Everyone knew it would be difficult, but few predicted it would be quite this hard. Whilst the appointment of David Moyes left many Manchester United fans underwhelmed, the club in fact were left with very little option. They decided they wanted British and, with the current dearth of talent, British means Scottish, and Scottish meant Moyes. There is little doubt that weeks before his unveiling (or even the announcement of Ferguson’s retirement) the then Everton manager had been sounded out for the job. Whilst Mourinho (the only other viable option) would have effected a revolution at Old Trafford, Moyes typified a desire for evolution. There was talk of sustainability. Talk of legacy. Talk of patience. Patience in football is A Good Thing, we are consistently retold by those with misty eyes covered by rose-tinted glasses. A lack of it demonstrates the kneejerk reactions of the modern game, you see, in which the fourth longest serving manager of the 92 Football League clubs, Mark Yates, has been in place less than four years. The evident example for supporters of such perseverance is Ferguson himself, famously given four years to bed in at Old Trafford before winning silverware. However, football is a vastly-altered beast. More so than ever, standing still is equivalent to moving backwards, with Liverpool a prime illustration of the fact that it is a lot easier to slip out of the Premier League’s elite than to muscle your way back in. Winning the league may not be crucial initially for Moyes, but Champions League qualification so evidently remains so. The issue patience is that this, as seen in the notorious Fergie example, is a virtue far easier to afford in hindsight. Moreover, doing so with Moyes before he had even taken charge fails to adequately mask the rather worrying shortcomings of his tenure thus far. This is Manchester United’s worst start to a league season since 1989. Moyes’ predecessor (for all his obvious strengths) did not leave his replacement with an ideal squad, but such has been the obvious regression that such an excuse is not valid – for all their faults these were still the league champions, a title won without close challengers. Since the opening day United have taken eight points from seven games. In those six corresponding fixtures last season (the club clearly did not face Palace in the league) Ferguson’s United took 15 points. This season Moyes’ United took five – the difference is palpable. It has heartbreaking to Manchester United out of the title race in “ DECEMBER “ . It is not just results. Wayne Rooney is sole player to have improved his form under the new manager, recently speaking of a “new lease of life”, and it is clear that there are personal reasons for the forward making such a statement given his strained relationship with Ferguson. Performances from United’s other stellar names (most notably £27million signing Marouane Fellaini) have been sluggish and uninspiring, with Robin Van Persie in particular having far less effect in the final third. Moyes’ tactical decisions and substitutions have also been open to considerable criticism. The Scot may have claimed innocence (“I didn’t think that at all”), but the introduction of Chris Smalling for Wayne Rooney in a bid to hold a one-goal lead at home to Southampton epitomised a ‘hold on’ mentality not welcomed at Old Trafford, and such negativity was almost instantly punished. Furthermore, during the humbling derby defeat at the hands of Manchester City, Moyes appeared as rabbit caught in the headlights, startled enough by his side’s underperformance that changes were not made at half-time. By the time a woeful Ashley Young had been withdrawn for Tom Cleverley, United were four goals down. Away from on-field disappointment, Moyes’ media conduct has verged on the bizarre, centring on the determined insistence that the fixture computer had been deliberately altered to negatively affect United. “I find it hard to believe thats the way the balls came out of the bag, thats for sure,” hints at the mindset of a man far out of his comfortable depth, kicking out his feet desperately to keep head above water; that it was made even before a ball had been kicked set significant alarm bells ringing – this was not the psychology of a winner. In addition, the new manager’s discussions over his squad have also served only to undermine his authority. Compare the “I’m more than happy with what we’ve got. I’m very happy with my squad and the options we have” of early September with the “You need five or six world-class players… weve not got that yet” just four weeks later. Making interest in Leighton Baines and Cesc Fabregas public when no deals had been agreed and publicly questioning the ability of Shinji Kagawa (“They tell me he is a good player”) are two cases of a man struggling to meet the level of decision-making required for such a job, particularly when the Japan international has not been utilised in his favoured position. Even considering the above, the most firmly embedded nail in a self-made coffin was Moyes’ choice to appoint Steve Round, Jimmy Lumsden and Chris Woods in coaching roles, deliberately ignoring Ferguson’s advice to ensure a smooth transition. Upsetting the status quo in order to imprint your personality on the club is no crime, but in doing so, Moyes inadvertently created the rope with which he could be hung. The logical opinion would be that if Everton’s coaches were of better suitability than those in place at Old Trafford, the likelihood is that they would already have been pursued. The principal task for a successful football manager is to get the most of the players, to get a group of individuals performing to the height of their abilities. The great managers go beyond this, making a team perform greater than the potential of its individual parts – that was Ferguson’s greatest talent. In this sense, Moyes is not doing his job. United’s players are underperforming and, whilst many may plead their own guilt, football has an eternal mantra – the buck always stops with the manager. Having initially had much to do to win over unconvinced supporters, Moyes now has even more ground to make up through his own concerning inadequacies. The cause is lost and the task is getting more difficult with every passing fall behind the standards set by his predecessor. United are right to afford Moyes patience, purely given the task on his hands, but that does not necessitate immunity. Patience for patience’s sake no longer remains a virtue.
Posted on: Wed, 04 Dec 2013 21:48:06 +0000
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