Is the great man on the decline?

MacMUFC · 29th January 2012, 01:38

...steady on. Give me a chance to have my say before you call for me to be banned.

Yet again, I found myself being absolutely baffled by Fergusons decisions today. Taking Scholes off and leaving Giggs on. Not bringing Berbatov on earlier etc, they're decisions I couldnt get my head around at the time and not an analysis post game.

In the last year or so, I don't think I've ever disagreed with the manager on so many occasions in such a short amount of time. Frankly, his performance in the CL final was downright appalling. I won't go into detail, because I've discussed it numerous times already. The decision not to bolster our midfield (I also believe getting rid of Brown AND O'shea was a mistake) in the summer, I could go on an on, but those are the main two I can think of off the top of my head.

Yes, you could argue we won the league last season, but without trying to take too much credit away from SAF, I'd argue we already had a Title winning team that knew how to get the job done. I don't think the overall quality of the league is as good as 3-4 years ago either.

So basically, I'm curious to know whether I'm the only one that thinks SAF might be on the wane? Personally, I think it would be naive to think that he'll never lose his ability as a manager and he'll only improve with old age as some people suggest. I'm not calling for him to be sacked, it's just a genuine question, so I wouldn't mind some rational responses.

I'd also like to add that I think he'll step down at the end of the season and the 'three more years' thing is just a distraction. I doubt he'd want a huge countdown to an impending retirement.

Hitchcocker · 29th January 2012, 01:39

To add on: Not signing a central midfielder when Scholes retired coupled with Fletcher's medical problems.

MacMUFC · 29th January 2012, 01:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hitchcocker

To add on: Not signing a central midfielder when Scholes retired coupled with Fletcher's medical problems.

Do you agree with me then?

ArmchairCritic · 29th January 2012, 01:43

No chance, he'll retire after winning another title within the next 3 years, He wants one more crack at Europe too and no he's not on the decline, go to sleep.

kietotheworld · 29th January 2012, 01:44

I don't know about being on the decline, but some of his decisions in the last year or two have been extremely difficult to understand. Unless he's got Alzheimer's disease or something else is influence him then I'd say it's likely to keep improving until he goes, generally in life your knowledge and ability intellectually only increases until that sort of thing starts. I'd say a lower footballing budget and a serious lack of people willing to argue against him in the backroom ever since Queiroz left (and we've got worse every year since then) is the main reason for it.

ArmchairCritic · 29th January 2012, 01:44

This thread is going to be fun isn't it.

Leg-End · 29th January 2012, 01:48

His use of subs is sometimes grating but 9 times out of 10 he proves us wrong anyway. Personally I don't think we can pin not bolstering the midfield just on him, we don't know the daily running of the club but I do agree its something we should have done something about long before now.

The fact is we are team thats in a transistion period thats had some rotten luck with injuries this season, how many managers could deal with that with such massive expectations?

RedKaos · 29th January 2012, 01:48

The thing is, his occasional baffling tactics and transfer market stubbornness are hardly novelties. I mean he's been making similar mistakes for almost decades yet it still hasnt stopped him from winning bucketloads of titles.

Though for today I just don't think injuries really left us with much of a choice beyond Scholes/Giggs.

Hitchcocker · 29th January 2012, 01:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by MacMUFC

Do you agree with me then?

I could understand the logic of letting go of Brown and O Shea even if I don't agree with it but I do agree with most of your points.

Would also like to point out that I find it hard to believe that the manager couldn't see the goal Ji scored. Not sure if his vision was obstructed or what, but I find it odd that one would have to ask who scored?

marcosdeto · 29th January 2012, 01:49

i don't think there are many coaches in the world that with 9 of his best players injured can keep his team fighting for the firts place in a hard tournament as the PL

so i don't think he's in decline at all

there are things we don't know, for instance, maybe scholes was tired and that's why he was replaced instead of giggs

phelans shorts · 29th January 2012, 01:50

Scholes just can't last a game yet, he was out on his feet when he went off, Giggs had a shocker but we hardly had options on the bench, barring Pogba who played a full game on Thursday.

Berbatov was always going to be second fiddle to Cheech. Fact of life in these games. We needed someone to get beyond Welbeck at that point.

Drainy · 29th January 2012, 01:50

He's human like everyone else and will make mistakes and always has.

puNANI · 29th January 2012, 01:51

No way. If he wasn't our coach we wouldn't be challenging for the title with all of the injuries we have. Besides he has always been prone to weird substitutions, it isn't just this season.

Hitchcocker · 29th January 2012, 01:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by marcosdeto

i don't think there are many coaches in the world that with 9 of his best players injured can keep his team fighting for the firts place in a hard tournament as the PL

so i don't think he's in decline at all

there are things we don't know, for instance, maybe scholes was tired and that's why he was replaced instead of giggs

I would think that it was obvious why Scholes was taken out but why wasn't Giggs taken off as well? Giggs looked equally knackered as well and his decision making seemed to suffer from it as well.

Roy · 29th January 2012, 01:55

Absolute nonsense. Yes, he's made mistakes, everybody does. But he's always been a bigger picture manager. He might not get every little thing spot on, but on the whole he knows how to manage a football club and how to make a bunch of players into winners.

Oh how I dread the day he walks away..

MacMUFC · 29th January 2012, 01:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roy

Absolute nonsense. Yes, he's made mistakes, everybody does. But he's always been a bigger picture manager. He might not get every little thing spot on, but on the whole he knows how to manage a football club and how to make a bunch of players into winners.

Oh how I dread the day he walks away..

It's as if people think I'm suggesting he never made mistakes before. My point is that these mistakes he's making are becoming alarmingly frequent. I don't think his performance as a manager this season is of the same high standard as years gone by.

Wittmann45 · 29th January 2012, 02:01

I love the users that come out of their caves when we lose...

Saliph · 29th January 2012, 02:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by MacMUFC

I'm not calling for him to be sacked

- Yes you are.

Quote:

Taking Scholes off and leaving Giggs on.

- Calling for Giggs to be sold, are we?

Quote:

Give me a chance to have my say before you call for me to be banned.

- Done.

Ban this cnut.

Mick1991 · 29th January 2012, 02:03

I don't think there is a better manager at getting every last ounce out of his players. City, with their budget and players should be walking it, scratch that, they would be walking it if it wasn't for Alex Ferguson.

He's keeping us in it.

Youngie · 29th January 2012, 02:04

Fuck off!

Scrumpet · 29th January 2012, 02:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saliph

- Yes you are.

- Calling for Giggs to be sold, are we?

- Done.

Ban this cnut.

Jayvin · 29th January 2012, 02:06

I don't get these threads. He won the title last year and got to the CL final, it's not like he's gone senile in 6 months.

MacMUFC · 29th January 2012, 02:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wittmann45

I love the users that come out of their caves when we lose...

Well hang on, I've posted more than you with a later join date...

Hopefully thats the first and last time I boast about having more posts than someone else on a forum.

Roy · 29th January 2012, 02:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by MacMUFC

It's as if people think I'm suggesting he never made mistakes before. My point is that these mistakes he's making are becoming alarmingly frequent. I don't think his performance as a manager this season is of the same high standard as years gone by.

I swear only a month or so ago someone started a thread about this being Fergie's best ever season or something along those lines..

He's made a few mistakes and some of them have cost us, but how can you so easily disregard 3 CL finals in 4 years and 4 league titles in 5?!

All this with Chelsea and City having unmatched financial abilities and Barcelona being one of the best club sides ever??

Fergie's not immune to criticism, but on the decline, honestly?!

Sarni · 29th January 2012, 02:14

Actually, in terms of squad management and tactics it's been one of his best seasons apart from two or three games. We were very good tactically today and only lost due to two silly mistakes by our defenders.

Randall Flagg · 29th January 2012, 02:15

Everyone giving out about scholes been taken off?? Its crazy. He has just un-retired. Has had no pre season, and has been thrown into huge games. Plus he is in his mid 30's

I cant believe he has already started 2 games

Ole's_toe_poke · 29th January 2012, 02:16

The short answer : No

The long answer: Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooooooooooo

kietotheworld · 29th January 2012, 02:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayvin

I don't get these threads. He won the title last year and got to the CL final, it's not like he's gone senile in 6 months.

Winning the title meant finishing above a Chelsea side in serious decline who had got rid of several important squad players, getting to the CL Final meant beating Chelsea, a midtable Bundesliga side and Marseilles. Getting smashed in the final and our most recent CL performance are much better indicators of the direction in which the side is heading. Whether one can put that down to the manager is difficult to say, but he's either a liar or he's responsible for it.

marcosdeto · 29th January 2012, 02:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ole's_toe_poke

The short answer : No

The long answer: Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Wittmann45 · 29th January 2012, 02:21

Dementia setting in

Manchester United's manager after being ask what his name is

MacMUFC · 29th January 2012, 02:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randall Flagg

Everyone giving out about scholes been taken off?? Its crazy. He has just un-retired. Has had no pre season, and has been thrown into huge games. Plus he is in his mid 30's

I cant believe he has already started 2 games

He's been training since September, so his fitness was not a major issue. If it was, you think he would've been thrown into the squad to face City? Not a chance. You make it sounds as if he's been backpacking around Mexico and flew in to save us at the last minute. The man is in good condition and was arguably our best player today and I didnt see any signs of fatigue at all.

gooDevil · 29th January 2012, 02:33

I don't think he's on the decline. But I have noticed that he's picked some strange teams at Anfield the last few years. He's become a lot more interested in rotation than he ever was before, there's no doubt about that, though you can hardly say it hasn't served us well enough overall.

Sir Alex deserves a lot of leeway, especially with the dearth of top managers out there.

Sarni · 29th January 2012, 02:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by kietotheworld

Winning the title meant finishing above a Chelsea side in serious decline who had got rid of several important squad players, getting to the CL Final meant beating Chelsea, a midtable Bundesliga side and Marseilles. Getting smashed in the final and our most recent CL performance are much better indicators of the direction in which the side is heading. Whether one can put that down to the manager is difficult to say, but he's either a liar or he's responsible for it.

Insane. Chelsea weren't really that bad last season and gave us a game in CL, Schalke had to beat Inter to get there and Marseille were the champions of France. Why do defeats mean something but wins mean nothing?

Neo_Mufc · 29th January 2012, 02:46

If this was Rawk you'd be banned by now......and thread shut

Forget about the Barca game that was a long time ago. Ferguson has.

Scholes looked pretty knackered after 75mins. The league isn't strong compared to 2-3 years ago because all the top teams are going through a transition period.

Apart from Giggs, we lost some oldies (scholes is a temporary fix). It's impossible for DDG, Smalling, Jones, Young to become experienced Utd players in such a short time.

Chelsea look like they are going for an out with the old in the with the new approach. Arsenal have a lot of new players in their team. City, ok well they go for big experienced players but it still takes time for a team to settle and develop and that's shown since November as their honeymoon periods over and they're not dominating like they were before. Liverpool have what 5 new players? (Not that they compete for the league) but you get my drift.

For the great man to be in decline it has to reflect from our team and it doesn't. We're the league champions.

Stack · 29th January 2012, 02:47

Its been one of the worst seasons for injuries etc that I can remember. Some of the squad rotation has been more about trying to field a team more than keeping players fresh or giving players a chance to play. There is a decent chance that we won't have any trophies this year and that simply means all the moron threads will appear.

Kelvin · 29th January 2012, 02:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stack

Its been one of the worst seasons for injuries etc that I can remember. Some of the squad rotation has been more about trying to field a team more than keeping players fresh or giving players a chance to play. There is a decent chance that we won't have any trophies this year and that simply means all the moron threads will appear.

we did won the community shield.

the great man is doing a good job keeping us in the title race with the huge spat of injuries we have. cut him some slack.

Liam147 · 29th January 2012, 02:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by MacMUFC

...steady on. Give me a chance to have my say before you call for me to be banned.

Yet again, I found myself being absolutely baffled by Fergusons decisions today. Taking Scholes off and leaving Giggs on. Not bringing Berbatov on earlier etc, they're decisions I couldnt get my head around at the time and not an analysis post game.

In the last year or so, I don't think I've ever disagreed with the manager on so many occasions in such a short amount of time. Frankly, his performance in the CL final was downright appalling. I won't go into detail, because I've discussed it numerous times already. The decision not to bolster our midfield (I also believe getting rid of Brown AND O'shea was a mistake) in the summer, I could go on an on, but those are the main two I can think of off the top of my head.

Yes, you could argue we won the league last season, but without trying to take too much credit away from SAF, I'd argue we already had a Title winning team that knew how to get the job done. I don't think the overall quality of the league is as good as 3-4 years ago either.

So basically, I'm curious to know whether I'm the only one that thinks SAF might be on the wane? Personally, I think it would be naive to think that he'll never lose his ability as a manager and he'll only improve with old age as some people suggest. I'm not calling for him to be sacked, it's just a genuine question, so I wouldn't mind some rational responses.

I'd also like to add that I think he'll step down at the end of the season and the 'three more years' thing is just a distraction. I doubt he'd want a huge countdown to an impending retirement.

Right, I respect your opinion, what you're saying isn't THAT absurd, but I disagree with lots of it.

Firstly, Scholes' sub may have been more to do with the fact that he's just re-signed. Think of it as a five-month layoff with injury. You'd not expect him to be playing how he is. Although he might not have shown signs of tiring to us, Fergie would expectedly notice it better than the average fan.

The CL bit I agree with to an extent. He has to shoulder the blame for some parts, but it shouldn't be ignored that a lot of rotation was enforced by injuries and suspensions.

We didn't bolster our midfield, yes, but we don't know why. There were strong rumours of Sneijder and Nasri signing. There could be a number of reasons for why this didn't happen (wages/transfer fees/personal terms etc), but I don't for a second believe it's because he didn't want to.

The Brown/O'Shea sales I agree with. How do you let the young defenders (Smalling/Da Silvas/Jones/Evans) develop when you have another two defenders in front of them? No one could have foreseen the injuries crisis (defensively) that we've gone through.

Also I don't think we had a 'title winning' squad last season (yes, I am aware we won it), but I believe it was more down to the weaknesses of other teams. Who were our main competitors last season? Chelsea and Arsenal. Arsenal's traditional bottling period ruled them out. And Chelsea's infamous winter period (Liverpool, Sunderland, Birmingham, Newcastle, Everton, Spurs, Arsenal, Bolton, Villa, Wolves) when, after sacking Wilkins, they won twice in those 11 games, with five defeats and four draws, ruled them out too.

Also, I'd like to say that the best form of sight, is hindsight. I don't see him on the wane at all.

Dion · 29th January 2012, 02:57

He's been a magician at some points, less so at others. That's because with a battered squad you have very few options and all of them are high risk, if he was going to decline it would have started a long time ago.

davisjw · 29th January 2012, 03:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by kietotheworld

Winning the title meant finishing above a Chelsea side in serious decline who had got rid of several important squad players, getting to the CL Final meant beating Chelsea, a midtable Bundesliga side and Marseilles. Getting smashed in the final and our most recent CL performance are much better indicators of the direction in which the side is heading. Whether one can put that down to the manager is difficult to say, but he's either a liar or he's responsible for it.

Good point about the CL. Most on here recognized we were given our easiest route to the finals since I can remember. We missed all the big names.

I've questioned Fergie for years. He's a great manager who makes absulte gaffs. Just a part of life. I can't think of anyone who doesn't baffle once in awhile.

As for signings, I think he's just stubborn and as much as people claim the Glazers are limiting him, I think a problem might be that he's got too much power and no one questions him. Carlos was a great foil for him.

MUFC07 · 29th January 2012, 03:57

Keeper apart - Jones - Vidic - Ferdinand - Fletcher - Anderson - Nani - Young - Cleverley - Rooney - Owen.

Would you agree that's a strong line-up?

They're injured/out. Now, try to cope with that.

Get a grip.

29th January 2012, 01:38	#1 (permalink)
MacMUFC Banned Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 4,370	Is the great man on the decline? ...steady on. Give me a chance to have my say before you call for me to be banned. Yet again, I found myself being absolutely baffled by Fergusons decisions today. Taking Scholes off and leaving Giggs on. Not bringing Berbatov on earlier etc, they're decisions I couldnt get my head around at the time and not an analysis post game. In the last year or so, I don't think I've ever disagreed with the manager on so many occasions in such a short amount of time. Frankly, his performance in the CL final was downright appalling. I won't go into detail, because I've discussed it numerous times already. The decision not to bolster our midfield (I also believe getting rid of Brown AND O'shea was a mistake) in the summer, I could go on an on, but those are the main two I can think of off the top of my head. Yes, you could argue we won the league last season, but without trying to take too much credit away from SAF, I'd argue we already had a Title winning team that knew how to get the job done. I don't think the overall quality of the league is as good as 3-4 years ago either. So basically, I'm curious to know whether I'm the only one that thinks SAF might be on the wane? Personally, I think it would be naive to think that he'll never lose his ability as a manager and he'll only improve with old age as some people suggest. I'm not calling for him to be sacked, it's just a genuine question, so I wouldn't mind some rational responses. I'd also like to add that I think he'll step down at the end of the season and the 'three more years' thing is just a distraction. I doubt he'd want a huge countdown to an impending retirement.

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29th January 2012, 01:39	#2 (permalink)
Hitchcocker Reserve Team Player Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Limbo Posts: 4,594	To add on: Not signing a central midfielder when Scholes retired coupled with Fletcher's medical problems.

29th January 2012, 01:43	#4 (permalink)
ArmchairCritic First Team Sub Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: I am not a liberator. Liberators do not exist. The people liberate themselves. Posts: 6,390	No chance, he'll retire after winning another title within the next 3 years, He wants one more crack at Europe too and no he's not on the decline, go to sleep.

29th January 2012, 01:44	#5 (permalink)
kietotheworld Platini's mum Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Machete's Chop Shop Posts: 11,602	I don't know about being on the decline, but some of his decisions in the last year or two have been extremely difficult to understand. Unless he's got Alzheimer's disease or something else is influence him then I'd say it's likely to keep improving until he goes, generally in life your knowledge and ability intellectually only increases until that sort of thing starts. I'd say a lower footballing budget and a serious lack of people willing to argue against him in the backroom ever since Queiroz left (and we've got worse every year since then) is the main reason for it.

29th January 2012, 01:44	#6 (permalink)
ArmchairCritic First Team Sub Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: I am not a liberator. Liberators do not exist. The people liberate themselves. Posts: 6,390	This thread is going to be fun isn't it.

29th January 2012, 01:48	#7 (permalink)
Leg-End First Team Sub Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: "SAF - you're an old dick - but I respect you." Posts: 8,773	His use of subs is sometimes grating but 9 times out of 10 he proves us wrong anyway. Personally I don't think we can pin not bolstering the midfield just on him, we don't know the daily running of the club but I do agree its something we should have done something about long before now. The fact is we are team thats in a transistion period thats had some rotten luck with injuries this season, how many managers could deal with that with such massive expectations?

29th January 2012, 01:48	#8 (permalink)
RedKaos Banned Join Date: May 2007 Location: Dromund Kaas Posts: 12,843	The thing is, his occasional baffling tactics and transfer market stubbornness are hardly novelties. I mean he's been making similar mistakes for almost decades yet it still hasnt stopped him from winning bucketloads of titles. Though for today I just don't think injuries really left us with much of a choice beyond Scholes/Giggs.

29th January 2012, 01:49	#10 (permalink)
marcosdeto Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Buenos Aires - Argentina Posts: 42,355	i don't think there are many coaches in the world that with 9 of his best players injured can keep his team fighting for the firts place in a hard tournament as the PL so i don't think he's in decline at all there are things we don't know, for instance, maybe scholes was tired and that's why he was replaced instead of giggs

29th January 2012, 01:50	#11 (permalink)
phelans shorts First Team Regular Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Gaz. Is a Mewling Quim. Posts: 19,520	Scholes just can't last a game yet, he was out on his feet when he went off, Giggs had a shocker but we hardly had options on the bench, barring Pogba who played a full game on Thursday. Berbatov was always going to be second fiddle to Cheech. Fact of life in these games. We needed someone to get beyond Welbeck at that point.

29th January 2012, 01:50	#12 (permalink)
Drainy Reserve Team Player Join Date: May 2009 Location: "isn't a good dribbling a form of deceiving (cheating) your rival?" Posts: 2,507	He's human like everyone else and will make mistakes and always has.

29th January 2012, 01:51	#13 (permalink)
puNANI Reserve Team Player Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Down Under, pun intended. Posts: 2,266	No way. If he wasn't our coach we wouldn't be challenging for the title with all of the injuries we have. Besides he has always been prone to weird substitutions, it isn't just this season.

29th January 2012, 01:55	#15 (permalink)
Roy Reserve Team Player Join Date: Apr 2000 Location: Jerusalem, Israel Posts: 2,450	Absolute nonsense. Yes, he's made mistakes, everybody does. But he's always been a bigger picture manager. He might not get every little thing spot on, but on the whole he knows how to manage a football club and how to make a bunch of players into winners. Oh how I dread the day he walks away..

29th January 2012, 02:01	#17 (permalink)
Wittmann45 Reserve Team Player Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: 'Keep the flag flying Jimmy' Posts: 4,150	I love the users that come out of their caves when we lose...

29th January 2012, 02:03	#19 (permalink)
Mick1991 First Team Sub Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Ireland Posts: 6,071	I don't think there is a better manager at getting every last ounce out of his players. City, with their budget and players should be walking it, scratch that, they would be walking it if it wasn't for Alex Ferguson. He's keeping us in it.

29th January 2012, 02:04	#20 (permalink)
Youngie Reserve Team Player Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: "Ach..away and print yer Shite!" Posts: 4,015	Fuck off!

29th January 2012, 02:06	#22 (permalink)
Jayvin Reserve Team Player Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Australia Posts: 982	I don't get these threads. He won the title last year and got to the CL final, it's not like he's gone senile in 6 months.

29th January 2012, 02:14	#25 (permalink)
Sarni nice guy, unassuming, objective United fan. Thinks hes intelligent though. Nutter Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Krakow Posts: 21,628	Actually, in terms of squad management and tactics it's been one of his best seasons apart from two or three games. We were very good tactically today and only lost due to two silly mistakes by our defenders.

29th January 2012, 02:15	#26 (permalink)
Randall Flagg Scarlett woman ( Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn ) Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 16,681	Everyone giving out about scholes been taken off?? Its crazy. He has just un-retired. Has had no pre season, and has been thrown into huge games. Plus he is in his mid 30's I cant believe he has already started 2 games

29th January 2012, 02:16	#27 (permalink)
Ole's_toe_poke First Team Regular Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 18,932	The short answer : No The long answer: Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooooooooooo

29th January 2012, 02:21	#30 (permalink)
Wittmann45 Reserve Team Player Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: 'Keep the flag flying Jimmy' Posts: 4,150	Dementia setting in Manchester United's manager after being ask what his name is

29th January 2012, 02:33	#32 (permalink)
gooDevil First Team Regular Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: The Kids are the Future ✹ Posts: 10,730	I don't think he's on the decline. But I have noticed that he's picked some strange teams at Anfield the last few years. He's become a lot more interested in rotation than he ever was before, there's no doubt about that, though you can hardly say it hasn't served us well enough overall. Sir Alex deserves a lot of leeway, especially with the dearth of top managers out there.

29th January 2012, 02:46	#34 (permalink)
Neo_Mufc First Team Sub Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: The Matrix Posts: 6,481	If this was Rawk you'd be banned by now......and thread shut Forget about the Barca game that was a long time ago. Ferguson has. Scholes looked pretty knackered after 75mins. The league isn't strong compared to 2-3 years ago because all the top teams are going through a transition period. Apart from Giggs, we lost some oldies (scholes is a temporary fix). It's impossible for DDG, Smalling, Jones, Young to become experienced Utd players in such a short time. Chelsea look like they are going for an out with the old in the with the new approach. Arsenal have a lot of new players in their team. City, ok well they go for big experienced players but it still takes time for a team to settle and develop and that's shown since November as their honeymoon periods over and they're not dominating like they were before. Liverpool have what 5 new players? (Not that they compete for the league) but you get my drift. For the great man to be in decline it has to reflect from our team and it doesn't. We're the league champions.

29th January 2012, 02:47	#35 (permalink)
Stack Leave Pep Guardiola alone!!! Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Auckland New Zealand Posts: 1,150	Its been one of the worst seasons for injuries etc that I can remember. Some of the squad rotation has been more about trying to field a team more than keeping players fresh or giving players a chance to play. There is a decent chance that we won't have any trophies this year and that simply means all the moron threads will appear.

29th January 2012, 02:57	#38 (permalink)
Dion Reserve Team Player Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 1,207	He's been a magician at some points, less so at others. That's because with a battered squad you have very few options and all of them are high risk, if he was going to decline it would have started a long time ago.

29th January 2012, 03:57	#40 (permalink)
MUFC07 First Team Sub Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Mexico City. "I'm looking for abstract ways of expressing reality, abstract forms that will enlighten my own mistery" Eric Cantona Posts: 7,224	Keeper apart - Jones - Vidic - Ferdinand - Fletcher - Anderson - Nani - Young - Cleverley - Rooney - Owen. Would you agree that's a strong line-up? They're injured/out. Now, try to cope with that. Get a grip.