Signing Ronaldo will lead United to a true title challenge

[horsechoker]

I don't think this signing will win us the title but what it has done is make it a four horse race.

If City had landed him or Kane I think it would've been game over. Now we can give City, Chelsea and Liverpool a run for their money.

As things stand, I think it will be whoever has the best luck with avoiding injuries and keeping their best players in form.

 

[Shiva87]

Has to doesn't it? Anything less and Ole may get some intense media pressure to be sacked - which I don't think the club will be able to hold off.

 

[Sandikan]

Fred and Matic our only central midfielders for the next few weeks. Then again RVP was enough to carry Cleverley and Anderson.

What's happened to that guy we spent 90m on who plays in centre midfield?

 

[AneRu]

I don't think this signing will win us the title but what it has done is make it a four horse race.

If City had landed him or Kane I think it would've been game over. Now we can give City, Chelsea and Liverpool a run for their money.

As things stand, I think it will be whoever has the best luck with avoiding injuries and keeping their best players in form.

Looking at what we have I think we are favourites, just imagine - if we had Ronaldo last weekend we would have been two up in twenty minutes because he would have taken those set-piece chances. Lots of our games have turned out like that over the years, miss great chances, get punished and fall apart.

Ronaldo has admittedly declined but he is still a great goalscorer and we have some of the top creators surrounding him in Bruno, Pogba and Sancho. We have the makings of a great defense but the midfield is worrying however we have enough to win the league, fitness permitting.

 

[Irwin99]

It's become a bit of a joke to people now but the McFred midfield gives a platform for the four main attacking players to do their thing and isn't THAT bad at doing it's rather boring job (obviously can be improved). Even though it's risky I expect Pogba to drop back into the midfield two as well at various points.

The expectation for this team now should be a very strong title challenge. No excuses at all considering the squad depth and talent now. It's exciting

 

[Name Changed]

I can't see how this will see us challenge for title. The same problems still exist. We will still find it hard to get the ball up to our forwards and make chances when we are playing deep lying teams. If anything Ronaldo works a lot less than Cavani. I don't think it will make a huge difference. We are still light in the middle.

I hope I am wrong.

 

[horsechoker]

Looking at what we have I think we are favourites, just imagine - if we had Ronaldo last weekend we would have been two up in twenty minutes because he would have taken those set-piece chances. Lots of our games have turned out like that over the years, miss great chances, get punished and fall apart.

Ronaldo has admittedly declined but he is still a great goalscorer and we have some of the top creators surrounding him in Bruno, Pogba and Sancho. We have the makings of a great defense but the midfield is worrying however we have enough to win the league, fitness permitting.

Our midfield will be our Achilles' heel, even a prime Ronaldo probably couldn't have won back to back to back Champions' Leagues without the world's best midfield behind him.

What it will do is level the playing field. Chelsea and Liverpool might have the better balance but City have the experience of winning it and United will be able to win any game on their day.

 

[Red00012]

Let’s do the Wimbledon way ignore the midfield

 

[ClosetDevil]

I think people are underestimating the sort of impact someone like him can have on the individual player output and collective impact on the team.

When you have someone like him on your side, he elevates the team not just by his presence / output but also what he does to all his teammates.

Michael Jordan had a similar effect on his Chicago Bulls teammates. Apart from Jordan, the rest weren't all individually considered to be the best players in their positions within the league, but he made them into the best team.

People need to stop looking at it as a "sum of its parts". There's an order or magnitude people are missing.

 

[Jeffthered]

It'll honestly be good to see him shouting and moaning at players who feck things up or don't show enough effort. I think he might raise the standards in that regard. We've been missing a real captains presence for a long time.

This is the point...and this is what excites me and seems timely. He will give that team backbone and guts. I, personally, do not think Ole does this, after over 120 games in charge. I think Ole needs Ronaldo, and not the other way around. I hope that dynamic can be used for the benefit of the team. Ole may seem overwhelmed by all this, but it will help him.

Ronaldo' being at United is amazing and he could inspire us to the title. Could. He will raise the levels across that squad. Pogba , Greenwood, Rashford et al will be inspired. But I don't think he will because the other teams are v strong, well-managed, and will be prepared for his impact. And other players (and fans) will relish the challenge. Remember this.

Plus, we're still short, and when the dust settles, I just hope this remains to be the inspired signing it currently feels to be.

 

[davidmichael]

I think we’re a pure out and out defensive midfielder away from winning the league but if you put Rice or Bissouma in our midfield then we should be considered favourites for the league as there’s no real weakness in the starting eleven which is backed up very strongly throughout.

 

[Foxbatt]

Get a quality DM and we should win the title. Sell Martial, Bailly, Lingard, James, Matic and Mata.

 

[SAFMUTD]

If anyone dares to say we can challenge because of " lame excuse" I'll lose my mind. We have to challenge, for everything.

 

[Todd]

Get a quality DM and we should win the title. Sell Martial, Bailly, Lingard, James, Matic and Mata.

You want to unload 6 senior players when we're in 4 competitions and have problems with players missing time through injury every season?

 

[UnofficialDevil]

As many have said, a title challenge is the bare minimum with this squad.

 

[He'sRaldo]

The psychological boost that CR7 brings to the team cannot be understated and may possibly be even more important than his contributions on the pitch.

We have a lot of younger players that grew up idolizing him, biggest example being Rashford. How often have we shot ourselves in the foot due to lethargy throughout Ole's tenure? Hell, it just happened last week! Imagine what CR7 could do to lift up the team in those situations.

Good point. If we had Ronaldo last year, no way we would have let the lead slip in the timid way we did.

 

[Foxbatt]

Would any player dare be that selfish and try their own stuff time and again in a match? Ronnie will have a right go at them. To him he is their senior even now at United.

 

[FutballerDude]

Ronaldo is coming home baby! Woooooooo. But the question is, is he too old to still put us in title contention? I mean I'd rather have him than not have him but how much does he actually have left in the tank?

 

[justsomebloke]

Has to doesn't it? Anything less and Ole may get some intense media pressure to be sacked - which I don't think the club will be able to hold off.

So, the Ronaldo effect so far is to enable fans to bask in the joy of feeling like a world class team again and rev title demands ( which few of us never really managed to lay aside no matter what the team actually looked like) instantly up to max. And to entrench the narrative of OGS as a "happy romantic". https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...nce-of-cristiano-ronaldos-old-trafford-return
Next from the punditry class will be "I don't think Utd/OGS is good enough to win, but he's finished if they don't". Pressure without confidence.

Let's hope on-pitch delivery justifies it.

 

[DixieDean]

If you had a elite manager you would probably win the league.

 

[TwoSheds]

If you had a elite manager you would probably win the league.

I agree. Shame there's no Fergies knocking around atm. Closest is probably Klopp I suppose.

 

[Trequarista10]

With so much firepower upfront, and Varane coming in to the back line, I think we may finally be able to afford the luxury of Pogba in a 2 man midfield, certainly in games against softer opposition. Ideally with a new DM but Fred or Scott would do the job. If teams dare to attack us we will fecking annihilate them on the counter.

 

[adexkola]

I think people are underestimating the sort of impact someone like him can have on the individual player output and collective impact on the team.

When you have someone like him on your side, he elevates the team not just by his presence / output but also what he does to all his teammates.

Michael Jordan had a similar effect on his Chicago Bulls teammates. Apart from Jordan, the rest weren't all individually considered to be the best players in their positions within the league, but he made them into the best team.

People need to stop looking at it as a "sum of its parts". There's an order or magnitude people are missing.

That was prime MJ.

Not saying the two are equivalent, but the MJ of the Wizards is what comes to mind looking at this transfer (and I hope I am way off on this!!)

 

[pacifictheme]

Have you forgot about Fred, McTominay and Matic?

Well I won't if people keep bringing them up.

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

That was prime MJ.

Not saying the two are equivalent, but the MJ of the Wizards is what comes to mind looking at this transfer (and I hope I am way off on this!!)

I think you are way off, because it's not like Ronaldo took 3 years off and then came back.

MJ then didn't play for 3 seasons! He probably didn't train much either in the 3 years off.

Ronaldo is still playing at an extremely high level and is an outlier when it comes to diet/training, etc. Jordan wasn't a top 10 player with the Wizards, and maybe not even top 20. I think Ronaldo is still one of the 10 best players in the world.

 

[2 man midfield]

He can’t do it on his own, he scored 36 goals last season and juventus still finished 4th. But we haven’t even had a 25 goal a season centre forward since the days of RvP, so it definitely can’t hurt our chances.

 

[tenpoless]

Please stop the Michael Jackson comparison. Heal the forum, make it a better place. For ole out, ole in and all the top reds.

 

[crossy1686]

Get a quality DM and we should win the title. Sell Martial, Bailly, Lingard, James, Matic and Mata.

I forgot Bailly even existed...

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

He can’t do it on his own, he scored 36 goals last season and juventus still finished 4th. But we haven’t even had a 25 goal a season centre forward since the days of RvP, so it definitely can’t hurt our chances.

Hopefully we get a repeat of that magical RVP season when he picked us over City and led us to the title.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

If we don't challenge Ole has to bow out, simple as that. I know the midfield is a glaring hole, but the team has enough quality around that to push till the end.

Agreed. This is a title challenging squad. Our attack is absurdly good on paper. The defence is also excellent. Midfield is decent/good but every team has some weaknesses.

 

[Ezryder]

The psychological boost that CR7 brings to the team cannot be understated and may possibly be even more important than his contributions on the pitch.

We have a lot of younger players that grew up idolizing him, biggest example being Rashford. How often have we shot ourselves in the foot due to lethargy throughout Ole's tenure? Hell, it just happened last week! Imagine what CR7 could do to lift up the team in those situations.

Agree. For years Rashford has been walking around the OT pitch like King Ding-a-Ling. Now Daddys home and he can see what it takes to be the top man.

Owen Hargreaves: "I remember my first day training with him. He was the first person on the training pitch, the first person in the ice bath and then the first person in the gym.

"I remember him doing sit-ups and at the end of his set he sat up and said: 'I'm going to be the best player in the world at the end of this year.' And he was.

 

[adexkola]

I think you are way off, because it's not like Ronaldo took 3 years off and then came back.

MJ then didn't play for 3 seasons! He probably didn't train much either in the 3 years off.

Ronaldo is still playing at an extremely high level and is an outlier when it comes to diet/training, etc. Jordan wasn't a top 10 player with the Wizards, and maybe not even top 20. I think Ronaldo is still one of the 10 best players in the world.

Honestly my opinion is colored by his latter months at Juventus. Still produced numbers wise but performance wise he tailed off.

 

[Mickeza]

It's a win now move and if we don't win anything major, probably this season, then it will have failed. There can't be any more talk of building or a long term plan, they've made a short term move and if it doesn't work (and honestly I don't think it will) then Ole will surely have to face the consequences.

The long term plan was pretty simple - we signed Cavani for a year and were going after Haaland. The problem was Ronaldo going to City and with the backdrop of the toxicity of last season plus the utter meltdown it was causing with people claiming we had to protest and stop games again the club felt it would create a shit storm of negativity before the season had even got going. They were right. We couldn’t let him go to City. But let’s not talk shite and say Ole has to face the music - the club were forced into it for non-footballing reasons. If he was off to PSG no way we get him as proven by the fact he was there all summer and we had no serious interest. Ultimately Mendes has played a fecking blinder.

 

[Irrational.]

The last two times we beat City to the signing of a striker we won the league (Berbatov and RvP).

It’s on lads!

 

[crossy1686]

If you had a elite manager you would probably win the league.

Like Klopp did last year you mean?

 

[adexkola]

The long term plan was pretty simple - we signed Cavani for a year and were going after Haaland. The problem was Ronaldo going to City and with the backdrop of the toxicity of last season plus the utter meltdown it was causing with people claiming we had to protest and stop games again the club felt it would create a shit storm of negativity before the season had even got going. They were right. We couldn’t let him go to City. But let’s not talk shite and say Ole has to face the music - the club were forced into it for non-footballing reasons. If he was off to PSG no way we get him as proven by the fact he was there all summer and we had no serious interest. Ultimately Mendes has played a fecking blinder.

Interesting theory

 

[dinostar77]

Alot of our play goes through bruno and pogba so it will be interesting to see how ronaldo affects this. Also thr positions bruno takes up in and around the box, will that be impacted by ronaldo? Who knows. Anyway we'll find out. We all pretty much agree we have the squad now for a challenge. A new DM and backup RB would be ideal, but it is what it is.

 

[DJ_21]

I just hope it doesn’t ruin the form of other players. We have a ridiculous amount of talent upfront but I just think to win the league we need a natural DM… it’s alright having all these attackers but if we keep getting over run in midfield then we will concede a few goals. Although another good thing about us re signing Ronaldo is that he’s a winner and a captain… we’ve already got cavani, Maguire, Fernandes, Varane who all have winning mentality’s which will drive the other players on. Ronaldo is gonna absolutely love being supplied by pogba, Fernandes and sancho… we have a goalscorer who will make them runs into the box and can out jump any defender in the league for the headed goals which will help us against parked the bus teams.

 

[dinostar77]

I include him, he's not a fast dribbler. Excellent close control but slow acceleration. He's not like say young Ronaldo, Nani, Neymar, Mane etc who all could beat a man from a standing start.

Utd have spend over £130mil on three wingers in the past few windows and you want more? Aint going to happen. Sancho is the present, and Amad & Pellestri are the future who will challenge for a starting spot on the wings in a few years time.

 

[Ish]

Fred and Matic our only central midfielders for the next few weeks. Then again RVP was enough to carry Cleverley and Anderson.

This.

A DM would definitely help our cause but at the end of the day the money’s been directed elsewhere. Fact is, we also have VdB and no manager ever gets 11 world class signings before they’re judged. At times, it feels like it’s only our manager where this is a criteria set by our fans.