Well, I’d be lying if I said I was confident Ole is the man to restore us to being a genuine top team (which has to be the end game for anyone in that job).
I’d also be lying if I said that I don’t have an unpleasant, sinking feeling of deja vu - that is, a feeling of watching the same bloody car crash unfolding, as it has been ever since SAF retired, in a slightly different form.
Some random thoughts:
* Ole could be out of his depth, certainly - and he could be fatally overestimating the potential of certain players: this is a worry for me. If he’s banking on players like Rashford and Martial to be regulars (important, crucial even, parts) in a title challenging first XI - well, then he’s not scared to gamble a fair bit, I’d say. And that’s without even mentioning the likes of Pereira and - dare I say it - Lingard. We have a significant number of young and youngish players who need to take several steps more before they’re even close to matching the quality on display elsewhere.
* Sack him now and replace him with who? None of the (realistic, more or less) alternatives people have suggested seem worth the bother to me.
* He’s bought well. If the next batch of signings follow the same pattern, we’ll keep strengthening both the squad and the starting XI. That’s something. How many transfers under previous Woodward era managers have actually looked very decent, consistently, for any number of games?
* Not bringing in “replacements” for players who were - on the whole - extremely underwhelming? Not bothered at all IF the manager and Woodward are on the same page with regard to a - major - rebuild. I’d rather take a series of hits this season (bumps in the road) than spend good money on short term solutions: yes, ideally, we should have brought in an experienced striker of the sort that pretty much guarantees X goals per game - and a central midfielder of some description. I have no doubt Ole would have wanted this too. But what it comes down to is expectations: not the expectations of our partly idiotic fan base, but those of Ole’s employers: if Ed’s old “4th or bust” principle applies, then Ole’s in deep shit - and all sorts of questions can be asked (of the manager and his employers alike). If, however, Ole and Woodward are on the same page - and prepared to sacrifice short term results - then we’re looking at something quite different. Not to the liking of the “no lowering of standards!” brigade, but who cares about them: do they think Ole, of all people, doesn’t realize what it takes, ultimately, for him to go down in history as a proper United manager?
* Lastly, we have a large number of obnoxious, moany and disrespectful cnuts in our fan base - and here on the Caf - who actually seem to think that their incessant whining is testament to how much they “care” about United. They aren’t above calling a United legend (and a thoroughly likeable and decent person) nasty names - whilst taking every opportunity to attack and ridicule not “top reds” (we have those too, make no mistake) but what I’d label normal fans, i.e. people who try to get behind Ole and display a bit of positivity.
