Football: are Man United losing their way?
When the final whistle blew on Sunday, “there was joy and celebration” from the Brighton fans, said Ian Ladyman in the Daily Mail. But there was no disbelief. Their team had just beaten Manchester United 3-2 at the Amex, “and who was really that surprised”? If anything, the score flattered the Red Devils: they had “no rhythm and no cohesion”. United were shocking in central defence, said Jason Burt in The Daily Telegraph. Eric Bailly and Victor Lindelöf were caught out again and again. But there were problems all over the pitch: the midfield lacked creativity and control; the forward line was “leaden”. For a club of United’s resources, it was “humiliating”.
This defeat was a vindication of sorts for José Mourinho, said Sam Dean in The Daily Telegraph. After all, the United manager spent the summer arguing that the club were in “desperate need” of a new central defender, only to be ignored by the club’s executives. But Mourinho has no right to complain about Bailly and Lindelöf, said Alyson Rudd in The Times. They were bought on his watch, for a combined total of £61m. And if they have struggled, it’s because Mourinho has shown so little faith in them: they have been “sidelined and belittled”. Most managers stand by their signings – but “being bought by Mourinho doesn’t count as a seal of approval”. Since joining United two years ago, he has signed 11 players, said Jamie Jackson in The Guardian. Of that group, only Romelu Lukaku and Nemanja Matic “can be deemed successes”. Mourinho has manifestly failed to bring out the best in Alexis Sánchez or Paul Pogba, two tremendously talented players.
Under Alex Ferguson and David Gill, the former chief executive, United was the best-run club in football, said Oliver Kay in The Times. Now, however, the people in charge – notably the executive vice-chairman, Ed Woodward – seem to be “making it up as they go along”. There’s no coherent transfer strategy: this summer, only three players were signed – including Lee Grant, a 35-year-old goalkeeper, and Diogo Dalot, a 19-year-old right-back who had played only six matches in Portugal’s top division. The problem is that Woodward is “a money man, not a football man”, said Henry Winter in The Times. A former accountant and investment banker, he is “a master at sweating the brand and keeping the tills alive”. What the club lacks is a director of football: a senior figure with an impressive footballing pedigree, like Manchester City’s Txiki Begiristain, who can plan for the club’s future while working closely with the manager. Unless United appoints such a figure, England’s most celebrated club – and “the world’s most profitable footballing institution” – risks losing its way.