So why is our team so poorly motivated? Why are they no longer fighting until the end like they did under Fergie? There are countless times in the past when United should have dropped points, only to get a late goal. That wasn't luck, that was fighting until the end even after the opposition had switched off. Simply put; the players have no drive. And I can't help but think that it's because the atmosphere in the dressing room is at an all time low. And this is what I think has happened;
Let's think back to the last few seasons for these players under Fergie, and what happened whenever they had a poor performance. Now, I'm not going to speculate on what went on behind closed doors, because none of us know. Fergie may have given them a pat on the back and told them that everything was going to be all right, or he could have dragged them into the steel cage and smashed their faces in with a folding chair. What we do know, however, is what he said to the press.
Whenever United played poorly under Fergie, he would come out and draw attention to himself. He would blame the ref, or the linesman, or the ballboys, or a stray cat, or his morning bowl of porridge. He would rant and rave until the focus was on him, and no longer on the poor performance from his players. He was willing to do anything to protect them from bad press. Compare that to Moyes, whose first response to a poor performance is to tell the press that the team aren't good enough and that they are lacking enough world class talent. I don't care how much these players are being paid; if the man who is meant to be leading you is more than happy to throw you to the wolves at the first sign of failure, then you're unlikely to trust that man enough to follow him.
Moyes' problem with being defensive isn't just to do with his tactics on the ptich. He can bring in the players that he needs to suit his defensive style of play, but that doesn't get rid of the motivation problem. Because he's also defensive with his tactics in interviews, how long is it going to be before he alienates his new crop of players when we hit a rough spell?
I've given Moyes every chance, but unless we play blindingly well until the end of the season I don't see any signs that things are going to be better.