Meulensteen interview on Poch, Ole, Mourinho, Moyes, transfers and more

[Damien]

@RedM11 (thanks again) contacted me informing me that Meulensteen had done an interview with Norwegian newspaper VG earlier this week. As the article is behind a paywall, it can't be quoted here for legal reasons but here is the translation of the quotes that he has sent to me which I'm quoting via the caf twitter.

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[Damien]

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[Damien]

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[Devil may care]

I rarely agree with entire interviews but I agree with everything said in this one, he's spot on regarding all aspects.

 

[RedDevil@84]

Reactions here will be interesting about his comments on Shaw. I believe Shaw is an average player and I would agree with him here.
Much of caf loves Shaw.

Good on him to call out Young, Valencia and Matic.

 

[Ish]

Rene spot on there, especially about his assessment of the players. I’d say a RW is also needed.

 

[bond19821982]

Spot on everything except Matic. Wasn't Carrick and Scholes slow?

Agree with caf's general sentiment that Shaw needs to get better or we should look for an upgrade.

 

[Zlatattack]

Agree with him about the fullbacks. People are overcompensating with Shaw for how terrible Mourinho was to him.

 

[freeurmind]

Agree on De Ligt, we should have been in for him already. Also agree about the midfield, we need to give more minutes to Fred and Mc Tominay to see what they can do.

 

[RedFin]

Great from Rene! Agree with everything. And he isn't saying Shaw is bad but inconsistent. Which is fair enough. Tbh if we ever get a DOF i hope he sees things like Rene. About our squad and the potential players to come in.

 

[Web of Bissaka]

Good read. Thanks. Spot on, he said harshly but truthfully. Fair comments.

 

[Thisistheone]

Great stuff from Rene. Agree with so much of what he says. Bring him back

 

[Foxbatt]

I would have been more happy if we had got Rene rather than Phelan.

 

[#CR7]

I wonder what the chances are of him returning if Ole got the job. I think we have found the right balance in our current set up but maybe they will find a role for him, considering his experience.

 

[Lam]

Most of it is already what many people here were/are saying (in fact shouting - excl. the Shaw part). Either he’s naive like us or we’re all as good as an United coach.

 

[billybee99]

Agree on De Ligt, we should have been in for him already. Also agree about the midfield, we need to give more minutes to Fred and Mc Tominay to see what they can do.

I don't need to see anymore of what McTominay can do.

 

[Web of Bissaka]

Spot on everything except Matic. Wasn't Carrick and Scholes slow?

I think he's emphasizing quicker play, not running.

"We need someone who can move the legs and the ball quickly, dictate the tempo and at the same time maintain the balance.."

Carrick's only downside is moving his legs slowly i.e. carry the ball upfield quickly, but he sure as hell can do all the other 3 so well so he doesn't need to "move his leg".
Scholes can do all of those even better.

Matic is... so lacking in many ways. A lot slower in moving, slow in quick passes, no quick transition of possession, can't control tempo, and there's no balance when he's alone at midfield, need a good midfield partner.
Sigh.. Herrera can do the job solo with all of those 4 jobs. Remember Jose's 1st season, after Carrick dropped, Herrera hold the midfield on his own most games.

 

[Web of Bissaka]

I would have been more happy if we had got Rene rather than Phelan.

How about both

 

[Devil may care]

Spot on everything except Matic. Wasn't Carrick and Scholes slow?

Agree with caf's general sentiment that Shaw needs to get better or we should look for an upgrade.

Scholes was never a DM and was miles better on the ball. Carrick wasn't uber quick but again he was quicker and more mobile than Matic, he also read the game consistently better than Matic does IMO and passes it more incisively as well.

 

[Adisa]

Agree with everything except Pochettino. Based on that principle, only ex players of the club are possible managerial candidates.

 

[Dec9003]

I'm surprised we haven't heard from him earlier regarding Ole being at United. He was well respected at United from what I know, and perhaps he would get an offer if Ole was appointed full time? That interview certainly reads as if he's dying to get back to United imo.
Perhaps openly calling Shaw out along with Matic, Young and Valencia would probably make that unlikely; given that Ole has been all about positivity regarding the players since he came in. Not that anything he said about the players was wrong though.

 

[iHicksy]

Id have him back. Anything negative he's said about the club in the past, I think, has come from the way we sacked him off when he was told he'd be safe. I think a lot of the stuff he says comes from a true love for the club.

 

[MikeUpNorth]

Agree with everything except Pochettino. Based on that principle, only ex players of the club are possible managerial candidates.

Yes, it does seem to be longing to turn United into an old boys club, which would be silly. The only real question marks around Pochettino are his lack of trophies and whether he can handle big players and their egos - he'll get a big job someday and the questions will be answered one way or another.

 

[Canagel]

Everything he said is correct.

 

[Raees]

Literally couldn't disagree with any of the tweets and he even picked my two full back recommendations.. Chilwell is so underrated.

 

[Ish]

Agree with everything except Pochettino. Based on that principle, only ex players of the club are possible managerial candidates.

That’s actually a good observation. Pochettino could easily just keep some backroof staff on or if we get a DoF who understands the club - problem solved anyway.

 

[Denis' cuff]

Spot on everything except Matic. Wasn't Carrick and Scholes slow?

Agree with caf's general sentiment that Shaw needs to get better or we should look for an upgrade.

Yep. Both slow in a sprint but they knew where they were going to pass the ball before they even received it. With Matic, you can see the cogs moving in his head before he releases the ball 5 minutes later. Good defensively though. Pity he wasn’t the other night for their first goal.

 

[clarkydaz]

He is waiting for the phone call isn't he. Pretty much said he is in a current job but no issues jumping ship if need be

 

[RedDevil@84]

He is waiting for the phone call isn't he. Pretty much said he is in a current job but no issues jumping ship if need be

Ya. Desperate "Come and get me" plea.
I am pretty sure he has been jealous from the moment he came to know that Phelan got a call.

 

[FujiVice]

Meulensteen didnt know anything about United either, until he was taught about the club. You'd think the decade mentoring of Moyes by Ferguson would have taught him what United means. As much as I want Ole, you cant just say "they arent a United man, let's not bring him in." The perfect thing is to develop the coach into a United man, who knows what the club is about.

 

[youmeletsfly]

That must be the moat bang on interview I have read recently. (Except the come and get me plea)

 

[cathari]

Would love him back at Carrington, and odds aren't exactly increasing after that interview. He's been on different podcasts describing his methods, and not only are they innovative and meaningful for the players, the are a 100% embodiment of the attacking philosophy that Man United are all about. Doesn't hurt his chances that Lingard, Sanchez, Lukaku, Pogba and Rashford all could improve their end product abilities, which kind of is Rene's specialty.

Wow, shit, I'm talking like Ole is staying, am I not

 

[Toad]

Agree with everything. Nice to see he has openly spoke about Matic being too slow and us needing to improve on our full-backs as well as centre back. Not afraid to say what he thinks even if he could be working with those players next season. At least it shows people with relation or past relation with the club know what they are talking about and know how to improve the team.

I like Chilwell but he wouldn't be an instant upgrade by much in my opinion, but he has a lot of potential and is English which fits the bill if we lost Shaw. Nice to see De Ligt's name mentions above all, he is a dream signing for any club. Wan-Bissaka would make an impact and i'd love him here and still so young.

 

[Escobar]

All spot on, he even got the transfers correct

 

[deadrevelz]

Meulensteen didnt know anything about United either, until he was taught about the club. You'd think the decade mentoring of Moyes by Ferguson would have taught him what United means. As much as I want Ole, you cant just say "they arent a United man, let's not bring him in." The perfect thing is to develop the coach into a United man, who knows what the club is about.

Did Rene actually say Poch isn't right for the job? I haven't read the full article but from those quotes it just seems like he is saying that being a part of the club before you manage there is a positive, which I agree with. Doesn't mean the new manager HAS to have that prior experience, like Ferguson himself.

Also on Poch, the whole 'can he manage a bigger team, he hasn't won trophies' thing is getting a bit annoying. You can't prove a negative. He has exceeded expectations at the clubs he has managed and I'm sure he will do very well at a bigger club when he leaves Spurs.

 

[reddevil702]

I couldn't agree more with his analysis of Matic and our defense.

 

[RedDevil@84]

Isn't Wan-Bissaka an RB?

 

[ash_86]

Feck off Meulensteen for stealing my words. Great interview BTW. Spoke whats on all United fans mind.

 

[Moriarty]

Gizza job Ole. I can do that.

 

[Mihai]

I would have been more happy if we had got Rene rather than Phelan.

Why? Genuine question.