Michael Carrick's unveiling as a Manchester United player brought an admission from his new manager, Alex Ferguson, that the club paid over the odds for the England midfielder. Yet the hope within Old Trafford remains that, in time, a deal which could eventually see Tottenham Hotspur benefit by £18.6 million will still be viewed as something of a bargain.
A combination of an inflated English market and United always having to pay a premium apparently contributed to them agreeing to hand over considerably more than their £10 million valuation of Carrick two years after Spurs signed him for £2.75 million from West Ham. Yet if United's fans hoped the size of the fee for the 25-year-old reflected the end of what has been a prolonged search for Roy Keane's successor, the manager believes otherwise.
"There's always a premium when Manchester United are buying a player," said Ferguson. "There's one price for us and one price for everyone else, but there was an acceptable level which we'd go to. We ended up paying two pence more than I would have paid but it was almost exactly what (chief executive) David Gill and I discussed we should go to at the beginning. You offer something, they ask for something, it's always the same, negotiating, and eventually you get to a point where neither side's happy, but they shake hands. That's what we got to.
"We're more comfortable with signing home-based players. We've had less problems with them over the years. Some adapt no problem but others find it difficult. It's worth paying that bit extra if you need to (for British-based players), like we did for Roy Keane and Gary Pallister. People thought we over-paid for Pallister at £2.3 million but time proved us right. Hopefully that will prove the case with Michael."
Those sentiments were echoed by Gill who revealed Spurs will receive £14 million for the midfielder with the remaining fees due after appearances, honours and international caps. "We believe that's an appropriate figure," he said. "We think we've got a great player at a great price."
They have not, however, conjured a new Keane. Carrick will claim the Cork man's number 16 shirt but he will not step into his boots. If the former United captain reached his peak propelling the club to the 1999 European Cup final, then Ferguson has spent the years since attempting to muster a means of replacing Keane's fading power with Juan Sebastian Veron, Eric Djemba-Djemba, Liam Miller, Kleberson and Alan Smith failing to fill the void.
It is undeniable United's peak years under Ferguson featured a midfield axis that was home-grown rather than bought, complemented first by the purchased Paul Ince and then Keane acting as the ball-winner for David Beckham, Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs. Ferguson's attempts to replace those players have been largely unconvincing.
"Midfield was something we had to bolster but you can't get Roy Keanes," said Ferguson. "We've been trying for five years. You could say you'd need to replace Roy with four players. You have to accept he was one of the best of all time. When we were looking for a new Bryan Robson, we were very fortunate to get Roy.
"That was a one-off but we recognise (Carrick's) ability. Roy was a possession player, a straightforward A to B passer and his percentage was incredible while Michael is far more imaginative. But the most important thing is he retains possession."
Carrick will be one piece of a midfield combination but he will be flanked by a ball-winner more in Keane's mould.
United inquired as to Patrick Vieira's availability at Juventus before his move to Inter Milan this week, but hope to sign Villarreal's Marcos Senna if the fee can be agreed.
