I thought...

Maybe you've got all that to come when Fergie retires. Bellers, Ade and Tevez played well under Hughes but didn't see eye to eye with Bobby, your next manager might want to make wholesale changes when he takes over.

If our next manager spends hundreds of millions and is quickly followed by another manager who spends a few hundred million all whilst our nearest title rivals spend so little that opposition fans accuse them of having no money to spend...

I can tell you I wouldn't be boasting quite so proudly about being only 3 points above our low spending rival...

this "most expensive squad ever" argument is factual yet misleading given the inflationary value (not to be confused with the inflation of sterling) of football players.

In the 1950s Real Madrid spent a huge amount of money assembling one of the greatest teams of all time. However the amount spent today wouldn't support a League 2 side. Hence we can make one of two conclusions:
1) Real Madrid actually spent a small amount of money on the best players in the world.
2) Comparing how much money is spent on players across a period of time is a flawed process.

Given anyone with even a minutiae of intellect will opt for conclusion 2, it is obvious that additional statistics are needed to put the amount spent on players into perspective.

Might I suggest that the actual and potential amount of money that is generated by football teams x

Even if you want to quibble about inflation and such there is no doubting they are the most expensively assembled team in England at the moment (if not the world ?) and very much one of the most expensive teams throughout the history of football even taking into account inflation.

The spend at City in comparison to the spend at United gives you an absolutely huge difference, the spend at City is bigger than even the big spenders abroad like Barca and Real who at any other time would be some of the most expensively assembled squads...

No shame in being only 3 points off then...

Our spending's coming to a close though we'll probably use the money we get for Tevez, RSC and Ade to strenghten during the Summer. Going by last nights display I'd say your spending hasn't really started in earnest yet if you want to stay in the upper echelons of the league.

Depending exactly what you mean by upper echelons... I mean clearly at the moment this team is good enough for at least second... third at a push.

So even if we didn't spend a single penny this team would stay around what most people would call the upper echelons for a good few years. If you mean the title I imagine we will spend a little bit of money over the next few years... we don't tend to spend unless we find our ideal target.

So even if we didn't spend a single penny this team would stay around what most people would call the upper echelons for a good few years

I see, so will you be giving Berba, Rio and Giggs new 5 year contracts?

I see, so without Berba, Rio and Giggs (who will be replaced by youth players if money is not spent) we would drop below... lets say 6th, which easily classes as upper echelons...

With our young players improving and our older players replaced by some of our decent youth prospects I really couldn't see us dropping much even without spending a penny...

You are aware of the fact that you've spent over £60m in the last 12 months on Young, Smalling, Jones and De Gea or doesn't that count because of the money you got for Ronaldo 3 years ago.

If the replacements are already there then why were you playing 38 year old Ryan Giggs and had a lone striker upfront when you were chasing the game against Newcastle after Rooney and Berbatov had been subbed?

I don't see what that money spent has to do with our current conversation of what United would do without future spending...

Or are we quickly retreating from that statement that was obviously wrong..

Generally if you sell (for example) an old video player for £80 and then buy 3 new ones for £60 then you have made £20 on video players. It is not exactly complicated.

We have actually spent the Ronaldo money though.

I didn't say we could win the league with our replacements, just that they were easily good enough to stay in the upper echelons of the league...

Cleverly, among the promising midfielders we have in our academy is more than enough to cover Giggs leaving for one.

We have a very young back line which will mostly improve (save for the loss of Vidic)

Aside from Berbatov we also have a fairly young forward line, Berbatov is also far from being our best forward and doesn't start many games.

The only area where we are most ageing is central midfield, coincidentally this is the area most people consider our weakness. So ageing there should not be too much of a problem.