Not picking Mourinho is a fine and commendable choice, but going for Moyes instead, well ... He's quite Scottish, is he not? That's something.
Why didn't Fergie choose Mourinho instead of Moyes?
- Thread starter Sir Erik ten Hag
- Start date
I still struggle to understand how anyone can look back on Mourinho with any kind of admiration after the way he acted at the club.
He probably would have done a fair bit better than Moyes in year one had he joined in 2013 but it would almost certainly have imploded once he fell out with everyone as he always does. We would still be roughly where we are now.
Never wanted him anywhere near the club at any point. Would actively take Moyes again over him now if I had to choose between them.
He probably would have done a fair bit better than Moyes in year one had he joined in 2013 but it would almost certainly have imploded once he fell out with everyone as he always does. We would still be roughly where we are now.
Never wanted him anywhere near the club at any point. Would actively take Moyes again over him now if I had to choose between them.
This is why we should never have had Mourinho as our manager, and a big reason why Sir Bobby didn't like him (aside from him being a cnut)
The tradition and philosophy of the youth system, the Busby Babes, Fergie's Fledglings and the class of 92 is something the club and the fans are rightly proud of, Mourinho was and is the antithesis of that
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I thought Klopp was the one Fergie and the club had in mind but he wasn't available so Moyes was second choice?
Maureen is a bellend. Simples.
We would have had with Mourinho surely a better season because
A) The players (I mean especially Rooney, Ferdinand, Vidic, Carrick, Evra and Van Persie) would have respected him more than Moyes.
B) If Bale and Fabregas would have been targets for Mourinho too then we would have had a much better chance to get at least one of them and other "good players" too instead of just Fellaini....this transfer window was a disaster (The start of our downfall) and that would have never happened under Mourinho.
A) The players (I mean especially Rooney, Ferdinand, Vidic, Carrick, Evra and Van Persie) would have respected him more than Moyes.
B) If Bale and Fabregas would have been targets for Mourinho too then we would have had a much better chance to get at least one of them and other "good players" too instead of just Fellaini....this transfer window was a disaster (The start of our downfall) and that would have never happened under Mourinho.
Didn't Fergie ask pep to call him before he accepted another job, and Pep letter said he didn't understand and missed that it was an actual job offer?
I don't know, I always thought its because Moyes was Scottish and was the type of manager who could build something long term with a single club?
Ancelotti definitely wasn't available, but personally I find it hard to believe that Mourinho chose somewhere else ahead of us (even Chelsea). He'd spent years sucking up to Fergie and Utd, and it was always quite obvious IMO that he desperately wanted to be Fergie's successor. There were reports that he was pretty much in tears when we chose Moyes ahead of him. I suspect the reports of him choosing Chelsea ahead of us is damage-control by both parties (Mourinho for the damaged ego of not being first choice, and Fergie for choosing Moyes ahead of him).
Probably did not like Mourinho and he is not alone there.
Neither do the board.
Klopp was the obvious choice that summer and Woodward bottled it. Mourinho was never the right profile for this club either in 2013 or 2016.
If my memory serves me right they had a dinner where SAF asked him to. Pep said he didn't understand what SAF said. Probably because of the accent or he simply didn't want it so played dumb. Both Pep and Klopp were very wise to refuse us imo.
In a year when Mourinho, Guardiola and Ancelotti all joined new clubs we somehow ended up with Moyes, that's what hurt the most but I feel it was such a last minute decision from Ferguson to retire at the end of the season that we were simply to late.
That sounds a little absurd. What did Fergie do, leave him a voice message: Hi Pep, I'm retiring, if you're interested in my role, give me a call?
Anyhow, Pep already had a deal with Bayern very early on.
I think you’re correct on all except for possibly Mourinho, the story is that there was always reservations about him in the boardroom.
Apparently they had a dinner.. SAF insinuated and Pep implied he was already going elsewhere
He was not a 'culture fit'. He was deemed to be too abrasive and narcissistic for our club. To be fair, the decision makes back then were playing king-makers and felt the crown must fit the kingdom.
Of course, in hindsight, what we really needed then was radical change and stability.
Of course, in hindsight, what we really needed then was radical change and stability.
We should have went for Klopp back then. He would have been our manager up till now.
Nah, the club let Sir Alex decide himself who to replace him as manager and with that, it was always going to be Moyes as Sir Alex was a massive admirer of the work he had done at Everton on a shoe string budget compared to the clubs around them.Punching well above their weight. Sir Alex mentioned it in his autobiography that Moyes was his undisputed best choice. Also with Moyes’ contract at Everton up that summer, it was never going to be something that dragged as if he had still been contracted to Everton who would have wanted a significant compensation package to part ways.
Klopp was targeted after Moyes was let go. Up stepped that clown Woodward with his Disney Land pitch….
Mourinho would have been better at that time in his prime than the washed up version we got. He would have put our players at the time to great use. Moyes criminally gutted experienced senior staff and we still have Murtough to haunt us. Appointment of Moyes just seemed shockingly out of touch at the time and set us back a decade.
I dunno, not sure how the process would have worked but in Leading Sir Alex says something along the lines of “I asked Pep to phone me before he accepted an offer from another club but he didn't and wound up joining Bayern Munich in July 2013”.
I genuenly didnt think SAF thought Moyes was the "one" he was keeping a brave face for us all. Maybe he thought Glazers would f... off after the Moyes bottle job but they didnt. And Mourhino was at Real Madrid if Im not mistaken
Pep's Bayern deal was announced in mid-January, so it was probably in discussions for a while already. Fergie only told United that he was retiring in March. So in reality, it was just never going to happen.
Reckon that 4-4 draw with Everton at OT swayed Fergie's opinion somewhat on Moyes.
It’s easy to accept on face value because it’s Fergie, a footballing god, but how mad does it sound a manager choosing their successor like some Game of Thrones shit?
“Pep to choose his successor”, “Klopp to choose his successor” - either of these scenarios would sound beyond bizarre and these are the two greatest managers in the world right now.
Anyway on topic - I’m fairly certain Sir Bobby would have veto’d Mourinho and Fergie would have respected this, Bobby seriously disliked the guy:
https://amp.theguardian.com/football/2012/dec/07/bobby-charlton-jose-mourinho-manchester-united
Anyway remember that bizarre Mourinho’s first day video from the club and when he bumps into Bobby for a chat they pulled the live audio down and piped music over the top?
“Pep to choose his successor”, “Klopp to choose his successor” - either of these scenarios would sound beyond bizarre and these are the two greatest managers in the world right now.
Anyway on topic - I’m fairly certain Sir Bobby would have veto’d Mourinho and Fergie would have respected this, Bobby seriously disliked the guy:
https://amp.theguardian.com/football/2012/dec/07/bobby-charlton-jose-mourinho-manchester-united
Anyway remember that bizarre Mourinho’s first day video from the club and when he bumps into Bobby for a chat they pulled the live audio down and piped music over the top?
Despite what he was saying on camera, i think that, deep down, he knew that his successor would have to overhaul the squad. In that sense, he chose continuity and someone who would play the long game instead of Mourinho's short-term impact.
Where he probably got it wrong was that he believed that the existing squad would be able to carry Moyes and help him in his first couple of seasons. Both RvP and Carrick had enjoyed their peak seasons in the last two years (RvP had the first one at Arsenal), but, going into their 30s, never replicated their form again. 2013 was also Vidic and Rio's swansong at top level football and, for different reasons each, Smalling and Jones proved not to be the answer. Rooney was also pretty much done. That's the axis of a team crumbling in front of your eyes.
Don't know if Mourinho could have kept that team going for another year or two. RvP's injury practically killed Moyes. The Dutchman's ability to interchange positions with Rooney and be a threat in both half-spaces was crucial for us (thus, Fergie's comment to the players that they should make the best of what he brings to the table). Without his intelligence and off the ball movement, we were stuck with a physically declined Rooney to lead the line, plus: a) a one-dimensional right flank and b) a left wing that had only one function, Evra on the underlap and Nani cutting inside. Give or take a few details... pretty much like now.
Another big thing, one that could be laid at Moyes' feet, was that Fergie partnered Carrick with Giggs/Scholes for a reason. He wanted a creative threat from central channels with Carrick acting as cover. Moyes' always favoured a more flat 442-ish/4231 system with all the creativity coming from the flanks (see first point). Mata, as good a player he was, could not solve these issues and offer variety in the attacking third. His role, either on the wing or central, is more defined and restricted. He couldn't interchange positions with the forward and he could cut inside, but he was never a threat from these half-space positions. He was a different kind of player. It was the first time we got excited for a big-money signing that could not solve our issues. A taste of things to come, one would say.
I also believe that Phelan and Maulesteen being dismissed by Moyes wasn't as much of a big deal as people want to it to be. Neither of them was self-luminous, the best thing on their managerial CVs was doing what Fergie told them. How much help was Phelan when Solskjaer lost the plot? I also agree with those suggesting that the initial thought was for Giggs to become SAF's assistant before taking over from him. We actually tried to follow that plan, LvG was open about it. Moyes was an upper midtable manager who walked into a team that needed great planning ahead and found himself in way over his head. This also rings a bell or two in United's post-Ferguson era.
Where he probably got it wrong was that he believed that the existing squad would be able to carry Moyes and help him in his first couple of seasons. Both RvP and Carrick had enjoyed their peak seasons in the last two years (RvP had the first one at Arsenal), but, going into their 30s, never replicated their form again. 2013 was also Vidic and Rio's swansong at top level football and, for different reasons each, Smalling and Jones proved not to be the answer. Rooney was also pretty much done. That's the axis of a team crumbling in front of your eyes.
Don't know if Mourinho could have kept that team going for another year or two. RvP's injury practically killed Moyes. The Dutchman's ability to interchange positions with Rooney and be a threat in both half-spaces was crucial for us (thus, Fergie's comment to the players that they should make the best of what he brings to the table). Without his intelligence and off the ball movement, we were stuck with a physically declined Rooney to lead the line, plus: a) a one-dimensional right flank and b) a left wing that had only one function, Evra on the underlap and Nani cutting inside. Give or take a few details... pretty much like now.
Another big thing, one that could be laid at Moyes' feet, was that Fergie partnered Carrick with Giggs/Scholes for a reason. He wanted a creative threat from central channels with Carrick acting as cover. Moyes' always favoured a more flat 442-ish/4231 system with all the creativity coming from the flanks (see first point). Mata, as good a player he was, could not solve these issues and offer variety in the attacking third. His role, either on the wing or central, is more defined and restricted. He couldn't interchange positions with the forward and he could cut inside, but he was never a threat from these half-space positions. He was a different kind of player. It was the first time we got excited for a big-money signing that could not solve our issues. A taste of things to come, one would say.
I also believe that Phelan and Maulesteen being dismissed by Moyes wasn't as much of a big deal as people want to it to be. Neither of them was self-luminous, the best thing on their managerial CVs was doing what Fergie told them. How much help was Phelan when Solskjaer lost the plot? I also agree with those suggesting that the initial thought was for Giggs to become SAF's assistant before taking over from him. We actually tried to follow that plan, LvG was open about it. Moyes was an upper midtable manager who walked into a team that needed great planning ahead and found himself in way over his head. This also rings a bell or two in United's post-Ferguson era.
Truly hate that expression: 'sliding doors moment'.
It's taken from the execrable romcom of the same name, itself a complete rip-off of Kieslowski's 1981 classic Blind Chance, only minus any intellectual merit.
Just a bland, shitty pile of bleugh deserving not of a place in any lexicon not preceded by the word shite.
As for the actual topic, I'm not sure. I've heard a plethora of rumours, from Moyes being groomed, to his being eighth choice and also revenge for 'that 4-4' in 2012.
Just glad Ferguson didn't keep him in like he did for Ole.
There is no way he wouldn't have done better with that set of players than Moyes did. But hey, he's a cnut so "success is secondary" at this club to some fans 
Some things never change.
Some things never change.Yes I read that as well.
As much as it pains me to say it I don’t know why he didn’t choose Klopp, he was coming to the end of his time at Dortmund and would have absolutely jumped at the chance to take over form Sir Alex.
I think Moyes was a few names down the list, but he was on the list nonetheless.
Jose had agreed to go to Chelsea, Ancelotti had agreed to go to Madrid, Pep had agreed to go to Bayern. It would be like trying to replace Ten Hag now - who else is there?
They probably looked at their shortlist containing all those names, realised Moyes was out of contract in the summer, not in demand by anyone else and thought they’d take the left field option. You also have to remember that back then we still had that arrogant “we’re not like other clubs” mindset. We probably liked the idea of shunning the top names in favour of the steady choice.
Jose had agreed to go to Chelsea, Ancelotti had agreed to go to Madrid, Pep had agreed to go to Bayern. It would be like trying to replace Ten Hag now - who else is there?
They probably looked at their shortlist containing all those names, realised Moyes was out of contract in the summer, not in demand by anyone else and thought they’d take the left field option. You also have to remember that back then we still had that arrogant “we’re not like other clubs” mindset. We probably liked the idea of shunning the top names in favour of the steady choice.
Sustained success is not secondary.There is no way he wouldn't have done better with that set of players than Moyes did. But hey, he's a cnut so "success is secondary" at this club to some fans
Winning a league cup then leaving your usual toxic mess after a few years is very much secondary to being a half-likeable human being.
They had lunch at a point in time where SAF didn't even know he was retiring so he definitely didn't offer him the United job.
There was a very good reason Moyes happened to be out of contract that summer. The first and only summer he was out of contract after 11 years at Everton.
I heard it was the December of the season he retired. I think SAF would have already known he was retiring 4-5 months later. Only reason he’d be inviting Pep for dinner we can only speculate
I think that if you offering someone a huge job you'll be awfully clear about it.
Under mou:
13/14 finish top 4
14/15 win the league
15/16 quits, giggsy till end of the season
16/17?
13/14 finish top 4
14/15 win the league
15/16 quits, giggsy till end of the season
16/17?
he was worried someone would come in and carry on winning and show him up for being a middling manager. with moyes, his legacy was sealed.