Manchester United Banter Archive August 27 2018

27 Aug 2018 14:13:51
No bailly or martial in the squad for tonight.

27 Aug 2018 15:15:15
I'd say smalling will be starting but I thought with baily.

27 Aug 2018 17:19:56
Might be playing a back 3 with Matic in the middle of defence. Seems strange to try it out against Spurs. Could end in tears.

27 Aug 2018 13:33:30
Anyone know of a missile that would shoot down the aerial message we have been promised whilst sparing the mercenary pilot?
Just a thought: could the pilot be "fan/ supporter" just keeping their flying hours up for their private pilots licence.
Whatever, we need infantile pranks such as this like a hole in the head. I really hope Sly Sports don't give it any airtime.

27 Aug 2018 13:46:40
I think Sky will not resist it. But also, we live in a free country, so before we srart shooting everyone, maybe we should just let whoever it is do what they want and get on with the game.
There are a million worse things in the world to worry about a trivial banner that is flying over OT.

27 Aug 2018 13:51:54
Maybe it’s the media paying for the plane. Wouldn’t put it pass them with their anti-United lies to do something like this and say it’s the “fans”.

27 Aug 2018 17:00:20
AAA.
I think you swallowed the jest in the first line whole. No one would suggest it for real! I agree that there are far worse things in the world than flying a banner - that is what makes the whole escapade so pathetic. They could also have spent the money on far better causes - perhaps even start very close to home by donating to the support of the victims physical and mental disability from the Manchester attack.
Apart from the charade being counterproductive in "their cause" which they probably think is being done for "us" it is product of small minded thinking (or not thinking)
It will not be done in my name and I was just having a light hearted pop at them.
Just me also using my free speech as well.

27 Aug 2018 18:14:09
I'm surprised randoms can fly planes over a packed stadium, probably just the cynic in me, but it seems an easy way to cause a lot of damage if someone was so minded.

27 Aug 2018 12:00:17
The agenda against Jose seems to have stepped up in the last few days, according to the press he held a FOUR minute press conference when in fact it was 8. Anything to make him look bad, it's actually a *** joke. Now the Daily Mail's Journo's want him to be 'grilled Jeremy Paxman style', actual journalists wanting Paxman to ask questions because they just don't have the guts to do so, this is ridiculous, they want a man who they lie about day in day out to be open and honest in these press conferences. Is there a reason why the club/ Jose won't ban these lying **** from the conferences Ed001/ 02?

{Ed002's Note - There are contractual obligations for Press Conferences and the problem is the fans and not the press. Manchester United is in the mess/situation it is in solely because of the fans. I have explained everything over and over and the readers here either never accepted it or perhaps were simply not bright enough to understand the situation. Clearly, after two games, the fans have turned on Mr Mourinho and on Woodward for some reason. The club has been working hard to bring in a Director of Football and the club had players scouted this weekend at the request of the manager and an advisor. But the fans will continue to try and force the situation and perhaps will gain support from some of the media. You should perhaps not pay so much heed to the media. Right now the big decision for this week will be over Paul Pogba - that might make a better discussion point.}

27 Aug 2018 12:21:13
Good point ed. pogba in or out if you had the choice this week and why?

27 Aug 2018 12:30:17
Hey Ed002 agree with what you are saying but isn't all fans just vocal majority (used to. be minority) of toxics.

My question is why don't/ didn't the club stick by their plans? An elite level business of course listens to customer opinion. The whole LvG / Allegri was in my opinion a show of weakeness would a stronger board would have held strong?

Mr Woodward has already said on feild performance has very little impact on commercial performance.

The days of blood and thunder playung for shirt are gone.

{Ed002's Note - They did not stick to the plan because of the problems being caused by the toxic fans of Manchester United that resulted in the club back-tracking on transfers and forcing van Gaal out - which cost them their preferred coach that had already been agreed - now they have Mourinho who is not supported by all at the club and is not 100% committed nor does he like living in Manchester. A large part of the issue was that fans demanded change on a knee-jerk basis - and it is nothing but disruptive to the clubs as the fans become more and more toxic. Many of the Manchester United fans were craving the team lose without really considering the consequences of forcing the manager out at the time.}

27 Aug 2018 12:30:28
Brilliant response as usual Ed, and it's a norm, our fans love to moan at every opportunity, good or bad. I'd keep Pogba till January at least considering we can't bring a replacement in now.

27 Aug 2018 12:30:56
This obsession with what the media are saying about us, is getting ridiculous. We should be more worried about what's happening on the pitch. If things were going well in that regard, they'd have nothing to say, and even if they did, Utd supporters would just ignore them.
José has played games with the media for years, and they have long memories. They were always going to bide their time, and go for him once they could smell blood. But he's a grown man, on a very good wage, and managing one of the biggest clubs in the world, so I think he'll be alright.

27 Aug 2018 13:02:59
As always excellent response and point Ed002.
I totally agree with whatever you have written. Just wish the supporters do not help the media to heap unwanted pressure on the club and the team. Just support the club and the decisions. If it is bad I am sure the club knows what to do.
Thanks Eds.

27 Aug 2018 13:31:11
Thanks Ed002 although my phone keeps auto correcting Ed002 to Karen?

Great insights Karen, what do you think the long-term prognosis is for Utd? Mou is must be considering his next move soon or is he in for the long term?

Also with regards to Manchester what is the issue from Mou and is it shared with Pep? Is Manchester that bad? I manage clients in Madrid, London, Milan, Paris and Zurich. I can prefer Manchester over Milan but that's about it. However Cheshire and the surrounding countryside is as good as anywhere.

{Ed002's Note - Mr Mourinho has a long-term contract, I can't imagine he has any thoughts about leaving. Manchester is full of the the grim, wet and cobbled streets the Northwest of England sees as its heritage - there is a significant cultural change, smog, dead & dying pit ponies laying on the street, little chance of football at the highest level and only chips and fried curry to eat. It is nothing to do with Manchester City.}

27 Aug 2018 13:58:04
Well surely City see the beauty in smog, dieing pit ponies as the by product of their sovereign wealth fund?

In all seriousness Mou isn't enjoying his work right now and the location, his perceived professional standing is declining - if he isn't looking for a move he should be.

{Ed002's Note - He is tied to Manchester United already.}

27 Aug 2018 13:58:26
If you have a manager that isn't 100% committed and doesn't like living in the city, it really isn't an ideal situation.

{Ed002's Note - That was the cituation when he joined - and thatw as to satisfy the fans. The whole thing is a massive self-inflicted wound.}

27 Aug 2018 14:02:12
Badically, i agree with Noucamp completely. Stop reading and believing all you read or hear in the press.
Mourinho is a big boy and dare i say, can handle himself. He winds the press then expects them to be nice to him. It ain't going to happen. Maybe he should just grow a few brain cells and change his tack with them. At the moment, the only person being wound up, is Mourinho.
As for Manchester, i was not fortunate to be born there, but I'm lucky enough to have lived in it for the past 52 years. My wife is Mancunian as are our children. We love the city, the people and its surroundings. Despite retiring and living in Portugal nowadays, we miss Manchester so much and go back at least once a month. It is a fantastic city and we should be proud of it. You only need to look at the vibrancy of the housing market around it, to realize that millions of people can't all be wrong. It's a fantastic place and we are proud to belong to it.

{Ed002's Note - Millions of people can be wrong.}

27 Aug 2018 14:20:32
Agree Nou.
Forget the media and just let’s play football.
The media will always be around. Even with a new WC manager the media will focus on us since we are a big if not the biggest club in the world.
So let’s get rumbling 💪.

27 Aug 2018 14:25:07
And once again the fans aren’t happy, this will be a repeated cycle unless we support the clubs initial decisions and plans. We have now a manager that was to make us happy and we are all on the cusp of revolting on him too, is a joke really.

27 Aug 2018 14:37:27
Wrd
It will by be cycle that happens at every club, always has always will .
That's the nature of fans, discussing moaning about things is part of supporting a team .

27 Aug 2018 14:42:35
If offered, would you become our DOF Ed002? We need you in charge😁.

{Ed002's Note - Not a job for me.}

27 Aug 2018 14:54:42
Good one Ed002👍😅.

27 Aug 2018 14:59:29
Sacrifice. lol.

27 Aug 2018 15:15:40
Managers earn support. Jose hasn't earned my support. The club is bigger than he is.

As for the fans bringing this on ourselves, ridiculous in my opinion. The board didn't plan properly, made the wrong decisions, the managers they hired were all similar, men behind the times and playing negative football. The fans correctly in my opinion had enough of LVG, whether they had a bigger picture idea or not, the game doesn't wait for anybody. 2 years of dross football was enough with no communication to the fans of long term strategy.

If the club had the decency to not take the fans for granted maybe we would have given more time for the bigger picture. The club are to blame, the fans still watch week in week out, they just don't have the patience they once had and are sick of the BS.

{Ed002's Note - The Board planned well - the fans ruined it. It seems the toxics will try to do so again. Why would you expect the board to communicate with the vile fans?}

27 Aug 2018 16:13:39
Because we pay their wages. What is vile about wanting a manager sacked for not delivering the expected standards of service?

{Ed002's Note - Quite frankly the Manchester United support is degrading constantly now. In recent years the club has had to suffer at the hands of the fans (most of which are completely ignorant of the situation) who have derailed all plans that were made. It is pitiful.}

27 Aug 2018 16:16:33
I have to say I still don't buy that the club planned well but their plans were destroyed by the toxic fans. Firstly, if you are running a business you don't change course because of a few toxic fans. The Board could easily have decided to give LVG one more season on the back of is FA Cup win. If hiring Allegri was not a secret, and they had the support of the sponsors, then why not back their instincts and stick to their guns? Why would they jeopardize their capital by knowingly going down the wrong path for the sake of a year, especially when the results of that year were still to be decided? Secondly it was not the toxic fans who gave us Moyes and LVG in the first place. Indeed, if I remember correctly, Ed002 warned that LVG would end up in disaster. So, if LVG was clearly the wrong choice, how can one claim that the Board has planned well.

The toxic fans exist of course. Those flying planes around the ground with banners qualify instantaneously. Soccer fans and emotional maturity are frequently mutually exclusively concepts. However, that said, as someone once said "The Buck stops here". For those who earn the bucks to blame those who pay them is what's known as passing the buck. The Glazers will appreciate what a giant piece of Chutzpah that narrative requires.

{Ed002's Note - I explained this in detail at the time. Perhaps you should go back over it. And yes, I said LVG was never going to work, Depay was not ready for the move, Pogba should be in Italy or Spain and Henrikh Mkhitaryan was a disaster waiting to happen once Mr Mourinho arrived.}

27 Aug 2018 16:47:52
Got to say fans are pussy cats compared to the 70s 80s .
The worse I've seen over the past few year is a few boo's.
Was a wee bit feisty when the glazers took over, not that it seemed to bother them 1 bit but nothing major compared to back in the day .

27 Aug 2018 17:02:50
Exactly, they went through all the initial protests at the takeover, then through all the free an gold protests, never batted an eye. Then a few protests at the product on offer then they junk a whole plan, new manager and transfers on the back of that. They've always been poor communicators. Maybe if they'd bothered more with the fans it might have given them more leeway.

27 Aug 2018 17:17:13
They also sacked both managers that never made the top 4.

{Ed002's Note - It was not the reason.}

27 Aug 2018 17:46:41
This is an interesting discussion.

I understand both points.

For example if I go to see a movie and I don't enjoy it, I wouldn't go back to see it again and I wouldn't have paid a full year in advance to see it. The same with a music gig, if I don't enjoy it, I am not beholden to purchase any other ticket or buy their album.

However with football it is different. I paid, no longer do, for my season tickets up front, however many thousands it was, I had to pay up front, therefore I am entitled to complain if I am not entertained, after all football is nothing more than entertainment. So why is that not allowed?, with any other entertainment, eg a film, I can complain about it and would not be labelled toxic. So why if I complain about a football match, am I toxic?


From the other side, if you no longer enjoy the football, simply don't go, sell your tickets on or give up your season ticket.

At the end of the day it is a choice not an obligation, if you no longer enjoy it, stop watching and do something else.

And please don't harangue me about the nature of fandom and how tribal it is or how important it is, because it isn't, football is a game played by overpaid prima donnas, nothing more.

Watching is a choice.

Don't like it, watch something else.

I have watched our team since 1975, there have been ups and downs, there has been scintillating football and fantastic players, and I have enjoyed most of it.

The fans seem to have become so entitled, try supporting Bury, or Liverpool City Fc, on a freezing Tuesday night, standing in the rain.

27 Aug 2018 18:16:11
Weak board that bows to some disgruntled fans.
No board I've ever been on would consider ditching a long term plan that was close to fruition because of a few dissenting voices from our customer base.
Ive worked on and with some of the biggest brands in europe within the fmcg sector and knee jerk reactions to consumer trends and insights would never be tolerated.
What did the board fear if they stuck to the plan and ignored the toxic fans? Most of them are empty vessels just making noise and have no influence over supporters as a whole.
It confirms what many of us have said on here. The board is weak, there are several messes to be cleaned and cleared up. It won't happen overnight.
I think its a case of a lot of supporters don't trust or rate a lot of the players.
I think a lot of supporters don't trust or rate the manager.
But i think all supporters don't trust or rate the board.
Indecisive, weak, unsure of strategy, and not aligned.

27 Aug 2018 18:30:50
Well said Blaze. Exactly why I’ve sold my season ticke lot this year. Not entertaining in the slightest for years, and I’m choosing to spend my time and money elsewhere.

Still love Utd though!

{Ed002's Note - I am sure the club will be more than happy to see people like you giving up - leaving room for the supporters who will stand by the club and give support even when they do end up 5th or whatever in the league. You are not what they need and not what they want.}

27 Aug 2018 19:32:57
Where are these toxic fans and what exactly did they do? Really didn't see that many of them at OT .

{Ed002's Note - As clearly you can't be bothered to read the posts here or use the search engine and want to type cretinous comments like this with zero grasp of what has been going on at the club, perhaps you could look around Old Trafford tonight and see them? Or perhaps not because you don't appear to go to the games. Hopeless.}

27 Aug 2018 19:54:26
Ok ed don't really come on the site to get abused .
Get down to OT when I can but the atmosphere has never really been that bad which was the point I was trying to make .

{Ed002's Note - The club is saturated with fair weather support that only give their support when top ogf the league and turn toxic as soon as they are fifth. They have done significant damage already - as I explained at the time.}

27 Aug 2018 20:01:37
The club has changed - not so much the fans.

27 Aug 2018 20:01:47
I would agree with that ed, teams like United tend to attract a certain type of fan, especially after 20 years of success.
But people support teams for different reasons I guess.

27 Aug 2018 20:22:52
Been going to OT since 83 as a boy and you’re certainly not in a position to comment on my personal situation Ed. If the club “doesn't need” me anymore I frankly don’t care.

My decision is based on being a new father, and I’m giving my time and support to what is most important to to me. I am currently choosing not to soend my money on what is extremely dire football played by a bunch of primadonnas (or transient employees as you call them) who can’t string a series of passes together to form any kind of coherent attacking entertainment. The game no longer gives me the thrill and excitement it once did.

This is a site for football rumours, banter and opinion. I love Utd, but have zero affinity to the current players, manager or owners. Football is ultimately a product that we choose to buy or not.

{Ed002's Note - They don’t need people who don’t provide support Eric. You don’t seem to care the damage the fans have already done, and will continue to do. Why would a player want to move to MU if the fans are going to be as truly awful as they are. The toxic supporters of Manchester United ruined all of the plans. Perhaps the club can no stop spending and concentrate their efforts on paying off the massive debt they have?}

27 Aug 2018 20:41:35
I get that Ed, I really do and understand exactly where you are coming from regarding the fan base because I’ve seen and heard it too at the ground and on forums like this. Maybe it’s my new circumstances that gave me the excuse to not go this year, maybe I’d have done it anyway. Maybe I’m now a toxic, maybe I’m not. I’ve seen some amazing things watching Utd, and some amazing dross. Just think my time is done for a bit as have too much other stuff to prioritise and fit in for the time being.

With regards to okaying for Utd, the club is still a huge draw, and Suppose there will always be a few hundred thousand reasons a week to go and play for Utd which is the issue we now have. Well paid, below average performers all round with little motivation to improve.

{Ed002's Note - The wages need reigning in and the debt needs to be addressed.}

27 Aug 2018 20:52:52
Regarding the spiralling debt, surely a PR disaster for the Glazers though if they touched the club’s cash reserves to start paying it off?

27 Aug 2018 07:29:01
{Ed's Note - Ed001 has posted a new article entitled, Review Of The Day 27th August 2018