Rue-naldo: Will Cristiano regret heading for Madrid?

Will he? Won’t he? Will he? Won’t he? It is the transfer rumour that just refuses to go away. Ronaldo says he is happy at Manchester United and yet, in the very same interview, will express his desire to play in Spain one day. Sir Alex Ferguson has locked horns with Florentino Pérez in the past over his manner in the transfer market, and now, finally, the constant paper talk and speculation could be coming to a close.

Manchester United have accepted a world record £80 million bid for their dynamic Portuguese winger after, according to the club, Ronaldo expressed his desire to move to the Bernabéu. Now that the dotting of the i’s and crossing of the t’s seems purely academic, one begins to wonder just what this mammoth transfer means for both clubs.

This is not the first time that Sir Alex Ferguson has sold his star asset, and not the first time it has been to Madrid either; both David Beckham and Ruud Van Nistelrooy left Old Trafford for Spain in the past, and both, evoked a mixed reaction in the fans. However, on both occasions, Ferguson was proved right in doing what he did.

It was Ronaldo who he bought, for £12.24 million, as a replacement for Beckham, and although he did not instantly replace the Englishman, he fast become the biggest talent in the world. Wayne Rooney was the man initially charged with the responsibility of replacing Van Nistelrooy, but it was Louis Saha who would take up the mantle just after Ruud left, netting fifteen goals before Christmas. Between him, Larsson, Rooney, Tevez and Berbatov, the goals that Ruud used to provide with regularity have been replaced.

However, this time, something just seems different. Neither Beckham nor Van Nistelrooy were World Player of the Year, with the best football of their career ahead of them, when they left Old Trafford. One must wonder who Ferguson can bring in to replace Ronaldo, because whoever he does decide on, surely will not have an instant effect. It will take time; and time does not exist in football. Success has to be instant.

Ferguson’s aim next year, undoubtedly, will be to win the Premier League title for the fourth consecutive time and to knock Liverpool off the top spot. Despite winning it last year, though, many Manchester United fans believed that they had not been particularly impressive, and their hammering in the Champions League final was something that was to be expected. This is true to an extent.

The season previous, United had torn the league up, beating pretty much every team at will. Their football was dazzling, their passing was spell-binding, and the Holy Trinity- of Ronaldo, Tevez and Rooney- was reaching new heights with every game. Then, in the pre-season, something just seemed to go wrong; maybe it was the signing of Dimitar Berbatov, who has definitely upset a few people since moving to Manchester, or maybe it was the constant, intensive speculation surrounding Ronaldo’s future that upset the spirit in the camp. Take nothing away from United last year, they still won three honours, but surely Benitez will reflect on what could have been, had their early season form been better.

The truth is, that Liverpool lost the title just after Christmas, with too many disappointing draws at home, and once the fans expressed their anger at Benitez’s negative approach, they were the most in-form team in the country, if not the world. They followed a 5-0 aggregate win against Real with a 1-4 drubbing of United in their own back yard, and then smashed media darlings Aston Villa 5-0 at Anfield. Had they played like that all season, they could have won the title; and Ferguson certainly knows he had a lucky escape.

It means that Liverpool’s staff and fans alike must be licking their lips at the prospect of United losing Ronaldo. Ferguson will know that they are going to have to replace him, and fast. Benzema, Ribery and Valencia are some of the names being touted with a move to Old Trafford, and whilst one must not make the assumption that United will have all of the £80 million to spend on players, they will have something of a warchest.

One United fan, in particular, said he was ‘disappointed’ in Ronaldo, because he felt the World Player of the Year was ‘taking a step down’. Is this the case? Real Madrid is arguably the most glamorous club in World Football, and was voted officially, by FIFA, as the Greatest Club of the 20th Century.

They may not have had the best of seasons last year, what with not winning anything and being dominated in La Liga by Barcelona, but far too often, football fans and pundits alike, are too short-sighted. They only analyse the previous year, as opposed to the previous century. Look back over one hundred years, and Madrid is a more glamorous club than United.

Of course, the argument of the strength of the English game in relation to European leagues will be brought up countless times, but one must remember that Ronaldo is a ‘peninsular boy’ i.e. he was born on the Iberian Peninsula. Many will tell you that there are three massive clubs on the Peninsula- Barcelona, Real Madrid and Porto. They are the teams to support.

Also, the argument of coin will be brought up. Did Ronaldo go for the money? Considering United’s undoubted wealth, surely they could match any contract offer that Real could. United and Madrid have constantly been battling with each other for the title of ‘Richest Club’ for the past five to ten years, with both being global franchises. Couple this with the big money signing of Ricardo Kaka earlier in the week, and surely United would have the resources to match Real’s offer.

Last year, Manchester United had won the Champions League and their own domestic league, making them the best team in Europe. Ronaldo had reached the summit, then, and there is no denying things have gone slightly stale at Old Trafford since last year. The dazzling football has been
few and far between, and the passion has just not been the same. Cristiano had reached the peak in Moscow a year prior, so it was going to be downhill from there. Who knows? Had United beaten Barca in Rome, he may have stayed, because the noises he was making before the final suggested he was not going to Spain.

Now that Real Madrid have captured Kaka, and are on the brink of getting Ronaldo, one cannot help but feel a revolution at the Bernabéu. Finally, the club is going after big-name world stars again, in an attempt to re-create the Galacticos era. It seems Perez has realised that he cannot buy average players, and if he wants a successful club, he is going to have to spend big, that is just the way football is.

With David Villa also being strongly linked with a move to the Bernabeu, Barcelona must now be looking over their shoulder over what looks to be a potent attacking unit. It does depend heavily on how these players gel and work as a team, but maybe Ronaldo saw the capture of Kaka and the speculation regarding Villa, and saw the opportunity to be a part of something special; the rebirth of a club that has been comatose since the last Galacticos era.

Football fans should also be happy with the transfer. It means that the Spanish league will grow stronger, and the Champions League will be more competitive. English clubs have enjoyed a lot of success in Europe recently, but Real Madrid, with their two world record transfers, could have something to say for that.

Enigmatic England Erratic in Victory

England proved too strong for little Andorra tonight, but their victory was far from impressive. Defensively they went untroubled and created many opportunities, but their quality in front of goal was worrying. That being said, there is no denying Fabio Capello has improved the spirit and attitude of the England camp, following the largely relaxed atmosphere of the two previous regimes. Their emphatic win against Andorra made it seven wins out of seven for Capello's professional England, who are the biggest enigma in World Football.

England's threat was evident within the opening minutes, and they could have been three up after five minutes. First, Gerrard made a trademark surging run past Rooney and Crouch, only to be foiled by an excellent last-ditch tackle. Less than a minute later, Rooney turned terrifically on the edge of the box and attempted to chip the Andorran goalkeeper off his line, but he was equal to the challenge. Next, it was Theo Walcott's turn to test Andorra's last line of defence, but he too came out second best, seeing his volley flicked away from close range. The ball treacled across the box and while it looked like Rooney was set to score, he managed to hit the crossbar, and not the net, with his instinctive header.

Soon, however, England would have their goal. Johnson had space and time to pick out his man in the middle; and pick him out he did, whipping his cross towards Rooney at the back post, who could not miss from six yards out. With just four minutes on the clock, this looked like it was going to be a one-way exhibition.

Things started to calm down after Rooney's goal. Peter Crouch had a free header in the tenth minute off a Beckham free kick, but could not find the target despite his lanky frame. Less than a minute after that, Gerrard tried his luck from range, but Andorra's best player was determined to spoil the England party, tipping the effort around the post for a corner.

England started to waste possession slightly, seeming a little too eager to further Andorra's woes. With twenty-five minutes on the clock, Rooney received the ball eight yards out, turned well, but skewed wide when it seemed easier to score.

Just as England were starting to go off the boil, they scored again. Johnson fed Walcott through down the right hand side, and he picked Lampard out in the middle. The Chelsea man took his shot first time, powering the ball low and hard into the net.

Robert Green had to open his eyes on a few minutes later, when Sergio Moreno thought he could test him from all of forty yards. His shot was high, wide and handsome, and was one of the extremely rare occasions Andorra had possession in the England half.

Five minutes before the interval, Rooney again proved himself a thorn in Andorra's side, ghosting through the opposition defence to beautifully divert Johnson's cross into the net. 3-0 England, and this could be a cricket score.

Ashley Young came on for Rooney, who was searching for a hat-trick, and could have grabbed a goal just after the break. Speeding into the box in typical fashion, Young opened his body up but lashed his shot wildly into the stands. Despite the friendly-feel to the game, England fans must be concerned with the lack of a clinical instinct in the team, as many chances seem to be squandered in every match they play.

This was evident moments later. Johnson, who was having a fantastic game, slipped Defoe in behind the Andorran defence, yet the Spurs striker fired across goal from a tight angle. A simple cut-back would have put Crouch in a position to score, yet it was another chance that came and went for England.

Young and Cole started to click impressively on the left wing, and it was a combination of the two that presented Defoe with a header on the fifty-fifth minute, but he could only glance it wide of the target. Had England been more clinical in front of goal, it could have been six at this point. Just moments later, Young again caused Andorra problems on their right, dinking the ball dangerously into the box. Crouch nearly made contact just yards in front of goal, but it eluded him as Andorra's goalkeeper came to claim, but spilled it to his defender's feet. Young has a knack of creating a nervousness in opposition defences.

Shortly after the hour mark, Frank Lampard shot from range, and the movement of the ball meant the Andorran shot-stopper could only parry the ball away; straight to Walcott. With the goal gaping, Walcott fired low and hard but his effort was denied.

Young, who was seeing an awful lot of the ball in the second half, raced down the wing and skipped past the left back, leaving him a free run at goal. Reaching the by-line, the Villa man slid the ball across the box, but the sea of bodies bundled the ball away from danger, somehow. As previously stated, he has the ability to create nervous moments for the opposition.

Beckham's short corner caught Andorra out with under twenty minutes to go. Johnson picked the ball up on the corner of the box, and picked out Jermaine Defoe in the middle, who rose to head home from eight yards and make it four. Less than three minutes later, Defoe had put his name on the score sheet again, and Beckham was involved again. His free kick was parried out to Defoe, who could not miss from close range.

On the eightieth minute, Crouch put Defoe in for his hat-trick, but as the moment of truth came, he miscued completely. Again, however, the Andorran 'keeper spilled and Crouch was lying in wait to make it six. The floodgates truly had opened now as the Wembley crowd finally found it's voice.

In typical Capello style, the match petered out as England made ball retention a priority in the last ten minutes. The result is not one that has massive implications on the International scene, but it does prove that Capello is the man for the job, and allows all England fans a stress-free summer. With that being said, there is still need for a clinical striker judging on tonight's performance, but Defoe and Rooney cannot have done themselves any harm.

Man of the Match: Johnson (9)

Involved in many of England's highlights as he provided a constant threat from the right side and linked up well with Walcott.