Manchester United Players Wages - How Much Is Saved

Transfer fees have often grabbed the headlines in recent years, with records being broken along with peoples jaws when they hear about the massive amounts of money spent by clubs eager for top class additions. However, the players wages have also become of interest to many football fans, with some eager to compare to certain other professions seen as more productive, while others are simply interested to find out how much their favourite player is earning.

Manchester United have been busy this transfer market, with incoming and outgoing players, all of whom command a certain wage, so out of interest, I did a bit of research. I wanted to find out how much Manchester United will be saving a week from the sales of players like Wes Brown and John O'Shea to Sunderland as well as the retirement of Edwin van der Sar, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville and the release of Owen Hargreaves.

Firstly may I start my saying that these are all reported figures in the media of how much the individual players are earning/will earn per week. The outgoing players:

Edwin van der Sar; £90,000 a week

Wes Brown; £50,000 a week

John O'Shea; £50,000 a week

Owen Hargreaves; £75,000 a week

Paul Scholes; £60,000 a week

Gary Neville £60,000 a week

Possibly Darron Gibson on £40,000 a week

TOTAL: £385,000 a week (or including the departure of Gibson to Sunderland, £425,000 a week)

Now onto the arrivals at Manchester United so far, which have included Ashley Young, Phil Jones and David de Gea who cost United just under £50 million in transfer costs.

David de Gea; £70,000 a week

Phil Jones; £50,000 a week

Ashley Young; £100,000 a week

TOTAL: £220,000 a week

Now if you subtract the amount of wages paid to the new players from the amount United will probably save from the outgoing players, Manchester United will be saving £165,000 a week or £205,000 a week if Darron Gibson departs. 

This leaves quite a large amount for Manchester United to work with in their search to replace Paul Scholes. Wesley Sneijder is apparently after around £200,000 a week, which is quite excessive, even for football, while United's other main target, Arsenal's Samir Nasri is reportedly asking for just over £100,000. Through these savings mentioned, United could afford either players wages easily.

What do you think? Should Manchester United opt for the cheaper and possibly easier option in going all out to sign Samir Nasri from Arsenal, or should they attempt to strike a mega money deal with Inter to bring Wesley Sneijder to Old Trafford? According to reports, Manchester United have bid for Arsenal's Nasri, but Wenger's club are holding out for £25 million rather than the £20 million offered.

Any corrections to the wages mentioned would be welcomed - the ones here are only an estimation from varying reports.

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£58m Fabregas - Aguero No Go - De Gea Deal Done

Yes, your suspicions from the headline are true - another summer, and more rumours concerning the Arsenal captains future. Will he stay, will he go? Well the answer to that is almost impossible to know, with pretty much the same rumours being thrown about - namely, the one that Barcelona will return in an attempt to persuade the Spaniard away from Arsenal.

This time, Manchester City are involved, just like they are with every other possible player they can be, with Mancini reported to be ready to offer an unbelievable £58 million, according to The People. Of course any deal would need the support of the Abu Dhabi group which owns the club, and apparently, Mancini has that backing for this particular move.

With City's money, absolutely any player can be linked to them at any price and be a believable rumour, so this rumour - although potentially rubbish is, with City's audacity and money is certainly believable - though I cannot see Fabregas wanting to go to City. 


He wants to play football, and preferably at Barcelona. That dream of his has however been stalled for a while by Arsenal, and now Barcelona are the ones stalling, with the Barcelona director of football saying of the proposed Fabregas deal:

"Right now, everything is dead regarding a transfer."

That certainly will please Arsenal fans, who no doubt would despise seeing their captain leave the club, especially to the side who have been a massive pain for the past few summers.

Moving on to Sergio Aguero, and only yesterday, I said on the blog that he had announced his desire to leave Athletico Madrid. The situation however was made slightly awkward when his club said today that he would be going nowhere, with Madrid ready to force the Argentinian to honour his contract:

"We are not going to change our thinking. We will not sell or trade for Aguero. If anyone wants to know something new, ask him directly."

"There is no getting around it. El Kun has a signed contract. He has shown his desire to leave, but we say the same thing. We do not want to sell. We respect his decision, but he also has to respect ours. He has a commitment to us."

"In his recent statements I heard him say he had no intention of leaving. I do not know how we will address this issue, but this is not the end of the world.''

And as Athletico fight to keep hold of one star, they have conceded defeat on another, David de Gea. Manchester United will apparently announce the signing of him on Monday - two days after the Champions League final. 

Guillem Balague said that a deal between the clubs was struck two months ago, but now De Gea has finally agreed to a deal - initially reluctant to leave his home club. Sir Alex Ferguson said at Gary Neville's testimonial match:

"We’ve been working on it for quite a while. We identified him quite a while back as one we should go for." 

"He’s a young goalkeeper, very quick, good composure, presence and an oustanding replacement for van der Sar." 

We were looking for someone with the same types of qualities. One great quality Edwin always had was his composure and organisational ability. David De Gea is very similar that way.”

£18.3 million has apparently sealed the deal for United, who have now replaced Edwin van der Sar, how successfully is another matter, and will be found out next season. He has though, a tough job in replacing the big Dutchman who is universally popular at Old Trafford.

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Make Up Your Mind Maarten - Arsenal or United for Stekelenburg

It is usually good for players to be ambitious, but playing for two football clubs simultaneously is a bit much. However, if we are to believe what Maarten Stekelenburg has said, it seems he would be ready to play for both Manchester United and Arsenal if they were to come calling.

Of course, there is the far more likely possibility that he would choose between the two if they were to offer him a deal. Yes, that seems more likely. But even then, as such a big fan of the two rivals, who would he choose? Back in March, the 28 year-old Dutch World Cup finalist said this:

"I have possibly played my last game for Ajax. If an offer from Arsenal arrives, I will leave."

From that, you would think that Arsenal were his favoured preference if a choice were to present itself. He would be a good, experienced addition to an Arsenal side crying out for some solid, strong defending and goalkeeping. He would slot right in at the Emirates, and could very well help them to trophies.

He has also been rumoured to be interesting Manchester United, who are looking to replace Edwin van der Sar when the veteran goalkeeper retires at the end of the season. Manchester United have confirmed they will buy a new goalkeeper, and they have their eye on one in particular - though they teased everyone by understandably not revealing who. Stekelenburg is hopeful he is the man, as today he said:

"I have received a fantastic offer from Ajax which is under consideration. There has been nothing else, zero. Maybe because I have been injured."

"Anybody who does not want to play for Manchester United would be insane."

Stekelenburg is a massive 6 foot 6 inches, and has played 282 times over nine seasons at Ajax as well as making 40 appearances for his country, including the World Cup final in 2010 against Spain. He has completed 26 games in the Dutch League this season, keeping 13 clean sheets, but has been injured for a little while after breaking his thumb.

So a choice will have to be made by Stekelenburg over his future soon, with only 1 year left on his current Ajax contract - will it be Arsenal, or Manchester United - or will he take up Ajax's "fantastic" offer and stay in Holland?

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Man Utd: A Team of Winners - A Team of Champions

As Manchester United settle down on their outstandingly high perch and look down to their challengers with a stunning glint of silverware flashing in their eyes, they will be thinking back to the start of the season with triumph, when people  everywhere weren't giving them a chance. At times of course, early in the season, the position United are currently in didn't look likely, but United have all season got the job done when it mattered. There were shaky, nervous times along the way, but United have achieved what they set out to achieve, and have done it with a game to spare.

How did United do it? How are they Champions again? How are they in the Champions League Final? Those are questions many may ask themselves. Just look at the manager. Sir Alex Ferguson has assembled this team and instilled in them something that only certain people can. His passion, desire, determination, dedication, tenacity and pure will power have been on show for all to see in the players throughout the season, and even when games have not ended in United's favour, the team were always back up and ready for a win the next week.

The fact that United were able to stay an unbeaten side up until early February sums it up well. The football may not have been the best, but there were enough wins, and enough points to keep them up at the top and on course for the historic 19th. Late goals were conceded against sides like Fulham and Everton, but for all those late goals conceded were late goals going in the other direction in other games.

United kept on fighting, and despite tough competition from Arsenal and Chelsea who were challenging for the title, as well as the rest of the Premier League, whose quality has improved impressively over the years. No longer would a lowly side go to a top side and expect to lose, but at Old Trafford, no-one expected to win - because this season, United have been unbeatable at home.

Manchester United players should be filled with pride on achieving this great feat. From Ryan Giggs, who will lift the Premier League for the twelfth time against Blackpool, to Michael Owen, who although has not played as big a part as others, has grabbed some vital goals in his time at United and will lift his first Premier League next week.

Against Blackburn, Tomasz Kusczcak highlighted how important and how valuable Edwin van der Sar has been all season. The Dutchman has been phenomenal in goal, often stopping the unstoppable and simply being the calming and authoritative figure at the back that all great teams need.

Vidic and Ferdinand have been rocks at the back, with commentators tiring of saying "Vidic clears the danger" and "Ferdinand cuts out the attack". When others make mistakes, they were back there to clean up the mess. They have been and will be the players to look up to in the future when Giggs and Scholes have gone, with the typical Manchester United attitude running through their blood.

Giggs and Scholes have done what they do every year, except arguably better, inspiring the players around them to play to the end, and drive the others to the trophies that they have won countless times already. The wingers, Valencia, Nani and Park have been brilliant, and perhaps if Valencia and Park had not suffered injuries in he season, United could have won this earlier. Assists and  creativity are just as important as those goalscorers. 

Carrick and Fletcher may not have started so well or been such a calming influence, but they have often been brilliant in the middle. Carrick was able to get back into his groove towards the end of the season, spraying balls all over the pitch and getting attacks started, while Fletcher's reputation of being a big game player was not used as much through illness.

Berbatov - top scorer and incredible skill. Rooney - the man who almost left at the start of the season, who went on to regain top form and score the goal to win the Premier League and the 19th title for United.

This is a side to be proud of, and one who have created history. It is number 19 now, but no doubt, next season Sir Alex Ferguson and company will be fighting as driven as ever for number 20.

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Regrettably, It's Best For Us All

"Go on, just one more year!" Manchester United fans would be screaming that from the stands of Old Trafford for years to come if the evergreen Dutchman, Edwin van der sar were to change his mind and stay at United and in football for another year. Indeed he could - his quality as a world class goalkeeper has not faded in the slightest, with his reflexes being as swift and agile as ever, and his ability to save the unstoppable, as present as it ever was. His calming presence in the United goal is something very hard to find in goalkeepers today, and by him retiring, he is giving United an extremely hard job to do - but a job to be done sooner rather than later.

Letting go has proven hard for Van der sar, who recently admitted that he still asks himself why he is retiring. He says that physically he does not need to stop, and by his performances this season, no one can argue with that; he is still, as he says, "fit as a fiddle". But it is a decision he has made with the help of the people most important to him; his family and his manager, Sir Alex Ferguson.
It takes a brave man to disagree with Sir Alex about football. The United manager said:

"If I was giving advice to Edwin van der Sar, right now, I would say retire. He is at the absolute pinnacle of his career but sometimes, when a player gets to that age, age comes onto you very suddenly. I wouldn't want to see Edwin van der Sar in that situation."

As players such as Rooney and Rio Ferdinand call for the 40 year-old to abandon his plans of retirement to no avail, they must turn their attention to making this season his greatest at United. Manchester United must ensure that his final season can be his best season - a season of success - a season when the great goalkeeper goes out of the game he loves on an almighty high. It is only added incentive for the United players to go out against Schalke on Wednesday and Chelsea on the week-end and take a win to propel the club closer to a prestigious double in the name of their goalkeeper.

Unfortunately, United must move on quickly. A replacement needs to be found; one of the quality, or potential quality to fill Edwin van der sar's boots and safe gloves for the next decade or so. With Manuel Neur pretty much crossed off the list already, Sir Alex's short-list will be even shorter. No doubt Edwin will help Sir Alex in choosing his successor if he hasn't already, but United will buy a new goalkeeper in the summer - that is for sure - that is the priority. It is what is needed.

I'm not saying I wouldn't like him to stay another year, but at his age, United cannot be reliant on him as the number 1 goalkeeper, especially when looking forward in the long term future of the club. Perhaps however, the veteran goalkeeper will consider the words of  United legend Eric Cantona when he retires from the game at the end of the season:

"If you have only one passion in life - football - and you pursue it to the exclusion of everything else, it becomes very dangerous. When you stop doing this activity it is as though you are dying. The death of that activity is a death in itself."

It's a bit dramatic, but that's Cantona.

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De Gea to "Renew or Leave" As United Scout Patricio

David de Gea, targeted by Manchester United to replace Edwin van der sar, and current Athletico Madrid number one has been told by his club that he will have two choices at the end of the season: to renew his Athletico contract, or leave for United.

The 20 year-old Spanish goalkeeper had met with Athletico club officials twice now to discuss his future, but no deal has been agreed, and with 3 years left on his deal, the Spanish club are getting agitated. The Madrid Chief Executive Angel Gil Marin said:

"We have met with him to negotiate a new deal on two occasions." 

"He has a contract with Atletico for three more seasons, so it is necessary to renew it and reasonable to revise his salary, which is well below his current performance. 

"But at the end of the season there will be two choices - to renew or to leave."

The Sky Sports journalist and compatriot of De Gea's, Guillem Balague has spoken about the decision being in De Gea's hands, but that the player is still undecided. He sees Manchester United as a great opportunity and a great leap forward of course, but is comfortable in his home country and may yet decide to commit to his boyhood club.

The latest reports are that, if Sir Alex Ferguson fails in his attempts to bring De Gea to Old Trafford, he will move for the Portuguese 23 year-old goalkeeper, Rui Patricio. The Sporting Lisbon goalkeeper is regarded as one of the brightest prospects in Europe, and it has been reported that former Sporting star Luis Nani has recommended the goalkeeper to Ferguson.

The Portuguese press stated that Ferguson sent his goalkeeping coach Eric Steele to Portugal over the week end to watch Patricio in action against FC Porto, and with a number of European clubs watching the player, Steele wasn't alone.

Patricio is not Portugal's number one choice goalkeeper, but he did win his debut against Spain, in the second half of a 4 - 0 win for Portugal on the 17th November 2010. If he joins United this summer, he will be fighting for one of the toughest number 1 spots to fill in Europe, with huge boots to fill when van der sar retires. A goalkeeper is certainly coming to United this summer, but it is up to David de Gea who that goalkeeper is: him, or United's insurance, Patricio.

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Video: Manchester United Target David de Gea

Manchester United will buy a goalkeeper in the summer, that much is clear. Who it will be is the question, but if we are to believe reports from Spain and other sources, United have had a bid accepted for the 20 year old Spaniard, David de Gea.

He has been nicknamed by his Athletico Madrid team mates as "van der gea" due to his resemblance to the current, and soon to retire Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der sar. He is tall, agile, commanding and holds the invaluable quality of being able to keep calm under pressure. It is these sorts of qualities that Sir Alex Ferguson desires to replace his current number 1 and avoid the repetition of the last goalkeeping 'crisis' when Peter Schmeichel left United.

The United manager would also be hopeful to avoid the situation that Arsenal have suffered over the past five years - lacking a commanding, regular, consistent goalkeeper. Arsenal have recently received good news on this front, with another United target Maarten Stekelenburg being quoted as saying: "If an offer from Arsenal arrives, I will leave."

So with David de Gea being reported as United's top target, it is time to have a look at what United fans should expect from him. 29 games this season has seen him keep 9 clean sheets while saving a total of 121 shots. Compared to van der sar, his statistics are not all to bad. The United goalkeeper has played 28, kept 12 clean sheets and made a total of 67 saves. I suggest the statistics are heavily effected by the quality of the defences, but they are interesting nevertheless. Watch highlights of De Gea below:

Rooney Appreciates the Importance of Valencia & VDS

Manchester United missed Antonio Valencia. They missed his pace, his skill, his clever shimmies around defenders, his sumptuous crosses into dangerous areas and his priceless assists. Wayne Rooney more than most missed the Ecuadorians individual qualities and has had possibly the worst season of his career in the winger's absence.

So Valencia's return to first team action against Arsenal on Saturday was a rare plus point in Rooney's season. His first start since that horrible broken ankle against Rangers in the Champions League last September was welcomed with a rousing ovation at Old Trafford, highlighting his importance to the team and the clubs success. Rooney was delighted:

"I can't tell you how good it is to see him back out there. It was Antonio's first game back after six months out and he looked like he'd never been away. It's fantastic for him and fantastic for us to have him back and playing the way he did."

Valencia's return to action is even more convenient when you consider Nani's absence after the Jamie Carragher horror tackle which ripped open his shin. Valencia will now make his return to Champions League football at Old Trafford against Marseille on Tuesday as United hope to progress further in the competition at the stage which Arsenal recently slipped up at to Barcelona.

Rooney praised Edwin van der sar's superb contribution to the FA Cup tie against Arsenal on Saturday as well, claiming that him and the rest of the team have been attempting to persuade the Dutchman out of his decision to retire:

"The players are trying to persuade Edwin to stay on too. I was speaking to him in the shower afterwards but it is his decision and we have to respect it."

"He is such a great goalkeeper. Despite his age he is still the best keeper in the world."

This is a sentiment shared by so many United fans who remember the huge difficulty in replacing their last consistently brilliant goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel. It will cost a large fee to replace van der sar now, especially considering the current transfer market climate - it is however, something that United will have to get used to; not seeing the great Dutchman guard the goal anymore.

Rooney's comments come after the News of The World claimed that Sir Alex Ferguson is preparing to sell Rooney in the summer transfer window. The paper's source claims that, "relations between Rooney and Ferguson are so strained that it is affecting other players," adding that, "Sir Alex is not pleased with the way Rooney has been playing... Rooney has been moaning about the squad again but Sir Alex has told him he should look at himself before criticising others."

I really can't see this being the case. Despite a bad season in front of goal, United do still look a better team when Rooney is on the team sheet. Sir Alex Ferguson knows it; Rooney's goals last season emphasise his importance to the team, and there is no way Ferguson would jump to the conclusion that Rooney isn't good enough for this United side anymore. His passion and desire was on show for all to see at Old Trafford against Arsenal, summed up in the crunching but fair challenge on Bacary Sagna, met with massive cheers from the United fans, impressed by Rooney's impressive show of commitment to the cause.

Sir Alex Wants Stekelenberg at Man United

Rene Meulensteen, the Manchester United first team coach has reportedly stated that the Dutch goalkeeper, Maarten Stekelenburg is top of Sir Alex Ferguson's transfer target list for the summer as they look to replace the retiring Edwin van der sar.

United have been linked to several goalkeepers including David de Gea, Manuel Neur and even Liverpool's Pepe Reina, but according to Meulensteen, Stekelenburg is the priority:

"Stekelenburg is indeed a keeper who is at the top of our wanted list,"

"We naturally talk a lot among ourselves about who should replace Van der Sar. Alex Ferguson has spoken about Stekelenburg with Edwin, and that does not seem strange to me at all."

After having so much trouble in finding a replacement for Peter Schmeichel after he left United, Ferguson is understandably eager to sign a goalkeeper similar to his most recent successful buy, van der sar.

Stekelenburg and Van der Sar both began their career at Ajax - the club where Stekelenburg currently plays with around 186 appearances. During the 2006 World Cup, Stekelenburg was the understudy to Van der Sar while in the 2010 World Cup, Stekelenburg was the number one goalkeeper, and helped his country get to the final - conceding only five goals in the process. He did unfortunately end up on the losing side.
They also both have a large frame - with Van der Sar standing at 6 foot 6 inches, while Stekelenburg stands at 6 foot five and a half.

Despite the signing of Danish keeper Anders Lindegaard, Ferguson is looking for a proven, top quality, goalkeeper with experience in big competitions such as the Champions League. He has a pool of talent to choose from, and he will certainly do his best to get his decision right as he tries to avoid a repeat of the last time their number one left.

Will Hargreaves Follow Neville & van der sar Into Retirement?

Poor Owen Hargreaves. The Manchester United midfielder has constantly been plagued with terrible injuries to his knees, suffering from an extremely serious case of patellar tendinitis which was described by his surgeon, who has 35 years experience in his field as the worst case he had ever seen.

It takes an incredibly strong minded individual to keep going despite being bombarded with injuries which must frustrate the undoubtedly talented individual beyond belief. It would be fair to call the Canadian born England midfielder "injury prone", or perhaps just "unbelievably unlucky". The question is, how can he continue at the top level with all of these injuries - the latest one a torn hamstring, of which I gather, he is slowly recovering from.

Manchester United have already seen Gary Neville walk out of Old Trafford after an outstandingly successful long career wearing red, while Edwin van der sar has announced his retirement at the grand age of 40. Nobody likes to see a professional have to step down, whether it be because of their advancing age, or incessant injuries. But sometimes it is necessary.

Hargreaves joined United in 2007, hoping to help the Red Devils to unrivalled success with him playing a big part. The former became true, as it has consistently done over the years, and the latter was true for the first year. In United's 2007/08 season, Hargreaves clocked up a good 34 appearances in all competitions, playing his part in United's Premier League and Champions League success that year. However, a couple of seasons down the line, and the players' tally of appearances has only increased by 5 - and not many of them were where he played the full 90 minutes.

Hargreaves is now 30 years old, and the Manchester United team is starting to bring in younger players into the setup. His contract expires in the summer, so Hargreaves is currently in a race against time to prove to his manager that he deserves a contract renewal. But if there is one thing that Hargreaves knows from experience which shouldn't be rushed, it is injuries. It is sad to say, but it looks as if he is fighting a losing battle. When will we see him back for United at 100% fitness and battling away like the engine he is at the heart of the United midfield? I'm not so sure we will.

On Monday, Hargreaves was included in the club's 25-man Premier League squad, but he has not made the cut for the Champions League. It would be great to see him return, but whenever I see him on the pitch, I am constantly weary of his fragility, and frightened that in a flicker, he could be hobbling off of the pitch, down the tunnel and into that all too familiar treatment room. Despite his inclusion in the Premier League squad for the second half of the season, it seems unlikely that he will play a big part.

Hargreaves has had a successful career as a footballer. Seven years at Bayern Munich saw him win four German Bundesliga titles and the 2000/01 Champions League. His short happy period at United also saw him win a Premier League and yet another European trophy, but age and injury have taken its toll on poor Hargreaves, and he may be only one more injury away from hanging up his boots and giving up football for the sake of his body.

Kuszczak Wants to Play - Or Leave United

It looks like Manchester United will definitely be looking for a new goalkeeper this summer after their number two keeper said that he will leave Old Trafford if he isn't made the first choice after van der sar retires.

United have already signed Anders Lindegaard from Norwegian club Aaeslund, and the Danish international will officially join this month. However, Sir Alex Ferguson has been linked to a number of other goalkeepers to replace Edwin van der sar in the United goal, including Maarten Stekelenburg, Manuel Neur and David de Gea, with at least one of them sure to join the Red Devils. Therefore, Tomasz Kuszczak will find it increasingly hard to gain a first team spot at all.

The Polish keeper said:

"Of course I would like regular football. I need to see what the boss wants to do, whether he wants to play me or sell me. But definitely I want to play."

"Every player has his ambitions and I have mine. I have sat on the bench for five years and I need a chance to play more than one game in two or three months. You can’t prove anything like that."

It must be frustrating to see new players coming in and taking a place that you have worked for and waited for for so long - five and a half year in Kuszczak's case, and with only 22 appearances in his time at the club, his patience is obviously wearing thin. The 28 year-old started his first game this season in a rare occasion against his former club, West Brom, but the occasional starts here and there, sometimes in the Carling Cup or F.A Cup will not be enough to persuade him to stay, especially with young Ben Amos coming through the ranks.

His career isn't looking very stable at United, and his departure would guarantee Ferguson going into the market for a new goalkeeper.

The Away Draw Returns - Birmingham 1 - 1 Manchester United

Another late goal, another two points dropped, another disappointment for Manchester United.

[View Higlights Below]

Away to Birmingham is a tough game with their defence so tight and their defensive tactics to spring on the counter attack if they can, but Berbatov seemed to have wrapped up the points with his 58 minute goal - the Bulgarians' 14th of the season. 

This was not the case however, and after a ball was played into the box, the giant Zigic knocked it down (with his arm) - to Lee Bowyer who was in a borderline offside position, and Bowyer poked it home. No official spotted the illegality and Birmingham duly celebrated their point as if they had won, while United trudged off at the end with a familiar sickening feeling. For this has happened before. Manchester United had once again dropped vital points at a vital time when the situation could have been avoided.

The first half was very tight, with chances few and far between - a fluky Giggs cross scooped above Ben Foster in the Birmingham goal only for him to tip it onto the post, and this was the most threatening of chances. United were able to control possession in general without creating many chances as Birmingham defended closely.

After the beautifully worked United goal in the second half, the game opened up much more. Birmingham had to push forward leaving space in behind their defence, but they were able to cope well with Uniteds attack. There wasn't much cutting edge, and United missed their pacey wingers like Nani or Valenica as well as the recently departed Park, who has left for the Asia Cup.

The result isn't much to worry about for the Red Devils, as they stay top above noisy neighbours City, have their two games in hand and maintain their unbeaten record this season. However, conceding yet another late goal and drawing away from home for the seventh time in eight away matches this season is a problem that must be addressed. The away record could cost them the title.

Birmingham 1 - 1 Manchester United Highlights

Manchester United sign van der sar Replacement

Manchester United struggled miserably to find a replacement for Peter Schmeichel when the Dane left in 1999, and now Sir Alex Ferguson must find a replacement for the Dutch Edwin van der sar as he seems set for retirement at the age of 40. Their new £3.5 million signing of Anders Lindegaard will hopefully be a shortcut to the the route of goalkeepers that Ferguson had to take when Schmeichel left as the 26-year-old has a medical today.

Ferguson will be hoping that Lindegaard is not another van der Gouw, Bosnich, Taibi, or Ricardo, but rather a strong and reliable goalkeeper, who can be the safety net behind the defenders. Someone who will not make mistakes consistently, but who will be a calm and steady influence that a young team needs. No doubt that Ferguson has seen this player play - unlike the Bebe signing.

Manchester United goalkeeping legend Schmeichel doesn't believe that Lindegaard is good enough for his former club however.

When asked whether his compatriot Lindegaard was of sufficient quality to play for England's biggest club, h replied

 "No. We are talking about Manchester United here. You can look at talent, you can look at young good players, [but] you don't want that, you want someone who can go in straight away and give performances in 80% of the games that the number one choice goalkeeper will play for Manchester United.

"Too many goalkeepers have been through, in and out of the doors at Manchester United, and the general perception is, for this team to play well and win trophies, that position has to be [filled by] someone who is of the very, very highest quality but also the right experience."

Lindegaard won't be too pleased hearing this, as Schmeichel was the young Dane's boyhood hero. However, criticism of him should only want him to prove the critics wrong, and strive to become better. He has already uprooted the Stoke goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen as Danish number 1 after impressing at club level for Aalesunds, and will be hoping to do the same at United.

Man City's Shay Given and Adam Johnson Want Out

Money doesn't buy happiness apparently - even if you are a footballer. It has emerged that both Shay Given and Adam Johnson of Manchester City are becoming more and more frustrated by the lack of starts that they are handed, and have both threatened to leave the club if the situation doesn't change.

Johnson moved to Manchester City from Middlesbrough on 1 February 2010, and has since announced himself as one of the biggest English attacking forces from his position in the country. He was called up to the England first team and scored 2 goals against Bulgaria and Switzerland. Yet these achievements have not nailed him down a first team spot at Eastlands.

When asked if he would leave City in search of first team football, the 23 year old had this to say:

"Every footballer has to think about it when the time comes. It is still early but I definitely would consider it."

The City number 11 also described how bitterly disappointed he was to be left out against club rivals Manchester United:

"It is disappointing when you are not playing from the start in games like that. I was itching to get on. I was dying to play from the start not just come on. The manager has to make decisions but I was gutted to be left out."

Mancini is starting to choose Milner and David Silva ahead of Johnson in a 5-man midfield which supports the lone striker - usually Carlos Tevez. Many think that the young man deserves first team football as he has proved his brilliant technical ability as well as the great ability to create goals from nothing. His pace can also tear defences apart. However, Roberto Mancini is a far more defensive man than many City fans would like, and prefers to play with less emphasis on the attack, and more on defence. His 3 man defensive midfield of Barry, De Jong and Yaya Toure highlights this.

 

Shay Given knows how the left winger feels too, as the Irish goalkeeper said:

"My own personal situation isn't ideal as everyone knows and I have spoken about it in the past, so we will see what happens over the next couple of months in that respect."

"I want to be playing football and I have always said that, so hopefully something will happen in the New Year."

Arsenal may still be looking for a reliable goalkeeper and could make a move in January, despite the current good form of Lukas Fabianski, and Manchester United are still looking for an Edwin van der sar replacement, so his options are far from limited.

The rise of England number 1 Joe Hart has caused Given to feel isolated, and unable to get a fair run in the team, and having played over 350 games for Newcastle over a 12 year spell, he is not used to it.

Mancini needs to sit down with players such as Johnson and Given and make them feel wanted by the club. It is his job to do so, as it is these hard working, willing players that a team overcrowded with ludicrously over-paid players happy to take their pay cheques and sit on the bench, need.