Trouble at Old Trafford

Recent rumblings around England's biggest club indicate that there is even more pressure on Man Utd to deliver success this season. One obvious element was Malcom's Glazor's takeover of the club, which sent a certain percent of the United faithful into an anti-corporate uproar. Fans fear the Glazers will plunge United into unparalleled debt and charge higher ticket prices upon loyal supporters.

Furthermore, lack of success on the pitch last season, culminated with a premature exit in the Champions League to A.C. Milan -along with an underachieving third place Premiership finish (the second time in three seasons) - not forgetting defeat to Arsenal in the FA Cup, means fans will be demanding something special this season to compensate for those previous disappointments. To go along with this, some of Ferguson more recent signings have yet to prove themselves at Old Trafford. The first of which is Kleberson, a 6 Million pound buy from Brazil, the 26 year old seems to have no future at Old Trafford after spending the last two seasons on the bench and on the sidelines injured. Alan Smith is another whom people are beginning to question. He has only scored a handful of goals since joining the club and is now being considered as a defensive midfielder.

But the story that carries the most worrying speculation for United is the Rio Ferdinand "will he or won't he" sign saga.

Ferguson himself has urged Ferdinand to sign, saying "All the time the contract is unsigned it creates an unnecessary agenda and speculation for the club we don't want".

If Ferdinand refuses to sign, Manchester United could find themselves in the embarrassing position of losing him for next to nothing next season (due to the fact Ferdinand only has 2 years remaining on his current deal). That would represent a 30 million pound financial flop for Fergie and United.

Additionally, Ferguson has a ruthless reputation with players in the past who have thought they are bigger and better than the club. Eric Cantona, Dwight Yorke, and most recently David Beckham have all been given the boot by Sir Alex because of their supposed stature and reputation preceding footballing matters.

Another wrinkle on Ferguson's worried forehead will be the recent clash between Van Nistlerooy and Ferdinand after a recent defeat in the club's pre season tour in Japan. Van Nistlerooy was reportedly furious with Ferdinand after he delayed passing the Dutch forward the ball towards the end of the game. Four letter words were supposedly exchanged. Van Nistlerooy's sudden goal scoring drought has continued throughout pre-season and Fergie will want the 28 year old Dutch star to get his act together before the Premiership campaign gets under way against Everton on August the 13th.

On top of all of this, there are rumors circulating that Roy Keane and Ferguson clashed over a disagreement about players' wives being at a pre season camp, which led to the United star missing the clubs pre season tour in Asia. Ferguson did however claim Keane was injured for the tour. Keane was abolished from the Republic of Ireland squad in 2002 over a similar bust up with Roy McCarthy, and with Ferguson hinting that Alan Smith could eventually replace Keane, Roy's immediate future at United has come into question. One would imagine the ripple effect of this calamitous wave of disaster could spell the end of an era at United