The Mak

The only thing I'd worry about buying a new LB is Mourinho's insistence that Ivanovic is somehow a better RB than Dave, even though Ivanovic's contribution going forward is in minus figures since the opposition is never concerned with him as all he does it cross it to no one 99 times out of 100. A combination of Shaw or Rodriguez along with Azpilicueta would be amazing. A Ivanovic combination, not so much.

Ever had the nightmare that Mourinho took over United and Moyes took over Chelsea? Well here it is! http://espnfc.com/blog/_/name/bootroom/id/635?cc=5739 A good laugh!

Signing Shaw would be an absolutely massive statement from the club. No doubt he is wanted by City and every other top club (and also United!). He's the most sought after young English player of his calibre for quite some time. If we get him over every other Premier League club really says something. And it very much looks like that it's only a matter of time before we do. And I don't believe he'll go for £30m. We apparently wanted £25m for KDB, but we accepted £17m. It's all part of negotiations. I say we'll get him for around £20m + add ons and or Bertrand at the very maximum. Maybe this summer or the next. It all depends on Ash's contract situation and performances, but I'd imagine they'd want him here alongside Cole for at least one season so he can learn from the best.

Henning Berg, my lord! Haha

Oh I know they overpaid for him, but people will always use him as a reference point along with Neur (£19m) to say that Courtois' price should be inflated. Which is a valid point in this market as Courtois will give 15 years of top, top goalkeeping. He'll have a hard time beating Buffon though! £38m 12 years ago!

Well we're hardly going to sell him for £20m. He's not De Gea. Even Atletico fans say he's miles ahead of De Gea. All of these personal awards and trophies increase his price. (Not that I want him to be sold)

You're exactly right! (right, we'll stop there now before we go too off topic! )

It's no slight on you! It's the French FA who seem to have a problem. Maybe they wanted to set a precedent because he's young or something, I don't know. I do think you've a great point when you talked about his determination though. Judging from that tackle alone he seems to have it and it's very important to have in a Mourinho team, especially in one so young. We only have to look at KDB to see what happens when Mourinho's players don't have enough determination. Ok maybe he didn't get enough chances, but when he did get them he never really seemed to put his heart in it to make the manager think. He never really looked up for the fight. His appearance in December (A cup match I think? I'm not so sure.) made him look like his foot was already out the door.

I wouldn't jump to such a conclusion before actually seeing it: There is now way he meant for that to happen. His momentum took him through the player and it was unfortunate because if Zouma's trailing leg or the opponent's leg was at any other angle it probably wouldn't have happened. You can say he wasn't really in control because of his momentum, but I think it's harsh to say he was completely reckless. It's not his fault that he's much bigger than his opponent either. Ok, he did jump of the ground a bit, but there's no intent there. 10 game ban is way too much for what looks like an honest accident from a very young player.

Zouma and Matic would be a very successful window for us. I mean, realistically we were never going to get a world-class or even a top striker in this window. It means we can put all of our resources into a striker in the summer. Maybe José is waiting for United to finish outside a CL place to snap up Rooney? Or Deigo Costa? Even a solid striker like Mandzukic could be a back-up plan. My point is, the market for strikers will be a lot more open in the summer.

Gotta love all the bickering and petty arguments on the day we finally sign a top CM. You can't write this stuff!

BS? Ahem.....

One of the main reasons I was against this was because of the insane fees quoted in the past (£35m+). But £20m really isn't that bad in the January window. He seems a lot more qualified than Guarin anyway. The main thing is: we're buying a CM. Finally.

Essien is a very good passer of the ball, but some people seem to have forgotten that. Please don't insinuate that he is bad at passing. No need to overrate Matic just yet either...

I agree that a DLP is still needed for us to be right up there with the best in Europe, but just on the United point - United had Scholes and, as much as I hate to admit it, he's one of the best DLP/CMs of all time. He kept them ticking over, kept United in control. Carrick does it for them now, but they are still missing Scholes' influence massively. I know Swansea are a possession team, but last night they had 61% of the ball at Old Trafford...meaning United's 39% possession was United's lowest ever recorded. They relied heavily on a playmaker in Scholes. Not again. Please stop...please stop saying Oscar is going to be or play CM. Please god stop. It hasn't happened since I last tried to explain to you months ago that it's never happening, so why now? Why do you even bring 4-3-3 up? Why would we start playing 4-3-3? Why would we sell KDB in that case? He would've been pretty useful in a 4-3-3 don't you think?! He's pretty creative himself! Some people need to stop acting like they can apply their FIFA experience to actual football!

We'll know from Matic's reaction after the game. If he starts waving goodbye then it'll be obvious, but if he doesn't... It kind of adds up when you think about it though: - We're especially stuck for CMs at the moment as Luiz is playing there - Mourinho won't want to play all of his main CBs in every game for fear of injury. - We bid £12m+ for Guarin which was rejected - Mourinho has since said he's not interested in him. - KDB looks like he's on his way - which frees up some extra funds.

Just a word on Luiz, he was great defensively but my god, he was terrible with his passing. Especially in the first half. It just goes to show what we're crying out for. Even someone like Cabaye would improve us greatly (who could be available for as little as £10m in the summer apparently).

Go straight for the jugular, intimidate them, remind they where they are and they won't have a response. They're at their lowest point in decades right now: - They don't know what style to play. - Their players look lost when they go behind. - They have absolutely no energy in midfield. - Rio and Vidic look like they've packed it in already. If I were them I would be dreading having to deal with Hazard, Oscar and Willian - Rio will be shittin' kittens. They're very reliant on RVP and Rooney, which I doubt the both will be fit for. Even if they are, they won't be 100%. We're starting to throw serious punches in the bid for the title and these are there for the taking in our very own back yard. I'd be very disappointed if we approached the game like Arsenal did at Old Trafford. Judging by the City game though I think José will do all he can to get the 3 points, which is great. I'm not saying we deserve to thrash them, but we can certainly go and dominate this game - we're the better side by miles.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing...

Especially if you consider if Lukaku did the same (and he will), not nearly as many people would complain!

Cunttenberg strikes again.

Seems like Oscar only likes to score the difficult ones...

How many times have we needlessly kicked it out for a throw now? Need to be sharper in possession.

It's ok to not be afraid anymore!

Well the Mail is now saying he could be out for six weeks anyway! http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2537430/Robin-van-Persie-action-six-weeks-thigh-injury.html With RVP in Holland and Rooney on a warm weather holiday I seriously doubt both, if any, of the two will be fit to face us. Even if they are, they definitely won't be 100% that's for sure. I'm always excited to face United, but them being at their weakest moment in decades makes it all the more exciting!