Strangest United signing?

I was watching the match last night and was trying to fathom what our scouts/Fergie see in Smalling. It's got to be one of the most baffling signings of my lifetime. Signing a player who looks distinctly average for a highly inflated fee despite the fact we have a lot of strength in depth in that position. It's particularly strange because he was signed at a time when we have no money and need strengthening urgently in other areas.

I know there's been some poor signings over the years (Bellion, Miller etc...) but most were signed for next to nothing so there wasn't much to lose.

Not trying to write the bloke off already but from the outside, it looks like a very strange transfer. Can anyone remember a stranger one?

Michael Owen.

I remember people saying Evra was a strange signing, what with us having topred Heinze in the ranks, and Silvestre and O'Shea

You never know how it will work out

Originally Posted by forwardirektion

Michael Owen.

Not strange at all. We needed an experienced striker and couldn't afford anyone who cost more than 52p.

tbf Lok, if Wenger & Fergie both go for the same player, & are willing to pay anything up to £10m for him in the long run despite said player having been in non-League football a couple of years ago, I'll stick with their assessment as the guy having the talent & mentality to make it rather than the ramblings of a relentless mega%@#$&! on the internetz.

hth.

watching Smalling last night he did look woefully short of the quality required at United but then again I can remember the early part of Gary Pallister's career at United, like a £#%&!ing giraffe on rollerskates.

Originally Posted by Baron_van_Marlon

tbf Lok, if Wenger & Fergie both go for the same player, & are willing to pay anything up to £10m for him in the long run despite said player having been in non-League football a couple of years ago, I'll stick with their assessment as the guy having the talent & mentality to make it rather than the ramblings of a relentless mega%@#$&! on the internetz.

hth.

That's the most positive thing anyone has said about me in years. Thanks.

Why is this thread about a 20 year old centre half whos looked pretty handy until last night?

Thought this thread would be about Diouf.

I've not seen much of Smalling tbh. But, what I have seen suggests that he is pretty raw. You can see something about him though. I think he'll do fine, I really do.

Prior to the world cup I was a bit over the signing of the little pea. After seeing him get a run for Mexico I have to admit I'm quite excited at the prospect of him being a United player.

Originally Posted by safingtons

Why is this thread about a 20 year old centre half whos looked pretty handy until last night?

Thought this thread would be about Diouf.

It's more about strange signings from the past than just slagging off Smalling. I was watching Smalling last night and was trying to think of a stranger signing.

Diouf wasn't so strange as he cost very little. Chances are we'd be able to sell him for what we paid if it doesn't work out. It's the type of transfer I expect to see a lot of under the Glazers.

He looks poor but so did Vidic and Ferdinand early in their careers. Defenders are more difficult to judge on little evidence. I agree he looks pretty poor but I am going to give him a chance.

The more worrying this is Fergusons obsession with Darron Gibson who is nothing short of diabolical. Slow, unfit, lack of positional awareness, doesn't look for the ball, poor first touch, crap at passing and I don't think he is particularly good at shooting. He marks the nearest opposition player when United get the ball.

Originally Posted by Redhod99

He looks poor but so did Vidic and Ferdinand early in their careers. Defenders are more difficult to judge on little evidence. I agree he looks pretty poor but I am going to give him a chance.

The more worrying this is Fergusons obsession with Darron Gibson who is nothing short of diabolical. Slow, unfit, lack of positional awareness, doesn't look for the ball, poor first touch, crap at passing and I don't think he is particularly good at shooting. He marks the nearest opposition player when United get the ball.

Maybe he is the new F£#%&! Lampard?

Ian Ure

Ralph Milne btw.

Saf's losing it by the day. People say in Saf we trust, a master of the transfer market and procuring top notch talent for low low prices but I've seen the truth. The truth is he needs a Carlos @#%&!boz or a McClaren just as much as Cloughie needed a Taylor. SAF is off his rocker in terms of signings, has been since the millenium. More often than not he signs a melon for high high prices. Perhaps with the exception of RVN.

Originally Posted by Lok

It's more about strange signings from the past than just slagging off Smalling. I was watching Smalling last night and was trying to think of a stranger signing.

Diouf wasn't so strange as he cost very little. Chances are we'd be able to sell him for what we paid if it doesn't work out. It's the type of transfer I expect to see a lot of under the Glazers.

£5m wasn't it? From what i've seen of him there is noway he's going to make it at United. While he's a big strong lad he simply doesn't look like he can score a goal.

Smalling had a terrible game last night, but who didnt? Still only 20 and he had a good game vs Celtic and looking forward to seeing him more. Rather him have his bad games now and not during the season.

As for strange signings, ZORAN TOSIC surely has to win this hands down? Looks a good player, but never given the chance which asks the question. Why did we buy the £#%&!er in the 1st place?

Originally Posted by antonin jablonsky

Maybe he is the new F£#%&! Lampard?

That's a fallacy & you know it.

As for Smalling, I think Utd's hand was forced with regards to Wenger's interest. Ideally they'd have wanted to leave him at Fulham to play week in week out under Hodgson but it all changes & so United gambled. Now he's here & for a big fee (in the long run, you'd really have to imagine it's a hugely incentivised fee rather than a lump sum etc) he's unlikely to go on loan & probably be brought through in the same way Evans has - who has 2 years on him & a career through the United ranks, not £#%&!ing Maidstone United

He's 6' 4" & 20 years old, it'll take a while for him to fill out, he looks a lot like Rio did a decade ago & he only got to United as a 24 year old himself.

As for strange signings... Hargreaves. A player who had undoubted class, and something we needed. But ffs, surely knowing what tendonitis was doing to other players & the fact he'd struggled badly with injuries in his time at Bayern meant it was a huge risk. Some say it paid off with a CL win...

Originally Posted by Baron_van_Marlon

That's a fallacy & you know it.

As for Smalling, I think Utd's hand was forced with regards to Wenger's interest. Ideally they'd have wanted to leave him at Fulham to play week in week out under Hodgson but it all changes & so United gambled. Now he's here & for a big fee (in the long run, you'd really have to imagine it's a hugely incentivised fee rather than a lump sum etc) he's unlikely to go on loan & probably be brought through in the same way Evans has - who has 2 years on him & a career through the United ranks, not £#%&!ing Maidstone United

He's 6' 4" & 20 years old, it'll take a while for him to fill out, he looks a lot like Rio did a decade ago & he only got to United as a 24 year old himself.

As for strange signings... Hargreaves. A player who had undoubted class, and something we needed. But ffs, surely knowing what tendonitis was doing to other players & the fact he'd struggled badly with injuries in his time at Bayern meant it was a huge risk. Some say it paid off with a CL win...

It was a joke, though some on here don't think so.

Hargo hadn't had tendonitis before we signed him.

Originally Posted by That Boy Ronaldo!

£5m wasn't it? From what i've seen of him there is noway he's going to make it at United. While he's a big strong lad he simply doesn't look like he can score a goal.

Smalling had a terrible game last night, but who didnt? Still only 20 and he had a good game vs Celtic and looking forward to seeing him more. Rather him have his bad games now and not during the season.

As for strange signings, ZORAN TOSIC surely has to win this hands down? Looks a good player, but never given the chance which asks the question. Why did we buy the £#%&!er in the 1st place?

I think Diouf was £3m. Someone would pay that if we sold him at the end of the year.

My evaluation of Smalling being a 'strange' signing is based on more than just last night. I've probably seen him play about 10 times now and can't remember him ever looking even decent. In those 10 games he must have made at least 4 big mistakes that have lead to a goal.

I'm sure he'll go on to have a great career at the club. I just can't remember a transfer for such an amount of money when they're so unproven and look so raw.

diouf for me is a strange signing. He looks like a clown in a circus whenever on pitch.