Simply put, Manchester United don’t have a strong enough squad and the club is failing in many areas. It’s clear for all to see that they are extremely far away from where A) They are expected to be, based on their history B) Where the fans think they should be and C) Where they should be based on the size of the club.
What has been glaringly obvious is that the board and the owners expect managers to have the same impact as Sir Alex Ferguson had as soon as they arrive at the club. The reality is that every manager needs time to settle into a new role. One of the biggest factors in allowing a new manager to settle into their role? Having an established, experienced and knowledgable director of football behind them. Manchester United haven’t got this, in any facet.
Despite their position on paper, the Glazer’s have very little to do with the club, other than ownership. They offer more of a hands-off approach to signings, managerial changes and ultimately the running of the club. Established writer for The Times, Henry Winter described wrote about the Glazer’s ownership, stating ‘We know your game, Joel. Your game is simple, fistfuls of dollars.’ This tells you all you need to know about the owners of Manchester United.
Another ‘culprit’ of Manchester United’s recent failings is Ed Woodward. Woodward’s title is ‘Executive Vice Chairman and Director’, despite having no prior knowledge of football. He’s essentially a businessman, having previously been an Investment Banker. It’s this lack of footballing knowledge that has largely led to the criticism that Woodward faces and rightfully so.
Manchester United are historically a club where, largely signings have come in, made an impact and shown their worth. Yes, without Ferguson being at the helm, it could be argued that it is the current manager’s failures to bring in appropriate signings. Ferguson always had a big say in the players brought into the club and certainly had an eye for talent. A young Wayne Rooney, a young Cristiano Ronaldo, Peter Schmeichel, all brought in for relatively small fees in comparison to their impact on the club. Schmeichel made just shy of 400 appearances for the club, including being a mainstay in the 1999 treble-winning side. Rooney went on to become United’s all-time top goalscorer and Ronaldo’s legacy is plain for all to see.
Transfer Window Failures
Since the Fergie era, however, United’s signings haven’t quite had the impact that previous names have. Failures to tie down Cesc Fabregas or Leighton Baines during David Moyes’ first transfer window foreshadowed what was to come. During the same window, failed attempts to bring in Sami Khediera and Fabio Coaentrao went under the radar. The reds were able to get the signing of Marouane Fellani over the line of deadline day, but it was far from what was rumoured.
Further disappointments were evident the season after, despite a clear improvement on the previous season. Receiving the signature of high profile names such as Ander Herrera, Luke Shaw, Angel di Maria and Daley Blind, it appeared as if Manchester United were turning over a new leaf. It was very much seen as a changing of the guard this season, with a number of experienced players and mainstays in ‘Fergie’s United’ leaving the squad. The Red Devils lost Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic, Patrice Evra, Shinji Kagagwa (after just two seasons) and 20 year veteran of the club, Darren Fletcher. The club also sold Danny Welbeck and Wilfried Zaha, both young prospects at the time. Of the four big names brought in during this season, however, just one is still at the club. Luke Shaw has been in and out of the team during his time at Old Trafford, despite being tipped as one of England’s most exciting prospects.
Signings made during the 2015/16 season also appeared to be trending in the right direction. After selling names including Robin Van Persie, Angel di Maria, Rafael, Andres Lindegaard, Nani and Javier Hernandez, relevant replacements were bought in with lmost direct comparisons that could be made between those who left the club and those that came in. To replace replacement goalkeeper Lindegaard, free agent Sergio Romero was bought in. This has easily been one of the better signings in the post-Fergie era. Although he hasn’t ever been first choice, he’s regularly been described as ‘the best second choice keeper in the Premier League’. To replace Angel di Maria and Nani, PSV’s Memphis Depay was brought in as well as Anthony Martial. Martial in particular cost the Red Devils a pricey £54 million. Although in the long run, it seems to have been good business, at the time, Martial’s price tag raised some eyebrows. On the other hand, Depay’s £30.6 million didn’t quite pay off. After just one full season, Depay was sold to Lyon for an original fee of £16 million, a loss of half what they paid.
Right back Rafael was replaced with the Matteo Darmian. The midfield was also bolstered with the inclusions of Morgan Schneiderlin and Bastian Schweinsteiger. With eight Bundesliga titles, nine German cups, a champions league and a world cup to his name, Schweinsteiger signed for Manchester United at 31 and his experience seemed to be a clever signing, making 35 appearances. It all went sour for Schweinsteiger when Jose Mourinho came into the club, but it was a signing that could have really paid off with the right manager at the helm.
One area that wasn’t bolstered was in the striker position. Despite losing the ever-reliable Van Persie as well as the goal getting Hernandez, only Martial was brought in. The Frenchman, however, played off the left more in his early career in Manchester. This was most certainly addressed the season afterwards, however. Zlatan Ibrahimovic cost the Reds absolutely nothing, yet he notched 28 goals in all competitions. It’s hard to argue that this isn’t some of the best business ever done in the Premier League era. This signing did, to some degree shadow the £89 million that was paid for Paul Pogba. We know that Pogba left Manchester United for Juventus on a free transfer in 2012. United then paid £89 million for the Frenchman just four years later. What a director of football, who knew anything about football would have done is secured some sort of fee for the young Pogba. Yes, Pogba crosses over into the mainstream but the hefty fee paid for Pogba was arguably too much on his return to Old Trafford.
During the Jose Mourinho era, ‘The Special One’ famously didn’t get on with the board at Manchester United and understandably so. He made it clear that he wanted to bring in a new central defender. Toby Alderweireld, Harry Maguire, Jerome Boateng and Yerry Mina were all of Jose’s list of players he wanted to wear the famous red shirt. Raphael Varane was also a transfer target, but as we know, none of these options were successful. Benfica’s Victor Lindelof was transferred in at centre half for around £30 million. As we know, Harry Maguire was brought in to Old Trafford for £80 million under current manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. After an impressive World Cup campaign with England, Manchester United overpaid for Harry Maguire. If the director of football had allowed Jose Mourinho to sign his man during his time at United it would have saved the club a lot of money.
Recent Failures
The obvious failures in the most recent window are evident. Despite having rumoured to have agreed personal terms with Jadon Sancho, nothing ever came of it. This was mainly due to not being able to agree on a fee with Borussia Dortmund. The Manchester club were also linked with Thiago Alcantara. Ultimately, champions Liverpool signed the Spanish international, but Manchester United didn’t push for the midfielder nearly as much as they should have.
Jack Grealish was heavily rumoured to be joining Manchester United off the back of a good season for Aston Villa during 2019/2020. He almost single-handily kept Villa in the Premier League and was due a step up in competition. Barley being able to break into Gareth Southgate’s England team, Grealish could have had the opportunity to play under Solskjaer in the Champions League. Despite this, the 25-year-old signed a new five-year deal at Villa Park. Another failed young signing came in the form of Birmingham City’s Jude Bellingham. At 16, the young Englishman had already played 37 times for Birmingham so his talent is clear. Although Bellingham went as far as to have a tour of the Aon Training Complex at Carrington, the thorn in Manchester United’s side, Borussia Dortmund notched the signature of the 17-year-old, another failing on Manchester United’s part.
Another failed signing was that of Sergio Reguilon. The Real Madrid defender had spent the season on loan at Europa League champions, Sevilla lat season. Reguilon was set to sign for the Manchester giants, yet signed for rivals Tottenham at what seemed to be the last minute. He was also part of the Spurs side that thumped Manchester United 6-1.
Earlier on in the ‘Ole era’, the biggest missed opportunities in recent years has to be that of Erling Haaland. Haaland once again seemed set to sign for United but instead signed for Brussia Dortmund (again). Rumours have emerged that United themselves cancelled the deal as they refused to meet with his agent or pay his release clause demands. Despite recording 22 goals in 28 goals for his former club, including eight goals in the Champions League, we’ll have to wait to see the young Norwegian in the Premier League. This has been such a big miss for United as they still haven’t found a replacement. Odin Ighalo was signed on loan but this is far from what United fans expect from one of the worlds biggest clubs. Since signing for the German giants, Haaland has recorded 16 goals in 18 games last season and 5 in 5 this season. Comparing this to Ighalo, he’s notched just five total goals since singing to Old Trafford.
They’ve attempted to improve their striking department with the signature of free agent, Edinson Cavani. The 33-year-old is a proven goal scorer but has only signed a one year deal with a one-year extension option. He’s hardly one for the future, which is commonly how Manchester United like to do business.
What an Experienced Director of Football Would Offer
Ultimately, a director of football would allow for some confidence from the fans. They could relax in the knowledge that the club have someone in a position of power who knows football and who can suggest appropriate transfers. Ed Woodward is in a position of power where he has no knowledge of how to do the job. The reason Manchester United are so far behind other European giants, as well as local rivals within the EPL, is down to two things. Constant managerial changes and transfer failures. If the transfer failures are addressed, by having a new director of football, this will at least plug one hole. With regards to the manager, Ole is doing his best to steady the ship. He inherited a weak Manchester United team and is at least bringing some players up from the youth set up with a view for the future. Whether he will get to see his persistence pay off is unclear at this time, but it is certainly a step in the right direction.
The constant disappointments in the transfer market post Fergie is shameful and fans have had enough. The club cannot tease a stella signing in the form of Jadon Sancho and then deliver two teenagers and a 33-year-old striker rushed through the door on deadline day. If these deals were done early on in the transfer window, it would be likely that no one would have batted an eyelid, however, as they have been ‘last minute’ deals, it shows panic, a lack of planning and overall poor transfer strategy.
A new director of football has to overhaul Ed Woodward’s transfer strategy. The ‘pay now with add ons’ isn’t working. No club want to sell a big player for X amount of money and then receive the payment across four seasons, all dependent on performance. Add on bonuses need to be agreed and achievable for all transfers and a clear strategy beforehand must be created. The director of football needs to listen to the manager and have a strong footballing knowledge so that they know the most appropriate names to bring in in order to get the club back to where it should be.
Ed Woodward’s time has come to cut ties with Manchester United and admit defeat. If he doesn’t it could negatively impact the history of Manchester United forever.
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