It has been only 5 years since Sir Alex Ferguson left but to Manchester United fans, it seems like a lifetime. Such was the brilliance of the man, that even after he won 13 Premier League titles in 20 years, only after he retired did people actually realize that he was even more spectacular than what they had assumed him to be.
So what’s gone wrong at Manchester United? There have been 3 managers (not counting Giggs) since the great man left. And if we leave out David Moyes (what a disastrous stint that was), the other two were the big name managers you associate a big club with.
Jose Mourinho
To start with, Manchester United had the best defensive record over the last 2 years but this season any team just comes in and scores whenever they want and, in most cases, De Gea is left with absolutely no chance.
In the last couple of seasons, it was not because of the great quality of defense but only due to De Gea’s brilliance and the opposition’s lack of quality that United were able to preserve their leads. Take 90% of matches last season where United scored the first goal and simply parked the bus, allowing the opposition to pile up the pressure.
It wasn’t as if United stopped all the crosses and won the second balls, there were at least 2 chances given to the opposition to score and a decent team would have taken at least 1, as they are doing this season.
Whenever United have gone down, Mourinho hasn’t been able to motivate the players to fight.
Go down memory lane, and imagine what would have happened if United had conceded a goal during the Fergie era. Fergusson made sure that the team carved out at least 10 good chances in the last 10 minutes of matches. But under Mourinho, United just can’t gather any momentum and if the opponents park the bus, they simply don’t know how to carve out a chance.
That, according to me, simply goes down to the manager and his training method. None of the forwards has any idea about what the other players are doing. They move forward aimlessly and have to search for a teammate to pass the ball to. For whatever Mourinho has achieved, his tactics are outdated and he needs to move ahead in the game, rather than reminding the media of his achievements.
Romelu Lukaku
Simply put, he is not good enough! His first touch to control the ball is atrocious, to say the least, and his ability to stay calm in pressure situations is non-existent.
Here’s a stat to ponder upon: the 2 penalties he has taken so far for United, he has put the ball between the keeper and his post at waist height without power and of course both have been saved.
His third penalty against Derby in the shootout was the exact replica of his first 2 and had the keeper done his homework, he would’ve saved it all day long. Lukaku missed at least 15 absolute sitters last season, many of which would have resulted in extra points, and 4 this season with little to no pressure from the defenders.
Most of his goals last season for club and country were simple tap-ins or headers from around the 6-yard box and most of them were first touch finishes and only on 7 occasions, he had to take a second touch.
Now to be fair, had he been at Liverpool, Spurs or City, he could have gotten away with the missed chances but because of United’s defensive tactics, him being absolute lethal with such chances becomes extremely crucial. Agreed that Mourinho likes tall strong strikers who can outmuscle any defender – Drogba, Diego Costa, Ibrahimovic, Diego Milito come to mind.
But all these players managed to score from nothing. They had/have the ability to score a goal from absolutely nothing. Lukaku? Not so much. Whatever the stats say, simply put, he is not a United-calibre striker.