05 Apr 2026 09:57:11
{Ed's Note - Shappy has posted a new article entitled, Why United Should Consider Bringing Back James Garner
1.) 05 Apr 2026
05 Apr 2026 13:46:07
He was available on a free this summer if we had approached him, but we didn't, so he signed a new contract 6 weeks ago and will stay at Everton.
2.) 05 Apr 2026
05 Apr 2026 16:02:01
Maybe Ken, or maybe he signed a deal to make sure Everton get a fee for him.
He is from Merseyside, so could well have family connections to Everton. They also gave him his chance, and he might be one of the few players who has some moral fibre.
His deal that ran out this summer, I believe (according to press reports at least), had a one-year extension that the club could trigger.
So they could have unilaterally extended his deal. Maybe a new deal, with a gentleman's agreement or even a buy-out clause, was agreed. Who knows.
Ultimately, my post wasn't really tied into the likelihood of him signing, just that I think he'd be a very shrewd signing given his skillset and our need this summer.
3.) 05 Apr 2026
05 Apr 2026 20:03:59
Agree, Shappy, that he could be a shrewd signing. Always rated him as a younger player, and now has matured.
4.) 05 Apr 2026
05 Apr 2026 22:00:51
His contract was expiring in full end of June. He signed a new deal to stay there.
I think he has turned into a very good player and is versatile, plays rb a bit too. But he was not viewed as a potential free. A couple of England caps won't change that to a 40m plus buy. Let's be realistic.
5.) 06 Apr 2026
06 Apr 2026 07:56:23
Shappy,
If he signed a contract to enable Everton to get a good fee, yet wants to return to us, then frankly I don't want that in a Utd player. Decent player, having a good spell, but fawning over someone who is probably a long way down the line of quality midfielders isn't the best way.
Available on a free, and not wanting him then, but willing to pay a big fee is very Fellaini-like decision making. Leave well alone.
6.) 06 Apr 2026
06 Apr 2026 12:17:12
I thought we were right to sell him and he's obviously improved a great deal. I like his versatility and workrate. We need a bit of that. Pretty sure his impressive single cap will double his fee.
7.) 06 Apr 2026
06 Apr 2026 11:32:13
Red Man, I agree that there are definitely more talented players.
Veron was a far more talented player than Nicky Butt, but he wasn't half as effective for us.
Sometimes the best player for a club isn't the most talented player, but the right player to enable the whole team to click and work to their maximum efficiency.
My concern is that a lot of the players we are being linked with are naturally more inclined to play the box to box No.8 role be that as a destructive ball winning No.8 or as a creative on the ball No.8.
The only one who we have been consistently linked with who fits the mould as a natural sitting and shielding No.6 is Baleba, and I'm not even completely sure that is his best position either. He is a comfortable passer, but lacks imagination, and he has an aggressive tendency to jump and try and win the ball (but that could just be the enthusiasm of youth).
Successful sides do not just stick the biggest name players together ala Galactico style. The best sides recruit players who complement eachother and bring out the best in eachother, which makes sense as football is a team game.
Casemiro is the only player we currently have who can comfortably play that sitting No.6 role, which is why we look so much worse when he isn't playing.
Mainoo isn't a player who'll naturally sit and shield the back four, neither is Bruno, or Ugarte (who is often mistaken as a holding player due to the perception that players who make a lot of tackles are the defensive lynchpin).
We see it all the time when Casemiro isn't playing, we suddenly have big gaps open up centrally which nearly always leads to us conceding goals. We say it's a lack of legs in midfield as we see players struggling to sprint back to cover, but the issue isn't their lack of legs, but the fact they were in the wrong place which opened up the space.
Casemiro last season was trying to play too much as a box to box driving player which meant he was occasionally out of position and without a more natural sitting player like Kroos alongside him it left big spaces. This season he appears that his legs aren't as gone as we thought, when in reality he has just learned to adapt his game and sit more often, meaning the space never opens up.
We need to bring in at least one player who is more about defending the space than winning the ball. They will tend to win the ball a lot due to them playing as that shield in front of the back four, but they won't go chasing the ball and leave gaps open behind them.
James Garner fits that role well, is EPL proven, homegrown, and a former academy player to boot (meaning he is less likely to be overwhelmed or struggle to adapt to our club).
There are other options out there, Eduardo Camavinga would be another that I would have high up on my list. He's certainly the bigger name, more naturally talented and shiny option, but he does come with a bigger risk of whether he could adapt to the EPL or playing for United (although you'd hope having played for Real Madrid he'd be able to cope with the pressure, although that isn't a given).
We need a natural sitting No.6 type player, of those we have been linked with Wharton and Anderson are the two who could probably adapt to that role best, but it isn't their natural role and playing them in it will not get the best out of them. Which seems silly to spend such a huge amount on a player to then play them as a square peg in a round hole, even if they can do an adequate job there.
8.) 06 Apr 2026
06 Apr 2026 14:01:26
Garner signed a new contract 6 weeks ago. He is not moving from Everton. He is not an option. Simple.
9.) 06 Apr 2026
06 Apr 2026 20:51:26
Garner would've made for an upgrade on Ugarte, but for his own sake, it made sense to stay at Everton, where he's a regular starter.
10.) 06 Apr 2026
06 Apr 2026 22:50:39
Manuel Fernandes, Garner and Anderson. Greedy.
11.) 07 Apr 2026
07 Apr 2026 04:45:00
Garner probably doesn't want to come and be a 4th choice back up. Yes, he would be incredible to have that depth on the bench. But, that is not what he wants, I imagine.
Question is, when are we going to see someone from the youth team step up into that role? Has anyone looked ready?
{Ed025's Note - 4th choice back up DB?, he walks into the united side mate and the only player you have that is a better midfielder is Bruno..
12.) 07 Apr 2026
07 Apr 2026 12:54:26
Yeah, because Garner's better than Casemiro, right? Absolute nonsense 025.
{Ed025's Note - he replaces Cas for me WR, hes been decent but hes a bit of an old turnip now and he strolls rather than runs these days mate, he still gets in your midfield though because lets be honest the likes of Mainoo and Ugarte are championship players at best and thats before you throw in Mason out for the count Mount..
13.) 07 Apr 2026
07 Apr 2026 13:08:02
Whiskey, Casemiro is leaving! Breaking news. ?
14.) 07 Apr 2026
07 Apr 2026 13:32:58
That's hardly the point I'm making, is it, Fizz? I stated that he is not better than Casemiro.
I'm well aware he's leaving.
15.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 02:06:22
Fantastic post, Shappy, one of the very best.
Just my opinion, but I think Garner is a very tough guy. He did renew his contract so he can see who really wants him and has him as a priority.
Because, if he was free, a lot of clubs would take him for third or fourth option for their rotation. But who wants him badly and is going to pay 70 millions?
16.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 10:22:56
The answer to that heaven is nobody. He renewed his contract because its the only or at least the best offer he had on the table at the time. He did not renew it to see who wanted him that's one of the thickest things I've ever read on here?
17.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 12:59:45
No, not exactly. But he did think, my personal opinion, that if he is good, and if someone really wants him come summer or next, someone can pay and buy him. And that's a win win situation with Everton pocketing money too.
It was the only offer on the table because you can't offer a contract to a player who plays for a team in the same football association before his contract expires. So, you are right, he hadn't another choice.
18.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 13:22:00
Heaven you are very poorly informed.
Any club club can speak to a players agents/representatives and make a contract offer while he is employed elsewhere. Use your head.
If he could have got a free move in the summer he would have pocketed an extra 5-10m personally, i don't think getting a fee for Everton entered his thought process or his representatives. Do me a favour
19.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 15:33:23
He had an option of an extra year extension, Tumble. I don't think he could leave for free.
20.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 15:41:41
There was no option, Heaven. His contract was expiring in full in June.
21.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 15:43:43
Also, Heaven, that option is not the player's option. When it does exist, it's the club's option; the player is powerless to stop a club enforcing it and has no option to force it on the club. If they don't want him to stay, they just don't take up the option, like we did in Sancho's case.
22.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 15:56:20
That's what I say, or, I mean, if you prefer, it's the club's option. So, at the very least, Everton would trigger it in order to not lose him for free. Ideally, Everton would extend his contract by 4-5 years, as they did.
That's what Moyes, more or less, said, if I remember correctly, and more or less confirmed that they had the choice of +1. I, of course, believe him.
23.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 17:12:03
Everton didn't have an extra year option. His contract was up in June.
24.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 17:25:12
If you say so, Tumble. If you have inside information, or better information, that's fine. I go by what I read. Moyes hid that there was a year extension for James Garner, and I do believe him.
25.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 18:32:57
Yes, cos his current contract had expired, so he got a 3 year extension on increased terms. The details are in the public forum, it's not difficult to check.
26.) 08 Apr 2026
08 Apr 2026 19:11:52
Yes, it was going to expire because Everton didn't trigger the one year extension yet. But they had this option, you must search what Moyes said, it's public and it's not difficult to check. Anyway, move on.