The outlook is very concerning and has been progressively so for several weeks, certainly since the World Cup. The downward trajectory is therefore long-standing and it sounds like the majority of fans now believe it to have moved from chronic to critical and urgent. A mixture of sentimentality, loyalty, fond reminiscence and wishful thinking on the part of a large swathe of the fan base, as well as the usual sump of poor footballing nous have delayed the inevitable anger and more following the dire performance against Luton. We saw some of 'yesterday's men' and over-estimated players favoured well beyond their ability (naive and indeed mystifying selection); slow movement and indecisive passing, with many unforced errors (poor concentration, complacency, carelessness and technical incompetence); chaotic and panicky reaction to pressure (poor on-field discipline and captaincy) and something else, harder to fathom, more around attitude, motivation or commitment, a sort of psychological 'atmosphere', an absence of team cohesion, akin to lethargy, manifest in lack of vision, absence of fluency and 'teamlessness', as it were.
All this is not new this season and all of it probably happens now and again with all clubs, but not all at once and for weeks at a time, unless the team involved is floundering; and we are. Behind all this lie responsibility and decisions, whether on the pitch, moment by moment as the game progresses (players and Captain); on the sidelines as Manager and coaches 'read' the game's context and make adjustments; in the training settings; and around team selection, strategy and tactics. What you get on the pitch reflects these decisions and there are named people responsible for them all.
After the Luton game, contributors to this forum have been both general and specific in their criticisms, Comments appear to carry considerable agreement, indeed also with three excellent contributions by Blades to 'Praise or Grumble'. Those posting or ringing in have been watching games, not from the dug-out or sidelines but from all parts of the ground, home and away. They know what is going on on the pitch. They have been patient in the main and have enjoyed many matches, particularly over the early weeks. What a game against Spurs; how some wondered when seeing the team sheet whether we were not taking it seriously, to find that, perhaps with little to lose and for many, something to prove, we blew them away with Intent, Cohesion, Skill and Fluency. How puzzled some then were when the next games did not reflect that performance, indeed made it look freakish. Inevitably, fans identified team selection as a critical decision influencing performance; and team selection continues to mystify and anger many. How can we, the fans, see this and the one responsible for selection not? We are left to guess what we have been missing that the Manager has seen. The same names, the same element of team formation are now being mentioned by the large majority. This is therefore likely to be reliable. Sentimentality and reminiscence are less in evidence than they were. The past is a foreign country; we are here now and the future matters.
So, decisions around team selection naturally affect decisions around substitutes and substitutions (an critical element of the modern game), both in terms of both the wider tactical plan for the game and more personal strengths and weaknesses (eg footedness) of players. There is now a disconnect here between the managerial team and fans. Personally, I am left wondering if PH tends to err on the conservative, rigid, less adventurous, or risk-taking end of the managerial continuum. His comments are guarded and therefore hard to pin down; do I ever hear a spontaneous taking of responsibility by accepting blame, a careless or less 'measured' management of the interview, an overspill of passion? Is his surface 'clinical', reasonable style what defines his managerial manner in all settings? Do his teams only rarely therefore 'let go', trust themselves and each other to take risks, dare to play instinctively, develop on-field partnerships, 'go for it'? I confess to being bored every game (except that extraordinary, unusual - why should it not be usual? - Spurs triumph?) The 'atmosphere' of the team and performances has become stale and tentative, not to mention very repetitive; same moves, same backward movement, same refusal to thrust through the centre, perpetually preferring to move it wide (and slowly), same tippy-tappy, walk-the-ball-in approach (who do they think they are?). But PH refers to "that's who United are". We cannot afford to be one thing. We must have a range of approaches and be encouraged to adjust within a game and according to the opposition; Spurs found us adaptive and positive and we were more fluent earlier in the season, leading to a large positive goal difference, now frighteningly diminished. The 'fear' rather than the 'risk' option when approaching a game is driving too many decisions; PH seems to embrace its illusion of safety.
Decisions on the field of play by players are moment by moment and rely for their success on 'vision', a variable commodity that some players 'just have'. Individual technical aptitude we have seen on display; we are mainly decent Championship players, but fewer such than we were, for natural reasons. We have several past their Championship date who should make way, even now (what is to lose? what are we planning for?). But decisions on the pitch can be poor and sometimes a player is clearly having a poor overall game. What is a Captain for? We remember captains who left their mark (sometimes literally) on games and squads. Footballers are often just big lads, even big daft lads, overpaid and tending to be prima donnas or 'sulky sods'. A strong, decisive leader on the field is priceless, as effective leaders everywhere are strong and decisive, right or wrong; unafraid to firmly address the immediate context, using example and good interpersonal skills to coax, admonish, protect and trust where appropriate. Do we have this? Is there a strong and obvious presence? Does the team have a spine?
Individual players have not been singled out here because the forum reflects a general consensus around who are 'yesterday'. Will we see the response the fans are seeking? I suggest it is getting very late to avoid being overtaken by clubs who exhibit better decision-making than we do at present. That can be remedied by timely action, but such requires a grasp of and belief in what is needed and that might necessitate a change of personal/professional style of management, the dropping of ingrained, comfortable habits that are inhibiting change. I am not holding my breath.
Well done if you've got this far! I have been a Blade since 1955 and through this forum can express my views as I never could. I can only recall two other periods where I have felt as minded to do so as now. We are at an extraordinary time for United, with promise of either greater days, gradual ignominy or drift. I share what we all want and it isn't the present drift.
All this is not new this season and all of it probably happens now and again with all clubs, but not all at once and for weeks at a time, unless the team involved is floundering; and we are. Behind all this lie responsibility and decisions, whether on the pitch, moment by moment as the game progresses (players and Captain); on the sidelines as Manager and coaches 'read' the game's context and make adjustments; in the training settings; and around team selection, strategy and tactics. What you get on the pitch reflects these decisions and there are named people responsible for them all.
After the Luton game, contributors to this forum have been both general and specific in their criticisms, Comments appear to carry considerable agreement, indeed also with three excellent contributions by Blades to 'Praise or Grumble'. Those posting or ringing in have been watching games, not from the dug-out or sidelines but from all parts of the ground, home and away. They know what is going on on the pitch. They have been patient in the main and have enjoyed many matches, particularly over the early weeks. What a game against Spurs; how some wondered when seeing the team sheet whether we were not taking it seriously, to find that, perhaps with little to lose and for many, something to prove, we blew them away with Intent, Cohesion, Skill and Fluency. How puzzled some then were when the next games did not reflect that performance, indeed made it look freakish. Inevitably, fans identified team selection as a critical decision influencing performance; and team selection continues to mystify and anger many. How can we, the fans, see this and the one responsible for selection not? We are left to guess what we have been missing that the Manager has seen. The same names, the same element of team formation are now being mentioned by the large majority. This is therefore likely to be reliable. Sentimentality and reminiscence are less in evidence than they were. The past is a foreign country; we are here now and the future matters.
So, decisions around team selection naturally affect decisions around substitutes and substitutions (an critical element of the modern game), both in terms of both the wider tactical plan for the game and more personal strengths and weaknesses (eg footedness) of players. There is now a disconnect here between the managerial team and fans. Personally, I am left wondering if PH tends to err on the conservative, rigid, less adventurous, or risk-taking end of the managerial continuum. His comments are guarded and therefore hard to pin down; do I ever hear a spontaneous taking of responsibility by accepting blame, a careless or less 'measured' management of the interview, an overspill of passion? Is his surface 'clinical', reasonable style what defines his managerial manner in all settings? Do his teams only rarely therefore 'let go', trust themselves and each other to take risks, dare to play instinctively, develop on-field partnerships, 'go for it'? I confess to being bored every game (except that extraordinary, unusual - why should it not be usual? - Spurs triumph?) The 'atmosphere' of the team and performances has become stale and tentative, not to mention very repetitive; same moves, same backward movement, same refusal to thrust through the centre, perpetually preferring to move it wide (and slowly), same tippy-tappy, walk-the-ball-in approach (who do they think they are?). But PH refers to "that's who United are". We cannot afford to be one thing. We must have a range of approaches and be encouraged to adjust within a game and according to the opposition; Spurs found us adaptive and positive and we were more fluent earlier in the season, leading to a large positive goal difference, now frighteningly diminished. The 'fear' rather than the 'risk' option when approaching a game is driving too many decisions; PH seems to embrace its illusion of safety.
Decisions on the field of play by players are moment by moment and rely for their success on 'vision', a variable commodity that some players 'just have'. Individual technical aptitude we have seen on display; we are mainly decent Championship players, but fewer such than we were, for natural reasons. We have several past their Championship date who should make way, even now (what is to lose? what are we planning for?). But decisions on the pitch can be poor and sometimes a player is clearly having a poor overall game. What is a Captain for? We remember captains who left their mark (sometimes literally) on games and squads. Footballers are often just big lads, even big daft lads, overpaid and tending to be prima donnas or 'sulky sods'. A strong, decisive leader on the field is priceless, as effective leaders everywhere are strong and decisive, right or wrong; unafraid to firmly address the immediate context, using example and good interpersonal skills to coax, admonish, protect and trust where appropriate. Do we have this? Is there a strong and obvious presence? Does the team have a spine?
Individual players have not been singled out here because the forum reflects a general consensus around who are 'yesterday'. Will we see the response the fans are seeking? I suggest it is getting very late to avoid being overtaken by clubs who exhibit better decision-making than we do at present. That can be remedied by timely action, but such requires a grasp of and belief in what is needed and that might necessitate a change of personal/professional style of management, the dropping of ingrained, comfortable habits that are inhibiting change. I am not holding my breath.
Well done if you've got this far! I have been a Blade since 1955 and through this forum can express my views as I never could. I can only recall two other periods where I have felt as minded to do so as now. We are at an extraordinary time for United, with promise of either greater days, gradual ignominy or drift. I share what we all want and it isn't the present drift.
