Yeah theyāve dug their own grave. Just terrible policy on transfers and contracts, theyāve assembled a squad of overpaid shit players, and brought in a manager that appears to be clueless.
Zidane isnāt arsed about managing anymore, I donāt think. Heās said many times that he has no interest in the PL - he doesnāt speak English and canāt be arsed to learn it.
Also, his only experience is taking over a very strong Real Madrid side - albeit he led them to 3 consecutive European Cups - but Iām not sure he has what it takes to take over a squad full of overpriced dross, install a scalable, repeatable play style that can win games while rebuilding the squad, then manage the squad to winning major trophies.
And thatās probably the best thing about the position theyāre in. FFP/P&S rules mean they canāt just spend silly money on big name players anymore, they have to be clever in the transfer market while also appeasing their dickhead fans. Any manager will come in knowing that the fans have no patience despite it being one of the most difficult jobs imaginable now. Top/proven managers wonāt want to waste their time on a project of that scale.
I think he will manage again, but of course he doesnāt have to go anywhere. Plus, heās obviously not wanted as someone like Pep is. Maybe France down the line, a French club or Juve or another go at Real.
Precisely, McTominay is not a world beater, but he is also not the cause of their problems. He is never going to be a key starter in a CL side, but in a squad put together to compete at that level he is a more than useful supplement. Itās definitely right to argue his goals can give the impression to people who arenāt paying much attention that he is a better player than he actually is, but arguing that doesnāt mean you have to overly criticize him. In a squad put together to compete for the CL places he is still a player who can be used in 20-30 games a season as the situation requires. Given the scope of the rebuild and the fact he can do 6-7 out of 10 jobs in 2-3 positions he is exactly the sort of player you keep around through the rebuild.
The challenge for Utd will be if someone like Moyes starts over rating him and tries to buy him for more than heās worth. The way for Utd to fuck that situation up would be to replicate their situation with Rashford where they are so intent on showing the fans they understand the importance of āUtd DNAā that they overpay to keep himā¦so expect a 300k a week contract to be put on the table for him this summer.
I reject the premise that McTominay can do ā6-7 out of 10 jobs in 2-3 positionsā, and I think this is where my main disagreement is here. McTominayās average performance is closer to a 3-4 out of 10, regardless where he plays on the pitch. Heās not a PL or CL level footballer and never will be.
Please actually watch a few Man United games. Heās always one of the worst players on the pitch. Never shows for the ball, canāt pass, canāt press, isnāt press-resistant, has no brain, just always wants to bomb forward (vacating his position in the formation) so that he can be in the box when the ball is sent into the mixer by Bruno. Thatās why heās always there with a scruffy goal or two - because heās not performing his actual role on the pitch.
Itās mental that people think heās somehow a serviceable part of a team that wants to challenge for top honors, or even just the CL places. Heās a net negative to the squad.
There are a lot of levels and layers between being a squaddie for a side that wants to compete and win and not being a PL footballer. Which he is for a good few years now. Yet we have Nat Phillips on a contract until heās 28.
Iād argue that Nat Phillips isnāt PL level, and we only have him on the books for emergencies. Otherwise he gets nowhere near the PL playing squad.
Heās easy to mock precisely because he isnt the level you expect Utd to build their team around yet has been more prominent than most of their so called star players. But that doesnt mean he is their problem. He, like Fred, is often the ligntening rod for the rest of the team not performing. Letās remember for all the mockery Fred got, he still got 30 caps for Brazil in an era where they were not lacking for CMs of his type.