Manchester United news and links

MICHAEL Owen has vowed to repay the debt he owes Sir Alex Ferguson with a goal bonanza.


A shock whirlwind transfer took just 48 hours from start to finish and sees the 29-year-old striker land a two-year Old Trafford deal.

Young defender Sean McGinty has agreed to join United’s Academy.

Nemanja Vidic’s agent denies recent media quotes attributed to the Serb.

The Reds confirm the arrival of Michael Owen on a two-year contract.

• ‘Getting Owen is very, very good business’
• Ian Rush would have liked him back at Liverpool

Michael Owen’s arrival at Manchester United represents the latest act of “genius” on Sir Alex Ferguson’s part. That is Rob Lee’s view of the most unexpected transfer this summer and Owen’s former England team-mate is far from alone in that view.

Lee, who has watched many of Owen’s recent struggles in a Newcastle United shirt, is as well placed as anyone to assess a move which has astonished much of the football world. “It’s a piece of genius management,” he said. “Getting Michael for free on what I’m sure will essentially be a pay-as-you-play basis is very, very, good business. It’s no gamble.”

Even so Manchester United fans are largely underwhelmed at the prospect of Owen replacing Cristiano Ronaldo. “Of course Michael can’t do what Ronaldo does,” Lee added. “Ronaldo is the best in the world and as close as anyone to being indispensable but in one-on-one situations, Michael is a better finisher. Sir Alex has lost the player who got the bulk of United’s goals, many of them great goals, but he is replacing him with someone capable of scoring once every two games.”

Peter Taylor, who coached Owen during his days as a member of Glenn Hoddle’s England staff, does not demur. “United create so many chances it wouldn’t surprise me if Michael is the Premier League’s top scorer next year. And I’m sure he’ll be on the plane to South Africa [for the World Cup] next summer. Sir Alex has been very clever.”

Owen’s critics are keen to remind everyone that the injury-plagued 29-year-old has not scored since January and failed to prevent Newcastle’s relegation. “But Michael needs chances and no one at Newcastle was creating any,” Lee added. “The ones I saw fall his way always seemed to be ricochets. But at United he might get eight openings in some games.”

There are fears that Owen will be ill-suited to the often kaleidoscopic inter-changing United’s attacking players regularly indulge in and, moreover, lacks the coruscating change of pace now regarded as mandatory for elite strikers.

Taylor is unconcerned. “Michael will adapt to United’s positional inter-changing no problem. Remember, he proved he could operate deeper and link play when Kevin Keegan used him in the hole behind two strikers at Newcastle,” he said. “Playing with someone as clever as Dimitar Berbatov should help him, too. OK, he’ll never get that extra yard of pace he once had back, but I think Sir Alex will be able to really sharpen him up again.”

Lee agrees about Berbatov but maintains Owen is no quasi midfielder. “I don’t believe Michael’s suited to playing deep but he’s worked well with Wayne Rooney for England and I can see Berbatov making a lot of his goals. People say Michael’s lost pace and he has but he’s still quick enough to play as an outright striker.”

But can Owen remain fit? His former Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce, now at Blackburn, had claimed signing the striker represented a “massive risk”.

“Michael will be rotated and benefit from regular rests at United,” said Lee. “At Newcastle, because he cost so much and no one else was scoring regularly, he often played when he wasn’t properly fit. Michael will soon be just another player instead of Newcastle’s record signing who is expected to do it all. The pressure will be greatly reduced and his confidence should return. And Sir Alex will know when to put an arm around Michael and when he needs a kick up the backside.”

Some Liverpool fans may struggle to forgive their one-time idol for defecting to the enemy but the former Anfield striker Ian Rush believes Owen should seize the moment. “Personally I’d have liked to have seen Michael back at Liverpool,” he said, “but he’ll score goals for United. People have knocked Michael all his career; they’ve said he was finished but he’s a fantastic player and this is a chance for him to come back stronger and better.”

Manchester United scored a paltry 68 goals last season. Owen’s unerring finishing could help them find their rhythm

The willingness to sign Michael Owen makes Sir Alex Ferguson look as much a collector as a manager. There might already be a cabinet reserved in some museum of football for a player who is just 29. Indeed, it is the throwback quality that makes him valuable to Manchester United. Large as it is, the Old Trafford squad has not contained a proven poacher since Ruud van Nistelrooy was sold to Real Madrid and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s career drew to a close.

Few top-level clubs have such a figure. Hardly anyone else fits that description in the Premier League, other than Jermain Defoe at Tottenham. United must sense the continuing value of these specialists, despite tactical systems that leave scant room for them nowadays. In April Federico Macheda’s two goals for the club to date turned impending draws into victories against Sunderland and Aston Villa.

It adds to the burgeoning lore of the Italian to treat those strikes as if they alone had delivered the four-point margin by which United retained the title. Macheda is a mere 17 but there was a reminder there that goalmouth experts can never be wholly obsolete. He may be too young to prosper week after week but Ferguson would like to have a predator on hand who is fully equipped. The question now is whether Owen can continue to meet that description. His irrelevance in the closing weeks of last season was alarming.

Alan Shearer, following his installation as manager at the beginning of April, had placed a great emphasis on the impact Owen might have on Newcastle’s prospects of survival. The calculation must have been that this emphasis on the player’s status would bring out the very best in him. Owen turned out to be incapable of finding the net.

On the closing day of the campaign he appeared purely as an ineffective substitute, in the middle of the second half at Villa Park, when the side was seeking an equaliser that would have kept them in the Premier League. No one else scored either, and there were far deeper factors in Newcastle’s relegation than his difficulties, but it was sobering to see him achieve no more against Villa than complete three innocuous passes over 24 minutes.

Fabio Capello declined to name Owen in the England party after he had recovered from injury in March. Some of the Italian’s predecessors as England manager would have included him out of mere habit but he lacked any in-built trust in the striker. Ferguson’s circumstances, however, differ radically from Capello’s. The United squad is very large and there is no major significance in adding another name.

Owen, if the move works out, would restore the opportunism that has largely gone missing since Solskjaer conceded that he could not overcome his knee problems. For all the efforts of the departed Cristiano Ronaldo, United do not score as freely as they once did. They hit 68 goals in the Premier League last season; the corresponding figure for 2007-08 was 80. Ferguson’s team has become more effective in the Champions League by taking fewer risks but ebullience could be permitted on other fronts.

It may be that Owen can help United win the run-of-mill matches more easily, so allowing his team-mates to conserve energy for key fixtures in a long campaign. When he was functioning normally, the attacker scored four times in his five appearances during the Euro 2008 qualifiers. Assuming he stays fit, it will be interesting to see the extent to which he is used by Ferguson.

The inability of Owen and Wayne Rooney to dovetail for their country has almost attained comic proportions. They could put in more practice at United but each would prefer to be partnered with a target man. Rooney has thrived for England when stationed close to Emile Heskey.

As it is, Ferguson could continue to use Rooney towards the left, even if the player would rather be in the middle, and employ, say, Dimitar Berbatov to prompt Owen in United’s 4-2-3-1 system. That, however, assumes that the newcomer will have a key role.

It may turn out that there is to be no such status for Owen. If he is to be a lone striker, which seems inevitable now that 4-4-2 is all but extinct, he will probably flourish only against weaker clubs when United, as they dominate, get many players forward to support him.

In the tense and tactical contests he could, like Solskjaer, be a specialist substitute who can winkle out a goal. That may be a step down for someone so renowned in his youth but it would constitute a renaissance after four years of decline at Newcastle.

• Owen signing takes just three days for United to complete
• ‘A fantastic opportunity and one I will seize with both hands’

Michael Owen tonight signed a two-year contract with Manchester United after completing a rigorous medical examination to dispel some of the concerns surrounding his injury problems.

Owen underwent a series of medical checks at a private hospital in Manchester this afternoon before travelling to the club’s training ground in Carrington to finalise the deal which, as a free agent, will not cost United a transfer fee.

The lightning move by Sir Alex Ferguson caught the football world by surprise, the move being done and dusted in the space of three days. “I had just begun to talk to other clubs when out of the blue Sir Alex phoned me on Wednesday afternoon, invited me to have breakfast with him next morning during which he told me that he wanted to sign me. I agreed without a moment’s thought,” said Owen. “This is a fantastic opportunity for me and I intend to seize it with both hands.”

United were able to confirm late this evening that the England striker will be joining Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Luis Antonio Valencia in a new-look attack, and the club have pencilled in a press conference to unveil him either next Friday or the following Monday.

“I am now looking forward to being a United player and I am fortunate that I already know so many of the players here. I missed pre-season last year and am pleased that I will be starting at Carrington from day one,” the 29-year-old said.

His debut is likely to be the first game of United’s tour to south-east Asia, against a Malaysia XI on 18 July. His first appearance at Old Trafford will be on 5 August when Valencia come to Manchester for a pre-season friendly.

Ferguson welcomed the new arrival by saying: “Michael is a world-class forward with a proven goalscoring record at the highest level and that has never been in question. Coming to Manchester United with the expectations that we have is something that Michael will relish.”

His contract at Old Trafford is based on bonuses for playing and scoring but Owen has been happy to take a huge pay cut from his £110,000-a-week salary at Newcastle.

Take a look back at Michael Owen’s career so far as the former Liverpool and Newcastle striker signs for Manchester United

Michael Owen has sealed his shock move to Manchester United.


The former Liverpool, Real Madrid and England striker completed a series of stringent medical tests this evening and has signed a two-year deal with the champions.

If he signs, Owen will come off the bench when United are failing to convert chances - like Kris Boyd at Rangers, only less so

The ballyhoo ignited by Michael Owen’s proposed move to Manchester United is – surely – out of proportion to the relatively minor importance of the player in the club’s plans. It is impossible to imagine he is seen as a replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo or Carlos Tevez, or compensation for missing out on Karim Benzema. It is much more probable that this freebie who will reportedly be offered a pay-as-you-play deal will serve as a cut-price successor to, say, Alan Smith or latter-day Louis Saha or, in the best-case scenario, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. In other words, United should still be expected to make far more significant signings this summer.

Even the glitzy brochure concocted by his agents acknowledged that Owen is no longer as fast as before, and towards the end of his sentence at Newcastle United he even appeared to have lost his other main selling point – the ability to convert one-on-ones. It seemed then that the only thing he could finish was the hatchet job on his reputation. A generous interpretation of the misses he committed against, for example, Portsmouth and which ultimately led his friend Alan Shearer to drop him for the decisive run-in, would attribute them to a lack of confidence. That, admittedly, ignores the fact that in his very first press conference as manager Shearer had done his utmost to embiggen the little man by declaring him a surefire starter but perhaps a couple of weeks was not enough time to fortify a spirit weakened by years of injury and frustration. Being embraced by Manchester United could prove much more stimulating.

Regaining his confidence and his prowess as a predator would, you imagine, not be sufficient to secure him a starting place. He does not have the speed to serve as a spearhead nor the dynamism to be an offensive fulcrum, nor even to pester tired defences in the way Tevez can. And - his sporadic flourishes ‘in the hole’ for Newcastle under Keegan notwithstanding – he is not creative or forceful enough to provide the presence or goals from midfield that United will miss with the departure of Ronaldo and the continued waning of Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs. He does offer the experience and nous that Federico Macheda and Danny Welbeck currently lack but probably not enough to even replicate the role briefly played at Old Trafford by Henrik Larsson. The Owen-style of player is a near anachronism, that with which only the biggest clubs can afford to persist. Owen’s role at United will, if he signs, be to spring off the bench on occasions when United are creating chances but failing to convert them. He will be to United what Kris Boyd is to Rangers, only less so.

Which leaves the question as to who will the more significant recruits be? A midfielder/forward who can inject offensive menace and anarchy seems essential. No, not Joey Barton, rather someone such as Sergio Aguero, Franck Ribéry - though his heart seems set on Madrid - or even Arjen Robben, fitness and past snubs permitting. Antonio Valencia is a fine player, especially in a 4-4-2, but it is hard to envisage him, or Michael Carrick, Park Ji-sung, Anderson or Darren Fletcher, scoring as many goals as Ronaldo did. As things stand, even if Wayne Rooney shifts more towards the centre alongside Dimitar Berbatov, United suffer a shortage of goals. And, of course, the paucity of nimble conjurers that Barcelona exposed remains.

• Owen expected to join United if he comes through medical
• Striker has left Carrington for more tests at a hospital

Michael Owen is expected to complete his shock move to Manchester United this evening once final medical checks have been conducted. The former Newcastle and England striker spent the day at the club’s Carrington training complex but left early in the afternoon in a black Audi 4×4 to attend a south Manchester hospital for more tests.

Owen, whose contract with the Magpies expired at the end of June, had a medical examination yesterday to assess the troublesome knee which has troubled him since suffering the injury at the 2006 World Cup. However, it is anticipated the ex-Liverpool forward will return to Carrington this evening when he will officially be confirmed as a United player.

Owen scored 30 times in 65 starts for Newcastle but did not find the net after January. He will be extremely motivated to prove his critics wrong but would nevertheless represent a major gamble for United and their manager, Sir Alex Ferguson. United have sold Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid for £80m while Carlos Tevez has also left the club after his loan deal expired.

United have already signed Luis Antonio Valencia from Wigan for £16m in what promises to be a busy summer at Old Trafford. They did, however, miss out on signing the Lyon striker Karim Benzema, who joined Real Madrid this week for £30m.

A look at all the new home and away kits unveiled so far for the 2009/10 Premier League season

Today’s chatter doesn’t understand anything any more. Except Steel Panther

Cripes. The Mill was going to begin today with that Blackburn and Wolves are competing for the affection of Sol Campbell, but given the widespread gibbering about Michael Owen and Manchester United, we can’t rule out the creaking former England centreback being the subject of a gargantuan offer from Real Madrid.

Truly, the news about Owen opens up a universe of possibility for the Mill. No longer will we have to painstakingly source tip-offs from clued-up contacts such as tabloid newspapers and graffiti on toilet walls, instead we can spew any old fantastical guff secure in the knowledge that you, discerning reader, may have to believe it. The Mill, then, is suddenly in a very powerful position. And as Spider-Man solemnly said, with great power come boorish and hypocritical newspaper editors.

So then, where will we say Xabi Alonso is going today? Well, the Real Madrid thing is old hat and amid suggestions that any transfer fee would – until mid-July - be much higher than originally reported because Liverpool have to pass 20% of it on to Alonso’s previous employers, Real Sociedad, we’ve decided to claim that Manchester City are going to gazump the Spanish dreamers. Think Rafa Benítez would refuse to sell to City? Would you still think that if you knew Benítez has been told he can have the City job if Mark Hughes’s team don’t start the season much better than last term? Just wondering.

While he’s still Liverpool manager Benítez will do his best to retain Javier Mascherano on Merseyside and that entails combating the Argentinian’s reported homesickness by providing him with lots of compatriots to play with – including Gabriel Heinze and River Plate striker Falcao Garcia, even though he’s not Argentinian but Colombian. But if that doesn’t work and Mascherano heads off to Barcelona anyway, Benítez will replace the little chief with Didier Zokora, who shares his capacity to pass sideways and get one in every 85 shots on target. Sevilla want Zokora too.

We’ve saved today’s best rumour for the middle, for no particular reason. Here it is in all its bewildering glory: AC Milan have gone off Emmanuel Adebayor and now have the hots for Peter Crouch.

That means Fulham won’t get the gangly striker so will resort to brawling with Stoke for the services of forgotten Manchester City striker Benjani Mwaruwari.

Tottenham are weak on the left hand side of midfield. So Tottenham want the excellent Michel Bastos from Lille, who will bring the bonus of increased menace from freekicks. Arsène Wenger, however, is hoping Bastos will draw on the experience of Emmanuel Petit and jump in a cab to Arsenal after being flown to London by Spurs.

Finally, if all this frothing about Owen turns out to be untrue it’ll be because Manchester United are really after Luis Fabiano. Oh, and because Owen is an anachronism.

Heard a whisper yourself? Scroll down to pass it on …

WITH the greatest respect to Antonio Valencia, his muted unveiling at United this week could hardly compare with what was happening in Madrid on the same day.

SIR Alex Ferguson is today on the verge of signing Michael Owen.


It would represent a major gamble by the Reds boss after missing out on his top summer targets to bitter rivals Real Madrid.

Rodrigo Possebon will spend the 2009/10 season on loan in Portugal.

Manchester United seal the capture of free agent Michael Owen after he signs a two-year deal with the club.

• 29-year-old could have medical today
• United hope striker can rebuild career with champions

Michael Owen is on the verge of an astonishing move to Manchester United to supply some of the goals that have been lost in the wake of Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez leaving Old Trafford. Owen, recently linked with Stoke City and Hull City and written off in many quarters as a has-been, was holding talks with the Premier League champions and will complete one of the most unexpected transfers of the summer if he passes a stringent medical examination.

That is expected to take place today when, if everything goes according to plan, United hope to announce they are willing to take on a striker whose career had seemed to be in an irreversible tailspin. Owen is a free agent after coming to the end of his contract at Newcastle United and his stock has fallen so much over a dismal season that, until now, he has been linked only with clubs in the lower half of the Premier League table.

Owen even faced the ignominy this week of the Blackburn Rovers manager, Sam Allardyce, saying he would not try to sign him because the former Liverpool and Real Madrid player could not be guaranteed to play 30 games a season. Sir Alex Ferguson, however, appears to be untroubled by the forward’s various injury problems and is keen to reunite him with Wayne Rooney, his former strike partner for the England national team until Fabio Capello decided that Owen was no longer worthy of a place in the squad. Everton have been monitoring Owen’s potential availability but were informed that they had effectively been gazumped.

The transfer is likely to prompt a mixed reaction among United supporters given Owen’s past with Liverpool and, more pertinently, the fact that he has become recognised as a player on the wane.

Owen scored 30 times in 65 starts for Newcastle, but he cost them £41m in total when putting together his wages and his transfer fee, and was dropped by the club’s interim manager, Alan Shearer, during the run-in to their relegation. He has not scored since January and, as his reputation has plummeted, his representatives appeared to have had so little confidence in finding a major club that would be willing to sign him they produced a 32-page brochure to persuade prospective buyers that he was worth a punt.

Ferguson is unlikely to have needed a glossy supplement, however, to know all about Owen’s ability, having closely followed his career since the player was at school. Liverpool got in ahead of United after Ferguson could not arrange a deal with the player’s father, Terry, and sources close to the Old Trafford manager have indicated that he has always regarded Owen as one that got away.

Even so, it represents a significant gamble on the part of Ferguson given the way Owen, at 29, has become more synonymous with injuries and high wages than the goals that once made him one of the more feared strikers in European football. There have also been misgivings about Owen’s commitment to his professional life, with the Wigan chairman, Dave Whelan, recently questioning whether the player was spending too much time indulging his love of horse racing.

None of these concerns appears to have registered with Ferguson, though, as he contemplates rebuilding his frontline in the aftermath of Ronaldo’s £80m transfer to Real Madrid and the Manchester City-bound Tevez severing his ties with Old Trafford. Karim Benzema, the France international striker, has moved to Real Madrid and United have ruled out other attackers such as Samuel Eto’o and Franck Ribéry because of a long-term decision not to sign players aged 26 or older for large fees because of the way their potential sell-on transfer values would then drop.

United are so determined to keep to this rule that Dimitar Berbatov, who was 27 when he signed from Tottenham for £30m last September, has been described as the “last of his kind”, but Owen’s situation, as a free agent, means these restrictions do not apply. He is clearly intent on showing that he can still play at the highest level judging by his comments last week. “I’ve got skin thicker than 99.9% of the population and I have got used to it,” he said. “I’ll come back. I’ll play well and score goals once more.” Few could have imagined him doing so in a Manchester United shirt.

Three United youngsters have put pen to paper on professional forms.

Lou Macari says new signing Antonio Valencia has a great opportunity.

• Cristiano Ronaldo: ‘Some teams just kick you’
• Winger worries that someone could get seriously hurt

Cristiano Ronaldo has called for action to be taken against overly physical teams in English football as he aimed a parting shot at the Premier League.

The winger became the world’s most expensive player when Real Madrid signed him from Manchester United for £80m last month and the 24-year-old said he will not miss playing certain teams.

Ronaldo said: “There are some teams who know they can’t compete with you on a football level, so they just kick you. It’s frustrating and something needs to be done to protect the skilful players because one day someone will get seriously hurt. I think more could be done to protect us but that is up to the referees to decide.”

Speculation had swirled around Rondalo’s departure for more than a year but this doesn’t seem to have affected his relationship with the United manager Sir Alex Ferguson. The Portugal international said: “I will miss the boss. Sir Alex has taught me so much on and off the field, I could not have asked for a better mentor.”

FRAIZER Campbell remains keen to join Hull City but will not be rushed into sealing a £6m move, according to his father and agent.



Tigers chairman Paul Duffen and manager Phil Brown agreed a fee with United for the England Under-21 international three weeks ago and also reached an accord in principle with the player over his personal terms.

SIR Alex Ferguson admits he has lost the ‘best footballer in the world’ in Cristiano Ronaldo - but as one star exits Old Trafford another enters.


In Antonio Valencia, Ferguson is hoping to ensure United continue their rich tradition of having thrilling wingers in their side.

KARIM Benzema has snubbed United and is off to Real Madrid for £30m.


And Franck Ribery today revealed he wants to leave Bayern Munich and also join Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo at the Spanish giants.

• Chelsea and Manchester United set for another snub
• France midfielder intent on leaving Bayern Munich

Chelsea and Manchester United’s hopes of signing Franck Ribéry appear to be receding, with the France midfielder saying he wants to leave Bayern Munich and join Real Madrid.

Ribéry is quoted today in L’Equipe saying: “I have made up my mind, I want to leave. It will be Real or nothing. I will wait to see how things pan out but I would like to hold talks with the Bayern management soon.”

Chelsea had identified Ribéry as a possible headline signing but feared that his compatriot Zinedine Zidane, now a special adviser at Real, would use his influence to bring the 26-year-old to the Bernabéu.

Manchester United have also been linked with Ribéry although their new policy of signing only players under 26 had made Old Trafford a less likely destination.

Ribéry’s compatriot Karim Benzema has already agreed to join the Spanish side from Lyon and become Real’s third major signing of the summer after the arrivals of Kaka from Milan and Cristiano Ronaldo from United.

Bayern officials have repeatedly said Ribéry, who joined them in 2007 from Marseille, is not for sale. Their general manager Uli Hoeness does not believe Ribéry’s desire to leave alters their position. “Does Franck want to go to Real?” he asked. “For us, that changes absolutely anything. Life is not always a fairytale. Real have not made us a specific proposal and we do not need their money.”

• Lyon sell forward in deal which could be worth over £35m
• Cristiano Ronaldo has inauspicious first day at the club

Real Madrid’s extraordinary and relentless summer spending spree continued to send reverberations through the football world last night when the club agreed a £30m deal to sign the France striker Karim Benzema, a transfer that takes their spending beyond £180m since Florentino Pérez was reappointed as their galáctico-obsessed president a month ago.

Pérez has now signed Cristiano Ronaldo for £80m, Kaka for £59m, Raúl Albiol for £13m and brought in the man regarded as the most exciting young player in France, in a deal that could rise to £35.2m depending on his success at the Bernabéu.

Benzema, the scorer of 23 goals in Ligue 1 last season, has been heavily linked with Arsenal and, particularly, Manchester United but Sir Alex Ferguson’s long-standing admiration for the 21-year-old Lyon player never manifested itself in the form of a concerted attempt to bring him to Old Trafford as a replacement for Carlos Tevez.

Instead, United have left Madrid unchallenged to add yet another striker to their already bloated squad. “We know his importance and his efficiency in our squad,” Claude Puel, the Lyon coach, said. “He’s an exceptional player but we also know the financial figures of the club.”

Lyon said in a statement: “The player wishes to take the opportunity offered to him by Real Madrid to become one of the key players in an ambitious new policy involving several of the world’s biggest players. Lyon has accepted Karim Benzema’s decision and negotiated the terms of a transfer which satisfies all sides.”

Benzema, who has helped Lyon win four Ligue 1 titles and has already accumulated 24 caps for France, scoring six goals in the process, was finalising the deal in Madrid tonight while, back in England, Ferguson’s options now appear to have receded even further as he contemplates starting the season with only two senior strikers, Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov.

Ronaldo’s transfer was officially formalised today, with United receiving the money in one lump sum, and the indications from Old Trafford are that Ferguson is happy to sit on the money for the time being, despite having already spent £16m on signing Luis Antonio Valencia from Wigan Athletic.

“Cristiano has been a marvellous player for Manchester United,” Ferguson said in a statement. “His six years at Old Trafford have seen him develop into the best footballer in the world.

“His contribution has been a major factor in the club’s success in that time and his talent, his ability to entertain and his infectious personality have enthralled fans the world over. Everyone here wishes him well in his future career.”

Ronaldo’s new career as a Madrid player had an inauspicious start, however, when he allegedly smashed a car window after being followed by photographers in Lisbon. A 17-year-old woman was reportedly hurt by flying glass and has filed a complaint to the police.

“He [the photographer] chased me by car from the Ritz Hotel with my mother in the car with me and they filmed all our actions,” Ronaldo said on the website of Gestifute, the agency that represents him. “The chase so perturbed my mother that I had to stop and convince them to leave us.” Reports suggested Ronaldo smashed the window with a single kick. A spokesperson for Lisbon police declined to comment.

• Fee all agreed for Manchester United forward
• Campbell prefers a return to the KC, where he starred on loan

Fraizer Campbell looks poised to sign for Hull City when he returns from a delayed summer holiday and despite serious interest from Sunderland. Steve Bruce, the Wearside club’s new manager, was close to recruiting the striker on a season-long loan with Wigan last summer but Campbell instead joined Tottenham, and Bruce now accepts he is once again likely to be thwarted.

Hull, where Campbell, now on vacation following England Under-21 duty in Sweden, previously thrived during a loan stint, have agreed a £6m fee with Manchester United and are confident he will be re-joining them.

Moreover the forward’s father, who acts as his agent, confirmed that the KC Stadium is his son’s preferred destination.

Bruce, meanwhile, is extremely keen to sign Lee Cattermole from Wigan but can expect to meet stern resistance from his former club.

United confirm the sale of Ronaldo to Real Madrid for 80 million pounds.

United’s newest signing thanks Wigan for giving him his big break.

• Winger said to have broken car window
• 17-year-old files police complaint

Cristiano Ronaldo was reported to have kicked a paparazzo’s car in Lisbon last weekend following a car chase after acting to defend his mother.

“He [the photographer] chased me by car from the Ritz Hotel with my mother in the car with me and they filmed all our actions. The chase so perturbed my mother that I had to stop and convince them to leave us,” Ronaldo said on the website of Gestifute, the agency that represents the Portugal player.

Gestifute said Ronaldo lashed out because the paparazzo refused to leave him alone. Reports suggest Ronaldo’s kick broke the car window, which caused minor injuries to a 17-year-old woman who has filed a complaint with the police.

A spokesperson for Lisbon police declined to comment.

Ronaldo completed his £80m world record transfer to Real from Manchester United last week.

Phil McNulty blogs on Manchester United’s first big summer signing

UNITED have officially completed the sale of Cristiano Ronaldo and banked the full £80m.


The World Player of the Year and the most expensive player of all time left with a tribute from Old Trafford boss Sir Alex Ferguson.

UNITED have made their first signing of the summer after confirming a deal has been done for Antonio Valencia.


The 23-year-old Ecuador international has signed a four-year contract after moving for an undisclosed fee.

LYON have received a big-money offer for Karim Benzema but insist there is no agreement with Real Madrid or any other club for the forward.


The 21-year-old is one of the world’s hottest properties at the moment, with United and Madrid reportedly among those in the to sign him.

• £80m transfer fee has been paid in full
• Everyone wishes him well, says Sir Alex Ferguson

Manchester United have confirmed that Cristiano Ronaldo has joined Real Madrid and that the transfer fee of £80m has been paid in full. It was believed the money for the Portuguese winger may be paid in several instalments but the Premier League champions announced today that they have now received the full amount from Real Madrid.

The Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, said: “Cristiano has been a marvellous player for Manchester United. His six years at Old Trafford have seen him develop into the best footballer in the world.

“His contribution has been a major factor in the club’s success in that time and his talent, his ability to entertain and his infectious personality have enthralled fans the world over. Everyone here wishes him well in his future career.”

Ronaldo made 196 appearances for United and scored 84 goals after joining from Sporting Lisbon in 2003.

UNITED are reportedly making progress in their bid for Lyon striker Karim Benzema.


Benzema’s team-mate Miralem Pjanic, is quoted in The Times as saying: “Benzema is nearly gone to Old Trafford.

Former Wigan boss Chris Hutchings says Valencia would shine at United.

Reds legend Denis Irwin is excited by United’s new acquisition.

United’s first summer signing is Ecuador international Antonio Valencia.

Wayne Rooney is intent on making 2009/10 a season to remember.

UNITED have officially completed the sale of Cristiano Ronaldo and banked the full £80m.


The World Player of the Year and the most expensive player of all time left with a tribute from Old Trafford boss Sir Alex Ferguson.

Today’s rumours are buoyed to learn that on the list of most watched TV programmes in American history fifth place is held by the last episode of Magnum PI

Prepare yourself for lots of headlines about Sir Alex Ferguson smiling like the cat that’s got the Karim. And Everton running out of Tim. And Robben red breast. Why? Because they’re momentarily amusing, that’s why. And because Manchester United plan to follow up their purchase of Antonio Valencia with the acquisitions of Karim Benzema, Tim Cahill and Arjen Robben.

Benzema has previously let it be known he’d prefer a move to Spain and, indeed, was in Barcelona on Monday shooting a commercial – but excitable French media outlets claim that during that sojourn he popped into a sports shop and “pretended to try on a Red Devils jersey to see if it would suit”, suggesting that the striker who has been widely hailed as the new Ronaldo (as in the Brazilian phenomenon rather than the Portuguese diva) may also be the new Marcel Marceau. Just in case anyone is barmy enough to think the “Red Devils” referred to are Kaiserslautern or the Belgian national team, Benzema’s helpful Lyon colleague Miralem Pjanic has clarified that United will pay Lyon £38m for Benzema and the French side will console themselves by tempting Argentinian striker Lisandro Lopez from Porto.

How are Arsenal going to respond to such mighty reinforcing by rivals? By bringing in a batch of promising youngsters, naturally. Firstly Arsène Wenger will ensure that Theo Walcott and Kieren Gibbs aren’t allowed to forget England’s rogering by Germany in Monday’s European Championship U-21 final by signing the star of the German show, Mesut Ozil. Wenger also liked the look of the Swedish striker who ran England ragged in the semi-final, but interest from Tottenham could prevent him from getting Marcus Berg on the cheap. A more surprising battle will be waged between Arsenal and Chelsea for none other than Middlesbrough back-upkeeper Ross Turnbull.

Stoke and Bolton, meanwhile, will duke it out for the services of Sean Davis and, on reflection, it was a mistake mentioning that this early in today’s round-up because it means you might not make it as far as the whispers about Michael Owen teetering on the brink of a move to Blackburn.

Elsewhere, Phil Brown is believed to be exploring ways of luring Aiden McGeady from Celtic and moving Hull to Ibiza. And Harry Redknapp has forgotten all about Heurelho Gomes and Carlo Cudicini and is lining up a big-money bid for Lokomotiv Moscow keeper Eldin Jakupovic.

Roy Hodgson has noticed Fulham do not have a Nigerian striker named Kalu Uche and hopes Almería will help him remedy that problem. He also hopes the charm of Gianfranco Zola won’t prove more attractive to Eidur Gudjohnsen than the money of Mohammed Al Fayed. The Mill knows what you’re thinking, and you’re right …

FORMER United defender Steve Bruce reckons Sir Alex Ferguson has added another gem to United’s diamond collection with Antonio Valencia.


The 23-year-old Ecuadorian completed his £16m move to Old Trafford from Wigan on Tuesday hoping to go some way to filling Cristiano Ronaldo’s boots.

Manchester United are poised to make a formal bid for Wigan winger Antonio Valencia, according to Latics chairman Dave Whelan.

• Valencia completes £16m transfer to English champions
• Ecuadorian is first piece of rebuilding after Ronaldo’s departure

Manchester United have made Luis Antonio Valencia their first signing of the summer, the Wigan Athletic player joining the Premier League champions for a fee believed to be £16m. The 23-year-old has agreed a four-year deal at Old Trafford.

Valencia travelled to Manchester yesterday to undergo his medical after United settled on a fee with Wigan and the player’s arrival is the first piece of rebuilding at Old Trafford since the club accepted Real Madrid’s £80m offer for Ronaldo and established that Carlos Tevez would leave when his two-year loan arrangement expires.

“Antonio is a player we have admired for some time now, having spent the last two years in the Premier League with Wigan,” Sir Alex Ferguson said. “I am sure his pace and ability will make a significant contribution to the team.”

Valencia, who arrived in England on loan from Villarreal in 2006, said: “Joining Manchester United is a dream come true for me. I have enjoyed my time at Wigan but I am thrilled to have the chance to challenge for the biggest honours in club football here. Playing in front of 76,000 fans alongside players like Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand and Ryan Giggs will be an amazing experience. I can’t wait to get started.”

UNITED have made their first signing of the summer after confirming a deal has been done for Antonio Valencia.


The 23-year-old Ecuador international has signed a four-year contract after moving for an undisclosed fee.

UNITED have made their first signing of the summer after confirming a deal has been done for Antonio Valencia.


The 23-year-old Ecuador international has signed a four-year contract after moving for an undisclosed fee.

SIR Alex Ferguson is back in his Carrington HQ office chair after his summer break planning another chapter in his remarkable United story. Welcome back Sir Alex!


From Rome to Kuala Lumpur via the Cote D’Azur, Sir Alex has been reflecting, resting and is now restructuring ready to tackle his 23rd full season at Old Trafford.

SIR Alex Ferguson is back in his Carrington HQ office chair after his summer break planning another chapter in his remarkable United story. Welcome back Sir Alex!


From Rome to Kuala Lumpur via the Cote D’Azur, Sir Alex has been reflecting, resting and is now restructuring ready to tackle his 23rd full season at Old Trafford.

The Mill’s scared, mummy. Get The Mill out of here

If the newspapers are to be believed and, speaking as a column with vague connections to exactly such an enterprise the Mill’s in the perfect position to position to say they are not, the only thing that’s happened in the last 24 hours is that one man is still dead and that another man won a long tennis game inside a room, rather than outside it.

It means that the big news – that the country is under attack from attack-ladybirds – has been pushed back to the pages you only get to when your train’s been delayed. Swarms of ladybirds intent on causing havoc! Voracious predators desperate to run amok in Britain! Sex-obsessed, killer bugs who want to feast their way through the country! It’s like The Day Of The Triffids or something! Only with ladybirds not big plants! Is that not something worthy of more mention?

In an attempt to ram this higher up the news agenda (and to provide a much-visited riff for a lazy Mill unused to early shifts) here’s a brief run down of the facts*, alongside in no way related transfer tittle-tattle.

The Harlequin Ladybird is considered by many to be a nuisance. Samuel Eto’o is so annoyed by Barcelona’s attempts to get rid of him (and secure him a £250,000 a week wage, let’s not forget) that he wants half of the £12.5m transfer with which to feather his own nest. If not, he’ll stay at the Nou Camp just to annoy them.

Ladybirds hibernate in cooler months, though they will wake up and move around whenever the temperature rises. Having spent much of the autumn and winter doing very little, Roman Pavyluchenko, Didier Zokora and Darren Bent have popped their heads above the parapet now that transfers to Villarreal, Sevilla and Sunderland are on the cards. In return for Pavyluchenko, Spurs want cash, Sebastian Eguren and Marcos Senna. For Bent they want £18m. There follows a short pause while that one sinks in.

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The arrival of hordes of foreign ladybirds into the UK has driven the native population further down the food chain. Gareth Bale is off to Birmingham on loan.

Scientists fear the Harlequin Ladybird could push out its rivals through competition for food. Newcastle must offload strikers such as Mark Viduka before they can contemplate new signings.

Though aggressive, the ladybird will often return to old feeding grounds. Roy Keane wants his former Sunderland charges Nyron Nosworthy and Carlos Edwards to join him in Ipswich.

While most ladybirds have relatively short life spans, some have been known to far outlive their life expectancy. Edwin van der Sar will play on for one more season.

Ladybirds have been known to travel back and forth between England and the continent – particularly Spain and Portugal. £5m Alvaro Arbeloa and £23m Xabi Alonso may be on their way to Real Madrid. Luis García (no, not that one … or that one either, the one at Espanyol) is the focal point of Martin O’Neill’s curiously intense stare though Boro’s Tuncay Sanli is also getting the glad eye. Gareth Southgate wants to offload Afonso Alves so bad, he’ll let him go to Portugal for £8m less than he paid for him, while £2.2m Almeira striker Kalu Uche believes playing for Fulham would be a “sensational prospect”.

There are 46 species of ladybird in Britain. Not all of them are brightly coloured and spotty; some are really quite dull looking. Kevin Doyle will join Wolves for £6.5m.

Some ladybirds secrete a yellow liquid to ward off suitors. Leroy Lita has turned down a move to the Wolverhampton, keen to assess other options.

Large numbers have been discovered in Battersea, Clapham and Chelsea. Yuri Zhirkov, Ross Turnbull and Daniel Sturridge are expected to confirm their moves to Stamford Bridge tomorrow when the transfer window is reopened.

Some species will attack other similar species over the right to feed. West Ham will hijack Hull’s £3.4m bid for Nancy’s Marc-Antoine Fortuné. Quite what with, given their perilous financial straits, is anyone’s guess.

The ladybird is viewed by many to be a pest to its native country. Freddy Shepherd could return to Newcastle to buy out the club.

*Facts taken exclusively from Wikipedia and other such reliable sources. Facts, therefore, may not be facts. Facts may actually be nonsense. It’s 7.25am at time of writing. Get over it.

Do you have any rumours or, indeed, ladybird facts? You know where to put them … (erm, below, if that wasn’t clear enough)