1. Over the top?
The Battle of The Somme - the tragic centrepiece of the Great
War - was devised by the powers-that-be to end the war decisively. It ended up
lasting for 6 devastating months. History proves it a tragedy so futile it
would be comic if it wasn’t so real. While football is not life and death
(Blank disagrees with Shankly shock!) we can learn from the lessons of history.
This feels like our Somme moment. Fans are divided by a stark choice: act
decisively now or risk an extended future in no man’s land. We could persevere
with the status quo, we could even achieve a modicum of success – but at what
cost? There will come a point where someone somewhere (a Glazer or Ferguson)
will realise that for radical results we must make radical change. That time
may not be now but if we’re to invest all our resources for limited success (at
best) then you have to ask, what’s the point? Since we last spoke we’ve been on
quite the run. We beat Swansea before losing to Sunderland, Chelsea, and Stoke.
We beat Cardiff but didn’t actually deserve to. We even had a week off. Because
we’re no longer in the FA Cup. We then came bouncing back with a tremendous
draw against Fulham before managing a clean sheet at Arsenal that said more
about them than about us. This is not a slump. This is life. Not since 1989
have we felt so without hope. We are going into each game blindly climbing over
the top and getting gunned down. Since David Moyes told the world “Manchester
United always improves in the second half of the season” we have regressed at a
quite alarming rate. It has been an utter disaster. And the worst part is, as
history tends to show, this may drag on for some time.
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2. MUFC: fragile, handle
with care
There is only one reason I support David Moyes. It’s because
this isn’t about David Moyes. This is about an identity. If this doesn’t work
we’re just another club. We’re no different to City and Chelsea (actually we
are different – we’re not as rich). We throw money at problems, we sack
managers, we covet agents and we bitch and moan our way from August to May. We
discard young players (more on that) and demand the impossible from the
seniors. In this new world the enjoyment we get from our rivals’ misery far
outweighs any hope we have for our own future. We sing stupid songs about
Vincent Kompany (oh wait), we trumpet achievements from years gone by to allow
for an abject present. In short if this doesn’t work, we have lost everything.
This has to work. The principles that we’re fighting for have to win out.
Youth, continuity, planning, composure – we have to show that these ideals have
a place in the modern world. Ferguson was the link to the past. Now he’s gone
the club is wobbling, trying to retain its identity under new management. It’s
understandable. The club has suffered a heart attack with the departure of
Ferguson (and the inexcusable summer transfer window). David Moyes your job is
to help us recover. Because if you don’t, who will?
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3. View from the Glazers
This could have gone two ways. Moyes could have taken to it like
a duck to water, born for this moment. Or it could have gone the other way. And
it’s gone the other way. Oh it has gone the other way. But the facts remain:
Moyes was chosen. Moyes was given a 6 year deal. And Moyes was given £37million
to spend on a Chelsea outcast in the January window. He’s also been given a
mandate to clear the squad and start moulding as he sees fit. If he’s building
a new team – and the Glazers are on board with that – then it takes time. They
either sack him now or give him at least two more years. There is nothing in
between. The Glazers, Fergie, David Gill – they knew his CV. They knew the
risk. The pain of watching Mourinho mastermind (and there is no other word – it
was stunning the Chelsea performance at the Etihad) a victory over a city side
who continually thrash us showed what we’re missing out on - a winning,
committed football team fighting for an inspirational manager. Jose is
wonderful. But that doesn’t mean he was for us. There were very rational
reasons why Moyes got the job. Now more than ever we need to stay true to our
principles. I can’t deny that this season has been an unmitigated disaster. But
nor will I use this forum as an excuse to vent my frustration and list Moyes’
mistakes. There have been some well articulated pieces of that order but I
think they’re poorly timed and too short-term. The fans have been unbelievable.
The singing at 3-0 down at Stamford Bridge was unreal. This is a new time, a
new era and it’s going to be a new team. All the Glazers will be hoping is that
Moyes, though a slow starter, will take some stopping once he gets going.
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4. “Denis, Denis - keep playing football.”
I was 10 years old and it was the opening day of the season 1992.
Fergie was encouraging Irwin from the sides. I thought the above was the
stupidest thing I’d ever heard and remember laughing with my dad about the
nonsense that is ‘football-speak’. I now know what Fergie meant. As Kipling put
it:
“If you can keep your head when all about you/ Are losing theirs
and blaming it on you,/ If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,/ but
make allowance for their doubting too…you’ll be a man my son!”
The last minute goals were not a coincidence under Ferguson.
They were a combination of factors – one of which was the ability to retain an
even temperament in the most desperate situations. Beckham’s corners in the Nou
Camp, Giggs pass to Owen, Solskjaer’s touch and finish against Liverpool all came
from moments of composure born out of an intense discipline. This season we have
no discipline. Against Chelsea we gave away 21 free kicks. The second goal was a
classic with Phil Jones making a non-sensical challenge on Willian who couldn’t
have been ‘going nowhere’ faster had he been entering a black hole. From there
we conceded the goal. At the end Vida got himself sent off. We can blame Dowd –
but Vidic let the team down. To make matters worse Rafael went kamikaze into a
two-footed lunge that ought to have resulted in a ban. Did we learn from our
mistakes? Three days later we hosted Sunderland and conceded 20 free kicks.
That none amounted to anything is irrelevant. Think of the stoppages in play,
the territory conceded, the possession surrendered – it’s amateur. Under
Ferguson we had an immaculate disciplinary record but we were also rock solid
at the back. The two are linked. Players were committed to a greater cause –
winning the game. So far this season we have accumulated 48 yellow cards.
That’s nearly two a game. We have no discipline with and without the ball. And
it’s hurting us. Because quite simply, the more we lose our heads, the more
games we’ll lose.
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5. Luck off
Oh woe is we! Van Persie’s been injured! It was a deflection!
Referee! City get all the luck! Some people actually think that. It’s insane.
Every cliché about making your own luck, getting the luck you deserve, the luck
evening itself out etc. is true. Luck is not a factor in our current
predicament. The Eto’o deflection came after Phil Jones had his pants pulled
down. The Charlie Adam deflection came from a needless free kick (conceded by
Smalling) and a piece of flat-footed indecisiveness from Carrick. Luck had
nothing to do with it. The Charlie Adam winner – two players closed down the
same man. Against Fulham Vidic gave the ball away. Once that happened we were
no longer masters of our own destiny. And that’s the point. You cannot control
everything that happens on a football pitch. The game’s brilliance is rooted in
its sheer randomness. The ball is round, it spins in funny directions. Players
are human. They make inexplicable mistakes. Sometimes things just happen. And
anyone who doesn’t understand that in life, not everything can go your way will
die disappointed. But the things you can control, you have to control. It is
paramount that you take control of the small details. On the pitch you can be
organised, vocal, disciplined, well drilled, unified and courageous. But United
under Moyes are not in control. They are spiralling wildly out of control. Not until Moyes owns the smaller details can we claim to warrant a bigger slice of
luck. And the irony here is that when we’re back in control we won’t need luck.
We’ll be masters of our own destiny, smugly looking down on the rest of the
world knowing that we didn’t need luck. Luck is strictly for losers.
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6. Money doesn’t (always)
mean success
The issue as to whether the squad needs major surgery is one
thing (it doesn’t/ it didn’t). There’s also the deeper logistical issue of how
exactly this regeneration is going to work. Firstly, has an influx (and exodus)
of players over a short period ever resulted in a prolonged period of success?
I think not. And what of the young players whose game time will shrink when the
manager gives new players the minutes they need? It’s a dangerous game to play.
Chelsea and City bought success but if anyone thinks we’ll spend what they
spent in a two year period they haven’t been paying attention. What’s more, Chelsea
and City haven’t produced a single young player since their respective regimes
took over. They want short term results and spend hundreds of millions to achieve
it. We will never, ever do that. Nor will we be able to persuade established
stars to come to Old Trafford. We must stick to what we’ve always done – buy
younger, hungrier, raw talent and develop them as part of a winning side. We
must invest in the academy and bring more Adnans through (aside - James Wilson
is a real prospect). These players need time. But the more players that come
this summer, the more players will be affected and, eventually, leave. This is
not what we’ve been working towards under the Glazers. I cannot understand why
all of a sudden they would sanction such an overhaul. If they wanted to spend
big money on big players then they should have appointed Mourinho. Or even
better they should have given it Ferguson. The idea, I thought, was for Moyes to
continue Ferguson’s work – and now he’s going to tear it up and start again. Odd.
And then there’s the issue of which players he’s going to buy. Because so far
we have spent £70million on two of the slowest players I have ever seen. It’s
no wonder we’re going nowhere fast.
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7. Do not adjust your TV
How awful is the league table? I find myself squinting at the
tele/ paper in an attempt to make it palatable reading. In previous years you
could spin the table in such a way as to end up feeling better about life. ‘If
we win x game and Chelsea lose y then we’ll be 5 points clear.’ Or if we win on
Sunday we’ll only be 3 behind and still have to play them at ours’. Since
August whatever valiant attempts you make to reimagine the league table it remains
painful reading. There’s no spin that can save us from the ignominy of seventh
place. It’s February, we are seventh. Do not adjust your TV.
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8. The man who wasn’t
there.
Nemanja Vidic. How much do you really know about our captain? On
the pitch he’s a monster. That man won us more games than any other player in
the Ferguson era. Think of those dour one nils season after season post
Ronaldo. Ball goes into the box, ball comes out of the box. Nemanja Vidic - a complete
defender and a born winner. But off it, was he ever one of us? Whereas we felt
we knew Keane, Robson, Beckham, Bruce inside out (for better or worse), Vidic
has always been something of an enigma. Constantly linked with a move away (no
smoke without fire), he seemed keen to keep his options open. And that’s hurt
our new manager. The one player Moyes will have looked to in an attempt to hit
the ground running would have been his captain. But he has not been the same
player. Now I’d argue that the shape of Moyes’ United has not helped Vida. He’s
been left isolated and not given the protection afforded to Terry (e.g.) who has
been cajoled into the Indian Summer of his career. But Moyes clearly isn’t
prepared to build around Vidic. Perhaps he’s not the man Moyes was hoping for
(maybe the feeling’s mutual). Ferguson said at the start of the season that if
we keep Vida fit “we’ll have a great chance.” So far he has played in 22 of our
36 games (14 out of 25 PL fixtures). That’s two more than Giggs and two less
than perma-crocked Carrick. For the captain they’re not great stats. The
feeling is that with Ferguson gone, Vida loosened his top button and took it
all a little less seriously. He’s now moving on and will retire a wealthy man.
I can’t begrudge him that. Under Ferguson very few got 10+ years. Giggs,
Scholes, Keane, Rio, Robson, Neville. For reasons I can’t quite put my finger
on Vidic doesn’t belong on that list. Quite possibly it’s because, unlike those
players, when the going got tough, the tough got going.
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9. There’s a slow train coming
David Moyes
please reveal your master plan and convince me it doesn’t consist of Mata on
the left wing. He’s small and slow – not the physical requirements of your
classic wide player. Moyes has joined an illustrious club with this
acquisition. Just as when Ferguson signed Veron and Kagawa, Moyes has created a
problem for himself. A player like Mata has to be integral to the side. He’s a
schemer, a touch player who needs to be involved in and around the box (a bit
like Kagawa but that’s a completely different/ exactly the same story). My
thoughts on Rooney are well known but if Moyes wants to build his team around
him it’s his call. But a front three of Rooney, Mata and RVP is slow. Like
really slow. The myth that RVP and Rooney could perfectly co-exist was blown
out of the water the minute Ferguson played Welbeck against Madrid. Now we’ve
added another talented but immobile player into the mix. We have lost our
ability to break, our power to get round the back (aside - Evra was a huge part
of that and it’s a disgrace we didn’t sign a left back in the summer) and we
lack (as we all know) quality in wide areas when Adnan doesn’t play. Juan Mata
is not the answer. Ferguson always said Manchester United was a train that waited
for no man. And he’s right. Just now it’s a really slow train. And it’s driving
me round the bend.
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10. Balloon D’Or
It’s been
another amazing month in the career of Wayne Rooney. Just when you think the
zenith has been reached, he finds another peak to climb. It begs the question:
is there anything this talisman can’t do? Not content with spectacular
contributions in the league, Rooney also scored the goals that sent us to
Wembley and into the fourth round of the FA Cup. People talk about Ronaldo and
Cantona – but they’re distant memories. The present is Wayne Rooney. He scores
at will, takes every game by the scruff of the neck, bullies defenders and
always, always hits the target. His dynamic movement is matched only by his
prolific output. If the rumours are to be believed that he’s about to earn
£300k a week then it’s money well earned I say. And though talk of the
captain’s armband may be premature, his unofficial role as team spokesperson is
not. Wazza is our leader. Our leader is not that good.
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11. Is Ryan Giggs
Ryan Giggs
was young once. He was 17 years old and he was lightening. To this day he is
the quickest, most graceful footballer I have ever seen. It’s funny to think
that after the initial buzz wore off, some United fans didn’t like him. They didn’t
think he cared. His body language showed he wanted to be elsewhere. 94/95 he
had a terrible season and people wanted rid. He clearly wanted to move to Milan
anyway. Fast forward 75 years and here we are. Young players – even Ryan Giggs
– go through tough times. They learn and evolve. It’s called growing up. It’s
called Ronaldo. It’s called Darren Fletcher. It’s called Gary Pallister. How
can fans of MUFC not have realised this by now? It is absolutely not OK to slag
off young players. Young players should be exempt from criticism. They are
learning their trade. The number of people I hear slaughtering Chris Smalling,
Tom Cleverly, Jones and Welbeck is astonishing. Why? Because they aren’t Rio,
Scholes, Keane and Van Nistelrooy? If you haven’t realised by now that, as part
of a squad, these boys will contribute then I pity you. If you haven’t also
clocked that they, you know, might improve over time, then you do not deserve
to watch them play. You should be forever marked with a tattoo that says, “I
slagged Daniel” as he scores the winner in the European Cup final. This season
our young players have been badly let down by the senior pros. Welbeck, Jones,
Adnan and Rafa should not have been taking penalties in a semi final. The
responsibility shouldn’t have been with them. They are Man United players and
have standards to maintain - yes. But the time to judge is not now. These
players are our future. They need protecting. They need our support. Even Ryan
Giggs was young once.
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