Man Utd agree fee for Owen Hargreaves

Hatton Archive - 2002-2007 Hatton Archive - General Discussion
1

around the 17 mill mark for a 4yr deal

Bayern Munich have agreed to sell Owen Hargreaves to Manchester United.
Club president Franz Beckenbauer told German TV: “Owen is leaving. That was the player’s wish. It’s a good match and it’s also a good deal financially.”

Beckenbauer said the transfer fee was “around” £17m - which would be a record for a Bundesliga player.

Hargreaves, 26, has been at Bayern for 10 years but after starring for England at the World Cup last year, he admitted he wanted to play in the Premiership.

United quickly moved to open negotiations with Bayern and made offers in the summer transfer window and in January but the German club refused to sell - until now.

Hargreaves, who played only nine league games for Bayern this season because of injury, is expected to sign a four-year deal with the newly-crowned Premiership champions.

His career in Germany ended in disappointment when Bayern finished fourth in the Bundesliga, thereby missing out on Champions League qualification.

Writing in his column for the BBC Sport website, Hargreaves admitted the club “can never afford not to qualify for the Champions League”.

His transfer is therefore likely to be the first stage of an overhaul at the club, with chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge promising to carry out “brutal and ruthless” changes to the team.

Rummenigge said he was disappointed to be losing the energetic midfielder.

He told the club’s website: "A player like Owen Hargreaves would have looked good in our team next year.

“In the defensive midfield position Owen is one of the best in the world - it’s a big sporting loss for us.”

Sunday’s newspaper reports suggested Bayern could use the funds from Hargreaves’ sale to buy Chelsea winger Arjen Robben.

2

Top signing.

He’ll add that extra dimension our midfield has been craving. Someone to really add intensity and work rate in there.

Carrick isn’t lazy but is hardly a work horse. Scholes is getting older and tiring more quickly, especially with his athsma problems. Hargreaves has a hell of an engine on him aswell, remember him during the world cup? Ran his bollocks off :o

17 mill is a bit over the top, but i’m sure it’ll be in instalments similar to the Carrick deal and in the long run could be worth it.

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Yeah i agree excellent signing (if we do get him…), think 17 million is about 7 million too much!

4

thats the state of the transfer market at the minute tho isn’t it mate too many over inflated prices

5

Super player but I wonder how Ferguson plans to use him

He would dovetail well with Carrick or with Scholes, but they play well together too…he’ll end up using him at right back half the time

Pet hate of mine playing people out of position, it’s happening more and more in football and it’s gross stupidity ::slight_smile:

6

Our lineup next season:

------------Foster-----------

Neville----Rio----Vidic----Evra

-------Carrick–Hargreaves—

Ronaldo-----Scholes*-----Rooney

-------------Owen*------------

*Lita/Bent possibly instead of Owen, Rooney instead of Scholes with Giggs on the left

In alternative formation:

------------Foster------------

Neville-------Rio----Vidic--------Evra

Ronaldo–Carrick–Hargreaves–Giggs*

------------Rooney-----------------

---------------Owen----------------

*Rooney may be moved wide left and Scholes brought in for the bigger games to play as the attacking midfielder. Owen could be either Bent or Lita.

Owen would be my first choice striker signing, but Bent or Lita i feel are more realistic targets for us. I think Carrick will be Scholes long term replacement as long as he develops more attacking prowess. He has the passing ability and composure that’s for sure. In fact, i wouldn’t be surprised if we see Rooney in the Scholes position over the next 5 years, so don’t be surprised if he is eased into midfield. He’s gaining experience all over the pitch, mind.

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i dont see why some utd fans are desperate for owen at all to be honest.

all these injuries he’s had have to take away his pace (which was going anyway to be fair) and thats what he relies on imo.

ive been watching a few videos of him from even when he was back at liverpool and his touch is awful, but as he was so quick it didnt really matter, now the pace has gone he isnt half as good a player as he was and there are loads of better options out there. no doubt if you give him a chance in the box he will put it away but i dont fancy getting owen at all.

huntelaar would be a good choice i think, and definitely darren bent, who ive rated for quite a while now and i seem to remember chipper saying you didnt think he was a good player? might be wrong though and am thinking of another website.

lita would be a decent option i suppose but i think bent or huntelaar would be better options.

heard viduka mentioned aswell :o free transfer. not sure what to make of it really, no doubting he is a top class player when he can be arsed, but a lot of the time to me he looks like he cant be bothered. but ive spoke to a few boro fans who seem to think he is the best striker their club has had in a long time and they defintely regard him as one of the best in the premiership. maybe its worth a go for free?

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Omg i cant belive u could even think of leaving scholes out of our team he is just as important as ronaldo paul scholes is the most overated football of all time im telling u now there isnt any players at doing what he does playing today end of.

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he is getting on a bit though, look at roy keane, united never brought any one in as a potential replacement, and some times we do lack strength in depth in midfield. i think carrick and hargreaves would be a solid midfield for a good few years

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Well considering all the young stars and world class players on show on sunday funny how scholes was a million miles better than any other player on the pitch

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I don’t see how you can see he isn’t as good as he once was when he’s played about 2 games since the return of his injury. OK, he might not have as much pace as he used to, but take a bit of that off and he’s a damn fine player. Like i said, with a good month or so off, and a solid pre-season with United’s facilities to build his muscles up and what not (kind of what Newcastle did with Kieran Dyer, he doesn’t seem to have lost much pace and that’s because he’s not been rushed back for them) Owen could be a peach at 9mill, if the clause in his contract isn’t myth.

He’s a proven partnership with Rooney and i think they were the most deadliest strike force in Euro 2004. Surely Huntelaar will be staying at Ajax for a bit, he signed a 5 year contract at the start of the season, didn’t he? I wouldn’t be disappointed if we made a move for him, but honestly, it is more of a gamble going for him than Owen.

I’ve also heard Viduka thrown around for a free, it’s tempting and with Fergie’s managerial skills he may be in shape all year round and mentally ready. Worth a go i suppose, but we need a top class striker at the highest level.

[quote]Well considering all the young stars and world class players on show on sunday funny how scholes was a million miles better than any other player on the pitch
[/quote]
Not saying get rid of Scholes altogether, but he’s got 1 good season left in him and we need to start thinking about the future, IMO. I think with Carrick and Hargreaves we’ll have a good partnership and Scholes will almost certainly play in most of the bigger games though. Who knows, we might not even get a striker and Rooney will once again play the lone striker next season and have Scholes playing off of him.

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i’m not saying get rid of scholes but he can’t play forever and one day a replacement needs to be found. start now then hopefuly we won’t miss him like we do roy keane

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i hope you ment under rated, for me scholseys still the best english midfielder goin the only one who comes close is stevie G but he hasnt got little bit of extra class scholes has (i.e. that little flick he did to set rooney up in the 1st leg of the AC game)
fat frank isnt fit to lace the boots of the ginger prince

i still cant believe hes never won the PFA award, he’s defo been jus as if not more imporatant then ronaldo this year, jus doesnt get all the attention cos he quietly goes about his job & isnt too flamboyant with his skill on the pitch, but one killer through ball by scholseys means much more & is a harder skill then doin 30 step overs & all the flicks

14

Yer i ment underated lol

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i wouldnt say his partnership with rooney is proven, but i suppose there is the bonus of them having played and trained together before. but to be honest ive never really rated owen since he left liverpool, all that pace was what he relied on as like i said his touch has never been that good but his pace made up for it before.

ajax cant really expect to keep a player like huntelaar, im sure they knew it would either be this summer or next where he goes so the 5 year deal will just push his price tag up a bit.

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Classic!!! And very true!! ;D

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i hope you ment under rated, for me scholseys still the best english midfielder goin the only one who comes close is stevie G but he hasnt got little bit of extra class scholes has (i.e. that little flick he did to set rooney up in the 1st leg of the AC game)
fat frank isnt fit to lace the boots of the ginger prince

i still cant believe hes never won the PFA award, he’s defo been jus as if not more imporatant then ronaldo this year, jus doesnt get all the attention cos he quietly goes about his job & isnt too flamboyant with his skill on the pitch, but one killer through ball by scholseys means much more & is a harder skill then doin 30 step overs & all the flicks

Stevie g is better than scholes you must be a united fan ;D

18

ok first things first, Bent,Lita and Owen - NO BEEPING WAY!!! All rubbish and do not even deserve to be linked with United. Bent is ok for someone like Newcastle, Lita would never make it and Owen is just Louis Saha in disguise! I want a big name like Eto’o, Torres, hell even Huntelaar way ahead of any of those!!

Second point, Carrick does not even deserve to be mentioned as a potential replacement for Scholesy. Scholes is pure class and the best engish player for the last 20 years! As a season ticket holder at OT and seeing Carrick week in week out i think he has been crap. Rubbish in the big games, probably had one good game and that was 7-1 against Roma.

Stevie G and Pepperami wideboy (Lampard) do not even come close to being as good as Scholes, hence why McClaren has tried 3 times to get him to come out of international retirement!!

And finally United need to sign NANI!! the guy is pure class, and as Giggs has been shocking the last month of the season then United need this guy desperately!!

19

I’d take Eto’o over Owen/Bent/Lita but it’s just not gonna happen is it?

Torres i’m not sold on, not proven in the Premiership and neither is Huntelaar. Owen - Saha in disguise? That’s a bit disrespectful seeing as he can score goals blindfolded. Give him a chance to prove his fitness.

I can accept your point about Bent possibly only being Newcastle class, but Lita has been quite brilliant for Reading and has years ahead of him. In a couple of years he might be Englands leading striker. He looks quality.

Carrick, in my opinion is part of Fergie’s plan to replace Scholes, unless he gets with the idea full time that Rooney will be his replacement.

He has a great strike, good composure and close ball control. I’m not saying he is as good as him, who is? But he can’t be dismissed so easily.

20

Micheal Owen isnt rubbish fella he is one of the most prolific goal scorers of our era IMO.

Years Club App (Gls)*
1996–2004 Liverpool 216 (118)
2004–2005 Real Madrid 35 (13)
2005–present Newcastle United 14 (7)

If he can stay injury free he will score goals. I dont really see him as a United player tho TBH but how you can compaire him to Saha is beyond me :-\