Premier League 2018-19: Lack of long-term planning, rather than Jose Mourinho, is at the root of Manchester United's problems

It's been over five years since the iconic United manager Sir Alex Ferguson called it a day. He left Manchester United as Premier League champions for a record 13th time, a force to be reckoned with in Europe and one of the richest clubs in the world. Perhaps his only shortcoming was that he left his successor with a squad that perhaps only he could have managed to a Premier League title, to put it lightly.

United have since had three different managers, and though they are now the richest club in the world, the results on the pitch haven’t matched that financial success. They have finished inside the top 4 only twice (third was their worst ever position under Sir Alex in the Premier League era) since Ferguson left, with the second placed finish last season still a million miles behind champions Manchester City.

They have also failed to reach the Champion’s League quarterfinals even once. The worst part is the football itself has gone from bad to worse, starting with David Moyes’ aimless crossing, Louis Van Gaal’s boring side passing to Jose Mourinho’s outdated safety-first approach, none of which have struck a chord with the Old Trafford faithful.

So what is it that is ailing the world’s richest and arguably biggest club? The problem in a sense started much before Sir Alex stepped down.

Manchester United were bought by the Glazer family in 2005 in a leveraged takeover, the majority of which was funded through loans taken against the club’s assets themselves. The Glazers have always been met with cold shoulders from the United fans due to the amount of debt they initially put United under as well as rumours that because of the same debt, enough funds were never made available to Sir Alex to bring in world class players (though Sir Alex always maintained the opposite in public).

The Glazers have since corrected both – most of the debt is gone, and United are now a financial juggernaut that have left the likes of Real Madrid in their wake. They have spent in excess of £550 million on net transfers after Sir Alex’s retirement, over £300 million of which was spent under Mourinho’s reign itself.

In the last eight years of his reign in the post-Abramovich era, Sir Alex had a net spend of just over £150 million, nearly half of Mourinho’s in just three years. It must be said, however, that player valuations then were much lower, plus there was also the need to rebuild the team post Sir Alex.

Still, with so much money at United’s disposal, the team should have been challenging for all the top titles. Where does the problem really lie then?

Mourinho and his negative tactics and non-development of young players is just the tip of the iceberg. The real problem lies higher up, where there is a clear lack of direction in steering the club forward.

The financial successes aside, which the Glazer appointed CEO Ed Woodward seems to be an expert at, United seem to be running around in circles (no pun intended) as regards to a sustainable future.

There is clearly no long-term strategy in place, whether it's in the appointment of managers or players. Moyes was the only manager appointed with a long-term view in mind (on a six year contract), never mind the fact that he failed miserably and didn’t even last a year. Van Gaal had made it clear he was going to be there for three years only, and he barely made it to two.

And then came Jose Mourinho, the most short-sighted of appointments.

Mourinho's foremost goal was to stop Pep Guardiola and win the Premier League title, irrespective of the manner in which it came. This demand for instant success brought in more short-sighted thinking, and the targeting of high profile players for almost every position instead of the promotion of ample talent already at the manager’s disposal.

The signing of Alexis Sanchez was a prime example, despite talents such as Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford being present in the squad and vying for the very same position. Sanchez is currently the highest paid player in a team with the highest wage bill in the league, and yet he sits on the bench for most games while United have made their worst start ever to a Premier League campaign.

But let's come back to the man Mourinho has been at loggerheads with for the better part of the current season. Ed Woodward’s capability has quite often been called into question whilst taking footballing decisions.

Woodword is a chartered accountant by qualification and investment banker by experience who advised the Glazers on the United takeover. He has done rather well in the transfer market when he and Mourinho have worked in tandem, securing the world record transfer at the time of Paul Pogba as well as snatching Romelu Lukaku from under Chelsea’s grasp.

However, when it comes to refusing the signing of an over-priced center back or selling a renegade Anthony Martial before the start of this season, as prudent as the latter at least may have been, is Woodward really the best man to be making those decisions?

Most successful clubs around Europe have a footballing director to help make these long term decisions and steer the club forward. The success of Txiki Begiristain at cross-city rivals Manchester City is well known.

Check out the ‘All or Nothing’ documentary for more information on how a footballing director works. From the appointment of a manager, the signing of new players to contract extensions of current ones, as well as decisions such as not selling Martial or buying a new center back - these should ideally be made by a footballing director, and not a CEO with no actual football experience.

And therein lies the central problem with Manchester United: the men who appointed Woodward himself. American owners by nature tend to buy sports teams to make a profit. That's how American major leagues work, and the philosophy has made its way to football clubs after the crossover.

What happens on the pitch becomes entirely secondary in this system, while in reality that is what drives success off it. This is in no way an advocacy for Roman Abramovich and Sheik Mansour-like billionaires who pour endless money into football, but what fans really need to ask themselves is this: would you rather have someone take $2 billion out of your club, or use the same money to improve the team and general infrastructure at the club?

Ed Woodward: The right man to direct matters on the pitch?

Woodward has already said in United’s investor release this year that United are well poised to remain a financial juggernaut despite the results on the pitch. While that statement was meant for shareholders and not for United fans in general, it's a clear indication of the thought process at the upper echelons of the club.

Arsenal, who were every bit United’s rivals for the Premier League crown in the pre-Abramovich era, have been handicapped by American ownership and the focus on making profits rather than pumping them back into the team and making them title contenders. The Emirates’ ticket prices remain some of the most expensive in the world, while their team has fought for just a Champions League spot for most of the post-Abramovich era.

So while replacing the under-fire Mourinho may be the short-term remedy that United need, it’s a change in long term strategy and thinking that they truly require. A footballing director is crucial for this to happen, especially in the absence of a long term manager - the breed of which has become extinct with Arsene Wenger leaving Arsenal in the modern game.

Only if that changes comes about, can United hope to return to their traditions of playing ‘champagne football’ and challenge for the Premier League title as well as gun for European glory.