Gossip: Striker Crisis prompts New Transfer Moves
Times: Sir Alex Ferguson will spend the final three days of the transfer window looking for a striker to cure a sudden shortage of firepower at Manchester United, but is increasingly resigned to having to wait until January in his search for reinforcements.
Since adding Carlos Tévez to his forward line this month, Ferguson has sold Alan Smith and Giuseppe Rossi to Newcastle United and Villarreal respectively, while yesterday brought confirmation of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s retirement after a lengthy battle with a knee injury and the prospect of Tévez making a 21,000-mile round trip to Melbourne to play in a friendly for Argentina against Australia on September 11, four days before a Barclays Premier League match away to Everton.
With Wayne Rooney sidelined by a fractured foot and Louis Saha exercising caution in his recovery from a summer knee operation, Tévez is the only fit striker at Old Trafford.
Ferguson was concerned by a potential lack of attacking personnel even before Solskjaer’s announcement yesterday, having put out feelers last week through a handful of trusted agents, with Dimitar Berbatov, of Tottenham Hotspur, his principal target.
A deal for Berbatov always looked problematic this summer, after an unsuccessful inquiry in June, but, while that situation will be revisited, possibly in January, United are scouring Europe in search of alternatives for the immediate future.
United are aware that Nicolas Anelka could be available from Bolton Wanderers for about £8 million and that there is a chance of luring either Obafemi Martins or, intriguingly, Michael Owen from Newcastle United. All three have been discussed at Old Trafford during the summer, with Anelka the subject of a tentative and informal inquiry to Bolton in May, but Ferguson and Carlos Queiroz, his assistant, are not convinced of the merits of signing any of them.
Other potential targets would be David Trezeguet, the Juventus forward, or Adriano, of Inter Milan, with the latter the subject of a firm bid from West Ham United after being offered to a number of English clubs over the past week. Both were the subject of interest from United last year and either would provide a physical presence to complement the skills of Rooney, Tévez or Saha, but Ferguson is far from certain to pursue that option.
Ferguson hopes to welcome back Rooney within three weeks, considerably sooner than the initial prognosis, but, while Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Cristiano Ronaldo, Anderson and Nani can all operate as a support striker, there is concern at the lack of out-and-out strikers.
As for Solskjaer, he will stay at Old Trafford in a dual role as a coach and club ambassador, having been lined up as the long-term successor to Sir Bobby Charlton, who, at 69, is expected to pass on some of his diplomatic duties for the club over the next few years. Solskjaer, 34, has undertaken numerous charitable engagements for United in recent years.
“Nobody will forget Ole’s dramatic winner in Barcelona [in the 1999 Champions League final], but much more than that, his dedication and professionalism make him one of the great role models,” David Gill, the chief executive, said yesterday. “Ole will be dearly missed as a player, but will go on to serve the club as an ambassador and a valuable coach.”
Solskjaer admitted that he was retiring with great reluctance, but that, having had four years of battling a knee injury, he knew he had to concede defeat after another relapse in training last week. “It has been a fantastic 11 years,” he said of his United career. “I’m just proud to have played for this club.”
