The very suggestion that Ruud van Nistelrooy might be leaving Old Trafford will hardly help the mood of Manchester United fans already smarting from losing their Premiership title. And on the face of it, the stories linking the Dutchman to Real Madrid and Barcelona do seem fanciful.
Since his arrival in 2001, the 27-year-old has scored more than 100 times for the club in less than three seasons and he ensured hero status at Old Trafford last season by firing the vital goals that enabled United to overhaul Arsenal and clinch the Premiership title.
Furthermore, United manager Sir Alex Ferguson seems highly unlikely to agree to the sale of a player he took so long to sign, postponing his capture of Van Nistelrooy for a year while the striker recovered from a serious knee injury.
But just hold on. Before dismissing such stories as idle speculation, the spectre of David Beckham should loom large.
The suggestion midway through last season that Beckham, the boy who grew up longing to play for his beloved Manchester United, would even consider leaving Old Trafford was unthinkable.
By June, Beckham was on his way to Real Madrid. The speculation surrounding the England captain's future reached frenzied status when Ferguson dropped him for the Champions League quarter-final against Real.
On Saturday, Van Nistelrooy was left out of the squad to face Liverpool, apparently because of a minor thigh strain.
However, he was nowhere to be seen in the stands during the game and rumour has it that he was dropped by Ferguson for refusing to apologise to fellow striker David Bellion after a bust-up in training.
Van Nistelrooy is also said to have upset the Old Trafford hierachy by getting involved in an altercation with club captain Roy Keane six weeks ago.
The Dutchman, like Beckham a year ago, angrily dismissed the speculation about his Old Trafford future on Sunday, describing it as "total rubbish".
 |  To suggest that I want to leave is ludicrous |
But were Van Nistelrooy to admit he was even considering a change of scenery, it could be viewed as tantamount to a transfer request, which means he could potentially miss out on a cut of any signing-on fee or a loyalty bonus from United. United, too, have issued a denial, with a spokesman saying simply: "Ruud is not for sale".
But in April last year, a United statement said; "David Beckham will be a Manchester United player next season."
And if that wasn't enough for United fans to begin to consider life without Van the Man, consider the two clubs who are said to be wooing Van Nistelrooy.
Real Madrid are well-versed in the art of pulling off spectacular transfer coups.
Real stunned the football world in 2001 when they persuaded bitter rivals Barca to part with Luis Figo for a then-world record �37m.
But they topped even that a year later when Ronaldo left Inter Milan for the Bernabeu after he fired Brazil to 2002 World Cup glory.
Put simply, no player is beyond Real's reach, and denials from the Spanish giants should not be taken at face value.
 Perez said Real would "never, ever" sign Beckham - and then signed him a month later |
Real president Florentino Perez said he would "never, ever" sign Beckham in April last year and had gone back on those words little more than a month later. More often than not, if Real are linked to a player in the Spanish press, they can be relied upon to issue a denial before speaking to the player directly and then finally opening negotiations with the club.
Newspaper reports suggest that Real are already on stage three of the process and have spoken to Van Nistelrooy's agent.
Barcelona, who are also said to have spoken to the striker's agent, are under increasing pressure from their fans to return to trophy-winning ways and money is rarely an object when they set their sights on a player.
Van Nistelrooy would join a long line of Dutch players to grace the Nou Camp and Barca are in desperate need of a reliable striker to complement an impressive midfield, which includes Ronaldinho and the revitalised Edgar Davids.
The feeling remains that Ferguson would move heaven and earth to keep Van Nistelrooy, a lynchpin of his side, and would be loath to see another of his best players boost Real's Champions League prospects.
The player, too, might be expected to remain loyal to a manager who has shown so much faith in him and in January he appeared to commit himself to the club by signing a new contract until 2008.
But with Real coach Carlos Queiroz hailing the improvement of Beckham since his move to Spain, Van Nistelrooy may be tempted to follow his former team-mate's example and develop his game further in La Liga. And as Beckham's departure proved, Spain's giants rarely concern themselves with sentiments such as loyalty when it comes to snapping up the world's best players.
MMIX
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