Why I don't think we should sack Solskjaer...now

Chesterlestreet

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This pathetic defeatist zero-ambition attitude from some fans is alarming.
It isn't a zero-ambition attitude, though (on behalf of the club). I wouldn't call it defeatist either. It stems from a basic lack of confidence in the decision makers at the top. Apathy, perhaps - yes. But apathy isn't acceptance (of something inevitable), it comes from a very different place.

If you think there is something basically wrong with how Manchester United have evolved (or rather not evolved) since Fergie retired, why would you focus on the manager and not on the people responsible for hiring him (and for not doing something about the part that is "basically wrong")? Is it odd that someone holding the above belief doesn't easily get on board a "manager out!" bandwagon? I don't think it is. And it has nothing to do with a lowering of standards (again - on behalf of the club, we don't actually influence a single feckin' thing directly, although you'd think we did going by some people's posts).
 

Zlatattack

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I disagree with your reason for not wanting to sack him. I think Poch is an excellent choice and to miss this opportunity would be akin to when we missed out on Klopp because LVG had a purple patch. His Southampton side played well and he took Spurs from a team that would struggle to qualify for the CL to one that fluffed it's lines in the CL final, and had a near miss with the premier league title too. Our squad is a lot worse than what he's worked with at Spurs, but I think he's the man to take it forwards. Everyone who watched Ole play for us loves him - but he's just not good enough as a manager. He's been unlucky with injuries, he's hamstrung by that idiot Woodward and I really think more than a new manager we need a DOF first, but the results aren't good enough.
 

manc4red

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Im in the minority it seems but we need to keep ole. Yes he isnt perfect but he needs time to get rid of deadwood. Else i fear whoever steps in. Poch even. Will struggle
 

hobbers

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It isn't a zero-ambition attitude, though (on behalf of the club). I wouldn't call it defeatist either. It stems from a basic lack of confidence in the decision makers at the top. Apathy, perhaps - yes. But apathy isn't acceptance (of something inevitable), it comes from a very different place.

If you think there is something basically wrong with how Manchester United have evolved (or rather not evolved) since Fergie retired, why would you focus on the manager and not on the people responsible for hiring him (and for not doing something about the part that is "basically wrong")? Is it odd that someone holding the above belief doesn't easily get on board a "manager out!" bandwagon? I don't think it is. And it has nothing to do with a lowering of standards (again - on behalf of the club, we don't actually influence a single feckin' thing directly, although you'd think we did going by some people's posts).
I want the Glazers replaced with better owners and Woodward replaced with a better CEO, but neither of those things influence the basic observation that Ole is an atrociously bad manager at Premier League level and the single biggest mistake the board have made in the last 7 years was giving him a permanent deal.

We can't replace the Glazers and it's difficult to get rid of Ed. But we don't need to do either to get back to winning titles. We just need the right manager at the right stage of his career. No managerial plebs like Moyes. No Football Manager enthusiasts like Ole. No managers who are jaded like Mourinho, or thinking more about retirement than about building a team to win titles like LVG.
 

Livewire1974

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Great OP, something along the lines of what I've been thinking of posting but apathy has taken over.

Our squad is awful, cant see anyone sorting this mess out quickly.
 

bleedred

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But that isn't what I said? I said it's not unreasonable to expect a good manager to come in and at least somewhat improve us, which was in response to you saying expectations on them would be too high, which simply is not true because expectations right now are so low. Even if a manager came in and showed any sort of improvement in results and style of play whatsoever, I'm sure fans would be satisfied.

And most importantly, as I said, it gives that new manager extra time to assess the squad and identify what they need in the summer, which you seem to be completely ignoring, which is bizarre because to me, that seems like an enormous benefit to getting someone in right now.

There is no tangible downside to getting in a new, full time, better manager than Ole right now, at all. If you think there is I suspect that's purely because you are so desperate to cling on to any hope of Ole making it here that you're trying to make up excuses for yourself to give him more time to turn it around.
This is the most important point and this is what Ole really failed to do from last season.

If we get in someone say, next week, he has a winter window to get/sell 2-3 players and half a season to assess the squad for the next year. Even if the results go south, the manager will get the benefit of the doubt just like Ole did towards the end of the season.

If we wait on appointing someone in the summer, with our dithering attitude, it would mean, the new manager assessing the likes of lingard,mata and jones for another year.
 

Tom Cato

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Get a caretaker in and do it the proper way this time.

Caretaker till the end of the season, DOF by the start of summer who appoints a head coach in the summer.

Ignore the fans, who will try to egg you into making stupid/emotional decisions if the caretaker does well.
Does this count for listening to fans who go completely overboard while conveniently ignoring WHY we're not winning 9 out 10 games?

Without both Pogba AND McTominay our midfield i plain bad, because the player themselves are plain bad. This isn't some RTS game where the pieces you place makes the perform a determinable action. The players are responible to delivrer individual performances.
 

Skills

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I think you've got the role of the DOF wrong here. The DOF is the expert in hiring football related personnel (mostly players but because of his experience he's also involved in choosing the new manager as well). However his relationship with the manager is not that between boss and employee but more like two highly skilled people working in tandem. Think of it like an operation theatre. You've got a surgeon (ie the manager) and the anaesthetist there. Both are doctors, both seem to take over specific points of the operation, but they both work in tandem. The anaesthetist won't tell the surgeon how to operate. Meanwhile if the patient is having air way problems then the surgeon will move aside and let the anaesthetist take over.

The manager is the man who choose tactics, he conduct training and he is responsible of the fitness/coaching staff. If he needs a transfer (ex CB), he'll come out with a very detailed report of what he wants (ex tall, strong CB whose good in air and whose defensively sound) and he gives it to the DOF. The DOF would then use his contacts and all the scouts available to find the ideal player for the manager. The manager is kept up to date with videos of the player, performances records etc and while he doesn't have a final say, his say is valued more then anyone else's. That's give the club a level of accountability. For example if the manager asks for a CB with those specifications and the DOF comes with Lindelof then its evident that it was the DOF that messed up. Lindelof is not a tall, physically imposing CB whose good in air. However if the manager keeps asking for certain players, the DOF satisfy those criterias and yet the team keeps failing (bad tactics, losing the dressing room etc) then its evident that the issue is the manager not the DOF.

In my opinion, the reason why we don't get a DOF is that the DOF would have access to how much money the club really want to spend on the transfer market. Just like top managers, top DOFs have a reputation to defend. If the club asks them to sort 7 positions and only gives them 40m to spend then there's a risk of them showing the middle finger at the club, move elsewhere only to tell the real situation at Manchester United in a bid to defend his reputation. Currently that magic number is held by Woodward who can then fluff things around and blame everything to impossible demands made by potential sellers, the manager's rigidity in not accepting the players which were suggested to him or ithe inability to conduct deals in the restricted time provided by the transfer window. That's quite comfortable
So in your scenario what's the difference between the DOF and a chief scout? :confused:
 

Champagne Football

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If Ole can bring Haaland in in January and possibly Rakitic on loan, then he can thrive.
Even if he could just get a really top ageing central midfielder on loan till he can get a permanent one in the summer, then he can turn it around.
It's not like world class central midfielders are available every transfer window. Sometimes takes a few windows before you can land one.
 

Irwin99

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Does this count for listening to fans who go completely overboard while conveniently ignoring WHY we're not winning 9 out 10 games?

Without both Pogba AND McTominay our midfield i plain bad, because the player themselves are plain bad. This isn't some RTS game where the pieces you place makes the perform a determinable action. The players are responible to delivrer individual performances.
We did only get 4 points from 4 games with those two as the midfield duo at the start of the season and a lot of people were unhappy with the combo. Ole needs to think of a way he can get a better system going when these two come back (playing Fred with them might help).
 

7even

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So i have vehemently defended Ole so far and had plenty of discussion with people on this forum on the subject. Yes i have given him more rope because i loved him as a player, i am fully admitting that, but considering our situation i would have been willing to give most managers plenty of time.

Aston Villa was a breaking point for me though. Not because that game was so much worse than any other game this season, but because it became abundantly clear to me that this "progress" i thought i was seeing was just wishful thinking. We started scoring again, but at the same time we forgot how to defend. The squad is the worst United squad i have seen, but we should be doing better than this. In other words: Ole isnt making the most of this squad, but the big question is why?

Tactics gets mentioned a lot, which is something i disagree with. Yes 4231 when all of our #10 options are terrible seems like a bad idea, but we dont really have the right players for 433 either. Team selections have also largely been pretty decent in my opinion. Yes Pereria is fecking horrible, and lots of people are crying out for Garner, but throwing an 18 year old into a dysfunctional side like this could be disastrous both for the player and for the team. We also had a couple of matches: Liverpool, Chelsea, and the comeback vs Sheffield where Ole has shown some tactical nous, so i dont think his tactics are all that bad.

What i do see though is a bunch of players, limited as they might be, constantly making the wrong decisions and lacking any real fight and THAT is on the manager. Just at the top of my head and in no particular order of importance this is what i see again and again it is absolutely infuriating

1) We put in cross after cross with no one at the end of it. Very often its James who gets down to the line and he zips one in between the goalie and their defense. Everyone who has watched football knows where that fecking ball is going to come, yet time and time again there is just one maybe two players even near the goal, and both of them are hanging out at the edge of the box or maybe one of them has taken up some useless position at the back post. Every other team seems able to do this, yet we dont

2) There is no fight in us. Ole has talked loads about improving fitness and mentality, which i thought looked better for a while, but turned out to be nothing. It seems pretty much every lose ball ends up with the opponent because no one is willing to get stuck in so we have 5 players ball watching, hoping that someone else goes into the duel because they wont.

3) The distance between defense-midfield and midfield-attack is fecking huge and that link is just not there. I watched a few Sheffield games this year and how they move as a unit is fascinating to watch. Everyone is moving all the time so they are never outnumbered and thus often have plenty of passing options. When we try to play for the back though we end up wide 9/10 because our CB's only have our fullbacks as passing options.

4) This is closely connected to #3 and #1, but we never seem to attack in numbers. Once one of James, Rashford or Martial has the ball it seems everyone else just stops and hope they will sort it out. I am not saying our CM's should charge into the box, but at the very least they should move up to pile on the pressure and be the first on on lose balls that fall down around the box.

5) Our mentality is severely lacking. We seem to be playing with a sort of an arrogance we have NOT deserved. Time and time again this year we have only started playing only after we have went down and we cant hang onto a lead if our lives depended on it. It seems these players think they are much better than they actually are and its unacceptable that it keeps happening. Fergie would never let this kind of nonsense stand

6) Movement is fecking shit. All over the pitch. Zombie football is not something new under Ole, but it has not improved either

All that taken into consideration, does Ole deserve to be sacked? Yes, he probably does. This squad is bad, but it is not THAT bad either, but i still think its a bad idea to sack him now for a couple of very important reasons.
1) The only available "top" coaches who are available now are Poch and Allegri and i dont trust either of them to turn this around. Allegri would be Jose v2 in my eyes and that is not what we need right now. Poch is a favorite among many here, but i dont trust him either for some key reasons
1a) Despite popular belief he never built that Spurs side and had nothing to do with transfers
1b) He had a very good squad at his disposal and never won a thing. No offense to Poch, but he seems like a massive bottler to me
2) Taking over this fecking trainwreck puts any new manager in a very difficult spot. The only thing you can realistically change right away is tactics and i sincerely doubt that would be enough to turn us around. Coaching and change in mentality takes a lot of time, so realistically we would be around March-April before we could see some real changes. People will point to the new manager bounce we had under Ole, but that had more to do with the players being relieved of Jose being gone and it seemed many of them had a point to prove (which is pretty maddening to be honest, they play like demons when they wanted to one up Jose but cant be bothered now? Feck off)
3) If we change managers now we wont be doing any business in January, which we badly need

Ole looks like he was the wrong man for us. No shame in not being a Man Utd manager, very few are but i firmly believe the best thing for us is to stick with him until the end of the year and then let the new manager have the preseason and the transfer window. Who? Julian Nagelsmann looks very impressive to me and hopefully we can convince him to come here. I read some articles about him and what he has done is incredibly impressive for a 32 year old. But even if he was available today i would have waited because i dont want any manager to get thrown into this shitshow. Let them start the new season with blank slates and hopefully a better squad
Very good post Bobcat even if I don’t agree with your final conclusion. Also respect that you have the guts to revalue your position in a discussion who involves a lot of emotions. More posters should do that.

I don’t have the answers to what’s the best way forward so I just take a step back and read others opinions atm. This isn’t easy.
 

Bobcat

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I disagree with your reason for not wanting to sack him. I think Poch is an excellent choice and to miss this opportunity would be akin to when we missed out on Klopp because LVG had a purple patch. His Southampton side played well and he took Spurs from a team that would struggle to qualify for the CL to one that fluffed it's lines in the CL final, and had a near miss with the premier league title too. Our squad is a lot worse than what he's worked with at Spurs, but I think he's the man to take it forwards. Everyone who watched Ole play for us loves him - but he's just not good enough as a manager. He's been unlucky with injuries, he's hamstrung by that idiot Woodward and I really think more than a new manager we need a DOF first, but the results aren't good enough.
Think this sums it up, but that goes for any new manager as well, which is why i think changing manager now wont really do much. Its another cop out by Woody and co. Throw the manager under the bus, get in a new one to restore some hope and keep the fans content, rinse and repeat.

I think Ole ultimately has the right idea regarding where he wants the club to be and what needs to be done, but his coaching is letting him down and thus he lacks the tools to get us there alone. I think this will happen before the season is over
1) We do no business in January
2) Ole is sacked at some point, probably around April when top 4 is mathematically impossible
3) We get a new manager, renewed hope among fans
4) No real changes at the top of the club. No DoF and the shitshow continues with Woody and co
5) The new manager struggles with a weak squad and lack of investment

Its fecking depressing. I know its stupid, but i actually lost sleep tonight because of this shit.
 

devilish

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So in your scenario what's the difference between the DOF and a chief scout? :confused:
Chief scouts limits himself in scouting players or in coordinating who goes were (ex scout A goes to Spain etc) . DOFs sit on a higher level. He checks whose available, if the player is interested at the club and he conducts early transfer negotiations for the CEO to conclude

The DOF can be seen as the head scout's boss not the manager's boss
 

Florida Man

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I prefer we sack Ole now and appoint Roy Keane as an interim. Can't be any worse than what we see now. And if we're going to suffer, then we suffer in style.
 

Hughie77

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He won't get the sack, what's the point of doing it, the board has backed his transfer policy, it's has to be seen through, is he the right man , I said when he was given job full time No ! Time will tell if he is the right man, he's got 3 years and I think he will get at least another 2 transfer windows, after that it's the real deal time then if it doesn't Improve after them , it's time to seriously look at another manager.
 

rollingstoned1

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I want the Glazers replaced with better owners and Woodward replaced with a better CEO, but neither of those things influence the basic observation that Ole is an atrociously bad manager at Premier League level and the single biggest mistake the board have made in the last 7 years was giving him a permanent deal.

We can't replace the Glazers and it's difficult to get rid of Ed. But we don't need to do either to get back to winning titles. We just need the right manager at the right stage of his career. No managerial plebs like Moyes. No Football Manager enthusiasts like Ole. No managers who are jaded like Mourinho, or thinking more about retirement than about building a team to win titles like LVG.
This is precisely.the problem. No one has a clue what actually needs to be done and without realising it are espousing a 'nothing succeeds like success ' train of.thought which ironically is what lead to this situation in the first place. Without address the root cause any topical changes are just that.
 

UnrelatedPsuedo

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A knee-jerk sacking of Ole is pointless.

At this point, our best possible season is looking like;

- Top Half
- Decent cup runs
- Youth players being given minutes, productively.
- A strong January window, singing two good young players.

Tearing it all up in November probably doesn’t advance anything all that much.

It’s a truly terrible season. But a long term fix and time frame is a better solution than another round of disruption.

We’re a great club. We need a long term (5-10) year plan. The rest of the year should have a focus on finishing in the Champions League spots in 8 of the next 10 years, winning it, along with a Premier League title in that same period.

The Glazers are not going to buy 3 world class players in one summer. They’re not. Ever. There will be no quick fix.

If we can’t get a manager now that can preside over the next 3 years of that, why would we look to employ one?

The squad is more talented than it’s been in a long time (albeit very, very raw) Is the coaching there? No. Is the Tactical acumen? No. But we have cleared out older players, signed younger players. Pausing for a few months is not some disaster.

Im not happy. Far from it. There is so much work to do. But it needs to have some kind of framework attached to it. Sacking Ole now and appointing someone else needs to exist within that framework.
 

SplitzMagic

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I prefer we sack Ole now and appoint Roy Keane as an interim. Can't be any worse than what we see now. And if we're going to suffer, then we suffer in style.
Hilarious. I agree :lol:

We should have got Keane from the beginning if we knew we would edure such mediocrity.

In the Keane days, you would bet your house that he would have been utd manager before Solksjaer.

BTW... Before anyone replies. I don't think we should appoint Keane. Its just a funny idea.

Poch all the way and I'm going to say so until we appoint Keane :rolleyes:
 

Chairman Steve

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It is likely that we’re going to end this week having 4 wins in 16 league games. We are almost at the midpoint of the league season and we can potentially count our league wins on one hand, and there are people who are absolutely fine with this and that the manager who brought us to this stage should be given more time on top of the year he’s already had.

OGS is not a top caliber manager by any means. He’s been in Molde for a decade for a reason. Theres bound to be plenty of people out there who could replace him and get a tune out of this squad of players.

But I guess we got to keep him because Real and Barca are trying to break down the door to offer him a 10 year contract and carte blanche?
 

TsuWave

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It's clear that Ole's appointment (and continued employment) is focused on long term success rather than what happens in the short term. His current win rate is pretty irrelevant to the discussion, because he's not being measured against what happens this season.
This reply is pure madness :lol:
 

UnrelatedPsuedo

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It is likely that we’re going to end this week having 4 wins in 16 league games. We are almost at the midpoint of the league season and we can potentially count our league wins on one hand, and there are people who are absolutely fine with this and that the manager who brought us to this stage should be given more time on top of the year he’s already had.

OGS is not a top caliber manager by any means. He’s been in Molde for a decade for a reason. Theres bound to be plenty of people out there who could replace him and get a tune out of this squad of players.

But I guess we got to keep him because Real and Barca are trying to break down the door to offer him a 10 year contract and carte blanche?
Nobody is fine with it. You made that up.
 

svn

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No its not, that's just your opinion. And citing the journalists as reason he won't be sacked is silly. Also I am yet to a decent explanation of this fabled plan we keep hearing about.

He has gotten an easy ride in the media so far but the tide is turning. I've heard a few dissenting voices recently. Gary Neville does not represent the whole of football journalism.

If he isn't sacked for finishing mid table Woodward has managed to completely lower the standards and we will not be back challenging for anything for a long time. Thankfully Woodward at least seems to recognise mid table obscurity is not acceptable and has sacked all previous managers that have had us in that position come May.

I cant stand the man but at least in the past he has been ruthless with managers (mainly with van Gaal) and now his number 1 target is unemployed he'll want to get him in before he ends up in Spain or Munich. He'll be even more incentivised if Jose continues to improve Spurs.
It's nothing to do with Gary Neville, but all of the regular United mouthpieces are reporting that the club are prepared to be patient. As for Ole's fabled plan, there was a decent article on The Athletic about Solskjaer's long term plans being dependant on the fitness of the players, which was extremely poor when he took over.

I'm not for a second suggesting he'll turn it round or that he deserves to be let off for our dreadful start to the season. I'm simply saying unless end up in a genuine relegation battle (which won't happen, despite the hysteria of this forum) he's going to be given at least until next season before he's judged.
 

momo83

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I think we'll wait until the summer then go after Rogers or Poch. Neither will come now as Rogers is on too good a run and Poch would have to repay his 12m Spurs settlement if he took another UK job.
Might as well write off this season and use it to bed in youngsters and really see which ones are worthy of the badge. We can bring a new boss in next May and demote Solskjaer to attacking coach.
If Rodgers get CL football he’d be mad to not continue that journey with Leicester. To let someone else continue that will would be tragic.

True they probably won’t go in as league winners so could face a very tough group but that’s the ultimate test of a manager, do well there and the likes of Real, Bayern, Juventus, City, Barca will be looking at him.
 
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UnrelatedPsuedo

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If Rodgers get CL football he’d be mad to not continue that journey with Leicester. True they probably won’t go in as league winners so could face a very tough group but that’s the ultimate test of a manager, do well there and the likes of Real, Bayern, Juventus, City, Barca will be looking at him.
You’ve got to be kidding? Rogers would jump ship in a heartbeat. Leaving Celtic for Leicester should tell you that.
 

momo83

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Every reputable journalist is saying the same. Despite poor results, the club are satisfied that Ole is working towards a long term plan that will take time to put in place. I'm not saying it's right or wrong, but it's obvious that he's not going to be sacked if we finish mid table this season.
Speaking of journalist. It’s funny how most are quiet and not giving an opinion / assessment about Ole. With Emery most were outright saying he should be sacked...

There are a few pointing out that Ole is crap. Common theme, but they inevitably get in spats with Gary Neville.
 

momo83

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He may want that but Ed can remind him that he already missed the opportunity once
He’d just remind Ed that Real quite fancy him, and impressed by his hard bargaining skills, Ed will offer him £10m to sign now start in the summer.
 

Fosu-Mens

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I for one do not see the point in continuing with this OGS created rebuild when the main man himself:
  • Prefers to play an outdated style of football that will converge towards a relegation battle over time.
  • Does not seem to have the understanding of football or ability to coach the players into playing any sort of football not completely dependent on coincidence to score.
  • Not improving our team's ability to retain possession.
  • Unable to understand that technical ability and being able to dominate games through controlling the ball is core to being successful over time in the modern game.
Only reasons for people to keep him are not related to football:
  • Nice guy.
  • United Legend.
  • Won't fix anything (it bloody well won't fix anything keeping him either so you have a decision between OGS staying and it is obvious that this will not work or get someone new in that might not work.)
The only valid long term reason i can see for OGS to stay on is that he might build a good culture within the squad that the next manager might benefit from.
 

momo83

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Im in the minority it seems but we need to keep ole. Yes he isnt perfect but he needs time to get rid of deadwood. Else i fear whoever steps in. Poch even. Will struggle
Ole is the deadwood
 

UnrelatedPsuedo

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With all due respect to Celtic. He was racing by himself for several seasons.
Entering the CL with Leicester after a 2nd / 3rd place finish is a free hit.

Managing United is a completely different thing.

Celtic (job) is to Leicester as Leicester is to United.
 

Castia

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Seen he’s got a lower win percentage than both Steve Bruce and Tony Pulis. Not sure if that’s hilarious or fecking heartbreaking.
 

svn

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Seen he’s got a lower win percentage than both Steve Bruce and Tony Pulis. Not sure if that’s hilarious or fecking heartbreaking.
Only if you make the weird (and ridiculous) distinction between the matches before and after he was given the job permenantly. He was still in charge for those games we won while he was interim manager, you know. The only reason for creating this divide is to artifically make his win percentage seem worse than it actually is.

There's absolutely no need to do that. With our form since February, it's bad enough even if you include his spell as interim manager.
 

Revaulx

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Triple yuck. I'd rather limp on with Ole than get Allegri.
If I was after pretty football I’d want neither of them!

The reason I wouldn’t write off Allegri is because he seems to possess the right amounts of gravitas and tact to be able to boss Ed around without pissing him off.
 

DickDastardly

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Roy Keane at United? He ll trigger World War 3. :)
What a wonderful idea!

We actually need some wealth distribution.

Hypothetically speaking, that would be the Irish v the rest of the world?

On topic i think Roy would be a great coach at United, if he could somehow get his hands on at least 3 players with his fight and attitude.

Except he'd be sent off for most of the season but feck it, we'd call it passion.
 

Revaulx

Full Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2014
Messages
6,031
Location
Saddleworth
Slightly edited:
I think Ed Woodward thinks he has the right idea regarding where he wants the club to be and what needs to be done, but Ole’s coaching is letting him down and thus he lacks the tools to get us there alone. I think this will happen before the season is over
1) Ed appoints a manager who fully buys into the “project” but has more experience at a top level than Ole
2) That manager is Gareth Southgate
I really hope I’m wrong but can see it happening. Ed won’t want to lose face so he will take credit for the positive stuff.

What positive stuff? Well plenty of Ole inners seem to like the idea of a long-term plan...
 

sunama

Baghdad Bob
Joined
Apr 26, 2014
Messages
16,830
If Ole can bring Haaland in in January and possibly Rakitic on loan, then he can thrive.
Even if he could just get a really top ageing central midfielder on loan till he can get a permanent one in the summer, then he can turn it around.
It's not like world class central midfielders are available every transfer window. Sometimes takes a few windows before you can land one.
I can see that you still believe in our board, that they will spend money in January. I can assure you that won't be happening.
We may get a player on loan, but not a player who can completely change our current trajectory.
I do feel sorry for fans who genuinely believe that we will improve our squad and our results.

I am 45 years old and I have seen us when we were beating EVERYBODY! Back in the mid-90s, in the EPL, we were dominant. In 1998 we were terrific. in 1999, even better. Then we ushered the era of Ronaldo and Rooney.
To see fans in 2019 have such low expectations that a manager can have us in 9th place and be accepting of this, is very disappointing.
Fans should be demanding that we compete for a top 4 position every season and with a decent spend, finish top 3.

If Ole stays, I can see us finishing in 7th place. Don't forget that 2 years ago we finished 2nd and many fans were unhappy with this.