We here at WSA have finally worked out the progression of Manchester United. Yes, that’s right, we have finally seen what loyal fans of an ex-substitute with no managerial experience to speak of, (unless relegation from the Premier League counts), have been banging on about for the last three years.
Ole Gunnar Solskjær has progressed from being an abject failure in semi-finals, (four of them to be precise), to being an abject failure in a final! Granted, he has only lost one but, the main reason for that, is because he has only reached one. So, having improved his loss percentage in semis from 100% to a mere 80% in one fell swoop, he has immediately started his appearance in finals with a 100% loss record.
Some may point to his complete lack of any tactical nous as a reason for these high figures. Others may say it’s because of his naive team selections. It may be that leaving substitutions until after the 100th minute of a final, when the opposition already has five fresh players on, is a contributing factor.
At least, in this instance, his team managed to scrape their way to a penalty shootout. It was at this point when the supporters, unlike the ones who are paid a fortune to make these decisions, felt that it was time to substitute Dean Henderson, (who has an excellent record of saving penalties, something like 1 in 4), for David De Gea who just never saves penalties. Based on these figures United would have won the match!
Did this occur to Solskjær and/or any of his clueless coaching staff? He says it did so either he is lying, (something else for which he has a track record), or he is just plain hopeless. Whatever the truth, he didn’t make the obvious change, (yet again!), and United lost.
But hey, at least they had progressed by simply reaching the final. It had been four years since they were last in the same final and, on that occasion, they won it. So the team has taken four years to progress to the same stage they were at four years ago, (when they also won two domestic trophies), then have immediately regressed by losing!
Never pessimistic, Ole’s bunch of loyal followers are still looking for straws to clutch at in his defence. The problem is that it is very hard to defend the indefensible.
Solskjær remains, apoarently, pretty safe in his job, a situation which would NEVER be the case at any other of the ‘big six’ or, indeed, many of the other Premier League clubs, (remember, even Cardiff saw through him).
The fact that he remains as manager despite his consistent failures over the last three years says a lot more about those in charge at Old Trafford than it does about the Norwegian.
Owned by Americans who prefer the cissy version of rugby to football and run by university graduates in accountancy from south of Watford, it is hardly surprising the club is in a mess.
What, unfortunately, is also not surprising is that none of those in charge wish to give up their cushy little number so, for the foreseeable future at least, the club will be mismanaged both on and off the field. Indeed, so incompetent are the hierarchy that there is even talk of rewarding Solskjær for his failures by giving him a new contract. If that is the case then prepare for more of the same.
Yes, United have money to spend in the transfer market and are already being linked with massively expensive players, such as Jadon Sancho, who they don’t need. They DO need a decent centre back but would his addition to the squad mean this team would then challenge for the title? The short answer is; no. Would a top class manager mean this team would challenge for the title? The answer has to be; yes. Look at what Mourinho achieved with a squad considerably worse than this one.
At the end of the day, giving a manager world-class players when the problem lies with the manager himself, is not the solution as United, if they go down this route, will inevitably and belatedly discover
So, in conclusion, United’s problems are ALL of the managerial kind. Pathetically run off the field they are naively and amateurishly run on it! Solve these two big problems and the team will automatically improve.
Finally, for real this time, check out this great site for info on the Euros.
WHY SAY ANYTHING? 
And what is your proposal for a manager? Agreed not making subs in this game and other important ones is past stupidity. If we knew the stats for the GK on penalties why does the man in charge or anybody from the BRS didn’t know it or ignored it. But also remember Mourinho got us some silverware but the football played was unwatchable. We cried for attacking football and that is just not him. Van Gaal another boring one that we were glad to see the back of. Most of the time now I enjoy watching them play. OGS need better backroom staff. First thing we need is to make our defence strong again so that we don’t give away draws in the last minutes of the games.
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