Manchester United's Les Bleus.

There has been a strong link between Old Trafford and France over the last quarter of a century and that bond is about to get even stronger with the return of Paul Pogba to the fold.

The midfielder will pull on the famous United shirt and make his second debut for the Red Devils this coming Friday if selected of course. The first time round came back in September 2011 when the highly rated teenager was given his big chance by Sir Alex Ferguson in the League Cup albeit as a substitute.

After being picked a further six more times the problems started and after much deliberation and finger pointing the young prodigy was allowed to depart for pastures new in Italy with Juventus. Quite how United relented and let him leave is a topic for others to debate.

Pogba quickly built up a reputation during his time at Juventus and has been courted by a host of top clubs all wanting his signature. Fast forward to the present and the undoubtedly talented French star has decided to come back home for a world record transfer fee of almost £90m on a five-year contract after cementing his reputation with the Old Lady of Turin and the French national side.

Mourinho has managed to pull off a huge transfer that his two predecessors never looked likely of achieving and has given the fans something to be optimistic about at last.

Pogba will be joining an impressive legion of French players to have graced Old Trafford which all began with 'Le Roi' Eric Cantona, who was a chance purchase by Alex Ferguson in 1992. While overhearing a telephone conversation between then United chairman Martin Edwards and his Leeds United counterpart who was making enquiries about United full-back Denis Irwin, Ferguson declined their advances for the Irish defender but told Edwards to ask about the availability of their troubled French star Cantona.

Within days the deal was done and a beaming Ferguson paraded his new signing to the world media telling them that Old Trafford was the stage on which Cantona was made to play on, and how right he would be proved to be.

The talisman of the team from his debut in 1992 right up until his retirement in 1997. A Premier League champion in all his seasons at United except the one in which he had to serve an eight-month ban and a double winner twice.

Fans to this day still honour his achievements for the club by singing his name at matches both home and away even though it has been almost twenty years since he left. A true testament to a legend and the love goes both ways as Cantona has often said that his heart is still at Manchester United.

'1966 was a great year for English football. Cantona was born'

The next Frenchman to join United was full back Mikaël Silvestre who joined the club in September 1999 and immediately gained the respect of the Old Trafford faithful when it was clear that he had rejected an offer from Liverpool for his services. Ironically, he made his debut against Liverpool.

Silvestre was a silky defender who could play at both left-back or in the middle of the defence and would make almost 250 appearances for the Red Devils over nine years. In that time, he won five league titles, an FA Cup, a League Cup and a Champions League winners medal in 2008 although he was an unused substitute.

Never one to give up Silvestre had to battle through long absences due to injuries and along with the challenges for his position from Heinze and fellow countryman Evra but he persevered and that commitment endeared him to the fans.

Following the retirement of the treble winning goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel, the hunt was on to find his replacement a task that would prove extremely difficult to fulfil. One man who tried was Fabien Barthez who joined the team in 2000 and quickly realised that he had a huge task on his hands to literally try and fill the big gloves vacated by Schmeichel.

Barthez had enjoyed success with France at the World Cup and The Euros but was well known as an eccentric keeper which he showed many times between the sticks for United especially when he would let United defender and best friend Laurent Blanc kiss his bald head before the start of matches. Having said that he did end up as a champion in his debut season, pulling off some fabulous saves which ensured United won many matches.

The following season wasn't so good for Barthez as he was blamed for making too many unforced errors in matches. One game, in particular, was against Arsenal when he had a nightmare and allowed his countryman Henry to score two goals that were basically gift-wrapped for him.

At the end of his final season, 2002/03, he and United finished as champions, but Ferguson had had enough of Barthez and the mistakes he was making, this was highlighted in the match against Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final second leg when Brazilian Ronaldo scored a hat-trick. This was a match in which the keeper received criticism from all quarters and, in fact, that would be his last game for United.

Barthez was joined at United by his friend Laurent Blanc who joined in 2001 after Jaap Stam had been sold to Lazio by Ferguson after a bust-up over the Dutchman's comments in his autobiography.

A central defender who oozed class and valuable experience but came to the club towards the end of his illustrious career which had the United fans raising their eyebrows, he was 35 when he signed.

After helping United to the title in 2003 his legs finally gave up and he retired from playing to focus on management mainly back in his home country with PSG. Now he is a free agent it will be interesting to see if he fancies a return to the Premier League. Arsenal anybody?

The next Frenchman to come through the Old Trafford doors was a striker. Louis Saha's United career was blighted by injuries, but when he was fit he certainly knew how to score goals. Saha was transferred to United for a fee of £12.4 million in January 2004 having scored 15 goals already that season for Fulham. His United career got off to a similar start by scoring seven goals in just ten matches.

The following season was the start of his injury woes, especially to his knee then his hamstring. When fit he started a partnership with Ruud van Nistelrooy and then the teenage Wayne Rooney.

In 2006, a fully fit Saha was among the goals again and was on a roll. However, the injury jinx returned.

When he returned for the last time Ferguson had a built a forward line around Rooney, Tevez and a certain Ronaldo so Saha played mainly from the bench, but when called upon he did his job. His United career ended when he was sold to Everton in 2008.

A quality striker and his love for United was plain to see, it was only the injuries that held him back. During his time at United, he won two Premier League medals and a League Cup.

Possibly the second most popular French signing behind Monsieur Cantona was Patrice Evra who was brought to Man United from AS Monaco for a fee of £5.5 million in January 2006. Evra took his time to settle at the club making his debut in a 3-1 defeat to Manchester City. So poor was his performance in that match Fergie took him off at half-time.

Fast forward eight years and the Frenchman left United having won almost everything in the game. The only trophy to elude him was the FA Cup. Probably his greatest achievement was winning the double of the Premier League and Champions League in 2008.

At left-back, Evra became an important cog in United's defence, forming an uncanny understanding at the back with Ferdinand and Vidic which was the rock that Fergie built his last great teams on. Evra had the honour of captaining United on many occasions and did so with a great gusto.

It was a sad day when he departed for Juventus as I'm sure he still had plenty of playing time in him and is still greatly missed. It would be nice to think that Evra helped United to bring Pogba back in some way.

Morgan Schneiderlin joined United from Southampton last summer and enjoyed a decent season under van Gaal's reign. His no-nonsense style of play got the job done in the midfield without any fanfares. Often overlooked for plaudits because of others around him Schneiderlin went about his business and in a fairly average season for the club he at least could hold his head up.

Quite how he will fit into the plans of new manager Mourinho only time will tell but he still has a lot to offer in the engine room of the team. Especially when you consider the age of Carrick and the uncertainty over Schweinsteiger's future at the club. This will be an important season for Schneiderlin, but one that he can rise to.

Louis van Gaal may have had his critics during his time at United but there was one bit of business the fans can thank him for and that was the purchase of the most expensive teenager in world football. When Anthony Martial blasted onto the scene with such a bang as a substitute against Liverpool the fans had a new favourite to call their own.

Not only did he open his United account against the arch enemy but he did so at the Stretford End and a new star had arrived.

In his first season, he managed to score a total of 17 goals, not bad considering he was plying his trade wide on the left. Probably the most important goal of his season came in injury time against Everton in the FA Cup semi-final to send the Reds through to the final. He was taken to the Euro's with France but wasn't given a chance to showcase his ability.

With the arrival of Ibrahimovic, he has had to relinquish the No: 9 shirt and accept the iconic 11. The hopes are high of another high goal scoring season by the young forward.

Last but not least the trio of 'Les Miserables' William Prunier, Gabriel Obertan and David Bellion.......only kidding.

There you have it the French stars that have lit up our great club and Paul Pogba has the proud honour of continuing the tradition of his fellow countrymen at Old Trafford.

Thanks for reading and au revoir.

Miles Dunton.

Van Gaal Flatly Denies Rift at United.

'Don't wash your dirty laundry in public'.

Louis van Gaal went on the defensive in his pre-match press conference before the clash with Liverpool after admitting that his captain Rooney and vice captain Carrick had informed him that the atmosphere within the dressing room had been flat recently.

It was honest of him to share this information, but maybe it would have been advisable not to address the issue as what happens behind closed doors should stay there.

There are two issues to look at from his statement one being the fact that the manager shared publicly what should really have been kept in-house, something that Alex Ferguson would have handled without informing the media, and the second being that surely it's the responsibility of the captain to rally the troops and boost morale when it's flagging and not to tittle-tattle to his manager.

To be a club captain takes a certain type of character and a person who can both lead on and off the field and United have been blessed with leaders and imposing personalities in the past that have pulled their teammates up by the scruff of their necks. When you think of the likes of Charlton, Buchan, Robson, Bruce, Cantona, Keane etc. they led by example and earned their teammates' respect by making sure that no player forgot who they were playing for. It does make you wonder how the present crop of players felt once they had heard that Rooney informed the manager of a possible lack of morale.

In the dressing room it is a known fact that van Gaal doesn't say very much before a game as all his work is done in meetings in the days building up to the match so that leaves one person with the responsibility to ensure that the players are focused on the task in hand and that's the captain. However, that is going to be a little harder now that the news is out there and it will be interesting to see how it effects the relationship between the captain and his players.

All this happened on the eve of the clash with United's bitterest rivals Liverpool so the timing wasn't exactly perfect as the media are always looking for any type of discord within the ranks and will spin it to the extreme. Van Gaal tried his best to play down the situation by remarking that his relationship with the players was healthy and his is an open door policy.

Also, where does Giggs fit into all this? As assistant coach he is there to assist and not just in the coaching side of the job but also as an ear for the players, a bridge between them and the manager one would presume.

The rumours of players being unhappy started to come out of the club concerning the treatment of certain team members by the manager and the Spanish contingent being unsettled about the Valdes and De Gea dealings, but this is just an example of teammates and friends looking out for each other. Now that the De Gea situation has been resolved, maybe that will give the squad a much-needed boost for the long season ahead.

With all the new faces in the team, it takes time for players to adjust to their new environment, colleagues and languages. If the atmosphere is flat within the squad then maybe all the players should take a deep look at themselves and never forget that they are playing for the biggest club on the planet and be UNITED.

Thanks for reading.

Miles Dunton.

Man United's French Connection.

Manchester United have gone ahead with the purchase of Morgan Schneiderlin from Southampton and he will be joining a French Legion of players that have graced Old Trafford.

It all began with 'Le Roi' Eric Cantona, who was a chance purchase by Alex Ferguson in 1992. While overhearing a telephone conversation between then United chairman Martin Edwards and his Leeds United counterpart who was making enquiries about United full-back Denis Irwin, Ferguson declined their advances for the Irish defender but told Edwards to ask about the availability of their troubled French star Cantona.

Within days the deal was done and a beaming Ferguson paraded his new signing to the world media telling them that Old Trafford was the stage on which Cantona was made to play on, and how right he would be proved to be.

The talisman of the team from his debut in 1992 right up until his retirement in 1997. A Premier League champion in all his seasons at United except the one in which he had to serve an eight-month ban and a double winner twice.

Fans to this day still honour his achievements for the club by singing his name at matches both home and away even though it has been almost twenty years since he left. A true testament to a legend and the love goes both ways as Cantona has often said that his heart is still at Manchester United.

'1966 was a great year for English football. Cantona was born'

The next Frenchman to join United was full back Mikaël Silvestre who joined the club in September 1999 and immediately gained the respect of the Old Trafford faithful when it was clear that he had rejected an offer from Liverpool for his services. Ironically, he made his debut against Liverpool.

Silvestre was a classy defender who could play at left-back or in the middle of the defence and would make almost 250 appearances for the Red Devils over nine years. In that time, he won five league titles, an FA Cup,  a League Cup and a Champions League winners medal in 2008 although he was an unused substitute.

Never one to give up Silvestre had to battle through long absences due to injuries and along with the challenges for his position from Heinze and fellow countryman Evra but he persevered and that commitment endeared him to the fans.

Following the retirement of treble winning goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel the hunt was on to find his replacement a task that would prove extremely hard to fulfill. One man who tried was Fabien Barthez who joined the team in 2000 and quickly realised that he had a huge task on his hands to literally try and fill the big gloves vacated by Schmeichel.

Barthez had enjoyed success with France at the World Cup and The Euros, but was well known as an eccentric keeper which he showed many times between the sticks for United especially when he would let United defender and best friend Laurent Blanc kiss his bald head before the start of matches. Having said that he did end up as a champion in his debut season, pulling off some fabulous saves which ensured United won many matches.

The following season wasn't so good for Barthez as he was blamed for making too many unforced errors in matches one game, in particular, was against Arsenal when he had a nightmare and allowed his countryman Henry to score two goals that were basically gift wrapped for him.

At the end of his final season, 2002/03, he and United finished as champions, but Ferguson had had enough of Barthez and the mistakes he was making, this was highlighted in the match against Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final second leg when Brazilian Ronaldo scored a hat trick. This was a match in which the keeper received criticism from all quarters and, in fact, that would be his last game for United.

Barthez was joined at United by his friend Laurent Blanc who joined in 2001 after Jaap Stam had been sold to Lazio by Ferguson after a bust-up over the Dutchman's comments in his autobiography.

A central defender who oozed class and valuable experience, Blanc had the United fans raising their eyebrows due to his advanced years, he was 35 when he signed for United.

After helping United to the title in 2003 his legs finally gave up and he retired from playing to focus on management and I wouldn't be surprised if he will be in the running for the hot seat at Old Trafford sometime in the future.

Louis Saha's United career was blighted by injuries, but when he was fit he certainly knew how to score goals. Saha was transferred to United for a fee of £12.4 million in January 2004 having scored 15 goals already that season for Fulham. His United career got off to a similar start by scoring seven goals in just ten matches.

The following season was the start of his injury woes, especially to his knee then his hamstring. When fit he started a partnership with Ruud van Nistelrooy and then the teenage Wayne Rooney.

In 2006, a fully fit Saha was among the goals again and was on a roll. However, the injury jinx returned.

When he returned for the last time Ferguson had a built a forward line around Rooney, Tevez and a certain Ronaldo so Saha played mainly from the bench, but when called upon he did his job. His United career ended when he was sold to Everton in 2008.

A quality striker and his love for United was plain to see, it was only the injuries that held him back. During his time at United, he won two Premier League medals and a League Cup.

Possibly the second most popular French signing behind Monsieur Cantona was Patrice Evra who was brought to Man United from AS Monaco for a fee of £5.5 million in January 2006. Evra took his time to settle at the club making his debut in a 3-1 defeat to Manchester City. So poor was his performance in that match Fergie took him off at half-time.

Fast forward eight years and the Frenchman left United having won almost everything in the game. The only trophy to elude him was the FA Cup. Probably his greatest achievement was winning the double of the Premier League and Champions League in 2008.

At left-back, Evra became an important cog in United's defence, forming an uncanny understanding at the back with Ferdinand and Vidic which was the rock that Fergie built his last great teams on. Evra had the honour of captaining United on many occasions and did so with a great gusto.

It was a sad day when he departed for Juventus as I'm sure he still had plenty of playing time in him and judging by our current defence his leadership and defensive awareness are certainly being missed.

Paul Pogba would have been included had he only stayed at United longer, but as great a talent as he is now he only had a fleeting moment at the club, but you never know what the future will hold.

Last but not least the trio of 'Les Miserables' William Prunier, Gabriel Obertan and David Bellion.......only kidding.

So there you have it the French stars that have lit up our great club and Morgan Schneiderlin has his work cut out holding up the honour of his fellow countrymen.

Thanks for reading and au revoir.

Miles Dunton.

Man United Nations.

Enter the United dressing room on any match day and you will be greeted by a chorus of accents from all over the world as the room is filled by players from Spain, Argentina, Holland, Ecuador, Belgium, Brazil and of course the Home Countries but clearly the foreigners outnumber the natives and it will only increase.

Since the season ended transfer rumours have flooded social media and newspapers with what seems like every player on the planet having been linked to Manchester United. Players from all over the globe have had their profiles and transfer fees raised by even the most tenuous of links to Old Trafford.

This is not a new experience for the Old Trafford club as they have always been linked with the best talent around, but in the past the record transfer fees were paid out for the best of British talent Robson, Keane, Ferdinand and Rooney to name but a few. Nowadays, the big money in the Premier League is being paid to the likes of Angel Di Maria, Costa, Sanchez, Aguero and Hazard. Foreigners who are paid fortunes to show their class and unquestionable talents.

Nikola Jovanovic was the first foreigner to be signed by United when Dave Sexton brought the Yugoslav to Old Trafford from Red Star Belgrade in 1980 for £300,000.

However, I suppose the start of United's foray into purchasing talent from abroad really started in the nineties with the likes of Schmeichel, Kanchelskis, Solskjær and Cantona under Alex Ferguson. The price he paid for their services was minimal, bargains to say the least. What would the value of those players be in today's over priced market.

The early nineties saw Uefa enforcing the three foreigner rule on teams which meant all European clubs had to field a minimum of eight players from their own country in European competitions.

This new law inexplicably included players who even though were British and had been through United's youth system were also adjudged to be foreign. One player who suffered the most at the time was Welshman Mark Hughes.

United's chances of European glory were greatly hampered from that rule, especially in the 1993/94 and 1994/95 seasons when Fergie was unable to field his strongest side. If the '94 double winning side hadn't been restricted who knows how far they would have gone in the European Cup.

After the abolishment of the law Alex Ferguson commented "It's come two years late for us," he said, "because we'd have had a chance of winning the European Cup in 1994 otherwise."

The only benefit from that ridiculous rule was that United, under Fergie's guidance, put a stronger emphasis on finding English youth, which famously gave us the likes of Scholes, Butt, the Neville brothers and Beckham, who along with Giggs, Bruce, Keane, Irwin, McClair, Pallister and Cole would all go on to form the British and Irish spine of the team in the greatest decade of glory the club enjoyed.

Just as important to the club during that period were, of course, the plethora of foreign talented players, including the aforementioned Schmeichel, Cantona and Kanchelskis along with Solskjær, Johnsen, Stam and Yorke.

In the new millennium what a joy it was to go to Old Trafford and watch players like van Nistelrooy, Vidic, Evra, van der Sar, Park and a certain young Ronaldo strut their stuff on the pitch alongside British players such as Ferdinand, Neville, Keane, Sheringham and the ever present Giggs.

The only major disappointment was the record signing Argentine Juan Veron, who endured a torrid time in Manchester, he had the quality, but seemed overawed by Old Trafford and the price tag of £28.1m that came with his move.

Over time the scales have slowly been tipped in favour of the foreigners. Take last summer when only one of the six new players Louis van Gaal bought was English, Luke Shaw. To his credit Louis van Gaal did give chances to British players during his debut season but this was due mainly out of necessity. However, how many of those players will have another chance in the coming season if the transfer gossip is to be believed.

Van Gaal obviously values British players and even made Rooney captain when most people thought he would choose his compatriot Robin van Persie.

Of course the ability to attract the best players in the world has only been made possible with the amount of money that has been thrown at Premier League sides in the last couple of decades by the sharing of TV rights at home and in Europe, along with lucrative sponsorship deals and foreign owners ploughing millions into the clubs.

There are many pro's to all the foreigners plying their trade on our shores the most obvious being the level of talent that fans can watch week in week out is tremendous. The quality is clearly there for all to see and some players are worth the price of a ticket on their own.

The influx of players from around the world has made the Premier League the most watched league globally and of course it widens a club's worldwide fan base to the player's home country, which is particularly true in Asia. The sale of merchandise abroad produces more revenue for a club than Matchday ticket sales.

The scouting net is forever expanding and in recent years it has included African and Arab nations along with South America and Asia. No corner of the globe is untouched in the search for the next big talent and United benefitted from this system with youngsters such as Januzaj, Pereira and Milinkovic.

As with everything, there are also con's and my main gripe is the lack of loyalty shown to the club. The kissing of badges after a wonder goal means nothing when your agent tells you that he can get you an extra couple of zero's on your salary.

Gone are the days of one player one club. We will never see the likes of a Ryan Giggs type situation again, especially from a non-British player. In the near future, there will be fewer testimonial games for players as ten months at the same club will be unheard of let alone ten years.

It has to be remembered that the beautiful game is now controlled by agents. A situation that Sir Alex Ferguson always warned us against. I for one do not blame the players for wanting the best deal they can get to secure their future, but there has to be a more stringent set of guidelines to players' contracts and less power to their agents along with more restrictions on other clubs from approaching players still under contract.

I suppose the biggest negative is the lack of youth players coming through from home as they have less chance to make it at the bigger clubs. This therefore has a knock-on effect with the National teams or maybe it's as simple as the young talent abroad is much better than ours. Add to that the fact that when there is a quality British player who becomes available his price is astronomical think of Bale, Sterling and Kane.

At the end of the day, every fan wants to see the best players sign for their side and the excitement that is generated when your club is linked to a certain player, especially a world class talent is exactly what makes the transfer windows interesting to say the least.

Many people become bored of the constant speculation, but it does provide very interesting, sometimes heated discussions on the internet which is in contrast to the past when literally any transfer news did come via a friend of a friend.

In the end, it looks like Ryan Giggs will have to brush up on his language skills as the situation doesn't look like changing anytime soon.

Thanks for reading.

Miles Dunton.

Man United vs Liverpool blasts from the past.

With the match between Manchester United and Liverpool on the horizon, I thought it would be a good chance to go down memory lane, and take look back at a few of my favourite clashes between the giants of English football, and Liverpool.

1977 FA Cup Final: Manchester United 2 Liverpool 1

The Doc's red army, as the team was dubbed, had lost to Southampton in the previous season's final, after which United manager Tommy Docherty had vowed to return the following year, and the team managed to keep to his promise.

Liverpool, managed by Bob Paisley, were on course to win the treble of League, European Cup and FA Cup,a feat that had never been achieved.

The sides were level 0-0 at half time, but in a five minute spell in the second half there were three goals. The first from United's Stuart "Pancho" Pearson, who opened the scoring with a fine strike past Ray Clemence in the Liverpool goal, but that was quickly cancelled out by Liverpool's Jimmy Case, with an effort that United keeper Alex Stepney just could not reach.

Then with the match locked at 1-1, up popped Scot Lou Macari with an effort that hit the chest of Jimmy Greenhoff, the ball span over the keeper and defender Phil Neal to win the cup, and stop Liverpool doing the treble. Of course the first team to complete such a feat was Man United in 1999.

1996 FA Cup Final: Manchester United 1 Liverpool 0

Not the greatest final in the history of the competition, but memorable for three reasons.

Firstly, the famous cream Armani suits worn by the Liverpool players prior to kick off. You could see by their faces that they themselves were embarrassed by their choice in match day clothing, and from the United players reaction they new they had won the match even before it had started. From that day the Liverpool players were dubbed the 'Spice Boys' among other things.

Secondly, the strike from Eric Cantona in the closing stages of the match. United had a corner which when delivered was weakly punched out by the Liverpool keeper David James, it then fell on the edge of the box to the one person you would want it to fall to, Cantona. With little back lift and a crowded penalty area the Frenchman somehow managed to fire the ball into the net. Great skill from a great player.

Lastly, is the fact that United became the first club in history to win the Double twice on that day in May, and against the scousers no least. By this time Fergie had really knocked them off their perch.

1997 Premier League Liverpool 1 - 3 Manchester United

Before this match reporters were asking fans outside Anfield who they thought would win the match for United, one astute United fan answered 'David James'. The fact that James was the Liverpool keeper made his answer all the more hysterical. But how right the fan would turn out to be.

During the match James was flapping around his penalty area like a performing dolphin at SeaWorld, actually thinking about it a dolphin has more skill at leaping.

His mistakes handed the match to United, and the look on United forward Andy Cole's face was priceless as James again missed a cross, which Cole headed in at the far post. The match was also famous for the fact that defender Gary Pallister managed to score two goals.

James became the subject of much ridicule, and he didn't help himself when he blamed his ever growing list of errors on playing too many video games, which had had an effect on his fingers and thumbs, priceless.

As I mentioned these matches are only a small selection of my choices, you will no doubt have your own, but any match where we beat Liverpool is, as Cantona would say, Magnifique!

Thanks for reading.

Miles Dunton.