Thought it was well documented Antony was first choice but initially we baulked at the price. I'm glad we didn't get Gakpo, he's honestly so average and he seems to prefer the side we have a load of players already on, I feel like Antony we obviously overspent but he does make us better overall - I still think he'll have a good season (hopefully) all the drama is behind him.
Manchester United name John Murtough as Football Director and Darren Fletcher as Technical Director
- Thread starter Tom Van Persie
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik @Rood and Imran @Annihilate Now! start with the good news by celebrating Manchester United Women's emphatic FA Cup win over Spurs at Wembley and the future of manager Marc Skinner.
Then it's the bad news and the ever worsening form of our Men with losses to Arsenal and Palace.
Finally the main debate - ETH Out now or keep him until the end of the season - if not longer. Are you Team Nik or Team Imran?
The problem with Antony was they could not get any alternatives over the line and so had to go back for Antony at the end of the window. Why Joel needs to take some blame is one of the reasons for that delay on the alternatives was restricted budget sign-off where additional budget was only signed off late in the window.
Same thing happened this summer with Amrabat. All parties have to take some blame
The negotiations over Antony started and stalled well before the end of the window so I seriously doubt they could not get any alternatives over the line. More likely is that ETH stood firm on his preference and Murtough just didn't want to overrule him.
Completely irrelevant to my post. Not only are Caf’ers unable to use google, they can’t read posts either.
Was reported United couldn’t provide alternatives
We didnt pay 100m for Antony though we paid 81m (much better value than 100m for grealiash or Mudryk), Ajax rejected multiple offers from us as they didnt want to sell and only gave in when Antony himself told them directly that he wanted to leave.
Pretty much this
People also have a strange hard-on for Fletcher’s sacking that never ceases to amuse me
Zinedine Zidane - 2010 "special adviser" to Real Madrid first team, 2010 Qatar World Cup ambassador, 2011 Sporting Director
Why would he be moved to the business side? His only jobs have been in football recruitment and administration. Nothing to do with business.
Also, Fletcher's role has been explained numerous times and he's very qualified for it.
Eh.... We spent the most in the last decade more than RM, Barca, BM, Liverpool, City and etc.
We also spent decent money in the last few years the problem was we signed mediocre or "old" players for exorbitant fees.
All blame to Glazers?
Money being allocated poorly and needing sign off from Glazers is a big problem.
Jesus Christ. What the hell does Phil Jones have to do with this? He's doing what Evra and others have done at Man Utd and every pro club. Coaches are linked to clubs to gain experience while they do their badges. They're not permanent hires. He's not overseeing anything and once he's finished his schooling there is no obligation that he be hired. You're just being silly with that line of argument.
Patrice Evra earns coaching badges after Manchester United role
UEFA A Licence
Phil Jones confirms new career path after returning to Manchester United
See? Jones is just at the club until he completes his qualifications. You check all the students in that course and you'll see all of them attached to a club.
Where was that said?
81 million for Antony is better value than what City paid for Grealish? Not sure I agree with that one.
Zidane got appointed as advisor on mourinho's insistence and then as assistant manager on ancelotti insistence, two great managers with an almost endless list of titles and CLs. It's not as if the manager turned up at a presser asking what Zidane did. They wanted him there and they insisted on hiring him. This seal of approval made sense given the results and he ended up winning as many CL titles as manager as our club did throughout its entire history. Unlike united, Real has an efficient and effective sporting side were appointment usually make sense I believe we can safely say its apples and pears isn't it? Tbf I'd love to see Fletcher have the same success with us as Zidane had with real
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In that case then you're right. However I won't be surprised if the guy remains at United especially in the current setup (ie full glazer control)
When he was appointed Football Director by the club in 2021. The idea he was only involved with youth and women’s team prior to that is total nonsense.
No. No it’s not because he wasn’t involved at all.
IMO, its more like we spent the money without proper planning because we don't have proper football structure.
He was involved, club confirmed it in statement when he was appointed, idea he wasn’t is total nonsense that people just go along with.
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Where here does it specifically state that he worked with the first team.
It says he worked on “structure” but nothing about working with first team on transfers or anything like that
https://www.manutd.com/en/amp/news/...t-of-football-director-and-technical-director
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Manchester United is pleased to announce the promotion of John Murtough to Football Director and Darren Fletcher to Technical Director, two new roles that will further strengthen the club’s football operations.
John will have overall leadership and responsibility for operations and strategy across all football functions, reinforcing the strong foundations already in place. This appointment builds on the work John has already undertaken in recent years, working closely with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and the rest of the football staff to create the structures, processes and culture to deliver sustained success on the pitch. This has included successful overhauls of the club’s Academy and recruitment department.
Darren will work closely with John to add technical input and direction into all football and performance areas. He will focus on a co-ordinated and long-term approach to player and squad development, helping maintain the integral link between the Academy and the first team, aligned with Manchester United’s values and culture.
As Football Director, John will work day-to-day with Ole to align recruitment and other strategies and to ensure that the first team has the best-in-class operational support it needs to succeed.
Ole will continue his role in the recruitment process, supported by extensive scouting and data analytics functions that will continue to report to John. Matt Judge will also report to John, with a new title of Director of Football Negotiations.
Murtough helped to ‘successfully’ overhaul our recruitment department prior to 2021 so he clearly wasn’t just part of women’s team and academy.
Further down its emphasised;
“We have already made great strides forward in the way we run our football operations, and the benefits are visible in the resurgent pipeline of Academy talent reaching the first team and through our improved recruitment record. John has been integral to our progress in all these areas”.
So he was integral to our ‘improved recruitment’ and helped build are recruitment department which has been a disaster. This all happened prior to 2021 so he has been involved for years.
David Moyes' physio is still in charge of the biggest club in the world after having been Woodward's assistant for many years and some sheep are defending him 
Murtough needed to go long ago. That’s not a guy I’d be feeling sorry for when Jim gets the keys to Carrington.
Who's Moyes' physio?David Moyes' physio is still in charge of the biggest club in the world after having been Woodward's assistant for many years and some sheep are defending him
I'd hazard a guess he means Murtough. Harsh but funny
So he set all that in place and then when he became DoF, he decided that recruitment policy will be "use manager's shortlist".
David Moyes' physio is still in charge of the biggest club in the world after having been Woodward's assistant for many years and some sheep are defending him
Shouldn't have been hired in the first place, his remit is horrifyingly underwhelming. Bet he pissed himself laughing when he found out he was the successful candidate to get the job
It is amazing that Murtough is still there when you look at his track record. He must be afraid to say no to either the Glazers or the manager, and it has got him this far.
Top DOFs tend not to take shit. Partici and Mitchell left because of issues with Agnelli and Levy. Campos is already throwing a fit at psg while we know enough about Rangnick's modus operandi. Murtough survived and thrived in this toxic and incompetent environment. His cv was underwhelming for the job at hand and if fired I can't see top clubs wanting him. He is the perfect glazer man
I could quote anyone of the past 5 posts, but there is positive things that Murtough has done over the past 12-18 months. For example, the sports science department has been upgraded as we were in the equivalent of the 80's by comparison to various clubs with how far they gone ahead. He has also overseen improvements of the facilities in the youth and women's teams.
Yes his position is obviously at risk, but I am asking you to consider (not in a demanding or aggressive way) our current set up. Who and where do our present decisions take place? The answer; a) Joel Glazer and b) Florida.
Next who is his subordinate to his decision making? C) Richard Arnold.
People have praising the Athletic for their reporting on current Manchester United affairs over the past 2 and half months. I read an article from them seemingly praising Richard Arnold approximately 6 months ago and a paraphrase from that piece I read was "whatever happens with United ownership in the future is he just wants to do a bloody good job."
Well news for everyone (and this I do say this in a forthright manner) , he hasn't! He and the ownership structure that controls the operations have been a total failure. That is before we we even start speaking about Woodward.
Yes his position is obviously at risk, but I am asking you to consider (not in a demanding or aggressive way) our current set up. Who and where do our present decisions take place? The answer; a) Joel Glazer and b) Florida.
Next who is his subordinate to his decision making? C) Richard Arnold.
People have praising the Athletic for their reporting on current Manchester United affairs over the past 2 and half months. I read an article from them seemingly praising Richard Arnold approximately 6 months ago and a paraphrase from that piece I read was "whatever happens with United ownership in the future is he just wants to do a bloody good job."
Well news for everyone (and this I do say this in a forthright manner) , he hasn't! He and the ownership structure that controls the operations have been a total failure. That is before we we even start speaking about Woodward.
Fair points here but end of the day Murtough has been the most senior footballing decision maker at the club for a decade of footballing failure. Obviously the Glazers are the significant issue but I don't think we'll hear many complaints, if any, if Ratcliffe immediately replaces Murtough.
Let me guess: The new macbooks just arrived.
They have to improve the data and analytics department and indeed Rasmus Hojlund is the first signing based on that data.
Everyone else was Woodward or currently Ten Hag driven. I wouldn't even Solskjaer was overly influential in signings. He may have really wanted Sancho and Cavani was suggested by him as an experienced striker to help out. But that about it.
If they are throwing out old Macbooks for nothing I will have one in compensation for the shyte they dished Iver the past 10 years.
Like you say, the sports science department were on par with a club from the 80s and it was reportedly Moyes that set about making the necessary improvements. If something is very under par, anyone could improve it by seeking the right consultation.
The same goes with the women's and youth infrastructure. We were reading reports six months ago that the women were having to run off the training pitch and go a distance to use a port a loo. Again, anyone would have sought the right consultation, as we would have used building consultant practices who have previous in designing these buildings, it's another tap in.
What about the endless chasing of de Jong last summer then getting Casemiro late in the summer and giving him a lengthy contract? Paying £80m for Maguire, going for Antony late last summer and vastly overpaying again.
He is the person who should be holding his own and saying to the manager 'listen, there's more attainable and feasible targets which are of a similar profile they the scouts have recommended'. He is vastly out of his depth in every way, I'm surprised people on here are defending him.
I do not dispute that. But the De Jong saga was driven by Ten Hag. Because the new, modern coach, they hung onto his every word. After those first 2 results last season, Ten Hag probably demanded and said you need players in here or I can't work with this shower of shyte. Therefore, they blew their budget.
I suppose that is where Rangnick would have been useful, particularly during that first summer. The identifying of players needs to be taken out of Ten Hag's hands.
No he hasn’t.
Woodward took control of all footballing matters until Murtough took over in 2021. Woodward was the most senior “football man” for all that time.
I’m fed up of explaining this in this very thread, which consequently is just a murtough bashing thread at this point.
That’s very fair but also very unfortunate for Murtough that he just hasn’t done enough to warrant to stay. He’s placed a lot of good people around him but he’s just not big enough for the job.
If he wasnt such an embarrassment in the transfer market it wouldnt be.
He improved it so well that he gave up on it