Bingo. Numerous times I have seen fans on here claiming that our amazing ‘United way’ is holding us back, or that we cannot succeed because we are just too fond of our principles and traditions.
I agree that its a concept that no one knows what the fk it means but it does exist. Ten Haag said it himself. For this thread I just mean our traditional values and the way things are run based on the past and not being able to adapt to modern times. DOF being one, having to play a youth player like Rashford, transition football etc
Which isn't surprising when you look at the skills needed. Passing and automatisms have to be there for both to be excellent at it, the main difference is that possession teams usually utilize small movements of their players to open up spaces while in transition you use big movements.
He's trying to make the best team out of the tools he has, recognising that within his first 12 months of the job he can't sign 23 new players to replace every member of the squad including replacing our best players. There's also nothing wrong with being good in transitions, see Klopp's Liverpool, being good in transitions doesn't mean you have to be hopeless at retaining the ball.
That's the same excuses we have heard for over 10 years. At the end of the day we are being run behind the scenes the same way we always have and we are trying to play the same type of football. Something is amiss. No matter the manager or the amount we spend it all goes the same way. It's a cultural issue that makes it impossible to shift.
That's an excellent question.
None of this is specific for United. Having a bunch of homegrown players is smart business as it allows to focus your spending on some key players, you don't need to spread your budget over a whole squad.
I think it has a place. It was definitely about youth and the use of home grown talent, though our youth system was horribly neglected and its only now catching up. Its also about attacking, exciting football, which Mou, LGV and others failed to deliver.Pretty much and so is a lot of other teams mantra funnily enough. How I feel those teams who pride themselves on being boring as feck using old foreign guys to get the job done!
I hate this ‘United Way’ thing that gets trotted out. It’s always from the old boys who were around United when we were successful. They don’t seem to realise that’s over a decade ago now and football has moved on. Gary Neville is a big offender of this and Meulensteen’s new book alludes to that too.
I think you confuse different things. The United way was never particularly about continuity, Busby played for City (we did try and sign him), and after the war a contact from the signing convinced him to join as manager over Liverpool. He later began the programme of promoting youth players over signings. His disastrous attempts to appoint his own successor and sit above them were not a part of the club culture, indeed we were once promised by Gill that United had learnt from this and they had a plan. In fact the board chose to do the same thing with Fergie. Keeping some ex players around has a role, but the key lesson from Busby is getting the best people available.
Pretty much this imo. From the Busby Babe’s onwards.
I would argue that United from 91-96 were that team and won the PL numerous times; of course this style of play was a big reason ( in addition to the European Cup domestic player rule) we kept bouncing out of the then European Cup and a major reason we bought Veron ( to teach us how to play in the European Cup).
Apparently he asked Ancelotti as well before Moyes and he had just agreed to go to Madrid, but you are right there surely was a better manager than Moyes.
