A serious look at Mauricio Pochettino

bondsname

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If we do switch managers I hope the rumors about our ambition in the summer transfer window doesn't change, many times a new manager feels obligied to give the existing team a chance before making drastic changes.
 

spiriticon

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Right from my the start my question was about the first 2/3 seasons, because that's what your post was about too, not giving a manager enough time early on.


The only examples you can give me are the best manager of all time and Sean Dyche in like his 5th and 6th season. Not great, is it?
Sean Dyche could have easily been sacked after relegation from the premier league, but yet he is here making progress.

Regardless of the inane exactment of the seasons, it is an example.

Fergie is Fergie, but I wonder what would have happened if he was sacked after his 4th season finishing 13th.
 

AneRu

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Do you think the Glazers will release the funds to catch up with recordbreaking liverpool and city?
But we don't really need to spend half a billion to be competitive in this league. In Rashford, Williams, McTominay and Tuanzebe we have players that will save us from spending hundreds of millions on first team players for starters. I think our attack, under the right tactics, is a couple of players away from being top class whereas in midfield we also need just one signing and whilst the defense isn't exactly sorted it is functional. With what we have right now we just need a top class DM behind Pogba and Bruno, a right winger and a striker. Under a manager who can gel that into a team we are one good summer away from being competitive then its down to whether we can grow as a team from there on in and the additions we can make in 2021, Van Dijk and Alisson transformed Liverpool from a competitive team to one of the greatest sides around.
 

TheReligion

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But we don't really need to spend half a billion to be competitive in this league. In Rashford, Williams, McTominay and Tuanzebe we have players that will save us from spending hundreds of millions on first team players for starters. I think our attack, under the right tactics, is a couple of players away from being top class whereas in midfield we also need just one signing and whilst the defense isn't exactly sorted it is functional. With what we have right now we just need a top class DM behind Pogba and Bruno, a right winger and a striker. Under a manager who can gel that into a team we are one good summer away from being competitive then its down to whether we can grow as a team from there on in and the additions we can make in 2021, Van Dijk and Alisson transformed Liverpool from a competitive team to one of the greatest sides around.
Exactly. His figures are ridiculous and I'm yet to hear how he feels we need to spend £400m net to compete in the PL when Leicester were basically in the running for the title a few months ago.
 

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Sean Dyche could have easily been sacked after relegation from the premier league, but yet he is here making progress.

Regardless of the inane exactment of the seasons, it is an example.

Fergie is Fergie, but I wonder what would have happened if he was sacked after his 4th season finishing 13th.
A bad, bad example.

Come on, we both know I'm right. Sean Dyche or not, unless you're expecting our next manager to get us promoted after Ole gets us relegated :)
 

Varun1

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For those of you that may or may not know-- Most of these managerial appointments are made behind the scenes months before public announcements. If Poch is coming, he's already signed on the dotted line.
I agree with this, except when it comes down to us. And the reason I don't trust us to do this properly is the Bruno transfer. This should have been agreed before the window started with a view to integrating the player early on. Yet it happened almost at the end of the window.
Journalist/pundit/podcaster who works for Le Parisien. Okay-ish in terms of transfer reliability, but not sure how consistently proven he is with manager appointment predictions, especially if he doesn't have direct connections or sources (like he seemingly does with say Paris Saint-Germain). That Pochettino quote is from this segment
Long shot, maybe PSG approached Poch since Tuchel is bound for Bayern, that's how he got the news?
 
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spiriticon

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A bad, bad example.

Come on, we both know I'm right. Sean Dyche or not, unless you're expecting our next manager to get us promoted after Ole gets us relegated :)
Pffft.... Relax with the trigger finger, is all i'm saying. Stop shooting on the first sight of trouble. The current United job is a damned difficult one and we have to accept that it's just not that easy for any manager, regardless of his name and CV.
 

Massive Spanner

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Pffft.... Relax with the trigger finger, is all i'm saying. Stop shooting on the first sight of trouble. The current United job is a damned difficult one and we have to accept that it's just not that easy for any manager, regardless of his name and CV.
Sure, but it'd still be easier for a manager with a better name and CV than Ole.
 

NWRed

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Here we go again, blame the players for the poor results and praise Ole for the good ones. When we were doing well against the top six wasn't he using the same squad of overpaid underachievers? I'd grant you the improving players bit but do you realize that Matic is a two time PL Champion, Mata won the CL and Fred was signed for 50m because of what he did in the CL? At the end of the day its results that matter and he hasn't brought them.
'Here we go again' with context rather than knee jerk reactions.

I do realise that Matic and Mata had won things and that Fred was bought for 50m. Do you remember that they were seriously under performing with Mourinho in charge, and that the fans calling for Ole to be sacked now are the same fans who have been crying out for Matic to be sold, criticised Mata's contract extension, called Fred shit, and were posting about 'bursting Rashford's bubble' etc etc. It boils down to a large number of part of our fan base being unable to take anything other than a short term view.

I like Pochettino a lot as a manager and he'd probably do a great job here given time, but the job is currently occupied by someone who deserves to be given time.

At the end of the day results will only come when progress is made off the field with regards to the mentality and general ability of the squad. It took the greatest manager ever 5-7 years to get it right after nearly 2 decades of underachieving, Ole deserves more time.
 

Gehrman

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Exactly. His figures are ridiculous and I'm yet to hear how he feels we need to spend £400m net to compete in the PL when Leicester were basically in the running for the title a few months ago.
Yeah and now Leicester and city are left behind in the dust.
 

Gehrman

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'Here we go again' with context rather than knee jerk reactions.

I do realise that Matic and Mata had won things and that Fred was bought for 50m. Do you remember that they were seriously under performing with Mourinho in charge, and that the fans calling for Ole to be sacked now are the same fans who have been crying out for Matic to be sold, criticised Mata's contract extension, called Fred shit, and were posting about 'bursting Rashford's bubble' etc etc. It boils down to a large number of part of our fan base being unable to take anything other than a short term view.

I like Pochettino a lot as a manager and he'd probably do a great job here given time, but the job is currently occupied by someone who deserves to be given time.

At the end of the day results will only come when progress is made off the field with regards to the mentality and general ability of the squad. It took the greatest manager ever 5-7 years to get it right after nearly 2 decades of underachieving, Ole deserves more time.
We have our worst point tally in 30 years. Ole really doesnt deserve more seasons.
 

AneRu

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'Here we go again' with context rather than knee jerk reactions.

I do realise that Matic and Mata had won things and that Fred was bought for 50m. Do you remember that they were seriously under performing with Mourinho in charge, and that the fans calling for Ole to be sacked now are the same fans who have been crying out for Matic to be sold, criticised Mata's contract extension, called Fred shit, and were posting about 'bursting Rashford's bubble' etc etc. It boils down to a large number of part of our fan base being unable to take anything other than a short term view.

I like Pochettino a lot as a manager and he'd probably do a great job here given time, but the job is currently occupied by someone who deserves to be given time.

At the end of the day results will only come when progress is made off the field with regards to the mentality and general ability of the squad. It took the greatest manager ever 5-7 years to get it right after nearly 2 decades of underachieving, Ole deserves more time.
Based on what exactly, what has he shown in over twelve months to warrant more time? Time alone doesn't turn a poor manager into a great one, you look at the squad that we all blame but the same squad has won Cups and finished second whilst all Ole has in English Football is getting Cardiff relegated, on the balance of probabilities you can't really expect Ole to turn things around and achieve acceptable levels of performances given what we have seen. If we are talking about what he deserves he wouldn't still be in a job.
 

Gehrman

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But we don't really need to spend half a billion to be competitive in this league. In Rashford, Williams, McTominay and Tuanzebe we have players that will save us from spending hundreds of millions on first team players for starters. I think our attack, under the right tactics, is a couple of players away from being top class whereas in midfield we also need just one signing and whilst the defense isn't exactly sorted it is functional. With what we have right now we just need a top class DM behind Pogba and Bruno, a right winger and a striker. Under a manager who can gel that into a team we are one good summer away from being competitive then its down to whether we can grow as a team from there on in and the additions we can make in 2021, Van Dijk and Alisson transformed Liverpool from a competitive team to one of the greatest sides around.
Pobga wants out. And im not really sure Rashford, Martial etc matches up against Salah, mane, Aguero etc.
 

AneRu

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Pobga wants out. And im not really sure Rashford, Martial etc matches up against Salah, mane, Aguero etc.
Which is why I said we need two class additions to the attack, if Pogba leaves he will be replaced and the funds from his sale represent an opportunity to reconfigure the squad further. Like I said, we are three good additions from becoming a competitive side (competitive not title winning) and whether we can improve from that depends on what the manager can add in terms of tactics/philosophy, coaching and man management. Suppose we sign Sancho, Grealish, Zacharia and Halaand (for interest sake), can we really say we are that far behind or it will be just a matter of the side evolving over a season or so?
 

romufc

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Are you suggesting poch has an equal or lesser status than ole? Get fecking real mate.
No, I think the he is one of the better managers. I wanted Poch last summer but obviously we couldnt get him.

I hope we get him this summer.
 

Kush

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I think if they do decide to move on, ole will be offered a different role within the club, whether he takes it or not would be up to him but I doubt they'd do him like they did LvG with constant rumors behind his back.
Man Utd is not a charity, it shouldn't be run like one. If there is one job he's even more unqualified for at this club, it's the job of being the DoF.

When he's inevitably sacked, we should pay him his severance package and move the feck on from this romantic non-sense which is leading us no where.
 

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Man Utd is not a charity, it shouldn't be run like one. If there is one job he's even more unqualified for at this club, it's the job of being the DoF.

When he's inevitably sacked, we should pay him his severance package and move the feck on from this romantic non-sense which is leading us no where.
No one mentioned anything about a DoF. I was thinking an ambassadorial role.
 

Gehrman

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Which is why I said we need two class additions to the attack, if Pogba leaves he will be replaced and the funds from his sale represent an opportunity to reconfigure the squad further. Like I said, we are three good additions from becoming a competitive side (competitive not title winning) and whether we can improve from that depends on what the manager can add in terms of tactics/philosophy, coaching and man management. Suppose we sign Sancho, Grealish, Zacharia and Halaand (for interest sake), can we really say we are that far behind or it will be just a matter of the side evolving over a season or so?
Well i was talking about winning the title against 2 of the best pl teams of all time, not just being competive.
 

Gehrman

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Man Utd is not a charity, it shouldn't be run like one. If there is one job he's even more unqualified for at this club, it's the job of being the DoF.

When he's inevitably sacked, we should pay him his severance package and move the feck on from this romantic non-sense which is leading us no where.
People need to feck off with this ole as Dof. He has failed as our manager, dont promote him to dof for gods sake.
 

AneRu

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Well i was talking about winning the title against 2 of the best pl teams of all time, not just being competive.
I know, being competitive is the first step then with incremental improvement then the team becomes good enough for the title. We are never going from 8th to the title within one season but if we become competitive and say finish third then you can easily make one or two big signings that transform the team into title challengers. Poch has finished high up in the league and if he can put United up there then we have the resources to challenge and possibly win.
 

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Exactly. His figures are ridiculous and I'm yet to hear how he feels we need to spend £400m net to compete in the PL when Leicester were basically in the running for the title a few months ago.
Nobody is in the running for the title in November. If Liverpool keep the hold of Kloop and City invest in the Summer it will be a 2 horse race for at least the next 2 seasons.
 

AneRu

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People need to feck off with this ole as Dof. He has failed as our manager, dont promote him to dof for gods sake.
Agree with this but there is a real possibility of Woodward promoting Ole to get the OleIn crowd onside and avoid the payoff.
 

Kush

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No one mentioned anything about a DoF. I was thinking an ambassadorial role.
I doubt he'd be keen on an ambassadorial role when his management career is still pretty young.

People need to feck off with this ole as Dof. He has failed as our manager, dont promote him to dof for gods sake.
It's my deepest fear (after Ole still being in management job here at the start of next season)

Club caught a lot of flak for the way van Gaal was sacked and replaced, if we're in for Poch then we're following the same routine with Ole. Problem is there are far far more Ole apologists than there were for van Gaal. I fear in trying to defuse the situation, some geniuses at our board level decide to move Ole upstairs as DoF because he understands 'United ethos'.

That's the last thing this club needs, we need to cut the cord clean from the past and move on with fresh faces who have modern ideas and philosophies.
 

roonster09

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It's my deepest fear (after Ole still being in management job here at the start of next season)

Club caught a lot of flak for the way van Gaal was sacked and replaced, if we're in for Poch then we're following the same routine with Ole. Problem is there are far far more Ole apologists than there were for van Gaal. I fear in trying to defuse the situation, some geniuses at our board level decide to move Ole upstairs as DoF because he understands 'United ethos'.

That's the last thing this club needs, we need to cut the cord clean from the past and move on with fresh faces who have modern ideas and philosophies.
I think club lot of of flak as it was done just mins after FA cup victory, with (apparently) Jose's side leaking the news to media.
 

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We have our worst point tally in 30 years. Ole really doesnt deserve more seasons.
Ya he really doesn't deserve more time. Apart from the worst points total (which you'd be able to take if it actually looked like progress was being made) there simply is not enough signs of the kind progress we need to make to take us back towards the top.
 

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He's basically the best available manager. I hope Ole is able to turn things around after the break with important players returning and new signings but we'll have to wait and see.
 

Andi Latte

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Not a really big fan here of Poch's. I think his teams play dirty football, his style is reminding me more of his fellow Argentine Simeone than, say, Pep or Klopp. Also his recruitment is questionable imo, which admittedly may or may not be in part Levy's fault.

The pros include the fact that he seemingly had a positive impact on the development of the likes of Son, Kane, Alli (as patchy as his form has been, Poch at least got one relaly good season out of him), et al. While guys like Son and Kane were always talented enough to reach those heights, he arguably raised the performances of the "lesser" players in the squad, mainly by implementing a functioning system, an advantage he has over someone like, say, Ole. Plus hes as close to guaranteed Top 4 as it's gonna get for the foreseeable future and also is able to work with what he has at his disposal.

Therefore my ideal plan would be to get Poch in on a relatively short contract (2+1 or something, a policy the club should adopt anyway given our recent "success" with managerial appointments) to reestablish us in Top 4 for 2 seasons running, which imo is his ceiling. I see Poch a bit like Big Sam, but for Top 4.

At that point we A) should be able to attract higher caliber players again and B) re-evaluate our manager situation with the likes of Rose, Nagelsmann, -insert random hype manager- potentially available. If Poch is exceeding expectations, fine, keep him, if not, go next.

I get it, we all were used to Sir Alex, we all want a long term manager, but this is exactly the sort of sentimental crap holding the club back.

Maybe we should go with the times and employ a more Chelsea-like model with shorter contracts while planning managerial appointments in advance, according to which manager would suit us most at a given point of the teams development, while also giving us much needed flexibility in case things go south again.

Should a manager perform well over a prolonged period of time, we can always extend him long term, I don't think any manager in their right mind would leave a successful Manchester United.

TL;dr: Get Poch on a short contract in order to bridge the time until Nagelsmann, Rose etc become available. Don't do long term contracts and extensions before they aren't deserved. Simple, really.
 

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Not a really big fan here of Poch's. I think his teams play dirty football, his style is reminding me more of his fellow Argentine Simeone than, say, Pep or Klopp. Also his recruitment is questionable imo, which admittedly may or may not be in part Levy's fault.

The pros include the fact that he seemingly had a positive impact on the development of the likes of Son, Kane, Alli (as patchy as his form has been, Poch at least got one relaly good season out of him), et al. While guys like Son and Kane were always talented enough to reach those heights, he arguably raised the performances of the "lesser" players in the squad, mainly by implementing a functioning system, an advantage he has over someone like, say, Ole. Plus hes as close to guaranteed Top 4 as it's gonna get for the foreseeable future and also is able to work with what he has at his disposal.

Therefore my ideal plan would be to get Poch in on a relatively short contract (2+1 or something, a policy the club should adopt anyway given our recent "success" with managerial appointments) to reestablish us in Top 4 for 2 seasons running, which imo is his ceiling. I see Poch a bit like Big Sam, but for Top 4.

At that point we A) should be able to attract higher caliber players again and B) re-evaluate our manager situation with the likes of Rose, Nagelsmann, -insert random hype manager- potentially available. If Poch is exceeding expectations, fine, keep him, if not, go next.

I get it, we all were used to Sir Alex, we all want a long term manager, but this is exactly the sort of sentimental crap holding the club back.

Maybe we should go with the times and employ a more Chelsea-like model with shorter contracts while planning managerial appointments in advance, according to which manager would suit us most at a given point of the teams development, while also giving us much needed flexibility in case things go south again.

Should a manager perform well over a prolonged period of time, we can always extend him long term, I don't think any manager in their right mind would leave a successful Manchester United.

TL;dr: Get Poch on a short contract in order to bridge the time until Nagelsmann, Rose etc become available. Don't do long term contracts and extensions before they aren't deserved. Simple, really.
There is zero chance of Poch coming to Utd on a short term contract.
 

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I got a feeling it's a done dealio, That piece today floating around about how he'd 'love a return to the premier league', plus being pictured with Ashton.

I think it's pretty obvious would be extremely surprised if it doesn't happen.
 

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So in other words, he failed to refresh the squad. He should have let go some of the stars that wanted to go, rather than forcing them to stay and then leave for free. Spurs used to be pretty good at knowing when to move on players for a big profit and then replacing them with cheaper talents. If he does come here I will support him like I do with any United manager, but I fear his ceiling is fairly limited and may disappoint some.
Yeah, I agree with you on that. Refreshing the squad would have worked but he didn't and in the end, the negatives outweighed the positives and ultimately gone from the club.

If he does come here, pretty big IF - I would hope that United can provide a decent podium to raise this ceiling he seemingly has.
 

NWRed

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Based on what exactly, what has he shown in over twelve months to warrant more time? Time alone doesn't turn a poor manager into a great one, you look at the squad that we all blame but the same squad has won Cups and finished second whilst all Ole has in English Football is getting Cardiff relegated, on the balance of probabilities you can't really expect Ole to turn things around and achieve acceptable levels of performances given what we have seen. If we are talking about what he deserves he wouldn't still be in a job.
His results against top 6 sides and PSG, the improvement of players, the moving on of players who don't fit united's style and should never have been signed, the blooding of youngsters, the refusal to sign players who aren't commited to the club 100%, the long term view he takes of squad building and management.
 

romufc

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I got a feeling it's a done dealio, That piece today floating around about how he'd 'love a return to the premier league', plus being pictured with Ashton.

I think it's pretty obvious would be extremely surprised if it doesn't happen.
Apparently Bruno wanted to go Spurs cause of Poch and decided not to because of the managerial change.. something else that might point towards Poch in the summer.

I have thought for the last 2 seasons he is a Manutd manager
 

L1nk

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His results against top 6 sides and PSG, the improvement of players, the moving on of players who don't fit united's style and should never have been signed, the blooding of youngsters, the refusal to sign players who aren't commited to the club 100%, the long term view he takes of squad building and management.
I genuinely wish people wouldn't keep on about that PSG game, they were all over us, hit the post multiple times etc. We scored from a terrible backpass that was so short it left Lukaku 1v1, the second goal Buffon dropped an absolute clanger into our lap, and the last was a very lucky penalty. Yes a wins a win but let's not act like we outclassed them and use it as a reason to give Ole more time.
 

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If Poch does rock up at United, I just hope we get better. I'm tired of us failing. Yet, I have an awful suspcion that 18 months into his reign he'll be in the same position as Ole, Mou and LVG at the same stage: Undermined by underinvestment, the club's unwillingness to trust his judgement over players and in the position of scapegoat for failings elsewhere in the club. Would anyone be shocked if two years down the line its being reported that we're after Conte or someone like that, with Poch looking p'd at promises not being realised and players that he was supposed to have been given not arriving? Why is the appointment of a new manager going to change the way this club has functioned for the past seven years?