Looks like there is going to be a transfer war between Manchester United and Barcelona over the signature of Berbatov. Earlier it looked that Berbatov was heading for Manchester when Sir Alex said that he was almost sure that Berbatov will sign for Man Utd by the end of this month. It is reported that united have made a bid of around $20 million for the Bulgarian forward. Though Tottenham have rejected the bid and also reported Man Utd and Liverpool to FA for pursuing both there forwards, it looks as if they are going to lose both there forwards.

Barcelona seems to be a new club that has joined the race for Berbatov. After not progressing in there negotiations with Arsenal over Adebayor, it seems they are going to make a bid of around $24 million for Berbatov. One advantage they have is that, they can also offer Samuel Eto to Tottenham as a bait for Berbatov. But I highly doubt that Eto will want to come to Barcelona. But what will Berbatov do, he already snubbed United once, will he do it again ? If Berbatov moves to Barcelona, then another player that Man Utd can pursue is Samuel Eto. With Barcelona no longer wanting the forward, he would be an easy target. Though I am a bit amazed to see that no clubs such as AC Milan, Liverpool etc are going for Eto who is available and is also a proven goal scorer at the top level.

So while the rest of the big names such as Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham etc are busy in the transfer market, Manchester United have been quiet. Sir Alex has already confirmed that the club will sign utmost 1 player only but that might change if the Ronaldo moves to Real Madrid. But who is going to come to Old Trafford, striker, midfielder or defender.

There is a big chance that United will go for a striker. They currently have only Rooney, Tevez and Saha for that purpose. But with the injury problems of Saha, it will be no surprise if he is sold. A new recruit will be Manucho but he is the not a proven goal scorer and might take time to settle. So who are the players that Sir Alex might be interested in.

Berbatov : It is no secret that Sir Alex has been an admirer of Berbatov abilities for a long time. He tried signing him but he decided to move to Tottenham. But his current situation at Tottenham is not good and if the price is right, he might play is trade at Old Trafford next season. And with his already established record, what a signing he would be.

Benzema : He is another great option. He is young, got great pace and technique and there is no doubt that Sir Alex admires him. But price could be a big issue here, Lyon would want at least $30m and considering his below par performance at the Euro 2008, i don’t think he will be a good choice to take a risk.

Hunteleer : He is another good option. He has already expressed his desire to play for United and he has got the Dutch factor with him(remember Van Nistelrooy). His record at Dutch league has been excellent (31 goals in 34 games i think). He will be a great choice and will be easily available too.

Michael Owen: He is the latest Striker to be linked with United. He is the last year at his Newcastle contract and there is a chance that Newcastle will try to cash on him lest should he move away for free next season. He is a proven goal scorer in the Premier League but his injury problems will be a negative point. But if he is available for a cheap price, then i say why not take the risk ?

If the midfield department is considered, i think United have got enough talent. They have Fletcher, Carrick, Hargreaves, Scholes, Anderson. And the wingers are Ronaldo, Nani, Giggs, Park. But considering the age of Scholes, i would be happy to see an attacking midfielder join the United team. One of the players which i would love to see is Van Der Vaart. He is an amazing player and his performance at Euro 2008 were top notch. He will be a good replacement for Scholes in the long run. Another Dutch player that i would love to see is Wesley Sneijder. His performance at Euro 2008 speaks for itself but I don’t think Real would be interested in selling or he would want to come here (unless United get him in exchange is Ronaldo decides to leave). Arjen Robben is a good player that United should definitely bring should Ronaldo decided to leave. Though he hasn’t got the same pace like Ronaldo, his technique is top class. I wish United would have signed him before he moved to Chelsea.

Sir Alex should also be thinking about the right back situation. Last Season, Gary Neville missed most of the season because of injury, and it that age, it is difficult to get your same form back. Wes Brown was superb at that position last season. United have also got Danny Simpson who impressed in cameo performances last season. But a player that i would like to see is Phillip Lahm. He is an amazing player. Not only he can defend well, he got good attacking instincts too. He can come forward and even score goals. Out of these players, i would be happy to see Berbatov and Van Der Vaart in a United Shirt ? So what do you think ? Which player should Manchester United sign ?

Ever since Scolari left Portugal to sign for Chelsea, Carlos Queiroz is being linked with the vacant position. And why not, he has been a great coach at United and that speaks for itself. In the latest development, it was being reported that he is close to agreeing a $1.5m four year deal with Portugal.

As a United fan, I would be disappointed to see him leave which i am almost sure is going to happen. But i wouldn’t blame him, who wouldn’t want to manage there country one day. That type of job doesn’t come often. For United, it will be a big loss, or we can say, a bad summer for united as the Cristiano Ronaldo drama continues with Madrid reporting there interest and Ronaldo saying nothing to deny it. Considering he was a big mentor to Ronaldo and one of the main reason behind his deadly form, a face which even Ronaldo agrees. So his departure will once again bring the Ronaldo saga to the fore front. The fact that Ferguson welcomed him back after his stint with Real Madrid, and Ferguson also saying that he is the ideal man to replace him after he retires, tells you about his importance to the club. Even Ryan Giggs mentions in his autobiography

He’d train us, prepare us for games, organise the team and decide the things we needed to work on. Some said he had too much influence, but I don’t agree. He impressed me from the start."

He was one of the main reasons behind United’s impressive defending and there tactical approach to big games. Not only was he a master tactician, he had a great eye of discovering talent. He was the man responsible for scouting Nani and Anderson, two impressive young talents. And most important, he had an amazing language skills as he could speak 5 different languages and a good network, as well as being a father-figure to Ronaldo.

Though the club hasn’t said anything official about this but I guess Ferguson must be looking for a new no. 2. One of the men being linked with the post is the great “Eric Cantona”. Though what will happen only time will tell. But it is a bad news for the club and it might also be for “Ronaldo”.

Even if the title race went down to the last day, we finished the season as Champions. Here are the reasons why we managed to win the title

1. Squad Depth: Our squad depth was far better than previous seasons. We were able to cope with injuries this time. The arrival of Hargreaves, Anderson, Nani and Tevez made the squad more strong. Even the absence of Saha and Neville didn’t effect us
2. Cristiano Ronaldo: Even if winning the title was a joint effort, we cannot overlook the contribution of Ronaldo. The first player after Alan Shearer to score more than 30 + goals in the league and it definitely helped us
3. Attack: Our attacking play this season helped us. Even if Chelsea would have won on the last day, we would have won the league thanks to our superior goal difference. That was possible because of our attacking play
4. Defense: The unsung heroes of our campaign are Brown, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evra or defenders. Our defense was far better than last season and we kept the most number of clean sheets. Even keeping two clean sheets against Barcelona in the CL is an achievement in itself
5. Winning important matches: Except the loss against Chelsea in April and the draw with Arsenal, we took almost all the points from the top teams such as Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea. Winning against the top teams are crucial in the title race and this season we did that

So Why do you think we finished as Champions. Share the thoughts in comments

What an afternoon of Premiership football. We beat Chelsea to the title and are the champions for the 17th time. What an amazing season it is turning out for us. Before the game Wigan promised that they will be a tough nut to crack and that’s what happened in the opening minutes. They started well and we looked a bit nervous in the opening minutes. Even the return of Rooney and Vidic were not enough as Wigan played well in a closely contested first half. Scholes got a booking for a challenge on Palacios before Boyce wasted a decent chance for Wigan. We were lucky not to concede a penalty when Koumas’s shot appeared to be blocked by Ferdinand’s arm. But Rooney got a penalty when he was tripped by Boyce and Ronaldo made no mistake from the spot to score his 41st goal of the campaign.

Scholes was lucky not have been sent off for a foul on Palacios. It looked like he was going to get a red card but the referee was lenient. In the second half we got confident and started creating chances with Ronaldo testing Kirkland from 30 yards with a free kick. Wigan also got there share of luck in the 52nd minute when Scholes was fouled by Bramble in the box but the referee didn’t give a penalty. Kirkland then prevented us from getting that second goal as he saved well from a Rooney drive. He was Wigan’s hero again as he brilliantly saved Tevez’s deflected shot. Then there was news of Chelsea leading against Bolton. Now it was just a question of getting a goal. Wigan’s goal would have meant title loss while United’s goal would have secured them the title. My heart nearly stopped beating when Heskey headed inches wide from a free kick. But it was the veteran Ryan Giggs that saved the day. Rooney delivered a clever pass to Giggs who calmly slotted past Kirkland to secure the title for United. Even though he has played less games for United, this goal was the most important. And then Bolton too equalized against Chelsea and the we were the champions.

In the other matches, Fulham scored a late goal to beat Portsmouth 1 - 0 and ensure there survival. Fulham’s survival meant that Birmingham and Reading got relegated to the championship despite there impressive wins. Everton secured there UEFA cup spot with a 3-1 victory over Newcastle. Aston Villa drew 2-2 with West Ham but earned an Inter Toto cup spot after Blackburn lost to Birmingham. Liverpool defeated Spurs 2-0 in a dull game. Manchester City got thrashed 8 - 1 by Middlesbrough while Arsenal eneded there season with a 1-0 win over Sunderland.

In the beginning who would have thought that Premier League would go to the final match of the season. There has been a lot of mind games going on recently regarding the two highly anticipated matches. But the equation is very simple. We have to beat Wigan to if we want to win the championship. There has been a lot of talk about Wigan being motivated to beat us and Bolton celebrating about avoiding relegation.

But i think every team will be trying to win there respective matches. There are lot of things still undecided which will be decided tomorrow. The champions, the UEFA spot and the relegates will all be decided tomorrow. But for Man Utd and Fulham, the destiny is in there own hands and i will be devastated if we don’t win the title. Wigan are all fired up about beating us and we can’t doubt the commitment of Steve Bruce. But we have great side that will be going for the win. Even without Wayne Rooney, Fergie would have had all the player fired up for the match. And with the likes of Ronaldo and Tevez in superb form, hardly any team can stop us. So i expect United to win the championship tomorrow on goal difference. Everton will get to Europe while Reading and Birmingham will join Derby in the championship.