Manchester United banter 78690

18 Mar 2018 07:13:31
I’m getting a bit bemused at the moment. Jose is spoiling for a fight with his players and seems quite happy to tell everyone about it. He says he asked for a more direct quicker tempo last night. The weather was shocking and he could have been conciliatory but instead he called pretty much all of them out publicly.

Now some of us might say he is right (not me) but to do it so publicly suggests one of the following:

1. He has run out of patience with players not following his instructions and feels he needs to publicly shame them.
2. He is lashing out following the criticism directed at him after Tuesday. “It’s not my fault guv, it’s them lazy arse players”.

I’m struggling to think of another reason but given how he exited Chelsea, alienating your whole team seems a little foolish; whatever the reason, he seems completely confident that his position is secure. I think his ego is bruised and even if he is right about desire, personality, and ability, there is no need to be so public or obvious about it.

I really don’t know what to think any more. We need strengthening, but we also need to get the best out of those we have. Take Shaw. He gets a run of games, plays well, earns public praise, and then is dropped for the next game. Eventually recalled last night, I thought he played well, and he gets hooked at half time. I really don’t understand Jose’s approach here, and yes, it does smack of bullying (psychological) .

I think we are seeing a mini meltdown, the difference at United is that Woodward is not a football man and might not realise the implications of what might happen. Jose is one of the world’s best, if he says the players are rubbish then the players are rubbish, blah blah blah.

I suspect we will hear murmurings from the dressing room in the coming days, a unhappy camp will not lead to high levels of commitment and effort, irrespective of what they get paid. The Manager’s job is to inspire and motivate his players, something Jose seems unable to do right now.

18 Mar 2018 07:29:35
Couldn't agree more AJH. His footballing ethos and style have been widely debated but very few seem to be interested in how he actually man managing the squad.

You mention shaw, we can see the exact same thing with martial, rashford and lingard. Martial and lingard were our best performers until sanchez arrived, consequently both have been reduced to bit part players who have had their position changed every game they play and then he throws them under the bus by telling us they are not following his directions. Rashford had a great Liverpool game on the left, he is rewarded by being switched to the right in the next one and dropped in the subsequent match.

All mourinho defenders are quick to point to fergie any time people criticise mourinho for something. Remind me when Fergie consistently threw his players under the bus the save his skin?

Paul scholes refused to play in a game because he was pissed at being dropped for a game, and the only time we heard about it was when scoles himself revealed this after retiring, that is man management, then people wonder why SAF never faced player revolts and why mourinho got fired from his last 2 jobs due to player revolts.

18 Mar 2018 07:46:26
Sir Bobby was right, this is not the type of character we want at our club. Would anyone like to work for a nut case like him? He has the mental maturity of a small child. I told them to play like you wanted and they are not playing properly. It is not my fault.

He has the audacity to talk about our heritage. We are a club of great heritage and diplomacy. We do not want to be the football equivalent of the Jeremy Kyle show.

He talks about developing young players – yes knob say, your public bullying has really helped Luke Shaw! That lad has family and friends, who have to watch him being publicly humiliated.

18 Mar 2018 07:55:44
Ajh, the manager is right.
I don't know exactly what your problem is with the manager being so honest is?
Shaw was not great last night and was caught out on 3 occasions and berated by the manager just before half time. I would imagine he has lost patience with his lack of effort desire and commitment.
He has said some of his players lack the right attitude to be winners and can't cope with the pressure of and are not showing the required dicipline and mentality to represent united.
Is he wrong? I don't think so.

Martial is flakey doesn't work hard enough and I've never seen him grab a game and dominate it or dominate his opponent. He hides and only takes part in the game ehen someone gives him a pass. Then more ofen than not he runs up a cul de sac.

Valencia is finished pace has gone its only his great attitude and experience that is getting him through games.
Jones fellaini blind shaw darmian ibra are squad passengers that offer nothing not even decent competition to poor 1st team starters the likes of valencia young and smalling.

You say he is bullying certain players that's BS. you seem to be happy to give players that have failed this club for years more time and to fulfill potential they showed years ago but nothing since, yet come down hard on the manager that has us in our best league position in 5 years and in our 3rd semi final in 2 years. a huge achievement with such a rag ball rovers squad.

You and others keep saying we have great attcking player's. Who are they?
Lukaku on for seasons best goal haul as is rash as is martial so they are all playing to their level.
I think the issue is you think their level is higher than they have ever achieved. Martial won't make it at united or in the epl. Magic in his feet but rocks for brains. He will thrive elsewhere i hope but i'm not even convinced of that.
Get in the right support and players to compliment sanchez and pogba and watch them flourish.
Jose knows what he is doing.
Poor players need to be exposed we have 8 or 9 stealing a living for past 3 4 or 5 years they need to be called out and removed. If that us bullying in your view then your entitled to your opinion.

Jose is far from perfect but his 3 titles at chelsea were not with boring teams nor were his madrid side boring. Far from it. Check the stats goals for and against and compare them to fergies title winning sides.

Some of our players are good players but have not coped or performed for united. I don't care if they go on to play great elsewhere as long as their replacements perform better than they have for us.

City spend the most recently and are having most success.
When chelsea spent tbe most they had the most success. For 25 years united were biggest spenders and they had most success. Who spends more in spain than Barcelona and madrid?
Who spends more in italy than juve over past 6 years.
Mmmm who is winning the titles i those countries.
Who has biggest budgets in france? Oh psg they are doing very well domestically.
Liverpool and city spent more than us this year and city are reapong the rewards.
If you were a city fan last year would you be slagging pep of for showing stalworths like zabeletta clichie kolorov fernando navas nolito the door.
Has pep bullied ya ya or stones?

I hope the board let jose do his job and support him if they do he will get us our title back.
If not get a new manager in but the fact remains the same the crap players must go and decent profesdional ones need to come in.

{Ed001's Note - goals don't stop a team being boring, the old Wimbledon team scored goals but they were hideous to watch and Jose's teams have all been very similar. No idea why people lie about what Jose has produced with this complete fallacy that his teams were not boring. He was sacked the first time round by Chelsea because of it, he was booted out of Madrid because of it. So why deny it and come up with nonsense? Did you not watch his Inter side bore teams into submission?}

18 Mar 2018 07:57:41
I picked Shaw because he seems to have done what was asked of him and then got immediately dropped. Rashford is a good shout, after a great game against Liverpool he should have been told “you played great son, do it again” but instead he was moved to accommodate Sanchez who has been awful, and then dropped. As for Martial and Pogba, they are clearly very talented players, so why are they playing so poorly / inconsistently?

As I said in my opening post I’m just bemused at the ludicrousness of it all. If press reports are correct then a 30 year old Perisic is one of the answers. don’t see this ending well.

18 Mar 2018 07:58:35
Agreed guys. To be honest, I'm fed up with the whole saga and with mourinho and the sulky and moods. It seems like the place is under a depressive cloud. He's watching our neighbours and the red Scousers play scintillating football close to home and earning all the accolades and his style is being criticised and he in turn is taking it out on the players, the fans, the press and even the medical staff and management.
I'll be honest, until Fergie retired, if United won, I used to be elated and if we lost, I'll be depressed for days. Last night, we won to get into the semi final of the FA cup and I've got no emotions. I watched a boring match where we won but created little excitement and for a defensive set up (supposedly) we allowed them 14 shots to our 8! This is becoming a bit of recurring theme. We are a defensive team but teams are having a record shots on goal against us.
Attack is the best form of defence but I think this is lost on mourinho.
He tinkers with players and tactics too much and then wonders why there's no cohesion or commitment. His man management skills are embarrassingly bad. I've lost the plot with him and I expect most of the players have too.

18 Mar 2018 08:23:10
Ken

You say we have crap players, I say we need strengthening but Jose should be getting mor out of the players we have. You seem to have absolute faith in him and his methods, whereas I think he is yesterday’s man. The last Champions League knockout game he won was with a Real Madrid against us and how long ago was that?

After 2 Cup wins and significant investment I expected to see more progress. People will point to us being 2nd and the goals scored vs last year but after a bright start we have got progressively worse. Jose will always find a way to grind out results and he will be able to point to stats but he is being overtaken by a lot of younger more innovative coaches.

To call put the whole team publicly smacks of someone who has lost control and is unable to influence his players, if you think Jose is the answer then fair enough, but I don’t.

18 Mar 2018 08:31:59
I disagree 001 his chelsea sides to me were not boring. i'm not making it up or in denial that's my honest opinion.
Its not a lie. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I would rather have titles and medicore play than have exciting football and end up as also rans.
Ideally i would like both.
But the fact remains no manager could have this squad higher in the league this seadon than jose has united.
If he set up with tbis squad to go toe to toe with the best teams they would be getting battered and would be where arsenal are now imo.
Will it improve when he gets his players in. i'm of tbe opinion it will.
Will klopp win anything with the best liverpool team for a decade. I di t think so. Will poch at spurs i don't think so. Are they doing better than united at the moment not really. Sure at tbis time tbey are better to watch no argument from me there. But that's not enough for me. Its all about winning.
We have some shicking professionals at unuted that need removing. Under performing for years. Nobody has called them out or rattled their cages.
Tough calls need to be made.
When jose goes i won't look back too fondly at some things but the club are light years behind in their thinking on certain issues and I've no issue with the manager being aggresive with the players or board in his attemp to wake them from their slumber.

{Ed001's Note - if you say so, but forgive me if I don't believe you as no one at the time ever had anything good to say about their style of play. I also think you are talking nonsense about no one doing better than Jose. It is a far better squad than apologists like to admit to, but I give up as there is none so blind as those that don't want to see the truth.}

18 Mar 2018 08:44:48
I watched his inter side win a treble. Just because 2 opinions differ ed001 it doesn't make 1 a lie. Winning is most important so if i say klopp is not a good manager if he fails to win is that a lie.
AAA. see where spurs and liverpool players are in 18 months if they keep failing to but medals on the mantlepiece.
Im not making the argument that our football is good at the moment nor do i like the style. With better players that fit his system it will improve somewhat. It won't be like city but i'm ok with that as long as its better and we are winning.
Fergie had a couple of spells when the team was in tramsition when the football was crap but he kept us competitive through his great management skills. We are 2nd this year with a really poor squad a worse squad than fergie had when he was finishing 2nd or 3rd. that's down to his management.
Im 100% behind him and ill be 100% behind a new coach but whether he stays or goes one constant remains anywhere between 6 and 10 players need to be removed from our squad. Nobody could have this bunch of average joes higher than 2nd.

{Ed001's Note - if you really believe that then you need to get a life. It is a game and if winning is all that matters then I fear for you. As for the nonsense about Jose's squad being so bad, it is just delusions. You have no one anywhere near as bad as players like O'Shea. Just lots of excuses. In fact I am done. This is pointless may as well talk to a brick wall.}

18 Mar 2018 08:50:08
Who has passed him out ajh. Looking at the table at tbe moment he has passed out klopp poch wenger and conte so far this season.
So when have our players (ex fergie players excluded) ever done better at united?
Is rash on for a seasons best goal haul? Is lukaku? Is martial? Is ddg up for most clean sheets?

18 Mar 2018 08:54:42
How many knock out ties has he played since then?
How many has golden balls poch won?
Or how many has klopp won?

I don't like a lot of his methods but at the moment i think that's what's required. I don't like his persona. But i think its what's best for the club in the long run at this moment in time. No other manager has got the better of pep. Give him the tools and he will. He left mafrid in much better shape than he found them. He will do the same here.

18 Mar 2018 09:15:20
Ken, me thinketh you doth protest to much. We won’t agree on this, let’s let others have their say.

18 Mar 2018 09:16:56
Ken Madrid, Barca, PSG, Bayern and City don't have to choose between winning stuff and playing well and after the money Jose has spent and wants to spend neither should we.

18 Mar 2018 09:10:07
I fear for you ed if you think the objective of playing any game is anything other than to win.
These are professionals its their job and business not a game its their livelihood.

In my business i have fired really nice guys who do their best but don't achieve what i need them to and i have a couple of arrogant dicks that run their areas with an iron fist and surpass their goals and targets. A lot of my customers don't really like these guys but they deliver for both their customers business and mine so we all do well.

Some soccer supporters forget its a results business you have said that yourself many a time on here. So if its a results business can you achive those results without winning?

{Ed001's Note - I have never said that you play to do anything but win have I? You are not playing the game though, you are watching for 'entertainment' not playing or do you forget that you are not a footballer? This is nothing to do with business, it is a game and you should remember that. It is an entertainment that millions watch for that reason. If you want to be bored but only care about winning, why not follow some other sport and team that do win? Clearly because it is not only about winning or you would just follow any old sport.

If it is all about winning, why not just cheat? I mean it doesn't matter, the ends justify the means right? Dope up the players, dive, scratch, break legs, etc as it is all about winning is it not?

The point is that results can be achieved in more than one way, but this is meant to be entertaining so why not entertain along the way? Instead you will make excuses pretending that your hundreds of millions of pounds worth of talent is actually crap instead of admitting it is the man in charge that is choosing tactics that make it all look like dross. Your strengths are all in the attacking third, so why does he choose to stifle them and play defensive? Because it is his way and nothing will change except the excuses and the people that will get blamed.}

18 Mar 2018 09:20:29
Ken - as you say each to their own and as a José supporter maybe you can explain the following:
We beat Liverpool and in the biggest game of the season so far we bring in Fellani, move Rashford who was outstanding against Liverpool and drop Mata and McTom who both played well.
We are spending nearly £1m a week on wages to have neither Sanchez or Pogba perform, presumably that's down to the failures at Utd and nothing to do with José.
You want José to make numerous signings, if we are to offload 8 or 9 then we need replacements. So far we have Miki come and gone, Pogba and Sanchez under performing, Lindelof can even displace the rubbish you say that Smalling, Jones etc are. Lukaku has done well, Matic has done well, Bailly, he misses at least 30% of games. So where does your confidence come from that José can get the transfers right, so far his record is poor in the transfer market for us.
Now I don't think any of the above are down to the rubbish players you say we have.

{Ed001's Note - it should also be pointed out that Jose has never had full control of transfers anywhere he has been in the past.}

18 Mar 2018 09:27:42
Jose melt down wasn't as bad as that.

18 Mar 2018 09:37:59
Ed because winning by cheating isn't really winning is it?
So manchester united isn't a business? that's delusional.
You have said its a results business.
I totally agree that the best way to win is by doing it with style. No argument from me on that.
But i'd rather win with less style than not win at all.
As for me thinking our players are poor despite the hundreds of millions spent on them i find that a strange comment from yourself given that on a continual basis you have opinions on players saying they are poor and not worth what clubs pay for them. Is it not ok for someone else to have an opion like that that?
What do you think of mangala? Despite his price tag? If a city supporter says he is poor i'd agree despite the 40m or whatever it was city paid for him. Or carrol that liverpool paid 40m for. Was he not poor? Did king kenny develop him and make him a good buy? No he was poor and moved out the door.
Sometimes players move and play badly poor buys, bad fits no matter what they cost.

{Ed001's Note - you do not work for Man Utd. What are you wittering on about this for? This is delusional. It is not your business, you are not a player. You are a spectator. Is it really so difficult for you to get this? You are wasting my time with this. It is not difficult to understand that have as much involvement as you do when you sit at home watching a movie. I can just imagine the mind numbingly boring long winded crap you would choose to watch.

The thinking players are poor is just deflection away from the issue. Your squad is not as bad as you and all the other apologists are trying to make out and pointing out one or two overpriced donkeys is not going to change the fact. It is certainly better than your recent performances would suggest, as your early performances showed. The question should be 'why has it got worse under your messiah jose?' If Jose is so good, surely they should be getting better, not worse?}

18 Mar 2018 09:38:17
Well jred atleast Ken didn't do a 12 minute monologue so as Ken would say it is an improvement.

18 Mar 2018 09:39:41
Here, Ed001. Leave big John out of it! 😁.

{Ed001's Note - he was bloody awful though.}

18 Mar 2018 09:48:02
The bit that gets to me most is the opinion that we either play good football and win nothing or play boring football and win trophies. It doesn't have to be like this. As City, Barcelona and Bayern are demonstrating.
And I'm sorry Ken, I can't agree that we don't have any good players or that only mourinho can have us in 2nd place 13 points behind City. I think if Pep was manager, we'll be top and we won't be having this discussion. Also, after 2 years in charge, pep would have addressed our deficiencies at full backs, midfield and wings.
Mourinho has had two seasons and we're still playing like strangers. He's still changing players every week. We're still not pressing high and still not working hard enough. We're still allowing Brighton to have 14 shots and Seville over 20 shots at our goal. We still cannot retain the ball for more than 6 seconds. It's shambolic and there's only one common denominator, Mourinho.

{Ed001's Note - that is exactly the point, good football and winning football are not two mutually exclusive things. You can have both.}

18 Mar 2018 10:14:38
As i said above that's the ideal they are not mutually exclusive.
Jose is not my messiah at all but he is the mager we have and i can see things from his point of view.
If you think the likes of valencia young smalling fellaini martial blind darmian can bring scintillating football i disagree.
Performances are poor the style is poor but so are a lot of our players. You may think they are good enough to bring great entertainment i beg to differ.
We have a manger, a proven winner if he is backed by the board i belive things (the play) will improve and the trophies will come.
You support your way and ill support mine. Happy always to read your opinions but you must remember they are not gospel. Nor are mine.
I don't always look at things from a pure spectators point of view ed001. I try to have a more rounded view and take into consideration what the club and business require or else i'd say go out buy messi and co but that's not practical really is it?
Nobody is always right not even your good self. I may support in a different way to you and get out of it what pleases me.
I would get more pleasure watching my team win 1 nil than lose 4 3.
Id get even more pleasure watching them win 4 nil no doubt about that.
One of the best games i watched as a neutral this season was liverpool against city when liverpool beat them. End to end stuff great attacking play but where do you think that game ranks for city supporters? i'd say its one they want to forget.

{Ed001's Note - those players are fully capable of playing good football, if used correctly, just like any player is. Plenty of lower league and non-league sides can get their players playing great footie, so why can't internationals in the Prem?

You can look at things however you want, but it is irrelevant to the conversation as you are nothing but a spectator and we are discussing a spectators view nothing else.

As for your mention of the LFC-M City game, what do you think City fans would prefer - the odd defeat like that or play like United and still only finish second?}

18 Mar 2018 10:25:09
Dont you guya think its the players fault for chooaing to play for Unites when they knew the style Mourinho was going to play.

If a player doeant like a style of play or tactic then tbey should choose a club which auits them best.

I know a lot of these players were already there before jose joined the club but i am aure they couldve let the club know that they would want to leave and don't like the way Jose would get them playing.

Everyone knowa Jose is very arrogant in terms of how he has managed all of his life so the players and the manager should equally share the blame.

18 Mar 2018 10:34:28
I also should add if this isn't going to work out then it would be best to get rid of Jose then getting rid of half the team as we would again be rebuilding for next few years.

But we got to be careful here and make sure the next decision is made correctly because this could completely backfire and we would still be in the same position in 4 years down the line.

18 Mar 2018 10:38:32
"I would rather have titles and medicore play than have exciting football and end up as also rans. " So, if that's the case Ken, why bother watching at all. Why not just look up the result after the game and leave it at that? In fact, why not just wait until the end of the season and take a quick look at the league table.

I went to the match last night and sat frozen and bored for 2 hours. Now I'm wondering why I wasted my money and time. It wasn't as bad as Tuesday but it was still a depressing experience. I live 2 miles from the ground but the guy sat next to me has a round trip of 12 hours driving and he comes to every game. Don't you think he should expect just a little entertainment for his trouble?

Football is called the beautiful game for a reason and when it's played properly it's a joy to behold. Think of all the thrilling games and moments over the years both for Utd and elsewhere. That's what the game is about not grinding out boring draws or narrow victories.

Ken, I'm sorry to learn that you're quite happy without the joy of football in your life. I'm not and I think I might give Man Utd a miss until next season because I'm just bored bored bored silly with the crap football and the stupid circus.

Mourinho out!

18 Mar 2018 10:41:05
Ed001 woah woah woah. John O'Shea. leave it out. I'm not having you bad mouth a living legend of the Irish game.

When Johnny goes marching down the wing o'shea, o'shea.

I've been really hurt by this thread, think I need a lie down 😂.

{Ed001's Note - oh bless. If it helps, he might finally find his level next season when the Mackems are in League One...}

18 Mar 2018 11:01:46
BTW Ken, just out of interest; do you go the matches?

18 Mar 2018 11:31:38
I’m with Ed001. In the words ofRussell Crowe in Gladiator, “Are you not entertained? ” Well, no Jose we are most certainly not.

18 Mar 2018 11:52:08
About 6 a year manc man i was there last tueday night. I live in ireland and travel a lot. i'm in india this week sri lanka next week but ill get a couple more in before the end of the season. Why do you ask?
The atmosphere is crap has been for last 25 years to be honest. The crowd atmosphere is the only thing i envy lfc for. I think they start every home european fixture 1 up because of the crowd.
I enjoy lots of aspects of football manc man. I can enjoy 2 good defencive performances in a nil all draw.
Defending is also an art and skill. I hear people on here moaning all the time that the art of defending is lost.
I didn't enjoy the tip tappy stuff bacelona played without messi to bring some magic i found it boring i much prefer the city style to Barcelona there is more pace to it.
Ive loved watching madrid for last couple of seasons i think they were better to watch than Barcelona at their best much more exciting but maybe not as pretty.
If you don't enjoy it why go to watch it?
I do enjoy watching united i agree its bern a bit boring recently but i tend to look for positives. But winning is for me the most important thing. Ideally win with great style. Fergie won to cl finals but we were crap in both particularly in the noucamp i was there. 1st half v chelsea we were good then fergie parked the bus at 1 nil and nearly cost us the title. Did you turn off your telly or stop watching those games? Did you not celebrate winning those finals?

18 Mar 2018 12:17:02
Lol ed he must be about 40 now auld johnny. One thing, he always did a job and played way above his station. Fergie had that knack.

18 Mar 2018 12:01:01
Angel Jos is a great bloke i played golf with him twice in charity events and was a good squad player at united. Never blessed with great talent but gave his all for both club and country.
Not everyone at the club can be a superstar but i don't remember him costing us too often scored some important goals and was a good pro never over weight never got too big for his boots. He knew he was lucky to have been in the right place at the right time and he maximised the opportunity afforded to him they were his own exact words. The clubs history like most clubs is littered with good pros like john o shea. Players that give their all follow their manager. Too many 'johnny big balls' types around now that think they are better than they are. Think they know it all but really they know f all and would be better advised to keep their heads down and do what their told.

18 Mar 2018 12:11:03
Ed 001 Sheasey nutmegged figo, and scored a winner at the kop! No bashing of an Irish legend on St Patrick’s weekend! 😂.

{Ed001's Note - I thought it would be the best time as you would all be too drunk to notice....}

18 Mar 2018 12:41:21
Ed001. As we agrre, teams can play entertaining football and win. In fact, I'll go as far as saying that most teams leading their respective leagues around Europe play entertaining football. Now there's a thought. Barca, Bayern, psg, city. Is that not enough proof to the Mourinho supporters that things don't have to be this way.
Hand on heart, how many on here watched Liverpool demolish Watford with fast, aggressive football and not enjoy it? I tried not to enjoy it as I don't like the Scousers, but you can't help thinking that their brand of football is what we like to watch at United.

18 Mar 2018 15:43:31
Ken, I asked because I wanted to know how much effort you put into wathcing Utd and it turns out to be quite a lot. I find it surprising that you are content with such a low return of football/ entertainment for the time and money you invest.

I think we just enjoy the game in different ways. Two good defensive performances sounds like football hell to me. I'll take a 4-4 thriller over a 1-0 bore win anytime.

18 Mar 2018 17:10:58
I understand your pint of view manc man and i do spend a lot supporting the club. But its the club i support not whatever the current team is. Ill always be going as long as i gave breath in me.
Ive played in numerous games here in ireland (well 3 times😁) with united legends teams i hope to be playing again in july as my company sponsor some of these games and its great fun.
I love football have worked within the industry and hope to get a role permenantly when i retire in 30 months time at the grand old age of 50.
I don't watch just to be entertained i go to learn to observe and i enjoy that.
I have often gone to games united and other teams and just watched 1 player for 90 mins. To study what he does and his movement off the ball.
During euro 96 i went to see germany play just to watch klinsman for 90 mins. I didn't follow the ball at all i wanted to watch him.
As you say each to their own.

18 Mar 2018 17:54:38
I whole heartedly agree. When allowed to do so the team play more than half decently. Tight defensive tactics against "lesser" teams and they are really not interested. It is not what they came here for. This is practical unspoken dissent and it will only be a matter of time before there is a public blowout of some sort. Until the last few weeks I have always maintained that it would be next season that we would see a real Jose team.

Sadly with no consistent progression towards really competing at the top level, I live in hope, but rational thought gives me grave doubt. With hindsight whatever one thought of LVG, there is case to be made that his signings, on balance, were better (and better value) than JM. I don't think Jose is happy here and I think in recent days he is playing for the sack and a big pay out.

I know many will argue that league poison doesn't lie, and that we are improving, but for me our league position owes more to wins and draws won by luck and by the skin of our teeth due to grim defending to see out games rather than any real improvement. Also we need to recognise where we might be without DDG.
In fairness to our players, I do believe they are better than they are being allowed to be. This belief is what has made me come to the point that Jose is not our future.

Rant over. Differing views respected. I really hope I am wrong. If not, the immediate future is bleak.