"Man United fans need to re-educate themselves ”- Rio Ferdinand

sammsky1

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Rio is the latest of ex players to notice that its 'all change' at LVGs Manchester United.

To be honest, he says pretty much everything we have also said in various threads.


“Man United supporters have to go away and re-educate themselves on how to watch Man United,” Ferdinand says. “Don’t go there expecting to see free-flowing, attacking, gung-ho football. If you’re losing 1-0 in the 89th minute, don’t expect that free-flow … get the ball wide, cross it or get the ball into the strikers. The only thing I can see that is similar sometimes is, if they win the ball high, they do like to go straight for you.

“The philosophy seems to be – we’ll keep the ball more than you; you won’t have comfortable possession to be able to pick balls forward; us suffocating you with possession is our first form of defence.

“They still have moments in games, like most teams. But when you put a Man United game on, you were always thinking to yourself: ‘This is going to be explosive, exciting, crazy, you don’t know what you’re going to get.’ Now it is very methodical, side to side, wait for an opportunity to come."


http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/sep/12/rio-ferdinand-manchester-united-louis-van-gaal
 
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sammsky1

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FULL ARTICLE: Rio Ferdinand does not recognise Manchester United with Louis van Gaal by David Hytner
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ource: http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/sep/12/rio-ferdinand-manchester-united-louis-van-gaal



Rio Ferdinand left Manchester United only in the summer of last year but, when he looks at the club, it is as though he barely recognises it. Tens of millions of pounds have been spent by the manager, Louis van Gaal, in overhauling the squad and only nine of the senior players with whom Ferdinand worked remain. The shift in style has been seismic and it does not take long in Ferdinand’s company to realise that he finds it all a little jarring.

“I was talking to Nemanja Vidic on the phone and we were both saying that the change is unreal in terms of the personnel and the transfer policy,” Ferdinand says. “It doesn’t look like anything I knew from when I was there. Even the sponsor that was there for so many years has gone, with Nike being replaced by Adidas. Everything has changed, other than the groundsman and the chef.”

Ferdinand is in no mood to pull his punches. Having retired last May, after a difficult final season at Queens Park Rangers, he no longer has to adopt the measured tones of the top professional and it is clear that he will be a must-listen-to pundit on BT Sport. His views carry authority and insight and his deconstruction of Van Gaal’s United will touch plenty of nerves.

“Man United supporters have to go away and re-educate themselves on how to watch Man United,” Ferdinand says. “Don’t go there expecting to see free-flowing, attacking, gung-ho football. If you’re losing 1-0 in the 89th minute, don’t expect that free-flow … get the ball wide, cross it or get the ball into the strikers. The only thing I can see that is similar sometimes is, if they win the ball high, they do like to go straight for you.

“The philosophy seems to be – we’ll keep the ball more than you; you won’t have comfortable possession to be able to pick balls forward; us suffocating you with possession is our first form of defence.

“They still have moments in games, like most teams. But when you put a Man United game on, you were always thinking to yourself: ‘This is going to be explosive, exciting, crazy, you don’t know what you’re going to get.’ Now it is very methodical, side to side, wait for an opportunity to come.”

Ferdinand believes that United will be better equipped for success in the Champions League this season, because of their slower, more patient approach, although he says that he does not consider them serious contenders. Moreover, he is categoric that they will not win the Premier League. The champions, he says, will be Manchester City, by “a minimum of six or seven points.” City, he adds, will also be England’s best hope in Europe.

“That hurts me,” Ferdinand says. “Manuel Pellegrini got his system wrong last season – playing 4-4-2 in big games you get out-numbered in midfield and you’ve not got the personnel to cope. It’s easy for us to say on the outside but it was glaring. I think he has held his hands up. He’s changed that system and it seems to have really helped him.”

The United style debate rages on and Ferdinand expresses his surprise that Van Gaal decided to loan the attacking midfielder Adnan Januzaj to Borussia Dortmund. Except that it was not really too much of a surprise.

“He is a wonderfully talented kid, who I think is a Man United player,” Ferdinand says. “He plays with a little bit of fantasy and imagination. But if you also look at [Ángel] Di María … he was free-flowing and off-the-cuff and you can’t do that in a Van Gaal team. Adnan Januzaj needs freedom. He can stand anybody in the world up and beat them. Van Gaal hasn’t seen him as the right guy for his team.”

Ferdinand is particularly indignant about Van Gaal’s gross spend on transfer fees – £252.7m – and, although United were hardly thrifty during Ferdinand’s 12 years at the club, he says they would have benefited enormously from that kind of investment.

Van Gaal’s final signing of the summer was the deal that took the 19-year-old forward Anthony Martial from Monaco for £36m. The fee could rise to £58m. Ferdinand says: “Vidic and I were saying: ‘If they’d have spent £50m when we were there, we’d have won how much more?’ If, you’d got somebody at that time who was worth that.”

Within the spend, though, there was no room for a new central defender and Van Gaal has used Daley Blind in the position during the early season. “When you think you’ve spent all that money … where is the centre-half?” Ferdinand says. “Blind is a fantastic all-round footballer but he’s not a centre-half. He’s indecisive in certain areas, he’s not comfortable, he’s not used to being in certain positions and then the ball is behind and he can’t recover – nor can the other defenders.

“When you do start spending a lot of money like Man United have, the pressure becomes a lot greater to put silverware on the table. I don’t think Man United are going to win the league this year.”
 

VeevaVee

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Remember when we all knocked Barcelona for playing keep ball and we said it was boring?

Well it's like that except it is actually mostly boring.
 

Spoony

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I agree with him. A case of grinning and bearing. Not the United I love but heh...I don't get this modern football lark.
 
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He has a point though. After Ronaldo left, imagine if the Glazers had allowed SAF to invest £150m in one transfer window? Surely he would have won at least one more CL.
I don't know what to believe. Did Fergie refuse to spend or did the Glazers not allow him to? He says he always got what he wanted, but the club did have a massive debt to pay off... I don't know, maybe the truth is somewhere in between.
 

Distracted Steward

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Good read, thanks for the share.

Fair points from Rio.

Interesting to hear two club legends like him and Vidić wonder what more they would have won with this sort of investment in the squad. I wonder also. That and when this sort of money became available...
 

sammsky1

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I don't know what to believe. Did Fergie refuse to spend or did the Glazers not allow him to? He says he always got what he wanted, but the club did have a massive debt to pay off... I don't know, maybe the truth is somewhere in between.
Nah, SAF would spend money as happily as any Chelsea or City manager. I think the Glazers denied him the money and he went public with the 'no value' mantra because he was such a company man totally in love with the club.

Our debt situation was precarious and Woodwards marketing department had yet to properly monetise the brand. He probably vehemently disagreed with the situation but would never go public with that disagreement out of respect to the owners.
 
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Nah, SAF would spend money has happily as any Chelsea or City manager. I think the Glazers denied him the money and he went public with the 'no value' mantra because he was such a company man totally in love with the club.

Our debt situation was precarious and Woodwards marketing department had yet to properly monetise the brand. He probably vehemently disagreed with the situation but would never go public with that disagreement out of respect to the owners.
I guess you're right. Pretty sad.
 

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He has a point though. After Ronaldo left, imagine if the Glazers had allowed SAF to invest £150m in one transfer window? Surely he would have won at least one more CL.
Could have been signing the likes of Aguero and Silva instead of Owen and Obertan
 

Sylar

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First half was terrible. There were times that a player was in between the lines (eg herrera or mata at times) without an opponent near them and their first instinct was to pass it back or to the side to keep the ball.
Its like they were scared what would happen if they gave the ball away.

I dont mind us having possession, but we should be doing it more when we are winning. but if we are doing it when not winning, the passes need to be quicker, more one touch football to not let the opposition settle.

TBF, second half was more direct, quicker tempo, quicker passing. Id like to see the possession stats between 1st and 2nd half.
 

sammsky1

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First half was terrible. There were times that a player was in between the lines (eg herrera or mata at times) without an opponent near them and their first instinct was to pass it back or to the side to keep the ball.
Its like they were scared what would happen if they gave the ball away.

I dont mind us having possession, but we should be doing it more when we are winning. but if we are doing it when not winning, the passes need to be quicker, more one touch football to not let the opposition settle.

TBF, second half was more direct, quicker tempo, quicker passing. Id like to see the possession stats between 1st and 2nd half.
wrong thread?!
 

Hernandez - BFA

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It's a new manager, what did everyone expect? Do you expect all the future managers to follow Fergie's way? No. Everyone has different styles. Pep changed the way Bayern play, the same way Wenger changed the way Arsenal play and Mourinho with Chelsea and what not.
 

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I think Fergie was willing to accommodate the lack of funds because they didn't interfere with his work, the football side in any way. Anytime the topic of glazer came up, he was always quick to say he was happy, they leave me alone, don't intefere etc.
 

Adisa

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The United Way is the biggest pile of shit that was ever sold.
 

RamblingRebel

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I dont think SAF was held back with signings he splashed out on Rio, and Rooney, and Ronaldo to an extent. I actually believe him when he said no value in the market.

He was old school and I imagine some of the prices he was quoted over the years for just good players made him shit his pants and hed only be willing to spend the big bucks on players that had the potential to reach the very top of the game.
 

Devil81

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That pretty much sums up everyone's view not just Rio and Vidic's point of view.

We stagnated during the early part of this decade and we're playing a massive catch up game. Having said that I wouldn't say we're a million miles behind, we've just got to be patient. This season will be seen as a success if we add silver wear to the trophy room, even if it's the Capital one cup it's a start.
 

DomesticTadpole

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I think LvG is building up the squad and steadying the ship, which unfortunately is making us a bit boring. It will be up to the next manager, Giggs if that is who the next one is, to tweak the style of play. He will leave with a good squad in place. I would imagine we will get another CB, striker and maybe a goalie if DDG does go next summer. 3 signing and we have an excellant squad.
 

milemuncher777

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I agree with most of the things he's saying but complaining about adidas taking over from Nike is hillarious.
 

izec

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I hope that this phase under LvG will help us in the long term. The next manager should hopefully play more attacking, but i think our players will benefit from this period.
 

sunama

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We have to evolve and move on from Fergie, otherwise the lesson in Liverpools fall from grace through stubborn sentimentality, will not have been learned.
The more I think about it, the more I agree.
We can't try and play exactly as we did 10, 20, or 50 years ago.
Times move on. Tactics move on. And that is what LVG is doing.
And I don't want us to become the 2nd LFC - always hoping for a return to past glories.

Don't get me wrong, I like attacking football. I have been scathing in my comments about Rooney who can't score in the EPL in open play. I was similarly scathing against Falcao last year. I love attacking football and goals.
But, to win trophies, our players need to be re-educated and that is what is happening with our possession football.

Do people remember when Barca beat us the CL final? We were completely out classed because our gung-ho attacking football doesnt work against the best teams.
I believe that our current team/style will be far more effective against Barcelona than our old playing style.

Everything in life evolves. What was great/prolific 50 years ago, probably isn't great today. Man Utd is evolving.
 

Santiago_KinderBueno

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Nah, SAF would spend money as happily as any Chelsea or City manager. I think the Glazers denied him the money and he went public with the 'no value' mantra because he was such a company man totally in love with the club.

Our debt situation was precarious and Woodwards marketing department had yet to properly monetise the brand. He probably vehemently disagreed with the situation but would never go public with that disagreement out of respect to the owners.
I say that SAF didn't need money to win the league & players like welbeck, cleverley & hernanadez were all he really needed. So he went in to his final seasons trying to reduce the debt deficit for the next manager not necessarily realising just what a poor squad he left behind for moyes.

I dont think moyes was a bad manager at all & infact i did see alot of similarities to SAF in terms of getting the best out of his players but asking moyes to build united simply because he built everton was wrong.
 

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I hope we stick to possession football. I have been calling for it for some years now. What I hope we can do now is lean to keep the ball in the opponents half more and create chances. I hope we get Guardiola. I think he would improve our style and will build on foundations laid by Van Gaal.
 

RedStarUnited

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Rio is the latest of ex players to notice that its 'all change' at LVGs Manchester United.

To be honest, he says pretty much everything we have also said in various threads.


“Man United supporters have to go away and re-educate themselves on how to watch Man United,” Ferdinand says. “Don’t go there expecting to see free-flowing, attacking, gung-ho football. If you’re losing 1-0 in the 89th minute, don’t expect that free-flow … get the ball wide, cross it or get the ball into the strikers. The only thing I can see that is similar sometimes is, if they win the ball high, they do like to go straight for you.

“The philosophy seems to be – we’ll keep the ball more than you; you won’t have comfortable possession to be able to pick balls forward; us suffocating you with possession is our first form of defence.

“They still have moments in games, like most teams. But when you put a Man United game on, you were always thinking to yourself: ‘This is going to be explosive, exciting, crazy, you don’t know what you’re going to get.’ Now it is very methodical, side to side, wait for an opportunity to come."

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/sep/12/rio-ferdinand-manchester-united-louis-van-gaal
That craziness is what got us so many PL titles but at the same time, it cost us in the CL. Not a single premier league team has managed to do well in the CL playing the PL way.
 

RedStarUnited

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I hope we stick to possession football. I have been calling for it for some years now. What I hope we can do now is lean to keep the ball in the opponents half more and create chances. I hope we get Guardiola. I think he would improve our style and will build on foundations laid by Van Gaal.
Me too!

As it is we have come a long way from last season. Last season we got the keeper involved a lot, now we don't involve the keeper so much. We are missing some good interplay when we are in the opposition half and a player who can make something out of nothing.
 

Sylar

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wrong thread?!
Yes :( I had too many threads open at the same time

To keep it on topic, Rio is right, but at the same time (which links to my post) we kinda dont want to reeducate ourselves. We need to adapt but I think what we are using works well against the big teams and I think it will work well in Europe. For the rest of the Prem matches,I think we should be trying to blitz them with quick passing, quicker tempo, one touch football all within the opponents half and trying to take more chances (especially with our defence looking more solid and having DDG back in the starting lineup)
 

Ramshock

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This shit is getting old. At least with the journos they are getting their mortgages paid by talking shit about LVG. I really cant see what they are hoping to gain by saying this shit. Do they want Giggsy in quicker or something?
 

Rezyuz

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Remember when we all knocked Barcelona for playing keep ball and we said it was boring?

Well it's like that except it is actually mostly boring.
Remember when Barcelona embarrassed us 2 times in a row in the final and we all silently thought in ourselves "wish we played like that with the world applauding our fantastic play"?

Dont compare us to the Barcelona squad of pep. We dont play lik it tactic wise and we are 1/10 of the team quality wise.