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The 2015-2016 Football Thread

Leicester top again!!! Vardy back on the scoresheet. Keep it going Ranieri & Co!

Dele Alli with a worldie against Crystal Palace. What a goal.

Chelsea 4 points above the drop zone. Arsenal really need a win tomorrow - but so do Chelsea.

maxwelltech said:
Man Utd lost at home to a Southampton side which has been pretty poor this season. Unfortunately I do not see us getting top 4 if LVG continues as manager.

Sack LVG and let Giggs take over till the end of the season, and if he does well, he can stay; otherwise get a top class manager in the summer (Mourinho, Guardiola (unlikely), Pochettino...). We have nothing to lose at this point.
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Van Gaal 15/16: Games: 23 Points: 37 Goals: 28
Moyes 13/14: Games: 23 Points: 40 Goals: 38

Ferg left behind a team badly in need of rebuilding, and by at least some measures things have not improved since.
 
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maxwelltech said:
Man Utd lost at home to a Southampton side which has been pretty poor this season. Unfortunately I do not see us getting top 4 if LVG continues as manager.

Sack LVG and let Giggs take over till the end of the season, and if he does well, he can stay; otherwise get a top class manager in the summer (Mourinho, Guardiola (unlikely), Pochettino...). We have nothing to lose at this point.
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Man U did not look good, time for Giggs.
 
Gary Neville could be available in the near future.

Or Mou, who has taken the trouble of writing to Man Utd soliciting a job.

Jose is a proven winner - but hiring Mourinho would be yet another departure from the so-called "Manchester United Way"... he is an unapologetically defensive-minded, results-oriented short-termist who relies on expensive proven talent rather than youth to build and maintain his squads...he will sow dissension at the club and he won't hang around long-term.
 
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Yeah Mou should not be near OT. That would be an extremely short sighted appointment.

I wouldn't want to see Giggs or Nev given charge at OT. Back when LvG was appointed, it was a sensible decision and I hope the board makes another sensible appointment and not succumb to sentiment with Giggs or Nev.
 
throwthedice said:
Yeah Mou should not be near OT. That would be an extremely short sighted appointment.

I wouldn't want to see Giggs or Nev given charge at OT. Back when LvG was appointed, it was a sensible decision and I hope the board makes another sensible appointment and not succumb to sentiment with Giggs or Nev.
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But if not Giggs or Mourinho, then who? Unless Pep want a genuine challenge, he will most likely go to Man City because of their better squad and Champions League football. Ancelotti has already signed for Bayern. Pochettino would be a good appointment (if he would leave), but there is also the fear that he will turn out to be another Moyes.
 
maxwelltech said:
But if not Giggs or Mourinho, then who? Unless Pep want a genuine challenge, he will most likely go to Man City because of their better squad and Champions League football. Ancelotti has already signed for Bayern. Pochettino would be a good appointment (if he would leave), but there is also the fear that he will turn out to be another Moyes.
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I am curious what the suits at Man Utd expect out of their next manager. Do they want someone young whom they hope will hang around for a long time? Do they want a big name that can get immediate results? Does it need to be an ex-Man Utd player? Are they looking for a specific type of football? Do they have any coherent plan at all? Unless we can answer those questions, its anybody's guess who the next manager will be.

I still think Pep will go to City. Apart from Mourinho, all the big names are spoken for at the moment.
 
Chelsea in the worst season of recent memory still take 6pts off Arsenal. The players and manager need to look at themselves. League has been practically on a silver platter and their still botching it.
 
Costa is useless except for fighting, diving, cheating and winning fouls. Arsenal may have bottled it but Chelsea are a massive joke at the moment. Given the amount of money spent, only bad management (from Roman down to Mou) and bad attitudes on the part of the players can account or their league position. Results haven't massively improved since Mou left, so the players are really in the spotlight now. The defense remains poor, Hazard is still shooting blanks and Costa doesn't know how to score a proper goal from open play against Premier League opponents.
 
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maxwelltech said:
But if not Giggs or Mourinho, then who? Unless Pep want a genuine challenge, he will most likely go to Man City because of their better squad and Champions League football. Ancelotti has already signed for Bayern. Pochettino would be a good appointment (if he would leave), but there is also the fear that he will turn out to be another Moyes.
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That's the thing which makes this whole United manager saga every bit more interesting!

I would definitely not want Mou or Giggs or Nev at the helm. Saying that, Poch is just having a good season now and I'd like to see how he does another season. I don't know if I'm ready to see LvG for yet another season unless he improves on the turgid stuff being doled out every game - It's not as though United under Fergie were playing the greatest football on show, but they were getting results and that goes a long way in calming down the fans. Now we have LvG with the dour football minus the results which is bad for everyone.
 
Sheffield-Wednesday%404.-logo-60%27s.png

our new badge... which is our old badge from the 70's.

LOVE. IT.
 
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I like old-school crests.

Liverpool have conceded 32 goals this season. 13 of those came from free kicks and corners. They are incredibly ropey in dead-ball situations. It seems like one of those flaws that it should be possible to solve with constant drilling.

throwthedice said:
That's the thing which makes this whole United manager saga every bit more interesting!

I would definitely not want Mou or Giggs or Nev at the helm. Saying that, Poch is just having a good season now and I'd like to see how he does another season. I don't know if I'm ready to see LvG for yet another season unless he improves on the turgid stuff being doled out every game - It's not as though United under Fergie were playing the greatest football on show, but they were getting results and that goes a long way in calming down the fans. Now we have LvG with the dour football minus the results which is bad for everyone.
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I think there is a reasonably good chance of Mourinho coming on board. It would be a no-brainer if it wasn't for his recent failure at Chelsea - big name, all-but-guaranteed results. From the perspective of football suits like Woodward he is an attractive option in many respects. An increasing number of fans are calling for him. But bringing Mourinho in would put the nail in the coffin of the "Manchester United Way" once and for all.
 
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United are in complete disarray. When are they finally going to sack LVG? Should've happened weeks / months ago.

Make a full court press / back up the money truck for Pep. Or poach Poch. Even Laurent Blanc would be a good appointment. I still want no part of Mourinho.
 
Seems easy to claim a special "way" as long as your long term manager (Ferg) keeps hauling in result after result and title after title.

If it weren't for the squad he left I'd say Ferguson was as perfect a manager as you could get.

Mou: seems like a no brainer. Makes also for amazing press re Pep at City (imagine that: they're literally neighbors eventually D)

I guess it's mostly Pep profiting by a wage-challenge fought out in Manchester.
 
Silencio said:
United are in complete disarray. When are they finally going to sack LVG? Should've happened weeks / months ago.

Make a full court press / back up the money truck for Pep. Or poach Poch. Even Laurent Blanc would be a good appointment. I still want no part of Mourinho.
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I think Man City have the advantage on Man Utd for Pep, but Man Utd still have a chance. Surely he is the best option - though, he would probably also expect to be given a LOT of money to spend in the next couple transfer windows. Man Utd do have that kind of money, so if they want to be a perennial contender again they are going to have to spend big. The money spent under LVG will just have to be written off.

twietee said:
Seems easy to claim a special "way" as long as your long term manager (Ferg) keeps hauling in result after result and title after title.
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Indeed. To be fair, Man Utd aren't the only club that talk like that, but in my opinion the only difference between the "Manchester United Way" and the "Notts County Way" (for example) is the size of the town and/or the size of the club's bank account. The clubs with the best "Way" are the ones (like Southampton, Swansea and Leicester in recent years) who punch above their weight through good management and sensible operation. But that is hard to maintain over time.

Silencio said:
Mou: seems like a no brainer. Makes also for amazing press re Pep at City (imagine that: they're literally neighbors eventually D)

I guess it's mostly Pep profiting by a wage-challenge fought out in Manchester.
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Mourinho is a no-brainer in terms of providing short-term benefits, but if I were a Man Utd supporter I would not want him within a million miles of the club. He's a cancer. Speaking as a Liverpool supporter however, a Pep/Man City vs Mou/Man Utd situation in Manchester sounds tasty. ;)
 
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I'd be amazed if United weren't in for Pep back when he left Barcelona to begin with! I already thought (wrote ?) that back then but going to Bayern was a mid-term decision to leave Barca into unknown territory without having the risk to fail at a competition heavy league (and let's face it: Ferguson left an overdue team) - but that also made clear that he wasn't going to stay forever at Munich (thougth two years myself).

Now he goes to City, buys 4-5 top top talents and leads a cosy - yet rainy - life.
 
Right - I don't completely understand the "United way" - if it means using fast pacey wingers to whip in a cross or something, then that's just a playing style which needs to evolve over time. Results matter - to the board and to the new "fans" - creating a global image is more with results than anything else.

Having said that, someone like Mou I believe will leave the team with a trophy or two in a couple of years and once he's gone, the team is a mess. Super inflated ego is something that I personally don't like.
 
throwthedice said:
No, care you give me an insight as to what you are referring to?
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It's an awful ego trip of a book filled (if the sections I've seen are a guide) almost entirely with meaningless business manager-speak peppered with a few personal opinions and football-related anecdotes. It could have been a book a Dilbert quotations. A primer for Ferg's currently incredibly lucrative public speaking career.

Don't get me wrong, I think all great managers have an inflated ego - how else could they succeed in their environment? Ferguson's ego is every bit as big as Mourinho's. The difference is that Mourinho's ego presents itself in a highly personal and ultimately self-destructive style whereas Ferguson was manipulative and autocratic, but less inclined to bring focus on himself personally. Ferguson was also a good company man - he never attacked the club suits, tried to keep dirty laundry hidden and continues to support the Glazers. Mou (and his agent, that snake Jorge Mendes) are much more likely to cause turmoil within the club.
 
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This new manager, have healing hands? Going to float into the treatment room, lay them on Shaw, Young, Valencia, Jones, Rojo, Darmian, Schweinsteiger, and Carrick, then exit and proclaim the players have risen and are available for the game on Friday? The defence is near extinction; the full backs are the 4th level and there is 1 centre back. LVG needs to find a balance; attack and the defence is picked off, protect the back and chances are reduced. Easier said than done, even Saint Ferguson struggled.

The match v Southampton:

Even teams, trying to win at the end cost a point; the attacking sub was stupid to foul Austin and another young player had a brain fart and double teamed, leaving the Southampton man free - shame he didn't hit the bar like the West Ham United player v Manchester City. Low number of shots on target; United 1, Southampton 2 (elsewhere - Everton 2, West Ham United 3, Manchester City 3 including a penalty, Arsenal 1 including a deflection onto the goal).


Transfers:

Now; need a right side attacker who can cross - too many attacks are wasted because of poor delivery. Also, ideally a centre back - but likely to be in the summer - or at least loan full back cover.

Summer; attacker, centre back - if not now, long term Carrick replacement, and ball carrying creative mid.

Edit - Lord Blackadder; Brilliant. ;) I'm sure he can buy a lot of raincoats and umbrellas for what City are willing to pay him.

Can he buy a young Catherine Deneuve?

Cheers,
OW
 
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EDIT: So, LVG offers his resignation but Woodward refuses it, at least for the moment. Man Utd must be truly hesitant about hiring Mourinho. Shame, the entertainment value would be extraordinary.

This must also mean that Giggs is not seen as a viable interim replacement.

oscillatewildly said:
Can he buy a young Catherine Deneuve?

Cheers,
OW
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I doubt even Man Utd/Man City are rich enough to afford to invent time travel. Yet.
 
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