Marvellous Manchester United win first title in four years

The 2006-07 English Premier League title was won by Manchester United, their first since 2003.

United were able to end the spell of superiority from Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea, who had won back-to-back titles in the seasons prior, to finish the campaign on 89 points, six clear of the Blues, who finished second. The partnership of Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney proved most fruitful as Sir Alex Ferguson commenced the ‘third wave’ of United teams that would prove good for the division.

CHANGES

Even in an era before massive transfer fees became the norm, the 2006 summer transfer was reasonably subdued; apart from one club, however. Champions Chelsea did their level best to solidify their position at the summit of the English game and spent big to add to their already stellar squad.

Andriy Shevchenko, one of the best forwards in Europe, arrived from Milan for a fee in excess of £30m while Germany international Michael Ballack came in on a Bosman from Bayern Munich. The Blues didn’t stop there. Ashley Cole joined from Arsenal with William Gallas going in the opposite direction, while the promising and wanted John Obi Mikel was recruited for £16m. In short, Chelsea appeared to be buying a third straight league title.

Manchester United had been closer in 2006 than anyone else and opted for one careful and crucial arrival, Michael Carrick from Tottenham for £18m. Spurs promptly spent the revenue on Dimitar Berbatov from Bayer Leverkusen, a player who, ironically, would also end up at Old Trafford in a few short seasons.

For Arsenal, with a change of stadium, (moving from Highbury to their new home, the Emirates) also appeared to have a squad clearly in transition. Along with Cole’s departure, Dennis Bergkamp retired, Robert Pires departed for Villarreal, while Sol Campbell signed on at Portsmouth. This marked the beginning of a frugal era for the Gunners. Their new stadium came with associated high-interest costs and their transfer market activity would be…

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Author : [email protected] (Martin Macdonald)

Publish date : 2024-07-30 10:00:00

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