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| Time for Manchester United to get real: Sir Alex Ferguson's legacy is long gone | Time for Manchester United to get real: Sir Alex Ferguson's legacy is long gone |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Manchester United supporters must be hugely relieved that Sir Alex Ferguson is going to play a part in headhunting their next manager. He has achieved such a lot in the game, he knows the club inside out and he must have every promising coach's number in his contact book, so what could possibly go wrong? | Manchester United supporters must be hugely relieved that Sir Alex Ferguson is going to play a part in headhunting their next manager. He has achieved such a lot in the game, he knows the club inside out and he must have every promising coach's number in his contact book, so what could possibly go wrong? |
| Apologies for the flippancy but things have moved on a bit since the last coronation and United still do not appear to appreciate the seriousness of the new situation. They are still behaving as if Old Trafford is a dream destination, somewhere anyone in the managerial world would love to come and have a go, conveniently ignoring the actual nitty gritty of the club's reduced circumstances. Nail a note to the front door saying "job available" and Louis van Gaal would still come knocking, so why the need for the nod from Ferguson? | |
| Alternatively, what could Ferguson dangle in front of Carlo Ancelotti as a carrot to come to Manchester? Never mind Gareth Bale, we've got Ashley Young? Why would a coach in charge of Real Madrid, in a Champions League semi-final and with an outside chance of a treble, be interested in an English club with American owners and mountains of debt, lying seventh in the table with no chance of European football next season? | |
| Ancelotti may not be completely happy at the Bernabéu, few coaches ever seem to be, but if his side reach the Champions League final at Bayern Munich's expense he will be on the verge of one of the great managerial achievements. If they lose and things turn sour then fair enough, United might have a chance of securing a top manager, but it would still be a step down from Ancelotti's present level. The Italian could quite easily keep himself in employment at Champions League clubs for the rest of his career without having to accept the challenge of rebuilding a side to break back in. | |
| Presumably, if United are minded to go back to José Mourinho and apologise profusely for not recognising his credentials 12 months ago, they will not let Ferguson do any of the talking. Or Sir Bobby Charlton, who also seemed to decide from an early stage that the old heads at Old Trafford did not need upstaging by bumptious headline-grabbers who brought bad publicity along with their European Cups and medals. The old heads appear to have got that one wrong, though at least David Moyes did leave the wonderful legacy of Wayne Rooney, signed up on a five-year deal as the best-rewarded player in the country. | |
| At least Mourinho is supposed to rate Rooney, and so might not become anxious that for that amount of money he has to be a fixture in the team until circa 2019, and that is something. Ferguson would surely feel uncomfortable recommending him as one of the club's brightest assets, however, when towards the end of his own period in charge he seemed to be edging him out of the side. | At least Mourinho is supposed to rate Rooney, and so might not become anxious that for that amount of money he has to be a fixture in the team until circa 2019, and that is something. Ferguson would surely feel uncomfortable recommending him as one of the club's brightest assets, however, when towards the end of his own period in charge he seemed to be edging him out of the side. |
| United's initial reluctance to approach Mourinho was said to be based on a fear that he would stay for only three or four years, rather than stick around for ever like Ferguson, or, ahem, Moyes. Now here's a question. | |
| Given United's ownership and level of debt, does anyone imagine Ferguson would have lasted 27 years working for the Glazers? United need to get real. Ferguson only lasted so long because he was in situ before the Glazers arrived and thenceforth reluctant to surrender what he had worked so hard to construct just because some new owners had found a way to bleed money out of it. | |
| The situation facing prospective managers at the moment is quite different. There might just be £150m available this summer for a team overhaul but this will be an exceptional summer, not the norm. Unless something radical in the ownership structure changes, United are going to have to get used to managers staying for only a handful of seasons. Just like everyone else. Managers working under budgetary constraints, either fail, get fed up, or succeed well enough to get a better offer. That's the way the game works. | |
| United are also being linked with Van Gaal, partly because he will be available after the World Cup, partly because any vacancy at a major club seems to bring the name of the Dutch coach into play, but mostly because Van Gaal himself is so obviously keen. United could probably do worse, though one instinctively feels they could also do a lot better than someone who was making eyes at Tottenham until last week. | United are also being linked with Van Gaal, partly because he will be available after the World Cup, partly because any vacancy at a major club seems to bring the name of the Dutch coach into play, but mostly because Van Gaal himself is so obviously keen. United could probably do worse, though one instinctively feels they could also do a lot better than someone who was making eyes at Tottenham until last week. |
| Van Gaal, 62, is scarcely someone for the future, but if the timeline is four years or so he could probably knock United into shape quite quickly. The only trouble, apart from the fact that his commitment to Holland in Brazil is wholly inconvenient from United's point of view, is that his brash, arrogant style is bound to prick a few egos and make enemies at the Carrington training ground. | Van Gaal, 62, is scarcely someone for the future, but if the timeline is four years or so he could probably knock United into shape quite quickly. The only trouble, apart from the fact that his commitment to Holland in Brazil is wholly inconvenient from United's point of view, is that his brash, arrogant style is bound to prick a few egos and make enemies at the Carrington training ground. |
| Maybe that is what United need. Maybe the time for emollience has gone, along with any hope of a smooth transition or long term solution. In that case maybe the time for Ferguson's input has gone too, unless he has changed his mind completely and is now ready to start peddling a new philosophy. | Maybe that is what United need. Maybe the time for emollience has gone, along with any hope of a smooth transition or long term solution. In that case maybe the time for Ferguson's input has gone too, unless he has changed his mind completely and is now ready to start peddling a new philosophy. |
| In that event it might be a good idea for Ferguson to see if he can change Jürgen Klopp's mind as well. The German was always the best fit for United, arguably a better fit than Mourinho a year ago. He is the right age, has charisma and a winning sense of humour, and while successful has not quite climbed all the way to the pinnacle yet. | In that event it might be a good idea for Ferguson to see if he can change Jürgen Klopp's mind as well. The German was always the best fit for United, arguably a better fit than Mourinho a year ago. He is the right age, has charisma and a winning sense of humour, and while successful has not quite climbed all the way to the pinnacle yet. |
| He could give his best years to United, and though for all the above reasons it is easy to understand why he might prefer to stick with 80,000 crowds in Germany rather than throw in his lot with the sort of owners who would not be tolerated in the Bundesliga, Ferguson and his posse should not take an immediate no for an answer and do their best to try to persuade him. It might be a hard sell, but that is where United are at the moment. Theatre of Dreams is just a tired old advertising slogan. | He could give his best years to United, and though for all the above reasons it is easy to understand why he might prefer to stick with 80,000 crowds in Germany rather than throw in his lot with the sort of owners who would not be tolerated in the Bundesliga, Ferguson and his posse should not take an immediate no for an answer and do their best to try to persuade him. It might be a hard sell, but that is where United are at the moment. Theatre of Dreams is just a tired old advertising slogan. |