Ed Woodward | Groundhog Day Edition

[choccy77]

Love your positivity and optimism. You do realise even if we sign players, we might still lose games or are you one of those fans that would be getting on Sancho's back when he doesn't score a hat trick in his first 3 games??

For £108m in 5.000 installment years I expect him to win the Ballon in the first 65 mins of playing for us!

My friend..... Sarcasm is a gift.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

I wonder if Covid will be the excuse this summer. If we mess this window up I genuinely hope the fans take action. United supporters could be more vocal.

 

[izec]

Absolute shitshow, again. Once we reach top 4, the spending goes down massively. We need to invest now, not once we are out of the CL again next season. Every time the same shit. Playing catch up for a decade

 

[Swearing Budgie]

I think our transfer policy is a bit shit and miss.

 

[SER19]

It's the same every summer. Even the summers we've done business it always has a haphazard feel. This has been going on for 7 seasons now.

This transfer window is so crucial for the club. If Solskjaer fails we're hitting reset again. He's done a good job and deserves a competent board adding depth to this squad to see what he can achieve

 

[AltiUn]

Weird. No rumours around us. Smalling, Sancho, little bit Grealish and that is it. Plus couple of complete bs

I find it very peculiar there’s almost radio silence on new signings, not even a whisper. There’s a very ominous feeling about this window.

 

[FootyGirl88]

Someone can correct me if I’m wrong, but it genuinely feels like we only invest when we’re not the CL.

 

[Lee565]

Only COVID, Trump, world famine and recession missing off the list. Chelsea rebuild might be cause the absolute feck up in regard to transfers to date. How much did they send on the goalkeeper? Does any of those buys fix their glaring need for at least 2 CB's? How does those signings impact on the young players that got first team football last season. Great run team that 'cheats' and ends up getting a ban!!!!
Can players join for more than one season in unprecedented times in order that Utd fans don't write them off so easily.
So you would sooner be run by oil rich clubs that counties have shocking histories of poor human rights?
Not sure how old you are but your memory is very 'new and selective'. Woodward isn't without blame but the poor recruitment of players is on the managers. Ole gave extensions to Jones et al.
Worst run club in Europe? You need to really think before emotionally vomiting on here....

You have really interpreted a lot of the stuff I've said very wrongly, where did I say I want oil rich owners, I said we get fleeced more than even the oil rich clubs who you would think the selling clubs would try and get the most money from .

Tell me who in europe when taking in account the resources available to a club is worst run than us?

The poor recruitment is due to woodward keep hiring managers that go from one extreme to another like going from van Gaal to mourinho and it results in the players not being suitable for the new managers style, with all the players we have had post fergie there has definitely a team amongst them worthy of winning a premier league title.

Ok fine let's give bissaka more leeway but I bet he is still as bad as he currently is on the ball come the end of the next season, this isn't a scenario where a player has it all but just needs to click together, he so technically poor that I just dont see how can ever improve to a high standard on the ball.

I would say signing Silva will make a better difference for Chelsea's defence as his potential cb partners compliment his strengths and weaknesses, yes their keeper cost a lot but they ain't messing about like us where we just hang on to players for too long, as for what about the youngsters from last season with chelsea, unlike United they ain't complacent and want to actually challenge for top honours and not just settle for fighting for a top 4 spot again next season and they will now have greater strength in depth to call upon.

the fact that it has still only took chelsea 1 window to likely strengthen their team in six positions compared to our 3 positions over 3 windows is not a good showing of efficiency for our club and there are other examples out there other than just chelsea where teams have rebuilt a large amount of their first 11 within one transfer window.

 

[clarkydaz]

Someone can correct me if I’m wrong, but it genuinely feels like we only invest when we’re not the CL.

looks that way, not worth the investment to 1st

 

[padzilla]

looks that way, not worth the investment to 1st

It seems to me the target is top four and that’s it. Should be reason alone for mutiny among the fans.

 

[Litch]

For £108m in 5.000 installment years I expect him to win the Ballon in the first 65 mins of playing for us!

My friend..... Sarcasm is a gift.

Only when your tongue is firmly pressed in your cheek....

 

[Foxbatt]

When Ole fails and he is bound to fail with the current squad the fans are going to turn on Woodward very strongly.
I am waiting for the day it happens. No need to blame Ole if he not getting the support from the board.

 

[Bazi]

When Ole fails and he is bound to fail with the current squad the fans are going to turn on Woodward very strongly.
I am waiting for the day it happens. No need to blame Ole if he not getting the support from the board.

As an outsider the biggest failure at United seems to be the inability to to fill a certain percentage of the starting eleven and core rotation with smart and relatively cheap transfers by identifying the right talent at the right time. That's why it seems the big transfers and spending sprees are never enough.

We wouldn't be in the CL final tommorow without finding Davies, Kimmich, Goretzka, Gnabry and Coman for less than 50m € total.

 

[Crustanoid]

When Ole fails and he is bound to fail with the current squad the fans are going to turn on Woodward very strongly.
I am waiting for the day it happens. No need to blame Ole if he not getting the support from the board.

Hasn’t happened enough imo

 

[Ali Dia]

The luckiest man in the world to still be in a job but to fair he helped the glazers pull off the hijacking of this club. He’s their guy. They are making plenty. We are stuck with this till they cash in Protest or not.

 

[Fluctuation0161]

Someone can correct me if I’m wrong, but it genuinely feels like we only invest when we’re not the CL.

I'm concerned about this too. Invest heavily when we finish outside top 4. Then scrimp and save once we are back in. We are a top 4 yo yo club at the moment.

 

[Big Ben Foster]

When Ole fails and he is bound to fail with the current squad the fans are going to turn on Woodward very strongly.
I am waiting for the day it happens. No need to blame Ole if he not getting the support from the board.

Should've happened years ago. Instead, every time any sort of protest is planned, it gets widely mocked by most fans.

 

[Ali Dia]

It won’t take long for things to go toxic at the games when fans are allowed back, if the club stop delivering and don’t back ole we are in for yet another rough season battling for 4th and I don’t think the fans will stand for it much longer. Any rich fool can sit there and make more money off us but we are being grossly mismanaged on the football side. It has to be addressed properly by the fans.

 

[NoMidfielders]

When Ole fails and he is bound to fail with the current squad the fans are going to turn on Woodward very strongly.
I am waiting for the day it happens. No need to blame Ole if he not getting the support from the board.

It’ll happen, but the club linked journalists will begin the propaganda, Ole will be sacked and we’ll invest 120m or so next summer and the cycle will begin anew.

 

[hungrywing]

We are not going to win either the PL or the CL while Woodward is here. Sack him if we are to win either of them.

Sadly his bosses are very content with how he is running this club.. Won't change until the owners are out as well.

It's very important that the fanbase understands the dynamic between the Glazer children and Woodward. At the most basic level, they are in no position to sack him. They're not 'content' with the job he's doing or any of the usual rhetoric you see on here; well of course they are but that's not exactly the dynamic at play. They're actually beneath him. Their father wasn't. They are.

Also, Woodward is running the club in a considerable part to serve the bankers holding the debt.

As an outsider the biggest failure at United seems to be the inability to to fill a certain percentage of the starting eleven and core rotation with smart and relatively cheap transfers by identifying the right talent at the right time. That's why it seems the big transfers and spending sprees are never enough.

We wouldn't be in the CL final tommorow without finding Davies, Kimmich, Goretzka, Gnabry and Coman for less than 50m € total.

Sorry for being a bit lazy: how many of those fellows were of the run-down-contract-to-go-to-Bayern-for-peanuts type?

 

[ti vu]

When Ole fails and he is bound to fail with the current squad the fans are going to turn on Woodward very strongly.
I am waiting for the day it happens. No need to blame Ole if he not getting the support from the board.

Once the dressing room gets unrest, even if the manager would not be the most responsible since there is no going back. Purchasing the whole squad overnight is impossible. Players being considered as assets so liquidation would cost more than replacing the manager.

The propaganda machine would run in full throttle there to point out every issues possible. What we learned so far that even if a part of the fan base can pinpoint the issue on Woodward, he has the power to hire the next manager, who in turn endorses Woodward as part of process for the chance to work at the club, and early support (in the transfer matters). Few positive with new manager, then Woodward issue was put behind so the club can "give new manager time".

This is the very reason Woodward doesn't want DOF who would spoil this leverage he has. Now I think about it, I feel like Woodward is actually clever in the way he approach his manager hire. It would filter out those in great position that wouldn't accept Woodward's term/ideas. This left him with those desperate enough to accept the risk working him even knowing his bad rep.

LVG, Mourinho, even some part of Moyes all said something similar about if they knew better, they would be more specific before they signed for us. In a sense they're desperate and got taken advantage in endorsing Woodward, where as if anything they would ask for DOF/ structure in place. Other managers would just walk if they're in better shape to choose other clubs like Klopp walking away from Adult Disneyland.

So if we wait until things turn really sour before going at Woodward, then it would achieve nothing. Even now when things ain't so bad, we need to push for those change in structure to take away Woodward power, or it's just a vicious cycle, where Woodward has the trump card, ultimate decision making power with owners' trust in him.

 

[Foxbatt]

Yes but with those managers he has a way out. Now he doesn't. If Ole fails and if he, Woodward does not provide players for Ole, he has to take the full brunt of the anger of the fans. This time he cannot cry wolf and put the blame on the manager's head. He has done it too often and furthermore Ole is not just some other manager but a legend as a player at the club.

 

[ti vu]

Yes but with those managers he has a way out. Now he doesn't. If Ole fails and if he, Woodward does not provide players for Ole, he has to take the full brunt of the anger of the fans. This time he cannot cry wolf and put the blame on the manager's head. He has done it too often and furthermore Ole is not just some other manager but a legend as a player at the club.

Nearer to the sacking, there would be sum calculation. Those fee on Maguire, AWB, Bruno do look significant.

There is always this division on Ole legend and Ole as the manager in the fan base. Quite big part of this fan ain't hardcore. And bigger younger fan base, Ole ain't exactly endearing to them. Woodward then decided to pay for few of those "name" players would cool down quite a big chunk of the angry fan base. Glazers takeover of the club can go through, sacking Ole when he hasn't won anything, is just another day at work for Woodward.

 

[clarkydaz]

Hasn’t happened enough imo

It happened mid season when the stadium was singing he is gonna die. Then he signed bruno and it all disappeared. Fanbase are too fickle and divided

 

[TheLord]

I am convinced we won’t be the top English club as long as Ed is running the show.

 

[AshRK]

Can we wait until the window has closed before making any decisions. Chelsea is doing business but it's like a fat person losing lots of weight, they have it to lose. Chelsea had a season not being able to send so they have in principle 100m plus to spend.

I don't understand the attitude of let us wait till end of the transfer window. I mean it's like every time this guy and the board dithers till the final days before getting the players. That's just unfair on the manager. So what if we have a poor start and then Woodward panics and ultimately buys the same target. That's what I call bad job. Woodward and the board need to stop getting these excuses. They have done a very mediocre job( That too me being generous, otherwise they have done a pathetic job).

If you are saying we don't have money then stick to it and stop acting smart and cocky. What's the logic of suddenly panicking and ending up spending a similar amount of money when we are already behind others.

 

[steeeb]

Investing to earn CL football and the money that cones from it (and missing the sponsor penalties) makes more financial sense than investing to join a 3 horse battle with Liverpool and City with little financial payoff.

That's why having a money man making these decisions isn't good and we need a DoF and perhaps some set investment budget each year or something to allow us to keep moving forward.

 

[UnitedFan93]

The Glazers remain the ultimate problem; Woodward is just their employee.

It's going to take an absolute monumental, collective effort from our fanbase to drive these cretins out of the club.

 

[Stretender]

The Glazers remain the ultimate problem; Woodward is just their employee.

It's going to take an absolute monumental, collective effort from our fanbase to drive these cretins out of the club.

Sadly most of our fans have fallen for the Glazer tricks. Promote youth, employ a club legend as manager etc and the fans are happy. I don't think the Glazers would have got away with this if they owned Liverpool. Their fans have a voice. At United it's about being a top red and supporting the team no matter what

 

[Feed Me]

I wonder if Covid will be the excuse this summer. If we mess this window up I genuinely hope the fans take action. United supporters could be more vocal.

It’s the same cycle of dissent culminating in a half baked protest which then dies down. Nothing ever changes though.

 

[Feed Me]

When Ole fails and he is bound to fail with the current squad the fans are going to turn on Woodward very strongly.
I am waiting for the day it happens. No need to blame Ole if he not getting the support from the board.

This has been said with every manager post-Fergie. We will hire someone like Conte or Allegri and the whole cycle will start again.

 

[Wednesday at Stoke]

I dont understand how this fan anger towards Woodward would be anything new or somehow impactful.

Fans raided his home not so long ago.

 

[red thru&thru]

Glazers have entrusted the wrong person with the money for the squad, post saf.

Enough money been spent, just not a lot to show for it.

 

[Fosu-Mens]

I am convinced we won’t be the top English club as long as Ed is running the show.

And under the current ownership. And they are never going to sell us as long as we keep being financially healthy.
So, us having some really bad seasons and thus possibly making the Glazers more inclined to sell might very well be the best for the FOOTBALL club long term.

 

[Eckers99]

I dont understand how this fan anger towards Woodward would be anything new or somehow impactful.

Fans raided his home not so long ago.

Did they? I thought they threw a firework over his wall.

 

[JPRouve]

As an outsider the biggest failure at United seems to be the inability to to fill a certain percentage of the starting eleven and core rotation with smart and relatively cheap transfers by identifying the right talent at the right time. That's why it seems the big transfers and spending sprees are never enough.

We wouldn't be in the CL final tommorow without finding Davies, Kimmich, Goretzka, Gnabry and Coman for less than 50m € total.

Exactly. Personally I believe that the ideal strategy for wealthy clubs is to target one big player per year and then take gambles on a bunch of high risks, high rewards players. United strategy to stay in the middle tiers is costly and these transfers also take a time because we are talking about players that are generally in clubs that want and can keep them.

 

[pocco]

Ed Woodward - Specialist in Failure.

 

[Traub]

So when do we expect the DOF rumours to start circling again? That usually signals the end of our transfer business.

 

[soralapio]

Love your positivity and optimism. You do realise even if we sign players, we might still lose games or are you one of those fans that would be getting on Sancho's back when he doesn't score a hat trick in his first 3 games??

Don't be dense. Nobody is saying anything of the sort! It's obviously better to get the players in ASAP so they can bed in, have a proper pre-season with the club and get used to playing with their new teammates. Ed leaving everything to the last second (or managing to cock things up so badly they have to go back in the next transfer window, ala Bruno) is a recipe for disaster. The squad has glaring and easily identifiable holes in it, and pretending it isn't so because magically things could work out, is negligent.

Plus next season is going to be even harder than this one, due to the compressed schedule. We all saw what a shitshow it was trying to rely on the same first 11 all game, every game. This squad won't make it to Christmas without significant additions.

 

[passing-wind]

The problem isn't that we haven't signed Sancho yet, every credible journalist has acknowledged that a transfer of this size will take time. Even Chelsea have taken weeks to negotiate for Havertz with a much better infrastructure and DOF. The problem is that we are employing a one transfer at a time policy which is a risky strategy and often leaves us unprepared throughout pre season getting deals over the line too late into the window.

The fans also play a poor role with a lack of consistency, if we sign Sancho and other targets this summer Woodward will be hailed despite his poor track record he cannot have it both ways. Woodward / Judge are two of the most inept individuals in the hierarchy. Even if we had the most amazing summer he needs to go.