OK, my take.
I’ve seen an awful lot of football games at Old Trafford over the years, spanning the tenure of many previous managers. Many great performances, mostly adequate and entertaining ones and quite a few stinkers.
However.
I can categorically say that I have never seen a chitshow at Old Trafford quite as bad and inept as to what was dished up yesterday by that group of players in the first half who demonstrated that many were not fit to wear that famous red shirt and badge, and who to a man, didn’t seem to have a Scooby Do as to what they were doing and how to even perform the very simple basics of football. From the moment that Fernandes skied that sitter into the Scoreboard End in the first couple of minutes the writing was on the wall. What makes it worse is that you could see that those players were really trying, busting a gut, getting frustrated, and even lashing out.
I also saw a manager (and his staff) who looked lost and totally unable to do or say anything to his players from the bench/technical box that would/could make any difference or change to the direction that this game was going. He was a pathetic and broken figure walking back to the tunnel in a packed stadium with boos from every corner.
Now, I have also backed this manager consistently since he was appointed. I got why he was appointed and what the Club were finally trying to achieve after the hire and fire years since Fergie, that culminated with the mess that Jose left us in after his breakdown and subsequent firing. I have always made my position very clear on here (like that is important ) that I understood that a squad rebuilding programme at the Club was required, whilst moving out the dead wood of those players not deemed good enough and those on the ridiculous contracts that Ed handed out to some very average players, (making some of them unsellable, which is still a work in progress) and to change the overall culture and attitude throughout the Club for all staff and players. Also re-boosting the Academy, the formation of the women’s team and the overhaul of the Recruitment, Contracts and Football staff.
Because of this I have always refrained from judging the manager whilst the rebuild has been taking place. I have been patient with the progress on the pitch from 6th to 3rd to 2nd in the PL year-on-year, reaching semi-finals and also reaching a Euro final that we should have won. No trophy has been disappointing though.
I have always maintained that I personally would not be judging the manager until this season, if he was backed by the owners. Well, he was given a 4-year contract worth circa £9m a year apparently (I wouldn’t have given him 4 years maybe 2 at most but we don’t know of the actual clauses in his contract). The squad was also strengthened with Sancho (the needed RW they pursued for 2 years) and a decent CB in Varane to partner Maguire that everybody got excited about. And we got even Ronny as a bonus. (I wasn’t too happy about Ronaldo as it was a strange one against the road the manager was going down, which I think is a reason for our form this season so far, but that is for a different discussion). I would have also liked a RWB in the summer and the CM position is still unresolved. So, anyway… backed, the manager was.
So, we are 9 games into this PL season. I have previously said if we are out of touch in the PL by Christmas, the manager goes. If we are in the frame at Christmas, then he stays to the end of the season and we review where we are in the summer.
So my take is... (for whatever reasons) these 9 games have clearly not been good enough and after yesterday we are further off the pace than I expected, with a mountain to climb right now. We can’t afford to slip any further down and there are a few clubs also on 14 points, so we need to pick up points and quickly over the next few games.
So, if f we lose to Spurs then City at home then I bring my judgement forward on the manager and I say he must go then. Which is crazy because there is no obvious standout replacement to replace him that would suit the current squad. I can see another 2 or 3 years of pain starting again from scratch yet again, and a lot of new spending by the Glazers. Yet again.
For what it is worth....
posted on 26/10/21
comment by United we win (U19958)
posted 42 minutes ago
Even if we win our next 5 games in a row Ole should be sacked as he’s never gonna win a title. So he must go. He’s poor and amateurish.
I think we get battered in our next games anyway
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If they give him 5 games to save his job and he wins them all I don't think they'll then sack him
posted on 26/10/21
comment by The Post Nearly Man. Ex Lion Tamer. (U1270)
posted 18 hours, 4 minutes ago
comment by TheBlackCountry (U22512)
posted 1 minute ago
United should go all out for Erling Moe........
Currently tearing it up at Norwegian Eliteserien club Mould.
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He's built a good culture there
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Yeah why not...Ole worked out well....
posted on 26/10/21
comment by FC Sheriff JW Pepper (U1007)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by The Post Nearly Man. Ex Lion Tamer. (U1270)
posted 18 hours, 4 minutes ago
comment by TheBlackCountry (U22512)
posted 1 minute ago
United should go all out for Erling Moe........
Currently tearing it up at Norwegian Eliteserien club Mould.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
He's built a good culture there
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeah why not...Ole worked out well....
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Whoooosh
posted on 26/10/21
comment by The Post Nearly Man. Ex Lion Tamer. (U1270)
posted 18 seconds ago
comment by FC Sheriff JW Pepper (U1007)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by The Post Nearly Man. Ex Lion Tamer. (U1270)
posted 18 hours, 4 minutes ago
comment by TheBlackCountry (U22512)
posted 1 minute ago
United should go all out for Erling Moe........
Currently tearing it up at Norwegian Eliteserien club Mould.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
He's built a good culture there
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeah why not...Ole worked out well....
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Whoooosh
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I got that
posted on 26/10/21
comment by RB&W - The Front Man (U21434)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by The Post Nearly Man. Ex Lion Tamer. (U1270)
posted 18 seconds ago
comment by FC Sheriff JW Pepper (U1007)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by The Post Nearly Man. Ex Lion Tamer. (U1270)
posted 18 hours, 4 minutes ago
comment by TheBlackCountry (U22512)
posted 1 minute ago
United should go all out for Erling Moe........
Currently tearing it up at Norwegian Eliteserien club Mould.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
He's built a good culture there
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeah why not...Ole worked out well....
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Whoooosh
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I got that
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yeah I didn't then....
posted on 26/10/21
comment by TheBlackCountry (U22512)
posted 2 hours, 4 minutes ago
comment by Clockwork Red: Jadon and the Argonauts (U4892)
posted 13 hours, 48 minutes ago
Apparently:
Since January 1st only Bruno Fernandes has scored more goals in domestic competitions at Old Trafford than Mohamed Salah.
Ouch.
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Really? How many from open play?
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Think you may have missed the point here. This isn’t praising Bruno. It’s saying that no other United player has scored more than four goals at OT this calendar year than Salah (he got three at weekend and one in the FA Cup in January).
posted on 26/10/21
comment by Clockwork Red: Jadon and the Argonauts (U4892)
posted 33 minutes ago
comment by TheBlackCountry (U22512)
posted 2 hours, 4 minutes ago
comment by Clockwork Red: Jadon and the Argonauts (U4892)
posted 13 hours, 48 minutes ago
Apparently:
Since January 1st only Bruno Fernandes has scored more goals in domestic competitions at Old Trafford than Mohamed Salah.
Ouch.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Really? How many from open play?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Think you may have missed the point here. This isn’t praising Bruno. It’s saying that no other United player has scored more than four goals at OT this calendar year than Salah (he got three at weekend and one in the FA Cup in January).
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Might have been two in the FA Cup, so five
posted on 26/10/21
comment by Clockwork Red: Jadon and the Argonauts (U4892)
posted 33 minutes ago
comment by TheBlackCountry (U22512)
posted 2 hours, 4 minutes ago
comment by Clockwork Red: Jadon and the Argonauts (U4892)
posted 13 hours, 48 minutes ago
Apparently:
Since January 1st only Bruno Fernandes has scored more goals in domestic competitions at Old Trafford than Mohamed Salah.
Ouch.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Really? How many from open play?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Think you may have missed the point here. This isn’t praising Bruno. It’s saying that no other United player has scored more than four goals at OT this calendar year than Salah (he got three at weekend and one in the FA Cup in January).
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I don't think he has missed the point. I think the point is that if all Bruno's goals came from the penalty spot, the Salah has actually scored more goals from open play than the entire United squad at Old Trafford in domestic competitions.
Which would make the statistic even worse.
posted on 26/10/21
Why did we have to lose to them?! And at home too
We'll never live this down and we have to play them at Anfield this season!
😔
posted on 26/10/21
comment by Tamwolf (U17286)
posted 13 hours, 50 minutes ago
comment by Clockwork Red: Jadon and the Argonauts (U4892)
posted 33 minutes ago
comment by TheBlackCountry (U22512)
posted 2 hours, 4 minutes ago
comment by Clockwork Red: Jadon and the Argonauts (U4892)
posted 13 hours, 48 minutes ago
Apparently:
Since January 1st only Bruno Fernandes has scored more goals in domestic competitions at Old Trafford than Mohamed Salah.
Ouch.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Really? How many from open play?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Think you may have missed the point here. This isn’t praising Bruno. It’s saying that no other United player has scored more than four goals at OT this calendar year than Salah (he got three at weekend and one in the FA Cup in January).
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I don't think he has missed the point. I think the point is that if all Bruno's goals came from the penalty spot, the Salah has actually scored more goals from open play than the entire United squad at Old Trafford in domestic competitions.
Which would make the statistic even worse.
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If that’s what he meant he’s made the point very oddly.