Posts Tagged ‘Tottenham Hotspur’

The Main Competition, (Probably), To Pep Guardiola At Manchester City And Jose Mourinho At Manchester United

Posted: August 27, 2016 in Arsenal, Chelsea, European Football, Football, Manchester City, Manchester United, Opinion, Premier League
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Of the manager’s pictured above, one will probably be crowned Premier League champion at the end of the season. At least another one of the five will miss out on the top four. So who will be the winner and who will be the loser(s)?

Although it is certainly not a foregone conclusion it is widely expected that the title will end up in Manchester. There are some bets being laid on the unknown quantity that is Antonio Conte at Chelsea but many think his lack of Premier League experience will mean that he falls just short this time out. (more…)

Jose Mourinho Or Pep Guardiola? Manchester United Or City? It’s Too Close To Call

Posted: July 3, 2016 in Football, Managers, Manchester City, Manchester United, Opinion, Premier League
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There now exists, more than ever before, a two-team competition in oneupmanship in Manchester. No sooner have Manchester City appointed Pep Guardiola then Manchester United are appointing Jose Mourinho.

City sign Ilkay Gundogan and United sign Henrikh Mhkitaryan, both from Borussia Dortmund and neither of whom will have the fans singing their names for a while, certainly not if they have to learn to spell them first!

United are reportedly looking to sign Paul Pogba so City are immediately linked with Luis Suarez.

United will break the world transfer record, but only if City don’t! (more…)

Will Jose Mourinho Sweep All Before Him Next Season?

Posted: July 2, 2016 in Football, Jose Mourinho, Manchester United, Opinion, Premier League
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The short answer is no, not at the moment. One or two further additions to the squad, however, may change things around somewhat.

The full back positions do not need urgent surgery as, with a fully fit Luke Shaw along with Darmian and Varela, there should be sufficient cover although Jose does not seem totally convinced about Darmian so don’t be too surprised to see a replacement brought in. I can’t see Mourinho persisting with Antonio Valencia at full back as he has proven, on a few occasions, that he can’t play the position and Ashley Young is nothing short of a joke at full back.

At present Mourinho has addressed one of the centre back positions by bringing in Eric Bailly. I assume this will mean that United will be listening to offers for Marcus Rojo, who hasn’t convinced at either centre back or left back. This does not solve the problem of the other centre back. (more…)

Will Pep Guardiola Be A Success At Manchester City?

Posted: June 28, 2016 in Managers, Manchester City, Opinion
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The jury is out on this one!

There are obvious reasons to expect that Pep will be successful at City, not
least given that he is working with people he knows well at the club. This is an obvious advantage from when he took over at Bayern Munich where he knew nobody really well in the beginning.

He also doesn’t have to win much next season to be rated a success. Manuel Pellegrini left having won only the Capital One Cup in his final year.

At Bayern the odds were against him even replicating what Jupp Heynckes had achieved, never mind bettering it. A treble of the Bundesliga, German Cup and Champion’s League was always going to be a tall order. As it turned out he found winning the Bundesliga and German Cup relatively easy and only the Champion’s League proved elusive. (more…)

Same Old Arsenal Under Wenger, Different Manchester United Under Van Gaal

Posted: February 28, 2016 in Arsenal, Football, Manchester United, Opinion, Premier League
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Well that was a nice surprise! Arsenal were favourites to win at Old Trafford for the first time in ages and never looked as though they would actually manage it throughout the game.

After the game Graeme Souness, Thierry Henry and David Platt all questioned the commitment and desire of the Arsenal eleven. Arsene Wenger saw nothing wrong with the commitment and desire of the Arsenal eleven, and THAT is the problem!

Wenger thought United had kept breaking up the game with petty fouls although, given that all the experience was with his team you would think that they could have coped. United won this game with an overall possession of 39%.

Arsenal, yet again, proved susceptible to the counter-attack, which was how United had to play due to injury and no adequate replacements ever being bought. In Marcus Rashford though, they seem to have inadvertently found a star for now, never mind the future. His two goals were taken very well and now bring his tally to four in two games. (more…)

The Truth Behind The Headlines About Jose Mourinho To Manchester United

Posted: February 22, 2016 in Chelsea, Football, Jose Mourinho, Managers, Manchester United, Opinion, Premier League
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It’s a done deal! There is a gentleman’s agreement! Jose Mourinho agrees to become Manchester United’s next manager! Mourinho will take over this season! Mourinho will take over next season! Van Gaal has three games to save his job! Mourinho will take over in February! Van Gaal has two games to save his job! If van Gaal loses the next game he will be fired!

These are just some of the headlines I have been reading in the last few days. It is hardly any wonder that the great British football fan is dazed and confused as far as the goings-on at Old Trafford are concerned.

In actual fact, as far as I am aware, nothing has been agreed, certainly nothing has been signed and Mourinho won’t be taking over in the next couple of days.

What is disappointing in this whole sordid affair is that van Gaal is still in place. Ed Woodward either doesn’t have the guts to sack him, in which case HE is in the wrong job, which he most definitely is, or he thinks that he will lose face by sacking him, which is the more likely answer. (more…)

Mauricio Pochettino Or Jose Mourinho To Manchester United

Posted: February 20, 2016 in Chelsea, Football, Managers, Manchester United, Opinion, Premier League
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Recently, the candidates to be the next manager of Manchester United came down to just two. One who is out of work and one who isn’t.

United can’t be as choosy as they once could because the majority of top managers wouldn’t leave their current club to go to Old Trafford. Not that they have any history of taking a top manager from another club, it hasn’t been in their nature in the past.

At first glance, a straight fight between Mauricio Pochettino and Jose Mourinho should only produce one winner, the one who is used to winning. Mourinho ticks the majority of boxes required to be a United manager.

He is a serial winner, he can produce entertaining football when he wants to, he wins trophies quite quickly, usually in the first or second season at a club.

There are, however, boxes he doesn’t tick and it is these which makes the likes of Sirs Bobby Charlton and Alex Ferguson vote against his appointment. (more…)

There Is No Logic As To Why Louis Van Gaal Is Still In Charge Of Manchester United

Posted: February 13, 2016 in Football, Louis van Gaal, Managers, Manchester United, Opinion
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So, Louis van Gaal would feel betrayed if Manchester United were speaking to Jose Mourinho about the manager’s position at United, would he? He has just led United to a defeat at Sunderland which leaves them six points away from the top four who all now have a game in hand. The chances of finishing in the top four are now very remote so, therefore, his spending of ÂŁ258 million on new players was both wasteful and unwise.

As a United supporter of more than fifty years I would feel completely betrayed if United WEREN’T talking to Jose Mourinho, I couldn’t care less what van Gaal thinks! He is not the man for Manchester United and the only people who don’t understand this are van Gaal himself and Ed Woodward.

Just to be straight, I have absolutely no time for Ed Woodward who, since amazingly being placed in charge of football matters, has overseen one disaster after another.

Starting with the appointment of David Moyes, a man with no big club experience and no trophy winning experience, through the purchase of Marouane Fellaini for ÂŁ4 million more than was necessary due to a missed release clause, it continued with the joke that was the Angel Di Maria transfer, the sacking of Moyes AFTER it became mathematically impossible to finish fourth or better, giving the next manager no chance of a relatively successful start. (more…)

Does Jose Mourinho Have Any Competition For The Manchester United Job?

Posted: February 11, 2016 in Chelsea, Football, Jose Mourinho, Managers, Manchester United, Opinion, Premier League
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(Are there really three candidates? It’s doubtful, but we look at them anyway!)

Jose Mourinho

Jose Mourinho is by far and away the most qualified for this prestigious position. He also has the added advantage of actually wanting the job! Currently out of work, there would be no compensation to pay and the transition from van Gaal to Mourinho would be seamless.

Having won titles and Champion’s leagues with different clubs in different countries Jose has proven on many occasions that he is the right man for the job.

Unlike David Moyes, he would not find the task daunting or too big and would relish the opportunity of pitting his wits against Pep Guardiola again, this time in Manchester. Unlike Louis van Gaal, his methods and tactics are not so dated that the players would have to bale him out if the going got tough.

Quite why he hasn’t been appointed just yet is a bit of a mystery to a lot of United fans. It certainly doesn’t look like this team is going to achieve Champion’s League qualification but, if they were to bring in Mourinho now, there would still be a possibility. Then it wouldn’t look quite as bad on van Gaal who, by the end of this season, will have spent two years and ÂŁ258 million on taking the team backwards! (more…)

Manchester United Going Backwards With Woodward & Van Gaal

Posted: February 2, 2016 in Football, Manchester United, Opinion, Premier League
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(I make no apologies for writing yet another article on the desperate duo responsible for the demise of my football club. My logic is that the more that can be written about how they are destroying the great name of Manchester United, then the more chance that something will be done about it. So here goes.)

Is this another no-lose game in Louis van Gaal’s match-by-match scenario? I’ve lost track! Stoke aren’t a team I would choose for a must-win game but, as Louis doesn’t appear to have to be a beggar, then he must be able to choose the games for which he comes under the mildest possible scrutiny.

What I do know is that while all this messing around has been going on with van Gaal, who should have been sacked weeks ago, Manchester City have agreed the departure of a better manager than he is and the arrival of a much better manager than he is.

This all leaves Ed Woodward as the chief Ostrich with his head so deep in the sand that only his feet can be seen sticking out. (more…)

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