Our managers actually are being backed.

[RkkMan]

At last some sense . Exactly your point . Just because we spent huge sums of money doesn't necessarily mean the manager has been properly backed . lVG has stated he didn't want Di Maria or Falcao or Schneiderlin but Ed or whoever bought them . They fecked over Moyes bigtime and didn't he tell Jose he didn't need a LB cause he had Shaw the very same Shaw who has just seen us add another LB to the squad .
If you think Ole was backed in this summer's window then you need help . VDB is quite obviously not a priority signing for him and was Telles ? I doubt it .

You really think the same LVG who complained how we missed out on Muller, Neymar etc didn`t want a CL winner in Di Maria when we practically had zero top wingers? Just because Schneiderlin flopped doesn`t mean he`s not who LVG wanted or is there a better DM we were linked with at the time? He wanted him alongside Bastian and he got them. Whatever way you look at it LVG spent 250m in 2 windows and a lot of his "signings" flopped hard managers don`t have a gun pointed to their heads and told "We`re signing this player whether you like it or not" there is ALWAYS dialogue and all these signings are approved by managers including this summer`s transfers.
As for Ole yes he wasn`t fully backed at least a CB should have come in in place of Sancho who was understandably expensive during a pandemic but naive to think VDB wasn`t a priority Ole himself called him and VDB confirmed this and he was gotten beacuse Villa wanted 80m(!!!!) for Grealish I dont see how thats a bad decision. Telles was probably signed in place of a CB cause bar Upamecano the CB market this year is vastly overpriced but he was the best LB in the Portuguese league and Shaw is our ONLY left footed LB no manager would say no to Telles

 

[RkkMan]

Cash spent on transfers doesnt always equal backing your manager.
Did Ole have VDB/another midfielder as his priority or a RW/CB. Mourinho was offered Fred or nothing that final summer
Who is making the final decisions and doing the negotiating?
Can managers sell who they want and spend on who they prioritise?
The club have spent a lot over the last few years. Doesnt feel the managers are fully backed though. LVG and Jose both conplained about it and no doubt Ole would if he wasnt so nice!

Remember during a press conference when Jose himself said every club needs a Brazilian in the dressing room? Of course Fred was a signing he asked for anyway to Ole VBD was probably his 2nd choice midfielder as Villa seriously overpriced Grealish and Ole himself called VDB remember?This was a signing he definitely wanted a gun wasn`t pointed to his head to accept VBD FFS. Granted we should have gotten Upamecano when his clause was active early in the window in place of Sancho but outside him the CB market has been VASTLY overpriced probably explains why we went for a LB instead. We cant say that all signings are made against the manager`s will whether they are first choices is the question but Klopp`sf first choice wingers were Gotze and Brandt got Mane and Salah and he missed out on Fekir and Texeira. Pep missed out on Maguire, Jorginho, Koulibaly etc every manager misses out on a first choice getting a 2nd choice does not always equate to a manager not being backed and Utd fans make way too big of a deal out of this

 

[Greck]

The term backing has become an ever-shifting goalpost to absolve managers. If the club hadn't met Leicester's valuation on Maguire and instead opted for alternatives (as they should have) the club would have been accused of not backing Ole. Remember summer 2019 when fans were clamouring to back ole and pay Leicester what they wanted because he was going to do to us what VVD did to Liverpool.

Imagine doing as everyone says and backing the manager and later being called an idiot for same. The club walked away from this kind of foolish business this summer and it was the right thing. You don't blow an entire summer's budget on a single overpriced target. You can't build a winning team this way. Why we need more football people upstairs who won't cave to short-sighted muppetry. A DoF would have shut all of this down a summer ago the moment Leicester had the gall to demand that ridiculous fee. A manager or director who sanctions that kind of spend haven't got a clue what they're doing

 

[Mainoldo]

It really needs to be said again. The manager doesn't control transfers. The transfer committee does and the manager is one of many members in that committee. The committee choose the players. Then Ed/Matt negotiate the transfers.

Imagine this "structure" spending a club record on a target man for the manager, but then refusing to buy a winger to feed the target man. Knowing full well there are no other decent crossers in the team.

And then when shit hits the fan 5 months later, this "structure" forces the manager to either accept a panic buy of a left sided inside forward (the 3rd in the squad) or accept nothing at all.

And during this time, said manager was begging for a centerback. Which the "structure" refused, arguing existing centerbacks are good enough. And then the following season, after failing to qualify for CL, they pay a record for a centerback.

When this farce flops, the manager gets the blame for the failure and people claim he was "backed" by the club because of the "record signing target man" and a record wages inside forward.

Now the same shit is happening to the current manager. Rinse, wash, repeat.

And still people don't realise that the same shit is happening and will continue to happen as long as nothing changes upstairs. The "structure" has to change.

You know you can write this same sob story at Liverpool; Bayern; Juventus; Man City and Real Madrid?! It hasn’t stopped them winning titles either.

Somewhere out there Zidane is moaning that he wanted Mbappe and was given Jovic.

 

[Amir]

We seem to financially back the managers till we get top 4 and beyond that become stingy again, till we do out of champions league.

It's an absurd logic which is founded more on corporate principles rather than sporting ones.

LVG got top four and was then allowed to spend quite a bit in the next window, on the likes of Memphis and Martial.

Mourinho didn't get top 4 in his first season but got CL football and spent quite a bit in his second summer.

The idea that we get the CL and then stop spending is based on very little evidence.

 

[Sky1981]

LVG got top four and was then allowed to spend quite a bit in the next window, on the likes of Memphis and Martial.

Mourinho didn't get top 4 in his first season but got CL football and spent quite a bit in his second summer.

The idea that we get the CL and then stop spending is based on very little evidence.

We spend Sum: €83.50m

Hardly peanuts in the times of Corona

 

[RkkMan]

We spend Sum: €83.50m

Hardly peanuts in the times of Corona

TBF we`ve spent more
VDB- 40m
Telles- 15m
Pellistri- 10m
Diallo- 37m
Cavani- Free
Total 102m(total fees include add ons)

 

[Red Comet]

If anything, the amount points to how inept the likes of Woodward and Matt Judge are.

 

[Sky1981]

If anything, the amount points to how inept the likes of Woodward and Matt Judge are.

how is it their fault all over again?

When we brought in Maguire/AWB/James/Bruno last season everyone was hailing Ole. Now it's Ed + Matt.

 

[ash_86]

We spend Sum: €83.50m

Hardly peanuts in the times of Corona

When likes of Aston villa, Everton and Leeds spend more than the worlds richest club, then we know we've had a poor window. Is that those club's income were not impacted because of Corona?

Let's not let the judgement of the manager cloud the way our transfer window panned out . We were supposed to try and bridge the gap on the quality with the top sides and ended up drifting even more.

 

[Sky1981]

When likes of Aston villa, Everton and Leeds spend more than the worlds richest club, then we know we've had a poor window. Is that those club's income were not impacted because of Corona?

Let's not let the judgement of the manager cloud the way our transfer window panned out . We were supposed to try and bridge the gap on the quality with the top sides and ended up drifting even more.

How much do they spend?

Everton spend and look at the result.

We spend and spend and all we're going is backwards.

 

[JPRouve]

When likes of Aston villa, Everton and Leeds spend more than the worlds richest club, then we know we've had a poor window. Is that those club's income were not impacted because of Corona?

Let's not let the judgement of the manager cloud the way our transfer window panned out . We were supposed to try and bridge the gap on the quality with the top sides and ended up drifting even more.

It's a combination of several things, they don't lose as much money due to empty stadiums, they still got their PL money and TV broadcasting money but they have far smaller recurring expenses, for example their wage bill is almost half of United's.

 

[SER19]

Yes, Ole didn´t get what he wanted this window but I see no basis for claiming Ole has gotten players he do not want. I believe he can veto against incoming transfers.

I didn't say solskjaer got players he didn't want. But clearly he didn't get key players he did want. There is simply no way United should have let a talent like Haaland slip through in January. The size and financial clout of the club shouldn't end with signing a 33 year old on deadline day while the best young striker in the world, who had a good relationship with solskjaer, is hammering goals in every week. We've all seen the names that were supposedly solskjaers top players to sign this summer. He got none of them. Moyes, van gaal and mourinho a had the exact same complaint. Moyes' window was a genuine disgrace and set us on a terrible path from the off.

Pointing to the hundreds of millions squandered and the ridiculous contracts leading to stock piling terrible players we don't want is not backing managers.

 

[RkkMan]

I didn't say solskjaer got players he didn't want. But clearly he didn't get key players he did want. There is simply no way United should have let a talent like Haaland slip through in January. The size and financial clout of the club shouldn't end with signing a 33 year old on deadline day while the best young striker in the world, who had a good relationship with solskjaer, is hammering goals in every week. We've all seen the names that were supposedly solskjaers top players to sign this summer. He got none of them. Moyes, van gaal and mourinho a had the exact same complaint. Moyes' window was a genuine disgrace and set us on a terrible path from the off.

Pointing to the hundreds of millions squandered and the ridiculous contracts leading to stock piling terrible players we don't want is not backing managers.

A bit harsh to blame Utd on the Haaland fiasco. None and I mean NONE of the top top top clubs in Europe would agree to a release clause for a player who is not only a Raiola client you know in 1/2 years time will be on the up and will have a long list of suitors waiting for him it practically puts you in a position of weakness before he even finishes a season. Clubs like BVB/Leipzig are natural stepping stones so they can agree to such terms. It was a rock and hard shell situation but Utd took the natural decision most if not all tier 1 clubs would take.
In fact I`m willing to bet my money if Utd bowed down to the demands of Raiola and Haaland`s father the very same people here accusing us of missing out on Haaland would accuse us of being weak pushovers when the links to Madrid/Bayern crop up and his clause became active

 

[Sky1981]

I didn't say solskjaer got players he didn't want. But clearly he didn't get key players he did want. There is simply no way United should have let a talent like Haaland slip through in January. The size and financial clout of the club shouldn't end with signing a 33 year old on deadline day while the best young striker in the world, who had a good relationship with solskjaer, is hammering goals in every week. We've all seen the names that were supposedly solskjaers top players to sign this summer. He got none of them. Moyes, van gaal and mourinho a had the exact same complaint. Moyes' window was a genuine disgrace and set us on a terrible path from the off.

Pointing to the hundreds of millions squandered and the ridiculous contracts leading to stock piling terrible players we don't want is not backing managers.

Hardly a wrong decision not going to united.

We're a mess. Anyone with proper career oriented would choose Dortmund. Only money grabbing greedy ones would pick united at her current state.

Plus it's not about the money. Any clubs in the epl can afford 30m. Maybe.... just maybe this time it's not about money.

 

[Greck]

TBF we`ve spent more
VDB- 40m
Telles- 15m
Pellistri- 10m
Diallo- 37m
Cavani- Free
Total 102m(total fees include add ons)

160m if you factor in Bruno's fee came from this summer's budget. Yes people want to restrict it to the summer but we've spent 160m this calendar year. On par with the 150m last calendar year. We had to go back to complete that signing earlier than expected to rescue Ole's dwindling prospects and it worked for a while but that strategy just pushed back the inevitable and has now caught up to us in the form of a diminished summer budget. I don't know if Sancho and no squad depth would have made Ole's job this season any easier but he still has to show he can keep the team afloat without a marquee signing every 6 months

 

[ash_86]

How much do they spend?

Everton spend and look at the result.

We spend and spend and all we're going is backwards.

https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/premier-league/transfers/wettbewerb/GB1

Irrepective of how i feel about our manager, he made 2 big money signings last summer and 1 in Jan and delivered 3rd. It was a good end to the season, spirits were high and it was time to kick on, which we did not do unfortunately.

 

[Amir]

Let's not let the judgement of the manager cloud the way our transfer window panned out . We were supposed to try and bridge the gap on the quality with the top sides and ended up drifting even more.

But that judgement is also part of the issue. If his only idea for RW solution was Sancho, then he cannot be absolved of blame.

 

[Skills]

160m if you factor in Bruno's fee came from this summer's budget. Yes people want to restrict it to the summer but we've spent 160m this calendar year. On par with the 150m last calendar year. We had to go back to complete that signing earlier than expected to rescue Ole's dwindling prospects and it worked for a while but that strategy just pushed back the inevitable and has now caught up to us in the form of a diminished summer budget. I don't know if Sancho and no squad depth would have made Ole's job this season any easier but he still has to show he can keep the team afloat without a marquee signing every 6 months

Funny thing about Bruno's fee is, they won't include it into last season's expenditure (which it takes above 200m) nor this season's expenditure.

 

[ash_86]

It's a combination of several things, they don't lose as much money due to empty stadiums, they still got their PL money and TV broadcasting money but they have far smaller recurring expenses, for example their wage bill is almost half of United's.

Agree with the wage bill, but our commercial and sponsorship revenue alone trounces them multiple times though. We should not even be dining in the same table as those guys.

 

[Sky1981]

https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/premier-league/transfers/wettbewerb/GB1

Irrepective of how i feel about our manager, he made 2 big money signings last summer and 1 in Jan and delivered 3rd. It was a good end to the season, spirits were high and it was time to kick on, which we did not do unfortunately.

It's a valid excuse if he cant challenge the title and ended up top 4... wont blame him.

Not being fit, outplayed and outclassed by crystal palace, brighton and hotspur isnt an excuse.

 

[thegregster]

It's not much use to Ole that 89mil was spent on Pogba,50mil on Fred,40mil on Mata etc.

 

[ash_86]

But that judgement is also part of the issue. If his only idea for RW solution was Sancho, then he cannot be absolved of blame.

We have been tracking Sancho for best part of 6 months and the entire time his price was constant at 120m Euros. If we could not afford him, then why were we trying for him till the last week of the window and panic sign couple of unknown RW during the deadline day. The club knew Sancho's fee and if it wasn't feasble , they coul've said firm No to the manager when the request was made. I see a trend here of our board promising managers about transfers and then back out at the last moment. LVG said the same about our board.

 

[Ish]

Which is the issue, you can't claim that he hasn't been backed and that he has had to ship out players if it wasn't against his will. He spent 200m on the three players that you highlighted, he had the money to replace the players that he sold but chose to concentrate a huge amount of money on three players. What you showed is that Ole has been backed but that his decisions weren't the ones you would have taken.

Bingo. Apparently “amount spent” becomes irrelevant. It is now “quantity” of players bought, before we can justify if a manager is backed or not, which is absurd.

 

[ash_86]

It's a valid excuse if he cant challenge the title and ended up top 4... wont blame him.

Not being fit, outplayed and outclassed by crystal palace, brighton and hotspur isnt an excuse.

I'm not going to absolve Ole of blame and if results don't turn around he would be and should be let go. But coming to the original point, we cannot absolve the board of the horrendous transfer window.

 

[Posh Red]

We have been tracking Sancho for best part of 6 months and the entire time his price was constant at 120m Euros. If we could not afford him, then why were we trying for him till the last week of the window and panic sign couple of unknown RW during the deadline day. The club knew Sancho's fee and if it wasn't feasble , they coul've said firm No to the manager when the request was made. I see a trend here of our board promising managers about transfers and then back out at the last moment. LVG said the same about our board.

But we didn't panic sign them? Atalanta have already confirmed we were in discussions for over a year to sign the player.

 

[ash_86]

But we didn't panic sign them? Atalanta have already confirmed we were in discussions for over a year to sign the player.

We don't even know if he'd go into the first team or play u23 yet. Are we sure we went into the summer window thinking Tarore would be our #1 signing for our right wing?

 

[Posh Red]

We don't even know if he'd go into the first team or play u23 yet. Are we sure we went into the summer window thinking Tarore would be our #1 signing for our right wing?

No but that doesn’t mean he was a panic buy. There’s enough reasons to criticise united right now!

 

[Greck]

I'm not going to absolve Ole of blame and if results don't turn around he would be and should be let go. But coming to the original point, we cannot absolve the board of the horrendous transfer window.

There's nothing horrendous about this window. It's only considered horrendous because we didn't get Sancho. We waited, Dortmund didn't budge, the club moved on to alternatives swiftly, disaster averted. I'd have preferred we went for the alternatives before the season began but insisting on Sancho was an attempt to get the manager his marquee signing. Reports claim the manager was fine with it. People are frustrated we didn't get him or pay the fee. Dortmund want a king's ransom on him. They're going to be surprised when next year rolls by and there's still no bidding war to the tune of what they're asking.

 

[SER19]

A bit harsh to blame Utd on the Haaland fiasco. None and I mean NONE of the top top top clubs in Europe would agree to a release clause for a player who is not only a Raiola client you know in 1/2 years time will be on the up and will have a long list of suitors waiting for him it practically puts you in a position of weakness before he even finishes a season. Clubs like BVB/Leipzig are natural stepping stones so they can agree to such terms. It was a rock and hard shell situation but Utd took the natural decision most if not all tier 1 clubs would take.
In fact I`m willing to bet my money if Utd bowed down to the demands of Raiola and Haaland`s father the very same people here accusing us of missing out on Haaland would accuse us of being weak pushovers when the links to Madrid/Bayern crop up and his clause became active

His transfer fee was miniscule. There's have been ways to get raiola to back down with a release fee all he wants is to line his pockets. Turn Haalands head with wages, pay raiola more, accept a much higher release fee, whatever it is. He's just one example of many many players we've always had an excuse for not getting

 

[AngeloHenriquez]

Are our managers being backed? For me that's a two fold question, money and targets.

Money? Yes, clearly the money is being spent but I don't think it's on the players the manager wants, so I wouldn't say the manager is backed, he is supported financially but its widely reported we rarely seem to acquire our first targets, it seems that if a manager has 4 targets over 4 positions, we would rather get 3rd/4th choice in all positions over getting maybe only 2 of the targets but the 1st choice ones.

This underlines the need for me for a footballing man (DOF) higher up as the money is clearly there but the board is focusing too much on resale value, commercial value etc rather than what the manager needs.

 

[JPRouve]

Agree with the wage bill, but our commercial and sponsorship revenue alone trounces them multiple times though. We should not even be dining in the same table as those guys.

We are not dining at the same table. You need to keep in mind that Aston Villa and Leeds for example got access to a big amount of new money when they were promoted while United's revenue have remained stable, the two aforementioned clubs had money that wasn't allocated which is why they were able to use it on the transfer market. United on the other hand generates far more revenue but has far larger recurring expenses, between at least 150m and 200m more money allocated to wages but also money allocated to owed transfer fees. United aren't meant to be able to spend hundreds of millions every year, unless revenues increase proportionally or the money wasn't spent during the previous season.

To illustrate my point, let's say that you earn 2000€ and have bills that amount to 1500€ while I earn 3000€ and have bills that amount to 2800€, I spend far more than you do but when our respective bills are paid you have more money to burn.

 

[ash_86]

There's nothing horrendous about this window. It's only considered horrendous because we didn't get Sancho. We waited, Dortmund didn't budge, the club moved on to alternatives swiftly, disaster averted. I'd have preferred we went for the alternatives before the season began but insisting on Sancho was an attempt to get the manager his marquee signing. Reports claim the manager was fine with it. People are frustrated we didn't get him or pay the fee. Dortmund want a king's ransom on him. They're going to be surprised when next year rolls by and there's still no bidding war to the tune of what they're asking.

Dormund's stance didnt' change from day 1 did it? It's not like they were going back and forth with the transfer fee. It was always been 120m or nothing. A good board would either go ahead and get the deal done like Chelsea did with Havertz or would've said a stern No to our manager and asked him to look for someone cheaper. Instead our board kept dilly dallying around thinking Dortmund would cave in. An good efficient summer window would give a boost of confidence to the players , managers and the fans. In our case it throws us in disarray every single time.

 

[Enigma_87]

Saying a manager is not backed having spent 270m pounds over the last 3 windows is comical at best.

Apparently if if the club can't get Sancho manager is not backed.

It's like Fergie always got his man - Batistuta, Shearer, Ronaldinho, etc, etc. There's no other winger in the world that can improve our RW spot.

 

[RkkMan]

His transfer fee was miniscule. There's have been ways to get raiola to back down with a release fee all he wants is to line his pockets. Turn Haalands head with wages, pay raiola more, accept a much higher release fee, whatever it is. He's just one example of many many players we've always had an excuse for not getting

The transfer fee was never an issue yes but paying Raiola another ridiculous agent fee would once again be repeating the same mistakes we`ve made in the past of giving a mere agent too much power over a football club in all aspects of football which should NEVER be the case and not having a release clause would not stop Raiola from trying to get him a move elsewhere look at how he`s been trying to get Pogba out of Utd since 2018. All factors considered as good a player as Haaland is(and I would have personally not gone beyond 150k in wages for him) the circumstances surrounding his deal was simply not worth going extreme measures for and I personally respect Utd for standing their ground

 

[Enigma_87]

Dormund's stance didnt' change from day 1 did it? It's not like they were going back and forth with the transfer fee. It was always been 120m or nothing. A good board would either go ahead and get the deal done like Chelsea did with Havertz or would've said a stern No to our manager and asked him to look for someone cheaper. Instead our board kept dilly dallying around thinking Dortmund would cave in. An good efficient summer window would give a boost of confidence to the players , managers and the fans. In our case it throws us in disarray every single time.

How many good efficient windows did we have under Fergue and multiple owners in the past? People moan about everything nowadays. It's not like it's the first time we didn't get our top priority...

 

[RkkMan]

Are our managers being backed? For me that's a two fold question, money and targets.

Money? Yes, clearly the money is being spent but I don't think it's on the players the manager wants, so I wouldn't say the manager is backed, he is supported financially but its widely reported we rarely seem to acquire our first targets, it seems that if a manager has 4 targets over 4 positions, we would rather get 3rd/4th choice in all positions over getting maybe only 2 of the targets but the 1st choice ones.

This underlines the need for me for a footballing man (DOF) higher up as the money is clearly there but the board is focusing too much on resale value, commercial value etc rather than what the manager needs.

So you think a DOF would make them pay 50m for a 29yr old Alderweireld, 50m on a 28yr old Perisic who`s never hit double figures in goals and assists at the same time, over 100m on Koulibaly who even City felt was overpriced or 70m on Willian/swap with Martial??

 

[Skills]

The transfer fee was never an issue yes but paying Raiola another ridiculous agent fee would once again be repeating the same mistakes we`ve made in the past of giving a mere agent too much power over a football club in all aspects of football which should NEVER be the case for any player and not having a release clause would not stop Raiola from trying to get him a move elsewhere look at how he`s been trying to get Pogba out of Utd since 2018. All factors considered as good a player as Haaland is(and I would have personally not gone beyond 150k in wages for him) the circumstances surrounding his deal was simply not worth going extreme measures for and I personally respect Utd for standing their ground

Had we signed Haaland these same people would be wailing about Woodward making commercial signings for shirt sales and players who aren't fully committed because of that release clause.

 

[Greck]

Dormund's stance didnt' change from day 1 did it? It's not like they were going back and forth with the transfer fee. It was always been 120m or nothing. A good board would either go ahead and get the deal done like Chelsea did with Havertz or would've said a stern No to our manager and asked him to look for someone cheaper. Instead our board kept dilly dallying around thinking Dortmund would cave in. An good efficient summer window would give a boost of confidence to the players , managers and the fans. In our case it throws us in disarray every single time.

No doubt it's a indictment on the board's competence that they would stay at Dortmund's door as long as they did even at the behest of the manager. They need to be smart about what constitutes backing and quite frankly so do the fans

 

[RkkMan]

Had we signed Haaland these same people would be wailing about Woodward making commercial signings for shirt sales and players who aren't fully committed because of that release clause.

People simply can`t have it both ways. You either want a player who FULLY wants to be here or you don`t and if there are already alarm bells he has an eye elsewhere or has an agency looking to treat a football club like ours like they are bigger than us you can`t accuse the club of incompetence. If we bowed down to their demands and suffered the consequences they would be THE SAME PEOPLE asking why we agreed to it. I was glad we walked away from Reguilon`s deal as well especially when it was detailed he wanted to go to a club that would give him the chance to go back to Madrid