1) Excited, nervous, bullish, bearish, waiting, waiting,
waiting, going slowly mad, over-thinking, over-reacting, sweating profusely,
checking twitter 10 times a minute – summer is here. While most other blokes were
playing upskirt and drinking cider I spent July pacing around a meeting room on
the phone to Gabs close to tears about the Thiago/ Cesc deal. When others are
relaxing by the pool with their families I’m at Nandos with Segal and DC in
earnest conversation about the relative merits of Bale or Ronaldo. I am not
good at summer. Nor, I imagine, are any of you. It got to the point where I had
to shut down completely before I went mad. And this is no normal summer. This
is a post-Ferguson summer. The summer of our discontent. The lack of activity
in the transfer market has been well documented but surely not surprising. A new
manager, new chief exec, new coaches, new scouts, new targets, new agents, new
everything - this was never going to be the big summer of spending. (That
summer may never come.) The pre-season form has been more worrying. We don’t
usually go to Japan and lose. We certainly don’t lose at home to Sevilla. It’s
all very nervy. But then Sunday came and I felt a lot better. Not because we
beat Wigan, or won the Mcdonalds trophy. Nor was it because I thought the
football was particularly good. I was just happy that the talking could stop
and the football had finally begun. We’ve spent the summer feeding off scraps.
We’re making it up as we go along. We have a new manager and new coaches, we
are right to be nervous. But we also have the same players and a manager chosen
by Fergie. He’s learning as he goes and it will take him time to find his feet
but surely that’s reasonable. I am not one for big bold pre-season predictions
but here’s one: we’ll be ok.
2) Let’s start with the elephant currently training with the
reserves. I could write a book about Wayne Rooney. Or I could write a sentence.
I care a great deal – I couldn’t care less. It was the best of times, it was
the worst of times. Has there ever been a more contrary figure in the history
of this football club? Two hundred goals, every medal under the sun, goals
against city, arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea a-plenty, sublime touches, chips,
raking passes and intelligent link play – on paper this is a true great. But
the game is not played on paper. It’s just about played on grass but mostly it’s
played in the head, and there’s something seriously wrong with that boy’s head.
Now make no mistake the ‘Rooney out’ initiative was started by Ferguson. But
how did it become thus? The answer to that question lies with Wayne Rooney. At
times over the past two years he’s been hard hard to watch. Anecdotes of his
gym work are few and far between – because his gym work is few and far between.
This is tragic. This guy is a natural athlete. Don’t laugh. Wayne Rooney has
the most unbelievable natural engine. Consider his performance at Porto in 2009
tracking the powerful Sissohko at full back. He was disciplined, sacrificing
himself for the team, fit as a butcher’s dog to quote you know who. This guy had
it naturally. But there comes a point when that isn’t enough. Coaches are
taught to focus on players’ strengths and they pass that onto the players. If
you’re fast, get faster. If you’re good in the air, get better. Work on your
strengths to make them infallible. This is where Rooney has fallen down. When
he arrived at the club he was wonderful. A bull-dog. I remember him smashing into
Sol Campbell, leaving the Arsenal defender in a heap on the floor. He was 18 years
old, an English player with vision and fearlessness he had the world at his
feet. Over time he smoothed the rougher nature of his personality and learnt to
finish. After the low of 2006/07 he hit new heights. But he couldn’t sustain
it. And this was odd. When beckham, Ronaldo, Scholes came of age – they stayed
at the top for the rest of their careers. They had some off games but their
lowest level was always very high. Rooney by contrast looks schizophrenic at
times. Performances in the bernabeu, Swansea, West Ham, Chelsea, City (h) were
not just bad – they were excruciating. I used to compare Rooney to Hughes in
his ability to have truly awful games. But Hughes never had those games when we
needed him most. Cup finals, European final, knockout games, at anfield, maine
road, highbury – hughes was a big team bully. Rooney’s record is decent but at
times he looks out-classed. I’ll never forget his display in Kompany’s pocket
April 2012. He looked weak, like a small boy playing men’s football for the
first time. Compare that with the man-child that left sol Campbell in a heap
those years before. Something went wrong. Rooney is described as thick. He
isn’t thick. He’s no intellect but he isn’t thick. He knows that he is trading
on his name right now. Talk early in the summer linking him with barca and
Madrid was laughable. Rooney knows this. He has enough awareness to know that –
put simply – Robin Van Persie is a better footballer than him. Cast your mind
back to the 2005 cup final (united lost – travesty) and watch the performance
of Rooney compared with Van Persie. One terrorised the arsenal back four with
his powerful running, intelligence and determination – the other was anonymous
bar a decent free kick. Yet Wenger talked longingly about van persies’ dedication
to his craft, his desire to become the perfect footballer. Ferguson talked of
Giggs in the same way. Wayne Rooney is not in that bracket. And therein lies
the single reason United decided to get rid – and why Rooney wants to go. He’s
not the player we’d hoped he become. He’s not the player he could have become.
Whether he stays for another year or not is largely irrelevant. His chance of
being a united great has passed. The lad who on paper achieved everything, will
leave United with something missing. It’s what Eric would call that ‘je ne sais
quoi’.
3) Compare and contrast Wayne Rooney with the recently
departed Paul Scholes. Typical Scholes, escaping under the radar. One thing I
know about Scholes is that I massively under-appreciated him throughout his
entire career. I knew he was a genius but only now will we realise why. We’ll never replace that range of passing, that
football brain and simple, but devastating, two touch play. Only now will he
start to be appreciated for the player he truly was. Stats do not do him
justice. He controlled games against the world’s best. He was a genius. In the
truest sense of the word he was a genius. As Neil Young is the Godfather of
grunge, so Scholes is the Godfather of the nouveau footballer. Small with
incredible balance he never gave the ball away and he was a winner. Scholes’ abiding
memory from his career? The 95 cup final defeat to Everton. I regret not
appreciating him more. I don’t think I got it at the time. Though I do have one
bug-bear. People say with a wry smile that Paul Scholes couldn’t tackle.
They’re wrong. He could tackle. He absolutely could tackle. He could do
everything. He was just dirty. Very, very dirty. He had the world (and all its
referees) fooled. The referee’s kept their cards in their pockets because
Scholes had them in his. With every passing game his passing will be missed and
you, me and every United fan will realise what we had. The best.
4) Quality has to be replaced with quality. United have
scrimped and saved, invested in youth and polished rough gems for years now.
But there is no substitute for quality. It’s right that we went after Fabregas
– and we shouldn’t be too down-hearted that we didn’t get him. The manner of
the bid was odd but the idea was right. That is the level of player we should
be after. I was gutted we didn’t sign him. Quite simply I think we could have
won the European cup with a player of his quality. But I don’t blame Moyes or
woodward. It is extremely difficult to sign top players. Not even City spent
more than £25million (roughly) on a player this summer. Nor Chelsea. We don’t
need £20million players – we have enough. We need £30million+ players. We need
another Van Persie. But signing a player like that is complicated and, often
impossible. How many players could you name that would top your list or
realistic targets? Even Modric wouldn’t make my list. Lovely player he may be
but would he bring us the European Cup? Would he score 10-15 goals from
midfield? Would he be a talisman that would lead us when the going got tough? I
don’t think so. We are in the market for the top players. But in the meantime,
as fans, we have to be patient. Remember when ferguson signed Djemba and
Kleberson? Those signings set us back years. They were poor signings. Moyes
cannot afford to make that mistake. I’d rather him be cautious than sign the
wrong players. The press are falling over themselves to claim he’s struggling
to sign players. He isn’t. He’s struggling to sign world class players. But
then so did Ferguson and Gill. United have always struggled to persuade 26 year
old Spaniards/ Brazilians/ Argentineans to leave their coastal paradise to
uproot to in Manchester. This is not a new phenomenon. Of course the increased
competition makes winning trophies harder than ever. And, yes, the oligarchs
and sheikhs will always have first dibs. But sooner or later every club will
realise they have to develop their own talent and invest in youth to create a
sustainable model. And not every club will be able to do it. This isn’t a
Glazer-apologist piece but the truth is United created this model and, as a
result, are miles ahead of the rest. The squad is a world class player away
from challenging in Europe. It could happen tomorrow or in two years time but
in the meantime we’re in good shape. There is no cause for alarm.
5) Which leads me to the biggest issue. The fans. The fans
are an issue. We live in an age of over-expectancy and over-reaction. Everyone
is an expert, everyone has an opinion but no one takes responsibility. We are
short-term, impatient and petulant. John Stuart Mill called it an
over-assertion of our personal liberty. He’s right. We are bipolar. Shouting
black from the rooftop one day, bellowing white from another vantage point the
next. The massive u-turn in between is simply written off. We don’t have to
justify ourselves to anyone. We are the people and we know best. Therein lies
the issue. We do not know best. The people are relevant – but they are not all
knowing. They hide behind chants in the stands or demonstrations on the streets.
They are angry. But they do not know best. Several years ago, having claimed
our record equalling 18th title Ferguson addressed the crowd. The
crowd responded by drowning him out with instructions to ‘sign Tevez up’. It
was embarrassing. Trust and patience – these are virtues. And we’re going to
need them. David Moyes is the new manager and he deserves our patience. This is
a club in transition. We have had one man run the club for 26.5 years. That man
is gone. You could replace him with Jesus and this would still be a club in
transition. If we were to win the league this season it would be the biggest
miracle since the resurrection. It would be astonishing. This is not a one year
project. This is minimum 3-4 years. We are in it for the long run. It’s not
trendy and it’s flies in the face of current society, but patience, trust and
support from the fans are going to be as important as the performances of the players
over the next 18 months. In Moyes we trust.
6) Due to a chronic lack of signings the focus, not
unfairly, falls on the current squad. Who will make the step up? Because
someone will have to. Ferguson and now Moyes has been tasked with putting
together another young side that can win in Europe. I’ve said it before but the
outstanding performers in the Madrid tie were Welbeck, Jones, Cleverly and DDG
(and Carrick) - all young players with the capacity to improve beyond
recognition. Forget the Ronaldo example. Think of Beckham, think of Keane, Gary
Neville and poor old Darren Fletcher. This is just the beginning for these
guys. And the same is true of one Shinji Kagawa. I’ll tell you what I like
about Kagawa. I like that he was unhappy with his performances last season.
He’s not here to make up the numbers. He doesn’t want to be a squad player. He
wants to be one of the best players in the world and he’s not afraid to admit it.
I like that. But, for now, he’s a way off. Firstly, he needs to stay fit and establish
himself in the side. There’s a lot of talk about what his correct position is
but this is a red herring. Top players drift all over, comfortable with the
ball at their feet in any situation. ORVP drops deep, pulls wide and doesn’t
give the ball away. Ronnie was the same – Eric too. The ball is a magnet to
these players. Tactics are largely irrelevant when it comes to the world’s
best. High standards yes, but if Kagawa is to join the elite he needs to hit
those same heights. And he needs to do it every minute of every game, anywhere
on the pitch. Fergie bought Kagawa for a reason. Let’s hope we’re about to find
out why.
7) There is not a scenario I can envisage in which it is ok
to give back a shirt number allocated to you by the club. Perhaps you were
given the number 44, and the number 9 (you are a striker) becomes available.
You knock on the manager’s door and ask if you can swap. You’re ready for the
step up. He says yes and we all live happily ever after. Fine. But to actively
give up a shirt number because it weighs heavily on your back is wrong. Deary
me. At United players step up to challenges, they break records, they throw
monkeys off their backs, they come back stronger from adversity, recover from
setbacks better and more spectacularly than any other side. That is what sets
the best apart. Talent is a subplot to the story. Desire and character always steal
the show. For a player to hand back the shirt because it carries too much
history is unheard of. Firstly, I have to say that shirt numbers and their
relative merits are childish at best. The top players make the number their
own. Did anyone care who was number 20 before ORVP? Or did arsenal fans care
about the number 14 before henry? The number is irrelevant; the player is the
issue. Valencia is indicative of the true weakness of our squad – our wide players.
We have always boasted world-class wide players. All the way back to the Billy
Meredith this is a club that allows wide players to flourish. Beat your man,
put in a cross, shoot, put him on his backside – the crowd will love you and
the manager will pick you. Name me another big club with that pedigree. None.
Our wingers are privileged. They should welcome the challenge and step to it.
If they can’t they won’t see out the season. And it won’t be Bale or Ronaldo
taking their place. It’ll be Zaha and Januzaj. (Or maybe Baines sitting in
front of Evra. Hold me sons.)
8) Here’s why I love Rio Ferdinand. When asked which player
he’d have on his side from the current United team he didn’t hesitate. Danny
Welbeck. Firstly I agreed with his analysis (and found it insightful to hear it
from a guy who plays with welbeck every single day). Secondly, I think it’s
pure class of a guy to pick a youngster ahead of the obvious, more established
stars. It was the sign of an old pro looking out for the youngsters. If that’s
a sign of how the dressing room works then we really will be ok. Maybe I’m
reading too much into this but when the entire world would have said Giggs or
ORVP, Rio picks Danny. And that sums him up. You think you know these guys.
He’s a 23 year old lad who’s just become a millionaire. He likes having a night
out with his mates. He’s from London and you don’t trust him. You think you
know him. Ten years later and he’s giving an interview to United We Stand on a
pre-season tour extolling the virtues of a young player who’s taken a fair
amount of stick over the past 12 months. Rio might not be the brightest but
he’s a leader. He’s been an unbelievable servant for this club and to my mind
the best centre half the Premiership has seen. The way he handled himself over
the England saga was pure class. It matched the Rio off the pitch with the Rio
on it. Eleven years he’s given us. We should cherish every day more because,
ala Giggs and Scholes, when he’s gone he’ll be missed on and off the pitch.
Rio, only the best get 10 years plus at MUFC. Charlton, Keane, Robson, Giggs,
Scholes, Neville to name a few (post-war). Thanks for the past, here’s to the
future. One love.
9) Nostalgia will play funny tricks on you. Your memory will
always take you on a journey through time to when life was better, the birds
were fitter and United played perfect football. It’s easy to convince yourself
that the treble team never played out a dull 1-0 win. But don’t be fooled. Now
is not the time to look back misty-eyed lamenting the loss of the good times.
This is a good squad. Is it the greatest squad in the history of football? Of
course not. But so what? We are not Liverpool. We don’t long for yester-year.
We don’t pretend that Ferguson never made a mistake or that Eric never missed a
penalty. We look forward, always focused on the next game. We are about winning
and being the best. That’s the challenge. The rest will take care of itself.
10) A word of caution. Adnan Januzaj. Some lively cameos in
the first team are well and good. But he’s miles off first team action. He
needs to fill out physically, possibly go on loan – he needs to go through the
process that Welbeck, Cleverly and Evans went on. Only then will he be ready
for the first team. Mind you, with only a year on his deal remaining, he might
be at Barca by then. Putting your faith in youth is right – but putting too
much pressure on them is wrong. Getting the balance right is something Moyes
did well at Everton. Doing it successfully at united could be the difference
between success and failure at the highest level.
11) Is Ryan Giggs. It’s getting silly now isn’t it? I think
he’s improving. So with that in mind here’s other big bold prediction: I don’t
think this will be his last season.
