The Difficulties of Being a Manchester United Fan
A few weeks ago, I held high hopes as the Red Devils were only 3 points behind 5th place holders West Ham, while also having a game in hand. A simple win against Wolves at home was all that was needed. Easy, right?
But alas, we ended up losing, 1–0, at home, against Wolves. We always foolishly believe that our lucky break will come despite the waves upon waves of inconsistency that have plagued this club for more than half a decade.
In a vacuum, this result wouldn’t be that big of deal. If Manchester City lost at home to Wolves, the fans would have the right to say, “Oh whatever, it was one bad match. We move on.”
But Red Devil fans have no right to say that, because it never gets better.
I’m not going to break down this match, because there really isn’t much to break down. For neutrals, it was probably fun watching us drop points again as we continue to be outside of the top 5. For a Wolves fan, it was probably an exuberating experience watching your boys battle it out for a hard-earned 3 points away. For a Manchester United fan, it was probably a complete waste of 2 hours.
As an avid fan from “across the pond,” I’ve got a lot to say. So without further ado, here we go.
From a purely tactical perspective, the team has flip-flopped between playing possessive and transition soccer, depending on the opposition. For a team that used to absolutely tear apart the EPL, that’s a recipe for disaster. If the system changes regularly, then players’ jobs will change. If players’ jobs are always changing, then it’s unlikely they’ll actually know their jobs on the pitch.
We’ve seen this occur a lot with the Red Devils, especially with the backline.
I’m sure many of you have already seen this meme. Let’s get one thing clear; this isn’t a “talent” issue — even the neighbor you always play with at pick-up games wouldn’t do this. The only plausible explanation is that none of these players knew what their jobs were on defense. Moreover, I’m of the school of thought that if one player is making tactical errors, it’s on the player. If a lot of players are making tactical errors, then it’s probably the game plan that isn’t going so well.
But let’s also look at a personnel/club philosophy standpoint. On paper, Manchester United has always had one of the strongest offenses. In the past few years, we’ve had guys like Robin Van Persie, Wayne Rooney, Radamel Falcao, Angel di Maria, Henrickh Mkitharyan, Alexis Sanchez, and Romelu Lukaku.
But in 2014–2015, our best attacking player was probably Ashley Young. And most of these guys didn’t have the same level of production as Marcus Rashford.
The issue with Manchester United is that during the team’s golden decades, the team never really spent big on big-name transfers. Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t become one of the world’s best until after entering Old Trafford. David Beckham was practically unknown before Sir Alex made the decision to send him on loan to Preston.
This strategy of turning little stars into big ones would work for a good half century. But as time went on, the footballing world changed. We just weren’t really afraid of it, even after the financial takeover of Manchester City in 2008. We thought we were invincible.
But when Manchester City won the Premier League in the 2011–2012 season, courtesy of a famous last-gasp winner against QPR by Sergio Aguero, Red Devil fans worldwide were shocked with awe. We’d sort of recover by winning the Premier League the following season, but the damage was done.
Our “noisy neighbors” would go on to win the EPL again in 2013–2014. And then again in 2017–2018. And then again in 2018–2019. And then again in 2020–2021. Even when they weren’t winning the league, they would still place higher in the league standings.
But with both Manchester clubs having tons of money at their disposal, what sets the teams apart? What sets Manchester City apart from Manchester United is that Pep Guardiola actually knows what he’s looking for in the transfer market. Need a physical, but also technical, defensive midfielder? Rodri’s got you covered. Need a full back that can play on both sides and play in possession with ease? Joao Cancelo. Need a midfielder who can track back to play from the back but also score goals? Ilkay Gundogan.
But Manchester United never seems to get their transfers right. Whether it was coaches never knowing what sort of system they were going to play (remember when Van Gaal wanted to play a 3–5–2?), players not enjoying life in training, or having too many players in the same position, it’s become increasingly rare for the Red Devils to have a successful signing that’s good for a prolonged period of time. Martial never really replicated his debut year success, and it seems as if Edinson Cavani will be following in his footsteps as he’s only scored 3 goals this year.
I also recently heard rumors about the squad pursuing Ruben Neves. The thing is, we don’t need him. That’s not disrespect to Neves, but simply said, we need a CDM.
But alas, maybe the tactical knowledge of whoever is controlling transfers is just too stunted to realize that. Or maybe just the entire managerial staff’s tactical knowledge is stunted.
We wonder why we struggle to break down teams playing in a low block, but our strategy relies on CR7 dropping into midfield and combining with our wide attacking players and full backs when a) one of our full backs can’t play with the ball whatsoever, b) our lack of a true CDM besides 35-year-old Nemanja Matic means we can easily get caught in transition, c), we actually might have other options at the CDM (Donny van de Beek literally stated he could play there) but instead we completely ignore the words of a former Ballon-d’Or shortlisted player in favor of McFred, and d) we solely rely on Bruno Fernandes just trying to make stuff happen and if he’s unavailable to play, then we might as well not try. This season is already probably going to be a bust, and we’ll be lucky if Ronaldo can carry us into the Top 4.
But that’s been kind of the theme these past few years — one or two players stepping up and dragging the team across the finish line, which has lowered in standards each year. As I said earlier, in 2014–2015, it was Ashley Young. In 2015–2016, it was Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial. In 2016–2017, it was Zlatan Ibrahimović. In 2017–2018, it was Romelu Lukaku. In 2018–2019…you’re getting the idea.
And yet in all of these years, the only players that were consistently good were Rashford and Ander Herrera. Thank goodness we let the latter leave for PSG — and for free!
The sad reality is is that the glory days of Old Trafford aren’t just gone — I honestly don’t think they’re ever even going to return at all. I’ve tried my best for years to maintain a positive attitude, but it’s just impossible now. Fair play to Chelsea, Liverpool, and Manchester City — their dominance in England doesn’t seem to be ending anytime soon. In fact, even West Ham (with David Moyes) and Arsenal are getting their stuff straight.
Our silver lining is that with Ed Woodward finally ending his tenure as the de-facto ruler of Manchester United, maybe things will finally change. But that’s a big maybe.
And yet, us Man United fans will probably still support our team to the death. And besides, at least now, you aren’t a “bandwagoner” if you support this dumpster fire of a club.
