NO GLIMPSES OF HOPE IN UNITED'S TURMOIL

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 Ole was appointed interim manager in March 2019 following the sack of Jose Mourinho. The former red devils striker got the nod for the job on  the merits of  the fact that he is a club legend amongst other immediate conveniences then. He inherently had the uneasy task of restoring calm to the storm after Jose's controversial midseason exit. 

In Ole's first two seasons his red devil side were delightful in most parts  and sparkled hope as the side placed in the top 4 three consecutive times finishing 2nd in their last campaign. The Norwegian also rounded up impressive victories against the traditional top six sides and other big sides in Europe giving the Sretford end many nights to remember. As at December 2019 the baby face assassin had a win percentage of 53.8% against the "traditional" top six sides in England which was more than impressive for the Norwegian. One would assume that after the addition of big names such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Raphael Varane and Jadon Sancho to the teamsheet United would be flying high but seemingly there are no patterns of play inside Ole's turbulent start to the 2021 season.

United are shambolic, uninspiring, lackluster for want of better words and the united faithfuls are quick to blame Ole. United have just one more win than defeat losing 4 games in total this season. This would be a disturbing fact for the record English champions however Ole isn't a particularly good starter . Last year the United man picked up picked up just 10 points from his opening 7 fixtures coupling it up with a six one loss to Jose's Spurs which makes this shambolic start feel nostalgic or ignite a de ja vu if you may.


The big question is why is united struggling? In a simple word control. United needs a proper defensive midfielder as voiced out by the coach on several occasion. United seemingly does not have someone who sets the pace for them. What Rice does for the Hammers, Neves for Wolves, Jorginho for Chelsea, Partey for Arsenal; United needs an anchor man with a brilliant passing range and ability and I cant stress this enough but that isn't Fred or McTominay. So therefore United would continue to concede goals and build up poorly as non of the midfielders mentioned match that profile. McTominay and Fred give  you legs, average tackles but easy optional passes to say the most. Pogba is and has always been a champagne midfielder, always looking for the odd pass the spark to ignite a swift transition but his defensive awareness is not very impressive. Matic could do the job but is too old to complete it which leaves United with a checkbook and a big name to bring in.

Many a people also feel that the board has misplaced priorities as they continually fail to get rid of their current coach who many believe to be tactically incompetent for the next phase of the project. Ole does not do himself any favors in that regard as his double pivot systems and three back systems have all been lethargic in giving the record champions control. With pressure mounting, a new manager might be imminent with every passing matchday, but who would be the perfect match?

Antonio Conte comes to mind easily but that is no longer an option as the former Juventus midfielder is now the head coach of Spurs. Assuming that United would appoint an interim manager after Ole, the forerunner seemingly is Ralf Ragnick. Ragnick has tremendous coaching experience and is currently acting as a sporting director for Lokomotive Moscow. In Ralph’s 2009 Shalke campaign we saw potential that probably might suit the red devils style.  Coaches like Ten Hag will also be an option this summer if the Professor Ralph project goes sideways. Zidane is reportedly not an option in both scenarios as the formal Los Blancos manager eyes Le Bleu's job.

Omen bodes well for the red devils if their current coach is sacked. Bayern Munich Sacked Nico Kovac, a former player and went on a convincing spree winning  the champions league under interim coach Hansi Flick. With Chelsea replicating similar successes with Thomas Tuchel after sacking club legend Frank Lampard it might be in United's best interest to hear the fans out. 

Some might blame the board for being indecisive, some blame Ole's shocking prevalence as head coach on Sir Alex Ferguson's protection, but which ever ways you slice it until the mockingbird is killed and a series of fortunate events leads United back to glory the headlines, as it always has, would continue to be “that there are no patterns of play no glimpses of hope in United's turmoil”. 




Location: Kumasi, Ghana

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