The Gaffer`s Dilemma

LAST SUMMER, when Dimitar Berbatov learnt that Tottenham were to rebuff attempts by Manchester United to sign him, he was tearful. Spurs were on tour in sunny South Africa but clouds settled over their striker. Should Berbatov be back in South Africa six weeks from now the skies will be brighter. United play exhibition games there between July 19 and 26 and Sir Alex Ferguson is considering trying to get Berbatov in a red shirt by then.

Ferguson offered £25m for the Bulgarian a year ago and a similar sum may be sufficient now to prise him from White Hart Lane. Daniel Levy, Tottenham’s chairman, would strike a hard bargain, but Berbatov has just two years remaining on his contract and has indicated he will reject an extension, worth £70,000 a week, mooted by his employers. AC Milan are interested and Berbatov likes the idea of playing in Spain, but United are a long-held dream. Ferguson, having done background checks, is not put off by doubts about his temperament.

A move for Berbatov is one of the things Ferguson is pondering on holiday in France. Another is what to do about Cristiano Ronaldo. He is able to keep the two questions separate and that, rather, is the point about the far-from-terrible position in which he finds himself. He does not want to sell Ronaldo and there is no pressure on him to do so. There is money available to sign Berbatov or an alternative striker, and cash to bring in further players - whether or not Real Madrid pay the £50m-£80m they have talked at various times about offering for Ronaldo.

Someone familiar with the thoughts of the Glazer family, who own United, said: “As far as the Glazers are concerned, Ronaldo’s not for sale. It doesn’t get any simpler. If there’s an issue, it’s to be resolved by the player and the manager.”

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Ferguson’s first priority is to gauge how much solid intent lay behind Ronaldo’s statement to a Brazilian journalist that “I want to play for Real Madrid but only if it is true they are eager to pay me and Manchester United what they have been saying they will”. His second, if Ronaldo is serious, would be to make a forceful case to him about staying. His third, should the Portuguese be adamant about departing, would be to consider the oldest equation in management: how much is a certain player worth to my team and at what price do the alternatives become better?

Ferguson has revealed he could “sit a player in the stand”, with the Glazers’ blessing, if he wanted to make a point about the importance of United’s footballers honouring their contracts. Ronaldo’s has four years to run and Ferguson would love to show Real they cannot “ride roughshod” over his club, while David Gill, the Old Trafford chief executive, will send a letter to Fifa tomorrow reporting Real for “tapping” Ronaldo. But how much does fury and protest achieve? United’s goal for next season is retaining the European Cup and Ferguson will be asking how this could be done minus Ronaldo. Adding Berbatov would eliminate one handicap the manager faced last season, the lack of a proper striker, and it is conceivable that, with no Ronaldo but other reinforcements, he could have a stronger side than last season.

The £25m available to sign Berbatov last summer is still in Ferguson’s transfer kitty and it is understood any fee for Ronaldo would be his to spend. Contrary to suggestions, the Glazers would not seek to use it to pay off the £666m debts resulting from their takeover. The cost of financing these is £42m per season and is taken annually from United’s operating profits, which were £80m for 2006-07, leaving £38m that was ploughed back into transfers and other projects. Having just banked £32m for winning the Champions League, United are getting richer and their total wage costs are only £50,000 a week more than Arsenal’s. With Ronaldo money, Ferguson could have £100m to spend.

United need £20m to make Carlos Tevez’s loan permanent and a bid of £5m was lodged for Cardiff City’s Aaron Ramsey, but should these deals, and one for Berbatov, be completed there might still be £50m of further signings to come. Ferguson wants a right-back and any offer by Real to include the buccaneering Sergio Ramos in a deal for Ronaldo would be tempting. Mark Hughes’s arrival at Manchester City makes landing Micah Richards less likely but there are other options in the £20m bracket that Richards inhabits, such as Daniel Alves, or alternatives at half the price, such as Lazio’s Stefan Radu. Carlos Queiroz, Ferguson’s assistant, admires Portugal’s Miguel Veloso and Joao Moutinho, though United have no pressing need to sign another central midfielder.

Since no one else can play like Ronaldo it would be futile to seek a facsimile. Ferguson tried to replace the irreplaceable when Roy Keane left, and life after Ronaldo would have to involve a change in playing style. The choice could be whether to rejig United’s attacking strategies with a second new striker or another flank player. At Lyons there are deluxe talents in both these positions but the wide man, Hatem Ben Arfa, looks a lot more attainable than the striker, Karim Benzema, priced at £48m. Roque Santa Cruz, Luis Fabiano, Sergio Aguero, Mario Gomez, Luis Antonio Valencia, Ricardo Quaresma: there are plenty of others United could try and sign – £100m gives you options.

Ferguson has been working on those equations since he started at East Stirling and calculated it was worth £750 of his first budget of £2,000 on a signing-on fee for Tom Gourlay, Partick Thistle’s reserve goalkeeper. “Gourlay was useful, had good presence and was utterly fearless. He was also a minimum of 2st overweight,” recalled Ferguson. Nevertheless, it turned out to be the right decision, just as it was in 2003 when he let another superstar leave for Real Madrid and replaced David Beckham with one Cristiano Ronaldo.

So what can you get for £110m?

Should Cristiano Ronaldo move to Madrid for £80m, United could have up to £110m to spend in this summer’s transfer market. Sir Alex Ferguson already has a budget of around £30m and would be allowed to reinvest Ronaldo’s fee

His priority is to buy a top striker, with Tottenham’s Dimitar Berbatov his main target

Other strikers under consideration include Karim Benzema (£48m), Luis Fabiano (£10m), Roque Santa Cruz (£10m), Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (£20m), Mario Gomez (£20m) and Sergio Aguero (£25m)

A right-back is also sought. On the wish list are Micah Richards (£20m) and Daniel Alves (£20m)

A wide man might be needed, with Ricardo Quaresma (£31m), Hatem Ben Arfa (£15m) and Luis Antonio Valencia (£10m) linked with United. Ferguson has bid £5m for Cardiff’s Aaron Ramsey and needs £20m to make Carlos Tevez’s loan permanent.

So that`s all for the Day...

( Found this writing somewhere...liked it...putting it here for all those Reds who cant surf through Random sites )...i dont claim originality..its a compilation...