It is a brave player who walks into Sir Alex Fergusons
office and demands understanding let alone a transfer to
Liverpool but Gabriel Heinze, the Manchester United defender, did
just that yesterday as he returned to pre-season training with
little or no intention of building the bridges he has burnt over
the past five weeks. Ferguson, alarmed but seemingly not unnerved
by the players actions during the summer, had suggested that there
would be no problem once Heinze was back in the fold at Old
Trafford, but the Argentina defenders mood on his return to
Uniteds Carrington training ground was far from conciliatory as he
claimed that the club were guilty of breaking promises in blocking
a proposed £6.8 million move to Liverpool.
It was not clear last night how Ferguson had reacted to Heinzes
show of dissent, but no matter how stubborn the manager may be by
nature, there is a growing feeling among the United hierarchy that
the defenders position seems untenable. Heinze, his agent and his
legal team are determined to proceed with the legal bid to force
the players departure, whether via the Premier League or the
courts, with the only encouraging aspect for Ferguson that the
29-year-old is willing to consider alternative offers, with Real
Madrid and Juventus having registered interest.
United would prefer to send Heinze overseas, even if it meant
receiving a smaller fee than that offered by Liverpool three weeks
ago. However, their unwillingness to sell to the Merseyside club
which they have not done since Phil Chisnall, a little-known inside
forward, moved to Anfield in 1964. Heinze was told that he could
leave at the end of last season, when a move to an unnamed Spanish
club seemed imminent. David Gill, the United chief executive, wrote
to Rodriguez to confirm that the player could be sold for a fee of
10 million (about £6.8 million), with Heinze and his
representatives regarding that letter as a legal document that
entitles him to move if any club offer such a fee, as Liverpool did
on July 16. Gill has stated that the letter is meaningless, but
it has been seized by Heinzes legal team which includes
Liverpools legal adviser, Richard Green, of the Hill Dickinson
firm as a passport to Anfield.
Having been given extra time off after his exertions for Argentina
in the Copa America last month, Heinze cited an injury on his
return to Carrington, which rules him out of either of the two
friendly matches tomorrow evening, away to Dunfermline Athletic and
Glentoran, one of which is expected to feature a debut for Carlos
Tévez, his compatriot. The Argentina forward has not finalised his
controversial move from West Ham United, but Ferguson hopes that
the necessary paperwork will be completed in time.
Uniteds preparations for the new season have also been boosted by
the signing of Tony Strudwick, a highly regarded fitness coach,
whom they have enticed from Blackburn Rovers. This development
follows the abrupt and acrimonious departure of Valter di Salvo,
the United fitness coach, to Real Madrid last month but United
have moved quickly to replace him, with Strudwick having begun his
new job on Saturday.
Blackburn, for their part, are understood to be disappointed by the
timing of the man Mark Hughes, the manager, credits with turning
his squad into the fittest in the top flight, but the clubs are
working on a compensation package that would at least go some way
towards smoothing relations with their rivals in the North
West.