He will, of course, be most fondly remember by Reds for his late, late strike in the 4-3 win over City. That was almost three years ago, and those of us who thought it signalled the start of something special were sorely mistaken. Owen has become a figure of fun in recent seasons, having spent longer in his stables than the dressing room.

Although the financial impact of getting his mostly performance related contract off the payroll will be limited, it will open up a space in the squad for a hungry striker who can stay fit. With Rooney, Hernandez and Welbeck established, but Berba looking likely to leave for good and Will Keane to leave on loan, there will be a gaping hole at fourth on the pecking order. Will Kiko Macheda be given another shot at making it his own, or will it be filled by Borussia Dortmund’s Robert Lewandowski, who has caught the eye whilst we’ve been scouting Kagawa and who is so prolific in Germany?

Owen himself feels that he has another two or three years to offer, but has ruled out the prospect of dropping down into the Championship to play more regularly, which could alert the likes of Wigan and Stoke, both of whom have expressed an interest in Owen before.

Perhaps he could even return to Anfield? The scousers could certainly do with a predator and, with Kenny gone, we need someone to laugh at.

Should Neville become Manchester United manager in the future, it is likely that he will be the first former Old Trafford player to take the manager’s job since Wilf McGuinness in 1969. Lal Hilditch, who held the post for six months in the late 20′s, is the only other former player to have manager Manchester United. Only two managers in the 20th century had a worse record than Lal. They were Jack Robson in the 1910′s, and Jimmy Murphy in obviously tragic circumstances.

And, of course, pain, as Aguero wheeled away in ecstasy, Vincent Kompany lifted the Premiership trophy above his head, and we nursed our fingernails into the evening, bitten to the bleeding bone, with only a faint alcohol buzz left to rock us to sleep.

It’s easy to pull out the wrist knives and aim them at Fergie, demand change and wish nothing but harm upon Sheikh fucking Mansour, but to do so would be spoiled, entitled and lacking the class that, as a fanbase, we pride ourselves on maintaining.

To do so would also ignore all of the positives that came from this season and, despite the fact we’ve ended major trophyless for the first time since 2004/05, you could make an argument that we’ve actually had a better season this time around, if not on the pitch, then certainly in terms of the potential we now have moving forward.

We’re 9 points better off this season than last

From a purely numerical point of view, we were 9 points better than last season, when we won the title. Our closest rivals, Chelsea and City, could only manage 71 points each, and goal differences of +36 and +27 respectively. We ended this season 15 goals better off than last, but the competition improved their record by a massive 18 points and 27 goals. We’ve improved – it’s just that the competition has upped their game.

We no longer fear games against Chelsea or Arsenal

We hammered Arsenal 8-2 at home and beat them 2-1 away. We beat Chelsea 3-1 at home and got an incredible 3-3 draw with them away. In seasons past we would look upon these games, especially the away games, with dread. Our record against these teams this season means that the air of invincibility that these teams sometimes show up with has been blown away, hopefully for good, and now that the monkey is off our shoulders we can start of punish them in the way that they’ve bothered us in recent seasons.

Our young players were taught a lesson about European football

By banging our heads against the wall of what should have been a straightforward Champions League group, the youngsters that have been involved (especially Smalling, Welbeck and Jones) will have learned the same kind of lessons that Fergie’s Fledglings learned fifteen years ago when they would struggle to get past Galatasaray and friends on a seemingly annual basis. Our major rivals can’t say this – Arsenal’s campaign ended in a damp squib of a 4-0 defeat to AC Milan, Chelsea will need to school a whole new generation once this one passes in the next couple of years and all City will have learned from their group of death is that sometimes really good teams beat you. That’s not news. Our kids are now prepared for the demands of European football. Bring it on.

Our transfer needs and targets are (seemingly) obvious.

Sir Alex is a very trusting manager, but even he must now see what the rest of us believe is hiding in plain sight. We need to sign an upgrate on Patrice Evra, who is an utter liability defensively. We need to bolster our central midfield with 2 or 3 more players, given that Giggs and Scholes aren’t immortal, Park can’t play there and Paul Pogba has finally decided to fill his bank account instead of his trophy cabinet and fuck off to Juventus. We need another striker if, as expected, Berba and Owen leave and Will Keane goes out on loan. We need a versatile backup defender, especially one who can cover the full-back positions given that Fabio is going out on loan and his brother is made of glass. If we’ve learned one painful lesson this year, it is that the squad is not as strong as we think it is. It’s certainly going to be bolstered this summer.

Fergie has a new monster to slay

Fergie is a master at motivating his teams, and himself, at the best of times. The one underlying narrative to his reign from the first day to the current was his burning desire to knock Liverpool off their perch. This is done, now. Liverpool are a shadow of their former self and serve as light entertainment for the 50 weeks of the season we’re not playing them. Fortunately, any potential for complacency has been blown away by the ugly gargoyle rearing its head across the city. If there is anything on this planet that will motivate Fergie, and in turn the players, to reach new heights of excellence, then it will be the immense challenge of holding back the blue tsunami that threatens to wash over football in this country, and in turn all over Europe.

This season had many high points, and the fact that it ended with one unbelievable low shouldn’t disguise that fact that, on the field at least, the club is in great shape to move forward, and will be challenging City once more. Will City do a Chelsea and take their eye off the domestic ball in pursuit of European glory? Possibly. Whatever they do, we’ll be there, on the front line, fighting for every last piece of silverware.

In Fergie we trust.

What with Eden Hazard, Mario Goetze and Radamel Falcao Garcia probably already having wardrobes full of sky blue tat, we’re going to have to set our sights a little lower, at least in terms of reputation. Whilst Kagawa might not set the blogs buzzing in the same way as the other names, he’s no less talented. Indeed, he’s been vitally important to Dortmund’s two consecutive Bundesliga titles, and would fit right in at Old Trafford.

A goal every two and a half games is the most arresting statistic about a player that would instantly increase our midfield goal threat from non-existent to actually pretty decent. 5 goals in 14 European games prove that he can also deliver on the big stage, and 9 goals in 29 caps show that he can fit into different teams with ease. Could he fit into ours? There’s plenty of scope for him to do so, given that we’ve been crying out for a forward-thinking midfielder for a number of seasons now.

It looks more and more like Kagawa will be on his way out of Dortmund this summer, given that he’s stalling over a new deal. His mate, Mats Hummels, seems to think that if he was staying he’d have signed a deal by now and, even though the quotes about him starting a “new adventure with Manchester United” turned out to be Spielberg-worthy works of fiction, the silence is deafening.

He’s exactly what we need, and he would almost certainly want to come. The only things pointing in different directions are the possibility that we might actually have more money than we realise, and that Fergie rarely goes for the obvious options.

Alex Del Piero?

It’s been a bit more venomous than usual because the beneficiaries have been Oil Sheik FC up the road, who’s grotesque spending power has distorted the transfer market, the Premiership competitive balance and the will-to-live of the average fan.

Rather than focus on the fact that this United team, a team in transition between generations, has finished at least second in the league, bettered after 37 games only on goal difference by a soulless monster that cost £970m to synthesise, fans tend to reach for the wrist knives and start slashing away. The arbitrary fact that our old rivals Manchester City won the al-Lottery-bin-Dreamteam makes the whole situation unbearable to them. In between the empty blue seats there are countless smug blues that, if you can resist the urge to slap them in the back of their Poznan-dancing heads, continue to kid themselves that they feel some kind of connection to this team of “theirs”.

I feel differently. This is a season of which we can rightly be proud.

The big weak point of the season has been our cup campaigns. Our European adventure reminded me of the early to mid nineties, a learning experience all round. Whilst our team selection against the likes of Benfica and Basel was a bit shoddy, overall we had more than enough to get through a group that, back in September, I suggested on this blog was basically a bye. We failed, only beating Galati if I remember, and then got completely mullered by a Bilbao side that went all the way to the final of the UEFA / Europa booby cup. We threw away our FA cup win over City by getting lazy against Liverpool and even the League Cup wasn’t kind to us.

The bread and butter of any United season is, of course, the league, and it’s here that we did ourselves proud, for the most part. To haul in City, who started like a train, was impressive enough, but to do so with a young side and a captain out injured for most of the season adds to the achievement. That we did it with probably the weakest midfield in the top six, at least before the return of Scholes, shows how strong we are as a club. That we did it without Nani winning games single-handedly the way he did last season indicates the strength in depth everywhere except the middle of the park.

It’s fairly obvious what needs to be remedied in the summer. Central midfield, left back and a new forward. If we buy well, then we should be favourites for the title next time out, especially if City manage to close our their title bid at the weekend, as the pressure for them to buy stupidly big will be somewhat relieved.

Second by the narrowest of margins against the most obscenely expensive experiment in football history? If that’s not good enough for you, then I’m afraid you’re spoiled.

Food for thought is that only a few years after their sugar daddy got bored, Premiership Champions Blackburn Rovers got relegated under the crippling weight of their wage bill. Enjoy it whilst you can, City. It won’t last forever.

At the other end of the pitch, Ben Amos kept goal ably against the charging brigade of ogres that is Stoke City, standing tall and doing the limited amount of work required with minimal fuss. He’ll face tougher challenges in his United career than this, most  likely against Chelsea at the weekend, but you can only beat what you’re up against.

Pogba’s 20 minute cameo was full of promise. One of the most important ways you can tell whether or not a young player is up to the standard required is whether or not they want the ball. Pogba demands it, and when he has it, he uses it well (100% pass completion, 21 passes).

He has pace and drive and, it would appear, a dangerous delivery on him. His YouTube highlights reel from the reserves also includes a number of outstanding strikes, something he will introduce to the first team midfield now that Scholes doesn’t do it any more.

Given the problems we’re having both in goal and in midfield, Pogba and Amos have surely now played their way into genuine contention for starting berths. Whilst Chelsea will probably come too soon for Pogba, Amos will almost certainly be required from the start.

This isn’t a massive problem because Amos is highly rated at Old Trafford and the other two senior keepers, Anders Lindegaard and especially David De Gea, have looked vulnerable of late. Still, it’s certainly not a place you’d want to go with an untested goalkeeper if you could help it, and that’s a crumb of comfort that the forgotten Tomasz Kuzczack can hold on to.

With Ferguson having now washed his hands of Ravel Morrison, the path is cleared for the next generation of United youngsters, led by Pogba and Amos, to force themselves into first team contention. Will Keane has already seen Premiership action, and will certainly enjoy more before the season is out. The form of Davide Petrucci could also see him poke his head above water before the year is out.

These are an important six months for our young players. With Giggs, Scholes, Owen, Berbatov, Carrick, Ferdinand and Park all reaching the twilight of their careers (indeed, Scholes has aready quit once), there are going to be spaces in the squad up for grabs. If they can follow the example of Amos and Pogba, and steer clear of the path trod by Ravel Morrison, our youngsters could be the ones to fill them.

Pepe was physically imposing, tactically fouling, throwing his weight about the midfield and generally being a bit of a hard case. At least, until he overstepped the mark by stamping on Messi’s hand and play-acting hilariously after a foray forward.

There will almost certainly be some kind of disciplinary fallout from the game because, whilst the Spanish authorities tend to turn a blind eye to play-acting, they are not so lenient with violent acts, as they demonstrated when banning Pepe for ten games following an assault on a Getafe player a few years back.

Something that we can all conclude is that Pepe is a brutal dickhead.

The elephant in the room is that this is exactly the kind of player we need at the base of our midfield.

One of our major, growing concerns for a number of years has been the way opponents have been able to physically overwhelm us in the midfield area. Not since Keane have we had a player who could stand in the center circle, with dirty knees and bloodied shirt, and command all of those around him. This has never been more obvious than in our game against Everton earlier this year. We somehow nicked a 1-0 win, but Rodwell and Fellaini absolutely annihilated our midfield duo.

Pepe would not allow himself to get bossed by anyone. Not by Rodwell or Fellaini, not by Essien, not by Busquets, not by Stoke City’s team of ogres. He would stand toe to toe and fight. A partnership in midfield with Phil Jones would be absolutely terrifying.

With that duo dominating things in the middle it would free up Nani, Rooney and Young to cause mayhem ahead of them, safe in the knowledge that, should moves break down, there is an impenetrable wall just waiting for the opportunity to eat their opponents alive.

His disciplinary record would, of course, be a huge concern. It’s difficult to say that Fergie would sort him out because we don’t know how long Fergie is going to be around. It’s difficult to suggest he tones down his more animalistic tendencies because there’s no knowing how big a part of Pepe the player Pepe the character is.

The most telling point of all, though, is that if I were lining up at Old Trafford against Real Madrid, I would much rather have Pepe on my side than against me.

He is an utter tosser, yes. That doesn’t mean he isn’t also an excellent player.

This got me a little worried. If we applied this idea to Manchester United, which team would come out on top? Would our current first team beat or be beaten by the best available former players?

I’m going to sidestep the debate as to what our current first team is and simply present the following. If you want to put Valencia in for Young and switch Nani to the left, go right ahead. Do what you like with our current players.

At the same time, there were some decisions to make with regards our former players. I’ve included the troll, simply because he’s pretty good at football, but if you utterly despise him then feel free to bung Forlan or Ruud in there instead. You could even have big Louis Saha if you like, or play four across the midfield with Eagles or Richardson providing more width. Plus, I think Veron is just about clinging on to his playing career?

Manchester United Former Players XI

Current Manchester United First XI

My Verdict

For what it’s worth, I think we’d struggle. Whilst we’ve got a very good back four, we can also put out a very solid former players back four with Pique adding class and composure and leading the play from the back. We’re probably stronger than the former team in midfield, but that says as much about the complete lack of decent midfield players we’ve had in the past ten years. Like it or not, our former forwards blow away our current lineup. Whilst we’re fairly strong there, I think Ronaldo, Tevez and Rossi is probably a stronger front three than at any club in the world.

What do you think? Current or former XI? Leave a comment with your thoughts.

These two should, really, be at opposite ends of their Old Trafford careers. Gibson has worked hard and kept his head down but has ultimately been undone by a lack of true quality. Morrison doesn’t lack that but, thanks to a combination of problems with the law, a lax attitude towards training and a generally shitty attitude, both find themselves on the way out.

If I was Bolton Wanderers and you gave me carte blanche to sign either player, I would go for Darron Gibson every day of the week and twice on tuesday.

As a fanbase, we’ve been horribly critical of Gibson, and he can be forgiven for perhaps thinking that we’re a set of dicks, if that is indeed how he feels. Gibson came through the youth system and, via the traditional Fergie Fledgling route of loans at Antwerp and then-Championship club Wolves, eventually fought his way into the first team picture.

Never in danger of becoming first choice, Gibson could always be relied on to put in a solid shift when called upon. Hard working and honest, he popped up with the occasional thunderbolt, although those sitting in row Z were in grave danger when he wound up.

Despite being used sporadically and recieving some horrific unwarranted criticism from less educated supporters, he never moaned. He kept his head down and worked hard. Indeed, things could have turned out differently for him had we not thrown away our lead against Bayern Munich after he had opened the scoring. He’d have enjoyed far better support had Robben shanked his volley wide and we’d made the next round. Such is life.

The thing with Gibson is that he’s worked hard to get to where he is in the game. He’s not blessed with outrageous talent but, given the opportunies given to him by Manchester United, has grasped the nettle, given it his all, and will now enjoy a solid Premiership career at Goodison Park alongside Phil Neville.

How Ravel could learn from him. A player with ten times the talent of Gibson, Morrison is, unfortunately, a complete drongo who has allowed his mates and his sense of entitlement ruin his Old Trafford career. Ravel can’t understand why he isn’t in the first team already, despite not turning up for training, getting himself in trouble with the law and picking up numerous stupid red cards in the youth teams.

Essentially, Ravel thinks that he should be in the side based on talent alone, and shouldn’t therefore have to work to make the most of it. He believes that he’s exempt from the minimum standards of a professional footballer, which are to try hard and be reliable, simply because he can control a football better than other players his age.

Because he’s not already in the team, he has rebelled. In his mind, he is already a star. He completely believes the hype that surrounds him, and he isn’t helped by the kind of arse licking that fans give him on Twitter. Ten years ago, most Manchester United fans that tweet to him and about him wouldn’t even have had a fucking clue who he was. With YouTube, twitter and forums now available, and reserve games on MUTV, some clued-down fans think’s he’s better than fucking Messi and should be started in the Premiership.

The most self-destructive thing about Morrison is that he’s not able to detach himself from his degenerate mates. If he wasn’t any good at football, Morrison would be in jail, if not now then soon. The only difference between him and the thugs that prowl your estate at night is that Morrison has a gift for kicking a football and has therefore been given a chance to pull himself away from that life. By turning down that opportunity, he’s allowed all the negatives to creep in, get inside his head, and fuck his United career right up.

The only way he can make the grade is to move away from Manchester, get away from all the bad influences that are ruining his career and life, and concentrate fully on his football. He won’t get this at Manchester City, but perhaps a long-term loan somewhere like Southampton or Norwich (or bloody Siberia) would do the trick. Sadly, I don’t think he has any desire to do this himself, and he’s going to end up as this decade’s Robin Friday.

When Gary Neville was breaking into the United youth teams, he cut himself off from his mates almost completely, and concentrated on making the grade. He really, really wanted to play football for this club and, through hard work and dedication, achieved that feat. If Morrison can’t bring himself to get out of bed and go to training with the carrot of a Manchester United and England career dangling then, quite frankly, fuck him. I’m not being partizan. If that’s not incentive enough to even show up to training then what is? How will he ever motivate himself to achieve anything?

Roy Keane said that the lower leagues are filled with talentless players who work really, really hard, and outrageously talented players who just don’t give two shits about putting the time and effort in. Gibson is the former, Morrison the latter. An extreme example of the latter.

Unfortunately, I don’t think that Ravel is going to realise the opportunity he is missing for a few years yet. The suddenly, when he’s halfway through his first shift at Foot Locker, the penny will drop. By then it will be too fucking late.

What a waste.

Wayne was also one of three finalists for the Puskas Award, given to the scorer of the best goal of the year, but lost out to Santos sensation Neymar.

Leo Messi picked up his third straight Ballon d’Or, polling  (based on some back of an envelope rough calculations) the highest proportion of the vote since Zindedine Zidane in 1998.

Alongside Vida, Rooney and Messi, the team of the year consisted of Cassilas, Ramos, Pique, Alves, Xavi, Iniesta, Xabi Alonso and Ronaldo, with just three clubs represented for the first time in the history of the Award (David Villa’s inclusion in 2010 included 5 months with Valencia).

There were no representatives from any other Premiership club nominated for any award.