coogar:

what glory are we talking about if the quality of football is substandard?
debosky, argue with me like you do with your supervisior, abeg. . . . .i need you at your sharpest this hour.
stop raising watery points.

the frequency and the multicultural is the single most important factor why the champions league is better. . . .the european champions league surpassed the world cup when it was refurbished, more money invested in it with superb coverage. the quality of football is peerless and more teams participate in it than the world cup.

where did you get this fact? can you show me where it's written the champs league is the pinnacle? of course, messi will miss it because like i said, everyone expects players from brazil, argentina, germany, italy, etc to boss world cup competitions. if you are the best player of any of these countries, it is expected of you to win a world cup. now just imagine messi was born in switzerland for a second, would you expect him to win a world cup?

whoever mentioned nations cup as a missing medal in george weah's portfolio? no one could do that because we all know liberia is never a footballing country. kanu - africa's greatest football ambassador will never be judged for not having won a world cup. no one expects an african country to boss the world cup. if kanu was from brazil, the media would have crucified him for not winning it. the saying goes - to whom much is given(country of birth), much is expected.

totti is not in the same class as messi. he's blessed & moderately gifted - not as the same as messi. the moneybags never looked totti's way because there were better players than totti ready to jump at the opportunity of playing for big clubs. kaka, bergkamp, zidane, rivaldo, etc were better "number 10s" than totti and they were all snapped by big clubs. . . .who is totti? if madrid had splashed the same amount they did on zidane on totti, you think roma's president won't put totti on his back and dash to madrid?

so setting up a goal that won the world cup now means cesc was instrumental? if the others were duds, would spain have even reached the final for cesc to set up a goal that won the world cup? na assist you dey praise like this? you are a disgrace to all arsenal fans. . . .the burden still rested on the shoulders of iniesta putting it into the net. . . .iniesta won the world cup, not cesc!!! cesc could have laid 150 of that kind of passes that night with none of them resulting directly to a goal. . . .so where is this achievement you keep talking about? you are a twunt!

that will be the same roberto baggio that was the star of italia 90 and a star of usa 94. putting teams away like it was getting out of fashion until brazil forced them into the lottery of a penalty shoot-out! it was cesc's brilliance at crucial moments that gifted messi the all important first goal at camp nou last season! crucial moments indeed. . . . .

weirdly, cesc's crucial moments have not win a rusty penny in 6 seasons. . . .

debosky, i didn't want to join in this debate before until the paragraph that set you for the fall.
argue intelligently on this thread. we are tolerant to let you guys come and have fun here. . . . we all do it but i implore y'all to do it intelligently and with credible facts otherwise. . . . . .

debosky:

The quality of footie is only part of the appeal - the glory of winning with your national team is peerless, on the World Stage.

Don't confuse your enjoyment of those competitions with them being the pinnacle. There is no greater prize in World Football beyond the World Cup.

The issue is not expecting him to win the WC - if he can't win the WC, he is automatically not in the class of the VERY BEST. The VERY BEST win World Cups.

Despite Weah's incredible success at club level, no matter how much he tried, success couldn't be brought to the Liberian national team. Weah is seen as the patron saint of The Lone Stars, having not only played and coached them, and spent upwards of $2 million to help finance their quest for glory. 

When you compare like with like the differences appear - as you say, all the best players play for the best clubs. So what sets them apart? Producing the same genius to propel their national teams to victory - that is what marks out the VERY best.

Agreed, but there remains a possibility that an excellent player chooses to remain in his home club which isn't a big one. That is the point I was making.

This is silly - Cesc provided the pass that won the WC, and that means he was instrumental to that goal being scored. Being instrumental does not mean he single-handedly delivered the trophy. Learn to recognise the distinction. I never said Cesc won the cup alone, I said he was instrumental.

Baggio couldn't deliver in a WC final - Cesc did. That is incontrovertible.

Just as the crucial moments from all the useless English players has not won a rusty penny since the 60's

You haven't disputed anything I've said - you've simply tried and failed to run off track.
The winning WC is the pinnacle of footballing achievement - Cesc has won that title while Hargo will never win it.

Instead of wasting my time, make DVDs of his youtube performances and go and market them to clubs on  his behalf.

Mr_TA:

All this rubbish arguments.can't wait for the season to start.although baba is messing with me not buying a midfielder oh.when was the last time we signed a midfielder?

coogar:

3 weeks ago - ashley young.
come to think of it - ashley young can do the scholesy role!!

debosky:

Coded
The issue was comparing individual achievement of Cesc vs Hargo . . . .dunno why your fellow scumtwats are defending an ex Utd player either.

Mr_TA:

No. Hopefully SAF bloods Paul Pogba this season.

"So we've made three signings. We're looking at one more player to bring in.
Nothing's happening - nothing imminent - on that at the moment, but we'll see what happens when we get home.
We've made three signings. We're looking at one more player to bring in. "
We've been looking at a particular position and two or three players in that position, but nothing's imminent at the moment.

"The important point to understand, and Alex has made it clear, is that we need someone who's going to improve the quality of the squad.
We've got a great squad and to get into that squad you need to be a world-class player. There's no point, if you can't get the players you want, in buying someone for the sake of buying someone.
But you never know - there's often movement in August. I'm not sitting here saying I'm working on anything specific because I'm not, but that situation could change quickly when we get back to Carrington."

mbulela:

i doubt it else he would have joined them for pre season.

coogar:

this is delightful for us transfer muppets. . .

StarBoard:

Who you calling muppet?

coogar:

its a general term for anyone itchy/excited about player transfer. . . .transfer muppets!
e.g. ruudie, starboard, coogar, chamotex.

the first thing these guys do is to log on the internet and check who fergie has signed. . . .cold chills till the 31st of august with questions. . . ."who are we going to sign?" "is sneijder coming?" "is maradona signing?".

to sad bastards, they see it as muppetry. . . .transfer muppetry but we love it.

StarBoard:

^^^^
You just read my mind.
Lindergaard is a world-class stopper.
De Gea is good and can be a great goalie,but no point in having him when you have folks like Lindergaard and Amos (another excellent goalie).But I guess there is no harm in having an over-abundance of talent in the GK area,something United have struggled with in the past. . .

StarBoard:

LOL. . .
Guy,I still will be like Thomas. . .if we are supposed to bridge the gap with Barca, some of these signings aren't what we need.
Till we plug the hole in our middle,I still choose to be a muppet,by your definition.
Kindly add Mr. TA to that list too. . and mbulela.
If being muppets means worrying for the future of our dear club that we support,count me INNNN.

BTW,did i just read a quote attributed to you claiming that Young can fill in for Scholes?Tell me it isn't true?

mbulela:

still too early to judge Lindergaard.
i hope he becomes a useful back up.
we can't have more than two good keepers.i hear that Amos is highly rated, i can see him going on loan this season or in January and being sold off next season.

coogar:

young thrived in that role last season for aston villa. but he will struggle against the big teams. fergie will be utterly foolish if he doesn't plug that hole in the midfield. we need a superb, experienced midfield dynamo that understands the value of the final ball.

RuuDie:

As far as I'm concerned, Lindegaard is the *ish ~ whoever recommended that guy to SAF should be given a raise. . . . .he is so damn composed, just looking at him is enough to inspire confidence. His handling so far is good; yes he hasn't really been tested as such but as a goalie is mentally strong enough to keep his head, he is just a short way from being class.
I still say it is not too late to send De Gea right back to Madrid  - hate to see that after all that money splashed, he will be warming the bench!

fufuface:
The list of Mediocre players at Manure is about to grow by one, Even Schmeichel can no longer hold his peace.
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=844095&sec=transfers&cc=5739, the countdown to January begins and we eagerly await if the trend will change.
Debo, you know since when I've been shouting this from the rooftops (sorry, I meant Arsenal forums).

Can you take a look at this career and tell me this is Manure Quality? anyway Sauron's age old excuse of always making WPOTY at Manure holds no water in this instance as they are yet to make a WGOTY (World Goalkeeper of the year, if there is such an award). Can someone take a look at this stats and tell me this is Manure quality for a 26 year old? abi Lindegaard has come from the bush like Bebe too

Years                Team               Apps† (Gls)†
2003–2009        OB                     11 (0)
2008 →           Kolding (loan)          9 (0)
2009 →          Aalesund (loan)       18 (0)
2009–          Aalesund                 38 (0)


Now where are the knives and blades?

StarBoard:

Amos is a goalkeeper who's been showing promise for a year now.
He won't be loaned out.He'll probably be third choice,but depending on how he performs he can actually make it a three-way firght for the goalie's jersey.
Lindergaard is not bad I tell you.I like what I see in him.Playing behind established veterans in Rio and Vida will help him.Same as De Gea.
That was Aston Villa.This is United.He can't handle it.Young's best position is out wide.

The commentator said there's no such thing as an easy goal for Berba. . .he almost fluffed it but he played well yesterday. . .

Lindegaard eyes top spot

Manchester United goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard hopes the form he has shown whilst on pre-season tour in the USA has given Sir Alex Ferguson a selection headache ahead of the club's Premier League title defence.
An impressive 45-minute display against the MLS All-Stars on Wednesday was the latest noteworthy performance by the 27-year-old, whose best save denied David Beckham a goal against his former club, and further fuelled speculation that it could be Lindegaard, and not £18.9 million new boy, David de Gea, who will be between the posts in United's first game of the season on August 14.

One week before that, United face Manchester City in the Community Shield and Ferguson stated earlier this week that de Gea will start at Wembley. However, Lindegaard does not believe that selection automatically places the Spaniard as the manager's first-choice. And with the competition set to continue, he is pleased with the form he has shown to date.

"I think it's been very good, I'm satisfied. I said before the season that it was going to be very important how the goalkeepers perform because Edwin (van der Sar) has retired. I'm very satisfied with my own performances and, if I had the chance to do anything differently, I'm not sure I would."

Signed last November to compete with Tomas Kuszczak for the back-up position behind van der Sar, Lindegaard played just twice  in FA Cup ties against Southampton and Crawley  in his first six-months at Old Trafford. However, though his appearances were limited, Lindegaard says he is a better goalkeeper now than when he joined.

In addition to acknowledging the help given to him by the veteran Dutchman, Lindegaard credits United's goalkeeping coach, Eric Steele, for assisting in his development. When asked for specific areas on which he has worked, he pinpointed two things.

"Positioning in general, how to position yourself. When to be aggressive, when to stay back. In general, I think I have improved in almost every aspect of the game. I've learned a lot of things. You have to increase your level and I think I have done that."

At 6' 4" and with an imposing build, Lindegaard has a commanding penalty area presence. Furthermore, he is a naturally vocal goalkeeper who has the added benefit of being able to communicate with his teammates in English, an additional advantage he has over de Gea, whose grasp of the language is not as advanced.Eventually, though, de Gea is expected to claim the starting job as his own, but the prospect is not one which phases Lindegaard, who knew when he arrived at the club that more competition would arrive in the close season.

"It was always going to happen. The question was, who would the club buy? It was in the cards from day one when I signed for United that, when Edwin retired, they would bring in a big name. I was told that."

Since De Gea linked up with United in Seattle almost three weeks ago, Lindegaard has been impressed with what he has seen from the Spain Under-21 international.

"He is what you can expect from a 'keeper with that price mark. He is top-class, young but very, very talented. He seems to be a great guy as well. I haven't spoken a lot to him because he doesn't speak a lot of English but he seems to be a positive, open-minded young guy and I enjoy spending time with him on the training field."

With the competition for playing time wide open, it might be thought that tension would be high between United's goalkeepers. Not so, says Lindegaard, who insists that he, De Gea and Ben Amos are thriving under the tutelage of Steele.

"There is competition for all the spots at Manchester United and it sharpens everyone to give 100%. It doesn't really affect us on the training field. We have a great atmosphere, we have a great coach that really understands how to keep that atmosphere and respect all of the goalkeepers. He deserves a lot of credit for keeping the spirit high."

Whether it is Lindegaard or de Gea who starts for the champions, United's goalkeeper at the Hawthorns will be making his Premier League debut. Given the difficulty Ferguson had in finding a reliable replacement for Peter Schmeichel  ten men had varying degrees of success between his departure in 1999 and van der Sar's arrival in 2005  fans will hope for a smoother transition. It is a hope which is no doubt shared by the Dane's fellow countryman as he continues to ply his trade in "the world's biggest club and the world's hardest league".

montelik: