Manchester United Rumours Member Posts

Anonymous Woolback's Posts and Other Poster's Replies To Anonymous Woolback's Posts

To Anonymous Woolback's last 5 banter posts

To Anonymous Woolback's last 5 banter replies

Anonymous Woolback has no Rumours Posts

Anonymous Woolback's banter posts with other poster's replies to Anonymous Woolback's banter posts

13 Apr 2024 07:39:07
{Ed's Note - Anonymous Woolback has posted a new article entitled, Is Jurgen Klopp Burnt Out At Liverpool FC?

1.) 13 Apr 2024 13:25:56
Hardly surprising if he is. His style and personality is full throttle, he holds nothing back. That can be draining, especially under the glare of the media.

He burnt out at Dortmund and he is showing signs of it again now. He knows he needs a break and I would expect him to take at least a year off. I also wouldn't be surprised to see him return to Liverpool at some point down the line (although I doubt a second spell will be as successful as the first, they rarely are) .

I think the issue is Liverpool's squad isn't as good as it previously was, meaning there is a drop off in ability when changes are made. While some of the key performers of the previous side either haven't been replaced to the same standard or have declined a little.

Mane and Firmino where phenomenal and while players like Diaz, Nunez and Jota have potential and some great traits, they do not offer the same level or consistency as the former players. While Salah looks like he's starting to drop a level (still a great player, but not at his unplayable best) . This has lead to Liverpool not taking their chances and leaving themselves open to dropping points due to not being out of sight when they concede.

which brings us to the other problem. The defence. VvD looks pretty close to his best form again this season. But then he's had to be as he's constantly covering for his teammates. Robertson looks to have declined a little and has suffered injuries, while TAA has been out injured a lot, as has Konate. Bradley and Quansah have done brilliantly as stand ins, but they cannot match the same standards or consistency of those they are covering for. Nothing against them, they are just young, inexperienced and are making the mistakes they need to make to grow and develop. When half of your regular back four are that inexperienced you will concede goals to silly mistakes. Gomez has done a good job covering at LB, but again this isn't his best position and he cannot be expected to play that position perfectly. He does make the occasional positional error, as should be expected when playing out of his natural position.

When you have forwards who are wasteful and a defence that will likely concede then you will drop points and find it hard to play at the consistently high level needed to compete on all fronts.

I actually think Liverpool's downfall this season may be that they didn't go out of a couple of the cups sooner. The extra games for an injury hit squad that are relying on young players meant the squad was always liable to run out of steam.

Klopp rotated the team for the Atalanta game, but it was probably too much disruption against a very well drilled Italian outfit. Unfortunately he will have to rotate the squad and rest players where he can, as they simply don't have the legs to play at the intensity his style demands for the number of games they have left to play.

Finally we shouldn't discount the mental and emotional strain on this group of players. The media have created a Klopp farewell tour narrative since he said he was stepping aside at the end of the season. The media have made this "win it for Klopp" story, which puts huge pressure on the players, added with the idea of a quadruple for Klopp's final season.

They've now seen their lead at the top of the table disappear, while the quadruple dream was derailed by the clubs biggest rival, all in the space of a couple of weeks. That pressure and disappointment will be weighing heavily on the minds and tired legs of the squad. A squad that doesn't have the same kind of "mentality monsters" that they could previously lean on to drag them over the line. This team looks like they could do with their best EPL captain (Jordan Henderson) to keep them going and get them across the line this season.

Sadly for Klopp, and less so for the Liverpool fans, I think the EFL cup will be the only silverware Liverpool win this season. I don't expect Liverpool will travel to Italy and over turn a 3-0 deficit. Which would leave just the league left. Yet Arsenal seem to have picked up steam since the turn of the year and are in incredible form. They are swatting aside potentially tricky games at a canter, seemingly in second gear. Much like the 3-0 win against Brighton. I wouldn't be surprised if they went the rest of the season unbeaten.
While City are City. They aren't at their best and a combination of a few key players either leaving last summer, being injured or just having a little drop off in form from last season. Yet they are a machine and will still grind out results right up until the final whistle on the last day.

All this as Liverpool seem to be running out of steam, and cracking under the pressure and expectation. Unfortunately for Klopp it seems his tenure at Liverpool will fizzle out rather than ending with a bang. For all the talk of this title race going to the wire, I don't think Liverpool will be in contention to win it on the final day of the season.

25 Nov 2021 16:46:54
Disturbing and infuriating news that United appear to have made a good footballing decision for once. I suppose you had to get one right eventually. While the imbalanced squad is bound to continue to hold you back, i think that Rangnick is the exactly the type of appointment that United should be making and that he will do much better than any of his predecessors have done with the talent at their disposal. If I were a United fan i’d be very pleased and even a smidge excited.

1.) 25 Nov 2021 18:22:37
Squad isn't imbalanced we just had an inbalance set up teaching them.

2.) 25 Nov 2021 19:08:37
Squad IS unbalanced. You just need to look at Central midfielders to realise why we don't win anything.

21 Nov 2021 14:18:33
After 3 years of United not being coached at all, and the glaringly horrifying results that has produced on the pitch, what United need now is a coach. As a rival fan, i’d be happy if United got Zidane. I don’t think he is what you need. He’s had great success with Madrid sure, but in the post-Galactico era that’s the type of manager Madrid have always done well under; a bit hands off, treats them with respect yet demands maturity, but also is there primarily to keep all the big ego’s in line and to provide wisdom and guidance to his troops who, for the most part, are good enough to look after themselves. Zidane, Ancelotti, Mourinho all embodied this managerial philosophy perfectly. Contrastingly, managers who were more hands on and direct in their demands of their players, such as Capello and Benitez, didn’t do very well.

United, however, are the polar opposite. These players haven’t been coached in years. The press is completely uncoordinated, Wan-Bissaka still positions himself like he’s playing in a Crystal Palace low-block, United’s defensive line is often seen running length ways down the side of the pitch rather than running across their own half, all attacking ingenuity is clearly just improvisation. Why do you think players like Pogba and Shaw loved Ole so much? Because he didn’t demand anything of them, he just let them do whatever they wanted.

They don’t need another manager who is going to stand off them and treat them like stars, they need to be coached, drilled and brought into line. Zidane, i feel, will not be able to provide this. In this respect, i think Rodgers would be a better fit, even though i do still hold distain and heavy skepticism about his abilities after his time with us. I think you could do a lot worse than Potter or Ten Hag, but there’s no doubt the timing of this decision is really difficult. Maybe even Laurent Blanc til the end of the season could be a shout, but handing a lengthy contract to Zidane would, in my opinion, be in the same vein of the exact same mistakes that United have been making for the last 8 years. I just can’t see him making the current situation with this group of players much better.

1.) 21 Nov 2021 14:28:03
Zidane seemingly doesn't want the short-term job, as not many top managers would, or the long-term job, as he's waiting for France - although I'm sure the carrot of extra money to do the former will change his mind.
Most likely is the PSG merry-go-round at the end of the season when Zidane goes there and we get Poch. Not excited at the prospect of that either.

{Ed002's Note - Zidane would not be offered the job on an interim basis.}

02 Feb 2021 15:05:10
The recent retirement of Wayne Rooney and a discussion video i saw on youtube left me trying to evaluate how good he actually was. I thought i’d come over to the United page to ask you lot on your feelings on Rooney and how good he was and whether he could’ve achieved more, as a Liverpool supporter i saw a lot of him but not to the extent you guys did, nor do i know of all the ins and outs of his supposedly unprofessional lifestyle or his complicated relationship with Fergie.

My honest opinion is that he was an incredible footballer and is no doubt one of the best i’ve ever seen, but his talent in his early years could and maybe should have seen him hit the heights Messi and Ronaldo have since achieved, which he was unable to do due to a poor lifestyle and mismanagement with injuries by Fergie, as well as being sacrificed as a genuine team player a lot of the time.

What do you guys think?

1.) 02 Feb 2021 15:35:18
That’s a pretty good summary. A very very good player who never quite consistently reached the level we thought he would. His early years were phenomenal, he had no fear, scared the crap out of defenders and was unstoppable. But, he plateaued and whilst he broke records, I am always left with a feeling of regret that he should have been even better. A bit like Giggs too.

2.) 02 Feb 2021 15:51:35
Funny you mention that, i don't think rooneys career and legacy has ever been fully covered on these pages.

Curious to hear what ken and jreds unique takes on this topic are especially.

3.) 02 Feb 2021 16:19:54
AJH what do you mean a bit like Giggs?

4.) 02 Feb 2021 17:00:05
Haha, it was only a matter of time for the Rooney debate to rear its head again after Rooney took his first steps into management.

I think that is a pretty fair assessment of Rooney. When he burst onto the scene he was a phenomenon, his pace, power, skill and well developed understanding of the game from a 16 year old probably hasn't been seen since or before to be honest.

That rightly lead to a huge level of expectation that sadly Wayne was mentally never equipped to handle. His personal life and the way he chose to live his life meant he was never going to live up to his potential. If he had the mentality of Cristiano Ronaldo I have little doubt that that the Messi/ Ronaldo debate would be redundant as both would have been in Rooney's shadow.

His achievements cannot be taken away, his trophies and goal scoring records will likely last a long time. He was a great player who nearly always found a way to influence games. While I think it is only fair to remember his injuries will have played a part in him not being able to reach his full potential.

Yet, most fans probably feel a little sense of "what might have been" when remembering Wayne. He was a genius, but a flawed one. A great player, but he could have been THE greatest player of all time.

{Ed047's Note - never in a million years could Wayne Rooney have become the greatest player of all time.

5.) 02 Feb 2021 17:15:03
I think Giggs was an exceptional footballer but when he first burst onto the scene we thought he would also be true world superstar. I credible player, amazing amazing record, but he also plateaued, yes at a very high level, but perhaps not quite as high as we thought he would achieve.

6.) 02 Feb 2021 17:17:49
Agree AJH on both Rooney and Giggs. Both great players but feel both could of been even better. Neither would get in my greatest ever Utd side.

7.) 02 Feb 2021 17:22:59
Rooney was an absolute beast of a player at his peak.
Selfless, fiery team player and one of my all time favourite.

{Ed047's Note - no argument with the first part of that, he was awesome.

8.) 02 Feb 2021 19:22:44
Great player was allowed stay 3 years too long imo. Was one of my favourites but just stayed too long and was a shadow of himself at the end.

9.) 02 Feb 2021 19:59:42
If it wasnt for him being shipped into different positions you wouldn't find him to far behind shearer or even in front of him.

If he only took care of himself like the likes of ibra and ronaldo

One of my fav united players ever.

10.) 02 Feb 2021 23:19:10
Wooly i'd hardly say it is a sverige to be a team player. That was one of his greatest strengths imo. He was a team player in a team game.

11.) 02 Feb 2021 23:57:19
I think one of his best points is that from start to finish he played like a kid on the street. He just loved to play and instinctively.

He was capable of incredible goals and had a huge will to win. Judged purely on skill I would say Messi Best and Maradona are ahead of him. I would put Rooney alongside Ronaldo for skill but Ronaldo was / is more disciplined and that's why his career trumps Rooneys.

One thing already mentioned is Rooneys ability as a team player. In this aspect he possibly eclipses all others. He would defend and harry opponents like a dog chasing a bone.

23 May 2018 03:59:58
Liverpool fan here, i’d heard enough about the bickering on here regarding Mourinho, toxic fans etc from Ed002 so thought i would have a gander. And without trying to open a can of worms, will try to throw my most likely unwanted opinion on it into the mix.

I think the notion that the style of football being the problem is a bit of a stretch. Everyone would like to see great football but take it from me, I would have given an arm and a leg to have won the trophies you did last season, and it is why I am so nervous going into Saturday.

The real crux of this bizarre debate is that there have been plenty of successful, pragmatic teams and you won’t hear their fans moaning about style of play. Atletico, Chelsea, almost every Italian team ever, even some of the united sides have been very defensively compact and won the league without scoring a shed tonne of goals. And nobody complains about them, right? There is nothing wrong with going 1 or 2 nil up and then confidently seeing out a result.

That’s not to say I don’t think there is a massive problem here, I just think that’s it isn’t necessarily the style of play as such. I’d say that rather it’s because the whole situation is a totally unorganised mess.

League position aside, you can always tell when a side is progressing or when the manager is doing a decent job, regarding the success/ suitability of players signed, improvement of players currently in the squad, and generally a clear vision of what he is trying to achieve and the creases that they are aiming to iron out. And although many are quick to point out that the league doesn’t lie and yes, United finished second above Liverpool and and spurs, there is a very real sense that this does not equate to a side with direction and making progress.

All of these things do not apply to United at the moment; José has a wealth of talent in a variety of positions and he is almost certainly not getting the best out of anyone. Rashford, martial, mata, Pogba, all players with fantastic ability who are all going gradually backwards. Even the players who are not doing a great job, the likes of Smalling, Jones etc a manager who is doing well will surely work with what he has and improve them somewhat, something Klopp, pochettino and even Guardiola have managed in spades, keeping squad harmony together, as opposed to Mourinho who effectively seems to bully them and be at constant war with half his players. The reason the negative football is a problem isn’t because it is negative, its because a club with the amount of talent at its disposal such as Manchester United should not be going into games against rivals seemingly playing for draws, or going out or the champions league on a whimper because the players looked almost terrified of attacking, for fear of being told off. Clubs of the size of United, the Bayern’s, Madrid’s and Barcelonas of this world would not accept this. So why should united accept a manager who will seemingly never stop moaning or playing in such a pathetic style until he has replaced every player in the squad 5 times over?

This somewhat leads into my second point, which I will try to make without causing offence. A club of the size and resources of Manchester United should accepting such a ridiculous proposition that some seem to portray, that united are some kind of underdog fallen on hard times looking to get back on their feet. As much as it pains me to say it Manchester United are one of the biggest clubs in the world, rivalled only by Barcelona and Madrid, and have the ability to effectively go out and buy whoever they want. Make no mistake, United have been the envy of the league since Fergie left and almost every one of your signings since then has left me quaking, left me feeling that it will see a return to the United of old, only for all of them to be horribly mismanaged or flat out disappoint. Mata, Depay, Di Maria, falcao, martial, Matic, Herrera, Lukaku, Bailly, lindelof, sanchez, hell I even remember a load of Liverpool fans fuming that we hadn’t moved for Rojo or blind, and what a distant memory that now seems. These are some very good, even great players, and you have been signing them in spades, with the ability to go out and get more in the summer as is likely. If Liverpool had beaten you to the signing of Alexis Sanchez, we would probably have had an open top bus parade and released a dvd in celebration, yet for united fans it did not even take you by surprise, almost as if it was Groundhog Day and sanchez’ failure to perform was almost imminent. Make no mistake, with the signings you have made and are capable of making, there is no excuse for any manager to be dissatisfied, whether it is Van Gaal, Mourinho or whoever comes next, and this veil of deceit that Mourinho has created that he is somehow not underperforming and is hard done by with a long road ahead, is embarrassing and total BS.

Now lastly onto big Jose himself, and this is what I think really sets apart any notion that he needs time and toxics are ruining United. I personally thought that the way Van Gaal was treated was disgusting, but if Mourinho is hounded out of the club by a toxic atmosphere then he only has himself to blame. Let’s take his his goals as a manager somewhat out of the equation, and look at his actual conduct as Manchester United manager, because it is, in a word, indefensible. The guy is so arrogant, so self obsessed, I am genuinely convinced he would pick a certain team just to prove his critics wrong and not to win. His treatment of certain players, such as shaw, has been disgusting, and the likes of martial and Rashford are looking to potentially leave. Even if you are dividing the fans with results on the pitch, the least you can do is not bully the players and derail their careers. I’d even read that he had blamed Lukaku for being injured for the final and was thinking of selling Bailly because he has fallen out with him as well! He is legitimately now beginning to replace his own signings because he has fallen out with them too?! How many more will he be allowed to make before replacing them? Style of play aside, on a purely day to day basis of enjoying the job, who would want to join up with this united side right now? And I am sure there will be apologists on here saying it’s all the players fault and they all have bad attitudes, but the proof was in the pudding at Chelsea, where his behaviour was equally unacceptable and the players rightfully hounded him out.

The most successful managers will cultivate a sense of togetherness in a squad, will unite the fans with a clear vision and improve their team man for man. Can you honestly say Mourinho is achieving any of this at the moment? There is an awful lot of cracks being papered over and an awful lot of excuses being made for him. And although I’m sure I will get stick for this, De Gea is most definitely José mourinhos managerial duct tape. I’m almost certain that if Liverpool and united swapped goalkeepers, their league positions would be reversed. De Gea is covering up for mourinhos deficiencies in the same way Suarez covered up for Rodgers, and should he go to Madrid this summer, I would expect a significant points drop off next season. So, I ask for his apologists, if Mourinho is to be given time in the same vein of Ferguson, how many more mega money signings do you think it will take for him to achieve his vision, and if so, what is his vision? And that even if this vision is close to being realised, is it worth the cost of losing so many of your brightest talents due to unrest, or Mourinho causing discontent with both fans and players due to his behaviour?

1.) 23 May 2018 04:58:34
A well written post but I would like to point out some of your logical fallacies and how the narrative would look if the same logic was applied to Liverpool or Spurs who seem to be the media darlings atm and get a free ride.

1. De Gea is the "duct tape" over Mourinho's management. The same can be said for Salah and Klopp, and Pochetino and Kane. If Salah were to leave this summer for Real Madrid I would expect Liverpool to finish outside the top 4. If Spurs were to lose Harry Kane to Real Madrid I would expect them to finish outside the top 4.

Such arguments make no sense. Every team has their world class players that bail them out on off days.

2. "Cohesive atmosphere" and "a club of United's resources should be winning more". The atmosphere is dictated by expectations created by the media. Klopp has spent almost as much as Mourinho and till now has nothing to show for it. The fact is that Liverpool and Spurs aren't expected to win by the media and even slightly above mediocre is sung with praises. Poch's teams have time and again failed when it mattered and they don't play any more attractive football than Jose's United. For United 2nd place, round of 16 UCL and a FA cup final loss will be dressed as failure while no improvement in the league for either Spurs or Liverpool will still be considered a success even if Liverpool lose the final.

Its all about how the media portrays things and how that dictates fan mentality. Also United have to pay more for the same player than Spurs would. Klopp has embarrassed Liverpool by tapping players up. Ultimately, success is what breeds a good atmosphere.

3. You seem to completely ignore where Jose started from. A team that had no character, was devoid of confidence and out of the UCL. From there we have come to round of 16 in the UCL, FA cup final, 2nd place finish and two trophies won already. I can see the direction he is taking us in. Its that consistency that is lacking. We played some great stuff at the start of the season and the performances against the top 6 in the second half were excellent. We were let down by inconsistency and complacency by the players against lower opposition.

That is why Jose seems to talk about the character of the players and is trying to get a reaction out of them.

You seem to have seen a different United side of SAF from 06-09. That team didn't dominate the game against top 4 sides or UCL away at all. The approach was always to defend well and hit the opposition on the counter. That team was reliant on Vidic, Rio, Evra and Brown with Carrick sitting in front of them to defend well. The philosophy in Europe away was the same. Defend well and punish mistakes counter with pace and knick an away goal.

Its no different than what Jose is trying to do now. That team was just more clinical and ruthless and that's what Jose wants from his attackers and why he is so frustrated with Martial and Rashford and to an extent Lingard who aren't efficient and are very wasteful. I believe we are 1-2 players in midfield / attack away from getting there.

4. I would argue that Jose has gotten some good performances out of the likes of young, smalling, Jones, lingard. Lukaku's improvement in holdup play is clear to see. The signing of Matic brought much needed midfield stability. There's been lots of positives. We've started coming back to win games from losing positions again against tough opposition.

Klopp meanwhile still hasn't managed to fix the defense and goalkeeping issues although the attack is better. Pochetino has still not managed to address the choking when it matters of that Spurs team and gets tactically outclassed in big games.

5. Jose will sell the players who go hiding and rightly should. We're a much better squad now since Jose arrived. We have improved in all aspects of the game.

To conclude I would say that its a matter of perspective. I think we've significantly improved and are only going to get better.

2.) 23 May 2018 07:39:57
Well said Redfaith well said.
I’d reserve my comments till after the CL final. Let’s see.

3.) 23 May 2018 08:03:03
War and Peace anyone 😆😆.

4.) 23 May 2018 08:38:36
Redfaith - Well written rebuttle mate, but on your points:

1 - Agree completely every team has a star, ours happens to be the GK
2 - Totally disagree, expectations are note created by the media, they are created by comparing resources, prestige, football on show. Obviously the media will completely sway some sheep, but I think it's fair to say most fans will form their opinion and the media will either reinforce it or will become irrelevant.
3 - Jose inherited a problem, but he has time and resources to fix it. Does our team have any more character now? Do we look more like a team? We have performed better results wise, but wouldn't you expect that with a few hundred million to spend?
4 - LVG had our mediocre players playing well, Jose has done the same as him. Our star players on the otherhand have looked mediocre, exactly the same as under LVG. No improvement in that regard for me, just more cover for the defence and less possession.
5 - We are a better squad simply in terms of re-sale value because we have spent more money. We look just as devoid as ideas now as ever, our team is all over the place.

I think we have improved results wise, but that is expected with the money thrown at the problem. Our game has not improved performance wise, we look lost. We may improve under Jose, but only if he can spend his way to improvement, his coaching and ideas on the game need a lot to be desired in this day and age. I feel that there are a great many managers that would get more from this squad as is, Klopp is certainly one of them.

5.) 23 May 2018 08:42:16
Excellent post, very well written and insightful. It's very interesting to see out situation from the perspective of someone from the outside looking in.

The only thing I would slightly disagree with is that style isn't that important. I think is is vital to our club for far more than just the aesthetics. We have a proud history of giving young players a chance and maintaining having at least one homegrown player in our match day squad for over 80 years. I think the style of play is very important in creating an atmosphere where young players can express themselves without fear, where they can make mistakes and learn from them. Defensive pragmatic football doesn't really allow for this. That is why I feel style of play is so important at our club.

Other than that, there isn't anything I can disagree with. Thank you for taking the time to write that we'll written post.

6.) 23 May 2018 09:02:12
Very well written post woolback. Respect for coming on here and writing a well reasoned post instead of being immature. Always great to hear what opposition fans think. Don’t agree with all that you have said but I can definitely see where you are coming from. I’m not going to say good luck on Saturday because if you guys win I’m going offline till the beginning of next season 😂.

7.) 23 May 2018 09:07:45
Top post redfaith agree with all of that.

8.) 23 May 2018 15:16:29
Good post, Woolback. But I would have to add that our defensive style does not deserve to be compared to that of Atletico Madrid. They defend with some great pressing, have a fighting spirit that Simeone has instilled throughout the squad, and they look they love to fight tooth and nail on every last possession to win the ball back. In contrast, under Mourinho, we are far more passive defensively, until we are sitting deep in our final third. Otherwise, I agree with your analysis of Mourinho 100%.

Anonymous Woolback has no Rumour Replies

Anonymous Woolback's banter replies

Click To View This Thread

20 Aug 2022 12:32:54
I see what you’re trying to say Woggle, but it simply doesn’t add up.

Firstly, you’re projecting massively. It’s only been a week since the Brentford game and we haven’t seen United play since then; how does anybody know that ten Hag has thrown in the towel and decided to alter his approach? He could, and I imagine probably will, send them out with the same tactics against Liverpool and it will not end well, at which point your argument could fall apart.

Secondly, even if he does decide to play this pragmatically and oversee a gradual shift over a couple of seasons, I fail to see how Casemiro fits into that? If you want to change the way United play, how does repeating the same mistakes in the transfer market, instead of signing someone more suited to the style of play, help build towards that goal? Signing more players in the 30+, 350k, 5 year contract, 70 million, overrated bracket who are both immobile and inadequate on the ball will not help the cause at all.

It’s quite obviously more of the same mistakes from United, and if ten Hag is indeed personally choosing all of these signings that don’t seem to fit what he is trying to do, then I would be worried already. Additionally, while you could argue the ‘leadership’ and ‘character’ element is important, were the likes of Ronaldo and Fernandes also not at one point considered to be leadership material? Now look what’s happened to them, they’re whining brats.

If any players are going to establish leadership at United, it will be from younger, hungrier players that suit the managers vision and believe in it, not overpaid moaners with an inflated sense of self importance.

Click To View This Thread

20 Aug 2022 00:57:37
*money for Antony, not irony.

Click To View This Thread

19 Aug 2022 23:45:23
Casemiro isn’t an awful player to sign in isolation, he’s pretty good, but no more than that. I think some people are trying their best to remove all context from the signing, probably to convince themselves it’s actually a good move, which i understand. What is being a football fan if not constantly assuming the best case scenario for your team?

From the outside looking in, I think this transfer is as hilarious and as typically United as it gets. Like I say, Casemiro isn’t a bad player, he’s decent, but with a very low ceiling. I don’t think he is in the same league as Fabinho and Rodri, or the likes of Alonso and Busquets from years gone by.

He is an immobile midfield enforcer, who has spent his entire Madrid career being made to look better than he is by the far superior technical wizards playing either side of him. To give you an example that you can all relate to, imagine if it was Madrid signing Nicky Butt for 60 million and 350k a week (adjusted for inflation) back in the day. As solid as Butt was, would that not sound absolutely preposterous?

He will make the United midfield better, of course he will, but so would anybody else. Varane was also an improvement on Maguire and Bailly, but it hasn’t really sorted much out. Decent enough player, but overrated and made to look far better than he was by Ramos. For the emphasis being placed on him by United and by the journos, it feels like another classic United farce. It seems as though they think this is going to be some kind of transformative, blockbuster signing, a legend of the game on par with the greatest players to grace his position, when in reality it’s just some bloke who kicks people about a bit and runs in treacle.

None of the signings that United have made so far have been absolutely awful, they just seem like a complete waste of time. Martinez can’t be any worse than his fellow centre backs, but he’s 5’8 and will probably never be the answer based on that alone. Eriksen is a number 10 who is incapable of playing in a pressing side, and has been used every position apart from as a number 10 so far, mainly because United signed him without realising that nobody actually plays with them anymore.

Casemiro can’t be any worse than Fred or McTominay, but I don’t see how he ticks any of the boxes for what United need. For that money, you could have got Ndidi or someone similar, who would be sufficiently experienced while still being younger, would probably have been hungrier, have a higher ceiling, be more suited to ten Hag’s requirements and generally be better in every single way.

Instead, you have yet another signing who is on the wrong side of 30, on an insanely long contract, is too immobile to play in the ten Hag double pivot and press, and probably isn’t good enough on the ball to play out in the way ten Hag wants either, which as we have seen, is possibly the biggest structural flaw with this United side at present. He will cost more in terms of transfer fee and wages than either Fabinho or Rodri did, despite not being even half as good. He obviously isn’t the answer.

United clearly don’t have a scouting department, and if they do, I imagine they must just be sat messing around all day and claiming as much on expenses as they can get away with. Surely this signing is a direct reaction to the recent results and the Jim Radcliffe rumours, as it seems to have been decided completely on the spot. Does anybody seriously believe that United have been tracking Casemiro for months and believe he fits the profile of what they need? The club have been messing about all summer and refusing to improve the squad, but when the situation is so bad the only way to stave off a riot is good PR, they will act.

This signing is absolute insanity and the only thing that would be even more silly would be if they actually paid the money being touted for irony. I know some United fans will be desperate to believe this is a good signing and that some thought had been out into it, but please, don’t buy the kool aid that these clowns are trying to sell you. It’s a panicked distraction tactic of the most egregious kind and I, for one, have never seen anything like it.

Click To View This Thread

23 Apr 2022 20:13:33
He seems to have been infected with Loseritis. Pogba was ground zero for the C.V. but it has now infected every corner of the squad. Anybody who enters that United dressing room quickly turns into a whining, shirking, arrogant loser with no sense of accountability.

18 months ago Bruno appeared to be proper captain material, he had a winning mentality and very high standards, as well as making the players around him play better. Fast forward to the present and it couldn’t be further from the truth, he behaves the exact same way as all the other United players.

Even worse was against Liverpool, when he spent 80 minutes doing this until Hannibal came on, at which point he made the calculated decision to also have a go at kicking a few of our players, as if that would make up for the 80 minutes of moaning and rolling around that preceded it. Then he had the audacity to give a post match interview where he apologised for being rubbish and declared the performance ‘not good enough’, while never really seeming to grasp that he was a huge part of it.

That’s the thing with this United squad, it’s always someone else’s problem. I truly believe that Bruno, Pogba, Maguire et al really do think that it’s actually all the other players in the squad that are the problem, and that they, the shining beacon of hope, would be dragging this team to glory if only they weren’t constantly let down by their teammates and management. That probably explains why so many of them want to leave: they think that THEY deserve better.

I don’t even know where United start with this rebuild. Loseritis seems to be everywhere and infects everybody who comes into contact with this United squad. The only two exceptions seem to be De Gea and McTominay, both of whom may not even be good enough for what Ten Hag wants to do.

The aforementioned Fernandes has just been handed a bumper new contract, but i’m not sure how he fits into Ten Hag’s plans or even the plans of another top team; not many top teams play with a number 10 anymore, never mind one that spends all his time either on the floor or stationary with his hands in the air.

Where do they seriously go from here?

Click To View This Thread

20 Apr 2022 00:52:00
I really don’t think it’s Rangnick’s fault at all. He may not be a top manager but he is a manager nonetheless.

His predecessor was please-all bottom kissing positivity merchant who had nothing to offer other than good vibes and nostalgia about the 90’s. The fella literally wouldn’t park in the managers space because it was reserved for ‘The Boss’ and then dragged an elderly and unwell Sir Alex out of the stands to do his team talks for him. The reason players like Pogba and Shaw appeared to be happier and ‘better’ under him was because he didn’t demand anything of them, he didn’t coach them, he didn’t set expectations or tell them what to do. All he could offer was showering them with affection and telling them to just be happy and express themselves and that would be enough.

Shockingly, you need a bit more than that to compete at the top level of football, and when he was inevitably sacked under a cloud of negativity and with absolute anarchy reigning on the pitch, the players checked out before United could even get a manager in. Despite throwing their toys out of them pram because the last guy was too mean, they then threw their toys out the pram because the new guy wasn’t mean enough. Everything was always someone elses fault and they didn’t really know what they wanted, probably because they didn’t didn’t care about winning at all. Everything on the pitch was broken, but the players talked about it as if it was a problem they had no input in, which is clearly the perspective they still hold judging by Bruno’s interview tonight. They say they’re not good enough and they’re sorry, but at the same time it’s not really anything to do with them and they can’t wait to jump ship, because they ‘deserve’ better and it’s everyone else at United that is causing the toxicity, not themselves as individuals.

Then Rangnick comes into this mess, they’ve all checked out, half of them want to leave, the other half just want a paycheck or want someone else to sort out their mess for them, and he has to try and get them playing. I think you can tell from the leaks and from the way he talks about them (he just about stops short of telling the world he effing hates them) that they’re absolutely not bothered about anything going on at the club and have no interest in turning it around. If Guardiola or Klopp came in and tried to demand higher standards from them, it’d be the exact same result.

They don’t like winning, they don’t like engaging with what it takes to win, they don’t like competition at the top end of football, they don’t like being criticised. It’s no secret that the culture at United is rancid from top to bottom, but never before, at any club ever, have i been aware of a dressing room this toxic. It has completely infected every corner of the squad and Ralf Rangnick can’t do anything about that. I appreciate the tactics may appear a little frustrating from the outside looking in but you really can’t appreciate how complex the layers of awfulness are in situations this tricky. Last season our fans were going mental at Klopp for some of the decisions he made, but when the manager has absolutely nothing to work with at a base level, it’s difficult to appreciate why he makes the decisions he does when you’re not spending your every waking moment in a nightmarish hellscape with many moving parts and nothing can possibly go right.

The fact is, they won’t do anything he asks of them. He may not be the greatest motivator in the world, and i always believe the buck stops with the manager, but even the greatest managers in the world wouldn’t be able to work with these players. These players wouldn’t buy into anything a top manager asks of them; it would simply be too much for them to handle. They are an anomaly in football, in that they seem to be a group of professional footballers that actually hate playing the game itself.