On Sunday a British tabloid reported that Newcastle are preparing a bid for Manchester United's Micheal Carrick. The report went on to say that Carrick is Keegan's top transfer target, and owner Mike Ashley is ready to spend 18 million pounds to land the Newcastle-born midfielder. But I think this report is based on pure speculation rather than concrete facts.

However, if Newcastle DOES manage to lure Carrick to the Tyneside, it will be a great signing for them. The Newcastle team is in free-fall right now and they need new blood desperately. Carrick is a sort of a player that can instantly shore up the midfield and bring creativity in a side that seems utterly incapable of finding their way to goal, even at home. Moreover, he can also play in a defensive role and his tackling has improved immeasurably.

But I don't think Sir Alex Ferguson will be willing to part company with Carrick, even for 18 million pounds. I know that many of United's fans are annoyed with Carrick's inconsistency and want him to be sold as soon as possible. I admit that he is inconsistent, but still, he is a very useful player to have in your squad. When he is at the top of his game, he can dictate a game with ease, spraying passes all over the field that are simply unstoppable. Furthermore, Scholes can't play forever and Hargreaves is very injury-prone. That leaves us with Carrick as the only alternative to partner Anderson in midfield apart from Fletcher, who is not frankly good enough to play first-team football (although his commitment is highly commendable). United should only sell Carrick if, and when, they sign another quality midfielder or any youngster gets promoted to the first-team.

Carrick to Newcastle is a move that has as much chance of materialising as Newcastle finishing in the top six this season. I for one see Carrick remaining at Old Trafford for the foreseeable future.

Manchester United have surprised everyone by signing a 24-year old Angolan striker who goes by the name of Manucho Goncalves. Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed his signing in a pre-match press conference and he will join up with his team after the African cup of nations.

Manucho has been the top-scorer of the Angolan league for the past two seasons. In addition, he has already won a handful of international caps, scoring 2 goals for his country. United were made aware of his talents through Carlos Queiroz's contacts and subsequently United took him on trial for 3 weeks. He is said to have impressed the United staff and officials during the trial and therefore, a 3 year deal was offered to him which was accepted. He adds to the Portugese-speaking
contingent among the United players. According to Manucho, Ronaldo and Nani have already been of great assistance for him in his time at United so far.

As far as his contribution to the team is concerned, I don't think he will feature too much, if at all this season. This is because foreign players take at least 6 months to adjust to the English game. Next season, he may replace the injury-prone Louis Saha. Sir Alex has described him as being a tall, agile striker. Therefore, I think he might not be the finisher United fans have been crying for. He sounds more like a striker with a physical presence in the penalty area and good aerial ability. If he turns out to be anything like Drogba, I will be quite pleased. Having said that, Manucho's signing is a gamble by United and only time will tell if this gamble will pay off.

These days the biggest news is Berbatov's likely departure from Spurs. I think United will be a great destination for him as his type of is what United lacks now; a quality finisher. But I do think Berbatov's signing in this transfer window by United will be more of a luxury than a necessity and he looks more likely to join Chelsea or any European team.

Alan Hutton of Glasgow Rangers was also linked with United last weekend. He is a quality right-back who is brilliant in attack as well. He has earned rave reviews for his performances this season, especially his outstanding display against Barcelona in the Champions League and looks set for a move away from Scotland. With Gary Neville' continuous injury problems and Wes Brown's possible departure, United's right-back slot is up for grabs. Hutton has the potential to be a Neville's long-term successor at United, but let's see if Sir Alex is willing to take him on.

There have been persistent rumours flying around in various tabloids for over three months now that Ronaldinho is looking to leave Barcelona and Chelsea and AC Milan are interested in signing him.Although Barca have not officially confirmed these reports,there is a feeling in the footballing world they might be willing to do business.

So, should Ronaldinho leave Barca? If he goes to Chelsea, I don't think he will be successful there. Premiership is much more fast-paced than La Liga, and he has never experienced anything like it before. I also doubt he will be able to handle the physical nature of the Premiership. Furthermore, Chelsea have failed to get the best out of International Superstars before (read Shevenko and Ballack). They have consistently under-performed and have failed to settle at all. The same fate could meet Ronaldinho at Stamford Bridge. If Ronaldinho does move to Chelsea,it is likely to be more of a marketing gimmick and less of a serious effort to improve the team by Roman Abramovich.

However,if Ronaldinho picks the San Siro as his next destination,he will be more likely to succeed. This is because the Serie A is slower-paced and technical in nature. Moreover, AC Milan already have a number of Brazilians in their ranks. Ronaldinho has a good understanding with them and they will help him to settle there. Also, Brazilians have usually found Serie A much more favourable than the Premiership.

But the main question is should Barcelona sell Ronaldinho? The fact is, Ronaldinho is past his peak. He has failed to recapture his best form of 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons (Barca's title winning campaigns). He is still capable of producing moments of magic every now and then, but his general play has slowed down considerably. By holding the ball too much, he hampers Barcelona's fast-paced attacks. In addition,his work-rate and team-ethic is not of the highest quality. Barca can afford to lose him because they already have Eto'o, Henry, Messi and up-coming youngsters Kirkic and Giovanni. If Barca offload him now, they will get at least £50 million in transfer fees. This is serious money, and Barca can reinvest it in their squad. But if Barca put off his transfer for a season or two , his value is likely to drop greatly. I think therefore,looking at the bigger picture,Barca SHOULD sell Ronaldinho, either in the January transfer window or in the summer.

So,what do YOU think? Should Barca stick with Ronaldinho? Or if a parting of the ways will be best for both parties?

A recent rumour has surfaced that Manchester United and Barcelona are in talks over a swap deal which would result in Sameul Eto'o coming to Man Utd and Louis Saha plus £5
million going the other way. Most people think this rumour is pure crap and I tend to agree with them. There are 3 reasons which make me think this.

1, It is unlikely that SAF would be interested in signing Samuel Eto'o. He is not the kind of striker United need. Moreover, he is known to be a player that undermines team spirit. United don't need such kind of influence on their team right now.

2, It is unlikely that Barca would want to add Saha to their squad. They already have Henry, Ronaldinho, Messi, Dos Santos, Kirkic and Gudjohnsen as their strikers. At best, Saha would be a regular on their bench. Why would Saha want to be used as a substitute continuously?

3.Swapping Eto'o for Saha and £5 million only sounds ridiculous.Eto'o should be valued around £30 million whereas Saha's maximum value should be approximately £8 million(as he is injury-prone).
So this deal sounds totally unrealistic.

I would be very surprised if this rumour turns out to be true.If the deal goes through,it will be one of the major surprises of the January transfer window.