MAN U WAMEPIGWA LA KISIGINO HAPA.....
=======================================================================================================
As Pedro settles into life at Chelsea, questions remain after a strange saga
August 21, 2015 11:18:06 AM PDT
By Miguel Delaney
Louis van Gaal was feeling the pressure on Friday, so had to let loose.
"You can write what you want," the Manchester United manager told media, in response to repeated questions about how Pedro ended up at Chelsea rather than Old Trafford. "We cannot say what we want, that is the difference."
It was a curious statement and one that effectively confirmed that the full truth had not come out about this much-discussed transfer.
In that, Van Gaal's defensiveness effectively defined the past few weeks, in which the modern summer saga has been taken to extremes, in terms of how long it went on and how the many leaks and public statements amounted to little more than big clubs trying to save face.
There is a belief from some around Stamford Bridge that the purchase of Pedro is a direct response to last weekend's loss at Manchester City, but that is just one detail of this affair that is open to so much interpretation, and could yet have so much influence on the season, not least for what it reveals about the approaches of both teams.
It's also difficult to think of a transfer in which there has been so much contradictory information, from so many sides.
There are only a few things about it all that we know for certain, other than the fact Pedro is now a Chelsea player.
The first is that Jose Mourinho first became aware that a deal could be done for the 28-year-old on Monday and that the Portuguese called the player to persuade him.
That, though, is where the clarity ends. Mourinho claims that call amounted to a one-minute conversation, which went as follows:
Mourinho: "Is it true that you want to leave Barcelona?"
Pedro: "Yes, it's true. I love it here. It's my home, but it's time for me to move." Mourinho: "id you sign already for another club?"
Pedro: "Almost, but not yet."
Mourinho: "o you want to come here?"
Pedro: "Yes, I want."
That sounds a little pat for someone as famously persuasive as Mourinho, and Pedro himself has told Chelsea's official website that the Portuguese manager phoned him "a few times."
"He is one of the main reasons why I'm here," the 28-year-old said.
Meanwhile, it is unknown whether Van Gaal called Pedro to make a similar intervention but, either way, numerous Spanish sources state that the player did feel a little unsure as to how much Manchester United actually wanted him.
That would back up the stance from official channels within Old Trafford that United's interest in the player had significantly cooled.
Some sources maintain that, although Van Gaal had initially wanted a winger exactly like Pedro, the gradual realisation that Memphis Depay is better on the wing meant the Dutch manager switched his attention to a different type of forward -- a striker who could play wide rather than vice versa.
It would also tally with repeated stories from United that Van Gaal can change his targets abruptly. Such an attitude also means the 64-year-old is constantly on the back of executive vice chairman Ed Woodward.
The problem with this is that it's impossible not to think the timing of the news that the Old Trafford club had dropped their interest is a little too convenient, especially since it came out only after Chelsea had all but secured the transfer. There are also some other inconvenient details swirling around.
Some at United maintain the club's interest was very much "active" as late as Monday and that Pedro was still being mentioned in high circles -- with the No. 9 shirt set aside -- but United effectively got complacent and allowed Chelsea to sneak in. The player's agent indicated as much on Friday.
Van Gaal was evasive on the topic at his news conference, but the bottom line is that Chelsea showed much more conviction in getting Pedro, even if the United manager did claim a deal "was not any problem so because there was a clause in his contract so it was the most easy transfer."
As to United's interest in Sadio Mane, Southampton manager Ronald Koeman himself floated the idea it was a deflection tactic, and those at St Mary's say they have not received a United bid.
On the other side, it is claimed that Pedro himself went cool on United, with the apparent aloofness of Van Gaal throughout the "process" in keeping with stories he'd heard about the coach's man-management from the likes of Victor Valdes.
Cesc Fabregas, by contrast, most certainly rang Pedro to repeatedly talk up Chelsea. When and why is where the intrigue lies. Mourinho would not say he'd got one over on United in the way he once laughed about Tottenham Hotspur's failed pursuit of Willian, but this may have been an even bigger power play.
Just a week ago, before the Manchester City game, there were repeated claims from within Stamford Bridge that Mourinho was getting increasingly agitated and rather impatient with the club hierarchy about Chelsea's lack of transfers. There was no talk of Pedro, despite tentative interest having been registered earlier in the summer.
Less than a week later, a world and European champion has been signed and Mourinho was in a conspicuously better mood at his Friday news conference. (It should also be noted that the pre-City edition featured a heavy dose of questions related to the Chelsea medical staff, which drew Mourinho's ire.)
"The players are not happy with the results," Mourinho said. "We want to do better, and there is only one way: to work well, and better than ever, which we did all this week. New players are always welcome, so obviously I'm happy that they have come to us."
Chelsea have made the deal they had to do in attack, finally adding a freshness, and potentially solving what has been a repeated problem in terms of alternative options going forward.
Mourinho also hinted at more signings and they may not just come in defence. If Chelsea have truly green-lit his demands, as is now being suggested, the manager might yet get an all-action midfielder to fill in the occasional gaps between Fabregas and Nemanja Matic.
United meanwhile are still looking for their two big requirements: an assured ball-playing centre-half and a forward who offers versatility.
Van Gaal certainly needs more than Wayne Rooney up front. That remains clear, unlike so much about the Pedro saga.
