Witnessing Ronaldo Graduate From His United Football Eduaction Was A Joy

Cristiano Ronaldo joined Manchester United as a teenage boy, he departed for the Madrid capital as man. His football education under the guidance of Sir Alex Ferguson helped him become arguably the best player on the planet, although many would agree he is second to Barcelona sensation Lionel Messi.

Ronaldo joined United for a fee of £12.24million in 2003 from Sporting Clube de Portugal. Unknown by many, supporters were soon to learn that the manager had purchased a player with huge potential and unbelievable talent, but also realised that it was going to take time to work on his all round game.

Ronaldo had the full backing of Sir Alex Ferguson who had the belief that he could succeed at United when he was was handed the iconic no7 shirt, Ronaldo said "After I joined, the manager asked me what number I'd like. I said 28. But Ferguson said 'No, you're going to have No. 7,' and the famous shirt was an extra source of motivation. I was forced to live up to such an honour."

I was lucky enough to be at Old Trafford the day Ronaldo made his Manchester United debut as a 60th minute substitute against Bolton. Chants of "There's only one Ronaldo" echoed around the Theatre of Dreams as the crowd welcomed the Portuguese wizard to the field, he didn't disappoint, it's still the best debut I have seen by a United player.

Yes, I am aware that Wayne Rooney scored a hat trick on his debut for United in a Champions League game in 2004. I think for the overall impact and excitement, Ronaldo's debut easily edges it for me because nobody really knew what to expect that day when United's new no7 took to the field for his 30minute cameo. Rooney on the other hand joined the club as an established talent who was no stranger to Premier League football.

Ronaldo's debut was sensational, within seconds of being introduced to the game he had the Bolton back line on their toes as he worked his magic down the left and the right showing that he was confident on either foot. The step overs were a bit of a novelty with the crowd at the time, but they worked and gained Ronaldo that extra yard. 

Ronaldo was introduced to the game against Bolton with United leading 1-0, the match finished 4-0 and its no coincidence that United scored 3 goals whilst the raw Portuguese prodigy was working his magic on the Old Trafford turf. After the match, although he didn't score,  supporters, the media and the manager were all praising 18 year old Ronaldo and the impact he had on the game.

"It looks like the fans have a new hero, It was a marvellous debut, almost unbelievable. I felt his penetration could make a difference for us" said Sir Alex Ferguson after the Bolton game.

Cristiano Ronaldo went on to become a Manchester United legend during his time with the club scoring 84 goals in 196 games and winning every top honour he possibly could. Ronaldo never kept it a secret that his dream was to play for the team he supporter as a child, Real Madrid.

Although United supporters would have been devastated to see Ronaldo leave Old Trafford, I got the impression at the time the majority of fans waved him off saying 'thanks for the memories'. Ronaldo is the only player I have seen leave Manchester United who had not fully fulfilled his potential and hit his peak, his name is still sung proudly by supporters who acknowledge and appreciate what he did in his 6 seasons.

Ronaldo was the conductor of the United orchestra when he discovered how to use his talent to the best of his ability, the impact he made was something we will never recapture or replace, he was truly phenomenal in the famous red shirt.

It's sad to think that he will probably play his best football for Real Madrid, he's carried on his sensational form for his new club and is justifying the decision by his new employers to hand over a world record £80million fee for his extraordinary services .

I'm just glad that in years to come I can tell people that seen a legend of world football in the making, it was a pleasure and a joy watching the boy become a man and watching him graduate from his football education at Manchester United.

Thanks for the memories Cristiano Ronaldo.

@kevinashford7

Safe Standing Campaign Gathers Momentum

A campaign launched by the Football Supporters' Federation (FSF) for the introduction of  'Safe Standing' sections in English football stadiums has gathered momentum with Birmingham MP Roger Godsiff, Aston Villa and Peterborough giving their support to the idea.

Aston Villa are the first Premier League club to publicly back the campaign to hold small scale trails of the scheme with a view to implementing safe standing if the trail proves to work safely. The trails would need a change in the Football Spectators Act 1989, brought in after the Hillsborough disaster.

Premier League clubs have now sounded out supporter groups to get their reaction to the idea and it seems to be receiving a positive response with the majority of fans in favour of testing the scheme out in their teams stadium.

The Hillsborough disaster in 1989 changed the way our football stadiums once were, nobody wants a repeat of that tragedy in which 96 innocent people cruelly lost their lives. The recent verdict in the 'Justice For The 96' campaign found that West Yorkshire police were to blame on that fateful day for their failure to control the situation they were presented with. 

Last year the Hillsborough Family Support Group opposed any move to bring back standing areas.The Safe Standing campaign is not intended to anger or upset any of the families who fought so hard and long for justice, its something that is looking to be implemented because it has already proved that it can work successfully, most notably in Germany. 

It seems that people opposed to the idea think that stadiums will revert back to all standing stadiums, that is not the intention and will never happen, I believe supporters should have the choice to stand or sit.

Both the FA and Premier League currently fail to acknowledge that thousands of supporters stand at games every weekend, the majority of away supporters at top flight matches stand for 90 minutes during games, and thats Liverpool supporters included, surly it is more of a safety issue to stand in a seated area? If you were standing with a safety bar in front and behind you, you would have to agree it would be safer?

Safe Standing would help football clubs increase attendances and turnover without spending millions on redeveloping their stadium or relocating to a new area, cheaper standing tickets could also appeal to supporters who have been priced out of watching their beloved team due to rising ticket prices.

I believe it is a no-brainer, Safe Standing must be given a chance to show how it can run successfully. People who are against the idea seem to be living in the past, our stadiums today are policed and stewarded to a good level and football clubs would have a responsibility and duty of care monitoring standing areas to ensure that safety is the main priority.

If a trail run is successful Safe Standing could be implemented in English football stadiums in 2015, the main battle now is convincing the people who are against the idea that it will work and that it will enhance our overall atmosphere, which lets face it, has been on the decline since the introduction of the all-seater stadium.

Where do you stand on Safe Standing? Are you for or against the idea? 

@kevinashford7

  

United Victorious Down At The Bridge

Manchester United claimed a memorable 3-2 Premier League victory over the current Champions of Europe at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, this is a result that the reds had previously failed to achieve in 10 years against Chelsea in the top flight of English football in Chelsea's own back yard.

What a spectacular advertisement this was for the English Premier League, it was clear from the start that Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson had a game plan that involved attacking the Chelsea back line who were missing influential captain John Terry through suspension, the plan was to use Uniteds width where Ashley Young made a surprise start that has further cast doubt over Nani's Old Trafford future.

Uniteds defencive frailties left them little option but to use attack as their best form of defence as they quickly found their rhythm and set out to dictate the passage and pace of the game early on.

Robin van Persie was labelled Uniteds danger man before kick off, ex Manchester United player Gary Neville said that United handed over £24million for van Persie for games like this, the big games, the games that really matter, the Dutchman paid back a small chunk of that fee with a breathtaking overall performance, he is the reason United claimed 3 points as Chelsea failed to get to grips with him.

After testing Petr Cech early on van Persie had a big say in Uniteds first goal in the 4th minute as his thunderous shot smashed against the post rebounding into the net off a helpless David Luiz.

United continued to threaten the Chelsea goal and were rewarded as they scored a second goal, a wonderful drilled cross from Antonio Valencia found van Persie who's first time connection left Cech with no chance and picking the ball out of the net for the second time in the first 12 minutes of this epic match.

As the first half minutes ticked away Chelsea slowly gained the upper hand and you could sense that it was only a matter of time before they got back into this game, United were desperately trying to hold onto their two goal advantage and see it out until the break.

Juan Mata had different ideas, a cheap foul by Wayne Rooney presented the Spaniard with a free kick centrally just outside the United area, Mata did not waste the opportunity scoring a magnificent goal that ended the half with Chelsea 2-1 down but with their tails up.

Chelsea thoroughly deserved their equaliser early in the second half as Ramires headed home to draw level, it looked like Uniteds early hard work was about to be punished as they struggled to get to grips with Chelsea's early second half wave of attacks.

van Persie started to influence the game pulling the Chelsea defenders all over the Stamford Bridge pitch leaving gaps for his teammates to exploit, this was evident in the 63rd minute when his hold up play and vision played in Ashley Young who was in one on one with Cech until Ivanovic brought him down rightfully receiving his marching orders in the process by referee Mark Clattenburg.

In the 69th minute the real controversy unravelled as Chelsea striker Fernando Torres received his marching orders for simulation following a challenge from Jonny Evans, the Irish man did seem to make contact and the majority of spectators both in the stadium and watching on TV must have been expecting the yellow card to be shown to the United player, to the amazement and disbelief of the Chelsea supporters the card was shown to the Spaniard and Torres left Chelsea trying to hold on playing out the game with 9 men, advantage United.

This was a game of end to end football as both teams traded blow after blow like two heavy weight boxers, United landed the fatal blow in the 75th minute when super sub Javier Hernandez scored following a saved van Persie shot that Rafael drilled back into the danger area for the Mexican to tap in, replays showed Hernandez was offside when the ball was played but United will not have a complaint about it after being on the receiving end of some bad decisions against Chelsea themselves in the past.

Its difficult to sum up how huge a result this could be for Manchester United, it could prove to be important when it comes to deciding what colour ribbons will be tied around the handles of the Premier League trophy next May, its still early days as far as the title race is concerned but this was a huge win as many expect Chelsea and the two Manchester clubs to be battling it out this season for England's top honour.



@kevinashford7

FA Should Punish Suárez For Shameful Dive

As the dust settles on another weekend of Premier League action, it seems the most talked about incident was the embarrassing and shameful dive that Liverpool player Luis Suárez performed to try and win his side a penalty kick against Stoke at Anfield.

Tom Daley would have been proud of the Uruguay internationals technique if he had of been breaking the water surface of an Olympic pool rather than hitting the grass surface at the Kop End of the stadium

Diving has been one of the main talking points in the English game recently, the influx of foreign footballers have contributed to it largely as it seems to be a more common in European football, its worrying because it seems that there is now a generation of British based players who will simulate contact, or go down far too easily from minimal contact.

There are 3 players that will spring to most football supporters minds when you mention the word diving, Luis Suárez, Gareth Bale and Ashley Young, they have all been guilty of simulation at some stage over the last few Premier League seasons, they should hang their heads in shame because diving is trying to gain an advantage through cheating, they are trying to con the referee.

Luis Suárez is the main culprit when it comes to diving, and it is now a case of the boy who cried wolf because his reputation as a diving cheat is going before him, this was evident recently when Liverpool played Manchester United and Suárez should have been awarded a penalty after he was brought down in the area by Jonny Evans, it was a clear penalty but the referee who was maybe a little unsure about the call decided to wave play on after perhaps taking in to consideration the player who had gone down under the challenge.

What Suárez did at Anfield against Stoke was hilarious, frustrating and annoying, the Football Association should have stepped in by now and charged Suárez  for his pathetic actions, this is a player who has previous when it comes to diving, they should make an example of him if they are serious about helping to eradicate it from our game.

Stoke manager Tony Pulis was angered by the incident involving Suárez saying:

“Retrospective decisions are made on a Monday and Luis Suárez should be punished. The one in the penalty box was an embarrassment and how he wasn’t booked I don’t know”.

The FA have come under justifiable criticism recently after their overall handling, verdict and the punishment they handed John Terry for racially abusing Anton Ferdinand, if they wanted to assert their authority and claim back a minute piece of respect from football supporters and people within the game then they should have come down on Suárez like a ton of bricks and handed him a ban and a hefty fine.

The Uruguayan was not carded by match official Lee Mason for the incident so the FA could and should have stepped in by now to condemn his actions and prove to English football that they are serious about combating cheating in the game.

@kevinashford7 - Follow Kevin on twitter.

Fabregas Is The Perfect Replacement For Scholes

When Paul Scholes retired from Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson focused his attention on replacing the Old Trafford legend with a player who mirrored the same attributes.

Its no hidden secret that the reds made a serious and lucrative offer for Inter Milan midfield play maker Wesley Sneijder, the deal never happened and United suffered without that touch of calmness and class in the centre of the park.

A sensational derby day comeback in January from retirement by Paul Scholes proved that Sir Alex was regretting not adding a touch of class to his midfield department, sensing that maybe there was too much weight of expectation placed on United youngster Tom Cleverley's shoulders for him to be expected to take the baton from Scholes and hit the ground running.

Scholes could have another season left in his tank depending on how Sir Alex uses him, but one thing has certainly become clear, United will need to replace him when he finally brings down the curtain on his illustrious career for the second and final time!

I'm sure it has not gone unnoticed by Sir Alex that a certain Cesc Fabregas is currently struggling to register any playing time on his Barcelona staff key fob at the Camp Nou, a player the United manager knows all about from the Spaniards playing days at Arsenal.

Reports in the Spanish media have also recently indicated that the player is unhappy at his lack of first team opportunities, Fabregas was quick to deny these rumours this week claiming that he is happy at Barcelona and is prepared to work hard and fight his way back into the Barcelona team.

It was Pep Guardiola who signed Fabregas, Guardiola left his post with the Catalan team at the end of last season and it remains uncertain if new manager Tito Vilanova sees the player as part of his future plans.

Fabregas would be an interesting and realistic target for United and at 25 years old would definitely prove value for money as you know exactly what you would be getting from him, he is a proven Premier League player who provides and scores goals, he also knows how to play a pass, in many ways he is a similar player to Scholes.

We will have a clearer indication regarding Fabregas' future at the Camp Nou in January or next summer, by then he could be back in the first team frame at his boyhood club, but if there was the slightest hint he was unhappy and wanted first team football and a return to the Premier League I am sure United would launch a bid to land his services.

If Barcelona were happy to recoup the £25million fee they payed Arsenal for his services it would prove to be a shrewd bit of business when you consider the kind of transfer fees clubs pay for players in today's crazy transfer market, Jordan Henderson cost Liverpool £20million!

The recent signing of Robin van Persie could work in Uniteds favour and make a move to Old Trafford seem more appealing to Fabregas following their playing days at Arsenal where they were good friends and team mates, players are often instructed and encouraged by their club managers to put in a word with players they are interested in, van Persie could surly be used to contact Fabregas if the club were given the green light to start negotiations?

It remains to be seen if Fabregas would want a move away from his boyhood team after such a short spell, but one thing is for sure, if he ever become available he would be the ideal candidate who ticks all the boxes when Manchester United look to replace an iconic and legendary midfield player named Paul Scholes. 

Simply Vantastic !

It was the Robin van Persie show at St Mary's, as the £24million Dutchman displayed a masterclass in finishing to leave Southampton's players and supporters shell shocked.

Its games like this that are a great advertisement for the English Premier League, Manchester United twice fell behind in this match but responded the only way they know, to keep attacking until the final whistle.

After falling behind 1-0 to a Lambert header, United responded in the 23rd minute when a cross was beautifully brought down by van Persie on his chest which opened up the angle, everybody inside the stadium and watching knew what was coming next as the Dutchman sent the ball ferociously back across goal and into the bottom corner.

Into the second half and the reds again fell behind 2-1 after another free header from Schneiderlin found the bottom corner after Patrice Evra lost his footing on the St Mary's turf.

6 minutes later Sir Alex Ferguson changed things by bringing on Paul Scholes and Nani for Cleverley and Kagawa respectively, it was a change that totally changed the dynamics of the match as Scholes started to dictate Uniteds play in the middle, spraying positive passes in the attacking half of the field.

United were handed the opportunity to level the score when Jos Hooiveld scythed down Van Persie in the box, the Dutchman stepped up in front of the travelling away supporters and seemed to make a last second decision to try and gently guide the ball over the Saints keeper who read the spot kick well and at full stretch tip the ball around the post to a huge roar from the home supporters, it seemed it would just not be Uniteds day.

The score remained 1-1 and in the 71st minute Danny Welbeck was replaced by Mexican Hernandez, this was the last throw of the dice for United who were now pouring forward at every opportunity, Southampton were struggling to cope with Uniteds wave of attacking football, they were ready to be knocked onto the ropes as Rio Ferdinands header hit the post and van Persie tapped the ball in to level the score 2-2 in the 87th minute, United sensed they could still land the knock out blow in this tie.

United continued to flood forward and you sensed that there was going to be one more chance created in this game, in the 91st minute United earned a corner and Nani swung the ball in, Southampton's zonal marking meant that van Persie was able to run into space and head home in front of the travelling fans who erupted in to wild rapturous celebrations.

It was by no means convincing as United looked shaky at the back, they will not get away with playing the kind of football they displayed at times in this match against stronger opposition, its only early days but the reds will be delighted with the 3 points.

van Persie was devastating in front of goal, we seen it so many times last season for Arsenal and he seems to have hit the ground running at Old Trafford which will delight the manager and supporters, the Dutchman was apparently purchased to take some of the expectation and responsibility off Wayne Rooney, at St Marys van Persie showed he is happy to lead the team and be the talisman figure he once was at the Emirates.

United Agree £24m van Persie Fee

Sir Alex Ferguson has finally landed Robin van Persie from Arsenal as both clubs have agreed on a transfer fee believed to be £24million. A statement on Manchester Uniteds official website earlier confirmed the news saying -

"Manchester United is pleased to announce it has reached agreement with Arsenal Football Club for the transfer of Robin Van Persie.

The deal is subject to a medical and the agreement of personal terms. A further announcement will be made in due course."

Its nearly 6 weeks ago since van Persie released a statement on his official website stating his intention not to sign a new contract with Arsenal, its a decision that put United, Manchester City and Juventus on red alert as the tabloids speculated that City were the early front runners for the Dutch mans signature.

As the weeks passed by it then seemed Italian side Juventus were in pole position, but it is the famous red shirt of Manchester United that van Persie will be wearing this season as it seems the attraction of Old Trafford was a chance he could not pass up.

The signing of van Persie is a huge statement from United as he breaks the trend of Sir Alex not signing big name players for big money over the age of 28 mainly due to the fact the player will have no resell value. 

It seems that Sir Alex simply could not ignore the chance to sign a player who was head and shoulders above any other footballer in the Premier League last season, a player who was crowned the leagues top goalscorer and also scooped the PFA and Football Writers player of the year. 

The prospect of van Persie lining up alongside Wayne Rooney for Uniteds opening game away at Everton is simply mouthwatering, its like a fantasy football strike force!

The team who lost the league on goal difference will now have last seasons leading goalscorer in their ranks, its obvious Manchester United are wounded by last seasons title disappointment, signing a player of van Persies calibre and talent will give the reds a major boost as they look at trying to win back the Barclay's Premier League trophy.

@kevinashford7

Man City And Chelsea Are Shopping At Harrods Whilst Man Utd Shop At Primark

An Abu Dhabi and Russian Billionaire are both in a swanky store named Harrods sipping champagne and looking to purchase the new Aguero and Hazard range respectively, whilst a Scottish man is searching frantically through the bargain basket of his local Primark establishment looking for value, he ends up purchasing a Kleberson suite complete with a Djemba-Djemba shirt and Bebe shoes.

Its a sign of how the financial power has changed in the top league of English football, the Scottish man once shopped at Harrods himself indulging in such well known labels as Rio, Veron and van Nistelrooy. Following a stop to the Scottish mans spending by his American owners he is now left to shop for a bargain, or something he sees potential in.

Dont get me wrong, the Scottish mans Cantona silk suite, Schmeichel shirt and Solskjear shoes, still look very impressive to this day, I doubt that they will ever go out of fashion.

Wealthy people prefer to spend their money on things that make them happy, if that means spending money on expensive high street designer labels like Silva, Mata or the latest pair of Yaya Toure shoes, then whats wrong with that? If you have got the money to buy top quality clobber you would buy it wouldn't you?

Why spend time shopping for bargains if you have the cash sat about to purchase the finished article? Manchester United as things stand will never be able to shop in Harrods along side Chelsea and Manchester City, they are at the stage where they are trying to out do their Manchester and London rivals by taking a chance on buying cheaper clothes and hoping they look better on the catwalk.

Money makes a huge difference in football as Blackburn, Chelsea and Manchester City have proved. They have all been crowned king of the catwalk in the Premier League era helped hugely by financial power, but in previous years Manchester United were too.

Recently Eden Hazard chose to join Chelsea for £34million after Manchester United showed an interest in him, Sir Alex commented on the transfer by saying "There is a borderline in terms of what you would think is a good signing for United", that borderline unfortunately for United supporters is a family named the Glazers, who purchased the historic Manchester club with money they did not have.

Sir Alex followed up by saying, "It's all about what you think is value for a player. I am not envious of those deals at all. We placed a value on Hazard which was well below what they were talking about." Which again can be interpreted into saying, "If I had the financial backing from my American bosses I would have been able to compete with Chelsea for the transfer of Eden Hazard"

Manchester Uniteds biggest summer capture has been Shinji Kagawa, what fee did they pay for his services? Its hard to confirm the exact fee as most websites say it was an "undisclosed fee", its a running trend with a lot of players United have signed, which basically means they have purchased the player but his previous club will be rewarded if the Japanese lad is successful at United, by that I mean trophies. This means United are not taking a big risk on signing the player as they only have to pay instalments if the reds are successful.

Is is something that is happening a lot at Old Trafford now with new players arriving, they sign for an "undisclosed fee", but their previous club will be rewarded if the player is part of a successful team, or it could be on a personal level, based on appearances or goals.

This sadly, is the pond that Manchester United are now swimming in, there are other fish in the water with them who are powerful, but it remains unclear if they can continue to overlook investing in established talent rather than shopping for value and a bargain.

Anderson Is Sir Alex's Biggest Ever Transfer Flop

Many debates go on regarding football and maybe the biggest one when talking about Manchester United would be who is the reds best player of all time? Equally as interesting is trying to come to a conclusion on who is the worst player ever to play for the club.

Since I started following United I have not seen any other manager in charge of the club other than Sir Alex Ferguson who has been at the helm for 25 years, so I thought I would try and come to a conclusion on who I think has been his biggest ever transfer flop during his time in charge at Old Trafford.

Most supporters will already be reeling names off the top of their heads now, names such as Ralph Milne, Liam Miller, David Bellion, Eric Djemba-Djemba, Kleberson, Massimo Taibi, Diego Forlan, Juan Sebastian Veron & Bebe, one name I surprisingly never hear in that list is Uniteds Brazilian midfielder Anderson, surly he tops the list if you look at the bigger picture?

Financially most supporters would probably agree that Juan Sebastian Veron is Sir Alex's biggest ever transfer flop. The Argentinian arrived at Old Trafford for a fee of £28.1million back in the summer of 2001 which was a British transfer record at that time. It never really happened for Veron at United, so much was expected of him but he struggled to stamp his authority in a midfield that already had United legends Paul Scholes and Roy Keane in that central position.

There is also the theory that back in 2001 when United signed Veron they didn't actually require his services at that time, although it is believed Sir Alex signed him to try and take them to another level in European football.

The thing about Veron was that every supporter knew he was a special talent who unfortunately joined the club at the wrong time, eleven years after he signed we are now crying out for that exact same type of player.

Most supporters will base Veron being the worst signing because of the transfer fee, but if you are going off the financial aspect of a players career with the club why would you not consider Anderson as the worst? If you try to research the fee United paid Porto for Anderson it proves a difficult task as most websites have contradicting fees, United announced that he joined the club for an "undisclosed fee", the transfer fee Porto announced was €30 million, which was equivalent to around £25.6 million in May 2007, if that information is correct it means that Anderson cost only £2.5million less than Veron and the Brazilian has been a constant disappointment at United.

Veron could pick a pass, tackle, dictate the pace of a game, he had the odd goal in him, Anderson is the complete opposite of all them attributes I just mentioned, what is Anderson actually good at? Putting on weight? Pulling daft faces at goalkeepers when United have set pieces to try and put them off? Seriously though, what are Anderson's stand out attributes? Passing? Tackling? Scoring goals? Creating chances for others? Heading? Crossing? Defending? Attacking? Could any supporter confidently say yes to him being competent at any of them parts of a midfielders game I have just mentioned? I cant.

I would put Anderson at the top of the list as Sir Alex's worst ever signing in front of Ralph Milne, Liam Miller, David Bellion, Eric Djemba-Djemba, Kleberson, Massimo Taibi, Diego Forlan, and Bebe. My reason being that all the others I mentioned joined the club when we knew relatively little about them, so we did not expect big thing from them, Anderson on the other hand was touted as the "new Ronaldinho" and watching clips of the player in his Porto days it was easy to see why supporters set their expectations for him so high.

United legend Paul Scholes trained with Veron everyday when he was at the club and said the Argentine was one of the best players he ever played with, Sir Alex also defended any criticism of Veron from the media claiming the player was world class, has a player or the manager ever said similar things about Anderson?

Anderson had a fantastic first season with the club, but the seasons that have followed that have been hugely disappointing. Five years on from when the Brazilian first joined the club and you will still hear some supporters keeping the faith and producing comments like "this will be Anderson's year" or "give the lad time". Personally I just cant see him ever establishing himself at United and that is why when you look at the Anderson transfer as a whole against that of Verons, its a no-brainer that the Brazilian is the worst signing that Sir Alex has ever made.

Do you agree with @kevinashford7 that Anderson has been Sir Alex's biggest transfer flop?

Please leave us your comments and thoughts on who you think is the biggest flop below.

Could Van Persie Sign For Man Utd?

So the worst kept secret in current football transfer speculation has finally come to boiling point as Arsenal captain Robin van Persie released an official statement on his personal website confirming that he will not be signing a new contract with Arsenal.

The players decision leaves Arsenal in a weak position as they are now not in a strong bargaining position when it comes to clubs approaching them with an offer for the player, they could dig their heels in and keep the Dutchman but would then risk losing him for free next summer, surly it makes financial sense to sell him immediately and move on?

So with one of the hottest strikers now putting himself in the shop window, who will be interested in taking van Persie? Stupid question really, who wouldn't want him?

Following a sensational season last year which seen van Persie claim the two big individual honours, he has now stated his desire to win trophies and feels that Arsenal are not the club to help him fulfil his ambition at the age of 28.

Over the years following knock backs by some superstar names, Manchester United supporters take any transfer speculation as exactly what it is, speculation.

As I ride me flying Unicorn whilst eating my way through the Candy-floss clouds please allow me to dream for one minute, van Persie in a Manchester United shirt next season? Please don't roll your eyes or tut or groan, why not?

Granted, I can hear the argument against this saying we need to strengthen in other areas like central midfield and left back, but players like Van Persie do not come along very often, and if United can convince the Dutchman that Old Trafford is the place for him to win silverware, then they could probably pick him up for around £15million as Arsenal will not be able to command a fee for him.

Sir Alex will surly be an admirer of a player of the calibre of van Persie, and with Michael Owen released, Dimitar Berbatov's future still uncertain, Javier Hernandez having a disappointing second season with the club, it leaves Wayne Rooney who is the first name on the team sheet and Danny Welbeck who United cannot put too much pressure on at his age as the clubs recognised strikers.

van Persie and Rooney would have probably been the most common fantasy football strike force last year, pairing the two up at Manchester United could be truly devastating for teams playing against them, don't totally dismiss the idea that van Persie could actually see Old Trafford as the place for him to end his career.

Obviously as I step off my flying unicorn with a belly full of candy-floss, the reality soon dawns on me that them spoilt kids in the blue neighbourhood will also be ready to declare an interest in van Persie and will be able to offer him riches beyond his wildest dreams to secure his services, throw into the mix the fact Real Madrid have also been mentioned as a possible destination and it seems that I was happier when sat on my unicorn thinking about the Dutchman in the red of Manchester United.

van Persie and Arsenal both have big decisions to make in the next few weeks, I fully expect Uniteds name to be mentioned along side that of the blue side of Manchester and Real Madrid's, I just hope that if Sir Alex does want him, he can convince van Persie that Old Trafford is the place to be for football reasons as we will not be able to compete financially in a transfer market that Manchester City and Chelsea dominate and boss.