0% Villa: Rooney signs new 5 year contract!

[alanclare]

I'm sorry if this has been spotted already, but I notice that Man City are away to Man U on the 12th February. That'll be fun if his agent decides that's the best place for him.

[Chico Hamilton III]

I'm a cynic by nature and I  thought Fergie was playing  up to the press yesteday. Giving it the wounded soldier routine? All this doughey-eyed nonsense reminded me of Lady Di when Martin Bashir interviewed her

I reckon he knows exactly what he's doing, calculating that his act can turn the fans against Rooney.

He's put the ball in Rooney's court now, it's for Rooney to give his version of what hapened.

[Irish villain]

I haven't got much sympathy for either party here. Growing up watching united dominate instilled a deep rooted dislike of everything about Man U. They've tapped up enough players over the years and interfered when Rooney was at Everton. So on that score what goes around comes around.

That said, I must say Fergie gave a PR masterclass yesterday. Alastair Campbell eat your heart out! He completely turned the tables on poor Wayne.

[bob]

I was reading that Times article today and agreed with most of it except for this horse-shit

McGrath took the challenge of Ferguson's dismissal and played brilliantly for another five years with Aston Villa. But at least he was replaced, in the shape of Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister, by better players.

Stopped reading at that point. Bleurgh!

[Somniloquism]

Listening to Ferguson today I feel quite elated! What goes around comes around. I am still hurting from  him tapping  up and signing Yorke and Bosnich and now Utd fans know how we felt when  Barry and Milner left.

Fergie actually signed Bossie as a teenager but couldn't get a work permit. Mark agreed with Fergie that when that wasn't an issue anymore he would resign with ManU. Once he got his green card by marrying his English GF (convenience springs to mind) he signed for Atkinson and us.

Fergie was fuming and when he got him on a free he essentially froze him out of the first team and ignored him to punish him for going back on his word originally.

Also with what happened with Mark later on he actually did us a favour.

[KevinGage]

When Yorke left I was gutted.  If anyone owed a club a little loyalty it was him seeing as we took him from the middle of nowhere and helped turn him into a fantastic player.  When Dwight left I genuinely felt hard done by.  Listening to Man Utd fans cheerfully claim he has left Villa to win trophies was more than a little galling...I think we could have built a great side around Dwight.

I think Yorke was about 27 at the time that Manyoo came sniffing. By that stage he'd been at the club eight or nine years and he'd been scoring regularly for about the last four. To think he'd have been loyal (in the Steve Bull sense) was more in hope than expectation for me because going there would mean trophies - they did the treble in his first season, I seem to remember. Sure, I hoped Yorke was going to stay, and was gutted when he didn't. But I could understand why he left. I did have a chuckle to myself when I heard Rooney wanted out though.

As for anyone still gaffawing at the prospect of the end of United's era of success, I wouldn't be so premature. Not sure if anyone else has made the point but Ferguson has lost top players before now, yet still come back with more success. Their era of success will truely be put to the test when Ferguson retires, IMO.

True Chris.

But the difference between those other occasions and this one is he always had the financial resources and free hand to sign pretty much whoever he wanted.

Even if he didn't spend a huge amount (as in 1995) that was his choice, as he knew he had an exceptional crop breaking through. He always ruled the roost, he always had the final say. Now he's being dictated to by the Yanks and I'd be embarrassed by some of the players he's signed in recent years if they rocked up at Villa.

If there is one bloke who can pull it off it might be him though, I'd concede that. You just have to wonder how much enthusiasm he has left for the job, seeing United increasingly off the pace and not able to compete in the transfer market.

As for Yorke, I don't blame him for going. I just wished he had given us one more year as we had the nucleus of a good side then. And moved on a free the following year to a top side on the continent if we hadn't pushed on. Rather than move to those cants.

[supertom]

Utd's spine is going. Within a year, conceivably they could be without (for reasons of selling or retirement):

Rooney
Giggs
Scholes,
Ferdinand
Neville
Van Der Sar.
Evra (I'd fancy him to throw his toys out and try for a move if a bigger club comes sniffing).

Particularly in the case of the old boys, the 20 year brigade, Utd still haven't found better in those positions.

If indeed Fergie has little money to spend, and with his hit rate in the markets becoming more erratic by the year, I fancy Utd to suffer for a few years, eating City's dust. In fact for the likes of ourselves, Utd can be taken in the next couple of years IMO, unless the Glazers can get ousted. And you know what? I'm delighted!

I've been taking the michael out of a Utd fan at work all day about Rooney. Like many, he's washed his hands of Wayne already, and considers him a treacherous c**t.

But throughout the 90's and 00's, Utd were built around the creme of British talent. Fergie now seems to pin too much hope on fancy dan foreign boys, and the Brit players just aren't as talented as they used to be either. I don't see them producing the next Giggs, Scholes, Beckham, by any stretch of the imagination. They've just about managed the new Nicky Butt with Fletcher, who has had the added benefit of not having to get in ahead of Roy Keane.

They're in trouble though. The debts are so huge too, that only a crazy Arab would be tempted to buy them out I'd imagine.

[GullyFoyle]

BBC reporting that Rooney has confirmed that he wants to leave. He claims that the overriding issue is Utd's lack of spending on the team. Also that he has issues with some of the things said by Fergie yesterday. I'm sure he'll feel much better once he has trebled his wages.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

That said, I must say Fergie gave a PR masterclass yesterday. Alastair Campbell eat your heart out! He completely turned the tables on poor Wayne.

I think Rooney's reply was also excellent. He's made it very difficult for Fergie to attack him again, putting the blame indirectly at the door of the Glaziers, whilst singing the praises of Fergie.

[ozzjim]

Rooney is an ungrateful little fucker, plain and simple. And i hope he goes to City, gets a De Jong special in training, gets fatter than he already is and goes the way football wise as Gazza. Nasty little shit.

Fergie will either make sure he gets 50/60 million to invest or retire next summer. Mind you I think Hernandez looks a find. He will need a top forward and couple of top midfield players soon though.

[PeterWithe]

Rooney is quoted as saying that 'he is concerend about the direction that Utd are taking', presumably the direction of no longer paying the stupidest wages in the world.

Greedy ******.

[The Situation]

lol, United would be nearly as bad as Liverpool if Rooney leaves.

I like this new Premier League that is opening up a bit more, making things a lil' more interesting.

[VillaAlways]

lol, United would be nearly as bad as Liverpool if Rooney leaves.

I like this new Premier League that is opening up a bit more, making things a lil' more interesting.

Yeah,rather than Chelsea and Manure winning everything,it will be Chelsea and Man city winning everything instead

[Chris Harte]

"Manchester United lack abition" - never thought I'd hear those words.

[PeterWithe]

I'll say this for him, the advice he's been given before putting the statement out is spot on.