Bayern president Franz Beckenbauer confirmed the 26-year-old would be leaving the club for a fee of around £17million after a season-long pursuit by the Premiership champions.
“Owen Hargreaves will go,” Beckenbauer told the DFB-Doppelpass programme on German TV on Sunday. “It’s also the wish of the player.
“Everything is right and it is also financially right,” continued Beckenbauer.
Asked if reports about the size of the fee were true, he said: “It will be around that size.”
2010
The Canada-born midfield anchorman represented hometown club Calgary Foothills FC from 1994 to 1997 and had been contracted to Bayern until 2010.
His breakthrough year was 2001 when he starred in the Bayern team that won the Champions League, the Intercontinental Cup and the Bundesliga.
Hargreaves won many admirers for his performances in what was an otherwise disappointing performance by England in last year’s World Cup.
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how come no other top club in any of the major leagues has expressed any interest in hargreaves????
It's a good question, bobbydazzler. I wonder what difference a tireless midfielder would have made yesterday. Does Hargreaves and Carrick - both 26 - sound like the dream team midfield engine for Man U over the next 4 to 6 years? Im unsure, but that seems to be the thinking. From what I saw yesterday I'd be more excited with a upcoming 20-year-old like Obi Mikel.
If you pay 36m for two CMs then you would expect two world class players, but Carrick and OH do NOT belong in this category. 18m for a defensive CM with limited skills on the ball whom no other club was in for is just way too much money. OH is NOT as good as Gattuso or Essien. Carrick did not boss midfield against Milan and neither did OH so I can't see the combination of the two bring CL glory to OT. The Keane/Scholes combination was superior and still they only reached one CL final.
At least the Glazers are prepared to invest some money in the transfer market. We desperately need a new striker!!!
Well BobbyD;that's because he stated early on there was no need to get other clubs involved.UNITED was where he wanted to be.
I hope he's lost no stamina since his leg-break.He'll be good for UNITED.
Oh, don't start, please! He hasn't even signed yet and the know-all's are already slating him. He is exactly what we have been lacking in big matches. A tireless dynamo who won't allow the opposition space and allow our creative players to strut their stuff. I'm already feeling confident for next season's CL and the big league games. Bring him on!
well i am atleast happy that we have spent some money without selling our players. I am sure Fergie knows striker is our priority and if he is buying a mid fielder then there must be money available for stiker or/winger during summer.
I was one of those who question Carrick's buy last year but i do think he has done much better than my expectations and with all the players around i am sure he will improve.
we wrote of united and fergie this season but they proved us wrong. Fergie deserves to be trusted. He made a few mistakes with his signings in 2003 with Kleb, Bellion, jemba but ever since, evra, heinze,rooney, ronaldo, vidic, carick, VDS, park have all been good signings.
so lets welcome owen and lets hope we build on this season.
better late than never. He will be good for United. Bobbydazzler, i think the way Hargs has gone on about United being the club he wants to play for meant others didnt bother. I did hear liverpool were interested a couple of months ago but he was never going to go anywhere else. Glad to see its been done early as well.
George thats absolute rubbish. Do you honestly for one second believe that another club would stand back and leave us to it on point of principle? Absolute rubbish. The fee of 17m, if thats what it turns out to be, is hard to swallow. As BobbyD said, theres no one else in for him but us, he wants to go to us, he's spent the best part of last yr injured with a broken leg and the best part of the previous 2 or 3 yrs getting dogs abuse from England fans for not being good enough, but 2 good matches in the world cup and we're falling over ourselves to give Bayern 17m. Not surprising given we we did the same with Carrick.
Is Hargreaves the right player? Well to be fair we need a player in the middle who can tackle and win the ball and not go missing when its put up to them. I hope he's the man because its cost us this seaosn not having a player like that - Kaka ran amok in front of our back 4 because we didnt have a Keane or Gattuso type player. The question of whether Hargreaves is good enough will be answered over the coming season i suppose but theres no doubt we're playing absolute top dollar
Saha rocks ... i agree with you. we do tend to get negative here. However, i must say that 16 million for carrick and 18 for owen makes you appreciate people like giggs and scholes even more. what would have been there market value in todays market. we have been blessed.
by the way, guys... i have a question for you. i am big Rossi fan. do u guys think he has a future at united. do you think he and rooney can play together. i dont think he is an out and out striker as well. so what do u think?
Still not convinced he is the answer to our CM woes, but we'll see. Let's hope that he is not our only signing this summer (assuming this story is correct) as we need at least a left sided mid player, and another striker.
I'm with Saha rocks, et el, on this one, and am glad to see OH signing for Man U. Can the moaners hold fire for a little while and let the guy complete his transfer before the knives come out.
Other clubs did show interset in him; with Liverpool looking to sign him a few years ago but were rebuffed by Bayern.
As a player he has good tecnical skill,retains the ball extremely well and has masses of CL experience, winning a medal several years ago. But most importantly he desperately wants to play for United, and has already shown his committment to the club by taking on Bayern over the transfer.
I wonder if he was called Hargrevesiho whether so many whingers would be annoyed by the prospect of his transfer?
BTW, what's wrong with Carrick? Look's like a decent player to me.
With Hargreaves in midfield, you can release Carrick, who seems to be uncomfortable in the holding position. Should they keep Saha and he gets over the injury curse that he seems to carry, he will be well fed by Carrick, Scholes and Rossi and Ronaldo from the wings.Rossi is a very intelligent passer and possess a great shot. Should be interesting next season because Arsenal and Liverpool will be a big challenge and United must defeat these teams at home to lead the EPL and that includes Chelsea. This United team have got potential to get a lot better next season. Don't forget Park, Silvestre and Eagles for a more solid bench. That's what wins championships and strength in other competitions.
Dan, Rossi is a must for us next season.
Birdy;Absolute rubbish? You sound as if your wounds are still open after yesterday's dissapointment.
Dan don't mind them. they make it sound like they have a say in this. SAF said Owen will improve us and that is what I believe. Having watched games against Chelsea, Milan and Arsenal this season makes we understand why SAF said the guy will complete our midfield for the modern game.
And Bobby, apart from Liverpool, Arsenal also wanted him. And my question to you is that now many clubs were in for Petr Cezh when Chelsea secure his services
Why does it matter about interest? By interest, you mean reported interest anyway and if you look at our squad, GN, RF,NV,Van de Sar, Scholes, Rooney, Giggs etc... where's the interest, does that make them bad players? I've never heard something so ridiculous in my life!
Oh and Dan, last time I checked Rossi had 9 goals and sent Parma out of the relegation zone almost single-handedly so I would have to say Rossi definetly has a future with and next season will be his chance to break in and establish himself in the first team.
TMUF - 'Why does it matter about interest? By interest, you mean reported interest anyway and if you look at our squad, GN, RF,NV,Van de Sar, Scholes, Rooney, Giggs etc... where's the interest, does that make them bad players? I've never heard something so ridiculous in my life' - it was not intention to deliver a personal attack on TMUF today but it is becoming obvious to me that he has absolutely no clue what he is talking about. - you really do talk some rubbish. OH is obviously available for transfer in the summer - so birdy is right in saying that there should have been a lot more clubs than us interested in him if he was a decent player. The point you make about there being no interest in rooney etc really does demonstrate the limits to your football knowledge - THERE IS NO INTEREST IN THEM BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT AVAILABLE FOR TRANSFER - OH BLATANTLY IS.
There is 2 reasons why no other team is in for oh
1. He is incredibly overated. - he played 2 good games in the world cup and that makes him a decent player? - arsene wenger can judge a player and he turned down the chance at signing him for 7 million 1 year ago - that says it all. Ive watched a lot of german football over the last 4 years and for long periods oh was not even a regular starter for bayern!
2. No other team in world football would be stupid enough to pay 17 million for oh. The man is not worth over 10 million! - It really is depressing how bad we are in the transfer market. The kaiser and bayern really must be laughing all the way to the bank. 17 million is the going rate for a world class midfielder - gerrard, lampard etc - oh is definately not world class. Dont even get me started on last years 'star' signing carrick.
Everyone should prepare themselves for the propaganda machine to get into full swing. At the oh press conferance we are going to hear how good our squad is from fergie and gill. - Fergie - 'fletcher has proved himself as a great player this year',' saha has been unlucky this year and he will be much better next year' etc etc etc
People like TMUF are the following
1. They buy into the propaganda MUTV trys to send out to us - Steve Boyer and Paddy Crerand being the clubs generals
2. They believe everything fergie does is correct and no matter how wrong he gets it, they try and make up excuses to explain it
3. They believe the glazers have been good for this club and wont admit that they are systematically destroying everything we stand for - no transfer funds, only attend about 2 games a years, outrageously increased ticket prices etc etc etc
Ive just about had enough of the positivity brigade. People like Birdy on here seem to be on the same wavelength as me, i only wish some of the others would wake up and realise what is going on at the club we all love.......rant over
george, I think you've hit the nail on the head there because there are clearly a few people like a bear with a sore head today. I can't say I blame them, I'm a bit that way myself.
However, I do regard the imminent signing of OH to be a big positive for next season. I have said before that I've not seen enough of him to not have some doubts but few players have been so coveted by SAF and that is good enough for me. He has finally got his man and yes it's a lot of money but anyone who thinks one of the biggest clubs in Europe is going to sell perhaps their best player coming in to his peak years for less is deceiving themselves.
There can be no doubt that his arrival will make the squad stronger and allow for rotation in CM. As we've seen in the last few games, the season has taken its toll on some of the players who've had to be virtually ever-present.
What's the point in showing interest if(a) his club is not going to let him go under any circumstances and (b) he has told the world he wants to play for United. To anser another question 32 million for OH and Carrick and how much for Essien and Gattusso? Try close to 50 million. Jon Obi Mikel; I wouldn't even allow the nasty little s**t inside OT.
Hargreaves is a decent start guys but he is only one of many changes we need to make this team great.
If Bayern were so adamant OH wasn't for sale, then obviously other teams weren't gonna bother. But United were so insistent, as was OH, Bayern eventually caved in. Now why should OH fit our bill? 1. He brings new qualities to our team; 2. He's at the right age, not too young, not stop-gap; 3. He's an England international; 4. He wants to play for us so badly (unlike Essien, Mikel, Ballack etc..); 5. SAF believes OH and Carrick fit into his vision of our future system. With all this in mind, we shouldn't pay too much notice to the transfer fee. If this is what it takes to fix an existent problem, then that's fine. When the Glazers 1st came, everybody feared they won't release funds to purchase new players. Now that we're spending a big chunk, everybody is complaining still. Make up your minds. We all prefer certain dream players, but reality is in the way, and besides, SAF deserves to be trusted again.
The moaners just get worse don't they?!
While I'm slightly apprehensive about the transfer, lets just wait and see how he fits in before we get the knifes out again, 'yawn'! Lets face it we need something different for our midfield and as said already he WANTS to play for United, it could be such a succesful transfer for us. Have faith doubters, Sir Alex will prove you wrong again, 'yawn'!
The moaners just get worse don't they?!
While I'm slightly apprehensive about the transfer, lets just wait and see how he fits in before we get the knifes out again, 'yawn'! Lets face it we need something different for our midfield and as said already he WANTS to play for United, it could be such a succesful transfer for us. Have faith doubters, Sir Alex will prove you wrong again, 'yawn'!
The interest a player generates is'nt everything, but it does have some merit. If your competing with other clubs for a potential star, you can see why a club might pay over the odds (see Rooney or Essien etc, etc for evidence of this), to secure his service. If the rumours are true and we are going to get OH for £17 mill, then I believe we're getting ripped off. Hargeaves claims that Utd are the only club he's prepared to join and no other club seems to be interested, why are'nt we offering around the 8m mark. Surely Bayern would have to consider the bid? Due to Hargreaves lack of loyalty to his club (that he signed a new contract with) and by continually stating he wants to leave, he's surely kicked his last ball for them. If there is genuine interest (reported or otherwise) Bayern would have to reveal from where and how much they are being offered. Only then do I feel we should be prepared to up the offer if we're desperate to land him.
I reckon were always willing to offload him from the minute they heard about our interest, but were holding out for the highest price possible. I think they believe we are the mugs who are gonna enable them to purchase two new midfielders!!
Finally on what basis does Hargreaves deserve this worldclass pricetag? Please do not repeat the claim that he's English please, so the price justifies it....Blah, blah blah!!! Sorry but two and a half decent games for England just does'nt cut it for me. If he was worth the rumoured amount do you not feel that Bayern would be fighting a lot harder to keep him there? It's not as if they are a club struggling in the lower realms of their respective league is it? They hardly need to sell their best talent to survive bankruptcy. They have the same objectives as most top clubs. To try and win the league and to do as well as poss in the CL. If Bayern believed OH gave them the potential to achieve their goals there is NO WAY they would be selling him without a fight. They are'nt stupid. They just aint gonna look a gift horse in the mouth.........
Peace