss politics becomes reactionary, Swiss football is making a virtue of the nation’s diversity (nearly 20 per cent of the population is made up of immigrants).

Just look at the goal the Swiss scored against Spain. A long ball was flicked on by Blaise N’Kufo (born in Kinshasa, Congo) and picked up by Eren Derdiyok (born in Basle to Turkish parents), whose pace allowed him to squeeze the ball past Iker Casillas, to Gelson Fernandes (born in Praia, Cape Verde), who scored at the second attempt.

The very nature of Switzerland, with its French, German and Italian elements, has made for a cosmopolitan national team, with three languages spoken in the dressing room. England even has its own representative in the squad, the Young Boys right-back Scott Sutter, who has a Swiss father and an English mother, was called up for the first time.

However, arguably the most talented individuals coming through now are from the very immigrant Islamic communities that the SPP have demonised.

Derdiyok and Gokhan Inler, both born in Switzerland to Turkish parents, are stars of the side, the former a tall, quick 22-year-old striker who plays for Bayer Leverkusen, the latter an impressive 26-year-old defensive midfielder with Udinese. Hakan Yakin, the veteran striker who is out with a thigh injury, is also the child of Turkish immigrants.

“The decision to play for the Swiss national team was very important for me,” Inler said. “I chose to play for Switzerland out of gratitude. I have received a lot from this country and I wish to be able to give something back.”

Switzerland has also been the destination for immigrants who sought to escape the wars in Yugoslavia in the early Nineties. Albert Bunjaku, a striker with Nuremberg, was born in Kosovo but moved to Switzerland with his family when he was eight years-old, in 1991 at the beginning of the war.

Valon Behrami, the West Ham midfielder who is suspended for the England game, was also born in Kosovo, to Albanian parents, and moved to Switzerland at the age of five.

The most exciting player in the squad to face England is another Kosovo-born player, the 18-year-old Basle winger Xherdan Shaqiri.

Ottmar Hitzfeld, the Switzerland coach, surprisingly selected him for his World Cup squad, and he has a big future in the game.

Shaqiri, while proud of his Kosovar roots, thinks of himself as an assimilated Swiss and is keen that the negative public image of Kosovars in Switzerland – criminal gangs, drug dealing – generated by a minority, does not reflect on the majority.

“They come from another culture, have had a different education and not all of them can adapt,” he said. “That applies just to a few but then we all have a negative image. I think: anyone who is a criminal, does not belong in Switzerland and should go back to their home country.”

In the same month as the controversial referendum to ban minarets (to widespread international condemnation and anger within Switzerland about it undermining the constitution), the Swiss Under-17 team won the World Cup in Nigeria. If the seniors are already multi-ethnic, the team of the future is even more diverse.

Of the 20-man squad, 12 have dual nationality. The outstanding playmaker, Nassim Ben Khalifa of Wolfsburg, has Tunisian parents, while Haris Seferovic, the Fiorentina striker who scored the winner in the final against Nigeria, is the child of Bosnians who emigrated in the late-Eighties.

The rest of the squad is incredibly mixed: André Gonçalves (Portugal), Ricardo Rodríguez (Chile), Kofi Nimeley (Ghana), Joel Kiassumbua (Congo), Igor Mijatovic (Serbia), Frederic Veseli (Kosovo), Maik Nakic (Croatia), Sead Hajrovic (Bosnia), Pajtim Kasami (Macedonia) and Granit Xhaka (Albania).

English clubs have moved quickly to sign up some of the Swiss talent: Veseli plays for Manchester City, Hajrovic for Arsenal while the excellent goalkeeper Benjamin Siegrist is with Aston Villa.

This generation is one of the coming forces in European football and it is hoped their future success can serve as role models for young immigrants in Switzerland.

Furthermore, with the SPP’s support beginning to wane in recent local elections, the success of a “multi-kulti” national team, playing an uncharacteristically attacking brand of football, can help douse some of the more fiery reactionary rhetoric from the hard right.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/foo...e-know-it.html ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY TanyaT http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69268 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69266&goto=newpost Sun, 05 Sep 2010 09:45:58 GMT Rooney stunner for England: Mystery of striker's dismal World Cup resolved as call girl tells of £1,200-a-night hotel trysts

By Ian Gallagher and Matt Sandy Last updated at 9:14 AM on 5th September 2010

Wayne Rooney's marriage was under intense pressure last night after it was revealed that he had a series of encounters with a prostitute while his wife was pregnant.

The Manchester United and England star, widely criticised during the World Cup for a series of lacklustre performances, broke the news to a 'devastated' Coleen yesterday afternoon.


Living a lie: Wayne and Coleen Rooney out in Manchester

They married two years ago, after six years of dating, becoming one of football's highest-profile couples. But last night there were fears that their union is unlikely to survive the new revelations.

Rooney, 24, reportedly slept with 21-year-old Jennifer Thompson, who charges £1,200 a night, seven times in four months. They had sex in one of Manchester's most exclusive hotels, and visited nightclubs and casinos together.

It is understood his lawyers tried to fight the allegations when they first surfaced three weeks ago, but ultimately decided they were indefensible because of previous revelations about the star and prostitutes.

In 2004 it was reported that he had visited brothels in Liverpool as a 16-year-old and admitted to paying for sex with a 48-year-old grandmother. Writing of this period in her autobiography, Coleen said: 'I was so upset, my head was all over the place. The truth is, and I've never said this before, at that time in our relationship I'd never even slept with Wayne.'


Chased: Prostitute Jennifer Thompson

The latest disclosures will prompt speculation that the striker's chaotic private life affected his form at this summer's World Cup in South Africa. Until late last month, he had not scored a goal for club or country since March.

Last night, Miss Thompson, from Bolton, was reported as saying: 'Wayne chased me with sex texts and paid in wads of cash. He didn't seem to care he was betraying Coleen.

'Wayne certainly enjoyed all our meetings and didn't seem to care what he was doing to his wife. I think he believes he is invincible and untouchable. As a woman, I wouldn't want that done to me – especially if I was pregnant.'

She first met Rooney in June last year at the Manchester 235 Casino, five months before Coleen gave birth to the footballer's son Kai. Rooney was there drinking with relatives and United teammate Rio Ferdinand.

He called her over to the VIP area and, she says, they ended up kissing in a corner.

Later, at 3am, he texted her to ask if they could meet up. She told him he would have to pay. He responded: 'That's not a problem.'

He then invited her friend, who he had also met in the club, to join them, it is alleged. They met a week later at the five-star Lowry hotel in Salford, Greater Manchester. She said: 'Wayne told us he'd never had a threesome before. He was shy and awkward.

'I asked Wayne if he'd ever been with vice girls before. Then I remembered he had. I told him I remembered reading about him and the granny, but he just laughed it off.'

She says they met many times, although from then on it was only the two of them. At each meeting he would pull out a 'wad of notes' from his pocket and hand her £1,200 in twenties and fifties. Miss Thompson said: 'Wayne had a few different mobile phones to contact me, all pay-as-you-go throwaways.'

In deep: Wayne Rooney failed to deliver at the World Cup

On another occasion, she ran into him at a party at Rio Ferdinand's Rosso Italian restaurant.

'I went with a few girls and the whole team was there. They were all very drunk,' she said. 'We hadn't arranged to meet but Wayne spotted me in the crowd. About half an hour later he held my hand in front of everyone and led me away down these stairs.

'Michael Owen was looking at him in disgust. Wayne made no effort to be discreet and I was embarrassed. He took me downstairs into the cooking area and into an office.'

Miss Thompson posted provocative pictures of herself in a bikini on the internet and wrote about how she was desperate to become a glamour model. In the profiles, 'Juicy Jeni' described herself as a party girl who often frequents hip bars in Leeds and Manchester popular with footballers. Alongside such information as that she 'always drinks in style on a Saturday night,' she lists her religion as Catholic.

She added: 'You can either love me or hate me! Don't really care what people think. I'm young free and single and loving life.

'I am very much a family person. Nothing makes me happier than to wake up in the morning knowing I have the best family in the world and the best friends I could think of.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/foo...#ixzz0ye9uqw13 ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY Chorlton Red http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69266 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69265&goto=newpost Sun, 05 Sep 2010 09:41:57 GMT Sir Alex Ferguson must wait for Bebe to blossom after indifferent showing for Portugal Under-21s By Leo Spall Last updated at 1:55 AM on 4th September 2010 Sir Alex Ferguson sent a local scout to the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos to watch his new striker Bebe make his debut as Portugal’s... Sir Alex Ferguson must wait for Bebe to blossom after indifferent showing for Portugal Under-21s

By Leo Spall
Last updated at 1:55 AM on 4th September 2010


Sir Alex Ferguson sent a local scout to the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos to watch his new striker Bebe make his debut as Portugal’s Under-21 lost 1-0 at home to England on Friday night.

The Manchester United boss did not see the 20-year-old play before paying £7.4million for his services this summer and, on this evidence, Ferguson will be waiting a while before he sees Bebe blossom. The forward is far from a complete
player, but the signs are encouraging.

United we stand: Bebe was up against his Manchester United team-mate Chris Smalling in Portugal

Furthermore, Ferguson will be patient and Bebe will have time to develop and improve at United.

Shorn of the dreadlocks he once sported, he started energetically and looked lean as he set about chasing the frequent long balls that came his way. Support was often slow in coming, but he showed an impressive burst of pace.

Indifferent: Bebe certainly has the work ethic, but his touch often let him down

If Chris Smalling has not become familiar with his new club-mate after the Portuguese player’s first weeks at United, he soon was here. The pair often went head-to-head as Bebe operated through the middle on the shoulder of the last man.

The kid schooled on the streets of Lisbon was certainly not afraid to put himself about. Yet Smalling won almost all of the aerial battles and Bebe blocked team-mate Castro’s shot by mistake.

Bebe’s first touch was not that of the magician his youth coaches claim to have seen.

The ball once ran straight under his foot as he went to trap it and another attempt to control ballooned high in the air. Nerves or excitement also led to a couple of stray passes.

Ferguson’s scout will have much to ponder after watching Bebe step on to the biggest stage of his career. There is surely much more to come.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/foo...#ixzz0ye92az4t ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY Chorlton Red http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69265 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69264&goto=newpost Sun, 05 Sep 2010 09:30:19 GMT How Did Bebe Do For Portugal U-21? September 3, 2010 59 Comments Image: http://therepublikofmancunia.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Smalling-and-Bebe.jpg Tor-Kristian Karlsen has given his frank opinion of Bebe during his match for Portugal’s U-21 against England’s U-21, where, it has to be... How Did Bebe Do For Portugal U-21?
September 3, 2010 59 Comments

Tor-Kristian Karlsen has given his frank opinion of Bebe during his match for Portugal’s U-21 against England’s U-21, where, it has to be said, Tom Cleverley was one of England’s best players.

Karlsen is a top Norwegian football consultant where transfers and scouting are concerned, particularly focussed on Dutch football.

In the first half, Bebe played up front, and this apparently didn’t suit him very well.

He gave an “underwhelming first impression” in this half, looking “static” with “very poor off the ball movement and has a heavy touch” and “makes little use of decent physique.” However, it had to be noted that Portugal were poor and Bebe got very little service.

Still, it was reported that “he’s got a decent turn of pace.”

In the second half, Bebe was given a ‘free’ wide right role and this suited him much better.

There was a “very eye catching run where he picked up ball 30m out wide right, outpaced opponent, dummied another, which followed with an effort straight at goalkeeper with left foot.” In this half he showed “excellent pace, body strength and coordination in flashes”. Apparently his “raw talent is unquestionable but he has a poor tactical understanding.”

Bebe might be most useful to us “as an impact sub”. He can “undoubtedly cause some damage when his legs are fresh and the game opens up.”

In conclusion, he is “far off full fitness yet and needs a lot of coaching. He must up his football-IQ to become a Premier League hit. If only he’d been 17 or 18…”

http://therepublikofmancunia.com/how...portugal-u-21/ ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY Chorlton Red http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69264 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69263&goto=newpost Sun, 05 Sep 2010 09:14:30 GMT Wayne Rooney to travel to Switzerland for qualifier


Wayne Rooney is still expected to travel to Switzerland for England's Euro 2012 qualifier despite allegations about his private life.

When asked if Rooney would be travelling to Switzerland, the FA said it expects the whole squad to travel.

No decision has yet been taken and as it stands, Rooney is expected on the flight with the rest of the squad.

The striker played a starring role in England's 4-0 win over Bulgaria at Wembley on Friday.

The stories appeared in two papers, the News of the World and Sunday Mirror.

After his disappointing displays during England's dismal World Cup this summer, Rooney provided much of his team's creative spark against the Bulgarians at Wembley.

The 24-year-old Manchester United man ended a five-month goal drought in his club's 3-0 Premier League win over West Ham last week.

And although he did not find the net at Wembley he revelled in the free role which Capello afforded him, instigating the attacks which led to all three of Jermain Defoe's goals.

Capello, though, could now have to consider an alternative partner for Defoe up front in Basle.

Tottenham striker Peter Crouch was ruled out of both matches this week because of a back problem, while Bobby Zamora also dropped out with an injury.

That could mean starts for either West Ham's Carlton Cole or Sunderland's Darren Bent - both relatively inexperienced at international level.

Italian Capello will definitely have to do without Tottenham's Michael Dawson in the heart of his defence, with West Ham's Matthew Upson, Everton's Phil Jagielka or Bolton's Gary Cahill all possibilities to fill the breach.

First-choice central defenders John Terry and Rio Ferdinand are out of the reckoning with hamstring and knee problems, respectively.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/8969808.stm ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY Chorlton Red http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69263 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69262&goto=newpost Sun, 05 Sep 2010 09:07:45 GMT Rooney role proves pivotal to Capello's new direction

Italian's tinkering elevates him from buffoon to tactical genius... for now

By Steve Tongue

Sunday, 5 September 2010

Wayne Rooney played further back in the hole against the Bulgarians at Wembley on Friday night, but Fabio Capello admits that he may not be given so much freedom by opponents who play a holding man in front of the back four

Note to doubters everywhere: for "buffoon" and "monster" please reinstate "genius" and "god". And replace jackass photomontage with wise old fox. At least until Tuesday night.

Fabio Capello, the football manager with the biography subtitled "Portrait of a Winner", is back in favour, until the next time England suffer a less convincing result than Friday's ultimately comfortable 4-0 win over Bulgaria; then the name-calling can begin all over again.

Like just about all his predecessors at one time or another, Capello has become understandably touchy about this nonsense, and in the immediate aftermath of Friday's success in the opening European Championship qualifying game he was speaking from a position of strength. Not only had an important result gone his way, but his choice of system and personnel had been largely vindicated too.

It was still possible to claim that he had been fortunate, in that Jermain Defoe, scorer of England's first hat-trick since Theo Walcott in Zagreb almost two years ago, was only playing because of the injury to Bobby Zamora (if not Peter Crouch). Similarly, the successful partnership between Steven Gerrard and Gareth Barry in the centre of midfield would almost certainly not have been constructed in the same way had Frank Lampard not been another of the five drop-outs after the squad was named last weekend.

If managers have to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous injuries – and little account is ever taken of those that effectively cost Steve McClaren the England job – then they should be allowed a modicum of credit when such apparent mishaps turn out for the best.

Capello still had to come up with the best formula from the available options and he used his experience in that field to good effect. He was even able to explain more lucidly than normal the key to it all, which was Wayne Rooney's role. "Rooney's movement was always free but this time I asked him to come back more," he explained. "Play in the hole with [James] Milner left and Theo [Walcott] right. It was a good position. But it depends on which style opponents play. If they play one man in front of the back-four, it's not so easy."

The point being that Bulgaria's two centre-halves were never sure whether either of them should move out and cover Rooney when he dropped a little deeper than Defoe, or rely on a midfielder to pick him up.

A clever player in the Rooney role can flit into the space between the opposition's back-line and midfield and make use of it to good effect. That he clearly did, contributing to all four goals with his passes for first Ashley Cole, then Defoe and Adam Johnson. It is the ideal place for him, allowing him to employ that vision and be much more involved in the game, rather than risking isolation and consequent frustration as the main striker.

If it was a surprise on the train back from Wembley Park to hear a group of apparently sober England supporters berating Rooney's attitude as uncaring – they also claimed he had slunk off the pitch rather than acknowledge the crowd, many of whom have abused him during this season's two games – that probably underlines the depth of disillusionment with England's World Cup, which can never be eradicated. For as long as such disenchantment continues to spur on the players, it is no bad thing.

Rooney, among many others, was clearly nowhere near his best in South Africa, where it should be remembered he played 70 minutes or more of the last two games alongside Defoe, who outshone him against Slovenia but was equally poor against Germany. Caution should therefore be employed before heralding that pair as England's new Shearer and Sheringham or Lineker and Beardsley (Hurst and Hunt to older readers).

Capello made an important point in noting that Rooney will almost certainly find the going tougher against a team that fields at least one defensive midfielder assigned to fill the hole in front of the back four, or even to man-mark him; which if performed with sufficient vigour, legal or otherwise, can often send Wayne's world dangerously close to boiling point.

The one thing still lacking for him, as it was until converting a penalty against West Ham last weekend, was a goal and Tuesday night in Basle would be an ideal time to find one. It would be perverse not to send England out in the same formation, with only one change of personnel, necessitated by Michael Dawson's unfortunate knee injury. It was confirmed after a scan yesterday that the Tottenham centre-half is returning to his club for treatment, though there was no attempt to predict how long he might be unavailable. Bolton's Gary Cahill may be considered ahead of Matthew Upson as the potential replacement having been used at Wembley, where Upson was not, although Capello made the point that it was important for Cahill to have a first appearance under his belt and that to do so was easier in a team playing well than a struggling one.

The absence of John Terry and Rio Ferdinand is unfortunate, whether or not either can ever reach former heights. Both should be fit for next month's one European Championship fixture, at home to the Montenegro team that defeated Wales 1-0 on Friday, as long as Ferdinand does not suffer ligament damage from excessive tweeting. Having extolled the virtues of England's performance, he was at it again yesterday while, admirably, heading for a Saturday session in the gym: "Work while others rest is the way to get ahead, twitfam."

It would be good to think that the captain's return would help Glen Johnson, whose performance at right-back was one of the downsides of Friday's game. Although as keen as Cole on the other flank to charge forward, he shows far less discipline defensively and was regularly caught out of position, as was the case with most of Germany's four goals in Bloemfontein.

The Football Association could have done worse than encourage Scott Sutter, the right-back from North London who, unlike Mikel Arteta, was qualified to play for England but no longer is after making his debut for Switzerland on Friday.

It is just as well in the circumstances that the Swiss struggle so badly for goals, although on their favourite territory at a passionate St Jakob stadium, they should be stronger than Bulgaria and present the greatest threat to England in the group.

A second victory in four days would assuredly calm everyone down and might even have Capello smiling benignly at his critics again rather than inviting them to look in the mirror. There is an important game too for England's Under-21 side, who after a fine win away to Portugal, need to beat Lithuania at Colchester to make the play-offs in their own European Championship. The experience of another tournament, in Denmark next summer, would be invaluable for the young group. Joe Hart, a veteran of the last two, is testimony to that.

Didn't they do well?

Joe Hart

Has fully justified Roberto Mancini's faith and now Fabio Capello's. Was initially required to make only one save, from Glen Johnson's horrible miscue, then made two excellent stops in the second half, the first bringing a goal on the break.

Ashley Cole

His divorce having gone through earlier in the day, Cole could have been forgiven for appearing a little distracted but he was on his game from the start, attacking intelligently and almost scoring a first international goal at last in his 83rd game.

Steven Gerrard

Whether or not he can function successfully with Frank Lampard, Gerrard's partnership with Gareth Barry gelled well this time. As Barry, although not a natural holding player, sat deeper, Gerrard used his freedom responsibly.

Wayne Rooney

For a brief period before half-time the old frustrations were bubbling under but after having a delicate chip pushed for a corner, he settled to his new role "between the lines" and set up all three second-half goals with perfectly weighted passes

Jermain Defoe

Was this the night he came of age as an international striker? Club-mate Peter Crouch could only look on enviously as Cole and Rooney set him up for three fine finishes. Just as well that the groin operation was postponed.

Adam Johnson

Fierce competition for the wide positions means that none of the contenders can afford a bad game. Theo Walcott did well without quite touching recent Arsenal heights and Johnson made the most of his cameo, including a well-taken goal.

Steve Tongue

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/f...n-2070714.html ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY Chorlton Red http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69262 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69261&goto=newpost Sun, 05 Sep 2010 09:01:08 GMT Wayne Rooney is still scheduled to travel to Switzerland tomorrow for England's Euro 2012 qualifier despite allegations about his private life.


By Telegraph staff and agencies
Published: 9:43AM BST 05 Sep 2010

The striker has been the subject of reports in the News of the World and Sunday Mirror prompting speculation about whether he will take part in Tuesday's match.

However, FA sources have indicated that no decision has yet been taken and as it stands, Rooney is expected on the flight.

The Manchester United striker is an integral part of England coach Fabio Capello's team, even though it is now 11 matches since he last scored for his country.

He claimed three assists and had a hand in the other goal as England opened their qualification campaign on Friday with an impressive 4-0 win over Bulgaria at Wembley on Friday.

Following the withdrawal of Peter Crouch through injury, aside from Rooney, Capello has only three other strikers to call upon.

His other options are Darren Bent, Carlton Cole and Jermain Defoe, who profited most from his forward partner's creative talents by scoring his first international hat-trick.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/foo...legations.html ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY Chorlton Red http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69261 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69260&goto=newpost Sun, 05 Sep 2010 08:57:04 GMT Manchester United leave Bebé and Owen Hargreaves out of Champions League squad • England midfielder goes back to knee specialist • Portuguese striker needs more work on training ground * Daniel Taylor * guardian.co.uk, Saturday 4 September 2010 22.38 BST Image:... Manchester United leave Bebé and Owen Hargreaves out of Champions League squad

• England midfielder goes back to knee specialist
• Portuguese striker needs more work on training ground

* Daniel Taylor
* guardian.co.uk, Saturday 4 September 2010 22.38 BST

Bébé, right, competes for the ball with Kyle Walker during the Under-21 European Championship qualifier between England and Portugal. Photograph: Jose Coelho/EPA

Manchester United have omitted Owen Hargreaves and Bebé from their Champions League squad – announced tonight – in a clear sign from Sir Alex Ferguson that neither player will be feature prominently with the team for the rest of the year.

Hargreaves has been left out on grounds of fitness; a decision that indicates Ferguson does not anticipate the injury-troubled midfielder will recover from his long-standing knee problems in the next few months. United's final group match is against Valencia on 7 December.

Bebé is a more complex case, having signed from Vitória Guimarães on 11 August for £7.4m without Ferguson ever having seen him play. United's manager had relied on recommendations before arranging a deal for the 20-year-old, but it has since become apparent to the club's coaching staff that the Portuguese is a long way from challenging for the first team and will need more work on the training ground than had been previously anticipated.

The bigger concern, however, is Hargreaves.Two and a half years of knee problems and a relapse this summer has seen him return to Colorado for specialist work with a rehabilitation team overseen by Dr Richard Steadman, who is renowned as the best knee surgeon in the business. Steadman has described the tendinitis in Hargreaves's knees as the worst he has seen in his 35-year career, and there are serious concerns at Old Trafford that the player's career is in jeopardy, at the age of 29.

Hargreaves was included in United's official squad for the Premier League but that was simply because the size of Ferguson's squad meant there was no need to leave him out. Bebé is also available for United's league matches but is not even on the club's B list for the Champions League because Uefa stipulate this is only available to players who have been at their club for two years or longer.

Ferguson, who has also left out Ritchie De Laet, had angrily denied reports that Bebé had been left out of a Manchester Senior Cup tie 10 days ago because the coaches had misgivings after watching him on the training ground. The manager argued it was simply a fitness issue, even though Anderson played in the same match after a six-month injury layoff, and despite the fact Bebé had already played six pre-season matches in Portugal.

The maximum number of players officially allowed in a Champions League squad is 25, but as United have only named 24, more questions about the strange circumstances of Bebé's transfer will be asked.

The forward made his debut for Portugal's Under-21s in their 1-0 defeat to England on Friday night and played the full match.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2...chester-united ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY Chorlton Red http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69260 http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69259&goto=newpost Sat, 04 Sep 2010 15:13:46 GMT So who was lying Mr. Gill? By Ed. Thu, Sep 2, 2010 United rant 17 June, 2010 – “Anybody who is trying to say there has been a poor uptake is lying” – Manchester United spokesperson, denying sales had fallen short of expectations. 1 September, 2010 – CEO David Gill admits season tickets... So who was lying Mr. Gill?
By Ed. Thu, Sep 2, 2010
United rant



17 June, 2010 – “Anybody who is trying to say there has been a poor uptake is lying” – Manchester United spokesperson, denying sales had fallen short of expectations.

1 September, 2010 – CEO David Gill admits season tickets sales are just 51,800 this season, despite 54,000 season-long seats being available at Old Trafford.

United’s admission that it failed to sell out of season tickets for the first time in memory has exposed as myth both the supposed 17,000 person waiting list and supporters’ enduring ability to soak up ever-increasing prices. After all, aggregate season ticket prices have risen 48 per cent since the Glazer family’s arrival in Manchester five years ago.

Additionally, the UK economy has experienced one of the deepest recessions since the Second World War, with unemployment in Manchester now at 5.4 per cent compared to a national average of 3.6 per cent. Indeed, Gill has claimed pleasure with sales in the UK’s depressed economic environment.

“Last year our target was 54,000 season tickets, we’ve sold 51,800, which is pretty good in the current climate,” Gill claimed.

“We’ve sold more season tickets than the capacity of most Premier League grounds. Our executive seat sales are on track as compared with last year in a different market.

“I think the bare facts are that the club is in good financial shape. The ticket sales have held up.

“We sold out for Newcastle United and West Ham United but we are not complacent and we’ve got to keep working to make sure that we fill the ground for every game and we’ll do that by playing great football, attractive football, exciting football that brings fans in.”

Yet there is something insincere about the Gill’s stance, with the club’s attendances not drastically affected by either the early ’80s or ’90s UK recessions. More to the point, unemployment has not increased at all in the local area over the past year, with the economic climate no worse in summer 2010, when technically the recession has ended, than 2009 when it had not.

Anecdotal evidence points to a large number of supporters heeding the call by the Manchester United Supporters Trust (MUST) and Independent Manchester United Supporters Association (IMUSA) to swap a season ticket for a One United membership, and apply for games on a match-by-match basis.

Duncan Drasdo, chair of MUST, says that the Glazer family has now run out of room to force price increases on supporters in future seasons, with United’s core match-going support eroded over the past five years.

“Up until this season they increased ticket prices aggressively every year and could get away with it because the loyal fans they forced out were replaced by others still prepared to pay the increased price,” said Drasdo.

“The failure to sell out season tickets is very significant as the Glazers depend on an excess of demand over supply to exert control over supporters.”

Just as the Green & Gold protest movement forced the club to freeze ticket price increases for the first time in five years, then the eradication of a waiting list for season tickets will colour the club’s ongoing price strategy.

Not that the shortfall in sales will make a significant financial difference to the family’s plans of course. United’s revenues will suffer little for 2,000 season tickets remaining unsold, unless the corresponding sale of matchday tickets also falls short against the least attractive opposition this season.

Evidence points to the club’s £104 million match revenue holding reasonably steady in the current financial year unless the Sir Alex Ferguson’s side crashes out of the Champions League in the group stage. The Glazers’ business model is essentially predicated on United qualifying for Europe’s premier competition and then making the quarter-finals at least.

Yet, should the failure to invest in the transfer market this summer on established stars impact more heavily than expected, the aggressive marketing campaign to sell season tickets this summer may have to increase a notch more come June 2011.


http://www.unitedrant.co.uk/so-who-was-lying-mr-gill/ ]]> WHAT THE PAPERS SAY TanyaT http://www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69259