A new era begins

el3mel

New Member
Joined
Oct 23, 2016
Messages
43,736
Location
Egypt
Long Time Red said:
Well to anyone with a brain, the pessimism isn't justified.

For the first time in 10 years we have a world class manager who's a cut above everyone we've had since SAF.

I think after the first 5 games people will have to reign in the optimism rather than the pessimism.
Click to expand...
Actually it's ridiculous there're United fans who haven't learned from all the false dawns that happened across these 9 years.

Till we see an actual improvement on the pitch, good results or good football played, we'll start to get optimistic. Otherwise, no, I'm not falling for it again.
 

Cantonagotmehere

Full Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Messages
3,351
Location
Charm City, MD
Right on. Onward and upward. Let's enjoy the fight back from the abyss. I'll give him ages after the shite we have dealt with over the last decade.
 

DRJosh

Full Member
Joined
Jan 18, 2018
Messages
2,956
Location
Melbourne, Australia
Supports
United minus the Glazers
The big question is: Will fans accept a trophyless season? Personally top 4 would suffice for me for ETH’s first season
 

Dargonk

Ninja Scout
Scout
Joined
Dec 7, 2010
Messages
18,760
Location
Australia
DRJosh said:
The big question is: Will fans accept a trophyless season? Personally top 4 would suffice for me for ETH’s first season
Click to expand...
Considering we are not really actually competing for any currently, I'd be happy to miss out again next season provided we actually see improvements on the pitch. For me, we are still not going to suddenly be challenging City and Liverpool at the top, but we need to see a marked improvement to how we play.

As a minimum next season we should see some sort of system/identity being ingrained in the team. Giving us the platform to then build for a challenge in the next couple of seasons.
 

Bestietom

Full Member
Joined
Dec 16, 2013
Messages
8,021
Location
Ireland
ExoduS said:
I am not excited about anything until I see some results. I was excited too many times before and was let down. Adaptation to England is long, long process. Very few managers enjoy immediate success, even with better teams.
Click to expand...
After 10 years in the shadows, we need some excitement this coming season and thereafter.
Come on Ten Hag.
 

Parma Dewol

Full Member
Joined
Dec 4, 2013
Messages
1,608
Wheato said:
I have just renewed my season tickets. The ability to opt out of the cup competitions takes a bit of the pressure off.

I'm optimistic for the future of this club. Seeing Ten Hag taking up his post 2 months early is exactly what we need. He's not swanning off to a beach somewhere, he's getting stuck in straight away. He and his team are going to be working all through the summer to plan for the future of this club. We will have to be patient, and not get giddy over some of the names being linked to us. We know that many of these rumours are drummed up by agents trying to increase the value of their players. Don't be surprised by some of the names that do actually come into the club, players that we may not have heard of before or even considered or rated highly.

Ten Hag and his team know what they are doing, and they will build a squad that can play in a certain system. And don't be surprised at some of the players who end up staying. Look at the players that he had at Ajax that he made better. Sebastian Haller couldn't get a game at West Ham, he is now being tipped to replace Lewandowski, at Bayern. Dušan Tadić barely made any impact at Southampton, but he has been superb for Ajax. Our own DVB was like a dynamo in that Ajax team. ETH made them better players, and he bought well too.

Our future is in good hands. There's no need to get carried away with the media circus of ins and outs, or the youtube channels flogging wild rumours. We've done the marquee signings to death, and that lazy way of chucking money at a problem just doesn't work anymore. Let the experts who are now running the football side of our club do their thing, and bring in the players they want to, and when the whistle blows for the first game of the season, we will have a squad of players with a decent pre-season under their belts, players who have been chosen to play in a certain system, that will build and gather momentum over time and bring back the glory days once again.

This new season will need lots of patience, trust, faith and most of all our unwavering support.

I'm in.
Click to expand...
You and your big mouth. Only gone and renewed our season tickets too. Stupid optimism. Hmph.
 

Wheato

Full Member
Joined
Jul 29, 2013
Messages
1,520
Location
Manchester
Ali Dia said:
Nice OP @Wheato. I agree with everything. We probably need to think outside the box a bit more. Take risks in the market that will raise eyebrows. Some peoples favourite players may be marginalised etc but people should be happy. It can’t really get any worse than this (with what we are spending) We support Utd to be entertained and inspired and hopefully those days are coming back.
Click to expand...
The other important element that needs to be considered, many of our existing squad have not been coached properly. Sancho, Rashford, Martial, Bruno, McTominay etc... None of them have improved under recent managers. You put any of them under Klopp and suddenly they are world class. Why? Because he coaches his players. He sits down with them individually with their footage, and goes through their performances in matches, and in training. Gives them direction and instructions. It's an open conversation, not a dressing down. This is where you are, this is where we want you to be, and this is how we are going to achieve it. Everybody knows where they stand, what the expectation is, and what success looks like.

It sounds simplistic, but to do this with every player, and to follow it through every single day, you need to be a proper control freak. Klopp, Pep and Ten Hag are weirdly like this. We have really struck gold here, because he is exactly what we need right now. Everyone will have to raise their level to meet his expectations, and this eventually becomes the norm for the entire squad, and when everyone buys into it, this is where you hit that sweet spot.

You look at Liverpool's squad individually, Jota is not in the top 5 of left sided forwards in world football. Mane isn't the greatest striker of all time. Salah wasn't tearing up any trees at Roma or Chelsea, but look at what happens when you coach someone properly, and play them in a system that everyone knows what their role is. How many elite teams would have Jordan Henderson in central midfield? They have proved that you don't have to break the bank, you don't need Haaland or Lewandowski. Here's a 30 year old Sadio Mane, they got him from Southampton for a packet of peanuts, and he runs his socks off every week, scores bags of goals, makes assists. Tracks back to win the ball.

It's all about the coaching. There are still lots of players in this squad who can achieve things.
 

kthanksbye

Full Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2014
Messages
1,503
I don't want to get carried away, it's not everyday you hire a manager who is the best of his generation, so even if he can make us the 3rd best team in the league (after 2-3 seasons), I'll see that as an absolute win. If he manages to compete with Pep and Klopp it will be great, and if he can beat the two, he'll probably be the best thing in his generation.

Edit - Come to think of it, the mere scale of task he has in his hands is monumental.
 

Dansk

Full Member
Joined
May 7, 2017
Messages
1,395
Long Time Red said:
For the first time in 10 years we have a world class manager who's a cut above everyone we've had since SAF.
Click to expand...
To be honest, it's very premature to call ETH a world class manager. While I'm optimistic and delighted that we got him, the fact remains that his credentials are a few years of winning in the Netherlands with Ajax--hardly a miracle. He shows a lot of promise and he seems like he probably has what it takes to step up, but under no circumstances can he be called a world class manager at this point in time. I do think he'll prove that he's good enough for the job, but since he has never managed or even played at the elite level, there's no guarantee at all. Some people just aren't made for the top tier of their profession, even if they have a lot of skills and excelled at lower levels. You see it all the time in any industry. At the end of the day, the Eredivisie is a small league with a very unimpressive field of competition, and Ajax is a club known mostly for developing and selling young talent. At United, he will have a very different set of tasks.
 
Last edited:

fergiewherearethou

Full Member
Joined
Jan 9, 2022
Messages
1,625
Location
Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubuna
Supports
Erik ten Hag
Wheato said:
The other important element that needs to be considered, many of our existing squad have not been coached properly. Sancho, Rashford, Martial, Bruno, McTominay etc... None of them have improved under recent managers. You put any of them under Klopp and suddenly they are world class. Why? Because he coaches his players. He sits down with them individually with their footage, and goes through their performances in matches, and in training. Gives them direction and instructions. It's an open conversation, not a dressing down. This is where you are, this is where we want you to be, and this is how we are going to achieve it. Everybody knows where they stand, what the expectation is, and what success looks like.

It sounds simplistic, but to do this with every player, and to follow it through every single day, you need to be a proper control freak. Klopp, Pep and Ten Hag are weirdly like this. We have really struck gold here, because he is exactly what we need right now. Everyone will have to raise their level to meet his expectations, and this eventually becomes the norm for the entire squad, and when everyone buys into it, this is where you hit that sweet spot.

You look at Liverpool's squad individually, Jota is not in the top 5 of left sided forwards in world football. Mane isn't the greatest striker of all time. Salah wasn't tearing up any trees at Roma or Chelsea, but look at what happens when you coach someone properly, and play them in a system that everyone knows what their role is. How many elite teams would have Jordan Henderson in central midfield? They have proved that you don't have to break the bank, you don't need Haaland or Lewandowski. Here's a 30 year old Sadio Mane, they got him from Southampton for a packet of peanuts, and he runs his socks off every week, scores bags of goals, makes assists. Tracks back to win the ball.

It's all about the coaching. There are still lots of players in this squad who can achieve things.
Click to expand...
I very much agree with everything you said about Klopp but what I don't understand is how come Pep or Klopp can be compared to ETH ?
 

Sparky Rhiwabon

New Member
Joined
Jul 10, 2013
Messages
16,946
Right, that season is over, let’s put that sh*tshow behind us and look forward, things can only get better as D:Ream once said.

A new manager and, at last, a modern manager together with a new coaching staff and the structure around it getting sorted out. Ten Hag and the coaches can help the players who are staying improve in a more defined, modern system. Hopefully some good new signings to look forward to over the summer, certainly some deadwood / poison on its way out and a chance, hopefully, for some of the cream of the FA Youth Cup winning team to start breaking through.

Draw a line under last season and let’s go. :devil:
 

TheReligion

Abusive
Joined
Nov 22, 2006
Messages
51,470
Location
Manchester
Sparky Rhiwabon said:
Right, that season is over, let’s put that sh*tshow behind us and look forward, things can only get better as D:Ream once said.

A new manager and, at last, a modern manager together with a new coaching staff and the structure around it getting sorted out. Hopefully some good new signings to look forward to over the summer, certainly some deadwood / poison on its way out and a chance, hopefully, for some of the cream of the FA Youth Cup winning team to start breaking through.

Draw a line under last season and let’s go. :devil:
Click to expand...
I’ll look forward to the press conference tomorrow and the business we do.
 

Orange Tree

New Member
Newbie
Joined
Jan 5, 2013
Messages
2,102
I'm hoping for a new signing as soon as next week. To show that we mean business.
 

TheReligion

Abusive
Joined
Nov 22, 2006
Messages
51,470
Location
Manchester
Sparky Rhiwabon said:
Yes, but I also hope, and believe, that a better manager / coaching staff can also get a lot more out of the players already here.
Click to expand...
I agree. There’s clearly some issues behind the scenes and I’m looking forward to the likes of Lingard and Pogba moving on. Not saying they are both the only issue but the former has been a leak of squad information and the latter has been unsettling for the club for a variety of reasons.

Genuinely feel we have timed it right for a fresh start
 
You must log in or register to reply here.