Poll: Sack Race 2015/16

[PayneUK]

That assumes that Utd will definitely qualify for the CL without LvG.

Indeed, given how well Leicester, Spurs and to an extent Arsenal are playing, how much better City's squad is compared to ours and our run in consists of Arsenal, City, Spurs, Leicester, Everton and West Ham I genuinely can't see any circumstances in which we make the CL spots, no matter who we get in now.

We needed to pull the trigger in December during or just after that horrible run, now its too late.

 

[fez]

Yeah we are pretty boned now however you look at it. We won't get CL football. There is more likelihood of us getting top 4 than winning the Europa in my opinion and there is almost 0 chance of us getting top 4. We aren't suddenly going to put together a good enough run to beat some top european sides when we can't beat bottom of the league premier league opposition.

I have to hope that we haven't sacked LvG because we can only get the replacement we want in the summer but lets be honest, there is just as much chance that Woodward simply doesn't think LvG is doing a bad job.

I think that getting Mourinho in at this point would be better than LvG but he would be stupid to take us on at this point in the season. He might make us much better and go on a run of good results or we might just limp over the finish line and have a team that associate the previous season in some way to Mourinho.

With regards to waiting until we can't get top 4 mathematically I doubt we are bothering this time. The amount of money his final year would cost to buy out is minuscule in comparison to the amount we will lose from not being in the CL and the knock on effect it will have on our ability to sign top players. We should have sacked him over Christmas and got Mourinho in and given him 100m to get a few players in.

However you look at it, our managers job has been horrendously mismanaged and if it continues for much longer we really will be looking at a long period without CL. If realistically we accept that Leicester won't be anywhere near top 4 next season then we would probably have:

City - new manager will attract top players and will have serious money available
Chelsea - will get top manager and spend big
Tottenham - have a good manager and if they keep improving should compete
Arsenal - who knows but with a couple of additions could challenge for title
Liverpool - Klopp will have settled and bought players he wants

All of them will in theory be looking strong for top 4. We really need to pull something out of the bag or next season will be another disaster.

 

[Robbo]

I have to hope that we haven't sacked LvG because we can only get the replacement we want in the summer but lets be honest, there is just as much chance that Woodward simply doesn't think LvG is doing a bad job.

If Woodward was fully behind LvG at the moment he could easily release a statement supporting him. Journalists everywhere are saying we're in talks with Mourinho, which will likely come to something, it's just a question of when he starts.

As far as I know, the big Adidas deal has a clause that lowers the amount of money we get significantly if we miss out on the CL two seasons in a row. And then there's the CL money itself. As you've pointed out, the rest of the clubs who tend to compete for top 4 are notably stronger than us at the moment, keeping LvG will simply mean we drift further away.

I think Woodward is just hoping we can put together a run of results and maybe scrap for top 4, but all evidence says not. Aside from one good run last season, we've been consistently poor under LvG. We've been in relegation form for 3 months, it's astonishing.

 

[fez]

What do you think is the reason for keeping him after the results over Christmas/new year?

 

[FrankJH]

I was using the, reported, terms of Moyes' contract as an example. For all we know it could be written into LvG's contract that failure to make the CL would enable Utd to sack him without any payoff at all and or he could have a fixed fee that he receives in the event he's sacked which could be greater than the amount left on his deal. I was simply speculating.

Fair enough, that's certainly possible

That assumes that Utd will definitely qualify for the CL without LvG.

Surely any other response (from the club) just shows lack of "fight" to want to be in the CL - from an external point of view?

Its better to fight and lose than not to fight at all (as the paraphrased saying goes)

IE if they don't sack him now, its like the management have just given up on this season.

As far as I know, the big Adidas deal has a clause that lowers the amount of money we get significantly if we miss out on the CL two seasons in a row. And then there's the CL money itself. As you've pointed out, the rest of the clubs who tend to compete for top 4 are notably stronger than us at the moment, keeping LvG will simply mean we drift further away.
.

While I remember seeing a similar article awhile ago mentioning the reduction if CL wasn't being reached for two seasons in a row, it always appeared to be a strange clause to me - given that Addidas deal was announced nearly 2 years ago and how significantly we were ahead at the time - the forethought in missing out for even a season (at that point) was immense. Obviously now its frighteningly possible

What do you think is the reason for keeping him after the results over Christmas/new year?

Personally think this is down to Woodward not wanting to be seen to be firing two managers in quick succession (baring in mind by all accounts LvG was his appointment/ choice)

(or he doesn't have the *****, depending on how you want to look at it). Always been a great finance person, but think this is a position too far up for him

 

[PayneUK]

My current theory is that we don't have anyone to come in right now, and despite his troubles with us he is still a very respected manager in the footballing world and he brought in a number of back room staff with him, not to mention a number of the squad are very loyal to him.

I can't believe anyone in charge at Utd actually believe we can get into the top 4 now, sack LvG, a number of backroom staff follow or become unhappy, the squad is unsettled and whoever comes in as 'intern' has a hell of a lot more work to do then just getting the team playing well again, even if they do we probably won't achieve CL football anyway.

We waited too long and now its a case of 'better the devil you know', and without a proper manager ready to take the helm sacking him now could cause more trouble then it fixes. Which is a very, very depressing thought.

 

[Lord-Jaffa]

Don't be ridiculous. All things considered it seems a fair expectation.

I'm pretty sure by spending potentially hundreds of millions, the club management would expect to win the league as well.

Your post is baffling (and pretty typical).

Hasn't worked that well for Liverpool

 

[Rifte]

I have accepted the fact that CL football is not going to happen for us next year.

Aside from the financial implications the reality is that we will struggle to attract TOP talent in the summer transfer window, unless stupid money is thrown at them salary wise.

I think we will get Mourinho, there is too much smoke about this for there not to be a fire, and as someone else said, the vast majority of the fanbase (Mourinho backers or not) want LVG out irrespective of who is coming in, and Woodward has failed to make a public show of support.

 

[dannyjo22]

the vast majority of the fanbase (Mourinho backers or not) want LVG out irrespective of who is coming in, and Woodward has failed to make a public show of support.

The vast majority of the fan base wanted him put in place and rejoiced when he was given the job. Perhaps it's good that they are taking their time and properly evaluating the options rather than who ever the fans are now after.

Give it 5 games and if Spurs are top the attention from the fans will turn from Jose, to how much they have to get Poch.

 

[fez]

The vast majority of the fan base wanted him put in place and rejoiced when he was given the job. Perhaps it's good that they are taking their time and properly evaluating the options rather than who ever the fans are now after.

Give it 5 games and if Spurs are top the attention from the fans will turn from Jose, to how much they have to get Poch.

I don't think lvg was anyone's first choice but after Moyes we were very happy with a manager with apparent pedigree. There weren't many other managers available who would have been better at the time either. Plenty of us would like poch over mourinho and have done for a while but one is available and the other very unlikely.

 

[Steedie]

http://www.skysports.com/share/10170006

So, Paul Parker been in the news for any crack addiction or similar lately?

 

[Pigeon_Killer]

I don't think you should sack LvG but Sherwood would be a worthy replacement imo.

 

[fez]

I don't think you should sack LvG but Sherwood would be a worthy replacement imo.

Because you think he will turn it around before the end of the season or because there is no point.

 

[dannyjo22]

Because you think he will turn it around before the end of the season or because there is no point.

No because he's enjoying watching you go down the ****er and Sherwood is a candidate to possibly make it worse.

 

[mmj_uk]

I can't see how it's any worse than Giggs but you'd be utterly stupid not to now go with a real winner like Mourinho. I'd not be surprised at all if Giggs was appointed as caretaker on a trial basis first though.

The infatuation with the Class of '92 needs to be put aside and get in experienced people, I was reading earlier that Nicky Butt has been appointed academy boss because he understands "the United way" etc. It seems to me that United have become just one big marketing exercise with football a secondary concern.

Moyes was appointed and marketed as Ferguson Mk2 despite no past success, it was a complete gamble sold to everyone based on some far fetched fantasy.

Rooney was promoted to captain and given an insane contract up there with Messi/Ronaldo and continues to be marketed as a superb player, when he was well already past his sell by date.

United need to stop trying to be an exceptional club and just work hard to be better at what everyone else is doing, they have the income for it. It seems like those in charge are lazy and just want to sell romantic dreams to everyone even though the reality is not matching up.

 

[cm1179]

poch not looking to the future at spurs

Mauricio Pochettino hands new role to ‪#‎Tottenham‬ coach John McDermott
Daniel Levy has confirmed that John McDermott, the Tottenham Hotspur head of coaching and development, has taken on the responsibility of overseeing every age group at the club below first-team level.
McDermott, who has been a target for Manchester United, has built his reputation as a shrewd judge of young players at the club’s academy and he has developed a close working relationship with the manager, Mauricio Pochettino, and the head of recruitment, Paul Mitchell.
The trio discuss new signings and, more pertinently for the club’s current project, whether they can promote talent from the youth ranks. Pochettino routinely includes academy players in his training sessions and each of them comes on the recommendation of McDermott.
Pochettino is determined to put structures in place that will lead to long-term solidity and success, and McDermott – together with Mitchell – is a key part of the process. Pochettino took Mitchell from Southampton, the club at which he previously worked, to replace Franco Baldini, who left his post as sporting director last September.
There has been no fanfare related to McDermott’s increased influence at the club but Levy, the chairman, offered an insight when he spoke to the Tottenham ‪#‎Hotspur‬ Supporters’ Trust last week.
The THST published the minutes of its meeting, writing that Levy had “explained how John McDermott was now in charge of everything below the first team, including the under-21s,” and how “there was regular dialogue with McDermott, Pochettino and Mitchell regarding recruitment and talent.
“All three would be considering whether we have the talent under our first team that we could promote up. The approach is always to try and promote up, if possible.”
The THST also wrote that Levy had said the decision to loan the centre-half Federico Fazio to Sevilla last month was possible only because Pochettino, McDermott and Mitchell were “confident in the abilities of a younger player to step up to the first team, if required”.
The 18-year-old Cameron Carter-Vickers is a part of this thinking
(theguardian)

 

[fez]

This is a really good article on our issues under LvG

Some snippets of wisdom...

United have four problems: defence, attack, defence into attack and attack into defence.

On the topic of Herrera:

Unfortunately for him, he seeks to play the ball forward quickly, doesn’t fear risk and is able to play a holding, box-to-box and creative role, a control-freak’s anathema. Van Gaal likes specialists, not mavericks – with the obvious exception of Van Gaal.

 

[fez]

You have to hope that he improves over the years really. To be fair, we weren't exactly buying the worlds top players under Gill for years and years. Woodward is trying to do something that is pretty hard when you haven't got CL football, a top manager or at least the lure of London.

His biggest failure in my books is the continuing LvG saga.

 

[fez]

To be fair, if Giggs took over in an interim capacity and did really well then giving him the job wouldn't be a bad idea. The idea of Giggs taking over and managing for a long time would be great. The reason that almost every fan is so against the idea is because he would be super hard to sack and we don't think his is ready for the job. He probably never will be but if anyone thinks its a good idea to put him in charge as a permanent manager for a season or more when we are in a complete mess they need shooting.

 

[Pigeon_Killer]

I think it's a fantastic idea to put Giggs in charge long term but not as good putting Sherwood in charge.