The year a team went missing.
On 8th May 2013 Fergie announced his resignation
at the end of the season. On 9th May United announced that his
successor would be David Moyes, manager of Everton since 2002 with whom he had
won nothing.
On the face of it for one of the biggest clubs in world
football to choose a manager who had not previously won a trophy was a major
surprise. However most commentators focussed on Moyes’ personal qualities and
beliefs and the feeling he had done the best job possible with limited
resources at Everton, in justifying the appointment. The idea being that he had
a good youth setup at Everton and his players were instilled with a positive
work ethic that got the best from them, which would transfer to Old Trafford
and continue Fergie’s strategy.
At this point it is worth recalling that Fergie himself had
invited Moyes to his house, told him of his resignation and that he would be
his successor in a manner with echoes of North Korea or Cuba. Fergie would be a
director and still part of the club which had disturbing undertones of the mess
at the end of Busby’s reign. You couldn’t help feeling that Fergie didn’t want
to let go completely and he saw in Moyes someone who he could work with. Both
of similar backgrounds, being Glaswegian with long playing records in Scotland.
Had Mourinho come in it was impossible to think he could
have worked with Fergie’s presence around the place. Also a rumour was that
Charlton did not consider Mourinho a United type. Anyway he was probably always
going back to Chelsea as United had shown no sign of wanting him.
So United got Moyes and immediately it was difficult to
think of us as doing anything more than, at best, treading water. No real
prospect of kicking on in Europe. Indeed you would not think of the world’s top
players wanting to join Moyes rather than Mourinho.
Moyes brought his backroom team from Everton which led to
the removal of Mike Phelan and, of more concern, Rene Meulensteen who was very
well respected as first team coach. Now Phil Neville is first team coach in his
first managerial job.
Pre-season was mixed, slightly disappointing if anything and
concluded with a 2-0 win over newly relegated Wigan in the Commmunity Shield at
Wembley.
Summer transfer activity began with the signing of an
obscure young South American full back, and almost ended there. Despite talk
from Moyes of a number of signings nothing happened until the last minutes of
the transfer window when we signed Fellaini from his old club for £27m. Had we
signed him before 31stJuly he would have cost £23m because of a buy
out clause. But it expired so we paid £4m more and didn’t have him for the
first 3 games. This, of course, smacked of him being our second or third
choice.
We chased Fabregas in vain all summer. Herrara of Bilbao
failed at the last. Baines of Everton did not happen. We were also linked with
Ozil, De Rossi, Kadeira and Modric. None of them happened. Clearly, as all the
fans knew, we needed 3 top class midfielders. What went wrong? Well, David
Gill, the chief exec left for UEFA and was replaced by Ed Woodward who took
charge of transfers. Here’s part of his Wikipedia profile.
In 2005, Woodward advised Malcolm Glazer and the Glazer family during its successful takeover of Manchester
United. The Glazer family then recruited Woodward to join the club
in a "financial planning" role.
In 2007, Woodward was given charge of the
commercial and media operations of Manchester United. It was in this role that
Woodward is credited for United's success in tying up lucrative sponsorship
deals with companies around the world. In 2005, the club's commercial revenue
was £48.7 million. In 2012, it stood at £117.6 million.[2][3]
Woodward was appointed to the board of directors
and named executive vice-chairman of Manchester United in 2012. After the
retirement of CEO David Gill the
following year, Woodward was promoted to the top operational role at Old Trafford in a restructuring of the club's
boardroom. Woodward was succeeded by Richard Arnold as the club's commercial management
director.[1]
Woodward's first transfer window, where
Manchester United completed the signing of Belgian midfielder Marouane
Fellaini from Everton,
but failed to acquire other transfer targets, was described as being
"disastrous" by The Daily Telegraph.[4]
With his background advising the Glazers he did a great job
saving them money.
So the owners and board of Manchester United put the playing
future of the club in the hands of a financial planner and a trophy less
manager. Hardly a good long term strategy. It’s hard not to think of it in
these terms :- we had one of the best managers in the world with an experienced
staff and professional management support. That’s been replaced by people who
are completely untried at this level. In an effort to compete with United both
City and Chelsea have recruited top level executives who know football, and
experienced managers who have properly trained and experienced staff. Then they
have sourced and recruited top class players. They needn’t have bothered as
United have simply thrown away their advantage through either complacency or tight
footedness. In the business world you would never replace a highly successful
chief executive of a huge company with someone from a smaller concern with no
real outstanding achievement behind him. Nor would you allow him to replace the
deputy chief executive and several members of the successful management team
with colleagues from his old company, one of whom had never been in management
before. This would be simply unthinkable but has happened at Manchester United,
one of the biggest football businesses in the world. Can it be right either for
the football success or the long term profitability of the club?
Moyes’ other summer business was about keeping Rooney from
the clutches of Mourinho at Chelsea. He managed to do this despite announcing
that we needed Rooney in case Van Persie got injured!
The season started well enough away to Swansea. On the back
foot for the first 20 minutes, United went ahead through Van Persie, swiftly
followed by a tap in from Wellbeck. 2 cracking goals from the same duo sealed
the victory with Swansea getting one back after clumsy defending by Wellbeck on
the edge of our box. Rooney came on for the last half hour and looked good
although ostentatiously not joining in goal celebrations. It was business as
usual. Midfield Valencia, Carrick, Cleverley and Giggs.
For the first home game against Chelsea Rooney started and
was given a tremendous reception by the crowd. Both sections of it as Chelsea
fans were trying to encourage him to join them! Mourinho’s Chelsea came for the
point and got it. In a tight game there were very few chances and, clearly,
more creativity was needed by United. Interestingly Rooney had a couple of long
range shots when he could have played in Van Persie, and perhaps he was looking
to make a point. It was United’s first goalless draw at Old Trafford since May
2009 but not a bad performance against a Chelsea side intent on defending. Moyes
made 1 change from the Swansea team.
Next game was Liverpool away and Rooney got injured in
training so did not play. Liverpool had started the season with two 1-0 wins
with Sturridge scoring in both and this was to be their third. United fans were
more nervous before this game than for a long time against Liverpool and it was
featured that Moyes had never won at Anfield. Sturridge scored in 3 minutes
from a scrappy corner with United’s defence on the back foot. They never looked
like scoring again. Missing Rooney badly United again could not break down a
team determined to defend. It was very tempting to say that under Fergie United
would have had more fight & belief that they could come back from behind.
So no goals in 2 games and few chances. Depressingly Moyes announced that he
thought “they” had played well and you could see why “they” were champions. No
“they” didn’t play well and David shouldn’t it be “we”? 2 changes.
After 3 games we had 4 points. In terms of team selection
you couldn’t fault the back four with Raphael out and Jones, Ferdinand, Vidic
and Evra playing well. In midfield Cleverley & Carrick have started all
games, Giggs 2 and Valencia 2 with Zaha and Young 1 each. Van Persie and
Wellbeck have started all up front and Rooney has started once in a 4-3-3.
Carrick’s been his usual efficient self but Cleverley’s looked out of touch.
Giggs has had moments of pure genius but can’t boss a game any more. Valencia
has looked more positive when pressed into action as full back than when on the
wing and the other 2 wingers have looked lightweight. Van Persie has not had
good service at all and only Rooney has looked the business when he’s played.
Since the Swansea game Wellbeck’s flattered to deceive as he did all last
season. Kagawa has just made a brief sub appearance and seems totally out of
favour. With Rooney out his best position was available but he wasn’t played.
Similarly Nani has had one sub appearance whilst Anderson’s come on twice and
Hernandez once.
Overall we seem 10% slower when building attacks giving
defences time to organize & we need to get the zip back in our play.
Maybe Moyes is still to assess the players to determine his
best team and get them settled down. Just hope its quick.
Let’s look at the squad :
Goal De
Gea, Lindergaard, Amos
Defence Raphael,
Jones, Smalling, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra, Buttner, Fabio
Midfield Zaha,
Valencia, Young, Nani, Giggs, Cleverley, Carrick, Anderson
Hole Rooney,
Kagawa, Fellaini
Striker Van
Persie, Wellbeck, Hernandez
Goal seems to be covered with De Gea having a strong season
last time & good cover.
Similarly with defence although we do seem to have players
who are injury prone in that area.
For the rest of the team we need to establish the system of
play. If we’re having 2 wide men as we normally do then we’ve 4, not including
Giggs, to choose from. Zaha’s been bought on the strength of his performances
last season so it makes sense to play him and Valencia if the coaches can find
a way of getting Valencia to play more positively and directly like he used to.
Otherwise play Nani. I don’t think Young’s good enough.
In the centre mid Carrick is a must and I think Fellaini
needs to reposition himself alongside.
This leaves Rooney and Van Persie which must be our best
attacking combination.
Hernandez must be our supersub to change things round when
needed.
Wellbeck needs to do a lot more than he has before I’d make
him a regular.
Kagawa is a ready made alternative to either Fellaini or
Rooney & may be better than Fellaini if given an extended run , which he
won’t get.
Giggs can change a game in the last half hour but I’m unsure
what Cleverley brings to the team.
Anderson has had his chances.
Saying all that what we miss most is a box to box midfielder
who looks after defensive duties a la Keane and an inventive hole player like
Cantona. Maybe Fabregas and Ozil would have filled those gaps.
After the international break we’re back with a home
lunchtime kick off against Palace, who are bottom. Rooney’s been pressed into
playing with a band round his head to protect a split forehead. Fabio’s been
given a go at right back as Jones is still out and Anderson’s given another
chance in midfield.
Palace simply sat back and we couldn’t get through them. Our
most inventive ploy being Young’s attempts to gain a penalty by falling which
eventually worked. The penalty was tucked away by VP and in the second half
Rooney scored from a free kick but we created few chances. Predictably Anderson
was crap and Valencia unassertive whilst, apart from winning the penalty Young
did nothing. VP unfortunately is feeding only off scraps.
Things got better when Fellaini and Januzaj came on. The
latter in particular showed very positive signs.
Overall we can only say we’ve beaten the bottom team 2-0 at
home and, despite them being down to 10 men for the second half, we couldn’t
score a single goal from open play.
Moyes is happy with the result. 4 changes.
Next up is Bayer Leverkusen at home in the misleadingly
named champions league.
Smalling in at right back, Fellaini for Anderson &
Kagawa for Young.
All three played well and Rooney had a terrific game with 2
goals and a hand in Valencia’s. Valencia was very positive for once and
Smalling excellent behind him although not getting so far forward which
probably encouraged Valencia to attack more. After Leverkusen equalised we
looked shocked but when we scored again our confidence returned and we breezed
home.
Thinking about this game it was clear that we had more room
on the ball as we weren’t pressed as much as in the Premiership. Maybe we’ve
been sussed out over here and that’s why we’re doing better in Europe. 3
changes.
City murdered us at the Etihad 4-1 and weren’t flattered. VP
was out injured and replaced by Wellbeck and Young came in for Kagawa but it
didn’t matter. It was men against boys. We don’t have the character any more to
withstand an onslaught and retaliate. What’s happened to us? Obviously the
Fergie effect but what is that? Motivation? Fear? Tactics? Or do we also have
to look at the coaching and the effect on team spirit of Moyes not seeming to
know his first eleven? Anyway Rooney scored a great free kick to give us at
least one good memory. 2 changes.
Capital one cup against Liverpool and we fielded a weakened
side against their more or less full strength and won with a Hernandez touch in
around half time. The young team performed well as a unit and that’s clearly
the key to improvement. Hopeful again after the City result. 8 changes.
Hopes dashed quickly by second successive league defeat,
this time at home to West Brom. A team that we should always beat. They got a
couple of excellent goals abetted by poor defending and we struggled to create
chances. Rooney got another free kick so yet again no goal from open play.
Essentially though it was an even game and they got the breaks. 4 changes. Need
to sort out a settled midfield.
Away to Shaktar and looking comfortable at 1-0 with a good
Wellbeck goal we conceded late on for a draw that emphasised defensive weakness
and lack of resolve. 7 changes.
Back to winning ways against a poor Sunderland team who went
into the lead early on through a Vidic error in defence. The win came through 2
goals from Januzaj on his first start in the league. 4 changes.
Home game against Southampton who had started the season
well. A seemingly good performance with little luck after striking the bar
twice and Rooney and VP working well together. VP scored and we seemed
comfortable only for them to equalise in the last minute. Again. 2 changes.
An early own goal gave us a 1-0 win at home to Sociedad
although we were far from impressive. 4 changes.
The most weird home game followed against Stoke. They
scored, VP equalised, they scored again and we seemed to have no answer. Then
Rooney and Hernandez both scored with 10 minutes left and we hung on. 3-2. 4
changes.
Against Norwich in the Capital one cup Moyes fielded a
strong team, probably thinking it’s our only chance of winning something, and
came away with a 4-0 win courtesy of goals from Hernandez (2), Jones and Fabio.
Seems like away from the Premiership we can put together decent performances.
Maybe it’s because we’re allowed to. 9
changes.
Away to bottom team Fulham and raced to a 3-0 lead in 20
minutes through VP, Valencia and Rooney. After that nothing and you wonder why
we didn’t push on more. Fulham got one back in second half. 6 changes.
A nothing game away to Sociedad. VP missed a penalty and
Fellaini got a red card. 6 changes.
We now face a home game against the leaders Arsenal. If we
lose we are definitely out of the title race. This is the most important game
for a long time. And we win through a header from VP after a Rooney corner.
Resolutely we keep Arsenal out. Not impressively entertaining but an
improvement on everything that’s gone before. The papers were saying well of
course United had never really been out of contention. 4 changes.
After the win against Arsenal the away game at Cardiff was
looked forward to as an opportunity to kick on and we started well with a
Rooney goal. Then they cut through our midfield and Campbell scored but we got
another with Evra from a corner just on half time. Giggs came on with 20 to go
and looked our best player. As time ran out we looked to be comfortable with
the 2-1 lead but in extra time they scored with an unmarked header from a free
kick. 2-2. Another late goal conceded. 5 changes.
The crucial European game away to Leverkusen was won 5-0
with goals from Valencia, Jones, Smalling, Nani & an own goal. It was a
confident performance and everything went our way. Strangely the Germans looked
very timid and disorganised. It was a difficult game to analyse but I won’t get
as carried away with optimism as some are. Giggs was the star of midfield.
Rooney created 4 of the goals. 4 changes.
Next to White Hart Lane to play Spurs who had been beaten
6-0 by City last week. They were resolute against us though and we could only
manage a draw with 2 goals from Rooney as his fine season continues. Probably a
decent result for us and it means we are undefeated in 8 games. 3 changes.
Now the first of 2 successive home games against teams
having good runs and this was Moyes’ old team Everton. Well we created very
little and were undone close to the end through poor defending so the
undefeated run ends. 3 changes.
Need to win now against Newcastle 3 days later but it’s the
same sterile performance and the same 1-0 defeat. So 2 teams that haven’t won
at Old Trafford for donkey’s years have both broken their duck in quick
succession. 6 changes.
After 22 games in all competitions let’s have a look at some
stats. Midfield is the big concern so we’ll see what’s going on there. So far
11 different midfield players have been used in 21 different combinations. Only
1 has been repeated, that of Valencia, Fellaini, Giggs & Kagawa and in
those 2 games we drew 0-0 with Sociedad and lost 1-0 at home to Everton. So
it’s safe to say Moyes has not decided on his best midfield. Valencia’s played
the most with 14 and Carrick is on 13 which, without injury, would have been
more. Anderson & Young have played in 4 and 2 whilst the others have played
between 6 and 10 each. This leads to saying that Moyes favours Carrick and
Valencia and doesn’t like Anderson or Young. The other 7 come and go often for
no apparent reason. This has got to be a big problem. The midfield is the
engine of the team. If it’s running smoothly then it facilitates the creation
of chances and supports defence in resisting attacks. To run smoothly there has
to be stability, consistency and balance. To throw separate, random components
together and expect smooth running is folly but that’s what is happening.
Stability and consistency are provided by deciding what system or style to
play, selecting the players that best fit that style and sticking with it until
it is tested and fails or it succeeds. Changing personnel every game, which has
been the case all season, is a formula for failure. The players never get a
chance to build an understanding and are dispirited by the uncertainty. Nor is
the manager able to assess how players relate to each other in real match
situations over a period of time. The other condition of balance is part of the
system that covers the creativity in midfield but also the ability to break up
opposition attacks before they reach our defence. To be successful both elements
must be present. This will be a function of the style of play but also the
style of the players involved.
Looking at the defence we’ve conceded 19 goals in 15 league
games, which isn’t terrible but of those we’ve let in 3 late on to draw 2 that
we would have won and to lose the game against Everton. All of these have been
sloppy goals and clearly indicate lack of concentration. Having said that the
big problem is the lack of goals scored so let’s look at the attack.
We’ve 4 strikers : Van Persie, Rooney, Wellbeck and
Hernandez. It’s difficult to judge these players because the service from
midfield has been sadly lacking. Rooney, however, has been tremendous. He’s got
10 goals in all games including a penalty and 3 free kicks. He’s also created
numerous goals for others and his all round game has been of the highest order.
Without him we’d have been in dire straits. He’s different from the others in
the way he drops back and finds space but gets forward as well. Wellbeck should
be doing the same but he suffers from a lack of a football brain and too often
is in the wrong place or chooses the wrong option. He flatters to deceive. At
times looking world class but mostly appearing naïve. Hernandez is a good finisher
who is simply not getting enough opportunities in the box. The same is true of
Van Persie although he is a more expansive player but still suffers from the
failure of midfield to get the ball to him quickly enough. He has sustained
injuries that have also affected his play during the season.
All of the above is said knowing that substantially the same
players that won the league by 11 points are still here so what has happened to
them? It must be something like a lack of belief. Maybe they lack belief in the
new management which causes them to lack belief in themselves. Maybe they are
let down by not having a system of play that they believe in or maybe they are
unsure of their position in the team as there are too many changes. Whatever,
it’s clear that the spirit, resolution and fight are lacking compared with
previously.
After the 2 home league defeats we have Shaktar Donetsk at
Old Trafford in the final champions league group game and we need to avoid
defeat to go through as group winners. Well in the first half they ripped
through us and, but for terrible finishing could have scored 3 or 4. We had
chances too but, unfortunately, they both fell to Young who made a hash of 2
wonderful opportunities. Started feeling sorry for him as his confidence must
be shot till I remembered how much he must be on and then I felt angry. In the
second half we showed a lot more fight which, I think, was partly due to the
opposition tiring after an energetic start. Eventually we got a goal through
Jones that sealed our place as group winners. On reflection only Jones in
midfield had a good game with a spirited display and a goal. Ferdinand was
awful and gave the ball away as last man at least twice. Maybe age catching up.
Actually Evans did well also and covered for Ferdinand a few times. So you have
to say great results in Europe in contrast to very poor in the premier league.
As I’ve said we get closed down in midfield domestically which we don’t seem
able to get past whilst in Europe the teams aren’t able or configured to do
this for more than a small part of the match. 5 changes.
In the League we’re playing away to Villa who are in the
middle of a poor run. They start brightly but Wellbeck gets a poacher’s goal
after 15 minutes and they pretty much fold. We started to put some good moves
together which will do our confidence some good but Villa were no test at all.
Wellbeck got another and Cleverley scored a good one. 4 changes.
I’m away for the Stoke game in the Capital One cup at the
Brittania. By the sound of it pretty straightforward with Evra scoring and
Young’s goal being special. Not just because of the quality of the goal but
also because Young scored without falling over. 3 changes.
Last game before Christmas is West Ham at home, which I go
to with my two sons who are home for Christmas. It’s a chance for them to see
us live for the first time this season and we can discuss the game from the
same standpoint afterwards. After a bit of bluster from them we quickly got on
top and, without having to play well, they rolled over. Wellbeck and Januzaij
both scored from acute angles after good build up play and Young stuck in a
good one late on. Encouraging. Our discussion after the game was cautiously
optimistic, hoping that we hadn’t just had a win over a very poor team. Time
will tell. 2 changes.
Boxing day at Hull. Who has celebrated Christmas the more
and who is still hungry? Answer within 20 minutes as Hull flew into a 2-0 lead
due to, charitably, poor defending. No let’s be honest it was pathetic
defending. No composure in centre of defence and don’t clear when given chance,
also very bad marking from crosses. Anyway soon got back at them and eventually
won because they can’t defend either. Smalling header, o.g. and great Rooney
volley. 2 changes.
Last game of a crazy
year at Norwich. They being a team of mixed results. Anyway we won 1-0 thanks to Wellbeck coming on and
scoring after injecting more pace and urgency than anyone else on the pitch had
been showing. That doesn’t mean that Wellbeck’s better than anyone else because
in many games he’s started he’s been as lethargic as everyone else. Just weird
how sometimes subs have an impact that they would not have if they started the
game. . 5 changes.
New year begins against Spurs who are not doing that great.
Not long having sacked Villas Boas as manager they have now appointed Tim
Sherwood on an interim contract. So would not expect them to be super confident
on the back of managerial changes and poor recent results. Anyway they pasted
us. For the first time this season I realised we did not have a clue how to
play. They simply put men behind the ball and we had no idea how to play
through the middle. When we tried to play down the flanks their big guys at the
back soaked everything up. They only counter attacked a few times but when they
did they found our weak underbelly to score easily through the middle. Two free
headers were enough to win it for them. Wellbeck’s consolation goal was
delightful but not sustaining. 4 changes.
Now we have the FA cup and maybe this is a chance to forget
league form and try to do well enough to win the trophy. We have Swansea who
have only won 1 in their last 9 games. At home. Come on. Even a pessimist like
me knows we’ll blow them away. However relatively poor we are this is not a
game we stand a chance of losing. Particularly as we got beat last time out and
we’ll want to respond to that. Of course this is just the arrogance of a team
that has had it too good for too long and consequently we lose 2-1. Not much in
it. Maybe a decision goes their way but not an unfair result. Good goal by
Herandez from Buttner’s cross. Apart from that few chances were created though6
changes.
Ok now we play the bottom team Sunderland in the Capital One
cup semi. Their ground but they have only won 3 league games this season.
Doesn’t stop them beating us 2-1 though. Penalty they shouldn’t have had is nor
relevant. No big team currently would need to rely on a single decision against
a team as poor as Sunderland. Another flat performance which is now the norm.
We might win the odd game against teams like this but can only see us being
slaughtered against the best teams. . 7 changes.
Chatted about this with a couple of (non United) mates last
night and a few consensual thoughts came out. Must point out that some may have
been aired by me before… anyway.
Why Moyes?
Continuity, similar philosophy to Fergie, can continue to
work with Fergie, good youth policy at Everton. Cheaper than Mourinho for
Glazers and less likely to demand transfer spend.
Why not Moyes?
Not won anything as a manager. Would disrupt successful
coaching staff. Not a top manager.
Managerial selection process.
Rumours abound but, whether or not Fergie chose his
successor, one should expect the owners and directors of Manchester United to
have been rigorous in deciding how, when and who in terms of the succession. It
does seem that they left it to Fergie to wait for the moment and then say “
that’s it”. However any professional business would have insisted that the
incumbent gave due notice of resignation and then the management would have
taken the time to search properly for a successor. It’s not implausible that
Fergie could have given a year’s notice so that Moyes or someone else could
have worked with him for that period.
What has happened is akin to the CEO of a major corporation
retiring and being replaced by an MD of a medium sized organisation. Then the
deputy MD (Meulesteen) is sacked and replaced by a graduate trainee (Phil
Neville). Almost as alarming is that the under 21s are coached by Butt and
Scholes. Great players but not yet great coaches.
What’s going Right?
Rooney is better than at any time over the last two seasons.
Having said that he’s playing too deeply. Surely Mr. Moyes could point this out
to him.
De Gea looks the business as the best keeper in the prem.
Januzaj is a player.
What’s going wrong?
$64m question. First of all more or less same players. How
can a manager mess up a bunch of players that just won the prem by 12 points?
If he did nothing at all you would expect the players to continue their style
and be close to previous performances. However he hasn’t done nothing. He’s
changed the coaching team. The team that was so successful has gone. The
results of the current coaching team are there to be seen. Same players, less
success. Injuries have not been kind but mostly caused during training. Can’t
be too hard about that but it’s another factor. I’m sorry but I’ve got to say
it. Phil Neville on the bench just looks embarrassing.
How is the team playing differently?
What did Fergie bring? Organization, motivation, spirit,
strategy , Know how.
Clearly Moyes was not going to be as good as Fergie in some
respects.
However it’s not clear how and why he should be worse.
Organization is what you would expect from an experienced
premiership manager at at least an high as level as before.
Motivation is an essential element in a manager, which may
be a little below the best but still at a high level.
Spirit comes to play when results go against you. It’s
character and the ability to fight back. Not yet apparent in United this
season.
The strategy of a team is demonstrated by the players
ability to form a cohesive unit. They know how they are supposed to play and
are able to mesh to the best effect. Once again this has not been demonstrated
by United this season.
Know how seems to me a combination of confidence and ability
and is the remaining ingredient that United are lacking.
Summary at season’s half way point is that whilst the
support for Moyes is overt and considerable, and in a way wonderful, beneath
that there is a real concern that things have slipped disastrously
Obviously Fergie had, for whatever reasons, allowed the
squad to reduce in quality. Moyes, however had the whole summer to make
reparations. Everyone knows he did nothing until signing Fellaini as a last
(desperate ?) measure in summer. It’s not unreasonable therefore to consider
the United squad on 1/10/2013 as Moyes’ squad. No one can then blame the
players for results as the manager has to accept responsibility for the players
he has chosen, If this needs to be investigated further then look at Martinez
at Everton and how he’s been able to elicit performances from players that
Moyes left behind. Players that no one would have suggested were better than
the players that Moyes enjoyed at Manchester United.
It’s really difficult to see where Moyes goes from here.
He’s getting nothing from the players and has said he doesn’t expect any
signings in the January transfer window.
Many United supporters think the only way out is to replace
him with a really top guy.
Back to the league and we have Swansea at home again.
Nothing in it at all in first half as Januzaij is played up front with Welbeck.
Switching Kagawa into centre and Januzaij on wing in second half makes us play
better and we win with goals from Valencia and Wellbeck. Moyes is applauded for
making the change at half time. No-one points out that his original selection
was ill judged. 3 changes.
Still no movement in the January transfer window. We all
know it’s not the best time to buy but we’re in a mess and we need help. Rooney
and VP are not yet training so we’ll go into the Chelsea game lightweight up
front again.
Start off well against Chelsea. Good tempo. Couple of
chances. Then Jones misses a tackle. Eto shoots from 20 yards. Deflection takes
it over De Gea. Soon after a poor clearance gives Chelsea a chance to get the
ball in the box to Eto who is unmarked as defence has forgotten he is there.
Inept defending from a corner gives Eto his hat trick. Hernandez gets one back
when its too late. For some reason Moyes has picked Januzaij in the middle
again with Young on the left, despite us improving significantly against
Swansea when Januzaij went onto the left. Young was anonymous. You have to
wonder what on earth the manager was thinking. You also have to wonder whether
they do any defensive drills in training as basic understanding is not there. 3
changes.
If a manager’s job is to sign the right players, choose a
winning style of play, adopt the best tactics, organise the team, motivate the
players and inspire them with confidence to get the best out of them then Moyes
is failing in every respect. Add to that his unfortunate and, at times, inane
utterances and you have to worry.
Here comes the 2nd leg of the league cup semi at
home to Sunderland. Needing to overturn a 1 goal deficit we lead 1-0 at half
time through Evans. We can’t create another so go into extra time needing
simply to hold on to go through on away goals. With 3 minutes to go De Gea
makes his first mistake of the season & spills an easy shot for them to go
in front on aggregate. In the last minute Hernandez equalises & we go to
penalties. To epitomise our new found lack of confidence we fail to match
Sunderland’s tally of 2. Probably the worst penalties ever. 4 changes.
Our new £37m signing Mata starts against Cardiff with Van
Persie returning. VP & Young score in a tepid 2-0 win at home. 8 changes.
Which is better the we can do away to Stoke, losing 2-1 with
VP replying to two long range Adam efforts. Far too much space given to Adam.
It’s become a trait that we back off in midfield whilst all the top clubs have
their midfielders harassing the opposition. Moyes said we were unlucky. Again.
4 changes.
Still we could hardly fail to beat the bottom team Fulham at
home with Mata, VP & Rooney all starting. Of course we did fail, drawing
2-2. They took the lead in the first half & held it till 75 minutes when we
got two in quick succession. We then sat back & Fulham scored with the last
kick of the match. We made a record number of crosses, not one of which led to
a goal. 3 changes.
Arsenal away did not look promising but they seemed as
subdued as us in a sterile 0-0 that either side might have pinched but neither
deserved to. 2 changes.
So in 2014 we have played 10, won 3, drawn 2 and lost 5. Of
the 10 teams we’ve played 3 were in the top 6 and 7 in the bottom 6. Closer to
relegation form than Champions league form. Since buying Mata we’ve got 5
points out of 12 despite 3 games against bottom 3 teams. Moyes is still no
nearer to knowing his best time with Mata seeming to complicate matters as he
tries to accommodate the ex-Chelsea player.
I’ve thought all through the season that Moyes doesn’t know
his best team, especially in midfield. This is borne out by looking at the
number of changes per game that he’s made. In 38 games he’s changed an average
of over 4 players a game. De Gea has played in 36 games so he’s changed almost
half the team each game. In fact there have been 5 or more outfield players
changed in 12 games and 4 players changed in 11. By observation most of these
have been in midfield. He’s never played an unchanged team. It’s not like these
changes were only taking place early in the season when he was getting to know
the players. The changes are evenly spread and as recently as January 28th
8 changes were made for the Cardiff game. Clearly not playing a settled side
means the players don’t achieve the natural intuition that comes from playing
regularly together. This leads to stilted play in midfield and mistakes caused
by misunderstanding at the back. Also it makes it difficult for midfield to
link up instinctively with attack. Therefore confidence becomes low which
perpetuates the cycle. For me he should decide on his best 11 and select it
consistently now, barring injuries.
The next game away to struggling Palace is drifting towards
0-0 with few chances against an organised defence when we get a penalty in the
62nd minute. VP scores and shortly afterwards Rooney scores a fine
volley for a 2-0 win. So all is now ok again. 3 changes.
On the back of that we go to Olympiakos full of optimism as
Europe is the area we’ve done well in this season and Olympiakos are considered
the weakest team of the last 16. Well they tear into us from the start and we
don’t get out of the shell shock all game. A really shocking performance
considering what was at stake. They were 2-0 up before we got a real chance and
VP of all people fluffed a good opportunity to get an away goal. 3 changes.
As this match was on national TV many people saw for
themselves for the first time how far Manchester United had fallen and the
papers started wondering how long Moyes could remain if things don’t improve.
Well we’ve got Liverpool, City and the return Olympiakos games coming up so
it’s no wonder the bookies make Moyes favourite to be the next Premiership
manager sacked. And Fergie is the favourite to replace him!
More than at any time this season you could see the lack of
confidence in the team. Furthermore they were not as motivated as the Greek
side and did not have the shape in midfield to be able to resist their
opponents and relieve pressure on the defence. Time and again Olympiakos
players ran through midfield either unchallenged or facing feeble tackles. In
defence Ferdinand played horribly. He made poor passes and for the second goal
he turned away to shield himself from the shot. Moyes’ response to going 2 down
was to bring on Kagawa and Wellbeck who were predictably ineffective as there was
no supply from midfield. He couldn’t use the brilliant young Januzaj as he’d
left him in Manchester to “rest” after playing once only in the previous 5
games and with no game coming up for another 10 days. What nonsense! He had
Fellaini on the bench who he could have used in a change of tactics as a target
man. But Moyes seems fearful of being creative tactically.
Against West Brom away Moyes reverts to the same front six
as against Palace. Carrick and Fellaini holding with Mata and Januzaj wide and
Rooney behind Van Persie. And it kind of worked. Jones scored from a VP
freekick. Rooney gets a far post header from a Raphael cross and Wellbeck comes
on as sub for VP and gets a delightful finish after a fine passing move. VP was
taken off after a booking and another foul that warranted a booking, but good
that he shows battling spirit. So a bit of stability pays off – quelle
surprise.
A little more optimism then before the home game against the
scousers who are the in form team. Hard to be anything but apprehensive though
after previous false dawns, particularly as Suarez and Sturridge are likely to
tear our defence apart and the holes in our midfield will be exposed no doubt.
And so it happened. Not that the scousers were that good but
we gave away 3 stupid penalties. To be honest there were some good bits but it
was too easy for Liverpool. We stood off in midfield and kept 2 wingers wide so
we gave them the whole of midfield. A good team would have scored 6 against us.
They pressed their fullbacks up wide so they could load up in midfield and such
a simple tactic was enough to foil us. Every game this happens and we get away
with it sometimes against crap but any decent side these days plays a pressing
game in central midfield which destroys us. How the hell can’t Moyes see this.
Fellaini was pathetic and can’t trap a ball whilst Carrick does his sitting
back so he can throw like a quarterback routine. The forwards don’t have a
chance as they’re isolated and rarely see the ball although Rooney at least has
some spirit. In fact when we went 3 down only Rooney and Raphael showed any
appetite for the fight, Raphael was great but looses his head too easily.
Anyway this game followed the same pattern as for the last few months. Can’t
see how it’s going to change. Question will be – do we give Moyes money to
spend in summer or replace him with someone more proven? Readers of this
account will know my opinion.
Lots of stuff in the press after this game of
course. The Daily Mail reported “On social networking sites and fan forums on Monday, the groundswell of
opinion against Moyes continued to grow. Even the more rational are beginning
to tire of United’s insipid football and a manager who rarely seems to say or
do anything to inspire confidence in his ability to reverse a downward trend.”
The Huffington Post had “David Moyes: 9 Reasons Why Manchester United Should
Sack Him”.
The Guardian “With each demoralising defeat the ire and
concerns of United fans focus more on Moyes and whether he is the man for the
job. The manner of the defeats the 50-year-old is overseeing is the chief
charge against him. All teams lose but to go down constantly by playing like a
team of strangers seven months into his inaugural season offers scant hope of
optimism.”
Telegraph “It would not take Saatchi & Saatchi too
long to come up with a slogan to sum up Manchester United's torrid season. 'David Moyes isn’t working’ would
be a remodelling of something they have produced before but, as the home
supporters drained out of Old Trafford at the end of a 3-0 humiliation at the
hands of Liverpool, enough were raging against their
sinking manager to suggest that those four words would perfectly encapsulate
the mood. Had Moyes been employed by any other
footballing superpower and presided over such a disastrous run of results, his
tenure would have been cut short weeks ago. His survival at United is based on
the club’s determination to give the manager time to reshape the squad and team
in his image, reduce the average age of the squad and promote from within.”
It’s reported that there’s a
rift between him and Giggs and it’s true that Giggs has not featured for
several weeks.
Kevin Sheedy the Everton
youth coach has tweeted that Moyes showed no interest in the youth team. This
would support the fact that he didn’t go in for Ross Barkley who has
established himself in the premiership this season in just the kind of midfield
up and down role that we are crying out for. Moyes obviously didn’t see his
potential and, instead, paid £27m for the lumbering Fellaini.
Many long standing United
fans now have backs to the wall attitudes and want to stick with Moyes in the
same way that the Labour party stuck with many unsuccessful leaders in the
past. That is that they have some notion of principles that overrides results.
This is perverse. These fans wear the 25 years in the wilderness up to 1993 as
a badge of honour. Any right minded supporter must conclude that despite the
size and worldwide appeal of United the club has been run in the manner of a
market stall. While Fergie was there all was fine but no plan was in place for
the succession. He was allowed to go on until he had had enough and then chose
Moyes to follow him. Fergie is to blame but so are the top management of the
club. He should have been told to give 12 months notice of his retirement and
then a proper plan could have been made. As it was he retired at the same time
Gill left as Chief executive which made the transition doubly difficult. In any
case the next manager had to be an individual big enough to come into the club
and say “this is me” like Cantona did. Mourinho would have fitted that bill.
Moyes definitely not.
Olympiakos at home in the vital 2nd leg. We need a 3-0 win to get us to the quarters. Last time we did that was in 1984 against Barcelona with Robbo leading from the front and scoring 2 goals. Oh for a Robbo tonight!
And we got one! His name was Giggs. Ok not a swashbuckling
midfield warrior but a smooth operator, easily evading tackles and making
space. Finding time in a way that none of his colleagues have done all season.
Spearing sublime passes that floated over the heads of defenders perfectly in
the path of teammates. The embodiment, and maybe the last vestiges, of the old
United. Why he was even chasing defenders down at the end of the game when
younger men were almost spent. Most of all he was an inspiration and his men
responded superbly. Not a one could be accused of hiding in this match as they
followed their leader to the most splendid victory.
Well, having said all that, it wasn’t a tactical triumph nor
an overwhelming win. Moyes’ system of zonal marking meant that Olympiakos had
as much room as they needed in midfield and could have scored several times
from chances created. But tonight fortune favoured the brave and winning 3-0 to
recover a 2 goal deficit took the kind of spirit we need to continue to show,
especially against City next week.
Next up is West Ham away and we’re without Ferdinand,
Valencia and Van Persie through injuries picked up on Wednesday. What does
Moyes do – he makes a further 3 changes that are unenforced. So 6 changes in
all. He does like to alter things. Can’t see it being for the best. Before the
match he’s questioned as to who’s playing centre half and answers that it will
be Carrick sometimes and Fellaini also sometimes. Seems like he even wants to
change positions as well as personnel.
Well Rooney gets a wonder volley from near the halfway line
which takes the stuffing out of West Ham. They only have one idea which is to
pump high balls to Andy Carroll and, to be fair, Carrick and Jones deal with
them very well. The hammers leave piles of space in midfield and a better team
than United would have made hay. However in Fellaini, Young and Fletcher we
have 3 of the least forward minded players in professional football. Every pass
being to the feet of or behind the player meaning that momentum was lost In
Fellaini’s case add an inability to control or pass the ball better than a 3
year old and you can see the reason why we only added one more to the tally. On
the positive side and in the absence of Van Persie it seemed that Rooney, Mata
and Kagawa and later Wellbeck could play together constructively. Jones too, in
a quiet way, seems to be growing into the stopper centre half which was the
reason we originally bought him. Got to say that Raphael spoils himself by his
impetuosity and otherwise could become a fine right back.
So how to judge Moyes efforts regarding this game? He made
more changes than you would wish for but the team did gel on occasion. Mata had
more freedom in a central role and Rooney revelled at the front. All in all
though West Ham were not sturdy opponents and I would make no claims that this
win represented any sort of turning point for United.
Especially as next opponents are City at home in a midweek
derby game. Two wins have raised expectancy levels to the extent that a small
defeat may be envisaged if things go well. Otherwise City will swamp us in the
middle of the park like Liverpool and run riot.
As feared City swamped us in the middle of the park like
Liverpool did. Honestly we just seem to concede the central area and retreat to
defence when we don’t have the ball while when we do we always shift it wide.
We invite teams to put pressure on us and are, ourselves, easy to defend
against. City scored early on and after that it was only a matter of how many.
Another 3-0 home defeat is just awful to take.
A routine 4-1 home win against Villa followed although Villa
took the lead and missed good opportunities themselves. Thankfully we were more
creative than of late and Rooney headed us back into the game then got a
penalty. Mata scored his first for us and Hernandez got one late on. Bring on
Bayern!
Bayern being the European champions it seemed a daunting
task but there was a feeling that our European form had held up this season and
we played these games with more of our old confidence than when we played
league games.
Well I can’t say we played flowing football but we did show
a lot of resilience given that Bayern had 70% of the ball on our own ground. In
fact Wellbeck had a goal disallowed for a high foot, which was rubbish, and
then missed a one on one with the keeper. We took the lead with a Vidic header
from a corner just into the second half and seemed to be hanging on ok only for
Schweinsteiger to equalise. 1-0 would have been a great result but the away
goal they got made them favourites for the 2nd leg. Not a bad result
though although sad to see us playing so negatively at home.
The weekend brought a visit to Newcastle which would have
been feared in seasons past but they are currently in the middle of a long
sequence of losses and we ended up easy 4-0 winners. Mata ran the show and
scored twice with further goals by Hernandez and Januzaj. For once we played
some good stuff through the middle and played with some confidence and purpose
before the return leg in Munich.
There we took the same approach as at home which is to say
we defended most of the time. After an hour, in which Bayern had hardly had a
shot at goal, we scored out of the blue with a terrific long range effort from
Evra. Our joy was short lived as this seemed to stir Bayern out of their trance
and they equalised immediately then went on to score another two. They were the
better team but we weren’t disgraced as we have been so many times in the
League this season.
And against Everton at Goodison we were disgraced again,
going down 2-0 to a very ordinary Everton team on the day. We had a fair bit of
the ball but couldn’t create anything against a well organised set up. It was
back to playing down the flanks which invariably became dead ends. Of course
the Everton fans had a lot of fun at our and Moyes’ expense. How embarrassing.
Prior to the game it was all over the papers that Wellbeck
wanted to leave as he wasn’t happy, although it wasn’t clear whether he was
unhappy with his form or a restricted number of opportunities or just generally
a bit pissed off. However it did set a tone that was carried on after the
defeat that things were not good and that Moyes had just drunk in the last
saloon.
So it turned out to be as he was sacked on the Tuesday
following the Everton game, although it had been leaked by the club on Monday
that he was going. Another inept performance by the club establishment led by Woodward.
Many commentators and professionals from within the game
thought that he had not been given long enough to do what was the enormously
difficult task of taking over from Fergie. Indeed they pointed out that Fergie
himself struggled for a few years. However this misses the point that he had
taken over a team that had won the league by 11 points the previous season and
he had had a full pre-season and a January transfer window in which to
influence things. The fans had been fully supportive till the last few weeks
when it has become evident that there has been no improvement to the team since
the early days of the season. We have reduced our play from free flowing
passing to a stilted slow build up and hitting hopeful crosses from the wings.
When we don’t have the ball we retreat rather than try to retrieve it in
midfield with the result that our defence is under pressure from any half
decent side. Our organisation is poor resulting in crazy defensive errors and
poor marking generally. The spirit in the team seems non existent at times and
we can’t even get motivated for home games against City and Liverpool. All
these things are under the remit of the manager and his team. The failure of
United this season is a result of their failure to buy the right players
(Fellaini has been a disaster as much as the failure to buy Ross Barkey was a
disaster), the failure to employ a successful playing pattern, the failure to
coach and organise the team and, perhaps most importantly, the failure to
motivate the players. Moyes has never looked or sounded comfortable in the job
and it’s hard to escape thinking that he was overawed by being manager of
Manchester United.
Giggs has got the caretaker role till the end of the season
and has recruited Butt and Scholes to join him and Phil Neville in what may be
a slightly too cosy class of 92 coaching staff.
Got to say though that the atmosphere for the next game
against Norwich was electric and Giggs got the most fantastic reception when he
walked out as manager in his club blazer. The motivation of the team and the
speed of play seemed to have moved up a couple of notches and, against a team
fighting for survival, we always looked like winning easily and 4-0 was not
flattering with Rooney and Mata netting 2 each.
All looking much better then but in the next game home to
Sunderland we reverted to our pattern of most of the season and were beaten 1-0
by a well organised side who got a lucky break. Got to be said that Fletcher
and Nani were dreadful and we clearly missed Rooney.
Rooney was still missing for the final home game against
Hull. Giggs surprised everyone by including 2 debutantes, Wilson and Lawrence
as well as Januzaj. Hull being in the cup final they weren’t knocking
themselves out but we played ok and Wilson got a couple before Van Persie was
introduced and scored the 3rd. Giggs came on at the end for what
would turn out to be his final performance and had a free kick that was heading
for the top corner brilliantly but unpopularly saved by the Hull keeper.
The season ended for us at Southampton with a 1-1 draw in a
game which they dominated in the first half and we did in the second. Mata
scored a brilliant free kick and Ferdinand and Vidic played their last games
for us. We finished 7th in the league thus successfully avoiding the
Europa league next season which no-one had the heart for.
On May 19th Louis Van Gaal was appointed the new
United boss a year and 10 days after the Moyes appointment. Let’s hope this one
is for keeps.