28 Nov 2017 18:16:21
Leahy mate, I do think the balance of power is shifting across the city right now. Yes they need to win more trophies but it is what they are doing off the field as much as on it. The investment they have made in the club and to some extent the city is phenomenal, clearly there is no requirement to make a profit there which obviously helps.
Painful as it is they appear to be making huge strides on the pitch. We all keep waiting for them to slip up but a third of the season in they have yet to do so. If we are all completely honest, who would have preferred Pep to Jose? I certainly would. Cantona got it right, Jose is simply not a United Manager and it is interesting that Jose didn’t really bite back at Eric as he would struggle to argue against his views. We may win things, we may even dominate some teams, he’s a great Manager, but it won’t be the style we have grown used to, not just under SAF but also, Busby, Doherty, Atkinson.
I started supporting United when we were in the second Division and once promoted We struggled to complete for many years. From 1990 onwards though we have dominated, we already had worldwide support and history and that won’t change, but if City start winning big trophies then expect to see more City kits knocking about, just as we have done for Chelsea in recent years.
Tell me why I am wrong.
28 Nov 2017 18:24:22
Imagine if we didn't have the disappointment of being purchased by the Glazers and City and Chelsea were never purchased by billionaires looking for a hobby. We'd be on title 26 by now. Imagine if Abramovich purchased MU, we'd be on title 30.
Even if clubs were not run without outside and clubs were all running on their own means we'd be dominating by some distance. The Glazers purchasing us levelled the playing field. The other clubs should be very grateful about that.
28 Nov 2017 18:49:07
It sure I follow that argument Syd. SAF kept us winning and dominated Chelsea for a period, we are rich enough to attract top players and Managers. Whether SAF was asked to rein in his spending (no value in the market) or whether he really thought that I don’t know but he left a squad in need of work. Many of the purchases since he left have been questionable.
City have been doing ok with their billions but with Pep I think we will see another step up.
28 Nov 2017 19:06:17
Couldn't agree more Ajh. I think some on here are a bit blinkered. City, as I've been saying for 3 years are moving forward at a great pace and are doing what we used to do, play attacking attractive football with no fear. Mark my words, their owners and Pep will turn them into formidable opponents that will dominate the PL and even Europe.
I watch our club get involved in buying average players for silly money. We have sold our soul by allowing three managers to abandon our traditions and instead play absolute rubbish football. I watch City, Barcelona and PSG play fast attractive football which is from a different planet.
And even then, we have people saying that city are not great defensively and will slip up. Well wake up guys and smell the roses, it ain't going to happen. They will not cone down to our standard, we need to go up to theirs.
28 Nov 2017 19:19:59
This might sound daft but there only average players if they don't perform.
We have signed some good players that people where very happy with but haven't got the best out of them.
28 Nov 2017 19:39:37
They are playing better football than us at the moment but as jred said we have the players but they aren't playing 100%, we aren't that far off just 2 or 3 more signin gs
And as for comparing the clubs Bobby Charlton has more history in his big toe than city as a club, they have a long way to go and I don't think will will step back admiring them every week.
28 Nov 2017 19:43:13
Attack
You know I have been saying on here for years about the lack of investment, the arrogance to think we were so big we didn’t need to worry about those pesky noisy neighbours. Well now they are nearly there and we still do nothing.
28 Nov 2017 20:06:22
I know people won’t care about my opinion but as an outsider (keeping my bias at toe) city are light years ahead, and not just of you but anybody, there are bigger clubs out there like yourselves but nobody is growing at such a rate, it’s easy when money is no option but it’s not just the players, the youth development, the manager, the image, they’re investing heavily in every aspect of football as a game and business. We can all claim ‘oh we did it properly, money, is wet other excuse’ but the fact is they’re steam rolling games. United will still win trophies but it won’t be like the old days. Power (not just in football) swings in bouts, cycles come and go, in all honesty who can you really see beating city to the title, CL, or FA cup if they take that serious? Not many teams are blessed with 40/ 50 million pound benchwarmers.
28 Nov 2017 20:51:52
They look light-years ahead because they've had to grow from almost nothing. People bang on about their academy but who's it produced so far? Sancho had to go to Germany. Will Foden play this season?
28 Nov 2017 22:26:08
they will have the same trouble we had the majority of top player will come for the money for a season and then sod off because they do not like the weather.
28 Nov 2017 22:29:18
Mort, foden played last match.
RedMan and johnbarnes, fully agree. To think we're top dog and we can carry on as before is naive in the extreme. They are well ahead of us not only on the pitch but in the way they're developing their club.
There's nothing wrong with seeing a competitor do well. But when you sit there and think everything is rosey and ignore the threat, then that's what will bring us down.
29 Nov 2017 08:34:30
Pep will be gone In 2 or 3 seasons just like jose.
29 Nov 2017 08:35:01
That's true jred. Many a good player has been in the wrong place at the wrong time or under the wrong coach and moved elsewhere and shone again and looked a different player. This happens to all clubs I think.
Shaw hugely talented as a teenager if he moves could flourish again. So could miki or darmian. I know what you say when you say get the most out of what we have and improve them and i agree to a point but if the manager puts you out of his plans then its more often or not time to move on. (Im not stating that's the case for those players) . Fergie did it plenty of times to players klopp has done it conte poch sometimes the manager has lost faith and that can be for a zillion differrnt reasons.
Sometimes the decisions work out sometimes they come to bite you on the ass but that's why they get the big bucks.
Truth is none of us know why managers fall out or lose faith in certain players but it happens. Im sure as often as not its the players fault too.