Man Utd Thread:

[Maroon Manc]

Its not looking good for Ole, most of the reds on here have been reasonably happy with the job he'd done prior to this season given the improvement in results once Fernandes was signed. We played some great football for the first month after lockdown but then we started to struggle for the last few games. Soton got great joy against us whilst pressing us as did West Ham, we made the excuse the players looked tired and the lack of squad was a huge problem. United didn't invest enough last summer to make them contenders for the league but that's not an excuse for what we've seen so far, most of us made excuses earlier on in the season against Palace & Brighton as we didn't look fit but its come to the time where Ole is running out of excuses.

How Matic stayed on the pitch last night was beyond me, at fault for the first goal and played a huge part in the 2nd goal too; No idea why he was given a contract that will take him up until he's 35. The subs once again failed and made the team look even more imbalanced.

He's been in charge for 100 games and there's a clear lack of a pattern of play, that's the most concerning issue for me; Nobody has any idea how we'll play from one game to the next and without that there's no hope of any real progression. We can keep blaming the players but at this stage its becoming a bit tiresome, there's a lot of top players in that squad especially in attacking areas and in 180 minutes of football we've barely created any chances and looked completely clueless.

Ole's days are numbered, just don't see him turning it around from here but would be delighted to be proved wrong.

[NAG1]

Shocking performance.

Not only for the goals conceded for the the lack of any pattern of play or discernible tactical approach.

Ole is looking under severe pressure and I don't see the players rushing to bail him out at the moment, hopefully we will see a reaction at the weekend.

[BennyCake]

I think even the most deluded of United fans knew Ole was never going to be there long term. The second half improvement last season kept him in the job, as this time last year it wasn't looking good for him either.

He's a likeable guy but clearly not the long term successor United fans crave. It's only a matter of time now.

[Bord na Mona man]

It still feels like Ole's brief was to come in and work like a long term caretaker manager.
He restored a lot of the morale in the squad, ushered out a lot of deadwood and promoted youth.
While the boardroom transfer strategy has been poor, talent wise, the current squad is now not in a bad place. There are positions that should be strengthened, but there are a lot of options there too.

At some point a more elite manager will be required to come on and take the team to the next level - play consistently, adjust tactics and formations better etc.
Ole is in a limbo at the moment. Unless he puts in a strong run of results and re-establishes Utd as title challengers, then he will remain a couple of defeats away from getting the sack.
It feels like that exit could be close right now. He might grab a few wins and buy another stay of execution, but at some point soon there will be another dip.
Also, players sense this too. I believe subconsciously the players saw that Moyes, Van Gaal and Jose were dead men walking and didn't fully perform for them towards the end.

[lurganblue]

I only watched the second half last night but it was quite clear that Utd hadn't a clue how to approach getting back on level terms.  They have a real lack of creativity which is amazing considering some of the players on the pitch.  I mock throwing Maguire up top but that actually created a few chances.

[Jeepers Creepers]

I would hazard a guess and say its all going on in the background. Unless a DOF is brought with a new manager then Utd will be p*ssing in the wind.

[brokencrossbar1]

Looking like they have approached Poch to step in. International breaks are always a good time to give the manager the boot so don't be surprised if he is handed his P45 irrespective of the result against Everton. No matter who takes over there is a real job to be done though. There is talent in the squad but if you look at the 2 goals last night you seriously need to question the mentality of the players. It's pure Benny Hill play

[BennyCake]

It still feels like Ole's brief was to come in and work like a long term caretaker manager.
He restored a lot of the morale in the squad, ushered out a lot of deadwood and promoted youth.
While the boardroom transfer strategy has been poor, talent wise, the current squad is now not in a bad place. There are positions that should be strengthened, but there are a lot of options there too.

At some point a more elite manager will be required to come on and take the team to the next level - play consistently, adjust tactics and formations better etc.
Ole is in a limbo at the moment. Unless he puts in a strong run of results and re-establishes Utd as title challengers, then he will remain a couple of defeats away from getting the sack.
It feels like that exit could be close right now. He might grab a few wins and buy another stay of execution, but at some point soon there will be another dip.
Also, players sense this too. I believe subconsciously the players saw that Moyes, Van Gaal and Jose were dead men walking and didn't fully perform for them towards the end.

I believe a lot of the senior players never rated Moyes from the start, and performances never were great. Van Gaal was just a tube who got rid of all but one attacker (Rooney), played the most boring football with boring/dull players. Ole is still getting rid of the crap he brought in.

Jose, I reckon rubbed players up the wrong way, played mind games and behaved like a dick, and after a while people get fed up with that shit, and eventually will down tools. And that's what they did.

[Cunny Funt]

It still feels like Ole's brief was to come in and work like a long term caretaker manager.
He restored a lot of the morale in the squad, ushered out a lot of deadwood and promoted youth.
While the boardroom transfer strategy has been poor, talent wise, the current squad is now not in a bad place. There are positions that should be strengthened, but there are a lot of options there too.

At some point a more elite manager will be required to come on and take the team to the next level - play consistently, adjust tactics and formations better etc.
Ole is in a limbo at the moment. Unless he puts in a strong run of results and re-establishes Utd as title challengers, then he will remain a couple of defeats away from getting the sack.
It feels like that exit could be close right now. He might grab a few wins and buy another stay of execution, but at some point soon there will be another dip.
Also, players sense this too. I believe subconsciously the players saw that Moyes, Van Gaal and Jose were dead men walking and didn't fully perform for them towards the end.

Does those runs matter anymore?

Last night's defeat ended Uniteds longest away winning run in all competitions in their history. First defeat since January and a run that included wins against Man City, Chelsea and PSG.

[Ethan Tremblay]

There seems to be a lot of different managerial types that have came and went, and the there are different excuses levelled at each of them.  Ironically, the predecessor type usually dictated the need for the opposite on the next type it would seem. 

Moyes – an apparent good appointment at the time, an experienced PL manager, but not experienced enough for a top job. 

Van Gaal – proven experience at handling the biggest clubs in the world, not experienced enough for the rigors of premier league football. 

Jose – a mixture of moyes and van gall, experienced premier league winner, adept at handling a club with big ambitions, but too much of a lone wolf character, not willing to buy into the United ethos, too controversial.   

Ole – caretaker manager, needed to mend a fractured squad, most likely not to ruffle any feathers with board/players/media.  Understands the clubs values etc.  No doubt a better atmosphere arrived during his first few months in charge that got him the gig full time.   

Now here we are back to square one, Ole is not experienced enough, to naive to manage the club, so Poch is the new man. 

Poch – experienced premier league manager, had taken a team well above their station domestically and in Europe, seems likeable, wouldn't bring an ego and seems harmonious. 

The thing is, if Poch does get the job, the same pitfalls are going to befall him as it has the rest. 

I genuinely wouldn't know who, after Poch gets run out of Manchester, would be next in line, Simeone possibly?
I am sure we will be recycling this conversation in about two years time regardless. 

[BennyCake]

Seems like Poch is the last resort if Ole goes.

If there wasn't this influx of foreign managers/players in the PL, clubs would be looking at British and Irish managers like in the early to mid 90's. The likes of Keegan, Dalglish, Howard Wilkinson, Hoddle, George Graham, Souness, Redknapp, Joe Royle, Big Ron etc were managing the top teams then. Today's equivalent would be the likes of Bruce, Hughes, Big Sam, Hughton, Dean Smith, Southgate, Lampard etc.

You might laugh at the likes of United going for such managers these day, but maybe that's what is partly missing. Managers who came through the club, understand the links/past, the community/people working there and supporting the club, the youth set up, etc, rather than a foreign manager who has no links to the country, never mind the area.

It's a shame in a way, because we all grew up watching these men as players and most of them don't stand a chance of remaining with a top division team. All pushed out by the influx of foreign managers and club financiers demanding instant success and high profits.

[Will it ever end]

Or ... maybe being a good player or club legend doesn't necessarily make you a good manager ... if only there was a very recent example of this to back it up???

[Geoff Tipps]

Seems like Poch is the last resort if Ole goes.

If there wasn't this influx of foreign managers/players in the PL, clubs would be looking at British and Irish managers like in the early to mid 90's. The likes of Keegan, Dalglish, Howard Wilkinson, Hoddle, George Graham, Souness, Redknapp, Joe Royle, Big Ron etc were managing the top teams then. Today's equivalent would be the likes of Bruce, Hughes, Big Sam, Hughton, Dean Smith, Southgate, Lampard etc.

You might laugh at the likes of United going for such managers these day, but maybe that's what is partly missing. Managers who came through the club, understand the links/past, the community/people working there and supporting the club, the youth set up, etc, rather than a foreign manager who has no links to the country, never mind the area.

It's a shame in a way, because we all grew up watching these men as players and most of them don't stand a chance of remaining with a top division team. All pushed out by the influx of foreign managers and club financiers demanding instant success and high profits.

Surely he's top of the list if Ole goes!?

[BennyCake]

Or ... maybe being a good player or club legend doesn't necessarily make you a good manager ... if only there was a very recent example of this to back it up???

Yes but if you didn't have all the foreign managers in the PL, you're left with a lot of managers like those above. One of them would be winning the league, FA Cup etc. Someone like Mark Hughes or Steve Bruce could be at United winning all around them, or Big Sam doing likewise at Liverpool or Arsenal.

But we'll never know because of those pesky foreigners

[Captain Obvious]

Or ... maybe being a good player or club legend doesn't necessarily make you a good manager ... if only there was a very recent example of this to back it up???

Yes but if you didn't have all the foreign managers in the PL, you're left with a lot of managers like those above. One of them would be winning the league, FA Cup etc. Someone like Mark Hughes or Steve Bruce could be at United winning all around them, or Big Sam doing likewise at Liverpool or Arsenal.

But we'll never know because of those pesky foreigners

Serious or on the wind up? .