Let's look at all the main supposed culprits:
THE GLAZERS:
Since taking over in 2005 it's fair to say the Glazers have not been popular owners, with the best relationship with fans they've achieved so far being tolerance. Eyebrows were rightly raised at the way the club was bought, and the debt from that is something still being paid off. However, if you put aside the emotion and look at it objectively, they could have been a whole lot worse. Unlike the likes of Vincent Tan or Aseem Allam, they've kept out of the limelight and left the football side of the club to football men. They were fortunate to have the greatest manager in British football history in charge, who almost guaranteed success, but nevertheless they've kept their noses out of team affairs. Financially, whilst the debt is still a bone of contention, it is being paid off and the club is bringing in more money than ever. There have been ongoing fears about the availability of transfer funds, particularly given the relative lack of investment in the team in the last 5 years, but Sir Alex Ferguson always maintained money was there if he wanted it. After all, spending £24m on a 29-year-old when he would be available for free 12 months later is hardly the perceived "Glazernomic" attitude.
There is talk of £150-200m to spend in the summer transfer window and, whilst it is undeniable that last summer was a cock-up, that is their opportunity to prove once and for all that they mean business. Until then, judgement is reserved.
EDWARD WOODWARD:
Ah, Commercial Ed. The University of Bristol graduate was appointed executive vice-chairman in 2012 and took on responsibility for transfers from David Gill at the same time David Moyes took over from Sir Alex Ferguson. His first transfer window was, without question, an utter disaster; from the early promise of big signings to the drawn-out and doomed pursuit of Cesc Fabregas, the failure to land Thiago, the infamous "urgent transfer business" return. Add to that the ridiculous and insulting double bids for Marouane Fellaini and Leighton Baines, the inability to tempt Cristiano Ronaldo home, and finally the farcical Ander Herrera episode. He finally did land Fellaini but only on deadline day and for £27.5m, a full £4.5m more than a release clause that expired a month earlier – in other words, a botched attempt to get him on the cheap.
Woodward was very good at his former role as commercial director, significantly increasing the club's commercial revenue. However, whilst he continued to sign up sponsors, he appeared inept bordering on incompetent when it came to signing players. He is unquestionably to blame, and this summer he needs to put right his mistakes.
DAVID MOYES:
It is a fact of football that no matter what may go wrong, or why, the manager will always get the blame. It is the manager who gets sacked when things go wrong, the manager who must face the press and the fans and take flak for whatever misfortunes may befall his club, and such has been the fate of David Moyes. The Scot was seen by most sound judges as the correct appointment after 11 years of overachievement with Everton. He inherited a squad needing a massive overhaul, was failed by the man tasked with delivering his transfer targets (hello again, Ed) and, because of this, the team are struggling. How easily the title was won last season is a false reflection on the true mediocrity of this squad, and is a simplistic excuse used by ABU's, uneducated fans and the "Moyes Out" brigade to prove they were right all along about him. They're not right. It was a poor team last season which benefited from having Sir Alex Ferguson in charge, Robin van Persie in form and rivals that were all very poor.
Another criticism of Moyes is of him letting Ferguson's backroom staff go. It is a valid point that keeping either Rene Meulensteen or Mike Phelan on board would have helped with the initial transition, yet what has been forgotten in the rush to criticise Moyes is that he wanted Meulensteen to stay – some reports suggest he was offered the assistant manager's job – and it was the Dutchman's own decision to leave and pursue a management career.
Overall, David Moyes' biggest problem seems to be that he isn't Sir Alex Ferguson. He is a mere mortal, one who has taken a massive step-up in his profession and needs time to adjust. Sometimes his tactics and team selections are questioned and criticised, and rightly so, but the same was true for Sir Alex. Managers make mistakes, and Moyes is still learning. He has not become a bad manager overnight. He has at best four or five top quality players at his disposal, and the main two of those (Rooney and van Persie) are out injured. He has inherited a squad that is not even close to being one of the best in the league, at a time when all the main rivals have improved drastically. The time to judge him is after he has built his own squad. For now, it's easy to blame him, but wrong to blame him.
THE PLAYERS:
The manager picks the team, but the players go out and play. They are the ones who put the tackles in, track back, play the passes and take the shots. Apart from the fact that many members of the squad aren't good enough, too many senior players have underperformed this season. David Moyes should have been able to count on the likes of Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra, the captain and vice-captain, but neither of them have performed to the expected standard and one, if not both, will likely be on their way. Injuries and perhaps an over-reliance on him have left Michael Carrick struggling to regain his form of the last two years, and the other midfielders just aren't good enough. It's possibly unfair to criticise the likes of Tom Cleverley who work hard, but if a player isn't at the required standard there is little to be done. Marouane Fellaini has failed to impress but injuries and the pressure placed on him mean it is too early to judge. Out wide the problems continue, and there is little to be said about the failings of Nani and Ashley Young that hasn't already been said. Both are senior internationals and should be doing much, much better.
The great conundrum from an attacking perspective is Shinji Kagawa. Despite fans continuing to insist he should be played in the hole, he has done nothing to justify this sustained faith in him. He is no doubt a good player, but he hasn't performed at all in his time at United and it is not down to him being played on the left as many claim. He is an attacking midfielder and should be able to adapt. Look at what Adnan Januzaj, whose natural position is behind the striker as Kagawa's is, can do out wide. Up front the problem is simple: injuries. Not having Van Persie or Rooney has impacted hard on the team, and while Danny Welbeck is hard-working and promising, he is not the finished article required, and Javier Hernandez's game is too one-dimensional for him to consistently lead the line.
As mentioned above, it is hard to blame a player who tries for not being good enough. However, the senior players have failed to take responsibility and failed to perform to the standards expected of them. For that, they must shoulder their share of the blame.
THE REFEREES:
In recent weeks David Moyes has been very critical of referees, to the point where it has cost him £8000. There have been some decisions go against the team, for example the decision not to award Ashley Young a penalty against Tottenham Hotspur, but decisions go against every team. It may be true that referees are less willing to rule in United's favour without Sir Alex on the touch-line, but a dodgy decision here and there should not be used to mask the obvious deficiencies in the squad. Referees are no more to blame for United losing points as they are for anyone else losing points.
SIR ALEX FERGUSON:
For so long Sir Alex had the unquestioned trust of United's fan base, and deservedly so. His success had earned him that right, and everyone trusted that his decisions were in the best long term interests of the club. That said, it cannot be ignored that he left a very poor Manchester United squad behind when he retired. Of most obvious note is the issues in midfield which have been there for years. Paul Scholes retired in 2011 and yet there was no strengthening in the middle of the park. Paul Scholes came out of retirement in January 2012 because of the lack of midfield quality, something that surely must have been a sign that the midfield needed strengthening, but no improvement was made. In fact, quite the opposite as Paul Pogba, now one of the best young midfielders in Europe, was allowed to leave for free, disenchanted by a lack of games. He has since established himself as a regular for Juventus while United still struggle to cobble together a midfield of any quality.
Last season, instead of address the midfield problem, Ferguson signed Robin van Persie. That signing won us the title, but it also had the effect of papering over cracks in the team and masking how poor the rest of the team was. This season the injuries to Van Persie have laid bare all the shortcomings in the rest of the team, shortcomings which should have been addressed long before now.
Ferguson is and always will be a United legend and is possibly the greatest manager of all time, but he should have done more in the last couple of years of his reign to improve a squad that was coming to the end of its cycle. He didn't and, sad though it is, some of the responsibility for the current state of affairs falls on his shoulders.
VERDICT:
The current situation is not down to one factor but several, some of which should have been addressed sooner. The responsibility for putting it right falls on the shoulders of all at the club. There is no quick fix, and to call for the manager to be sacked is a nonsensical reaction from fans spoilt by success. It is with time, patience and proper, sensible rebuilding that the club will get through this.
0 comments: