"The Chosen One"
APRIL 12, 2014 BY ED 92 COMMENTS
It has, without hint of hyperbole, been the most disastrous season at Manchester United in a quarter-century. Transition from Sir Alex Ferguson may have proven difficult whomever was appointed at the club, but in "The Chosen One" there is an increasing body of evidence that the clubâs executive has made a serious mistake.
After all âtransitionâ is a word that can be applied to Manchester City, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Chelsea to different levels of success or failure this season.
But Moyes it is â and the Scot has undoubtedly made mistakes across his 50 games in charge. From pre-season planning, to transfer farce, coaching methodology and those oh so very odd press conferences â Rant takes a look. In no particular order of importance.
PRE-SEASON
1. Pre-season purgatory
When Rant argued back in August that Unitedâs pre-season focused too strongly on marketing, with too few quality opponents scheduled, the prevailing wisdom appeared to be, âthis is always the wayâ. Yet, with a tough start to the season the Reds began the campaign undercooked on the ball and over-baked without it. Little wonder, with Moyesâ boot camp consisting of long-running aerobic drills and very little ball work.
2. Ruining Kagawaâs preparation
Kagawa has suffered for almost constant football over the past five seasons, yet Moyesâ split the Japanese playerâs summer break in two, disrupting what should have been a carefully managed programme. Kagawa was recalled early to join a series of marketing events on the Japan leg of Unitedâs summer tour â appearing first at an extended press-conference in Tokyo, then playing 45 minutes of a tepid friendly. Kagawa was then sent back on holiday again. Sensible it was not.
TRANSFER BUSINESS
3. Summer transfer market madness
Cesc Fabregas, Ander Herrera, Gareth Bale, Leighton Baines, Sami Khedira, Daniele De Rossi, Thiago Alcântara â and the aforementioned Fellaini. FELLAINI!! It seems as if the only impostor attempting to muscle in on a hitherto smooth, if under-funded, transfer machine was Moyes himself. After all, if the âword-on-the-streetâ is accurate Moyes simply didnât want Alcântara â available for a bargain ÂŁ17 million â when the club had put in much of the groundwork. What the very f*ck.
4. Fellaini farce
The Belgianâs transfer was a farce unworthy of far lesser clubs than United, but one foisted on an outfit previously proud of its professionalism. That United paid ÂŁ4 million over Fellainiâs buy-out clause is embarrassment enough. That the midfielder should prove wholly unworthy of a place in the Redsâ squad simply adds salt to a gaping wound.
Marouane Fellaini
5. iPad idiocy
Itâs all very good installing a âhigh tech scouting systemâ at Carrington, including iPads and analytics, but if the outcome is âDithering Daveâ failing to deliver quality acquisitions then little improvement has occurred. Evidence that Alcântara was lined-up for a transfer before Moyes delayed on the deal is strong, while no tablet technology can save Moyes from the disaster that has been Fellainiâs acquisition.
CHOOSING FAVOURITES
6. Pandering to Wayne Rooney
It started in the summer: Moyesâ sycophantic and desperate need to place the Scouser on a pedestal rarely deserved. Not only had Rooney spent a summer desperate to engineer a transfer out of Old Trafford, but as Fergusonâs time drew to a close the striker suffered his worst campaign as a United player. In the intervening months Rooney has occasionally sparkled, but all too often simply been flattered by a manager desperate to please. It is, as the old phrase concludes, little more than a deception.
7. Not picking to form
There were times during Unitedâs 3-0 victory at West Bromwich Albion in March that striker Robin van Persie appeared to be staring at his own shoes â sulking as if a teenager bared from attending a late-night party. It was perhaps the nadir, injuries aside, of van Persieâs season; one in which the Dutchman has made it blatantly obvious he is no longer happy. Yet, Danny Welbeck and Javier HernĂĄndez have spent most of the season on the sidelines.
COACHING
8. Backroom turmoil
There has been much debate around Moyesâ decision to sack former assistant manager Mike Phelan along with goalkeeping coach Eric Steele. The Scotâs failure to retain Rene Meulensteen has also been the subject of many column inches. Whatever the reason, the loss of knowledge, experience and link between management and players has proven to be devastating to Unitedâs cause. Moyes should have done better.
9. Giggs sidelined
Moyes and Giggs did not have a dressing room confrontation, but the Welshmanâs limited involvement in coaching this seasons is reportedly in no small part due to differences in philosophy. Rumour has it that Giggs will not only retire this summer, but do so unwillingly. Unless Moyes goes, concludes the rumour mill, the Welshman will be gleefully employed away from Old Trafford in the summer.
Ryan Giggs
10. Coaching methodology
On the topic, while some players expressed early season approval of Moyesâ boot-camp methodology, few in the sports science community concur. Is it a co-incidence that Unitedâs injuries have been so devastating this season? Perhaps, but then there is more than a pause for thought. Giggs and Moyes reportedly fell out over the managerâs insistence on lengthy defensive training sessions too. This is, after all, not the United way.
TEAM MANAGEMENT
11. Rotation policy
Or lack thereof. Moyesâ use of a large squad is a contradiction. In 50 games as manager Moyes has rotated each time. Yet, as the season began the Scot over-used veteran Rio Ferdinand to such an extent that the 34-year-old was burnt out by October and seemingly heading for retirement. It has become clear Moyes has little idea how to manage a large and diverse squad.
12. Poor use of substitutes
Moyesâ negativity has become the punchline to a very bad joke, but the managerâs bizarre decision to substitute Rooney for Chris Smalling on 88 minutes as United led Southampton at Old Trafford last October seems a good prĂŠcis. There was no injury to counter, simply a tactical switch to get âmore height into the boxâ. The irony â a very sad one at that â is that United conceded from a corner. One could not, as the saying goes, make this up.
13. Lack of proactivity
It was always antithetical to hope Moyes might become the kind of dynamic, proactive, coach that many supporters believe United missed out on when passing over JosĂŠ Mourinho and Pep Guardola for the main job. The Scot has not disappointed his critics â so rarely changing a game in Unitedâs favour through, for example, substitutions. The Redsâ loss to Bayern last week is a case in point, with Moyes making required changes at least 15 minutes too late.
MEDIA AND FANS
14. Trying â a lot!
Heâs trying, oh so very trying. Moyesâ peripatetic use of the word âtryâ has become a social media meme and a definitive sign of the managerâs weakness. After all, Ferguson simply did â no trying required.
15. Aspiring to be City
The Blues are âat the sort of level we are aspiring to,â said Moyes after Manuel Pellegriniâs men ran out 3-0 winners at Old Trafford. It is the first time in the clubâs history anybody has aspired to be like City. Just stop it. Now.
16. Not knowing what he has to do
âI donât know what we have to do to win,â Moyes confessed after Unitedâs loss at Stoke City in February. The Scot didnât understand quite how literal the statement would become. Fortunately, while the team has disintegrated under Moyes, there are enough individuals of quality to ensure Unitedâs record against mediocre opposition impresses.
17 & 18. Laying the blame everywhere but at his own doorstepâŚ
Bad luck, injuries, individual mistakes, age profile, Ferguson, a lack of squad depth, a lack of talent â name it and Moyes has blamed it. Just not himself â ever â for the unholy mess that has become Unitedâs season.
⌠and then point the finger at referees
On that theme, while all managers lay the blame for poor results at officialdomâs doorstep, Moyes has a habit of pointing the finger at the Premier Leagueâs referees more than most. âWeâre actually beginning to laugh at them, thatâs the thing. Itâs really terrible, it really is,â said the Scot after Fabio Boriniâs 64th minute penalty in Unitedâs League Cup defeat to Sunderland. United has certainly been no more wronged than any other this season.
19. Talking down the players
âTo win the Champions League, you need five or six world-class players,â Moyes said back in September. âThatâs the level you have to be at to win it. Weâve not got that.â He was right, of course, but the statement fits a pattern of negativity. âI actually think if Sir Alex was here this year it would be difficult for Sir Alex as well,â he added in March. How supporters laughed. Oh, thatâs right â we didnât.
20. âWe enjoyed itâŚâ
⌠said Moyes after Unitedâs defeat to Munich in the Champions League. The fans didnât. It gave the impression Moyes has still not grown into the job â a manager permanently on a touristâs high.
"The Chosen One"
21. âTheyâŚâ
⌠told Moyes a lot, didnât they? Except how to manage the club it seems.
22. Lack of ambition
After defeat to mid-table Swansea City in the FA Cup Moyes bemoaned the fact that his side was not âhard to play against.â In response he promised that United would âmake it difficultâ for mid-table Newcastle United. Thereâs nothing quite like ambition, or lack of it â a philosophy that has defined a season, to the point that the Scot had two plans in the Redsâ pivotal Champions League fixture with Bayern Munich: to not lose, but if defeat was inevitable, to not lose too badly.
23. Never being far away
âWeâve not got the Champions League next season, but I believe it is not far away,â said Moyes after United tumbled out of Europe last week. About seven points at last count. There is always the promise of jam tomorrow.
24. Pulling the wool over supporters eyes
âIt is a work in progress and it will take time to get it exactly how we want it,â said Moyes this season. While a period of transition may be part of the football lexicon, and cyclical changes are frequent at the top, few expected Unitedâs fall to be so hard. After all there are new managers at City, Chelsea, Bayern, Real Madrid and Barcelona this season. None has suffered like United.
INJURIES
25. Over training van Persie
Back in July Moyes admitted that he had âovertrainedâ van Persie âto build up his fitnessâ with the Dutchman joining the pre-season camp in Australia late. After two injury-free seasons in succession the striker has missed more than half of Unitedâs games this season. âThe only way to solve this problem in Jurassic Park,â said rent-a-gob Dutch fitness coach Raymond Verheijen on Twitter, âis to improve education of these dinosaur coaches, fitness clowns and scientific cowboys.â In hindsight, itâs hard to argue with him.
"The Chosen One", Robin van Persie
26. Risking Rooneyâs health
There was never a doubt; not a single moment when Unitedâs manager considered not playing Rooney against Bayern in Germany. Less than 30 minutes into the fixture and it was obvious the Scouser was much the worse for his âbruisedâ â probably broken â toe. By then Rooney was simply hobbling around the centre circle, an inhibitor to Unitedâs performance let alone an aid to an unlikely comeback. âI thought at times he was having a struggle striking the ball.â Well DUH.
27. Risking van Persieâs health
âI think if Iâd brought him off (against Newcastle) some people would say âWhat are you doing? You are 1-0 down and youâre taking off your top goalscorer,ââ said Moyes back in January. The Dutchman, fresh from a month out, played the full 90 as United lost to the Geordies at Old Trafford. The striker would sit out yet more time in the aftermath, and Moyes would continue to moan about injuries.
USING THE SQUAD
28. Ignoring the next generation
Adnan Januzaj has made an outstanding fist of his debut season in Unitedâs first team, although many supporters argue that the Belgian-Kosovan player would have made it under any management. Yet, the 19-year-old aside, Moyes has offered little playing time to a rash of youngsters who have otherwise been sent out on loan. Winger Jesse Lingard, as one example, could hardly have done more to earn a shot at a place in Moyesâ team. He has spent the season excelling at Birmingham City and Brighton & Hove Albion.
29. âI wanted to give everybody a chance to playâ
⌠said Unitedâs manager more than once this season. Except, of course, he hasnât â Wilfried Zaha, Fabio da Silva, Anderson, Nani, Shinji Kagawa, and HernĂĄndez will attest. You get the picture.
DERBY DAY THRASHINGS
30. Thrashed by Liverpool â twice
âWe did a lot of things right,â said the Scot after Unitedâs tame 1-0 defeat at Anfield last autumn. Except score a goal â or even threaten to. Even Moyes did not have the brass balls to make a similar claim as United conceded three to the same opponents at Old Trafford last month. Defeat to major rivals might be worth a P45 in its own right at many clubs throughout Europe.
Manchester United, Liverpool
31. Thrashed be Manchester City â twice
âIt is one game,â said Moyes after Manchester City thrashed United 4-1 at Eastlands in September. âThere are plenty more to come and plenty of time to fix it.â Except it wasnât one game, not even nearly, with United losing more than a dozen games across the season, including all four against City and Liverpool.
STRATEGY AND TACTICS
32. Negative tactics
Parking. The. Bus. Itâs just not the United way. Nor did it work against Bayern unless, unlike Rant, you witnessed a United victory in this seasonâs Champions League quarter-final. Yet, it is not just the two-legged defense-minded strategy employed against the German champions that has frustrated â Moyes has sought a safety-first approach all season. It has brought United just 56 goals in the Premier League â 19 fewer than at the same stage last season.
33. Playing football by accident
At Newcastle, Januzaj, Juan Mata and Kagawa combined to provide a flexible, vibrant attacking performance rarely seen under Moyes. It was a fluke. Not that the trio lack talent â far from it â but that they were deployed in tandem at all. Januzaj was overlooked for Ashley Young at the start, while Kagawa and Mata enjoyed more central roles only because Rooney and van Persie sat out the game. There was a similar pattern at Crystal Palace and West Ham United.
34. So few goals
It is a facet of Moyesâ negative approach, Unitedâs direct style, injuries to key strikers or a combination? Either way the blame lays squarely at Moyesâ door, with United failing to match rivals scoring patterns this season. Liverpool has scored 34 more goals in the Premier League, and City 28. At Old Trafford the Reds have scored just 22 times â thatâs as many as Stoke, and fewer than West Ham or Swansea City.
35. Long ball nonsense
There have been times when Unitedâs approach this season has mirrored the classic long ball sides of the 1980s â Wimbledon, Cambridge United and Sheffield United. True, Moyes has not instructed Old Traffordâs ground staff to grow the grass longer, nor lay sand in the corners, but direct United undoubtedly has become. In defeat to Stoke at the Britannia, as one example, United launched 47 long balls forward into the swirling Potteries wind. Just 13 found their target.
36. Lack of entertainment
Itâs not just about goals though. Unitedâs style under Moyes has rarely brought supporters to their feet. Save for those few matches where Unitedâs more creative players have been unleashed, the Reds functional style rarely seems to excite. Will it improve if Moyes remains at the helm? History and logic dictates this is unlikely.
PLAYERS
37. Under-using HernĂĄndez
The little Mexican has his critics and plenty of limitations, but the striker is the most ânaturalâ goal-scorer in Moyesâ squad. In a season when United has struggled to score and the Redsâ forward line has often been static, Chicharitoâs under-use borders on the bizarre. HernĂĄndez will likely leave in the summer to compound Moyesâ failure.
38. Criminal misuse of Kagawa
âThey tell me heâs a good player,â declared the manager of Kagawa back in August. âTheyâ apparently didnât let Moyes know how, or when, to use the Japanese playmaker who has spent much of the season on the bench or stuck on the left-wing. Only in the Spring, with Kagawa and Mata combining to great effect, has the former Borussia Dortmund player been used in a fashion anywhere near optimal. Only for the Japanese to be shunted back to the left in Unitedâs biggest game of the season against Bayern in Germany.
Shinji Kagawa
39. Attempting to destroy Juan Mata
âIt is like putting a learner in a Ferrari,â said one great Italian coach of Gianluca Vialliâs appointment as Chelsea manager in 1998. In a similar vein Moyesâ early use of the Spanish maestro on the right wing was akin to using an F1 car for the milk round. It might work, but youâre not receiving the full benefit. Once Rooney returns to fitness next season expect the Spaniard to be hanging around the wing once again.
40. Placing Giggs the player in exile
The Welshman may be 40, but he remains the most creative central midfielder on Unitedâs books. The decision to exclude Giggs from so many games this season has, in the context of a potential breakdown in the relationship between player-coach and manager, appeared rather personal.
41. Failing to deal with Ashley Young
Young is not only patently of sub-prime quality, but a serial diver too. Real Sociedad, Wigan Athletic and Crystal Palace can attest to Youngâs penchant for taking a tumble, yet Moyes has been unrepentant. âThe referee was two yards away from it and gave a penalty,â said Moyes after the Sociedad fixture. âIf you need to talk to anybody, you should ask the referee. I didnât see an issue at all.â
MAN MANAGEMENT
42. Dressing room leaks
Sir Alex locked down internal leaks with such vigour that media and supporters alike could rarely tell insider gossip from deliberate misinformation. Not so under Moyes, where not only have certain players regularly briefed the fourth estate on team news, but political factions can be easily calculated.
43. Factions
On that subject the numbers donât weigh in Moyesâ favour. In one camp, so the rumour goes, the âEverton mobâ of Steve Round, Jimmy Lumsden, Phil Neville and Fellaini, together with Patrice Evra and Wayne Rooney. In the other a large group of disaffected players, player-coaches, and former greats. You do the math!
44. That ridiculous Dubai trip
On the subject of leaks, the word on the street pegs Unitedâs mid-season âwarm weather trainingâ camp as little more than marketing activity by day and bar hopping at night. Did Moyes plan the trip? Perhaps not. But the Scot certainly sanctioned it and then empowered the lunatics to take over the asylum.
BEING "The Chosen One"
45. A little boy lost
It is an ephemeral observation, but thereâs little about Moyes that inspires confidence. From Unitedâs insipid tactics, to all those desperately strange press conferences. He is a man that appears criminally out of his depth.
46. Dividing the fans
When a small plane carrying the message âWrong One â Moyes Outâ darted over Old Trafford last month it received jeers from Unitedâs match going public. Moyes 1 â 0 protesters. Yet, every poll conducted, from those in the mass media, to fanzines and one on Rant too, concludes that supporters are universally critical of the job Moyes has done.
47. Heâs a closet ginger
Enough said, really.
"The Chosen One"
48. That banner
He wasnât chosen, at least not by the fans â and not by a process that any corporate on the planet would accept. Thatâs not Moyesâ fault of course, but he has lapped up âsupportâ offered and given very little back.
49. Presiding over more than a dozen defeats
10 defeats in the Premier League, one in the FA Cup, one in the League Cup, two in European competition.
50. Achieving all those records!
The worst home league form for over a decade
Knocked out of the FA Cup in the third round â it occurred once under Fergie
Three defeats in a row for the first time since 2001
First home defeat to Newcastle United since 1972
First league defeat to Stoke since 1984
First ever home defeat to Swansea City
First home defeat to West Bromwich Albion since 1978
First time United have conceded a first minute goal at home in the Premier League
First time City and Liverpool have beaten United home and away in the Premier League era
United will finish with the lowest points tally in the Premier League era
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