Prestwich_Blue
Well-Known Member
Re: Rooneys contract
You can add Jones, Smalling and potentially Cleverley to that list as well.blueparrot said:sjk2008 said:Matty said:Yep, £33.3m per player. Mata cost them £37.1m. Then there's the wages. Then there's the signing on fee. Then there's the agent fees. So, how much did Mata, a very good but NOT a top quality player, actually cost them?
Mata is a top quality player. Whether Moyes can get that back out of him is another thing entirely. He showed in the two years prior to Mourinho going back to Chelsea just how good he was, and how easily he adapted to the PL.
As for their potential transfer budget - it's not just a case of spunking £200m in transfers alone. There is likely to be a mass cull over at OT at the end of the season. Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Anderson, Nani, Kagawa, Hernandez are all likely to be off. All those players will be on wages between 75-150k pw at the moment - Anderson, Nani, Kagawa and Hernandez will bring in transfer fees (Juve are still keen on Nani I believe).
Then you have the likes of Young, Valencia and possibly RVP who may or may not be shown the door - a lot more wages and incoming funds. Plus the fact that United seem to have been focusing strongly in the commercial area these last 12-24 months says to me that they will have plenty of wedge to spend. They've already spent £65m on just Fellaini & Mata. I think you'd be naive to think they wont be buying plenty more. I seem to remember you laughing at anyone who deemed to suggest RVP would join United a few summers back, because you were adamant they're not willing to spend that easily?
The big question for me is whether Moyes can get the best out of whoever signs - something which I am really not convinced about, however signing Mata & keeping Rooney (however ridiculous his wage demands were) are signs for other players that the club aren't just going to settle for mid table obscurity for the forseeable future. It'll take a huge overhaul this summer to turn them instantly back into title challengers, however the aim will certainly be to challenge given they wont have any European fixture backlog for a season. One season out of the CL wont damage them too much, however another season without it and the panic may well set in then - and that's the reason why, along with Rooney's (apparent) commitment, that I feel they have no choice but to spend big in the summer.
And if Moyes fails on top 4 the following season, he'll be out the door for sure.
Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Anderson, Nani, Kagawa, Hernandez , Giggs
Young, Valencia and possibly RVP
That's 11 players out of a squad of 25 It will take more than 5 or 6 players to replace that lot and more than £200 m. I can't see the players out raising more than £50m.
I would say they would need 4 defenders, a couple of central midfielders 1 attacking midfieder and 2 top strikers minimum to be competing next season, if they all left.