What's gone wrong at Manchester United FC these 3 seasons?
First and foremost, you have to remember, that Manchester United was going through a transition!Sir Alex Fergusion, one of the most successful managers of all time, was retiring, after over two decades of service with this club. When someone has been at the club for so long, and won so much, the club is used to his way of thinking, his demands, and functions accordingly. His absence was bound to create a vacuum at the top, as the manager for a club like United is very important. Getting the results, managing egos, succeeding Sir Alex, it was going to be very tough for the next manager.Further, there were many players who simply joined United because they admired Fergie. He could get the best out of them. So many players would have lost their motivation to play somewhat, when he left the club.He left in 2012. That time, our squad needed to be bolstered up. David Moyes came in, and we really did not add any good players to the squad, except Juan Mata towards the end of season. Further, our highly reliable back four, especially the partnership of Vidic-Ferdinand, ended, and Patrice Evra was sold off too. These players had been here for a long time, and it was a mistake selling them so fast.Thus, our defence became wobbly, our attack was jaded, as RvP was aging, injury prone, and Rooney was off Colour.To correct this, we brought in Louis Van Gaal. Ideally, it was too much to ask of Moyes to succeed Alex Fergusion, with the same expectations. He should’ve been given either more funds, or more time.Move on to LvG, and he tried to correct things. Firstly, he solidified defense, brought in some great squad players like Blind. Our defense improved, but the our attack failed to deceive. Di Maria wasn’t used properly, and he anyways didn’t wish to be in England. Falcao too did not really work out. Our defense though became better, as De Gea started showing his true potential, and back 4 was somewhat settled.Last season, it was mostly the injuries to key players. Luke Shaw the most critical of all. We could not use our first choice full backs throughout the season. LvG, though tactically sound, at times didn’t play players in their preferred position, as he tried to find out the best combination.Now, our back and mid are relatively settled. One or more pacy midfield/wingers and we will surely be better off. Hoping for better days with Jose, though I hope our academy players get chances to impress him and playing time on the field!GGMU!
Is Man United's historic attacking flair under serious threat of extinction under Louis Van Gaal?
Flair is all about doing things simply. Optimizing decision making is all about making the type of decision that makes the opponent backpedal. At least that holds true in soccer. How many times people attempt a one-two pass when a simple 15 yard pass near the edge of the penalty box would have taken out 3 or 4 defenders. That's flair for me. Flair is good because it causes surprise in the eyes of both the adversary and the spectators. That's why people associate flair with attacking football (not always true). The trademark attacking philosophy has become an expensive trait because the number of goals scored from set pieces or from a deep cross has been on the wane. Defensive drills have evolved so fast that defenders can nullify the speed demon, the playmaker, the goal poacher et al. You name it, the defenders have got it marked. To pry open those modern defenses, you need increasingly better, stronger, and more cunning players...also you need a manager whose tactics aren't limited to one dimension. Such as hoofing it, betting on counter attacks, being physical, or possession. Van Gaal is the wrong man in the wrong timeline. Manchester United's decline is from a natural process of decay. The best footballers think twice when receiving a transfer bid from United. United's traditional poaching grounds, e.g Scandinavia, Holland, and Ireland, all have become barren due to complex reasons beyond my understanding. Van Gaal is in the hot seat but he's so powerless that he's a glorified spectator really. Better men will come and find that their tactics aren't working at Manchester United. The onus now lies firmly with the board of directors. Their choice for United's next manager will have to be very inspired to halt this decline. But there's still hope. For the future at least. Forget the 2016 season. United's savior must have the savoir faire, and the savvy of a type better than any manager in the Premiership currently. But, life, uh, finds a way.
David Moyes thinks he should have had more time to prove himself as Manchester United's Manager. Do you agree?
No.As an Everton fan I was happy to see Moyes head off down the M62 when he wound his contract down with us. It tells you a lot when a manager gets a ‘good send off’ and we made a fuss of Moyesie ending his tenure with us.“Thanks for everything….but on your way now”What ever possessed him to want to try and replace Alex Ferguson though, when the crop of talent that Ferguson lucked into and rode for so long was used up and gone, still defies understanding.Sir Alex seems to have wanted Moyes so he could be a Ferguson proxy or puppet in the Old Trafford dressing room and Moyes did have some talent at building a team ethic. He was skilled at adding just a couple of players with the right mentality every window to shape a team to punch above its weight.Given time he could assemble a very competitive squad with a real family ethos and bulletproof work ethic. Problem is that United will never be a club that wants to recognise that this ethic has to be built. It’s expected that this will just be ingrained in the DNA of anyone who plays for Utd!.Rio Ferdinand was talking openly about Moyes coming in a few months ago, on one of the pundit shows, and how he was assessing the squad in terms of setting up the team to nullify the threat from the next team they were set to play. Ferdinand actually looked aghast at the memory and said that United, under Ferguson, just didn’t think that way. They were used to taking to the pitch with a swagger expecting to blow the other side away. They didn’t want to approach a match in Moyes’ way because it was seen as an Everton level club approach and not a United level one.The United squad needed rebuilding but the players themselves were in complete denial about what was needed and Moyes, with his honest and workmanlike attitude, was never going to convince them of the need to reinvent themselves.Maybe if they’d got a Mourinho or Hiddink then it might have been different. They may have had the gravitas to make changes stick and clean house. They would never have taken on the poisoned chalice of replacing Ferguson though.Moyes could have had another 3yrs at Old Trafford and he wouldn’t have turned them around.
Is Manchester United better off without Robin Van Persie?
I think all the answers here cover the important points but I would like to add a few more points of my own.When RVP is playing, Rooney plays the no 10 role and in RVP's absence Rooney plays upfront and Kagawa and Mata interchange between playing the no 10 role. That is the major difference according to me because as a traditional no 10 Kagawa and Mata are better than Rooney.I say this because as brilliant as a passer Rooney is, his first touch is usually not that great and he gets the ball stuck a lot of times. Kagawa and Mata have a brilliant better first touch and are nimble footed which helps in keeping the play more fluid. And Rooney when fully fit is a very good finisher and playing upfront he finds himself in scoring positions more often. And the link up between Kagawa and Mata has been very good when they played together this season.RVP though is a very important asset for United because even after being injured so many times this season he is the top scorer. And very few strikers in the world can play as well off the shoulder of a defender as he does. Add to that his quality set pieces too. This a very important dilemma David Moyes will be facing next season too, but I guess he will continue playing Rooney as a no 10 because that is the only way to accomodate him and RVP and there is no way RVP will start on the bench if he is fully fit.
Do most football fans have low intelligence?
I just don't understand all the seemingly idiotic things that football fans do, such as. 1. Getting overly excited. Yelling at their TV's. Yelling at the top of their lungs at stadiums, intentionally trying to be as loud and rowdy as possible, etc. Don't get me wrong, I can enjoy watching a game of football, and appreciate the game in an intelligent fashion. I've never once felt the need to go crazy and scream my head off and act like a retarded wild animal. Other sports fans such as golf fans can also intelligently watch their game in a well behaved manner. Are football fans mostly just of low intelligence, and that's why they act like wild baboons? Or is there some other explanation? 2. So many football fans seem like idiots the way they support their team. Most of them do not make an intelligent choice as to who is their favorite, they just automatically default to whoever their local team is. They paint and even tattoo their bodies with their team logo, they throw big parties just to get drunk and yell about how good their default favorite team is, and how bad whatever the other team is. They talk about their team all season long, like their life revolves around their default favorite. Myself, I can enjoy the qualities of any team, and it doesn't matter who wins, I can intelligently enjoy the game which takes place, without even the need for favorites. So why do most go absolutely wild like maniacs when their team wins, and practically riot and get so angry when their team looses. Is it simply a matter of low intelligence on average? Or something else?
Why did Manchester United extend Maraoune Fellaini’s contract?
Thanks for the A2A.There are only two reasons why Manchester United will want to keep Fellaini at the club.Mourinho loyalistFellaini has been given a new lease of life under Mourinho, being publicly backed and praised multiple times by Jose Mourinho throughout his time at the club.Fellaini has repaid that trust by working hard and being a reliable option for Mourinho whenever he is available.With Mourinho heading to this third season, he will be glad that he kept a player who has a favorable view towards him and is willing to fight for him on the pitch. This will help negate any possible locker room conflict or upheaval.Plan BWith the tactical set up of Mourinho, Fellaini is a very important plan B option to have. Considering how clueless Mourinho sides can be when they are ball dominant, they will often times find themselves needing to turn to the direct option to break down stubborn defences.In all fairness to Fellaini, he has done that quite frequently, bailing United out from poor performances. Extending Fellaini’s contract ensures we have a very effective target man as a back up.Personal thoughtsWith that being said, the extension of Fellaini shows a lack of courage from the United team, refusing to move past the reliance of a safety net and getting a breath of fresh air in a new addition to the squad.The Fellaini extension has poured cold water over the fan-base who had high hopes of clearing players we deem as “dead wood” while also strengthening the side. Remember Mourinho said that if Fellaini leaves we will need to get a replacement. (There goes a new signing)On the bright side, with Fellaini tied down, we have a bigger portion of transfer money to focus on more crucial parts of the team.I am disappointed but this is not something which will bug me as Fellaini will not be a starter week in and week out. I am confident he will be our insurance policy. Let’s hope United signs someone else to move past this asap. What’s done is done.