Where we are now to be honest, unless there is a significant change either in ownership or leadership. The club will continue to attract players but I just cannot see us making the correct decisions off the pitch which will continue to hamper us in the post Fergie era.
Where do you see our club five years from now?
- Thread starter RedBanker
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Under Newcastle unfortunately. The board and the fans need to leave the nepotism, DNA, United way, class of 92 behind and start acting like a pro club, where we hire competent people in every position. Same as we don’t sign 28 year old strikers from the Lithuanian league, we shouldn’t hire experienced managers from the Norwegian league. Staying classy and supporting the manager is fine when you know the board is competent and ruthless, but with these clowns making decisions, applauding and cheering Ole after the shiteshow we’ve witnessed on Sunday is counterproductive.
They will be in the mix big time I think.
The club being rebuilt by a relatively unknown manager.
Champions. City and Liverpool in transition post Guardiola/Klopp. Newcastle threatening but not quite there.
It feels as bleak now as it felt bleak when we were miles behind Jose’s Chelsea in 2005. The big difference then of course was that we had a genius in Ferguson to turn it around but it goes to show that the landscape can change relatively quickly.
We still invest heavily in the transfer market (more than Liverpool). We still have the draw of being one of the biggest clubs in the world. We still back our managers and give them time which if we pick the right one will bear fruit eventually. We have Rashford, Greenwood and Sancho to be optimistic about.
We do have to successfully overhaul the midfield in the near future and the defence in 2-3 years but we can get there.
It feels as bleak now as it felt bleak when we were miles behind Jose’s Chelsea in 2005. The big difference then of course was that we had a genius in Ferguson to turn it around but it goes to show that the landscape can change relatively quickly.
We still invest heavily in the transfer market (more than Liverpool). We still have the draw of being one of the biggest clubs in the world. We still back our managers and give them time which if we pick the right one will bear fruit eventually. We have Rashford, Greenwood and Sancho to be optimistic about.
We do have to successfully overhaul the midfield in the near future and the defence in 2-3 years but we can get there.
Roughly the same. Bouncing around the top 6. We might win a title of CL if we get lucky but don’t bet on it.
Think five years down the line English clubs will be dominating CL.
Borthwick-Jackson is still lingering somewhere, as are the e-mails from LvG.and we'll still be blaming bad eggs from LVG/Mourinhos reign even if they're all retired or have left the club
And obviously we still don't have a WC player in each position, as opposed to other clubs.
Relegation battle, followed by a brief return to form, followed by more nonsense about giving the manager time even though its went south. The quicker we get on board with the fact that we arent going to have another SAF right away, the better. Then we can stop all the nonsense and see that the club and its supporters have to adapt to the new reality. Maybe another SAF comes alone, maybe he doesnt. But trying to force it is just silly. And its part of the reason we are where we are right now. So we either change that, which I doubt, or we just continue with ups and downs but never really getting anywhere for 30 years just like liverpool.
Around where Liverpool were 15-20 years ago. Probably fighting for the top 4-7 with Arsenal, Leicester, Newcastle, and Spurs. Maybe a fluke cup win or Champions League run once in a while.
If Ole is not still at the wheel, someone along the likes of Phil Neville or Michael Carrick is probably in charge.
If Ole is not still at the wheel, someone along the likes of Phil Neville or Michael Carrick is probably in charge.
Still in the process
Ole on the wheel, with top 4 finish, after mixed season of heavy defeats and lucky run.
Impossible to know. It depends on all the decisions taken by our club and other big clubs between now and then.
I also think it is pretty clear that a big shakeup to football is coming, whether it’s a super league, a World Cup every two years, or other similar ideas.
Ultimately, I think most of our fanbase and our board have learned some lessons over the past 8 years. Our structure was laughably amateur when SAF retired and we’ve made strides and improvements since then. If Ogden is right that during Solskjaer’s interim tenure we were looking at Tuchel, Nagelsmann, and Poch as the three managerial candidates, that fills me with some hope that we are starting to think a bit outside the box.
I just want us to play some decent football and maximize the potential of our squad at any given point in time. I’m very annoyed by the stark difference between our wage bill/transfer budget, and our results and performances.
I also think it is pretty clear that a big shakeup to football is coming, whether it’s a super league, a World Cup every two years, or other similar ideas.
Ultimately, I think most of our fanbase and our board have learned some lessons over the past 8 years. Our structure was laughably amateur when SAF retired and we’ve made strides and improvements since then. If Ogden is right that during Solskjaer’s interim tenure we were looking at Tuchel, Nagelsmann, and Poch as the three managerial candidates, that fills me with some hope that we are starting to think a bit outside the box.
I just want us to play some decent football and maximize the potential of our squad at any given point in time. I’m very annoyed by the stark difference between our wage bill/transfer budget, and our results and performances.
We still wouldn’t have won the league or CL. Chelsea, City, Liverpool and potentially Newcastle would have won either by then.
On and off top 4 finishes.
It all depends on how soon we get rid off the leeches.
Don't agree. It looks like it's moving to Spain again. Camavinga already chose Spain over England. Mbappe 90% there. They are Haaland and 1 top manager to be the dominant league for the next 5 years, because the best usually follow the best.
In deep shit.
I tried to give Glazers and Ed the benefit of the doubt. At this stage, it is clear that they have no fecking idea what they are doing. The Ole fiasco could have been seen from the Proxima Centauri and at this stage, they seem to be the only people in the world who still have not seen it. Their willingness to give up seasons for no particular reasons is out of this world.
I do not think we will go close to winning the league of UCL in the next five years. Actually, I think Ole will be manager next season and ruin another year. At best, 3-4 years from now we might win an FA Cup, League Cup or Europa. Get used to it, that is our level.
I tried to give Glazers and Ed the benefit of the doubt. At this stage, it is clear that they have no fecking idea what they are doing. The Ole fiasco could have been seen from the Proxima Centauri and at this stage, they seem to be the only people in the world who still have not seen it. Their willingness to give up seasons for no particular reasons is out of this world.
I do not think we will go close to winning the league of UCL in the next five years. Actually, I think Ole will be manager next season and ruin another year. At best, 3-4 years from now we might win an FA Cup, League Cup or Europa. Get used to it, that is our level.
Very nicely put.
Backing managers and giving them time is one of our biggest problem. The managers are just employees, not Gods. There should be a plan for them, with clear milestones and routine evaluation. Miss one and get sacked.
We have given far more time than we should have to any of our managers. We have backed them more than they deserved. And they all spectacularly failed.
Backing the new manager Darren Fletcher in 2023 when Ole finally gets sacked, and giving him unlimited funds won’t make this shot show better. It is just gonna make it worse.
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In five years a bunch of stock market shares going for sale plus more dividents taken.
Procrastination with Old Trafford's major renovation is quite similar to what we see on the pitch and in the ranks of staff & the manager. The supposed clearout is now turning into contracts handout.
Give it a time & watch this space always was and is the actual plan.
Procrastination with Old Trafford's major renovation is quite similar to what we see on the pitch and in the ranks of staff & the manager. The supposed clearout is now turning into contracts handout.
Give it a time & watch this space always was and is the actual plan.
5 years is a long time, we could be the best team in the PL, we could also, in a worst case scenario, be where Arsenal are now.
Who knows, football itself might be in a worse place to be honest, there are newer sports coming, a new digital age where you might not have such interest and will participation numbers drop, will viewing figures drop?
Who knows, football itself might be in a worse place to be honest, there are newer sports coming, a new digital age where you might not have such interest and will participation numbers drop, will viewing figures drop?
You have read the sports pages today? David Moyes at West Ham has just knocked Man City out of the Carabou Cup - the first manager to do so in over 5 years. That on the back of knocking out Man Utd. out of the same competition, just a few weeks ago (days after almost a draw between West Ham and Utd. had Noble not messed up a last minute penalty).
Moyes should have been given more time, it was wrong to put a top-4 minimum target into his contract because the 1st year or two after Sir Alex were always going to be tough, whomever was in charge. Moyes is certainly a better manager then Ole Solskjaer and if Utd. stick with the Norwegian, I'd bet West Ham would finish the league above Utd. as proof of that.
Wondering how Ole's successor's successor could have possibly screwed up with such an expensive squad.
No, he'll have moved to Real on a free, but we'll be paying £100m to get him back.
We are probably one of the very few clubs in world football who can compete organically in the Premier League and Champions League, so I do believe we will always have the potential to do well. Whether we have the structure, the vision and the footballing people behind the scenes...jury is definitely out on that one.
Unfortunately, the sad fact about modern football is that the billionaire bankrolled clubs are shoe-in's to compete at the top, because they can afford to make so many mistakes with recruitment and managers and just move on from them quickly. It's not hard to build a dominant side like City's when you can get it wrong over and over again with players and just keep going until you eventually stumble on the right ones.
I genuinely see a scenario in 5YRs time and thereafter whereby City, Chelsea and Newcastle qualify for the CL every year and United, Liverpool and the rest duke it out for 4th or a good cup run. Perhaps we will see a scenario where the PL are given an extra place or two in the Champions League, to appease those who may be tempted by the ESL again?
Sounds doom and gloom but if we start making better decisions, we are rich enough/famous enough/powerful enough to just about compete, if everything clicks, like it has under Klopp and Edwards at Liverpool
Unfortunately, the sad fact about modern football is that the billionaire bankrolled clubs are shoe-in's to compete at the top, because they can afford to make so many mistakes with recruitment and managers and just move on from them quickly. It's not hard to build a dominant side like City's when you can get it wrong over and over again with players and just keep going until you eventually stumble on the right ones.
I genuinely see a scenario in 5YRs time and thereafter whereby City, Chelsea and Newcastle qualify for the CL every year and United, Liverpool and the rest duke it out for 4th or a good cup run. Perhaps we will see a scenario where the PL are given an extra place or two in the Champions League, to appease those who may be tempted by the ESL again?
Sounds doom and gloom but if we start making better decisions, we are rich enough/famous enough/powerful enough to just about compete, if everything clicks, like it has under Klopp and Edwards at Liverpool
Yes but I fear Moyes would have a similar problem at United to Ole. Yes, Moyes is tactically exceptional when playing the 'underdog' role, and is great at finding bargains in the transfer market. The problem is, as we saw during his time at United, he didn't seem to know how to set a side up to be the aggressor. We saw that joke of a game against Fulham, amongst others, were he seemed to run out of ideas and just chuck aimless crosses in.
It's one thing to set a side up to be solid, it's another to play like City, Liverpool or PSG
Absent changes in how the club is managed, we’ll be at the same level as Arsenal, treading water in fourth or fifth place in the league and a nonfactor in Europe.
These are fair points, but its always fun to play 'alternative history' games.
People have been saying for years that in the premier league solid British managers who do well at one of the lesser clubs, are never given the chance to manage at the top table. David Moyes got that chance and I just think he could have developed the skills you mention (dealing with those very top-end players and setting up on the front-foot) had he been given more time. He did make mistakes - most notably bringing his backroom team over from Everton, but if you think about it, who would not want to have their own team around them when they helped you get to that position in the first place? it showed his loyalty, if anything. He also didn't have a good 1st transfer window did he, with just Fellaini coming in, but was that really his fault?
Like I said, what upset me most about it was: he was brought in on a wave of emotion (chosen by Sir Alex with a similar Scottish background) but he was let go on the very day it was a mathematical impossibility for Utd. to reach the Champions League. Bearing in mind the 4 years Sir Alex was given in the late-80s that just seemed harsh and it was proof, if proof were needed that the old days were gone and now Man Utd. was a club run by accountants and bean counters, not footballing people - a problem that exists to this day.
Same situation as now. We will need Glazers to show very high interest in football and employ quality men in leadership who can come up with a footballing philosophy and then a plan and then work towards getting the managers and players to fit that philosophy. Not going to happen. We are run by non-footballing brains.
We’ll be only 13 years short of matching our league title drought between 1967 and 1993.
Trying to be more optimistic, if on the 5th attempt we do appoint a manager who is not a has been and is chosen on merit (and the correct word is cronyism by the way, not nepotism which relates to promoting your family), I think we can still compete over the next few years.
Trying to be more optimistic, if on the 5th attempt we do appoint a manager who is not a has been and is chosen on merit (and the correct word is cronyism by the way, not nepotism which relates to promoting your family), I think we can still compete over the next few years.
5 years later, Next year is our year.
Of course he's better than Ole and if he had time maybe we'd be in a similar position.
But you have to realize that at the time the players needed someone they respected after SAF. He didn't have the respect of the players so his position was untenable. Some of the decisions he made transfer wise (not wanting Thiago etc) in his short time were hilariously bad. His press conferences were pathetic and he didn't have the mentality to manage United. You point to his time at West Ham as proof we should have given him time, but he was a disaster at Sunderland and Real Sociedad. He's a different manager now after those failures.
Newcastle will be fully in the mix by then. Man City we’re about to get their 2nd title five years into the Abu Dhabi years, and Newcastle's owners make theirs look like paupers
Agreed. The landscape may change drastically five years from now. Wonder how many more clubs will get taken over by billionaires. The English Super League perhaps?
Ole's current crop on the wane. Ole still here and we're still average. He'll struggle to continue to attract the biggest players by that point and we'll just be entering the next big downward trajectory that will take us past the barren spell that Liverpool suffered. If the club think it's not possible then they're bloody stupid.
he said in 5 years not today!
Indeed.
If you keep doing the same things, then you will keep getting the same results.
Managers like the great Sir Alex Ferguson come around once, maybe twice in a lifetime.
So you can either be very patient.
Or you can shorten the timeframe by recruiting the very best.
Dont want to see UTD struggling to offload 33 year old Pogba who will on 1M a week wages
Just toeing/towing the line.