He's the first manager we appointed since Fergie that might have been appointed by other top clubs in England. And I agree with you. But I do think that the manager should be backed even if these players don't back him. They've shown they're hardly irreplaceable. They're mostly overpaid and ineffective. We could get a team just as good for far less money.Its an odd one isn't it. I think Ralf wasn't joking when he said most of the team needed replacing but I think he was basing it on what he saw and the attitude and application issues of last season. I don't think he would have had the same opinion if he was assessing the team the previous season.
I think that many of these players will ultimately find themselves at other teams in the next few years but that will be for lack of desire to fight rather than a lack of ability for some of them.
Livepool are a great example of a team that has consistently taken average players that no one really cared about and made them look top class. The system allowed them to do this and thats why I have such high hopes for United under ETH. Liverpool have some quality players in key positions but they also have a bunch of workhorses that are elevated by the collective efforts of those around them.
We need to support ETH and if the fans support him then perhaps the players might support him a little more as well. We have already seen the massive positive impact of simply appointing a manager that makes the players happy. Oles first few months were great. It only started to fall apart when the players were realising that feel good only gets you so far. If ETH can make the team better and we start to see good results with good play then the rest of the pieces will quickly fall into place. Its easy to work hard when you enjoy your job and feel like you are moving towards something.
Its too early to say how good ETH will be but he is the first manager since Fergie who I genuinely believe has the talent and relevance to the modern game to take us back to the top. How long that will take I have no idea but I believe.