Jose should have been kept on as manager. Any football club with aspirations of success doesn’t hire an experienced, proven and still world class manager who remember, had won the title 2 seasons ago in 2014-15 only to sack him due to half a bad season where he wasn’t backed by the board to any extent.
What we should have done was to have a simple conversation with him and ask him about who he wanted to get rid of and sign provided it was a maximum of 6 in, 6 out and promised him that it would be done. Sure, players like Martial and Pogba most likely would have been at the top of the Out List, but its not as if they are lighting things up right now and in fact, Ole seems to not fancy Martial either.
Honestly, I believe that if we had just let him manage fully without Woodward interfering, like we let Fergie because we were practically forced to due to his greatness, he would have built on his first two seasons where progress was undeniably made and maybe not win the league, but at least challenge for it within a few seasons and bring us a few domestic cups along the way.
My reason for believing this? Its Jose Mourinho, undoubtedly in the top 5 greatest managers from the 21st century due to his reputation of never failing in any job he took until he came to the poisoned chalice for managers that is the current Manchester United. Yes, the man did say things about the club that we found very insulting, but that’s the way he is. He talks about Chelsea and Madrid without a care in the world these days too.
Anyway, now we have Ole, who is a club legend. However, I have reservations on him which push through the massive fondness I have for him that I never had with Mourinho (the reservations, that is). Unfortunately, we all know that Ole has done pretty much nothing in his managerial career apart from win a few league titles at Molde, which is not enough at a club like United. Would you hire the manager of Greek champions PAOK? Swiss champions Young Boys? No. Mourinho has a pedigree as a manager Ole could never even dream of matching, and knew how to motivate players who cared about the club, hence my earlier point.
Of course, Ole is now the manager and has to be backed as well, and my support for him next season will be as, or possibly even more vociferous than it was for Mourinho due to his club legend status. However, to be brutally honest, I just cannot see him succeeding with this toxic group of players who only know how to give shallow apologies after awful collective performances. He doesn’t have the reputation, motivational skills for egotistical players and evidently, the tactical nous that Mourinho has to cover up for the weaker players’ weaknesses. There’s a reason why Mourinho was the manager who lasted longest at United after Fergie.
Should the board end up doing the 6 in, 6 out approach with him, I feel that it would go a long way to helping him succeed but again, I feel like he doesn’t have the general managerial skills that Jose has. When all is said and done though, when the dark day comes that another manager, a club legend this time is sacked by United, I and all the fans of MUFC will know that it wasn’t his fault and adore him for the player and man that he is.