Ole

Originally Posted by utd99

We’re clutching at straws because we desperately want things to work out. The problem is it’s still based too much on hope with very little evidence.

United supporters are among the most realistic I’ve ever spoken to. Club of our stature should be challenging for the top every single year, and screaming to high heaven if we’re not, but we don’t. Can you imagine RM supporters being happy to compete with Sociedad or Seville and show signs of improvement and cohesion? £#%&! that, they’d have the hankies out after a month. We’re not like that; we just want signs of improvement and actual evidence we’re on the right path. We simply don’t have that evidence right now, and to suggest otherwise is starting to feel like hysterical delusion.

However realistic or modest the goals you assign Ole and his team, I think it’s clear he wasn’t hired to make us worse - and we’re worse. Keane was right when he said that you can’t live in the future; that players and managers are paid to win football matches now. Our now is pretty £#%&!ing dire tbh.

If he had never played for United, there would be no benefit of the doubt... people would be incredulous that we'd employed someone who'd managed Molde and Cardiff halfway through a 6 month caretaker role.

The only reason more people aren't screaming for him to be sacked is because of who he is. That's a simple fact.

We need to find our way as a club. Meaning we need the club to find a way to be successful and challenging regardless of who is manager. City have won titles under 3 different coaches since 2012 and they'll continue to be successful when Guardiola leaves. That's because their house is in order and all pulling in the same direction.

We need to stop with this utter fallacy that the head coach needs to be tasked with re-shaping the entire club and it's entire ethos. Because in 5 years that coach will be gone and suddenly you're handing over control to a completely different person with different ideas. That's something that a director of football should be doing at boardroom level.

Originally Posted by Sparky***

If he had never played for United, there would be no benefit of the doubt... people would be incredulous that we'd employed someone who'd managed Molde and Cardiff halfway through a 6 month caretaker role.

The only reason more people aren't screaming for him to be sacked is because of who he is. That's a simple fact.

We’re in denial mate. I don’t want it to be true either; it just is.

There’s literally no doubt that if Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was Lars Larsikssen with exactly the same background he wouldn’t have a single supporter right now. Especially if that £#%&!ing idiot Lars kept picking Pereira in central midfield.

hypothetically speaking.. lars is as bad as moyes. short and long term.

Originally Posted by utd99

We’re in denial mate. I don’t want it to be true either; it just is.

There’s literally no doubt that if Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was Lars Larsikssen with exactly the same background he wouldn’t have a single supporter right now. Especially if that £#%&!ing idiot Lars kept picking Pereira in central midfield.

He literally has no one else to pick

Originally Posted by Sparky***

If he had never played for United, there would be no benefit of the doubt... people would be incredulous that we'd employed someone who'd managed Molde and Cardiff halfway through a 6 month caretaker role.

The only reason more people aren't screaming for him to be sacked is because of who he is. That's a simple fact.

We need to find our way as a club. Meaning we need the club to find a way to be successful and challenging regardless of who is manager. City have won titles under 3 different coaches since 2012 and they'll continue to be successful when Guardiola leaves. That's because their house is in order and all pulling in the same direction.

We need to stop with this utter fallacy that the head coach needs to be tasked with re-shaping the entire club and it's entire ethos. Because in 5 years that coach will be gone and suddenly you're handing over control to a completely different person with different ideas. That's something that a director of football should be doing at boardroom level.

There is another reason - lack of stand-out replacements.

Don’t get me wrong, if Pochettino came in I’d be happy with the appointment, but he’s just had an absolutely awful run which ended with him getting the sack from Spurs. And he’s the best candidate.
Who else is there? Allegri?

The last two managers were seasoned, experienced winners and still got the boot.

Originally Posted by dunk

He literally has no one else to pick

There is that. Matic is a pointless entity at this stage and Pogba is just ticking off days until he £#%&!s off.

The more pertinent question of course is why the £#%&! has manchester united allowed the squad to become so utterly threadbare

Getting rid of Ole is like getting rid of HR on the Titanic as the boat is sinking.

We need to accept we are rebuilding and that's that.

Obviously the rot is at the top with the Glazers and Woowar.

Assuming they are still in situ we need to get a football director in and get Ewar away from football.

We need to just keep this process going. 2 shit@#%&!s out. 3 players with a good attitude in.

Originally Posted by dunk

He literally has no one else to pick

You could play Axel in midfield as he's done it before and done it quite well
Not ideal but at least he'll offer the defence some protection and have someone who's actually calm and measured on the ball

This idea that Ole has no options but Pereira is nonsense

They're not great options but then that's his fault for not signing a midfielder even on loan in the summer

Originally Posted by ZiggyStardust

This idea that Ole has no options but Pereira is nonsense

It's really not. Pereira can play centre midfield, he's just bad at it. Having then to resort to playing a centre back in midfield would suggest that he has no other options.

Originally Posted by ZiggyStardust

They're not great options but then that's his fault for not signing a midfielder even on loan in the summer

Originally Posted by Patty_b

It's really not. Pereira can play centre midfield, he's just bad at it. Having then to resort to playing a centre back in midfield would suggest that he has no other options.

That is an option whether you like it or not

Fergie played O'Shea as the sitting midfielder the season when we let Keane leave and Scholes got his eye issue
Sometimes you just have to find the best option to give a bit of balance to the team

Lindelof could play a holding role - good distribution and reads the game quite well. Stick Axel in alongside Maguire for the extra physicality.

Originally Posted by ZiggyStardust

That is an option whether you like it or not

Fergie played O'Shea as the sitting midfielder the season when we let Keane leave and Scholes got his eye issue
Sometimes you just have to find the best option to give a bit of balance to the team

O'Shea could play anywhere though. It's possible they looked at Axel playing in midfield and decided that it wouldn't work.

We have no options in midfield. This isn't a newsflash, it's something everyone knew in the summer.

And given the track record of the people who sign the players, it's doubtful that blame for the lack of midfield signings in summer fall on Ole.

Originally Posted by dunk

He literally has no one else to pick

That’s not exactly true. He had absolutely no need to alienate Matic the way he has -and before you steam in with the Matic is shit and finished stuff, I’m not suggesting the man is the answer to all our problems, but he IS a central midfielder and does know how to play the position. Either way, Matic with a zimmer frame is better there than Pereira. But even if you don’t buy that route, Ole putting Garner, or Levitt in there would have at least acknowledged that he recognised that the Sheffield United debacle couldn’t happen again and would try something - anything- different to avoid it happening again.

Any one of us could have told him what would happen yesterday, and yet he did it again. That Grealish and company would run rings around us was the most obvious thing I’ve seen in football this year, apart from Pogba pulling a sickie.

Dropping Mata and playing one of Axel, Lindelof or Garner in front of the back four could have given us a better structure and would’ve allowed Fred and especially Peirera to play their more natural game.

The 4231 just doesn’t work for us imo and usually leaves us outnumbered in midfield which is our biggest weakness on the pitch.

Originally Posted by utd99

That’s not exactly true. He had absolutely no need to alienate Matic the way he has -and before you steam in with the Matic is shit and finished stuff, I’m not suggesting the man is the answer to all our problems, but he IS a central midfielder and does know how to play the position. Either way, Matic with a zimmer frame is better there than Pereira. But even if you don’t buy that route, Ole putting Garner, or Levitt in there would have at least acknowledged that he recognised that the Sheffield United debacle couldn’t happen again and would try something - anything- different to avoid it happening again.

Any one of us could have told him what would happen yesterday, and yet he did it again. That Grealish and company would run rings around us was the most obvious thing I’ve seen in football this year, apart from Pogba pulling a sickie.

Pereira was never designed to be the DM tbf, that was The Scottish Player, and Fred and Pereira were charged with getting about the pitch and using the ball (), which wasn't horrible. Matic had no place doing Pereira's role in that set-up tbh.

Matic has been injured too, so he wasn't even available.

Leaving the midfield to rot and fall into rack and ruin the way they have is disgusting and was the cause of our issues last season and this.

Originally Posted by AK14

Dropping Mata and playing one of Axel, Lindelof or Garner in front of the back four could have given us a better structure and would’ve allowed Fred and especially Peirera to play their more natural game.

The 4231 just doesn’t work for us imo and usually leaves us outnumbered in midfield which is our biggest weakness on the pitch.

The fact we're talking about putting CB's in DM or a 19 year old kid that has never started a game says everything about Ole's midfield options.

He’s making a rod for his own back with some of these decisions. Even if Pogba were available, is anyone really confident he wouldn’t play him in a two with Fred? I also think he hasn’t realised that the balance has shifted away from staying onside with these players to reassuring the support that he gets how bad it is, because I don’t know about the rest of you lot but I don’t want to hear how he thinks Pereira is improving all the time, how hard they’re working in training and how it’s all “just football”.

The grinny gog routine is getting a bit tiresome tbh.

Originally Posted by dunk

The fact we're talking about putting CB's in DM or a 19 year old kid that has never started a game says everything about Ole's midfield options.

I agree and It’s definitely not ideal but he has to adapt.

Even with all of them fit I’m not confident we’ve got the right players to play with just two midfielders. We started the season with Pogba and The Scottish Player in a two and didn’t look great.

Originally Posted by My Name is Heath

Getting rid of Ole is like getting rid of HR on the Titanic as the boat is sinking.

We need to accept we are rebuilding and that's that.

Obviously the rot is at the top with the Glazers and Woowar.

Assuming they are still in situ we need to get a football director in and get Ewar away from football.

We need to just keep this process going. 2 shit@#%&!s out. 3 players with a good attitude in.

I don't think anybody would have a problem with that tbh.

Originally Posted by utd99

He’s making a rod for his own back with some of these decisions. Even if Pogba were available, is anyone really confident he wouldn’t play him in a two with Fred? I also think he hasn’t realised that the balance has shifted away from staying onside with these players to reassuring the support that he gets how bad it is, because I don’t know about the rest of you lot but I don’t want to hear how he thinks Pereira is improving all the time, how hard they’re working in training and how it’s all “just football”.

The grinny gog routine is getting a bit tiresome tbh.

Sick to the back teeth of all of it tbh. But realistically he's looking at being allowed to sell 2-3 players a season and sign 3-4 if he's £#%&!ing lucky. He's got no choice but to try and get something out of the players that are here and can't alienate them.

The club is £#%&!ed mate.

Originally Posted by AK14

I agree and It’s definitely not ideal but he has to adapt.

Even with all of them fit I’m not confident we’ve got the right players to play with just two midfielders. We started the season with Pogba and The Scottish Player in a two and didn’t look great.

I think, everyone fit and willing to play () you're looking at Pogba, Fred and The Scottish Player, with Pogba having a 'free' role. Always looked to be the most likely of the combinations of midfielders at the club to work, and should've been tried last season, for me.

Originally Posted by dunk

Pereira was never designed to be the DM tbf, that was The Scottish Player, and Fred and Pereira were charged with getting about the pitch and using the ball (), which wasn't horrible. Matic had no place doing Pereira's role in that set-up tbh.

Matic has been injured too, so he wasn't even available.

Whatever he came up with, I would have thought it was as clear as day that he had to begin from one simple premise: that the centre of the park we put out against SU could never happen again. Yet there it was, and there it was...again. Indefensible.