let's hope mazouari is a good left back.
Jason Wilcox - Director of Football
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We had Ragnick and Ashworth. Two people with reputation, experience and knowledge.
How the feck we ended with this noob?
Imo, Ed Woodward is better DoF than Wilcox and it is not even a contest.
All three of you are pretty embarrassing.
Another superb example at people not actually reading what's reported and making shit up to serve their own narrative.
Read the actual articles, then come back with a take for the sake of rational debate!
This is exactly what I’ve said pretty much since Wilcox got the job based on his relationship with Berrada and that the similarities between Berrada and Wilcox and Woodward and Murtough are uncanny
Berrada and Woodward are both finances men who despite believing they’re qualified to make footballing decisions based on zero and have zero experience in doing so both specialise in commercial and sponsorship whilst Wilcox and Murtough are both youth academy men who were given the big job due to their relationship with the one above instead of being qualified for the role so both failed miserably due to the job being far too big for them and being massively inexperienced
We had on paper, qualifications and experience the right men for the CEO and Director Of Football roles already in place in Jean Claude Blanc and Dan Ashworth and let them both go for the fecking shambolic pairing we have now and I hope Ratcliffe is big enough to accept the titanic feck up he’s overseen in the past two years
It's questionable if he is good enough at his best position at RB.
My take:
All summer (and for even longer), I’ve been listening to you and a few others tell us how our top-class DoF from Southampton has a plan, that we have nothing to complain about, and that we should just wait until the end of the window.
That same “man with a plan” spends the entire summer not getting a left-back deal done — a position we clearly need, and one he knew we needed. Then, three days before the deadline, he starts frantically jumping from one left-back to another, and on deadline day ends up making a failed loan offer for a left-back from our local rivals.
Yes, that is fecking embarrassing. Not for him, because I couldn’t give a feck about him, but for the club.
What the feck was the plan from the best-in-class DoF when he spent the final two days frantically offering loans for a left-back to anyone who would listen? And he couldn’t even get that done.
So go on, tell me your take now, please.
We are fecked as a club, well as a big six club!!! Glineos really have pulled a big one here. I am not saying let’s go out and pay stupid money on the wrong player, but we can’t even spend money like Spurs now!!! I agree, Spurs look awful but come on, we know what we needed and we buy 2nd rate players or players who “may” become a great player. Where is our left back becasue Shaw sucks, we rely on midfielders for goals. They are hoping Carrick can pull another miracle but it isn’t going to happen with a paper thin squad. I hope this won’t happen but we will be lucky to make 6-8th in the league this season with the amount of games we have to play.
My take is consistent.
Midfield was the focus and we get a LB if we find value for a player we have conviction on, else we go and target defense next window.
There's very little reason to suggest Salinas or Balde represent a higher floor than Maz at LB or even Dorgu. So this idea that we should have just signed a LB as though it was a tick box is ill thought and representative of the mistakes we used to make.
Our team of Berrada, Wilcox Vivell & co have gone out and reshaped out midfield. They've also stood firm on Rashford and been consistent in not caving in transfer valuations this summer. I find all 3 recruits to be very encouraging and I actually find the Rashford return as a well executed pivot to the original plan of sale.
I also think a LB that we deem worthy of purchase needs to be available at the right fee. Would I have liked a Raum for example? Sure. Am I going to be theatrical and extremist in my view where I think it's run by novices and a complete disaster? feck no.
I don't have an agenda, this window is a 7 for me and with a good left back it would be an 8.
The posts here are just crying for a body at LB and not evaluating whether it changes our quality much beyond what we have as backups. It's just sad to be honest.
And we have posters like yourself and the other two, trying to whip up or agree upon fake made up narratives around ait nouri to scrape some confirmation bias.
To be fair it's not just wilcox it's the whole setup. Berrada. Ineos. All of them are utterly incompetent
I have no real opinions on Wilcox or Ineos in general but it's hard to look at this Ait Nouri stuff and not feel embarrassed at the cluelessness around the club
It isn't that deep. The agent got in touch offering the player and the club did due diligence in asking what the terms are. It didn't proceed.
People are just being silly
, what? Fine on the actual business they did, but all they did was reject a low ball offer from Barcelona. Hardly a well executed plan.I'm probably at a 6 without seeing what Baleba we've got yet, no LB and not replacing the aerial threat from Casemiro in both boxes. I think it's a 7 if Baleba's as good as as I hope he can be in combatting the transition threat we struggle to cope with.
When i want confirmation bias, i go to FPL thread.
It's scary to think what position we would now be in had their kneejerk punt on a young unproven manager had failed.
Carrick amazingly bailed Ineos out in the second half of the season and this is how he is rewarded ?, a net spend of around £90 even though he got us Champions League football ?
Had Carrick failed, which was a distinct possibility, what budget would we have had this summer ?
Get the impression, Ineos think they got away with it once, they can get away with it again.
Carrick amazingly bailed Ineos out in the second half of the season and this is how he is rewarded ?, a net spend of around £90 even though he got us Champions League football ?
Had Carrick failed, which was a distinct possibility, what budget would we have had this summer ?
Get the impression, Ineos think they got away with it once, they can get away with it again.
We were promised best in class and we got Southampton sporting director... that says it all really.
He isn't qualified for the role, and since appointment he has done nothing but prove that.
He isn't qualified for the role, and since appointment he has done nothing but prove that.
Maybe ETH was right all along and his best position is at AM.
What's so funny? It's easy to say "all they did was x" but it was a genuine break from all the shit they did before where they'd let clubs take a piss. And it carries risk, reintegration is dicey and that's why some clubs often isolate the player to force them out instead.
I'm probably at a 6 without seeing what Baleba we've got yet, no LB and not replacing the aerial threat from Casemiro in both boxes. I think it's a 7 if Baleba's as good as as I hope he can be in combatting the transition threat we struggle to cope with.
Well not really. Fans have wanted a left back all summer but it's fine to me if the club didn't want to buy one other than Hall. At least we could live with the idea that they don't think that we desperately need a LB and are happy with what they have. Instead in the 11th hour we have them checking our city rivals if they would loan us a player. So what does the club hierarchy actually feel about the position ?
Vivell can replace Wilcox tomorrow. Give him the promotion and give Wilcox his brown envelope in the morning.
Berrada can be sacked. Replace him with a proven CEO, or get Van De Sar in.
Hargreaves the negotiator should never see the light of day again as a United employee. Get a proven top negotiator in. Go again. The only way this window can be digested is if Ratcliffe sacks all 3 immediately.
Berrada can be sacked. Replace him with a proven CEO, or get Van De Sar in.
Hargreaves the negotiator should never see the light of day again as a United employee. Get a proven top negotiator in. Go again. The only way this window can be digested is if Ratcliffe sacks all 3 immediately.
Yeah Vivell has to hold one for this as well, however the majority of failed window is on this guy
Yeah sacking them two for this clown is criminal
I swear people are living in an unreality where we didn't just buy a new front three who as soon as we were set up more sensibly were able to fire us to top three.
We've now also got a motivated Rashford back in the side. And more depth and options/ Skillsets in midfield
Ok would have been great to get a left back but is it actually worth all this melting down everyone is doing. Christ its pathetic
Yeah, but they didn't reintegrate him, they just didn't sell him. The credit goes to Carrick and the coaches on reintegration to the group. Not sure why deserve any credit for a decision that was made for them by Barca's shitty antics.
Do you know what reintegrate means? Sorry to be direct but I don't get what you mean by "they didn't reintegrate him".
And no that's a structural move for the player, involving Carrick and the DoF given Rashford went from being a saleable asset in the shop window to being given the 9 and starting PL games for us.
They probably look at the squad and see Mazraoui, Dalot and Dorgu as adequate cover and Yoro as underutilised and can cover right back.
If we got a good deal on a long term player, great.
Low investment on a temp who immediately improves the squad, great.
Otherwise, keep powder dry and save the money for other opportunities down the line..
I think you are way off pal.
We achieved top 3 last season, primarily because we had fewer games second half of the season.
We have signed three midfielders, OK signings, none were our first or second choices.
A motivated Rashford? He is only here because Barca didn't want to pay and no other European giant came in. More a marriage of convenience, time will tell if it works out. I'm yet to be convinced, once bitten, twice shy with the player.
We have completely neglected LB, backup striker, and that is just want we are desperate for. Serious clubs would also look a RB and CB, not letting problems fester for years before you eventually address them.
I don't find it very easy to engage with this forum right now to be honest, so it is refreshing to see at least one person with a countervail to the overwhelming "Wilcox is a clown" narrative.
I think you're entirely correct on your assessment of the left back situation. I think a number of people on here would simply take signing anyone in that position which is just daft. That sort of mindset is how you end up with players like Malacia, who without meaning to be are just not useful to the squad because they're not even better than just shunting someone out of their favoured position to fill in at left back. I'd sooner not sign anybody in the position than spend 15 million on a player who isn't an upgrade on playing Dalot or Mazraoui at left back, just so we can say we signed someone.
I myself am hesitant to give any rating to our transfer business at this stage for the simple reason that it is much, much too early to tell. I know it's boring to say it but we simply can't know just how silly or clever Wilcox and co. have been this summer until we see the results on the pitch. Right now, anybody labelling him a "clown" should be ignored because what they're saying is entirely vacuous.
I have a lot more I would like to say on it all but it's dead late and, frankly, right now I think tempers are far too flared to have any meaningful discussion.
Failed on Louis Page as well, haggling over 2 million pounds.
I can't help but think he's a bit dim.
Because British footballers - especially 90s British footballers - are, in general, just a bit dim
Because British footballers - especially 90s British footballers - are, in general, just a bit dim
Ok. We had fewer games but also worked against us with rust at times..
Point being Rashford should be a good player who contributes 10-15 goals to the squad. Carrick wanted him for a reason.
Cunha also plays up front, as does Mbeumo and we've kept Zirkzee as well for certain games..
OK a left footed left back would have been great but not meltdown worthy
We could have really pushed the boat out this summer and showed some serious intent but Ineos has decided to pull back for whatever reason.
It's the lack of real ambition that hurts the fanbase, its very frustrating, especially when you see quite a few other teams really showing real intent.
We're water and oil on this. Our opinions just aren't going to meet. We observe the same facts completely differently.
If you think those striker options are good enough / acceptable, if you think Rashford was really 'wanted' more than he just couldn't be gotten rid of on the boards terms, more power to you.
The actual work of reintegration is done by the manager, the coaches and probably the senior figures in the group ie bringing him back into the group for training, planning on how to use him within the tactics, attempts to motivate him again, etc.
The decision was made for them. The plan was always to sell him. His only suitor didn't want to pay the fee we agreed as an option from his loan, spent 70m on his replacement from the same league and his wage went back up to silly levels due to us being back in the CL, pricing him out of any move. The DOF's remit is basically to decide he can't be sold and the coach needs to plan for him for the coming season. I think after that, you're crediting him with other people's work. I actually think this is potentially going to be one of Carrick's best bits of work, if he can get the version of Rashford we saw against Ipswich, for the whole season.
We're not in the room so obviously its based in reporting but Carrick supposedly really pushed for Rashford to stay after the Barcelona move fell through..
The decision to reintegrated is collaborative. As is the overlay around it for the shirt number to boost his confidence etc.
It wasn't Carrick being a lone wolf. I'm not crediting him alone, I'm saying he was part of a well executed pivot to reintegrate a player other clubs would either A) flog for cheap, B) terminate the contract of or C) isolate entirely.
He can feck off. The only reason it’s not a 0/10 window is that Baleba got hurt and it opened Brighton up to knocking down the price. Otherwise he’d have had us trotting out Tyler Adams.
I maintain he’s been hilariously lucky in our dealings so far in that we’ve managed to bring in some good players by paying asking prices and releases clauses on low risk deals while the worse potential deals (Ederson and Delap for 2) have blown up. We’ve shown 0 ability to negotiate outgoings at all apart from Conte doing us a solid, and our loan work sucks as well.
I maintain he’s been hilariously lucky in our dealings so far in that we’ve managed to bring in some good players by paying asking prices and releases clauses on low risk deals while the worse potential deals (Ederson and Delap for 2) have blown up. We’ve shown 0 ability to negotiate outgoings at all apart from Conte doing us a solid, and our loan work sucks as well.
@TheReligion
"I know you’ve been set on Fernandes for a while but have you wanted Andres and Sangare all summer too?"
You can check my post history, for Sangare and Andres comments this summer. You can also see the comments from others saying they were not realistic signings for the Premier League.
Brighton and Brentford thought otherwise unfortunately.
"I know you’ve been set on Fernandes for a while but have you wanted Andres and Sangare all summer too?"
You can check my post history, for Sangare and Andres comments this summer. You can also see the comments from others saying they were not realistic signings for the Premier League.
Brighton and Brentford thought otherwise unfortunately.
Imagine because he was told signing a replacement of any note wasn't an option.
Don't fall for the club PR, they don't don't want to build and elite team, they want to do enough to compete for top 5 every year, that's their limit.
I’m not going to check. Just wondered if you had been championing all of them all summer.