The beginning of the end... (the original board vetoed Mourinho's transfer wish list thread)

More to add, even I sometimes pressure my employer to fulfill my needs for me to deliver my job properly, It's all natural for me.

If you can't get what I asked for, fine, I'll do my job now.
 
Greck said:
Dug his grave when be launched a character assassination on his employer. No sympathy for him as he's been running his mouth to the press all his career never learning a thing from his previous sackings. Someone teach Jose that youre supposed to stay diplomatic even if your employer is being difficult. I'll be surprised if they haven't already started looking for a replacement for an impending dismissal. They must be aware they're taking this thing near a point of no return.
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Mou will always find a top club to work with. His CV speaks for itself. 2-3 years from now he might even add it to his autobiography. That would would be an interesting read.


Anyway the one who would suffer from a horrible season is us.

I hope he won't show up for the Leicester game and then he'll handle the resignation letter later on. Lets see how Woody would sort that. Maybe he can persuade Jones to play like Varane.
 
Both Woodward and Jose are to be blamed equally for this transfer window debacle . I believe the board aren't convinced by Mourinho any more . I think the pre season was so underwhelming with the same old dire play along with Mourinho's constant moaning that the board put everything on hold . I believe they will start looking around for a new manager as soon as the results start going bad this season . But their handling of Mourinho and not backing him in this transfer window might make other candidates weary . Personally I feel Mourinho's public criticism of his players and constant in fighting has damaged his long term plan . If only he had handled Martial and Pogba better then I believe the board would have totally supported him in the transfer window . I think him being ok with selling both Martial and Pogba kind of weakened his position . They both are two of our record buys and the club has invested a lot in them so obviously watching their discomfort with the manager is not exactly what they wanted to see . They are bigger assets for the club especially Pogba right now than Mourinho . I am sure the board planned a future United team with players like Martial,Lukaku,De Gea,Pogba and Rashford leading it .

Anyways coming to the Woodward and the board . Well they don't come out looking great in this whole mess either . Their indecisiveness regarding footballing matters is hurting our team . They should have hired a DOF earlier to smooth the footballing side of operations . So all this press briefing coming out right now is good and understandable . But now they need to walk the talk and get Martial , De Gea , Pogba and even Rashford to sign new long term deals since they believe in the team youngsters more than the manager . If they are unable to do it soon enough then they are totally to blame if our new season goes bad .
 
Kostur said:
The club shouldn't have signed an extension with Mourinho then or should've sacked him if they don't want to back him. This decision is laughable and given the rest of decisions made by them as of late, has got nothing to do with long-term thinking.
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What difference would Alderweireld make? Serious push for the title? You sure?

When they gave him a new contract, Martial was playing at his best and Pogba was pretty good. Many things changed after that. Martial wants out and Pogba doesn't seem thrilled to play for Jose. Jose has made it difficult for the brightest talents at the club and is chasing 30 y.o. players who are not special at that. After he helped Sanchez to take the club to the cleaners, they wouldn't allow him to act like that in the future.
 
Treble said:
What difference would Alderweireld make? Serious push for the title? You sure?

When they gave him a new contract, Martial was playing at his best and Pogba was pretty good. Many things changed after that. Martial wants out and Pogba doesn't seem thrilled to play for Jose. Jose has made it difficult for the brightest talents at the club and is chasing 30 y.o. players who are not special at that. After he helped Sanchez to take the club to the cleaners, they wouldn't allow him to act like that in the future.
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We don't have concrete proof either whether Pogba is unhappy or not. Martial might be true, but he got himself to blame.
 
I don't think the window has been that bad, a LB is the only position that I think was an absolute necessity, which does not seem was prioritised. The rest we can manage. I support the board on not signing a CB for stupid amounts of money. Besides Alderwereild will be available for 25m next season, if we want him. He is better than all our CBs with the ball, but not that much of a better defender than what we have.
 
Treble said:
Would be more expensive to buy someone for 30-40m to sit on the bench.
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Not if the money was used to strengthen the areas of the team that needed strengthening. Which we had not really done apart from Fred. Still no fullbacks, still no RW.
 
When we buy a 30 year old player = OMG Ed you know nothing
When we DONT buy a 30 year old player = OMG Ed you know nothing

I dont think Ed just sit there alone with the Glazers judging players.
Most likely they have reports from the chief scout, Jose and other people in the club.
 
Ridiculous briefing from the club - yes paying for older players can be an issue, but look at examples like Makelele at Chelsea. Bought at 30 by Ranieri after being cast aside by real Madrid - goes onto drive the club to lots of silverware. I know that for every Makelele there is a Schweinsteiger but Jose does not seem to be a sentimentalist like LVG was. He was right with Matic and Perisic!

If this was really true where is the young emerging leftback then that we need, or the young dynamic winger as long term replacement?

As usual with Ed - he went chasing after his wet dream purchase - it didn't come off and he then scrabbles around briefing about all the players he is now interested in. Far too late, Far too naïve, Far from the best and should be far away from the club. I don't think we need a director of Football, just a competent chief executive who manages not to get distracted EVERY summer with fantasy transfers.

By the way Ed, I have some magic beans that were once in Neymar's pocket - interested in buying them?
 
Jim Beam said:
Considering it's all over media I'm baffled that Ed and the board got together in the room and thought that briefing about this will be a good idea. If this is all true there is so much wrong with it, it's hard to start even for me who is not Jose biggest fan.
- so, they gave him an extension but decided he won't be backed like before somewhere along the way. If that was because of the second part of the season, they should have immediately fired him.
- they are for long-term options while agreeing on new 2-year Fellaini contract, not seeing Maguire at the age of 25 as such
- they are for the quality, but didn't actually see Alderweireld as such (it mentions Levy calling us, not we approaching Spurs at all)
- so, this is basically the board or probably Ed in DoF function, something he's never done before and doesn't have any credentials to act as one
- if they acted this way they should have provided alternative options like most DoF do in such cases
- our transfer strategy was truly all over the place
- it basically confirms there are issues between the board and the manager right at the start of the season

And you put that in the media? For what purposes? Washing your hand or looking better in whole this? We blamed Jose many times exactly for this approach. The club is looking a bit like a mess atm.
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Nail on fecking head. The fact that someone thought this would make them look good in any way is just baffling.
 
DomesticTadpole said:
Not if the money was used to strengthen the areas of the team that needed strengthening. Which we had not really done apart from Fred. Still no fullbacks, still no RW.
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I don't like Fellaini but he seems vital for that plan B of Jose (which I don't like either). Can see why Woodward sanctioned that deal.

Woodward is responsible too. He is a top businessman but his understanding of the game is limited.
 
Treble said:
What difference would Alderweireld make? Serious push for the title? You sure?

When they gave him a new contract, Martial was playing at his best and Pogba was pretty good. Many things changed after that. Martial wants out and Pogba doesn't seem thrilled to play for Jose. Jose has made it difficult for the brightest talents at the club and is chasing 30 y.o. players who are not special at that. After he helped Sanchez to take the club to the cleaners, they wouldn't allow him to act like that in the future.
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I haven't claimed that anywhere, have I?

He would've been the best CB of the lot though, no doubt, if Mourinho deemed a new CB necessary, and I can understand why, then it's not really up to Woodward to decide if he's worth it or not, especially as we're not speaking of some random player of unknown quality here. If he wants Mourinho to deliver, then so should he, especially that we've spent rather low sum of money this window, all things considered.

Pogba was pretty good whole season and the board probably doesn't even know how the players perform so it's a silly moot point, they don't look from the fans' perspective and nor should they. Calling the best CB in the league for the last two or three seasons (bar the last one for the injury reason) 'not special' has got rather little to do with objectivity. Sanchez taken the club to the cleaners? How so?

The board had no problem paying massive wages to Ibra, the board had no problem extending Rooney's contract on massive wages, the club had no problem signing Schweinsteiger on massive wages, the club has no problem overpaying injury prone players, the club had no problem extending Fellaini or Rojo's contracts. All of those pretty strip them of the 'we're thinking long term' card and that's the worry not even just because of this window, it's a worry for the life past Mourinho, we're basically fecked unless they change their approach 180 degrees, which I cannot see happening either. It means we'll be stuck in mediocrity for some time to come.

Oh, and to repeat my previous point, if they've had no problem vetoing Alderweireld/Boateng/any CB requirement, why haven't they imposed improving LB/RW on Mourinho if they are so long term, forward-thinking? Buying players for the manager would be wrong but vetoing his requirement is alright? There's no cohesion in all this and that's why I believe there's no plan, strategy, you call it behind it all.
 
Treble said:
What difference would Alderweireld make? Serious push for the title? You sure?

When they gave him a new contract, Martial was playing at his best and Pogba was pretty good. Many things changed after that. Martial wants out and Pogba doesn't seem thrilled to play for Jose. Jose has made it difficult for the brightest talents at the club and is chasing 30 y.o. players who are not special at that. After he helped Sanchez to take the club to the cleaners, they wouldn't allow him to act like that in the future.
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Looking at what the club allegedly pay Sanchez, it really is totally obscene! Crazy money.
 
Treble said:
What difference would Alderweireld make? Serious push for the title? You sure?

When they gave him a new contract, Martial was playing at his best and Pogba was pretty good. Many things changed after that. Martial wants out and Pogba doesn't seem thrilled to play for Jose. Jose has made it difficult for the brightest talents at the club and is chasing 30 y.o. players who are not special at that. After he helped Sanchez to take the club to the cleaners, they wouldn't allow him to act like that in the future.
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I thought that Woody negotiated with sanchez not mou
 
Kostur said:
I haven't claimed that anywhere, have I?

He would've been the best CB of the lot though, no doubt, if Mourinho deemed a new CB necessary, and I can understand why, then it's not really up to Woodward to decide if he's worth it or not, especially as we're not speaking of some random player of unknown quality here. If he wants Mourinho to deliver, then so should he, especially that we've spent rather low sum of money this window, all things considered.

Pogba was pretty good whole season and the board probably doesn't even know how the players perform so it's a silly moot point, they don't look from the fans' perspective and nor should they. Calling the best CB in the league for the last two or three seasons (bar the last one for the injury reason) 'not special' has got rather little to do with objectivity. Sanchez taken the club to the cleaners? How so?

The board had no problem paying massive wages to Ibra, the board had no problem extending Rooney's contract on massive wages, the club had no problem signing Schweinsteiger on massive wages, the club has no problem overpaying injury prone players, the club had no problem extending Fellaini or Rojo's contracts. All of those pretty strip them of the 'we're thinking long term' card and that's the worry not even just because of this window, it's a worry for the life past Mourinho, we're basically fecked unless they change their approach 180 degrees, which I cannot see happening either. It means we'll be stuck in mediocrity for some time to come.

Oh, and to repeat my previous point, if they've had no problem vetoing Alderweireld/Boateng/any CB requirement, why haven't they imposed improving LB/RW on Mourinho if they are so long term, forward-thinking? Buying players for the manager would be wrong but vetoing his requirement is alright? There's no cohesion in all this and that's why I believe there's no plan, strategy, you call it behind it all.
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Think a lot are saying that we do not go all out attack because he is not really sure about the defence. Apart from the fact most of them are injured most of the time as well. Toby in there and he may have let them be more attack focused.
 
DomesticTadpole said:
Think a lot are saying that we do not go all out attack because he is not really sure about the defence. Apart from the fact most of them are injured most of the time as well. Toby in there and he may have let them be more attack focused.
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The former I don't really believe, the latter is true though, Jones, Rojo and Bailly all proved to be massively injury prone and it's just Bailly that you could blame Mourinho for. Quality wise, Alderweireld is far better than anything we've got, so if you cannot get a world class attacker, for whatever reason, it shouldn't mean that you cannot buy a world class defender or a player for any other position for that matter if one is available, it's pretty straightforward here.
 
Kostur said:
I haven't claimed that anywhere, have I?

He would've been the best CB of the lot though, no doubt, if Mourinho deemed a new CB necessary, and I can understand why, then it's not really up to Woodward to decide if he's worth it or not, especially as we're not speaking of some random player of unknown quality here. If he wants Mourinho to deliver, then so should he, especially that we've spent rather low sum of money this window, all things considered.

Pogba was pretty good whole season and the board probably doesn't even know how the players perform so it's a silly moot point, they don't look from the fans' perspective and nor should they. Calling the best CB in the league for the last two or three seasons (bar the last one for the injury reason) 'not special' has got rather little to do with objectivity. Sanchez taken the club to the cleaners? How so?

The board had no problem paying massive wages to Ibra, the board had no problem extending Rooney's contract on massive wages, the club had no problem signing Schweinsteiger on massive wages, the club has no problem overpaying injury prone players, the club had no problem extending Fellaini or Rojo's contracts. All of those pretty strip them of the 'we're thinking long term' card and that's the worry not even just because of this window, it's a worry for the life past Mourinho, we're basically fecked unless they change their approach 180 degrees, which I cannot see happening either. It means we'll be stuck in mediocrity for some time to come.

Oh, and to repeat my previous point, if they've had no problem vetoing Alderweireld/Boateng/any CB requirement, why haven't they imposed improving LB/RW on Mourinho if they are so long term, forward-thinking? Buying players for the manager would be wrong but vetoing his requirement is alright? There's no cohesion in all this and that's why I believe there's no plan, strategy, you call it behind it all.
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The board has made mistakes and doesn't want to repeat them. What was the point of giving those contracts to Ibra, Rooney and Sanchez? We finsihed 6th with Ibra, Rooney was poor and Sanchez doesn't perform well. One has to learn from mistakes. We'd have finished 6th with Rashford/Martial up front and it is not clear that Sanchez does better than Martial.
 
This is the first time the board has not backed Jose like they have in the past. They did go out and buy pretty much who he wanted apart from perhaps Perisic. But it's fair to say that the majority of his signings have not really worked out that well so I can understand the board being hesitant. Ed does a great job reeling in the sponsors, but that really is reliant on a successful team on the pitch since it's all about successful branding. The problem Ed will find with a failing team is not so much sponsors coming on board, United has a very powerful global presence and fan base, but the price they'll be willing to pay. That's a language that Ed understands more than anything.
 
Treble said:
The board has made mistakes and doesn't want to repeat them. What was the point of giving those contracts to Ibra, Rooney and Sanchez? We finsihed 6th with Ibra, Rooney was poor and Sanchez doesn't perform well. One has to learn from mistakes. We'd have finished 6th with Rashford/Martial up front and it is not clear that Sanchez does better than Martial.
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Maybe the biggest mistakes they have made is with their managers.
 
Treble said:
The board has made mistakes and doesn't want to repeat them. What was the point of giving those contracts to Ibra, Rooney and Sanchez? We finsihed 6th with Ibra, Rooney was poor and Sanchez doesn't perform well. One has to learn from mistakes. We'd have finished 6th with Rashford/Martial up front and it is not clear that Sanchez does better than Martial.
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That would've been true if they haven't extended Fellaini and Rojo's contracts, this is exactly where the 'we don't want to repeat the same mistakes' argument falls on its face. What have they done to improve the situation then? Who are the young talents that would've been brought to the club if they're changing their strategy? Have we perhaps hired somebody akin to DoF to oversee things and implement a long term strategy? It's all bullshit.

With Sanchez jury is out, we've ended up 6th and won the Europa which gave us the CL in the end, also the league cup and no, I don't think we'd have done that with Martial/Rashford up front. Going by the previous seasons no, it indeed isn't clear that Sanchez does better than Martial, it's obvious he does, half a season doesn't really change that.
 
Treble said:
Mou was desperate to have Sanchez, no? And Woodward agreed to give him sillywages to appease Jose.
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Any top manager would want Sanchez but its the CEO who negotiate deals not the manager. If United were taken to the cleaners then its because of woody. The same woody who was taken to the cleaners by the ADM camp and was probably more then willing to have bale do the same
 
What it boils down to is that non-footballing people are making football related judgments, over-ruling the manager on which players should be bought.

Yet again, the situation is screaming out for a DOF but our Board is happy to remain in the dark ages. Season by season we're being left further and further behind in the way the club is run.
 
People are so fecking gullible when they want to believe a story :lol:
 
People who are blaming the board for hiring Mou and now not allowing him to waste millions on players with little re-sale value, do these people even realize that their thoughts basically imply followings:
*Mourinho is not a long-term manager, which is not good at all.
*Mourinho is a very definition of a cheque-book manager, who could not care less about his club's finances and is instead interested in his own glory.
*Mourinho finds no problem in signing players and then binning them and then buying their replacements again. Getting the best out of what he has at his disposal is not Mou's forte either.

I am fully with the Board on this one, and I do believe that Jose needs to utilize his resources better. I won't be surprised to see a new manager at the start of 2019-2020 season.
 
I fully back Woodward on this. Mourinho's standing in the game is declining and he is sullying our image in a sporting sense. He simply doesn't have the power or sway to stamp his feet and get whatever he wants. He was given a massive new contract last year so he should performing like he deserves it.

The sad fact is that he likes to make snide and undermining comments about his players to try to get the club to spend spend spend like 'finishing 2nd is one of my greatest achievements'. It leaves a very bad taste.

He either needs shut up and prove himself as a coach this season or he can start his Machiavellian BS to preserve his reputation (as he sees it). If he chooses the latter any notion of him being an elite level coach will be over.

His choice.
 
The board are obviously concerned. Players like Pogba and Martial unhappy and Mourinho’s transfer targets the wrong side of 29, they’re probably a bit pissed at having to buy another CB following the 2 he’s already bought, we currently have 5 first team cb’s in the squad.

Add the style of football and constant moaning it’s not hard to be a bit dismayed.

Saying than either back him or sack him, there’s been a complete lack of communication. I’m putting money on him leaving before Christmas.
 
Bruno Marques said:
please explain to me one thing. How can a manager get the first place now and also solve the long time problems. Because the same people here that say we should buy someone younger with potential are the same that ask for José head if we don't win anything this year.

It's kind of strange. Are people just uninformed how football works or it's just the hate that blinds everyone and they just pick random arguments to try to have the same result.
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Well said. Surely this turn of events means top 4 is the target once again? The club can't vetoe all these transfers and have any expectation of actually winning anything now. They've screwed is all over big time. This is the most concerned I have been under the Glazers and their stooge - absolutely mind boggling stuff.
 
I always thought this year's transfer list was utter shite. Glad the higher powers think the same.

Also, it's about time the board gave one good one back to Mourinho and put him in his place. Maybe he'll learn to shut his mouth next time on preseason.
 
Water Melon said:
People who are blaming the board for hiring Mou and now not allowing him to waste millions on players with little re-sale value, do these people even realize that their thoughts basically imply followings:
*Mourinho is not a long-term manager, which is not good at all.
*Mourinho is a very definition of a cheque-book manager, who could not care less about his club's finances and is instead interested in his own glory.
*Mourinho finds no problem in signing players and then binning them and then buying their replacements again.
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1. Board and everybody knew that's the case when they hired him, so why hire him in the first place, nevermind extend his contract? There are no 'long-term managers' by the way, it's a dead concept with SAF and Wenger gone. It's one in one hundred managers type of shit.
2. It was known as well, wasn't it? In current market, like it or not, you spend big or you get outspent by the others who don't give a shit. Club's finances are also connected with success or lack of thereof, so no, it's not 'his own glory', it's also the club's glory, unless we no longer care about titles and cups of course.
3. I take it we're talking Miki/Sanchez swap here? You genuinely cannot look at it as a wrong choice. CBs? Rojo, Jones, Smalling all haven't been bought by him, two of them are injury prone.

The underinvestment problem precedes Mourinho, they've had no problem underinvesting under the best manager in history, why should it be any different under Mourinho then.
 
Kostur said:
1. Board and everybody knew that's the case when they hired him, so why hire him in the first place, nevermind extend his contract? There are no 'long-term managers' by the way, it's a dead concept with SAF and Wenger gone. It's one in one hundred managers type of shit.
2. It was known as well, wasn't it? In current market, like it or not, you spend big or you get outspent by the others who don't give a shit. Club's finances are also connected with success or lack of thereof, so no, it's not 'his own glory', it's also the club's glory, unless we no longer care about titles and cups of course.
3. I take it we're talking Miki/Sanchez swap here? You genuinely cannot look at it as a wrong choice. CBs? Rojo, Jones, Smalling all haven't been bought by him, two of them are injury prone.

The underinvestment problem precedes Mourinho, they've had no problem underinvesting under the best manager in history, why should it be any different under Mourinho then.
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So, Mou is a cheque book manager who plans short term, causes havoc and goes into melt down mode which ends up in being kicked out of club. Yes, it was a wrong decision by Woodward. He has learnt to not bend over Jose. Now Mou has shown his true colours. Past it manager who can do feck all with players he inherited, who can do feck all with most of the players he bought, unless he outspends everyone. He also kills all the joy and fun by making the team play in the most boring style possible. Hope Woody learns from his mistakes and Jose fecks off. No top team will hire Jose, maybe bar PSG, but even with them he will fail to win CL.
 
meamth said:
Well at least the board tried to signed all of the targets mentioned, but the price are well above what they prepared to pay for. Added to the stubbornness of Levy and Maguire's long term contract it all seems logical why it didn't materialize.
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This is the point all the drama queens are missing.

It’s not that we didn’t try and buy the players that we wanted, and if we could have got them at an agreeable price, then clearly we would have a couple more signings.

We have gone to clubs, and they have come back with valuations that we consider excessive given their age, and therefore the transfer fees and wages do not stack up over the lifetime of the player. I completely agree with this approach.

If for example we could have got Willian for £30-40m then I think he would be here, but if Chelsea weee quoting £70-80m, for a player who you may consider to be a first team player for 3 years - those figures just don’t add up.

Anyone who is advocating a Director of Football (the most undefined role in football) as a golden bullet is wide of the mark.

This article is only a slice of the truth, but extremely insightful all the same. We should be taking a long term view, and it’s not unusual in the slightest not to give the manager everything he wants, no matter the cost. This doesn’t mean that we are not backing him. He has more input into transfers and influence at Utd than he ever had at Chelsea or Madrid. Where as an aside, at Chelsea, they had a DoF who bought players that Jose didn’t even want, and so didn’t play them.
 
Castia said:
Saying than either back him or sack him, there’s been a complete lack of communication. I’m putting money on him leaving before Christmas.
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I don't see why its an either or situation. It seems Mou has been told to work with what he's got, which is a lot of big money signings which he had autonomy in choosing, a luxury the vast majority of managers don't get.

There has to be a limit of throwing money at the situation.
 
Water Melon said:
So, Mou is a cheque book manager who plans short term, causes havoc and goes into melt down mode which ends up in being kicked out of club. Yes, it was a wrong decision by Woodward. He has learnt to not bend over Jose. Now Mou has shown his true colours. Past it manager who can do feck all with players he inherited, who can do feck all with most of the players he bought, unless he outspends everyone. He also kills all the joy and fun by making the team play in the most boring style possible. Hope Woody learns from his mistakes and Jose fecks off. No top team will hire Jose, maybe bar PSG, but even with them he will fail to win CL.
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He extended his contract half a year ago. I repeat, half a year ago. He hasn't learnt shit, you're deluding yourself if you really think so.
 
Classical Mechanic said:
I don't see why its an either or situation. It seems Mou has been told to work with what he's got, which is a lot of big money signings which he had autonomy in choosing, a luxury the vast majority of managers don't get.

There has to be a limit of throwing money at the situation.
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Well he was under the impression he was getting at least one more player, now the stories suggest the board looked at his list and decided against it. They should have told him that before loaning out Tuanzebe and TFM.
 
Castia said:
Well he was under the impression he was getting at least one more player, now the stories suggest the board looked at his list and decided against it. They should have told him that before loaning out Tuanzebe and TFM.
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We have enough centre backs as it is. He would have only given Axel and TFM scant opportunities. He would chose Fellani to play back there over them.
 
Castia said:
Well he was under the impression he was getting at least one more player, now the stories suggest the board looked at his list and decided against it. They should have told him that before loaning out Tuanzebe and TFM.
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Decided against it based on the prices. They didnt just not fancy any of the players
 
Smores said:
People are so fecking gullible when they want to believe a story :lol:
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You are spot on.

Manager has clearly been thrown under this bus on this one, real hatchett job.

No doubt we will be throwing out a hail mary to zidane in October, when Jose has been frog marched off site.

Joke of a club behind the scenes.
 
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