How will Tevez and Ronaldo's exit affect Manchester United?
Posted by Sport.co.uk on: 23 June 2009 - 12:00
Author: Liam Kelly
With Manchester United about to lose Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid, and Carlos Tevez also set to depart with a possible salt-in-the-wound transfer to rivals Manchester City or Chelsea. The entire Manchester United system could be up for a shake-up as Alex Ferguson looks to compensate for the loss of two of his most effective attacking players. The tricky winger and the relentless striker have a combined total of 40 goals and 13 assists in the 08/09 season and have played huge parts in Manchester United's retention of the Premiership.
Ferguson, of course, would have known long ago that keeping his tricky Portuguese winger in to the 09/10 season would be nigh-impossible, especially after the battle to keep hold of him last season in the face of Real Madrid's blatant advances. While the loan deal for Carlos Tevez was always a two year contract, terminating in 2009. Ferguson has had ample time to plan for this dilemma, however the fiery Scot has kept his cards close to his chest over his plan of action.
Wayne Rooney will be one of the few people associated with Manchester United trying to conceal a sly smile at the recent events as the departure of Ronaldo and Tevez will almost certainly see the England striker move into a more prominent central role which should result in more goals for the talented hitman in the run up to the 2010 World Cup. Rooney, 23, has often been played on the left hand side of an attacking triumvirate in order to accommodate his striking counterparts, however his tolerance the role is wearing thin, although with 17 goals and 12 assists last season, the gifted goalscorer is hardly wasted out wide.
The summer shake up could see Ferguson's men adopting a more traditional 4-4-2 formation as Manchester United try and escape from the shadow of Ronaldo. As the winger continued to improve he became more of a focus point for Manchester United's attack and at times United were exposed for an over-reliance on the Portuguese winger. There were even suggestions Ronaldo had become bigger than the club - a charge which will have infuriated Sir Alex Ferguson.
Ronaldo's departure will give a possible platform for other players to shine who were previously eclipsed by the dazzling winger. Yet whether there is enough underlying talent in the Manchester United squad is a hot topic, and whether players like Nani and Anderson will be able to up their game for their team in this time of need is uncertain. Yet without their most incisive and direct attacker, as well as their most energetic and dogged striker, it will be up to the rest of the team to compensate for the missing incision and tenacity.
Much will depend of course on the players that Ferguson brings in during the transfer window. In the middle of the silly season the English Champions hve been linked with a massive amount of players despite of a massive void of credible sources. The most common candidates to fill the right wing vacancy left by Ronaldo are Wigan's Antonio Valencia and Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery.
Whether Ferguson decides to drastically bolster his front-line or opt to put more faith in the so far underwhelming Dimitar Berbatov, may be one of the key decisions for the Manchester United boss. The £30.75m signing fell out of favour towards the end of the season as Carlos Tevez hit form to ensure United's third successive Premier League title, and despite his 14 goals in all competitions for the Red Devils, the Bulgarian international has hardly endeared himself to the Old Trafford faithful since his arrival from Tottenham on deadline day in September 2008.
Let's not forget that Ferguson has lost big players before. Eric Cantona's early retirement shocked Old Trafford, Roy Keane was ousted prematurely after an outburst aimed at his team-mates and a fall out with David Beckham saw the England captain transferred to Real Madrid (replaced by some Portuguese teenager from Sporting Lisbon called Ronaldo). Each time Manchester United have recovered, proving no player is bigger than the club, and many pundits called the Manchester United team of the last two seasons Ferguson's greatest ever. Ferguson continues to rise to the challenge and Manchester United's fans will be confident that the man in charge has a plan for his team, and that any fears they may have now may seem trivial in a couple of seasons time.