Will things get better or worse next season?

We need to get back to a consistent state of being a club that is at least challenging for the title. I don't believe we have done that post sir Alex Era. So getting the right manager that has experience in doing that in a competitive league is important to make things better next season.

We also need to sign the right players. We need midfielders, attacking right fullback and attackers. However, a lot of the players that we are interested in might be costly, so we will have to identify players who could be gem signing like Bruno was for us. I believe we need a press resistant midfielder/ball carrying midfielder. We have to many combative midfielder and even though I like rice, he is just a improved version of Mctominay. If we pursue him, I can see him costing the same amount of maguire. If our next manager has a war chest to spend next summer than he would be worth it. If not, then we might as well just utilize Mctominay and get the best out of him.

If we get these two things right, things will get better next season.

Imo opinion.

Manager: Pochettino
Signing : rice or Tchouameni, Saint maximan or olise, Verratti or mattheus nunes, Sergino dest or lamptey

That will be the foundation for us even winning the league in under two years
 
Last edited:
DomesticTadpole said:
Then you have to hope they use Ralf's experience and he has already noticed the next batch of up and coming players. I am sick of overrated, overpaid big heads, with big entourages who cannot keep their cake holes shut.
Click to expand...
Of course. Our recruitment has been embarrassing. I don't think people realize quite how bad it has been unless they looked at each signing since Fergie and Gill left compared to the signings our rivals have made for similar or smaller fees.

So I'd expect we would sign ten £25m players and only one would reach World Class level, or none.

Just have to hope the new people coming in, including Ralf, are more in position to notice the next Kante's and Salah's. Probably not, but we need to take some risks I think.
 
Amadaeus said:
We need to get back to a consistent state of being a club that is at least challenging for the title. I don't believe we have done that post sir Alex Era. So getting the right manager that has experience in doing that in a competitive league is important to make things better next season.

We also need to sign the right players. We need midfielders, attacking right fullback and attackers. However, a lot of the players that we are interested in might be costly, so we will have to identify players who could be gem signing like Bruno was for us. I believe we need a press resistant midfielder/ball carrying midfielder. We have to many combative midfielder and even though I like rice, he is just a improved version of Mctominay. If we pursue him, I can see him costing the same amount of maguire. If our next manager has a war chest to spend next summer than he would be worth it. If not, then we might as well just utilize Mctominay and get the best out of him
Click to expand...
Bruno was a gem signing, but we need to find ones that cost a lot less than him. We still need a DM even if we utilise McT because he sure as hell isn't a DM, he has no discipline which is why we are wide open through the middle.
 
DomesticTadpole said:
Bruno was a gem signing, but we need to find ones that cost a lot less than him. We still need a DM even if we utilise McT because he sure as hell isn't a DM, he has no discipline which is why we are wide open through the middle.
Click to expand...
Yea that is why I believe rice might be worth it because he has at least more discipline. But he will cost a lot, which is worrying. I don't know if there is someone of similar quality that won't be more of a risk available than rice
 
crossy1686 said:
How can it get worse? Something has to give in the summer and whatever it is will be for the best
Click to expand...
We can easily fall (further) behind Arsenal and the likes of Spurs, Newcastle, Wolves and West Ham in the summer if we don't recruit well, never mind the top 3.
 
Amadaeus said:
Yea that is why I believe rice might be worth it because he has at least more discipline. But he will cost a lot, which is worrying. I don't know if there is someone of similar quality that won't be more of a risk available than rice
Click to expand...
We are now paying the price for overpaying for certain players and buying players we didn't need, while neglecting other areas. That all starts with chosing the wrong managers, but that is hindsight. Who knows who is the right manager until you actually get him. The sure bets are the ones not available in Pep and Klopp, anybody else will be a risk, but a risk we need to be taking.
 
Ralfs ceiling in terms of coaching isn't much higher on the evidence of his career. That said, there is massive low hanging fruit in terms of signings, and if he has input there we could improve by that alone, with relatively little investment (we could get a good bit done with 100m and using wages from outgoing players like pogba and cavani).

If we replace Ralf with a better manager obviously it will get better
 
I think there will be reasons for optimism next season with a refresh of the squad and a new manager but it will also be very much a transitional season and we could well struggle to make top 6 let alone top 4 as it is not a quick fix. I am ok with this if the right decisions are being made, Liverpool endured a couple of rough seasons during their reset under Klopp and I think we all would accept the same if we get the same end result.

Looking at our squad we have multiple players who will leave and many more who should. I was thinking last night that we have maybe 3 or 4 players here who could arguably be starters in a title winning side and maybe another 3 or 4 good enough for a squad role and then it is just deadwood. It would take a few windows to build the team back up and obviously we won't purge all the trash in the summer either because we need to keep some of them just to complete the squad for now and of course there will be those that we simply cannot move on due to no bidders and stupid contracts.

I am ok with a proper cultural reset and a long term build because quick fixes have not worked for 10 years now and I do not see another option and if that means hoping for a good run in the domestic cups is the best we can expect for the next couple of seasons then so be it.
 
It's the ultimate glass half empty/half full question isn't it? None of us could possibly know what is going to happen between now and August, but we can choose to be a glass half full supporter of the club.
 
I desperately don’t want to be overly pessimistic, but I fear we haven’t hit rock bottom yet.
Some of the posts above have outlined the difficulties ahead.
The remaining games of the season, not only against Liverpool and Arsenal away, but also Chelsea at home and teams who will be fighting for survival, or just pride.
The impossibility of offloading between 8 to 11 players in one summer window and the difficulty in finding suitable replacements to fill all the positions left vacant In time for the new season.
The worrying prospect that the club will stupidly make new contract offers to keep players who should be allowed to leave, or be sold.
The time it’ll take for a new manager to get a grip of the situation and be able to make the necessary changes, both in playing and back room staff.
The scale of investment now needed, both on the pitch and in the stadium and training facilities, could end up dwarfing everything that’s gone before.

There is a mountain to climb and I don’t think many fans realise that this is a crunch point between Utd falling from the top table in world football, for what might be decades, if not forever …and fighting to remain amongst the elite.
Let’s face the facts. We are no longer the “biggest” club and we certainly are not anywhere near the best, nor the richest.
Our commercial strength is also bound to be seriously impacted if we slide any further behind.
It’s time for bold moves and a coherent plan, or we are going nowhere.
 
LawCharltonBest said:
Help me decide.

Think about how many of these players will still be United players in 2022/23 season - Cavani, Pogba, Lingard, Greenwood, Martial, Ronaldo, Henderson, van de Beek - then you have Jones, Bailly, Grant, Mata.

Negative part of my brain: Glazer's rarely net spend over £100m per season and Henderson and van De Beek are the only players I can see United getting notable fees for. £100m would be needed for a new striker alone. So the squad will be thin, bolstered by untested academy players, lacking in quality. The manager is going to have a very difficult job next season to even get 4th, let alone any trophy.

Positive part of my brain: With such a clear out, the dressing room will be much different and likely have a much different atmosphere. Which perhaps could help United could get that extra 10% out of the likes of Varane, Shaw, Fernandes (in his fresh new number 8 shirt) and Sancho who'd need to all step up and be the key men. Also assuming United don't continue with Rangnick, the new manager will be able build his own squad much easier with so many likely to be leaving and therefore implement his ideas a lot quicker. With Pogba, Cavani, maybe Ronaldo etc leaving too, expectations might dip allowing room for error.

Your opinions please? And thanks if you read all that, feedback welcome even if it is negative and makes me cry.
Click to expand...

Depends on a number of things. The character and caliber of manager will be absolutely critical. Utter brutality is needed to cleave out the some of the attitudinal cancer at the club. Some players believing that they only need to turn up to play, others believing that they are too big to be dropped and other starting to believe their own hype. None of that would ever have been tolerated under Sir Alex. We need to start behaving a big club not big time Charlies. The new manager must not be fearful of ruffling feathers irrespective of the consequences. I remember Sir Alex getting rid of Paul McGrath early on in his tenure. McGrath went on to become PFA Footballer of the Year at Aston Villa, but Ferguson did what he thought was best for the club and was ultimately proved right.

It is my belief that there are a number of high profile players in the United dressing that really need to go. United will simply not progress whilst they remain. The core of the club needs to be built around a different group of players that reflect a different ethos that is about application, discipline and winning. That cultural reset piece will take time and will be painful because there are players at the club who have worked themselves into a comfortable living on excellent contracts, requiring minimum effort. Look at what is beginning to happen at Arsenal following the departure of Aubameyang. Look at how Liverpool rebuilt following the departure of Coutinho. A courageous and visionary manager ought to be able to make these sorts of difficult decisions in the best interests of the club.

The simple answer to your question is that I personally believe that things will likely need to get worse before they get better.
 
Last edited:
Will be better, new permanent manager and a window to clear those who don’t want to be here and aren’t in managers plans.
I just hope we can secure 4th and help the new boss with regard to budgets and attracting players.
 
It's one hell of a task for the next manager that's for sure. The squad has some talented players here and there but it's in a wretched state with the amount of players wanting to leave and a lot of the ones who are staying not really being all that good.

If all goes well, next season might have a minor trophy, a 4th place finish and some positive signs of recovery. That's a very optimistic outlook based on getting an outstanding manager, good transfer business, and these remaining players being coached into a semi-decent team.

Negative scenario: 6-8th place finish and a long long road ahead :(
 
Banana Republic said:
I desperately don’t want to be overly pessimistic, but I fear we haven’t hit rock bottom yet.
Some of the posts above have outlined the difficulties ahead.
The remaining games of the season, not only against Liverpool and Arsenal away, but also Chelsea at home and teams who will be fighting for survival, or just pride.
The impossibility of offloading between 8 to 11 players in one summer window and the difficulty in finding suitable replacements to fill all the positions left vacant In time for the new season.
The worrying prospect that the club will stupidly make new contract offers to keep players who should be allowed to leave, or be sold.
The time it’ll take for a new manager to get a grip of the situation and be able to make the necessary changes, both in playing and back room staff.
The scale of investment now needed, both on the pitch and in the stadium and training facilities, could end up dwarfing everything that’s gone before.

There is a mountain to climb and I don’t think many fans realise that this is a crunch point between Utd falling from the top table in world football, for what might be decades, if not forever …and fighting to remain amongst the elite.
Let’s face the facts. We are no longer the “biggest” club and we certainly are not anywhere near the best, nor the richest.
Our commercial strength is also bound to be seriously impacted if we slide any further behind.
It’s time for bold moves and a coherent plan, or we are going nowhere.
Click to expand...
There is a chance we might not even get EL football. The state the team and club is in, that might actually be a blessing. Might find players on the rise who actually want to play for us, not just dazzled by money, also give the manager time to implement his methods. If for some horrible chance we land in the Conference League, use it to test out young players and give squad players time. These final games will show the players who are trying their best, even if not good enough and the ones who really don't give a toss.
 
It will get definitely worse, Cavani, Martial, Lingard, Pogba, Henderson, Jones, Bailly and Mata (not that he counts much), will be most likely gone.

In addition we'll have an older Cristiano (if he stays at all) and an older Matic.

We'll need at least 5 new players to fill the holes in the squad, that's just to stay about the same as we are now.

Bruno and Shaw are on a poor patch, Rashford seems to have forgotten about football, Maguire is shit and unsellable and seemingly undroppable.

Not many things to be positive about at this point besides Sancho.

I think darker days are coming, I think we'll end next season like this one. Trophyless and out of top 4.
 
LawCharltonBest said:
Help me decide.

Think about how many of these players will still be United players in 2022/23 season - Cavani, Pogba, Lingard, Greenwood, Martial, Ronaldo, Henderson, van de Beek - then you have Jones, Bailly, Grant, Mata.

Negative part of my brain: Glazer's rarely net spend over £100m per season and Henderson and van De Beek are the only players I can see United getting notable fees for. £100m would be needed for a new striker alone. So the squad will be thin, bolstered by untested academy players, lacking in quality. The manager is going to have a very difficult job next season to even get 4th, let alone any trophy.

Positive part of my brain: With such a clear out, the dressing room will be much different and likely have a much different atmosphere. Which perhaps could help United could get that extra 10% out of the likes of Varane, Shaw, Fernandes (in his fresh new number 8 shirt) and Sancho who'd need to all step up and be the key men. Also assuming United don't continue with Rangnick, the new manager will be able build his own squad much easier with so many likely to be leaving and therefore implement his ideas a lot quicker. With Pogba, Cavani, maybe Ronaldo etc leaving too, expectations might dip allowing room for error.

Your opinions please? And thanks if you read all that, feedback welcome even if it is negative and makes me cry.
Click to expand...

My opinion is that our future season will depend on what manager do we end up getting and how can he turn things in our favor. No one can guarantee anything. We may get ETH or Poch and they might end up flops bigger than Moyes. I wouldn't be surprised either way.

Regarding the players many of them have minimal impact already, players like Mata, Grant, Jones, Bailly or Henderson barely kicked a ball for us the whole season so if they stay or go it does not matter in terms of results.

Cavani, Pogba and Lingard I think will leave (how did we allow Pogba and Lingard to run out of their contracts and did not sell them sooner is mind blowing).
Then VDB and Martial are 50/50's, it depends on the new manager, how much does he fancy using them etc.
Ronaldo will decide for himself obviously he is a big ego and if he wants to leave we will let him go.

We will need at least 2-3 players to improve the line up and that's just aiming for top 4 we can't even think about more.
 
I'm singing it now, things can only get better, only get better. If we see it through, that means me and I mean you too.
 
Worse in terms of results and league position, but hopefully better in terms of more entertaining consistent football with young, hungry motivated players - assuming we have a elite manager in charge?

As much as I like Ralf it's clear no matter how well he sets the team up the players are not responding. Can't see us getting 4th now barring a total Arsenal collapse............
 
I think whoever comes in is going to take a couple of seasons too really get the players functioning at the kind of level that a top team is expected to in 2022. You don't just overcome 5 years of bad coaching and over a decade of bad recruitment in 1 shortened summer.

You have to remember that there isn't much of a pre-season this year because of the 2022 world cup, not whoever comes in isn't going to get much time in the summer, think how long it took Klopp to insert a style of play at Liverpool was it to 7th place finishes? Pep even struggled for his first season and City were a pretty well-structured club before he arrived. We are on the other hand are a mess.

Plus we have so many problems with the squad, that its going to take 2 or 3 years minimum of well thought through transfer activity to bring the. Take this summer, realistically we need a DM and a Striker. More than likely that will be the entire budget gone. Maybe we can stretch to a squad player or two, but that's about it, the club isn't a bottomless pit of money.

So in answer to the question, I don't think we should be expecting massive improvements next season, more likely baby steps, the signs of green shoots showing and that only if we make correct management and coaching appointments and are smart in the transfer market.
 
Last edited:
The first thing that needs to change for the better is the wage bill. It’s one thing to be shit, another to pay what we do to be shit.

Until we stop signing players motivated by money over success, we’re not gonna see much success.
 
Judge Red said:
The first thing that needs to change for the better is the wage bill. It’s one thing to be shit, another to pay what we do to be shit.

Until we stop signing players motivated by money over success, we’re not gonna see much success.
Click to expand...

And not just signing them, keeping them and renewing their contracts over and over 'to protect their value.'

The whole squad should have been refreshed by now. By Klopp's third season at Liverpool he'd brought in pretty much 20 new players.

Our coaches sit in press conferences and say X can go. Then the club blocks the sales. If you're in the dressing room why would you listen to the coach then? You know, even if you're crap, you're far more likely to be here in a year or two than them. Then you get Scholes going on BT and talking about needing a coach who inspires fear?! :lol: Nobody is going to be afraid of any coach who is publicly undercut by the Board. Can't understand why they cant see that?
 
crossy1686 said:
That won’t happen. These players are bad but they’re better than most of those teams
Click to expand...
I'd be far from sure about that:

- Arsenal are better than us
- Spurs have Kane and Son who are better than anything we have
- West Ham are solid if not spectacular.
- Wolves similar
- Newcastle have have 2/3 that would start for us and will significantly outspend us.

- None have the huge holes we have in key areas.
- All are settled and know who their manager will be and are ready improve in the transfer window.
- All are better run than us.

We're banking on the Glazers funding a transfer window like Chelsea had summer 20/21 when they brought in 5/6 new starters. No chance.
 
It's going to get much worse.....at first. We need to replace the spine of the team. we need 1 centre back and need to offload Maguire (rag and bone man will be acceptable at this point.)

Fred is worth hanging onto and Mctominay as a squad backup but we need to sign a defensive midfielder and a ball controlling midfielder. We also need to put in place a replacement for Ronaldo and other strikers who will be absent for a variety of reasons. so that's 5 key positions that need great quality replacements.

we also need to offload a number of players who have not got the correct mentality / application for the club, or have reached the end of contracts.
Pogba
Martial
Maguire
Rashford
Lingard
Jones
Matic
Mata
Cavani

Realistically the only players who have earned a place in the squad are

de Gea
Varane
Lindelof (played in the right system)
Fred
Fernandes
Sancho
Elanga
Ronaldo (as a cameo player)

I doubt the club will actually go as far as releasing all of those players...but they probably should do. I'd be more than happy for their places to be filled with young players from the academy who actually gave a dam about the club and worked hard for the team. we have supposedly spent the last couple of years hoovering up talent in the 16-18 year old range. Time to give them a try, with some honest professional players brought in to provide some further support.
 
I’d say definitely worse. We will welcome back players who don’t want to be here (due to us not being able to sell them for a suitable fee) our biggest stars leaving, I definitely think Ronaldo will leave along with Pogba and others.

Unfortunately Maguire, Wan Bissaka and Rashford staying, new contracts being given to the likes of Fred and a new manager who won’t have any real say in anything. It will be another rinse and repeat shit show fighting for top 6.
 
anant said:
Woah! You sure about that?



wtf?! As exciting as ASM may be, his output is never going to be good enough for a top club
Click to expand...
We need to get to a state where we are at least a consistent top 3 team. If poch could do that at spurs with limited budget, it would be easier at a top club as shown with how he is walking ligue 1 at the moment in his first full season. Pochettino will be the most logically option in this regard.

Asm output has improved this season and he is a budgeted option when it comes to attackers that has true quality. We lack a player in this team who has the pace and flair to get past players. Asm will give that right balance in the attack. This is not an indication that he will be a regular, but rather provide a different dynamic in our attack.
 
Last edited:
Yes, I have little doubt about that. Considering the number who will leave or have to leave and the number of new signings needed...
It's gonna be worse next season
 
Reynoldo said:
I think the tide is turning and surely the higher ups now know that some type of reset is needed in terms of some form of a clear out so in that regard I think it is a positive as we are just so stale at the moment that any meaningful change in personnel on and off the pitch will lift the mood. The negative if this were to happen is bedding in time so short term in terms of results they may get worse before better.
Click to expand...

I have a very bad feeling they are just “relaxed about the situation” as always and will soon start scrambling around behind the scenes trying to sign up those who still want to stay. They seem to be obsessed with getting max value from current contracts before opening up meaningful talks on any new deals. They are really are the main reason we’ve struggled. Far too slow to fix their own mistakes. Sometimes doubling and trebling down instead. Mediocre owners, mediocre club
 
I don't mind it getting worse if we can get better later. Most of these players need to be sold.
 
A number of posters are a bit muddled about the contract status of some of our players.
The following will be out of contract at the end of the season.
Cavani
Pogba
Lingard
Mata
Grant.

We don’t need to offload them and we can’t sell them.
Unless we offer them new contracts and convince them to stay. They are released. End of.
 
The negativity in here is palpable.

Have a bit of optimism ffs:
1. We may yet get CL football next season (can we qualify if we finish 5th and city win CL?)
2. We will have a new permanent manager and it won't be Brendan Rogers and Sam Allardyce.
3. A lot of dead wood will be leaving.
4. A lot of the players who don't want to be here will be leaving i.e. Cavani and co.
5. We have a new CEO.
6. Ralph will be a consultant in the re jig.
7. We may actually sign a midfielder, praise be.
8. We will blood the likes of Hannibal.
9. We will most likely also have new coaches along with the new manager.
10. Expectations will be very low which I think is positive for the new manager.
 
OleTheGreat said:
I would like for us to unload Ronaldo, Cavani, Lingard, Jones, Periera & maybe Pogba (sadly). I would like for us to buy a striker and a couple of hardworking energetic midfielders, one of it definitely being a fantastic CDM. I'd sell Maguire if it was me but I'm sure he'll stick around to make a lot of mistakes.

Erik Ten Hag- exciting football.
Pochettino- exciting football.

Both can change things but I'd like Erik Ten Hag because he works well with youngsters and can raise a generation of stars. His Ajax teams are taken apart but his United teams cannot be. He should/must chase us.
Click to expand...

Poch exciting football!?
 
Sandikan said:
We're 5th in the league. It could easily get worse.
Click to expand...
It won’t, people just love to paint a picture that we’re no better than Layton Orient and the club should be deleted. As always with United, everything is an extreme. We’re shit but we’re not mid table shit.
 
The squad needs a thorough rebuild as the most recent attempt at a rebuild was disastrous - only Sancho and, injuries permitting, Varane are really good enough from the players acquired under Ole. De Gea is still ok and there a few more who might be able to function in a more settled team - Shaw, Lindelöf, Fred. Basically, though, at least 50% of the starting XI needs binning. Even under the right manager, it will take a few years and a focus on signing players for football reasons rather than social media hits.
 
I don't know if anybody heard Hargreaves last night, he was on about how many players UTD had when he was there and City and the scum have now, the teams had at least 8 players who were consistently 7 -8 out of ten and 1 who can be special in games, UTD have not got enough of the 7-8 out of 10 players , imo we got about 4 the rest are so inconsistent and mainly at the back or in the center.

Until this is resolved and imo has to be this summer and reset big time were not getting top 4 unless Arsenal have a collapse . So they need to use the summer to ship out at least 8 or more and use the wages gained and transfer cash into getting the right young hungry players who want to be at utd to play football first. Then they can become stars if they want, not buy stars who go through the motions.
Utd can keep enough experienced players there, like of DDG who I'd make captain, Bruno, Fred,Mctom, Varane , Shaw..all who have the experience to bring through younger hungry players.
 
It will probably be better than this miserable piece of shit of a season, but that doesn't mean it will be a good season. Can bet it will still be shit.

We are a godawful team. Period.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.