HELLO my good football people… guys, as you know I refrain from commenting on Manchester United too much these days, they’re in a hole, it’s depressing and the light at the end of the tunnel is dim to say the least.
But the last couple of games are probably two of the worst since Sir Alex Ferguson departed.
Yes, they beat Southampton last week thanks to a late hat-trick from the busy Amad Diallo, but until then it was diabolical to say the least.
I was messaging a United mate and he was literally on the verge of smashing his TV up. Serious! And he’s a lovely fella…
But the football they were producing was probably fit for the second or third division.
Worryingly, the attitude of the players, their commitment and energy was like a group who have absolutely nothing to play for, not least a bit of f*****g pride, or even if it was the multi-million pound wages they’re on.
This is Manchester United, historically one of the greatest teams in the world? Surely you can’t be that much of a w****r that putting that shirt on and running out onto the Old Trafford pitch ain’t enough to motivate you? I really just don’t get it?
I mean I played for the second team at FN Rangers in Maitland for many years and used to get butterflies in the changing room pre-match. And surely if you didn’t want to play for a club for whatever reason it might be, you’d stick in a bit of graft every week to ensure a decent transfer?
But no, none of that and to make matters worse, after (okay they won) that EMBARRASSING display at home, against the bottom club in the division who’ve won one in 22, and they’ve been undone by pundits across the globe, they come out the following Sunday and perform EVEN WORSE?
You have to ask yourself, is there some kind of curse on Old Trafford? Or on a serious note, is this coach the absolute wrong choice and is he being repelled from the dressing room because of the ideas and tactics he is deploying (Including making an outcast of Marcus Rashford?).
He comes with a great reputation albeit from a ‘farmers league’… could the Premier League be a step too far for him?
Or is the imminent culling of the squad at the end of the season totally disrupting ‘team’ spirit? Whatever it is and let’s be realistic they ain’t getting relegated, this club is in absolute crisis. Ironically, watching the first half against Brighton, Joshua Zirkzee was a completely different player than we’ve seen, holding the ball up well, dribbling past a player or two, laying off the ball effectively. I was like “Oh, so that’s what he can do” before totally disappearing in the second half.
The reality of the game was that Brighton (like Southampton) controlled every area of the pitch, passing the ball around in neat organized patterns while United chased shadows… including my favourite player Kobbie Mainoo who was off the pace and worryingly devoid of his usual terrier-like dynamism.
It was unusual, but no surprise when coach Ruben Amorim slammed the team post match acknowledging that his Manchester United side are perhaps “the worst the club have ever had!” and was honest in understanding the fans.
“You are getting a new coach who is losing more than the last coach – imagine that. We need to survive this moment. I know that. Jeeeez, it ain’t looking good! The ‘Red (faced) Devils’ host Glasgow Rangers on Thursday night in the Europa which won’t be an easy one especially given the passionate Scottish fans who will have grabbed every ticket as soon as they went on sale, before travelling to a very decent Fulham side on Sunday at the ‘Cottage’. If you have a flutter on football, United are still given odds like they’re a decent side, but they’re not! Only the gods of football can make us understand how they were so good against Arsenal a couple of weeks ago?
Meanwhile, Liverpool go marching on, unconvincing but nevertheless banking the points relentlessly. They haven’t looked as good as they were a month ago, with Mo Salah noticeably not up to his usual standard, but I still back them to go on and win it, while Arsenal just can’t get themselves stuck into winning mode, complete with the most annoying fanbase on this planet calling for Mikel Arteta to go? Nuts!
Chelsea v Manchester City this Saturday... that should be interesting! Chat next week, bye, bye.