Manchester United FC are in a tough moment no doubt, but we have to stay steady and stick the course. Nothing is gained from over analysing or trying to pick fault. The issues are massive and longstanding. It will take YEARS to unpick the mess and get us on the right course. Therefore, we shouldn’t be judging after weeks or even months.
It’s a process and not everything done will be a success. We will make mistakes along the way. Likewise, a lot of the changes being made we won’t see the benefit of until months or even years down the line. It’s funny how when things aren’t going right on the pitch, we often look for answers off the pitch. We go over everything with a fine toothcomb.
Things like the Ashworth situation, we try to find a deeper meaning to it. It’s almost certainly just a case of them hiring lots of people quickly and his face didn’t fit with the new team that was emerging. I also think that there may have been too much crossover between the roles that Ashworth, Barrada and Wilcox have been doing. Does a club need both a DoF and a technical director? Bare in mind we also have Fletcher who helps with that pathway from the academy to the first team. It seems like a situation of too many cooks. Obviously a mistake, but these things will happen.
As for the cost cutting exercise, it does come across as petty and not particularly in nice. This is almost certainly made worse by the time of year, with Christmas supposed to be the time of good will etc. While the media like to jump on it and make it out to be a big thing. Interestingly, no one has mentioned whether other top clubs pay these expenses out. That makes it difficult to judge whether what the club is doing is harsh or whether they are just bringing the club in line with other successful, top sides.
Then there is the other side of it, the mentality side. How do you change the mentality of a whole club, a club that has become bloated with freeloaders and people unprepared to put the right amount of effort in. Well the first thing you have to do it cut the fat, stop the freebies and easy rides.
Yes that seems harsh to the people on normal wages compared to the players on astronomical wages. Yet where do you think the most difference will be made? Changing the mentality of 25-30 employees or the mentality of 500 employees?
The players will no doubt be dealt with, but that is a harder situation do deal with. Although, judging by the treatment of Rashford and the stories starting to slip out it seems that the club are doing their utmost to address the players as well.
So let’s turn out attention back on to the pitch. Is it really as bad as the media and pundits are making out? I don’t think so. The results are poor, no getting away from that. Yet the performances are improving and are markedly better than they were during the final 12 months of EtH.
We have a better shape, we control games better, we are starting to create better chances, and doing so more consistently. You can see what we are building towards. Given the mess of the squad, and the limited amount of time the manager has had to train and coach the players. Both in the system and how they can improve themselves. The fact that you can see such big changes is good.
What has let us down is poor finishing/ decision making in the final third, along with individual mistakes in defence. A lot has been made about our defending at set-pieces, as if there is something fundamentally wrong with how we are defending them.
Yet if you watch all the goals we have conceded the same two things are behind every single goal. Either a player doesn’t track his man, or they are beaten to the ball. Both things are individual errors, a player has either switched off or hasn’t reacted quickly enough/ shown enough desire to win the ball. That’s not tactical, that’s just the poor quality of players being exposed again.
The difference between set-pieces and open play is that in set-pieces you have to directly compete with an opposing player. Errors and lack of ability to compete will cost you goals more often in those situations.
People talk a lot about Arsenal’s set-piece goals, about how clever they are. Yet no one talks about the transfer policy to bring in physically dominant, highly athletic players. The fact that over the past 4 years Arsenal have created the most physically dominant side in the league.
Hardly surprising that they win so many individual battles at set-pieces when most of their players are physically stronger than their opponent. The issues we are having on the pitch are linked to two simple factors:
1. The players aren’t good enough. In this system, or any other system. They weren’t good enough under Ole, Rangnick or EtH, they won’t be good enough under Amorim.
2. The players who are good enough need more time to learn the system and master it. The manager needs more time to spend with the players on the training ground.
There are no quick fixes for either of those issues and neither of them come from the issues off the pitch. We have to give them manager time, time to train the players, and time for the squad to be turned over. To move on those not good enough and to bring in players who are good enough and suit the squad.
Written by Shappy December 30 2024 13:33:15
