Strictly speaking Sir Alex Ferguson’s absence last night was very much with leave, as the Manchester United manager spent the night in the port city of Valencia, ostensibly scouting the club’s next Champions League opponents. The Scot sat beside goalkeeping coach Eric Steel at the Mestalla as the home side drew 1-1 with Atlético de Madrid.
Ferguson missed his side’s 5-2 victory over Scunthorpe United in the Carling Cup, with the club’s official position that the Manchester United manager was in Valencia scouting the Southern Spanish opponents. However, Steele’s involvement prompts an assumption that Ferguson’s mission had a touch of smokescreen about it, with coveted 19-year-old Madrid goalkeeper David De Gea the true target.
Even so, Ferguson’s absence last night is remarkable, not because the Carling Cup is a serious priority in comparison to Champions League advancement but that he has never chosen to do so before. United has specialist scouts and many opportunities this season to run-the-rule over De Gea.
Indeed, the Scot’s previous absences from match duty came against Manchester City in November 2000, when he was at his son’s wedding, and then the 3-2 defeat to Middlesbrough in February 2004, when he attended a family funeral.
“It’s important after the Rangers games that we prepare properly and get a good view of Valencia, who’ve started their season very well,” claimed Phelan.
“He chose to go and watch the Valencia game. We need to go there knowing what we’re up against. He’s the manager and he had to make a decision.”
“We put a big value on the Carling Cup. We’ve never set out to demean the Carling Cup. We’re holders, we’ve done that two years in a row and you can see from the players’ attitude that we want to keep hold of it.”
Ferguson’s absence leaves a number of questions though, with the manager previously only missing matches due to family commitments. Indeed, while Ferguson may well trust his staff, as the temporarily-in-charge Mike Phelan claimed last night, he has never previously felt the need to scout a European opposition at the expense of his own side.
After all United has faced many more difficult ties in Europe before – on paper at least – than a trip to the Mestalla, with the club’s two stars David Villa and David Silva now departed for new pastures. The Murciélagos also sold Nikola Žigić, Carlos Marchena and Alexis Ruano during the summer, with €600 million of reported debts to clear.
Despite the sales Valencia remains one of the more attractive La Liga sides, frequently deploying two strikers and exploiting the flanks through Joaquín Sánchez and Juan Mata. That much an amateur scout can report.
Moreover, despite the draw with Rangers last week, Ferguson’s side has been in a more precarious group stage predicament in the past, including the abysmal 2005/6 season in which the Scot’s side was knocked out at the group stage. The disastrous loss to Lille that effectively sealed United’s fate was preceded by a similarly meaningless Carling Cup tie against Barnet, which Ferguson attended.
True, should United lose to Valencia then Ferguson’s side will probably need to win in Glasgow or Bursa, but the implication that United has normally under-prepared for European ties is a serious one. Quite what the club’s chief European scout Martin Ferguson makes of the charge is another matter. Being keen on value, Ferguson could even have hit Sky+ and recorded the match, which was broadcast live on Sky Sports 3 last night.
The alternative viewpoint, one that Phelan attempted to head off at the pass, is that Ferguson not only disrespected the Carling Cup but also the young players for whom the Scot has professed such hope.
That leaves the issue of De Gea, the flip side of a very strange coin. The talented 6’3″ teenager, who was named by Spanish national team manager Vicente del Bosque in a provisional 30-man World Cup squad, has played just 35 games for Atlético. But such is the player’s progress and undoubted presence that it seems only a matter of time before one of Europe’s leading club’s makes the capital side a serious offer.
Certainly Steele’s presence means De Gea is of interest, with United unlikely to want Valencia’s 39-year-old ‘keeper César Sánchez. De Gea will have impressed the United party too, with the teenager pulling off a string of saves in a man-of-the-match performance.
Ferguson is due to return to Manchester today, although he will not face the press as normal Friday morning when clarification of the trip’s motivation would have surely been sought. The Scot today threw his toys out of the pram and cancelled the regular press conference, apparently due to his displeasure at the media’s coverage of his comments about Fernando Torres last weekend.
It only adds to the aura of suspicion that surrounds the trip.
I do agree that there is probably more to his Spanish visit than meets the eye, but do we really need to know all the details?
We now live in the “information age” where we all seem to need to know everything about everyone every moment of the day. But I think we have to remember also that this requires league managers to be more cunning than they have in the past to manage without giving un-do advantage to rivals.
Everyone is looking at what Sir Alex is doing, including opposition managers. If he divulges details about what he is “really” doing all the time, his efforts could be compromised and he may not be able to accomplish what he needs to for the club. This may not have been necessary in years past (and why he hasn’t felt the need to miss a game like this). But times are different and can call for drastic measures sometimes.
While suspicious, I think Sir Alex has earned some trust after what he has done for this club over the years. Sir Alex obviously loves the club and this club is a part of his life like his literal right arm is. I’m willing to give Sir Alex the benefit of the doubt and let him continue to work his magic to maintain the best club in the world.
My 2 cents….
drefooty
Bah!
Just a bit cynical Ed.
Whatever the reasons… I don’t think it’s that important.
He had lunch with Ronaldo.
I was there, serving them tapas.
Boy wonder is coming home
look clearly he was there to watch villa but no ones told him the news
Fergie still hasn’t seen Bebe play FFS
Nope but was so desperate to see a player outside of the window and/or check out the next oppo he couldn’t be bothered to turn up for his own side’s match.
He’s also cancelled a press conference
At first I thought he might be ill, but apparently he really was at the Valencia game
He’a an amateur.Doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing. Old cunt.
You disgust me, ivaninspain. Pathetic command of language, and nothing whatsoever to say.
I was being sarcastic. Avenger, you’d know if you weren’t new.
Oh my…
Hahahaha you bastard. Nice bloke this Avenger. He has a good point though.
Sorry, he makes a good point. Fuck me I’m either too drunk or spend too much time with all these useless Españolis.
he would have met with ronaldo…..he’s not loving it out there, and he’ll come back soon
have you heard the rumours about him (Ronaldo) suffering depression?
Post natal depression?
He could back to Manchester and look after our Bebe
As you say there is no precedent for Fergie missing a game other than for family reasons, so whatever the reason it must be damn important.
I think scouting de Gea and Valencia are the obvious reasons (and no doubt a bid for de Gea will be on the cards) but there must be more to it. We just don’t know what it is yet.
As for whether it is disrespectful (to Scunny/the Carling Cup) or not, I think it is and I think Fergie knows that, so it must have been a very important trip.
Rooney for Ronaldo swap is on the card.
De Gea is a good prospect. and we’ve been linked with him for a while. if fergie really was there to tie up a deal for him, i’d be quite pleased.
and lets face facts. fergie has slowly be handing away duties to his assistants over the years. quieroz petty much ran the show at training sessions. its a carling cup tie against a championship side, whcih probably quite low on his priority list. yes he probably should have been there, but he was attending other football duties, not get drunk in the south of spain like ivan…
yes
I have too. I’ve heard that he is a bit down about them 🙂
It’s a clear case of interest in De Gea, seemingly with a convenient coincidence of a match featuring Valencia who soon face United.
I’m actually quite heartened that they seem focused on De Gea because he is such an excellent prospective signing. I can’t remember seeing a young goalkeeper who is better than him. I have seen quite a lot of his appearances. Obviously he’s very young and he hasn’t been error-free in his gametime at Atletico but he has an aura of confidence about him that very few keepers possess.
If a bid does materialise, a whole host of clubs would probably not be in the running, since Chelsea, City, Barcelona and Real Madrid have a solid first choice keeper. Fingers crossed that United can nab De Gea next summer!
Given that it appears that de Gea is not sure that a move to United is the best thing for him so early in his career, I think Fergie went there to show him we mean business.
As you say all the other top clubs (except Arsenal) are sorted for GKs so I don’t think there’ll be much competition for his signature.
Even if we have to pay £20M for him, this guy has the potential to be the United keeper for the next 15 years and that is ‘value’.
If we could tap up Joe Hart… has anyone seen this de gea guy play?
theres no point buying a keeper unless hes going straight in the team, this gea is obviously alright so why destroy him with no football except the odd game behind oshea brown neville delaet and the like in the league cup while fergie clings to vds
To be fair Knobby… if Foster hadn’t shit himself… he would have pushed VDS out the door… he was given a proper chance and he choked on it.
If this “de Gay guy” is really the business, he’ll get his chance… if he takes it, VDS is finished.
Yes and what better to cure it then to move to MANCHESTER!!!! FFS
Delaet is a defender
A tomato is a fruit.
a so is Brian
foster wouldve got over his stage fright, having one full season of football under your belt at 25 will do that
That may be, but United are so stretched financially, we absolutely must finish top 4 at least and make the latter stages of the CL… Ferguson can’t gamble a whole season on a keeper who doesn’t bed in straight away.
Ironically, we now have a team… neglected of investment, that just might fail to reach those standards.