25 Aug 2014 09:48:37
Rant Time - Don't bother if you love LVG and don't typically like my views.

I think we are being managed by a bit of a dinosaur who we will live to regret. New managers are students of the game, and LVG was a great tactician in his day - hence most current managers know his tactics inside and out, they studied him hard.

He did exactly what Moyes did, demanding to assess every player for himself before making the cull. Knowing full well the date the season starts, yet we are looking ridiculously under prepared. There were certain players who should not have been given yet another chance obviously (well to us anyway not somebody who has been living on Pluto for 5 years it seems).

He should have learnt from the Moyes mistake, but he didn't. In fact he has been a more extreme version of Moyes, but his arrogance and our desperation has made us believe he is a great man for the job.

He should have known that Woodward takes time to get his man, hell Shaw and Herrera were legacies of the previous manager, surely he must have realised it's not a simple process for us to sign players - or was he too arrogant to assume the way deals work at Utd just change for him?

He then contradicts himself numerous times, paraphrasing here:

This squad can win the league - it will be a miracle if we win the league.

We don't need players - we need signings, the team is unbalanced.

We are going to play pressing, free flowing football - performance wise we are slow, devoid of ideas and scared to play a pass that isn't 10 yards and to the side or behind.

A signing can take no time - it now takes time to sign players.

I want to judge players for myself - let's Ferdinand go so we have zero experience at the back.

Rooney is my captain - "It may not be right decision" after Valencia game!

There are more examples of his naivety, contradictions or bad decision making. We have no CL this season so everything needed to go into the league and we have a perfect set of fixtures to help bed in his new tactics and systems. The good fortune we were given has been wasted.

Man for man we are still far better than Sunderland and Swansea, yet we looked worse - the only reason we lose or draw is because our tactics are wrong. These aren't the tactics we will be playing in a few weeks either, so I don't see the point!

He changes his tactics at half time of the first game to a new formation, despite no work being done on them for all pre-season games. The desperation of an old man out of touch with the pace of the modern game if you ask me, not a tactical genius prepared to adapt.

He is obviously adopting some old school tactics in training - is anyone surprised that Shaw gets injured, when he is put on some "Special" LVG fitness regime?

Moyes was lambasted for changing the training regime, yet LVG has taken it to a whole new level. Our players are dropping like flys, it's not the 90's anymore, players miss games for a headache, can somebody tell him this?

He is not giving youth a chance out of choice either, so those of you that are praising him for this need to look at things objectively. He is playing youth because he doddered about too much with the poor squad and we have no other players, he brought in a system designed to get the best out of our 3 stars upfront, but not assessed the fact you need to have service for those 3 and we have no pace anywhere to support. So he tries to turn wingers into wing backs, inexperienced CB's into CB's for a brand new system they have probably never played at junior level and then expects them to work magic in the Prem.

If LVG had come first, he would have gone far quicker than Moyes and there would be absolute uproar.

We are about to sign a player in Di Maria that will be like Robben for Holland at the World Cup - but half as good. Take away the Spain game and I can't think of one decent performance from Holland offensively. Spain was our US tour - players wanting to impress, but then getting confused with all the messages and then slow, predictable, robotic displays ensued.

First 10 mins of yesterdays game, all I saw was Giggs, LVG and the real Assistant Manager sitting there scribbling on their pads like Mad Scientists on a chalk board - what the HELL is going on?!

Whatever his plan is, it clearly isn't working, "too soon" some of you will say, but he has been out thought by Monk and Poyet so far, let's wait until Martinez, Rodgers, Mourinho & Wenger are in town, it could be embarrassing.

We are now going to blow £70mil on somebody not worth more than £30mil at a push. This will mean players need to play out of position yet again to accommodate him, or we have wasted £37mil on Mata and £300k a week in wages on Rooney. We have also wasted 2 months of preparation time on a system we are changing, who plays with 3 CB's when you have no experienced CB's or reliably fit CB's anyway?

Too many square pegs in round holes yet again, he mastered what Moyes developed here.

I am very very worried. I said a couple of months ago that we are getting carried away with LVG, he has done nothing to get us so excited. Yet I couldn't predict this mess.

It's alright saying "I need time to sort things out", but he is creating half the problems himself. Who walks into any relationship and says the first 3 months are going to be a nightmare but it will be ok after that. He is turning a casual drug user into a wrecked junky and then making them go cold turkey, and expecting us to be happy about that? You would say bugger off then, because the first 3 months are absolutely vital and what guarantees can you give me that it is going to be alright after that 3 month adjustment period, which we are well into now and still aren't playing a system we will be playing - so how is this serving any purpose?

He has shoe horned this old school system on incapable players, now he is going to try and buy his way out of it in desperation - how long will it take them to adapt, who says they will?

Mess and getting messier, I think we have been hoodwinked by a cocky used cars salesman. We are the most BORING team in the league to watch as well, the players look confused and scared.

LVG is the bad guy in films where everyone is afraid he might flip any second and we are all doing that fake laugh with him as he slowly dismembers the last remains of a dying man, "You enjoying this guys", "er yes Boss, couldn't be better"!

I love our club, but everything is out of control. The guy we hired to save the patient is slowly killing it and a lot of people don't realise.

I won't bother putting my suggested solutions, because first this has been a long post and secondly I'm not the one being paid millions and millions of pounds to sort this out!

Thanks for reading my thoughts.

1.) 25 Aug 2014
25 Aug 2014 10:46:03
Hate to lie at your house beast!
jesus!

Anyway to your above rant,
i could contradict your post to bits.
I will avoid trolling though.

Easy to pull every phase outta a bag and take each one out of context to suit an arguement.

2.) 25 Aug 2014
Beast

LvG is here to design and structure us for the long term. He inherited a complete mess given the shocking transition and appointment of completely the wrong man last time, tied with the lack of serious investment over the last few years of SAF's reign.

I have confidence LvG will sort out the mess and he has the CV to back it up, we are in a completely different place manager wise to 12 months ago. There is a point that he arrived late from the World Cup but from what I have seen he is doing things right so far. Yes my first choice was Klopp but LvG will sort this out and given we know he can do it I will be right behind him.

3.) 25 Aug 2014
Jesus Beast, get a grip. We have a new manager and a new system. We have half our 1st team injured and new players to bed in. It's been 2 games. You may or may not be right. It let's give it more than 2 games to decide.

As for the contradictions, whilst he speaks English it is clear he uses words that are perhaps not exactly what he means. Live with it

4.) 25 Aug 2014
The world's biggest ever over-reaction in written form! Get a grip we are in the midst of our worst ever injury crises and he also took over a squad that had had the confidence squeezed out of it in the last 12 months ,I tell ya patience are in serious short supply these day's

{Ed004's Note - We were only missing Rafael, Evans, Rojo, Shaw, (smalling from ht), Carrick, Herrera and had Rvp playing his first game back in over a month. How dare LvG not win it}

5.) 25 Aug 2014
Wow, 2 games in and your saying this?

6.) 25 Aug 2014
No offence mate, and this isn't a criticism of your opinions, which you're entitled to, but I hope you're made to eat your words. I think it's far too soon to be making such bold criticisms of LVG, there's a long way to go.

7.) 25 Aug 2014
25 Aug 2014 11:07:10
U could replace LVG and put SAF there mate, all managers contradict themselves, the savvy ones use it to there advantage. LVG knows exactly wot he needs

8.) 25 Aug 2014
Wow, that was. something.Definitely something.I'll cut my arguement short here.
You give this squad (the first eleven that played against swansea and sunderland) to anyone; wenger JM, martinez and you'll get the same thing.Our squad is bipolar. In the 3-4-1-2 yesterday, the front three are manchester united players, the back seven could be playing for a team struggling for survival in the championship.
The only thing I agree with is the transfers which I can't understand either, not the delay, nor the personnel.

9.) 25 Aug 2014
Beast, bruv, wrong or right I read every word, loved it.

10.) 25 Aug 2014
W was arguably missing our full defence except jones who may well not b first choice when everybody is fit. I fully believe we will finish comfortably in the top 4 this season

11.) 25 Aug 2014
25 Aug 2014 11:34:35
Beast, agree in parts, disagree on a lot more. Either way, it was a great read, mate.

12.) 25 Aug 2014
Beast I don't think you'll ever be happy. You should find a new team to support.

13.) 25 Aug 2014
Yeah, LvG has really turned into a dinosaur. since the World Cup!

14.) 25 Aug 2014
I trust LVG will sort us out but 2 games have convinced me it's going to take longer than I first thought.

My main worry is, LVG is supposedly this infectious, strong character who instils confidence and in pre-season the club seemed to be buzzing and chomping at the bit for the league to start.

But in 180mins, all we've seen is a lack of confidence and a lack of desire, its like the initial buzz of LVG has worn off quickly and we're back to being a Moyes team.

15.) 25 Aug 2014
I just think you clearly need a hobby and fast!

16.) 25 Aug 2014
Did he not just take a very ordinary dutch side to third in the world cup I think if he had been found out they would not of got out of the groop wait till he gets the players he 2wnts

17.) 25 Aug 2014
Great post; but it's perhaps a little too early to be making it. I agree with everything you say in one way or another. I honestly believe that LVG will not last the duration of his contract. Hopefully I'm wrong!

18.) 25 Aug 2014
Same guy who outsmarted Del Bosque and Scholari at the world cup two mangers who are considered in the top mangers in the last 15 years Samponoli who is a good tactican and bet a stubborn Costa Rica and Mexico and yet he is a dinosour effective football always beats attractive football just look at Wengers Arsenal to Mourinhos chelsea

19.) 25 Aug 2014
Cheers for the feedback guys. Obviously there is a long journey we have just started and I hope I am wrong, but I genuinely don't like what I see or hear from LVG.

Christmas will be a good time to see what football we are playing and have a firmer assessment, but if this was a 3 month probation like in most jobs, he would not be taken on a permanent contract. The medium-long term only matters if you have time, we don't have time and LVG is in the twilight of his career.

You can support the team without agreeing with the decisions being made at the top. Its one factor that makes you a true fan if you stand by the team and care when the going gets tough - places like this allow you to vent rather than doing so at the ground or to smug mates.

The World Cup is a different beast to club management, its exactly the same in terms of signing players on the back of a good world cup, most of the time you are proven to be a sucker.

Fingers crossed the master plan kicks in before top 4 is out of our reach.

20.) 25 Aug 2014
25 Aug 2014 13:29:06
I did say in an earlier post, that for those of us raised on exciting Utd teams, successful or not, then LVG's appointment, and the way we played in our first league game, might give cause for concern.

He did well with Holland, but hand on heart, did anybody really enjoy watching them play after the Spain game?

21.) 25 Aug 2014
25 Aug 2014 14:02:56
I've just copied and pasted that as an example under the term "over-reaction" in the English dictionary.

You must have a tunnel strapped to your head because that was very narrow minded :)

22.) 25 Aug 2014
StevieK - I got a lot of flack on here for criticising Holland's football during the World Cup - but I stand by it. It was uninspired and dull to watch.

It's all well and good saying that attractive football doesn't beat flair and style; but compare Holland's style of play to the eventual winners and tell me which you'd rather we adopted?

I concede that LVG probably didn't have the players to go out and play like Germany and that his tactics with that squad of players were probably the only ones that could have yielded a third place finish; but we are not Holland. We have the resources and the foundations (in RVP, Rooney, Mata, Herrera and Di Maria) to play high tempo, attractive, attacking football. That's what our success is built upon - and I will accept no less.

Once/if ADM is signed we will have spent near enough £140m under LVG. If that's not enough for LVG to at least challenge for the title then I worry about his long term future at the club. He's been sacked from Barcelona, Bayern and Holland in the past - and if he doesn't turn things around I would not be at all surprised to see him sacked from Manchester United.

23.) 25 Aug 2014
I have posted a detailed reply to this which is on the "Other Posts" page. Please have a look if interested.

24.) 25 Aug 2014
25 Aug 2014 17:28:14
Read it, REDFAITH. Good post, mate. Should have been on here.