Manchester United 18/19: finishing second best

[Badgers]

But if not Mourinho then who?

 

[sealion]

I suspect he"s not being backed transfer wise

Even if that's correct i don't think he can match Klopp and Guardiola when it comes down to it. As pointed out in this thread, football has moved on a bit and putting a team of physical lumps together won't cut it anymore.

 

[The39thStep]

Even if that's correct i don't think he can match Klopp and Guardiola when it comes down to it. As pointed out in this thread, football has moved on a bit and putting a team of physical lumps together won't cut it anymore.

 

[donkyboy]

Not going to put a single united player in my FF team.

 

[TruXta]

Not going to put a single united player in my FF team.

De Gea is still the best keeper in the prem

 

[donkyboy]

nope. not interested.

 

[Dandred]

 

[Dandred]

“Half of this team won’t even be here in August,” ; “why shouldn’t Sanchez be unhappy, I have no other strikers, no wingers, none” ; “Bailly is not a leader; good guy, works hard, not a leader” ; “I don’t even know why these fans showed up, I wouldn’t.”

Great manager you have.

 

[Badgers]

Pogba possibly heading to Juventus .

 

[TruXta]

Pogba possibly heading to Juventus .

Sanchez to Arsenal?

 

[Badgers]

Sanchez to Arsenal?

Doubt many other team want him at £500k+ a week

 

[Wilf]

Mourinho's certainly a cunt and doesn't look like he can adapt his approach. He's also stinking the place out with all this moaning - why the fuck can't he just say 'look, this is challenging, but a great opportunity for the young players'. As it stands, he's just telling something like 1/3 of what will ultimately be his squad for the season that they are not good enough. Terrible, petulant stuff.

Same time, not saying much, but he's done better than moyes and van gaal, got the runners up spot. But that's in the context of the table above (even if all that spending wasn't on his watch). Not good enough. I would guess, by trophies, he's the most successful manger of the last couple of decades. But he's lost his mojo. Same time, if it was choice of binning him or the owners I'd keep him anyday. My guess is they'll end up top 4 or so and he'll leave next Summer.

 

[The39thStep]

Mourinho's certainly a cunt and doesn't look like he can adapt his approach. He's also stinking the place out with all this moaning - why the fuck can't he just say 'look, this is challenging, but a great opportunity for the young players'. As it stands, he's just telling something like 1/3 of what will ultimately be his squad for the season that they are not good enough. Terrible, petulant stuff.

Same time, not saying much, but he's done better than moyes and van gaal, got the runners up spot. But that's in the context of the table above (even if all that spending wasn't on his watch). Not good enough. I would guess, by trophies, he's the most successful manger of the last couple of decades. But he's lost his mojo. Same time, if it was choice of binning him or the owners I'd keep him anyday. My guess is they'll end up top 4 or so and he'll leave next Summer.

Conte did the same last year constantly saying he required more players and whilst he may have had a point or not , it just grates after a while and becomes a squeaky wheel. Sure there is huge pressure to win the league/CL, or finish in the top four but surely there is something more to being a coach than just buying the best players? I've got all the time in the world for coaches that manage to build a team, coach them, improve players , bring some youth through, work on tactics Simeone, Pochettino, Jardim at Monaco, Klopp , the bloke at Sevilla, and Sarri ( obviously might all go wrong at Chelsea).
Cant quite work out the Mourinho/Woodward situation tbh , Woodward pretty much put his reputation and position on the line in going for Mourinho who wasnt exactly inundated with options after the way he left Chelsea. Hes had the dosh and whilst everyone can say not as much as City , Guardiola has made some excellent signings , very often players that were slightly off the media radar, and improved them.
Mourinho tends to pick a fight and keep it going before he leaves normally having had his agent sound other clubs out but I'm not sure where he would go next . Possibly PSG, but not Spain , long shot Juventus . The top 4 is now very competitive and finishing in that top four is an achievement itself but whether or not thats good enough for United fans and for Mourinho is another question. I dont know if he can change his style of play or whether its integral to his belief that that is what wins trophies , if it is he'll have to be judged on that.

 

[Favelado]

I think Mourinho is managing to put a downer on the whole feeling around United. It must get the fans down too. I liked this about motiviation and young players.

Klopp, Mourinho and Guardiola on young players: The difference - Football365

With the World Cup ending on July 15 and the new season beginning on August 10, managers of the Premier League’s elite clubs have been forced to turn to youth.

On Saturday evening, Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City were all in action and all used a number of academy players.

See if you can spot the difference:

Jurgen Klopp

“All the young boys who came on are in really good shape this pre-season.

“Sheyi [Ojo] is a really confident boy as he showed tonight, not only around the penalty when he sent Daniel Sturridge away! You need balls to do that!

“Pedro Chirivella in the No 6, a fantastic football player. Curtis Jones played his first game as a full-back in front of 100,000 people – I would have been nervous, he wasn’t.

“Rafa Camacho plays a pre-season that is just fantastic, mostly as a full-back which he’d never played before, so they’ve learned a lot.

“Ben Woodburn is 100% back for example. How it is with young boys, from time to time the improvement doesn’t go day by day, but he has played such a good pre-season.

“Nat Phillips, my god – what a pre-season he has played! These boys are completely open.

“If I said run right, they would run right. I am really happy to see their progress. What we will do with that and when we will see. We don’t decide tonight.”



Pep Guardiola

“I am so satisfied for this tour and what these guys have done. It was the same in the previous two games – I said how proud I was.

“We have come here with a lot of young players and just one professional player from the first-team at the start – Claudio Bravo because Laporte was injured.

“On the other side, I am so satisfied for this tour and what these guys have done. It was the same in the previous two games – I said how proud I was.

“So for them, it will be good for the future. It helps them to understand the game. I like to see my players fight for our teammates and play like a humble team.

“You cannot imagine how much I have enjoyed these two weeks with these guys. The young guys have desire. They open their eyes and listen because they have their whole career ahead of them. I want to say thank you to them.”



Jose Mourinho

“We started the game with a lot of players who will not be in our squad on Aug. 9. This is not my squad, not even half, not even 30 percent of my squad. So don’t look to this.

“Look, do you want him to be very happy with the players he [Alexis Sanchez] has around him? We are here just to survive and to have some not very ugly results. Alexis is the only striker we have. And the poor man is there trying his best.”

Are we reading too much into this stuff? Doesn’t this matter? Isn’t it a question of motivation and man management?

 

[Wilf]

I think Mourinho is managing to put a downer on the whole feeling around United. It must get the fans down too. I liked this about motiviation and young players.

Klopp, Mourinho and Guardiola on young players: The difference - Football365

Used to think Mourhino was at least as good as Fergie at mind games, if not better. But there's no obvious strategy in play here - he just harms his own squad. Only possible logic is expectation management/self justifications, but it's a self destructive way to even do that.

 

[Favelado]

Used to think Mourhino was at least as good as Fergie at mind games, if not better. But there's no obvious strategy in play here - he just harms his own squad. Only possible logic is expectation management/self justifications, but it's a self destructive way to even do that.

The concept of mind-games is maybe getting dated in itself, except for in particular situations. Klopp just made a joke, was his usual relaxed self, and the wind up didn't work. Everyone's seen that Keegan video, and the Benítez one. Just don't let it get to you, and the mind games fail.

 

[Wilf]

The concept of mind-games is maybe getting dated in itself, excpet for in particular situations. Klopp just made a joke, was his usual relaxed self, and it didn't work.

Yep, most of the good managers just seem to get on with and it and generate some positivity around their own squad. This really is destructive stuff for united. Not sure who at the club is in a position to tell him to wind his neck in. He's battling away with Woodward anyway, so not him. Ferguson isn't in a position to do anything and the owners tend to keep out of the day to day management afaik. Must admit though, I'm not that well up on the hierarchy at united. The likes of bobby Charlton don't seem to go in for 'quiet words'.

 

[Badgers]

 

[Badgers]

Jose Mourinho: What is going on - and does he want out of Man Utd?

 

[Badgers]

Manchester United want former Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane to replace Jose Mourinho as manager if he leaves Old Trafford

Source The S*n so probably not true but might lift some spirits in the squad

 

[Badgers]

Real Madrid and Croatia midfielder Mateo Kovacic, 24, will not join Manchester United because he does not want to play under Jose Mourinho (Marca)

 

[Dandred]

Real Madrid and Croatia midfielder Mateo Kovacic, 24, will not join Manchester United because he does not want to play under Jose Mourinho (Marca)

 

[Wilf]

TBH, his pitch at the moment is lacking something: 'We're shit, everybody's injured, we're not very keen on paternity leave and there's loads of kids who will never play the first team. Can we sign you?'

 

[Badgers]

Pogba possibly heading to Juventus .

Manchester United's France World Cup winning midfielder Paul Pogba, 25, has told team-mates he wants to leave Old Trafford and join Barcelona. (Daily Mail)

 

[Badgers]

United have missed out on signing Bayern Munich defender Jerome Boateng. The 29-year-old Germany defender called United boss Jose Mourinho to tell him he is grateful for the interest, but won't be coming to Manchester. (Bild)

 

[Wilf]

Bit of a theme emerging of players not wanting to come to United:
Manchester United make €25m offer for Diego Godín to trigger release clause

 

[Badgers]

Good post on the BBC site

 

[sealion]

That's about right. He never stays long and tends to manufacure his dearture by alienating his players in public. He's a busted flush and bad for the game.

 

[Wilf]

Good post on the BBC site

View attachment 143592

Not sure the squad is good enough to challenge citeh, but good enough to get top 4, later stages of CL etc. But yeah, this is a problem almost entirely of Mourhino's making, give or take having a fair number of his players still involved in the World Cup latter stages. Might not be gone by November, my money's on the Summer, but I'd struggle to see him being manager in 12 months.

 

[Wilf]

That's about right. He never stays long and tends to manufacure his dearture by alienating his players in public. He's a busted flush and bad for the game.

Yeah, might have done better if he's taken over straight after Fergie, but in 2018 he has become the problem.

Realise, it's easy to come out with this kind of stuff in retrospect and all that. But this really is a terrible way of setting your team up for the start of a season. Chickens coming home to roost with players saying they don't want to move to OT.