Football Focus

[Mick Mac]

Quids pulls jersey over head and runs round front room.....

Mrs Quids rolls eyes.

[SimonM]

Well Ferguson must be feeling a bit smug about the "gamble" he took signing Owen...:))

[Bluerevolution]

Harrumph

[red devil]

Hoorah!...Michael Owen is a Red, is a Red...

[matthew123]

I don't think it was a gamble for Liverpool or United to have signed Owen this summer on a free transfer. Both Clubs needed reinforcing and although well past his sell by date I thought with his instinct in the box he would always be an asset from the bench when you need a goal (even if he is pretty useless these days in open play). As it was Rafa Benitez used his judgement.. and so he ended up signing for United.

[????]

...not what I remember you saying back then Mathew........

[Mick Mac]

That's enough Rafa bashing Matthew - you know we don't like that on this forum.

[Bluerevolution]

red devil Wrote:

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> Hoorah!...Michael Owen is a Red, is a Red...

And Tevez has actually made it to Manchester (other than on Derby day) ;-p

[Keef]

To be fair, I think Matthew did say that when Owen signed for united.

[????]

He did say what Owen could bring and be used for but there were a few saying that Owen was a risk signing which was cleary wrong then...and I thought Matt was one of those

[Mick Mac]

i dont think anyone could argue owen was not a gamble in view of his recent injury record . But one where MU structured it to minimise the financial downside and it seems to have paid off for player and team.

[????]

Mick a proven international whose scored at every level on a free for just his wages!??..Even if the contracts ?5 million + it was a cinch decsion for a club with Man Us transfer budget. A 2nd division top scorer aged 19 would cost more and would be absolutely unproven. No brainer to sign him as he was offered and an astute move then as quite a few of us said..no more, in fact far less, of a gamble than ANY paid for transfer.

[Ted Max]

These NornIrons are crazy.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1234340/Under-QPR-manager-Jim-Magilton-faces-axe-headbutt-Akos-Buzsaky-threatens-press-charges.html?

Magilton reacted furiously to that, and allegedly butted the 27-year-old midfielder.

He did not draw blood but it was serious enough, Sportsmail understands, for burly striker Patrick Agyemang to feel compelled to intervene and separate the two men.

Witnesses say Agyemang then squared up to his manager and condemned him for what was an unprovoked act of violence.

Magilton is then said to have asked him if he wanted the same treatment, and it was only when Agyemang said he would like to see him try that the Ulsterman backed off.

[Mick Mac]

As I say Quids, they structured it beautifully to minimise any financial exposure. But referring to it as a gamble is not just financial, if he had gotten injured again and never played, or played and done badly, it would have looked like a bad idea. And there was the local rival factor, there is a risk with how the fans react to buying an ex Liverpool player.

Now MU however clearly have the bragging rights on this one.

[SeanMacGabhann]

Michael Owne scoring a hat trick is all very well, but does any other team apart from Arsenal have a Hollywood legend playing for them this week?

Tom Cruise, there's only one Tom Cruise

[Sandperson]

Another possible gamble on Sol Campbell coming from the red side of Manchester?

Also, wasn't Owen's final goal, after playing for 90 mins, made by his run from the half way line? Is that 'pretty useless in open play' Matt?

[david_carnell]

And more importantly, Leeds are through to the next round of the cup with a 5-1 win over Kettering (1-1 after 90mins!) and will be off to Old Trafford next.

Hmmmm.....Fergie, fancy putting out a reserve team by any chance?

[Atila Reincarnate]

SeanMacGabhann Wrote:

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> Michael Owne scoring a hat trick is all very well,

> but does any other team apart from Arsenal have a

> Hollywood legend playing for them this week?

>

> Tom Cruise, there's only one Tom Cruise

Yeah, I saw that this morning. Looks like Le Boss desn't give a rats arse about this game and is saving the senior players for Sunday.

[red devil]

Thomas Cruise...reminds me of when Andy Cole suddenly decided he wanted to be called Andrew Cole...

[Mick Mac]

Sandperson Wrote:

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> Another possible gamble on Sol Campbell coming

> from the red side of Manchester?

>

> Also, wasn't Owen's final goal, after playing for

> 90 mins, made by his run from the half way line?

> Is that 'pretty useless in open play' Matt?

Like that goal against Argentina when 17.....poor in open play??? (albeit pre injuries).

I do see Matt's point though, without his pace he now sits on the last defender. Not generally an all round player.

[Sandperson]

I thought he'd sat on the last defender for years. That goal, controlled off his thigh, against Argentina still gives me goosebumps thinking about it. Makes him worth every penny to me! :))

[????]

Soooo, it looks like, as expected, Gould & Sullivan in for a stake at West Ham. Any thoughts from the Brum contingent?

[kpc]

They will not be getting involved for altruistic reasons - any money they put in, they'll expect a return on. I presume they're looking to buy in relatively cheaply and do a deal with Straumur to take the club off their hands. They would stabilise finances but also run the club on a conservative basis - Blues made profits in nearly every year that they owned the club. I suspect they would also try and find other investors at the club, something they stated that they wanted to do at Birmingham but didn't achieve (probably because they wanted the money but were not prepared to relinquish power - even when Carson Yeung bought his initial 29.9% stake he did not get representation on the board) - this should be easier to do at West Ham. Having taken Birmingham to the Premier League they didn't do enough to keep them there. Both Trevor Francis and Steve Bruce have implied that there is a lot that could be said about their times managing the club - it's believed players were bought by Sullivan without consulting the manager. Sullivan was also the subject of the same City of London Police enquiry that ended with Peter Storrie being charged (the common factor being the agent Willie Mackay ) and there are rumours of a couple of trashed laptops following their departure from St Andrews. Eventually they fell out with the fans over a number of issues, but season ticket pricing was one of the main ones - they would reduce match prices so that by the end of the season it would have been cheaper to pay match by match rather than up front. As a result, people have stayed away.

Having said that, without them buying the club out of administration, there was a serious possibility that the club could have disappeared altogether; they invested in both the playing staff and infra-structure. But I'd still be wary (especially of Sullivan).

[????]

Thanks kpc kind of what the view on West Ham forums is...priority is to stay up and we need some cash for that so short term looks possible. May not happen anyway

[Atila Reincarnate]

Thought the lads did ok last night, it was obvious that Le Boss wasn't too fussed about the outcome otherwise team selection would have been different