12 Apr 2026 00:51:29
Eds and posters. I too saw Bornmouth against Arsenal, visitors were the best team and i was also impressed with Iraola. That said, although they are in great unbeaten run, recently they weren't great and some results flattered them.
I have two questions: Is there a managers profile for Iraola? Bacause i didn't find one.
And second, because i keep reading that he is like Klopp, is he really the closest to Klopp? Because i think he is a little bit more organised, pragmatic and defensively than the great German. Thank you.
{Ed001's Note - I would say Hoeness was closer, but other than that, yes. Klopp was very organised, that was how he made the press work. It requires a lot of organisation to get it right, which is why so few can get the results he did with it.}
12 Apr 2026 13:11:33.
Iraola has done a phenomenal job at Bournemouth. They aren't a huge team that have the same kind of financial power behind them as many other EPL clubs, but he has got them playing some really good football, especially when you consider that last summer they lost their first choice keeper, both first choice CBs and their LB. This meant they had to replace four of their back five. They also lost a couple of other key players like Ouattara, Billing, Jaiden Anthony and Sinisterra. Then, in January, they lost their best player, and arguably the best player in the league this season, Semenyo.
That's 6 of their first-choice players from last season gone, along with another 3 who were regular players.
That's a lot of disruption, and yet they've managed to ride that out fairly well.
Imagine if this summer we lost Lammens, Dalot, MdL, Martinez, Mbeumo, Amad, Mainoo and Zirkzee, and then had to replace them for less than we got for them.
How would you expect that to impact our season next year?
Iraola has done a phenomenal job in the circumstances. The real question is whether he can scale up his approach to a bigger club. His high-energy, team-focused approach works great at "smaller" clubs, but can he convince the guys on big wages with big egos to put that ego to one side and to run through brick walls, to put the team above themselves? That's the real question with him as a manager: can he take the next step?
12 Apr 2026 13:08:23
Thanks as always Ed001
{Ed001's Note - very welcome mate.}
12 Apr 2026 15:56:03
Shappy, all that is true, but look at McKenna. Relegated last year, he lost a bunch of players, including his best two, Delap and Hutchinson, and yet here they are, storming towards automatic promotion again.
The challenge for Iraola, and the likes of McKenna or Glasner, is: can they cope in the United goldfish bowl? Harry made some interesting comments this week about the club being too big for some players, and I suspect the same is true of managers.
There are some very impressive managers out there doing it at 'lesser' clubs (in terms of pressure), but the risk is they can't handle what is still one of the biggest jobs in football.
12 Apr 2026 21:33:58
Ipswich aren't storming to the Premier League. I have followed them closely to see how McKenna was doing.
They have had more than a few well below par performances, and the Championship is not of a particularly high quality either this year.
Southampton have hit form, and Coventry have been the best team overall, but generally the rest are mediocre.
I really don't think anyone can judge McKenna and say with a high degree of confidence that he would be able to take Utd to the next level.
I am not saying he cannot, just that we don't have enough evidence to judge him on.
Iraola, by contrast, as Shappy points out, has a track record over more than just a single season in the Premier League, despite the severe handicap of losing his best players.
The real problem for any manager, be it Carrick, McKenna or Iraola, is whether the players at Utd are determined enough to knuckle down and work really hard, and follow instructions....
13 Apr 2026 09:03:45
Fair points, Salford, but my wider point was doing it at a 'smaller' club is no guarantee a Manager can deliver at United. Alonson was awesome at Leverkeusen, but was sacked by Madrid. Same story with Nagelsmann.
I genuinely have no idea who we should appoint. I think Enrique would be a great appointment, but beyond that, I just see huge risks.