Time for a New #7

Sir Alex Ferguson has often deviated from the age old adage, ‘never change a winning team’ in his constant quest to rebuild the structure of the team in a manner that will contribute in the long run without as far as possible impeding the chances of immediate success of the team. But, the situation surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo is far more complex to handle than most issues that Ferguson has been plagued with in the past. Newspaper reports suggest on a daily basis that Sir Alex will go to any extent to keep Ronaldo at Manchester United in spite of the player being seemingly unwilling to stay at the club and Real Madrid’s insistent and immoral pursuit. Personally, as a Manchester United fan, I am of the firm belief that Ronaldo needs to be sold. It’s after all not everyday that a single player is going to fetch close to 150 Million Dollars. Of course many would argue that by retaining Ronaldo at the club for a few more years, United can make more than double of what that they stand to gain as transfer fee. Financially there are several permutations and combinations that come into play and it may well not suit Man United to let go of their cherished asset, but from a pure footballing standpoint, I don’t think there is any doubting the necessity to let go of Ronaldo.

Ronaldo certainly seems to lack commitment to the club and if not this season, he will most definitely want a move next summer or the one after that and retaining him will only lead to a great deal of discomfort amongst the other players. I have wanted to stay as far away as possible from this subject, considering that Ronaldo is a Man United player at the moment who has contributed immensely to the team’s successes in the recent past and since as long as he is a United player, I would want to back him to the hilt. But then again there is the cliché of no player being bigger than his club and Ronaldo’s behaviour for a while now seems to suggest that he believes he is bigger than Manchester United. When selling Beckham to Real Madrid, Ferguson referred explicitly to this old adage and no doubt it took time for United to rebuild, but that is exactly what they did. I just think what Ronaldo is doing at the moment is downright insulting and scornful. He is playing around with the hearts of all true Man United fans by constantly making statements about his dream of playing for Los Merengues. It would serve everyone at the club including its fans well, if he came out with a cut and dry statement of his intentions of playing for Real Madrid this coming season.

Retaining a disgruntled player, irrespective of who he may be, is not going to do the team any good whatsoever. Of course if Ronaldo offers a proper commitment to Man United, I would love for him to stay and one day be considered as a God of Stretford End. But the way things stand at the moment, it seems increasingly likely that his heart lies away from Old Trafford and the only solution to the problem is to sell him at the highest possible value and make use of the funds acquired to purchase a quality centre forward, a winger and cover at centre back and left back. It would be wonderful to see United add a bit of ‘Klass’ by signing Huntelaar from Ajax. From whatever little I have seen of him, he looks a composed finisher and seems to possess the required strength to lead the line effectively. Playing Rooney, Tevez and Nani in the form of a triangle behind Huntelaar would in my opinion have a sensational impact and can more than make up for the loss of Ronaldo. We are yet to witness the best of Rooney and playing him behind a good old-fashioned centre forward like Huntelaar will in my opinion, do him a world of good. The sale proceeds of Ronaldo could lead to a very interesting summer at United as Ferguson will strive to bring in a combination of talented players to Old Trafford. By making the right moves in the transfer market, United can ensure that they continue to win silverware after silverware.