A few threads going up in reaction to recent transfer news, so I apologise for another one. But I've been thinking a lot about what someone posted about cycles, and the fact that, even if we did sign a couple of truly world class players this summer, we probably still wouldn't be able to win major honours. For one thing, the teams at the top of the league are at the absolute peak of their powers, with no obvious weaknesses. And for another, we don't know if we have a manager who can turn quality into true success.
This is not intended to be a dig at Ole. It's just a reflection of the fact that we don't really know how good he is. But that shouldn't matter. Because I actually think he's the perfect manager for us in the current circumstances. We won't win the PL this season, and wouldn't have no matter who we realistically could sign. We probably couldn't win it next season either. But what we can do is change a culture. We can establish a clear playing style. We can bring young players through and instil in them key values we want in a United player; never giving up, making it about the team rather than the individual, playing with positivity, and always expecting a high standard. These are values Ole understands our players need, and clearly wants to instil based on his playing style and what we have seen of his approach to management.
If Ole goes on to be a great manager, and can win the PL in his time with us, I'll be delighted. But I think it's more likely he will be a transition manager. We talked so much about "transition" during the Van Gaal and Mourinho eras, but the fact is they were not transition managers. They were revolution managers, who's approaches both required a massive overhaul of the squad in order to win things, and were the antithesis of their predecessors. Both were hired because they were the most successful available managers at the time, rather than because they fit our style.
This time, we can behave differently; we can take our time. The money isn't going anywhere. We're too big a brand for that to dry up. If it's clear Ole isn't good enough to make us successful again, I don't want him sacked for the sake of it. We could finish 6th again and I wouldn't want Ole sacked unless the right manager is available to take his place. I want us to wait for the manager who is the best natural fit to build on what Ole is trying to do.
We have an opportunity here. We are likely to have more academy graduates in our starting line-up this year than we have for a over a decade. Lets not throw money at the problem for once. Lets let our graduates develop, and bring them through with a vision of what we want United to be.
Or maybe I'm just butt-hurt because Dybala rejected us.
This is not intended to be a dig at Ole. It's just a reflection of the fact that we don't really know how good he is. But that shouldn't matter. Because I actually think he's the perfect manager for us in the current circumstances. We won't win the PL this season, and wouldn't have no matter who we realistically could sign. We probably couldn't win it next season either. But what we can do is change a culture. We can establish a clear playing style. We can bring young players through and instil in them key values we want in a United player; never giving up, making it about the team rather than the individual, playing with positivity, and always expecting a high standard. These are values Ole understands our players need, and clearly wants to instil based on his playing style and what we have seen of his approach to management.
If Ole goes on to be a great manager, and can win the PL in his time with us, I'll be delighted. But I think it's more likely he will be a transition manager. We talked so much about "transition" during the Van Gaal and Mourinho eras, but the fact is they were not transition managers. They were revolution managers, who's approaches both required a massive overhaul of the squad in order to win things, and were the antithesis of their predecessors. Both were hired because they were the most successful available managers at the time, rather than because they fit our style.
This time, we can behave differently; we can take our time. The money isn't going anywhere. We're too big a brand for that to dry up. If it's clear Ole isn't good enough to make us successful again, I don't want him sacked for the sake of it. We could finish 6th again and I wouldn't want Ole sacked unless the right manager is available to take his place. I want us to wait for the manager who is the best natural fit to build on what Ole is trying to do.
We have an opportunity here. We are likely to have more academy graduates in our starting line-up this year than we have for a over a decade. Lets not throw money at the problem for once. Lets let our graduates develop, and bring them through with a vision of what we want United to be.
Or maybe I'm just butt-hurt because Dybala rejected us.