Post-Season Development

Okay. So the football season (EPL) has just ended a few weeks back and for many of us, its going to seem like a long time till the new season starts again. In the mean time however, most of us will be rummaging through the back of newspapers or going online for the latest news, gossips and transfer dealing going on. For Manchester United fans everywhere around the world, excitement must be creeping through. After all the talk about the Owen Hargreaves transfer since the end of the World Cup, he will be completing his move to United on July 1st. And just yesterday, Manchester United officials confirmed the double swoop made by Sir Alex on two of Europe's future great talents, Nani from Sporting Lisbon and Anderson from FC Porto. Nevertheless, their future as United players hinge on passing their medicals which I'm sure they'll pass with ease and with Anderson's case, a permit to play in England.

Now, in my opinion, despite already having an amazing midfield, Hargreaves is a great addition to the United team. He's a tough tackler and loves a good challenge. He has great stamina and enthusiasm and will run around the pitch chasing the ball down. A player like Gennaro Gattuso and Roy Keane combined. Surprisingly, his development at Bayern Munich has gone unnoticed for quite some time and yet, the amount of trophies he has won during his time there is unbelievable.

Team Honours: German Bundesliga 2001,2003,2005,2006
Champions League: 2001
Intercontinental Cup: 2001
German Football Federation Cup: 2003,2005,2006
German League Cup: 2004
Individual Honours: European U21 Player of the Year 2001, England Player of the Year in January 2007



The second new player to be joining the United team is highly rated Portugese winger, Nani (Luis Carlos Almeida da Cunha) from Sporting Lisbon, the same team from where Sir Alex bought the incredible Cristiano Ronaldo. Like Ronaldo, Nani is a product of Sporting's youth system and made his first team debut at the age of 18. Last season he played 29 league games, scoring 5 goals along the way. Again, Nani's addition to the squad is great, especially on the long-term horizon. While Ryan Giggs may still have a year or two left in him, Nani will be an equal replacement. Speedy on the wings and possess quick feet. Very much like a young Ryan Giggs. Plus, during the next two years or so, Giggs will be able to pass on his knowledge to the younger lad and maybe teach him a thing or two about the English Game.



Last but not least on Manchester United's shopping spree is FC Porto's exciting Brazilian starlet Anderson (Anderson Luis de Abreu Oliviera). The 19 year old is an attacking midfielder but can also play out wide or up front. While Manchester United did not seem unequipped in the midfield department after the above two purchases, a player of his calibre would do no harm to the team. He is a player who has been coveted by the world's best teams and is widely regarded to be one of the players of the future. He impressed while on international duty with Brazil in the 2005 U-17 World Cup, winning player of the tournament award and is already being labelled as 'the next Ronaldinho' in Portugal. He's also played a hand in FC Porto's back-to-back SuperLiga titles for the past two years, although a knee injury restricted him to just 15 league games last season.


What a week Manchester United management team has had. Hopefully, with these new purchases, and news of more to come, we can build on the success of last season. We now boast a team, especially a midfield, any team would dream of having. Ronaldo, Carrick, Scholes, Giggs, Hargreaves, Anderson, Nani, Fletcher, Richardson, Park Ji Sung and Eagles. Woah. Include that with our rock solid defense with players who've not yet reached their prime; albeit Gary Neville. Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Cathcart, Lee, Brown, Silvestre and the jack-of-trades player, John O'Shea. And highly rated Gerard Pique shall be making his way back to the United team after his year loan to Real Zaragoza. I did not include Gabriel Heinze in the list as speculation is rife that his departure is eminent. While it'll be a blow to see him leave, he'll always remain a crowd favourite with the fans. Up front, a new striker may be unveiled at United but I wonder how much cash the Glazers have left for Sir Alex Ferguson to spend. Currently we have Saha, Rooney, Smith, Solsjkaer, Dong and wonderkid Guiseppe Rossi returns from his year loan at Parma as well.

Certainly big things lie ahead for Manchester United and their fans. Imagine the sight of Nani and Ronaldo running down the wings, Carrick and Hargreaves dictating play from the center of midfield, Anderson and Rooney running rings round opposition defense. Pique and Rossi will also be vital as seen from their impact in the Reserve team. Back in the first year at United, they lead the Reserve to an unprecedented Quadruple and the year after, to a Treble.

I'm not sure what the another teams in the league will be doing in the summer, but you can't imagine anything better than this. Chelsea, despite all their wealth have only done one piece of business so far, free transfer Steve Sidwell from Reading. While Sidwell is a good player with a bright future, you wouldn't expect a team like Chelsea wanting him. Heck, they spent 30 million on Sheva. Im pretty sure they can buy much more greater players. As for Liverpool, they have landed highly-rated Hungarian pair Krisztian Nemeth and Andras Simon. Both are 18 and 17 respectively and I don't see them playing such a big role next season, unless Rafa continues with his rotation every single game. Arsenal, in my opinion have made the greatest acquisition amongst these three teams. Lukasz Fabianski, a goalkeeper from Poland, where he's regarded as the best shot stopper in the country. His arrival will finally help Arsenal in the league as currently they have unreliable Jens Lehmann and useless Almunia. They already possess a great young squad, with Fabregas and Van Persie leading the charge and the ever brilliant Thierry Henry. Maybe next season, their team will show maturity and play football to challenge for the title.

Outside the Premeirship, Bayern Munich have been really busy in the transfer markets. Despite off-loading Owen Hargreaves to Manchester United, they recently purchased their fifth new player, World-Cup Winner Luca Toni. He joins the squad along with Jan Schlaudraff, Hamit Altintop, Ernesto Sosa and Marcell Jansen. Of the five, I believe Jan Schlaudraff will play a big role in the Bayern future as they look to prosper in the league once again and someday Europe.

All in all, its only the beginning of July, so maybe ill be back to update you all with the overall happening of the transfer dealings in the Premeirship. Hopefully United can defend their title next season. Since the Premeirship was formed 15 years ago, United have claimed 9 titles. Next on the list is Arsenal with 3. Chelsea have 2 with Blackburn Rovers having 1. Will it be United's year again or will it be spoiled by some other team in the league...