LVG Out Thread | BBC: Sacked!

[C'est Moi Cantona]

I wouldn't describe the Glazers



I agree. Surely playing with that intensity in an opening half an hour would have seen off the likes of Norwich, WHU, Bournemouth, Stoke etc. in a way I think he's bowed to the fans and media and this was his way of saying that which, of course, you'd never hear him say.

What a mockery it makes of his so called philosophy though because that opening burst was about as Fergie like as you will ever see and just a return to a traditional United performance. Nothing too technical or overly complicated just a well drilled formation with good footballers playing instinctively allied with a real willingness to work hard for each other - exactly how we used to play.

Maybe Fergie did have a word after all.

 

[Fully Fledged]

Form over the last 6 games:

At least we are better than Villa

 

[LonelyFire]

Question, why does everyone think that Mourinho is a good choice?

Granted that Mourinho is a winner and has a track record to prove it, he has also shown to be pretty unstable and has fallen out with the clubs he's been with in a time span of around 3 years. This season with Chelsea, he's shown that his team's results can go awry as well. You could say it's a one-off thing, but you can't guarantee it won't happen again.

Most fans agree that our club is in disarray. Does Mourinho seem like the kind of manager that brings stability to a club? If he doesn't, why bother? Just so we can try to push our way back into top 4 or challenging for the title? What are the odds of that? I wonder if Mourinho's own mental state is even adequate right now.

Plus Mourinho has never been know to play scintillatingly attractive football. So in terms of playing style, what upside does he bring compared to LVG?

It seems like swapping LVG for Mourinho now isn't going to do much benefit for THIS season anyway.

I honestly think, based on no evidence other than the Moyes' season, that LVG has a top 4 objective to meet. If he meets that criteria, then things aren't that bad, are they? Many fans may disagree, but it wouldn't matter because LVG will come to the end of his contract the following season so the fans will still get their wish for a manager change.

If LVG doesn't meet top 4 this season, I think he will be asked to go at no additional cost to the club. The management can then hire another manager, maybe it will be Mourinho (Will Mourinho be hired by some other club so quickly after this season's debacle? At least he will have half a season hiatus to sort himself out). So fans will get their wish for a manager change.

Firing LVG mid-season doesn't serve much purpose. Only half the season has gone and there is a likelihood, however slight, that things could turn around. As said above, it doesn't feel like Mourinho will be of any benefit now so who else is there? Maybe Brendan Rodgers. Would the fans accept that?

If a new manager comes, it is likely he is going to uproot most of the coaching staff - will this be helpful? Will this stabilize the team? Probably not. Or maybe we will just let Giggs take over the reins for the remainder of the season. Then what? If he does well for the remainder of the season, will we let Giggs carry on or go for a Pep or Mourinho next season?

Also, I never for once believe that our club management are totally naïve people. I wouldn't be surprised if they are already working on managerial candidates in the background. But you can't be public about this. The players already seem not to have heart to play for LVG, imagine if you go public that you are negotiating with a new manager, you can almost be sure that the players have no motivation to play for LVG for his remaining tenure.

I actually like the fact that the management has come out to back LVG. If it is true that LVG has tried to resign and it was rejected, I think that sends a message publicly. Whether it is true or not behind curtains, it tells the media that their sniping is useless (hopefully that abates), it tells the fans "we are still behind LVG so get behind him as well" and it tells the players that LVG is not going anywhere so buck up. It is a positive gesture. And I think in this sea of negativity, some positive gestures are required.

Your first sentence answers the question.

I just do not agree with much of the rest of your post.

1. This fallacy of boring Mourinho football. Check out his 04/05 & 05/06 Chelsea team, and 2011 Madrid team.
2. The days of longevity in managerial appoints are gone, so stability isn't a factor. Success and pedigree is.
3. Top 4 meeting objectives? This is Man Utd.....its also the worst PL in history and any half decent team would be walking it.
4. Brendan Rodgers!?!?!?! feck me.
5. ....Sorry, I cant get past the Rodgers comment.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

I'm not disputing some bad decisions were made, but you should recognise that several were made because of the way Fergie insisted the managerial structure should work. At United, the manager calls the shots on contracts and on transfer targets too. Sure, the commercial guys get involved, but for the most part, it's them doing the manager's bidding. Fergie's written and spoken about this at length too. So of the decisions you've mentioned, only the Moyes appointment can really be labeled a mistake of the decision-makers.

It was - after that - the managers that called the shots and made those other decisions. Running through them:

1. Hiring Moyes - Yes, a joke, but SAF has explained the process and it's clear that there were several "footballing-men" involved too; unless you don't think SAF and Bobby fit that description.
2. Nani's contract - Moyes made that call
3. Rooney's contract - Moyes was desperate to retain him and pretty much gave in to every demand.
4. Hiring LvG - Hindsight's a wonderful stick to beat people with, non? You've admitted it was a logical decision - and at the time, the only real option
5. Fellaini - Moyes failed to draw any of the big names. Sure, Ed was green too, but to blame it on decision-making would be incorrect. More Moyes' fault than Ed's I'd say.
6. Selling - We sold mostly deadwood (though Hernandez is doing his best to prove me wrong). It was hailed as a wise choice. Think about it though. Which of those that were loaned / sold are doing well? RvP? Can't get a game in Turkey! Nani? Not really tearing it up after a decent start and stank up OT for years. AdM? Sad, but he wanted to go and that was that. Januzaj? Can't get a game where he is. Wilson? Not convinced he was good enough. Fletcher? Surely you don't think he's a better player than Basti / Morgan?

And, err, it's the accountants and commercial men that have elevated United to being the commercial behemoth it is. I think we do indeed need them at the top. We just need to also get in some ruthlessness, that's all.

The fact that you put all our woes down to our managers precisely makes my point for me. The club has to bear the brunt of Wayne Rooney's obese and unjustified wages, the club has to pay Nani for a year while he plays for another club, the club has to deal with the decision to allow an existing manager in his 70s to pick his own inept successor, the club has to deal with a situation where we've got too small a squad. Hence, the club should have a structure that can deliberate and if necessary, veto daft decisions made by managers. Leaving it all to the manager and saying "HE's the king/idiot" is all well and good when you have a genius like SAF in charge who is the boss in every sense. Less so when you're likely to constantly be hiring new managers every 2-4 years. Hence, the need for the club to have it's own decision-making structure in addition to the one provided by the managerial staff.

And no, it's not that I'm not counting SAF and SBC, I'm calling our only two men being two extremely old chaps, very odd. Get the bright minds of our recent ex-players on board. Ajax have, for example, hired Van Der Sar, as their marketing director, presumably because he knows Ajax through and through, is I imagine in their opinion intelligent, and has played for the best marketed football club on the planet.

As for the accountants and commercial men, I know their worth. I'm in the former field myself. But there should be a healthy mix between footballing and non-footballing people.

 

[RedPnutz]

The decision to hire LVG was probably the most obvious one we could have taken in that scenario, but I do think the overall decision-making system at the club is lacking and is fueled by a lack of footballing-men in our decision-making tree. Barring our two golden oldies, it's full of accounts and finance people with no healthy doze of footballing nous and experience in the midst to provide a balance.

That leads to some extremely suspect decisions being made at the football club. While the decision to appoint LVG seemed the correct one at the time, if you look through the entire period post Sir Alex, we've made far too many decisions that were either outright blunders, or those that have not been justified by their eventual success.

Hiring Moyes? A joke decision.
Giving Nani a 5 year contract which was followed by his loan and sale? Terrible decision.
Giving Rooney that contract? A joke decision.
Hiring LVG? A logical decision. But it could eventually prove to be an unsuccessful one.
Buying just Fellaini in the summer of 13-14? Weird decision.
Selling so many first teamers/title winners without replacing them over 14-15 and 15-16? Weird decision.

It just comes across as a business that isn't run all that well to me at the present moment. As has been discussed at length elsewhere, I'd like to see us restructure our managerial structure, as much as we seem to be doing with our footballing team itself.

You make good points overall but a lot of it is hindsight isn't it?

Hiring Moyes was probably the key problem that impacted our ability to sign players and led to a cascade of poor outcomes. Ability aside (since there was a infinitesimal chance he could have come good), but I am thinking it is difficult for the likes of Thiago and Cesc to get excited about playing for Moyes. I think we tried to sign some quality players that summer but they didn't want to come. Also I think Moyes simply felt comfortable with Rooney - sort of like a security blanket if you will. He knew Rooney since youth and Rooney's stature at the club then (and possibly his agent) caused him to find comfort and extend Rooney's contract.

As for LVG's hire, I agree that it was a logical decision. Regarding replacements, to be fair that's difficult to predict. We did sign ADM, Falcao, Shaw and Herrera. And we were not in the CL so the squad couldn't have been that bloated.

 

[Fully Fledged]

Just saw that Moyes' highest winless streak was 3...we're now on 8.

Surely that isn't true? I seem to remember going weeks without a win under Moyes.

Yeah 3

 

[C'est Moi Cantona]

The true philosophy of LVG....lower expectations everywhere.

Well he has, because alot of people seem happy enough about things today, like I say we played well, but the nagging question for me is if he can get them playing like that why the heck didn't he do it sooner? If he has we'd have beaten alot more teams than we have this season, and likely be through to the next round in CL as well.

Just so annoying that all is well all of a sudden, when all that's happened is he's showed how crap he's has them playing previously.

 

[LonelyFire]

The fact that you put all our woes down to our managers precisely makes my point for me. The club has to bear the brunt of Wayne Rooney's obese and unjustified wages, the club has to pay Nani for a year while he plays for another club, the club has to deal with the decision to allow an existing manager in his 70s to pick his own inept successor, the club has to deal with a situation where we've got too small a squad. Hence, the club should have a structure that can deliberate and if necessary, veto daft decisions made by managers. Leaving it all to the manager and saying "HE's the king/idiot" is all well and good when you have a genius like SAF in charge who is the boss in every sense. Less so when you're likely to constantly be hiring new managers every 2-4 years. Hence, the need for the club to have it's own decision-making structure in addition to the one provided by the managerial staff.

And no, it's not that I'm not counting SAF and SBC, I'm calling our only two men being two extremely old chaps, very odd. Get the bright minds of our recent ex-players on board. Ajax have, for example, hired Van Der Sar, as their marketing director, presumably because he knows Ajax through and through, is I imagine in their opinion intelligent, and has played for the best marketed football club on the planet.

As for the accountants and commercial men, I know their worth. I'm in the former field myself. But there should be a healthy mix between footballing and non-footballing people.

Nail. On. Head.

The problems are extremely deep rooted.

 

[LonelyFire]

Well he has, because alot of people seem happy enough about things today, like I say we played well, but the nagging question for me is if he can get them playing like that why the heck didn't he do it sooner? If he has we'd have beaten alot more teams than we have this season, and likely be through to the next round in CL as well.

Just so annoying that all is well all of a sudden, when all that's happened is he's showed how crap he's has them playing previously.

Lets not let 30 mins of some decent effort blind what actually went on. We didn't look like scoring at any point in that 2nd half. Nothing has changed and im surprised so many people think it was a good performance. Its like the comments on the Rooney performance - was it the best he's been all season? Yes. Is that saying much? No. It still wasn't a great performance.

 

[Garethw]

Looks like the board are happy with us being another Arsenal and a successful season (in their eyes) will be defined as winning the top 4 cup. Depressing times.

LVG would have been sacked at any of the other top European clubs by now. Sacking a failure of a manager like him under these circumstances would not of been knee jerk at all.

We've spent over £300 million in the 2 and 1/2 seasons since the great man retired which is probably what Fergie spent in about 8 years! But due to gross incompetence of the management and board we've gone backwards. We are in absolute free fall. We won't get relegated, but this is relegation form that we've been seeing from the team over the last month.

The rot needs to be stopped but our board seems unwilling to do what needs to be done.

I love Manchester United and will do until the day I die, but these are worrying times lads and lassies.

 

[Jerch]

How the feck is he still our manager It is crazy if he will be still here after run of results we had.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

You make good points overall but a lot of it is hindsight isn't it?

Hiring Moyes was probably the key problem that impacted our ability to sign players and led to a cascade of poor outcomes. Ability aside (since there was a infinitesimal chance he could have come good), but I am thinking it is difficult for the likes of Thiago and Cesc to get excited about playing for Moyes. I think we tried to sign some quality players that summer but they didn't want to come. Also I think Moyes simply felt comfortable with Rooney - sort of like a security blanket if you will. He knew Rooney since youth and Rooney's stature at the club then (and possibly his agent) caused him to find comfort and extend Rooney's contract.

As for LVG's hire, I agree that it was a logical decision. Regarding replacements, to be fair that's difficult to predict. We did sign ADM, Falcao, Shaw and Herrera. And we were not in the CL so the squad couldn't have been that bloated.

I do use hindsight, yes. But isn't that how performance evaluation works? If I've got an employee who does 9 things out 10 wrong, repeatedly, but keeps saying everything he does appears correct to him when he does it, am I supposed to say he's doing well? In the end, you have to take decisions that are successful. Giving Rooney that big fat contract gave everyone a sigh of relief at the time because people needed good news apparently. But the football club itself is one of the biggest brands on the planet, and has to go through every inch of the contract it is drafting, as well as assessing every iota of Wayne Rooney, the footballer, and where he seems to be headed in his career, since it has to pay those cheques to him for 5 years and not just the 5 minutes it made "good news" for . Taking all that into account, it was an appalling decision irrespective of whether the layman fan smiled upon hearing it. The club is expecting to give these decisions a lot more analysis, deliberation and thought, than a fan is.

So yes, I am using hindsight, but that's the only way to judge the club. And let's be honest, the LVG decision is the only one out of the ones I mention that given proper thought and deliberation, made proper sense.

 

[LeftyBlaster]

If he wants to stay and if the board are keeping him then he needs to build on the Chelsea performance. He has to do the following;

1. Chuck the bloody philosophy out the window and let the players loose.

2. Maintain the tempo. Work on it in training.

3. Buy a centre back, striker, Bojan-styled playmaker or an out and out winger, and a back up squad player who can fill in at full back.

4. Building on point 3, stop playing Blind at defence and Young at right back. Or, you know, any other player out of their natural positions.

 

[Pexbo]

The fact that you put all our woes down to our managers precisely makes my point for me. The club has to bear the brunt of Wayne Rooney's obese and unjustified wages, the club has to pay Nani for a year while he plays for another club, the club has to deal with the decision to allow an existing manager in his 70s to pick his own inept successor, the club has to deal with a situation where we've got too small a squad. Hence, the club should have a structure that can deliberate and if necessary, veto daft decisions made by managers. Leaving it all to the manager and saying "HE's the king/idiot" is all well and good when you have a genius like SAF in charge who is the boss in every sense. Less so when you're likely to constantly be hiring new managers every 2-4 years. Hence, the need for the club to have it's own decision-making structure in addition to the one provided by the managerial staff.

And no, it's not that I'm not counting SAF and SBC, I'm calling our only two men being two extremely old chaps, very odd. Get the bright minds of our recent ex-players on board. Ajax have, for example, hired Van Der Sar, as their marketing director, presumably because he knows Ajax through and through, is I imagine in their opinion intelligent, and has played for the best marketed football club on the planet.

As for the accountants and commercial men, I know their worth. I'm in the former field myself. But there should be a healthy mix between footballing and non-footballing people.

Another great post amol.

One point I'd like to pull up though is bolded. Do we really have anyone that qualifies as that?

I think the only two I would be comfortable with having a senior position here and making footballing decisions is Neville and Solskjaer. The rest come across a bit... dim?


We should be approaching the direction of our football in the same way we approach our business. Scour Europe for the absolute cream of the crop and let them take care of it.

 

[Spoony]

If he wants to stay and if the board are keeping him then he needs to build on the Chelsea performance. He has to do the following;

1. Chuck the bloody philosophy out the window and let the players loose.

2.

But that's his modus operandi, how on earth can he change his style and philosophy now?

 

[Oo0AahCantona]

How the feck is he still our manager It is crazy if he will be still here after run of results we had.

Its the manner of the results, i could accept a 7 game winless streak if it was a one off and we were playing great football and we were just getting unlucky in games, but its the complete opposite in addition to the poor results.

 

[Striker10]

A 0-0 at home to a Chelsea team who were 16th in the league and had no recognised striker saves his job. Wow just wow. Only at United.

Unlike some games, Chelsea had some good chances while we were unlucky but on another day we would have won 4-0. LVG hasn't made this excuse but I will. We've had terrible injury problems during this period. I think we have to be positive and recognize now, that the club might know something we don't. It's easy for us at this point to just slag the club off. It's better to give some benefit of the doubt at this stage. Yesterday is a game to build upon. It wasn't perfect but we harassed and there was a work ethic and movement for 45 mins at least. Why it died off in the second half, maybe the players lack fight? Either way, forget where Chelsea are in the league. That was probably one of their better performances this season but again, if you get the rub of the green and a half competent pair of officials and we win.

 

[DOTA]

Is there a reason, beyond fearing the worst, that people are assuming we're keeping him on?

I was expecting news of his departure to come today, before seeing the tone of this thread.

 

[Esquire]

It seems to me that this is arse covering of the highest order from Woodward. He thinks he's doing right thing by standing by a manager (whom he clearly invested in) while not having any experience to draw on knowing that he's backing a lame duck. As in the transfer window, his lack of footballing know how is creating this mess.

As for Mourinho - I think you are correct. It was an easy decision to make after Norwich and Stoke and it wasn't made. This begs the question, who the feck does Woodward think he's going to get come the end of LVG (whether that's soon, the summer, or next year). For the 2nd time in two years the worlds Top 3 managers were available to be appointed/lined up and Utd look like they have failed to appoint any of them again.

As for strikers, wouldn't make one bit of a difference who we sign. The only thing that will change our form is by allowing the team to attack.

Agree completely. LVG is Ed's hire and backed him with a truckload of money. To fire LVG would reflect very badly on Ed.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Another great post amol.

One point I'd like to pull up though is bolded. Do we really have anyone that qualifies as that?

I think the only two I would be comfortable with having a senior position here and making footballing decisions is Neville and Solskjaer. The rest come across a bit... dim?


We should be approaching the direction of our football in the same way we approach our business. Scour Europe for the absolute cream of the crop and let them take care of it.

Cheers, mate.

To be fair, it's extremely hard to tell by simply listening to footballers in their role as pundits on the telly. The shows are geared towards cliched soundbytes and one/two line layman reactions. Also remember, we aren't looking for people to be leaders and managers and hence, charismatic (although not all managers all) rather ones that can contribute to decision making and operations of the club. I imagine, every squad tends to have a few intelligent footballing men.

 

[Riz]

Question, why does everyone think that Mourinho is a good choice?

Granted that Mourinho is a winner and has a track record to prove it, he has also shown to be pretty unstable and has fallen out with the clubs he's been with in a time span of around 3 years. This season with Chelsea, he's shown that his team's results can go awry as well. You could say it's a one-off thing, but you can't guarantee it won't happen again.

With regards to him falling out with clubs, he isn't blameless but when you examine the circumstances he isn't intrinsically the issue either in my opinion. 2 of his 4 clubs he hasn't "fallen out" with - Porto and Inter, in both situations he moved onto better things or at least better opportunities (after winning them the treble), what happened to those clubs after his tenure is another matter. The other 2 clubs where he has left under a cloud are Chelsea and Real Madrid, if you asked me which jobs in football were the most volatile it'd be them 2. This is the same Real Madrid who just sacked Ancelotti to bring in Rafa fecking Benitez who they too are now in the process of replacing. This is Chelsea who taking away Mourinho's stints average roughly 2 managers a season in recent years. Like I said he's not blameless but to say he falls out with every club is a gross exaggeration when looking at the reality of the situations.

Most fans agree that our club is in disarray. Does Mourinho seem like the kind of manager that brings stability to a club? If he doesn't, why bother? Just so we can try to push our way back into top 4 or challenging for the title? What are the odds of that? I wonder if Mourinho's own mental state is even adequate right now.

Mourinho is the kind of manager that bring trophies and success to a club, we are in more need of that than stability. Stability is our issue right now under Van Gaal - the fact we're sticking with him.

Plus Mourinho has never been know to play scintillatingly attractive football. So in terms of playing style, what upside does he bring compared to LVG?

The upside is we'd be very likely to start actually winning games as opposed to, you know, not winning. Not winning in 8.. In terms of Mourinho's style of football he's not the anti Christ he's just pragmatic. This is the man who holds the points record in both of the top 2 leagues in the world, he also boasts the goal scoring record in La Liga which he set during Pep's Barcelona tenure.

It seems like swapping LVG for Mourinho now isn't going to do much benefit for THIS season anyway.

No I believe Mourinho would have a massive effect on this season. I don't believe we'll finish in the top 4 now that Van Gaal is staying on but were Mourinho to be hired now ahead of the Swansea match I'd be confident in a top 4 finish.

Firing LVG mid-season doesn't serve much purpose. Only half the season has gone and there is a likelihood, however slight, that things could turn around. As said above, it doesn't feel like Mourinho will be of any benefit now so who else is there? Maybe Brendan Rodgers. Would the fans accept that?

Well the purpose would be to increase the likelihood of turning things around? You've just said there's a "slight" chance we'll turn things around - that in itself is the purpose of firing Van Gaal - not putting CL qualification at risk. I don't understand what you're getting at with Rodgers? You're not seriously comparing him to Mourinho?

If a new manager comes, it is likely he is going to uproot most of the coaching staff - will this be helpful? Will this stabilize the team? Probably not. Or maybe we will just let Giggs take over the reins for the remainder of the season. Then what? If he does well for the remainder of the season, will we let Giggs carry on or go for a Pep or Mourinho next season?

Haven't got a magic 8 ball on me so I can't answer these questions. I sincerely believe the Guardiola ship has sailed and I don't buy into the Giggs direction but I do believe that's what we're heading for.

Also, I never for once believe that our club management are totally naïve people. I wouldn't be surprised if they are already working on managerial candidates in the background. But you can't be public about this. The players already seem not to have heart to play for LVG, imagine if you go public that you are negotiating with a new manager, you can almost be sure that the players have no motivation to play for LVG for his remaining tenure.

Agreed.

I actually like the fact that the management has come out to back LVG. If it is true that LVG has tried to resign and it was rejected, I think that sends a message publicly. Whether it is true or not behind curtains, it tells the media that their sniping is useless (hopefully that abates), it tells the fans "we are still behind LVG so get behind him as well" and it tells the players that LVG is not going anywhere so buck up. It is a positive gesture. And I think in this sea of negativity, some positive gestures are required.

If it is true that the manager tried to resign and was rejected then it's an absolute farce. That would mean we have a man in charge who even doubts himself turning it around yet we tell him to carry on?

We're obviously not going for Mourinho now so most of these points are academic but that does not change my opinion that persisting with Van Gaal will prove detrimental to our season and likely result in a finish outside the top 4.

 

[Esquire]

Is there a reason, beyond fearing the worst, that people are assuming we're keeping him on?

I was expecting news of his departure to come today, before seeing the tone of this thread.

After Stoke was the perfect moment to let him go. Keeping him on for Chelski was clearly the board allowing him to get stay on based on a somewhat positive result, which yesterday was. The writing is pretty much on the wall as far as the thinking of the board is concerned. Barring a complete meltdown (I don't know what else you would call the present mess we are in), LVG will stay.

 

[Jerch]

Its the manner of the results, i could accept a 7 game winless streak if it was a one off and we were playing great football and we were just getting unlucky in games, but its the complete opposite in addition to the poor results.

4 wins in 17 matches. Even if we would be playing like bloody Barcelona he should be sacked after that run of results. The fact we are playing shit is just a bonus argument that he should be here anymore.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

But that's his modus operandi, how on earth can he change his style and philosophy now?

Changed his team's style of play in his 4th season at AZ and won them the title.

 

[Esquire]

I'm still baffled as to why we played like that yesterday, it is not what LvG does and he as stubborn a mule, so why did he suddenly decide to let the players run forward, take chances with their passes, and let everyone shoot from range?

If he can get them playing like this why did he wait until he was on the brink to do it?

Because, and I am not joking, it goes against his philosophy of possession football.

 

[LonelyFire]

Is there a reason, beyond fearing the worst, that people are assuming we're keeping him on?

I was expecting news of his departure to come today, before seeing the tone of this thread.

He's not going anywhere yet. Sounded dead man walking after Stoke and a wonderful 0-0 draw at home has revitalised him.

 

[JPRouve]

Another great post amol.

One point I'd like to pull up though is bolded. Do we really have anyone that qualifies as that?

I think the only two I would be comfortable with having a senior position here and making footballing decisions is Neville and Solskjaer. The rest come across a bit... dim?


We should be approaching the direction of our football in the same way we approach our business. Scour Europe for the absolute cream of the crop and let them take care of it.

Van der Sar is a DOF, Neville is Neville, despite his temper Keane could have a role behind the scene, OGS could be a technical adivsor, you add some experienced people and you have a team.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

We should have gotten Flamini. We'd never lack energy.

 

[Esquire]

Unlike some games, Chelsea had some good chances while we were unlucky but on another day we would have won 4-0. LVG hasn't made this excuse but I will. We've had terrible injury problems during this period. I think we have to be positive and recognize now, that the club might know something we don't. It's easy for us at this point to just slag the club off. It's better to give some benefit of the doubt at this stage. Yesterday is a game to build upon. It wasn't perfect but we harassed and there was a work ethic and movement for 45 mins at least. Why it died off in the second half, maybe the players lack fight? Either way, forget where Chelsea are in the league. That was probably one of their better performances this season but again, if you get the rub of the green and a half competent pair of officials and we win.

Mate you are definitely an optimist. Yesterday was something to build on I agree but let's put that into context. It's like saying one happening upon a tent in the middle of an snowstorm. You can probably survive for the night but it's not a long term solution?

 

[Spoony]

Changed his team's style of play in his 4th season at AZ and won them the title.

I wouldn't know anything about AZ, so I'll take your word for it.

 

[JPRouve]

He's not going anywhere yet. Sounded dead man walking after Stoke and a wonderful 0-0 draw at home has revitalised him.

The simple fact that the draw changed his mood drastically shows that he isn't fit for the job, as the boss you can't have swing moods like that. This also shows that his standards are quite low, even if he stays he needs help, maybe appointing Keane as a special advisor is a solution, he won't let Van gaal delude himself.

 

[LonelyFire]

Van der Sar is a DOF, Neville is Neville, despite his temper Keane could have a role behind the scene, OGS could be a technical adivsor, you add some experienced people and you have a team.

Couldn't agree more. Instead of racking up these Ambassador's, we should be structuring the club correctly. Its exactly the role we should have offered him.

 

[LonelyFire]

The simple fact that the draw changed his mood drastically shows that he isn't fit for the job, as the boss you can't have swing moods like that. This also shows that his standards are quite low, even if he stays he needs help, maybe appointing Keane as a special advisor is a solution, he won't let Van gaal delude himself.

As much as I like the sentiment, there is no chance of Keane working at Utd.

 

[Riz]

Is there a reason, beyond fearing the worst, that people are assuming we're keeping him on?

I was expecting news of his departure to come today, before seeing the tone of this thread.

If the board wanted him gone he'd have likely been out after the Norwich game. The fact he stayed on till the loss to Stoke and Chelsea meant our hopes rested on him resigning, with the talk of him a few weeks ago saying he would if he ever felt the relationship at the club wasn't right coupled with his seemingly defeated attitude in interviews it looked a real possibility. However it now seems the club didn't accept his resignation and instead talked him into staying whereby after a 0-0 draw to the worst Chelsea side in a decade he now seems re-energised and satisfied to continue. In short - he's staying. I'd normally say something like "barring a complete catastrophe" but I don't know what else you can call an 8 match run with 0 wins.

 

[Crustanoid]

2023......after sliding into Conference North, United manager, Louis Van Gaal asks the fans for patience, and to trust the 'process'. The United board decide to give their man time, and a transfer war chest to help tide him over

 

[Esquire]

The simple fact that the draw changed his mood drastically shows that he isn't fit for the job, as the boss you can't have swing moods like that. This also shows that his standards are quite low, even if he stays he needs help, maybe appointing Keane as a special advisor is a solution, he won't let Van gaal delude himself.

You mean you want to bring Keano in to threaten to beat everyone the eff up when they underperform...

 

[Tom Van Persie]

It actually looks like we're sticking with van Gaal. Only at United. His record is awful, we haven't won in eight games and a 0-0 draw at home to Chelsea who are 16th in the league and have just got a new manager saves his fecking job?

 

[Scorpy]

2023......after sliding into Conference North, United manager, Louis Van Gaal asks the fans for patience, and to trust the 'process'. The United board decide to give their man time, and a transfer war chest to help tide him over

 

[Esquire]

If the board wanted him gone he'd have likely been out after the Norwich game. The fact he stayed on till the loss to Stoke and Chelsea meant our hopes rested on him resigning, with the talk of him a few weeks ago saying he would if he ever felt the relationship at the club wasn't right coupled with his seemingly defeated attitude in interviews it looked a real possibility. However it now seems the club didn't accept his resignation and instead talked him into staying whereby after a 0-0 draw to the worst Chelsea side in a decade he now seems re-energised and satisfied to continue. In short - he's staying. I'd normally say something like "barring a complete catastrophe" but I don't know what else you can call an 8 match run with 0 wins.

You stole all my lines! I would say board should have wanted him gone after Stoke game. Anyway looks like we are stuck with him.

 

[Garethw]

As much as I like the sentiment, there is no chance of Keane working at Utd.

Him and LVG would be rolling around on the floor punching each other in the head within a week.