Manchester United Dugout

Manchester United have signed a 5 year sponsorship deal with Pan-African telephone company Globacom. The partnership was unveiled yesterday at Old Trafford. The amount involved in the deal is not yet known.

As part of this deal young players from Nigeria, Ghana and Benin will train at the Manchester United Football Academy. It will also involve promotional packages for Manchester United fans in Nigeria, Ghana and Benin to watch 14 live matches involving the English champions. These matches will be from the Premiership, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League.

Globacom is one of the biggest telecommunication companies in Africa and reputed as Africa’s biggest supporter of football. Their interest in football has inspired them to provide a unique chance for West African cadets to have an international exposure to top of the range training facilities at the Manchester United Football Academy.

Last year Budweiser renewed their sponsorship agreement until 2010 with the Red Devils.

Manchester United is one of the most popular football clubs in the world. It has a massive fan following in the African continent and Globacom is trying its best to nurture some local talent under the watchful eyes of the best professionals at Old Trafford.

I hope we get our next Manucho from this group of kids.

Manchester United have been the league champions for 3 consecutive years now. They are trying to win a record fourth one but considering the current state of defense, I am worried.

If we see the performance of United this season, they have managed to win 12 matches out of 14 in all competitions. That might sound good but one has to look at each of those victories with a microscope. Baring 3 or 4 games, United have not at all looked the same that they were last year. To be honest, they are not even near that.

Manchester United has been a dominant force in England as well as Europe, but somehow the defense has been terrible this season. Many think that losing Van der Sar to injury during the beginning of the season was a major disruption. But I feel that it was a blessing in disguise. At least we got to see the quality and competitiveness of Ben Foster.

To be honest, Foster does not deserve to wear a Man United shirt. He has been pathetic with his personal performance and failed to organize his defense. If this is the strength of United bench that everyone praises, then I am sorry but there's surely some illusion.

There have been so many instances this season that have shown and proved that United's defense has been shaky. With reports indicating an exit for the two main center backs, matters have got worse. Rio Ferdinand's dip in form has attracted so much criticism that people have indicated his exit and linked him with a move to Tottenham. I don't know why Spurs was the chosen club? Even Vidic looks set to leave United pretty soon to join Barcelona. So who do we have to replace them?

I am sure Fergie knows that Evans and Wes Brown are not the best candidates to replace Ferdinand and Vidic. So what are the options? I don't see any. The irony of the situation is that United have been linked with players like David Villa & David Silva, Stevan Jovetic and others but none of them are defenders. Does Fergie have someone in sight or is he thinking of giving the reserve lads a promotion to the first team.

What do you think are the solutions to Manchester United's defense worries?

David Villa is arriving at Manchester United. Yes, this can be a truth if certain reports are to be believed. And what's more fun is that Villa will arrive at Old Trafford by dumping Chelsea. Yeah, that sounds good.

Chelsea and United have started a fresh bidding process to acquire the services of David Villa. Though Chelsea could splash more cash than United as Roman Abramovich has approved a mega bid while the Glazers are a bit reluctant to pay Valencia's price. But the Spanish hitman has revealed his interest to wear the red shirt and dump the blue one.

This is a surprising news. I am seeing almost all newspapers and magazines saying the same thing. You cannot believe these transfer rumors until they are backed  by some substantial sources. And what makes me believe these rumors is that this news has been featured on United's official site.

A source close to the star said: "David was approached about the Chelsea move in the summer but did not fancy it. He was not sure how often he would play or whether they played his style.

"Manchester United is his first choice in England, but there is a problem with that because of the price and his age. If it can be agreed with Valencia he would sooner go to Old Trafford."

Will David Villa really snub Chelsea and join United? Will he be able to turn down the mega money making opportunity with the Blues? Is he strong enough to stick to his words?

What do you think?

Manchester United will host CSKA Moscow today in their group B clash of the Champions League. United had won the same fixture two weeks ago in Russian capital and will look to win this one too.

Currently, the Red Devils lead Group B and a victory at Old Trafford would send them progress into the knockout round with two Group B matches to spare. Being in such a comfort zone, Fergie is likely to start with some subs or reserves as he will try to rest his stars for the big clash at Stamford Bridge this Sunday.

With Dimitar Berbatov injured and Wayne Rooney questionable after becoming a father on Monday, Michael Owen could get a start. He might team up with 18-year-old Federico Macheda if Rooney remains with wife Coleen and their new son, Kai Wayne Rooney.

Recently, Michael Owen had said that playing for Manchester United is more important for him than for the national team. I don't think these comments would see Fergie give Owen some partial consideration. But I only hope that if he starts today, he should remain till the end. Remember how his last home match start against Wolfsburg resulted in a damp squib as he lasted only 20 minutes.

The big rumor of the day is Valencia's duo of David Villa and David Silva are heading to Old Trafford. Manchester United plans to raid Spain as they are also linked with Villarreal's goal keeper Diego Lopez.

This comes straight after Valencia FC told David Villa - You can go your own way.

It is being said the United will pay £50m for Villa and his team-mate David Silva. But frankly speaking, I feel that this is far from a done deal. Not that United lack the required funds, but I can't understand what kind of team Fergie wants to build.

After the sale of CR7, Man Utd got $80m and Fergie spent only $17m to bring in Valencia from Wigan this summer. So there are all the required funds with United but David Villa has time and again show his reluctance in moving out of Spain. Also, David Silva has expressed his desire to play for Liverpool, if he arrives in England.

As far as Diego Lopez is concerned, I am pretty sure Villarreal will definitely create some awkward conditions as they like to create problems for Manchester United. Remember how they had behaved when Fergie planned to bring in Marcos Senna from Spain? The yellow submarines are a hell of a club. The arrival of Lopez looks distant after CSKA Moscow's goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev was linked with United.