Top of the tree....

nice, very nice... but it's only January. Unlike our 'friends' down the other end of the East Lancs Road, there's no need for any 'panty pissing' just yet. As all Reds know, there'll be a few twists and turns yet before May comes around. However, it's good to see our lads proving that we can still claim the points (and ultimately, hopefully, the prizes) despite having a few of the 'big' names unavailable through injury right now.

Dimitar Berbatov hasn't exactly cut a hugely popular figure with all Reds yet, but the guy is a quality player (do you honestly think Sir Alex would track him for so long, and shell out £30m in the end for him if he wasn't going to be 'top dollar'...??!!), and his goal at the Reebok today could go a long way to repaying his substantial transfer fee.

Elsewhere, it's more than heart-warming to see our own Jonny Evans slotting so comfortably into Rio's shirt that we've hardly missed a man who is possibly the best centre-back in the world right now. The lad has shown maturity and a calm authority way beyond his tender years, and I'll bet he's now relieved he turned down Roy Keane's offer of a return to Sunderland in the summer to stay and stake his claim for a 1st team shirt at Old Trafford!!

Speaking of transfer fees.... I doubt I'll be alone in having a 'lessened' view of Brazilian superstar Kaka if he 'takes the money' and leaves a true European giant in AC Milan to join the latest 'rich boy's play-thing' at the Boo Camp. The lad certainly doesn't need the £500k per week wage he's supposedly been offered, and unlike Robinho, he KNOWS ahead of time that it's not United in Manchester who he's in talks with, but a team more likely to be involved in a relegation battle.

Whilst the 'bitters' may be loving their 15 minutes in the world football 'limelight', the longer term effect that the Arabs' money may have on transfer structures could be profound. Despite what the song said, money CAN buy you everything (at least everything that has a price), so if city are interested in any player, they can effectively price any other club in the world out of the running- in the interests of competitive sport, FIFA have got to come up with some sort of system that 'caps' both transfer fees and players' wages- the figures bandied about for both structures are nothing short of obscene in these days of 'credit crunch' for everyone else in the 'real world'- (oh, and this isn't the rant of a Red worried that city may become the new force in English and indeed European football, it's someone whose genuinely concerned for the long term future of our game...)

Speaking of concerns, we don't seem to be having much of a change of luck with FA Cup 'draws'- yet another Premier League club as opposition in the 4th round (albeit we will have home advantage to Tottenham Hotspur). I was half expecting another trip to face Aston Villa at our 'second' home- still, that's probably where we'll end up in Round 5 if we can safely 'see off' Harry's boys.

It would be amiss of me to leave you without a passing mention of Senor Benitez.... Until his recent outburst, I had quite a lot of time for the man, indeed I'd have gone as far as saying I quite liked him as a person (if not actually rated him as a manager). However, his calculated attempt at stirring up trouble for United has left me with nothing but contempt for the man. It's easy to see what he was attempting to 'gain' through his error-strewn diatribe- the overwhelming support of and an almost 'worship-like' status amongst Liverpool supporters. To be fair, if he didn't already have it, the easiest target to pick on to achieve it with that lot has to be their most hated enemy, Sir Alex.

However, why would he want their support at this particular time...? "Putting pressure on United" I hear you say, "starting the 'mind games' with Sir Alex early", others say. Maybe. My take is somewhat different.

Rafa is currently embroiled in contract negotiations with Liverpool as regards his OWN contract, and these aren't going smoothly. It's supposedly not the money that's the 'problem', more the amount of interference in 'football decisions' at the club from the likes of CEO Rick Parry.

So, if you're involved in a power struggle at a football club, who better to get on 'your side' than the club's supporters. Their support makes things very tricky for the board. They dare not try to offload you for another manager (eh, Jurgen?) unless they want to face the wrath of disgruntled supporters, and it strengthens your hand in negotiations, even if only psychologically.

Thing is, Rafa's been a tad silly. Given that he has the dippers in genuine contention for a league title AFTER Christmas for the first time in about 15 years, he was automatically going to be popular with that lot, so much so that their board wouldn't dream of letting him leave, at least not before summer. Indeed, all his little rant has done is make him appear paranoid, and (contrary to what he claims about Sir Alex) very afraid of the Champions of Europe (oh, and England... :->)

And you know what Rafa... YOU'D BE RIGHT TO BE VERY AFRAID!! Let's see how YOU cope under some real pressure from a Knight of the Realm and his men...