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If the previous defeats haven’t made it clear, the result on Tuesday night should do it. On a difficult night in Athens, Manchester United’s dreams of Champions League glory and its revival suffered a massive blow with a 2-0 loss away to Olympiakos in the round of 16.
With the title out of sight, and even the top four a steep climb, especially with Liverpool eyeing a final assault on the title, this season would be a cruel one to endure for the die-hard United supporter, who would have been used to the aura of dominance as they have been dominating the Premier League since its inception. In fact, this has been a result of a set of events, which when left untreated, has brought about their downfall. So, the diagnosis begins in 2012.
January 2012: Paul Scholes returns to Manchester United
In a month which saw two of the league’s legends return, Paul Scholes and Thierry Henry returned to United and Arsenal respectively. United were looking light-weight in midfield and needed his presence to sustain a tough title defence against Manchester City. Henry, meanwhile came on a 2-month loan from the MLS to aid Arsenal’s resurgence towards the Champions League spot (Arsenal finished 3rd).
The big question is: Why Scholes? Waa it because of a lack of money? No. Manchester United have a staggering total of 34 sponsors currently (if I am not wrong and even then would have had a substantial number of sponsors) and there would be more than enough money to buy a good midfielder. Lack of good players? No. With the resources they had, they should have got some one. Scholes was supposed to be a stop-gap solution. As it stands, nearly three years have passed since Scholes retired. In that time, he has had to return, play one and a half years, win another title, retire and even then, the midfield conundrum hasn’t been solved.
Felliani is not the midfielder that controls a game. Moyes went for Fabregas, a game he was never going to win, and now wants Toni Kroos. Offering 250k/week can only take you so far. If the project is not good, you are not going to get a player. Then again, Mata proved us wrong. United have been scouting William Carvalho for umpteen times and yet, with Chelsea keen to pair him with Matic, United will have to work hard for the transfer to come through.
May 2013: Sir Alex Ferguson recommends Moyes’s name
Moyes: Does he deserve better?
A big chapter of United’s history had ended after 26 years of glorious success. At the same time, Jose Mourinho’s career as Real Madrid manager was nearing a controversial end. His defensive mindset didn’t win over many people and fans were raging over him dropping Iker Casillas to the bench.
Chelsea and Manchester United were the front-runners for Mourinho’s signature. It seemed that Chelsea and Mourinho were made for each other, but Manchester United’s winning mentality would have complemented his style. But whatever support he had ended when Ferguson recommended Moyes’s name for the post. Somehow, his recommendation over-ruled all other opinions that the board had, and Moyes was signed.
Allegedly, Mourinho cried over the fact that he lost the chance to be United coach, but he made his return to an out of shape Chelsea. As it stands, Chelsea are top of the table, while United have slipped into mid-table mediocrity.
But the main question here is: Did Ferguson have the right to exert his power to get Moyes the job? Is he bigger than the club?
September 2013: A brutal transfer window ends for United
Cesc Fabregass
Manchester United’s approach to the transfer window was haphazard, with bids flying in all directions, with none of them succeeding. Fabregas, Thiago, Khedira, Ozil, Baines were all linked to United before Felliani was signed, and that too for an inflated price. Was the squad good enough? No, so sure, it needed reinforcements. But Moyes, who had never had a lot of talent at Everton too, should have handled the squad better.
Let’s look at the squad from top to bottom:
Defence: No stability
Ferdinand: Past his sell by date
Arsenal’s successes this season, apart from Ozil’s arrival and Ramsey’s form, was due to the stability of their back-five of Szczesny, Sagna, Mertesacker, Koscielny and Gibbs. Manchester United, on the other hand, haven’t still decided their back-five.
The center-back pairing is key for a team. Strikers win games, but good defences win championships. And that there, is the difference between Arsenal and United.
David De Gea has emerged as a key goalkeeper for United. Rafael, for the lack of alternatives, is their right-back. Meanwhile, Moyes has yet to decide his central defensive partnership.
Vidic and Ferdinand, appeared to be Moyes’s first choice till the Manchester City game, where they were torn apart by the pace of Aguero and Jesus Navas. Since then, United haven’t decided their first choice center-backs.
Jonny Evans appears to be one half of the problem solved. But who among the rest should play? Vidic and Ferdinand have lost a yard of pace, and no one has a clue regarding Jones and Smalling’s real position.
And as for left-back, Evra has managed to hold onto his spot at left-back, despite his average performances. This is largely due to the ineptness of Buttner and Fabio, the latter now having left United.
So, with poor and scrappy goals conceded by United, like Oviedo’s goal for Everton at Old Trafford in December or Eto’o’s goals in the 3-1 win for Chelsea in January, the defense definitely requires some shaking up. But who would want to be part of this team? The question begs.
Middling midfield
With the likes of Cleverley, United can only dream about winning the Champions League
As I mentioned before, the midfield has been a sign of how an untreated problem has cost the club badly. Carrick is a shadow of his former self and the less said about Cleverley the better. But what is so damning is the fact that the midfield muddle could have been solved without any new signing.
Paul Pogba, formerly of United, is now a dynamic box-to-box midfielder excelling for both Juventus and France. Nick Powell, who could be shoe-horned in the box-to-box role, is now at Wigan Athletic, albeit on loan. They were supposed to be the future United central midfield partnership.
It is good to have possession of the ball and dictate games in order to win games. With this midfield though…….
Best players out of position
Rooney: Worth the money?
Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata are the genuine world class talent that United have, Yet, with the positions they are assigned, they won’t play to their position.
Rooney isn’t a second striker. He is a striker who wants to score goals, not make them. Juan Mata is a playmaker who prefers zero defensive work to get the best out of him. But out on the wings, he can’t dictate the tempo and leaves that area of the pitch unmarked.
And to compound the problems, Robin van Persie has not been clinical enough. His best two seasons came when he was the focal point of the attack. At Arsenal, his best season came when Fabregas and Nasri left. Last season, Rooney was put on the sidelines and van Persie was firing on all cylinders. Yet, he should be scoring goals with or without Rooney’s presence in the team.
I am not even talking about the inconsistencies of Valencia and Young. United, who used to thrive on crossing the ball, now have zero creativity.
Tactical mind of Moyes
David Moyes
This season has exposed the lack of tactical expertise of Moyes. While Roberto Martinez has added that extra flair to Everton with his pressing philosophy, use of the loan market and the rise of Ross Barkley, his Liverpool counterpart Brendan Rodgers has added good-quality talent with a view to implementing an attacking style.
Jose Mourinho has added to Chelsea’s resilience with his tactical adjustments, Arsene Wenger now has a defensive solidity to complement his tiki-taka (something he hasn’t had for a long time) and Manuel Pellegrini has engineered the best out of Jesus Navas, Aguero, Silva, Nasri, Fernandinho, Yaya Toure and Alvaro Negredo.
And Moyes? He has stuck with the redundant 4-4-2 formation with misfiring wingers, passive midfielders and a defense that has yet to settle down. He hasn’t added anything new or changed something of the old and yet has seen United go backwards.
Conclusion
If anything at all, Moyes has been judged harshly. Not many managers can work with such a squad and if anything at all, it highlights the man-management of Sir Alex Ferguson. Yet, he certainly deserves time, but not the faith of the fans. For doing so, he needs to be successful.
He is on a six-year deal. Implying, he is there for the future. It is not as if United can’t pay compensation to Moyes for him getting sacked. Yet he should not get faith from his fans blindly. He should gain the faith of the fans through wins, trophies and successes. Till then, the supporters have the right to put pressure on him to do well.
Ferguson had said in his farewell speech “Stand by your manager”. Almost a year later, this message seems strange.
