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Author Topic: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions  (Read 911100 times)

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Offline asylumseeker

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5850 on: May 30, 2016, 07:46:10 AM »
Rashford just left Bournemouth a parting gift. United with their second goal managed to scrape together as many goals for the season as Sunderland! Mercy.

De Gea was seconds away from a clean sheet before Smalling nixed DeGea's Golden Glove prospects.

(By the Mose, ah bredrin asked Mourinho where he going to be ... he confirmed _______. Stay tuned. England fuh sure he said. It on lock.

Well if that is the case then ah hope we doh end up regretting it. At least we go probably get a quick title or two out of it as that is his record.

Honestly, right now I wouldn't mind if they send both he and LVG by the bar and buy them a few rounds. Give the side to Giggs and give him a couple of years to develop the youngsters. But it have people they paying big money to make those decisions, so I hope they have better sense than me! :beermug:


Here's the back story.

As de driver pulls up in front of the hotel, there was an air that something was bubbling. Also notable from how the hotel staff were directing the traffic and getting curbside was not possible. I decided to hop out rather than wait.

The hotel has a revolving door and two regular exits/entries on either side. One to the left and one to the right.

I was in stride for the revolving when about 3 paces away from it, there was a sudden commotion coming through the regular door to my right. By commotion I mean what looked to be about 15 people trying to exit the door at the same time. There was ah kinda hum to it.

I realize iz Jose exiting.

My next possible act formulates clear as day ... When as I am digesting that, ah short youthman outta left field comes hurdling across me, almost tripping on my shoe, shouting "Mourinho, Mourinho" with a cellphone at the ready and hotel security in hot pursuit from the other direction.

JM's response to the youthman's screaming is nothing but: "Ok, ok". Normal, welcoming and unfazed.

I take another stride and look over my shoulder to see de youthman leaning heavily on JM's right shoulder with his left hand, literally yanking the shoulder down and with his mobile already snapping de selfie as de security reaches touching distance.

I go through the revolving and enter the hotel lobby to find the after buzz in effect. As I scan the scene, I see several particularly well-dressed women who all look like they just had an orgasm. More interestingly, ah see ah Zimbabwean bredrin standing in the thick of things with them. Ah kinda WDF moment. Ah say, only one thing to do! Make #÷×#&% inquiries to relieve meh confusiin. Ah approach pardna. Hear him: Mourinho just went out the door. Me: No shit! One of the women says, " ... so he is famous, huh?" I am confused ... Then she says looking at her pics on her phone, "I took the shot for my nephew once I found out."

Meanwhile, a throng of ppl had moved towards the doors to ketch one last glimpse and several kids in various replica jerseys milling around. Everyone is smiling.

I ask de Zimbabwean whais de story that he's with all these women. Turns out be wasn't, but had been working the "Thirsty African Opportunity Plan" upon seeing them. He says: "I think they are working. Do you see how they are dressed?" Ah wanted to dead with laughter. :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Hear him: Desailly is at the bar, but JM sucked the oxygen out of this place. He says because he is about 6'4", he used his height and English to access Jose by asking the direct question and Jose responded flatly about his future without skipping a beat. After that, bredrin's mobile kept buzzing. Apparently, he was becoming increasingly popular in Bulawayo by the second. He too had a selfie with JM.

Offline asylumseeker

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5851 on: July 05, 2016, 08:47:31 PM »
Quote
In football there are many jobs but the one that is more difficult to find is the guy who puts the ball in the net,” Mourinho said. “It is normal that a player at his age changes a bit but there is something that will never change, which is the natural appetite to put the ball in the net.

“Maybe he is not a striker any more. Maybe he is not a No9 any more but, with me, he will never be a No6. He will never be somebody playing 50 metres from the goal. You can tell me his passing is amazing. Yes, his passing is amazing but my passing is also amazing without pressure. There are many players with a great pass but to be there and put the ball in the net is the most difficult thing to find. So, for me, he will be a nine or a 10 – a nine and a half maybe – but not a six and not even an eight.”

Jose Mourinho, making too much sense. The discussion is about Rooney.

Audio Available here.
« Last Edit: July 06, 2016, 04:19:18 AM by asylumseeker »

Offline asylumseeker

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5852 on: July 05, 2016, 08:51:31 PM »
On Giggs:

Quote
“It is not my responsibility that Ryan is not in the club. The job Ryan wanted is the job the club decided to give me. It is not my fault. Ryan wanted to be Manchester United manager and the club – for reasons only the club can tell you – decided the job was for me.”

--- Jose Mourinho.

Offline ribbit

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5853 on: July 07, 2016, 09:44:04 PM »
ibra
martial
rashford
mkhitaryan
memphis

where rooney fit into the depth chart?

Offline soccerman

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5854 on: July 08, 2016, 09:16:38 AM »
ibra
martial
rashford
mkhitaryan
memphis

where rooney fit into the depth chart?
Memphis was very underwhelming last season and did not live up to expectation. I hope he does better this season now he has some experience. Jose wants Rooney to play a 9 or a 10 so we'll see, my bet is he'll play behind Ibra and he'll bring Rashford off the bench.

Offline asylumseeker

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5855 on: August 07, 2016, 11:26:01 AM »
Congrats to United fans. Manchester United 2 Leicester City 1. Victory in the Community Shield.

Offline Deeks

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5856 on: August 07, 2016, 11:35:09 AM »
Congrats to United fans. Manchester United 2 Leicester City 1. Victory in the Community Shield.

Congrats! How Manu Boo looked. Convincing or pretenders?

Offline asylumseeker

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5857 on: August 07, 2016, 12:21:29 PM »
Congrats to United fans. Manchester United 2 Leicester City 1. Victory in the Community Shield.

Congrats! How Manu Boo looked. Convincing or pretenders?

I looked at the match casually, but I would say not pretenders. Ah cyah say convincing.

Offline soccerman

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5858 on: August 07, 2016, 04:18:36 PM »
Congrats to United fans. Manchester United 2 Leicester City 1. Victory in the Community Shield.

Congrats! How Manu Boo looked. Convincing or pretenders?

I looked at the match casually, but I would say not pretenders. Ah cyah say convincing.
Ibra with a goal too, not that I have reason to doubt his ability but I hope his form continues throughout the season  :praying:

Offline soccerman

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5859 on: August 08, 2016, 10:39:00 PM »
I wonder how long Mata will last under Jose? I'm hearing in the CS game he brought him on as a sub and then took him off....that's f'd up

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Offline asylumseeker

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5861 on: August 14, 2016, 07:59:57 AM »
Just tuned in in time to see two goals: Rooney and Ibrahimovich. Zlatan's goal was all about placement. Several goals, if not most in the Prem, seem to be powered in.

As I'm posting this Bournemouth have pulled one back with 20' to play.

3-1.

Had to catch some of this despite the pull of the marathon.

Offline soccerman

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5862 on: August 14, 2016, 08:20:22 AM »
ManU has finally some quality depth which has been lacking for the past 3 seasons. Great way to start off the season.

Offline Mose

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5863 on: August 15, 2016, 09:30:17 AM »
ManU has finally some quality depth which has been lacking for the past 3 seasons. Great way to start off the season.

Long may it continue!  :beermug:
Are you a match? It's too late for Emru, but maybe you can help save someone's life: http://www.healemru.com

Offline Mad Scorpion a/k/a Big Bo$$

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5864 on: August 15, 2016, 10:58:13 AM »
Fiya fuh da shit team!

Offline Deeks

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5865 on: August 27, 2016, 07:37:20 PM »
This morning game was a tough one, despite dominating. Hull is not a bad team. Once their ownership issue is settled, they should be okay. The most impressive thing about United this season is the total hustle. Everybody running and tackling. Felliani running like hell. But this Bailly boy is playing real good. He making Blind feel real confident.  But is only the 3rd game of the season. Time will tell.

Offline asylumseeker

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5866 on: December 31, 2016, 10:46:56 AM »
Wow, August since the last Man Utd post? Says a lot.

Just tuned in with the clock at about 82' and have been treated to two quality goals.

Offline SHOTTA

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Manchester United Tickets
« Reply #5867 on: January 25, 2017, 03:57:08 AM »
Forumites

Ill be in England in early April and i plan to see United play Everton on April 4th.

Seeking advice on the best way to go about getting tickets and if theres a preferred website anyone uses that they know is not a cat in bag that selling.

Any advice appreciated

Oh yea Welcome Dennis
now that we have mastered the language we can wield it as we may

Offline Thomo

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Re: Manchester United Tickets
« Reply #5868 on: January 25, 2017, 04:56:52 AM »
If you're based in Manchester it might be wise to visit their box office at the stadium. If not visit here for tickets https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://www.manutd.com/en/Tickets-And-Hospitality/Ticket-Prices.aspx&ved=0ahUKEwj9zuSwkN3RAhVnLsAKHbZIDfAQFgg9MAA&usg=AFQjCNGly9PgoDFVghDO4V7Z1fdMVhwVUQ&sig2=uaaVpZaQqA4Czyy15LU3eA
Click on Buy Tickets. But it seems the initial lot have been sold out already so you might have to wait until they release another batch and then you might have to be a member. Good luck, Bless

Offline Mose

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5869 on: January 30, 2017, 02:45:53 PM »
Wow, August since the last Man Utd post? Says a lot.

Just tuned in with the clock at about 82' and have been treated to two quality goals.

Don't worry, haven't deserted my team.  ;D
Are you a match? It's too late for Emru, but maybe you can help save someone's life: http://www.healemru.com

Offline asylumseeker

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5870 on: January 30, 2017, 03:10:15 PM »
Fines were forthcoming. :devil:

Offline Mose

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5871 on: January 30, 2017, 04:33:35 PM »
LOL!
Are you a match? It's too late for Emru, but maybe you can help save someone's life: http://www.healemru.com

Offline soccerman

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5872 on: January 31, 2017, 12:11:54 PM »
Overall IMO the is playing well but is still missing that final punch in the final third. Ibra doesn't get the quality service he needs consistently and often times becomes a facilitator. Hoping we can sneak in the top 4 :praying:

Offline Mose

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5873 on: January 31, 2017, 04:28:04 PM »
Overall IMO the is playing well but is still missing that final punch in the final third. Ibra doesn't get the quality service he needs consistently and often times becomes a facilitator. Hoping we can sneak in the top 4 :praying:

 :beermug:
Are you a match? It's too late for Emru, but maybe you can help save someone's life: http://www.healemru.com

Offline Tallman

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T&T youngster impresses Manchester United coaches
« Reply #5874 on: September 03, 2018, 09:40:20 AM »
T&T youngster impresses Manchester United coaches
By Andrew Gioannetti (T&T Newsday)


TWELVE-year-old Queen’s Royal College (QRC) student and Queen’s Park Academy player Addae Paponette made good use of a rare opportunity over the course of the school holidays when he engaged in trials with Manchester United, Preston North End and other football clubs in England.

Paponette was with his QP academy team and their coach Anthony Selby on a two-week tour in England, where they visited top tier stadiums and practised with a number of teams.

Upon the completion of QP’s tour, he was invited to stay in London with CrownPro Elite Football Academy, which opened even more opportunities of exposure for the young forward.

At CrownPro, he got the attention of coaches and scouts from Manchester United, Sheffield United, West Bromwich Albion and Stoke City. The first three offered him trials for the winter.

“He impressed with his physical attributes, especially his height and strength,” said Rianne Paponette, the player’s mother who accompanied him on the trip.

She said he was scouted by Manchester United head of youth recruitment, David Harrison, on the penultimate day of the tour when the two clubs trained together.

“It was within 15 minutes the scout became interested in him,” his mother said.

Paponette was subsequently invited to the Aon Training Complex, Manchester United’s training academy in Carrington.

“We got the trials and he performed exceptionally well. The next day, we got word from our coach that he was impressed with his performance.

“What the Man United coaches liked about him the most was his athletic structure and his agility and he even mentioned his core fitness.”

She said Harrison extended an invitation for Paponette to attend trials during the winter period, typically the more testing season for footballers in England.

“In his (Harrison’s) words, ‘winter is a different type of beast.’ And based on how he performs then, he may be asked to stay for a continual trial period,” she added.

When asked if Paponette is capable of preparing for the winter trials in the UK given the contrast in climate between the two countries, his mother said he was not worried “because he performs even better under pressure.”

Upon his recent return to TT, Paponette was interviewed by Newsday and gave his impression of the football culture in England.

He said although the training techniques were not particularly new to him because his coach at QP, Anthony Selby, has a modern approach to the game, the intensity was something less familiar to him.

“...the intensity of football that is played there is of a higher standard than Trinidad,” Paponette said, adding that he was impressed by the “passion, drive and technical play on and off the ball at the various clubs.”

“Every day it has different sets (in training) like fitness, ball control, shooting, passing, skills, all different techniques you need to know before you want to make it in professional football. But the passion they have playing the game... it’s not mostly like having fun. It’s a business to them... They consider it like life.”

Asked for the best advice he received from a UK coach, Paponette responded, “The coaches in England (told me) ‘when you’re tired on the field, just remember your mental ability is stronger than your technical ability.’”

He said he enjoyed visiting the various training grounds and stadiums, his favourite of which was Tottenham Hotspur’s training facility in London. “The field was well kept, it was pitch perfect. And the best stadium I saw was Liverpool’s stadium (Anfield). It was clean, fabulous and one of the best stadiums I’ve ever seen in my life.”

It was an experience he said he wished to share with other young, ambitious footballers at home. His advice to them was, “you’ll never know when the opportunity might come knocking, so always try your best.”

While a student at Arima Boys’ Government and playing for FC Santa Rosa, Paponette got his first real sight at elite football when he visited Barcelona’s academy last year.

He was one of three players selected ahead of about 150 others at the Nestle Milo FC Barcelona Football Tournament at the Larry Gomes Stadium, Arima.

Last season, he copped three MVP awards in the Atlantic National Primary Schools Football League. He was also top scorer and MVP in the last edition of the Republic Bank National Youth League.

As a forward, he spoke about his best and weakest attributes.

“One of my main strengths in football is playing excellent under pressure. “(Specifically) my shooting, passing and control are what I’m best at.

“But one of the weaknesses I’ve seen within myself is I share the ball a little too much when I have a clear chance to score. I will talk to my coaches and see how I can work on that. I like people too much. I like to share my goals.”

He said he began playing football at age five.

“But at the age of ten, I realised that I was above average to the other ten and 12-year-olds because my technical and mental abilities were stronger. My physical abilities were stronger. Every time I play football, they (coaches) carry me up a year or two. I’m 12 now and they have me play with the Under-16s. I feel I can go up a little more.”

Looking ahead to the potential opportunities in the UK, which may begin as early as October, Paponette said he has no fear of stepping up and staying away from his parents for a prolonged period of time.

“I’ve done it multiple times before. I’ve been to many camps that had me away from my parents for a long time. So I know what it takes. I’ll miss her and her food but I can’t turn down that chance to play abroad.”
The Conquering Lion of Judah shall break every chain.

Offline Flex

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5875 on: May 22, 2019, 01:44:18 PM »
Man Utd vs Bayern Munich
1999 Treble Reunion
Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester
Date: Sunday, May 26, 2019
Kick-off: 3pm BST

Teams

Man Utd Squad

1 Peter Schmeichel (Goalkeeper)
2 Gary Neville (Defender)
3 Denis Irwin (Defender)
4 David May (Defender)
5 Ronny Johnsen (Defender)
6 Jaap Stam (Defender)
7 David Beckham (Midfielder)
8 Nicky Butt (Midfielder)
9 Andy Cole (Striker)
9 Louis Saha (Striker)
10 Teddy Sheringham (Striker)
13 Ji-sung Park (Midfielder)
14 Karel Poborsky (Midfielder)
15 Jesper Blomqvist (Midfielder)
17 Raimond van der Gouw (Goalkeeper)
18 Paul Scholes (Midfielder)
19 Dwight Yorke (Striker)
20 Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (Striker)
21 Henning Berg (Defender)
24 Wes Brown (Defender)
27 Mikael Silvestre (Defender)
34 Jonathan Greening (Midfielder)

Bayern Squad

2 Markus Babbel (Defender)
3 Hans Pfluger (Defender)
4 Sammy Kuffour (Defender)
5 Klaus Augenthaler (Defender)
5 Daniel van Buyten (Defender)
6 Martin Demichelis (Defender)
6 Christian Nerlinger (Midfielder)
7 Michael Sternkopf (Midfielder)
8 Markus Schupp (Midfielder)
9 Luca Toni (Striker)
9 Giovane Elber (Striker)
10 Lothar Matthaus (Midfielder)
10 Roy Makaay (Striker)
11 Stefan Effenberg (Midfielder)
11 Ze Roberto (Midfielder)
11 Ivica Olic (Striker)
13 Paulo Sergio (Striker)
14 Carsten Lakies (Striker)
16 Andreas Ottl (Midfielder)
16 Marcel Witeczek (Midfielder)
17 Thorsten Fink (Midfielder)
19 Carsten Jancker (Striker)
22 Bernd Dreher (Goalkeeper)
22 Hans-Jorg Butt (Goalkeeper)

« Last Edit: May 22, 2019, 01:47:05 PM by Flex »
The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline Flex

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5876 on: February 05, 2020, 04:47:18 PM »
Man United were supposed to be too big to fail: The inside story of how everything fell apart
Mark Ogden
Senior Writer, ESPN FC


NUR-SULTAN, Kazakhstan -- It is 4:50 a.m. on Wednesday. The wind chill factor takes the temperature down to a punishing -22 degrees Celsius (-7 Fahrenheit), but as Manchester United's young squad emerges from the arrivals hall at Nursultan Nazarbayev International Airport, a throng of 60 locals with United scarves and banners greets them with a noisy welcome.

United are making their first visit to Kazakhstan to play a routine Europa League group game against FC Astana, 3,700 miles from Old Trafford, in a city that is closer to Beijing than Manchester. From a football perspective, Nur-Sultan is as far from home as United could possibly be within the UEFA orbit, but it is a fixture that sums up where the team and club are right now. Miles from where they want, and expect, to be, playing in a secondary competition while Europe's elite -- of which they were once a leading member -- contest the Champions League.

Nur-Sultan ultimately may be United's aphelion, the point from where they begin to navigate their way back to the top of the sport. A young team stacked with academy graduates -- six teenagers make their United debuts in the Astana Arena -- suffered a 2-1 defeat against the Kazakh champions. That result wasn't a shock -- manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer left almost all of his first-team players in Manchester due to United having qualified for the knockout stages -- but it was an embarrassing reminder of how far the club has fallen.

Since Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement in May 2013, when United clinched the Premier League title with an 11-point winning margin, the club have drifted further away from the position of power they once held. Manchester City have become the dominant force in Manchester and England, winning three titles in six years, while traditional rivals Liverpool have become Champions League winners and appear destined to end a 30-year league title drought this season.

Managers have come and gone -- Solskjaer is the fourth hire since Ferguson -- a staggering £840 million ($1 billion) has been spent, and largely wasted, on players. Mistakes have been made in the boardroom and only now are we hearing talk of a "cultural reboot" within Old Trafford.

But how could it go so wrong, so quickly? Manchester United were supposed to be too big, too wealthy and too successful to fail.

'The lads wanted a star... we got Fellaini'

"HE'S EITHER A CLOWN OR A F---ING GENIUS," David Moyes suggested to a member of his coaching team after an early meeting with Ed Woodward, United's newly appointed executive vice-chairman, in July 2013.

Heralded as the "Chosen One" after signing a six-year contract as Ferguson's successor, Moyes was led to believe that big moves were underway to sign Gareth Bale, Cesc Fabregas and Cristiano Ronaldo. Woodward even told him that the club were just waiting to press the button on whichever deal he wanted to do. Moyes had already pulled the plug on a move (set up by Ferguson) for Barcelona's Thiago Alcantara because he was unconvinced. Having worked within a tight budget at Everton for 11 years, Moyes earned the nickname "Dithering Dave" because of his habit of painstakingly assessing every potential signing, but Woodward was now giving him the chance to play fantasy football for real.

But nothing happened. Moyes wanted Everton pair Leighton Baines and Marouane Fellaini, but what he really wanted was to make a statement and to do that, he had to deliver big name players to excite the fans. In late July, Woodward flew back from the team's summer tour of Australia with the club briefing that he had gone home on "urgent transfer business." Fellaini, meanwhile, had an escape clause in his Everton contract (due to expire in mid-August) enabling him to leave for £23.5m. Baines, on the other hand, made it clear he would not force a move to United.

As the days ticked by, nobody arrived to boost the squad. Panic set in. But with three minutes to go before the Aug. 31 transfer deadline, Fellaini arrived from Everton for £27.5m -- £4m more than his escape clause would have allowed him to leave for two weeks earlier.

It was a disastrous summer window, and privately, Moyes and Woodward began to point the finger at each other.

"Before games, [David Moyes] would say, 'We need to make 500 passes today.' What is all that about? 500 passes? We never had that kind of thing under Sir Alex [Ferguson]. Before we played Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarterfinal at the Allianz Arena, he told us to try to win corners by kicking the ball off Bayern players' shins. It was laughable really." - a former United midfielder

"The lads wanted a star name to lift the dressing-room, and we got Fellaini," one member of Moyes' first squad told ESPN FC. "Felli was a good lad and he did a job, but the rest of us were just looking at each other, wondering what the hell had happened. David misjudged the squad. He needed two new centre-halves at the outset because injuries had caught up with Rio [Ferdinand] and Vida [Nemanja Vidic]. But he was too worried about making such a big call straightaway. He didn't take risks and he didn't want risk-takers."

United would go on to their worst start to a season in the Premier League era, followed by another panic buy. In the January transfer window, they signed Juan Mata, flying him to the training ground in a helicopter. The club was desperate to promote the idea of Woodward pulling off a coup by prising the player from Chelsea for £37.1m, but the players were unimpressed.

"Great lad, Juan, but we didn't need him," a first-team player told ESPN FC. "We had Shinji Kagawa at the time and he was a really popular, well-respected player within the dressing-room. Moyes didn't know how to use him. He didn't trust him. But Shinji was quicker and more direct than Juan, who actually had the effect of slowing the team down."

With Fellaini and Mata, a pattern had been set. United were paying over the odds for players unsuited to the team.

'None of the signings impressed us'

UNITED SACKED MOYES IN APRIL 2014, but the scattered approach in the market continued under his successor, Louis van Gaal. This time, Woodward got deals done, breaking the British transfer record to sign Angel di Maria for £59.7m and completing the loan signing of Radamel Falcao from Monaco. Once again, the players were underwhelmed by the signings, which also included Daley Blind, Luke Shaw, Morgan Schneiderlin and Matteo Darmian, while homegrown players like Jonny Evans and Danny Welbeck were sold off cheaply.

"In fairness to Ed, he delivered for Louis," a former United coach told ESPN FC. "Louis wanted Di Maria, [Bastian] Schweinsteiger and Memphis Depay, and he got the deals done."

"None of the players that were signed impressed those of us who were already there," a player from the time told ESPN FC. "Di Maria was the only one who we thought was a real United player. He was a great lad and he really looked the part after two to three games, but he had loads of big rows with Louis -- always in Spanish, full-volume stuff -- and he wanted out after that. A misconception has grown about Di Maria. He was popular within the squad and a top quality player, but he and Louis just didn't get on.

"Falcao was a lovely guy, so humble, but he wasn't over his bad knee injury, so it never worked for him. The rest of the signings just weren't good enough, though. Louis wanted to clear out the Ferguson influence and build again, but he went too far and made the squad worse."

Van Gaal's stubbornness also led to the expensive mistake of signing Depay from PSV Eindhoven for £25m in 2015.

"Louis was a big fan of Depay," the former coach told ESPN FC. "He found out that Liverpool had met him and were ready to do a deal, so Louis told Ed that we had to move fast. PSG were also in for him. But Albert Stuivenberg, one of the coaches, had worked with Memphis as a youngster in Holland and he knew his character. He told Louis it was a bad idea and that he wasn't right for United.

"Louis had made up his mind, though, and Ed did the deal. Albert was right. Memphis wasn't right for United."

Depay scored seven goals in 53 appearances before being shipped out to Olympique Lyonnais, with one story emphasising why he failed at Old Trafford. "He made a mistake which led to a goal in a game at Stoke," a United teammate recalls. "Louis was furious, so he punished him by making him play in the reserves the next day. Memphis then turned up for the game in a Rolls Royce. Some of the lads told him it didn't look good doing that. Next day, he turned up for training in the same car."

Van Gaal attempted to sign Sadio Mane from Southampton in August 2015 only for the forward to reject a move to Old Trafford because, according to sources, he made it clear that he did not want to play for the Dutchman. Instead, United signed Anthony Martial from Monaco; the Frenchman remains at the club.

Mourinho arrives, but the imbalance continued

THE VAN GAAL ERA LEFT UNITED WITH AN IMBALANCED SQUAD, prompting his successor, Jose Mourinho, to spend big in an attempt to inject pace, goals and experience. Paul Pogba, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Eric Bailly arrived in Mourinho's first summer. Romelu Lukaku, Victor Lindelof and Nemanja Matic checked in a year later, before Alexis Sanchez arrived in January 2018 from Arsenal.

Manchester City had been favourites to sign Sanchez, but United were prepared to pay him in the region of £400,000 a week and went on to become one of the worst signings in the club's history. Former United players spoke to their contacts at Arsenal and the same message came back: "Don't touch him, he doesn't have the character to play for United."

"Why didn't somebody at the club get one of the lads to speak to Danny Welbeck about him?" one United player said to ESPN FC.

By this stage, Mourinho was making uncomplimentary noises about player recruitment. Woodward floated the idea of creating the position of director of football, but Mourinho was reluctant and the idea was shelved. But with the manager publicly complaining about the club's transfer strategy during the 2018 summer tour of the U.S., when it became clear that United's scouts and player recruitment team were opposed to Mourinho's desire to sign Bayern Munich's Jerome Boateng as his new centre-half, the clock began to tick on Mourinho's reign in charge. Boateng's injury record was the big concern within the United scouting department. There was also a suspicion of Bayern's motives for selling, with United having seen Schweinsteiger and Owen Hargreaves arrive from the Allianz Arena, only to struggle with their fitness.

"Ed [Woodward's] problem is that he doesn't know what he doesn't know. He means well and wants United to be Premier League and European champions again, but he thinks he has the solution to everything. He doesn't, United don't, and he needs to hire the right people in key positions. He's also too nice. One problem that both he and the Glazers share is that they lack a hard edge. That is not the case at City or Chelsea, or with Levy at Spurs." -- one source, to ESPN FC

Mourinho also felt United moved too slowly in the market -- the one exception was when Woodward beat Chelsea to signing Lukaku -- and his approach jarred with the club's determination to be strategic in order to avoid the mistakes of Moyes and Van Gaal. Woodward had overhauled the club's scouting system, giving United eyes and ears across the globe, with as many as 60 scouts reporting into the main hub at the Carrington training ground, but it wasn't working for Mourinho.

He would be sacked last December, with Solskjaer appointed on a full-time basis in April after initially holding the post of interim-manager. Woodward heralded the Norwegian as helping United with a "cultural reboot," turning the focus onto developing homegrown talent and recruiting emerging players. In September, he told the fanzine "United We Stand" that the club signed Aaron Wan-Bissaka from Crystal Palace following an exhaustive process that began with "804 right-backs in our system based on scouting reports."

From the last minute signing of Fellaini in 2013 to the data-driven capture of Wan-Bissaka, United finally appeared to be settling on a coherent plan.

Uninspiring football

THE BUCK STOPS WITH THE MANAGER. You can blame the players and owners, but the manager ultimately pays the price for failure. United's problem, post-Ferguson, is that they have hired the wrong guy at the wrong time at every turn. Time will tell if the same applies to Solskjaer.

"It was chaos under David Moyes," one former United player told ESPN FC. Another recalled how the "training was s--- in Australia" during the early weeks of the Scot's reign.

"He told us that he would make us fitter. We had just won the Premier League by 11 points, but we were a group of players who would always strive to be better, so we bought into it," said a former player. "But training... was boring and unchallenging. Under Sir Alex, we would warm up in boxes, with one-touch passing, and it was intense and competitive. Under David, it became two-touch and our technique diminished.

"One big factor in David not succeeding at United was that he took too long to realise what he had inherited. The team had stopped pressing under Sir Alex. We began to defend deeper due to the age and experience of the team, but David came in and thought we could play fast-paced football. We couldn't and we made a terrible start that we, and he, never recovered from."

Moyes battled to win over the squad, but his attempts to make them more professional, like banning the tradition of the players eating chips on the night before a game, angered many who felt he was making changes for change's sake.

Tactically, the players also struggled to warm to Moyes. "Before games, he would say, 'we need to make 500 passes today,' a former United midfielder told ESPN FC. "What is all that about? 500 passes? We never had that kind of thing under Sir Alex. Before we played Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarterfinal at the Allianz Arena, he told us to try to win corners by kicking the ball off Bayern players' shins. It was laughable really."

In his autobiography, "#2Sides," Rio Ferdinand claimed that Moyes failed to connect with the United players. "Moyes's innovations mostly led to negativity and confusion," Ferdinand said. "The biggest confusion was over how he wanted us to move the ball forward. Some players felt they kicked the ball long more than at any time in their career. The whole approach was alien.

"Sometimes our main tactic was the long, high, diagonal cross. It was embarrassing. In one home game against Fulham we had 81 crosses! I was thinking, why are we doing this? Andy Carroll doesn't play for us!" By the time United sacked Moyes, less than 12 months into a six-year contract, United had fallen from being champions to a team that was unable to qualify for European competition.

Where Moyes was out of his depth, Van Gaal marched into Old Trafford in the summer of 2014 as a Champions League winner with experience of managing some of the biggest clubs in the world in Ajax, Barcelona and Bayern Munich. He had also just guided the Netherlands to the World Cup semifinal in Brazil. "He felt like a 'boss' from day one," a United player told ESPN FC. "He just had presence and authority."

The staff behind the scenes were also immediately impressed. Van Gaal was warm and inclusive to the point that the feel-good factor returned. His personality and charisma chimed with Woodward's desire to make United punch their weight, the two men working together and the club spending heavily during a major rebuild. But while Van Gaal got United back into the Champions League in his first season, the football became predictable. He demanded that his players stick to his philosophy of a possession-based game. At a time when their Premier League and European rivals were developing quicker, high-energy styles of play, Van Gaal's United were getting slower.

"I liked Louis," one player sold by Van Gaal told ESPN FC. "He was a brilliant coach. Tactically, the best I have ever had. But his football was restrictive and he didn't allow for flair in the final third of the pitch. If a player shot and missed, he had to explain himself after the game. Louis hated players shooting with their first touch -- he basically ordered them to take a touch before shooting. Crazy, really."

Van Gaal sent every player video clips via email of what they had done wrong. When they ignored him, the emails soon came with "read receipts". During team meetings, the manager would criticise players in front of their teammates for the most basic technical mistakes.

"It was hard work under Louis," one senior player recalls. "It got to the point where Wayne [Rooney] and Michael [Carrick] went to see him to tell him that it was too much and he needed to change. He did for a while, but by the time he was sacked, the players really couldn't take any more. The lads were looking forward to international breaks just to get away for a few days."

Van Gaal was fired within 48 hours of United winning the FA Cup in 2016 -- their first trophy in the post-Ferguson era -- with Mourinho hired in his place after the club had also considered Tottenham's Mauricio Pochettino and Van Gaal's assistant, and Man United legend, Ryan Giggs.

With Pep Guardiola having taken charge at Manchester City, Mourinho was United's response: a big-name manager described as a "trophy machine" by one senior figure at Old Trafford. But by this point, United were a shadow of the team that Ferguson had led to the title three years earlier. The experienced men had gone, leaving fringe players like Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, Ashley Young and Antonio Valencia, alongside ageing stars Rooney and Carrick. Add the failures of Depay, Schweinsteiger, Darmian and Schneiderlin and it was easy to suggest that Mourinho had taken on a bigger challenge than he had imagined.

That Mourinho delivered two trophies (Europa League and League Cup), reached the FA Cup final and qualified for the Champions League is perhaps testament to his achievement. But he spent just short of £400m in two-and-a-half years as manager and left in December 2018 with the club no better off than when he arrived.

United's football was also uninspiring, almost to the levels of the Van Gaal era, and Mourinho reacted badly to criticism from former players, most notably from iconic figures such as Paul Scholes and Gary Neville. He had also become unpopular around the club and within the dressing room during his final months in charge.

According to one source, things had gotten so bad under Mourinho that when Solskjaer became caretaker manager, folks at Old Trafford referred to him as the "anti-venom."

'Ed's problem is he's too nice'

AT THE BAGGAGE CAROUSEL IN NUR-SULTAN, Manchester United supporter cheered the players, but they booed Ed Woodward. The 48-year-old has become accustomed to criticism since succeeding David Gill in 2013, and even as far away as Kazakhstan the story remained the same. Woodward describes himself as a "lightning rod" and with that comes the abuse he receives, both in person and on social media. He may put on a brave face, but sources have said that the negativity can consume him. "He's a normal guy and just wants to be liked," a source said.

Woodward mingled with supporters in an Irish bar in Nur-Sultan, for example, only for one fan to approach him and poke his finger in the executive's ear before the incident was posted on social media. United sources told ESPN FC that Woodward does not like socialising with the protection of the club's security team. Incidents such as this one, however, perhaps emphasise his naivety.

Fans are frustrated over how Woodward and the Glazers, the U.S. owners, have run the club, seeming to care more about commercial success than success on the pitch. When the Glazers, who also own the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, bought the club in 2005 with a leveraged takeover, they plunged United into debts of around £350m. The Americans have since made United the most powerful commercial brand in world football, but unlike Roman Abramovich at Chelsea or Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan at City, the Glazers have not invested any of their own money, instead taking dividends on a regular basis. Since Sheikh Mansour bought City in Sept 2008, he has pumped more than £1 billion into the club to transform their fortunes. At Old Trafford, interest payments on the debt and money drawn in dividends has seen over £1 billion drain out of United's coffers.

A former investment banker by trade, Woodward advised the Glazers during their takeover of United while working for JP Morgan. He speaks to co-chairman Joel Glazer on a daily basis, and despite the club's football failures, a United source told ESPN FC that he is "rock solid" in his position. But just as successive managers have been unable to escape Ferguson's shadow, Woodward continues to be measured against Gill, who presided over incredible success and stability alongside Ferguson.

"The players used to refer to David as 'Mr Gill,'" a former United player said. "But Ed Woodward has never had that level of respect. He's a nice guy, people like him, but David Gill just had a status around the club and United have missed that."

Within the game, Woodward has struck up strong relationships with leading figures in the business, including Man City's Ferran Soriano, Tottenham's Daniel Levy and others at Juventus, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. But one figure at a leading Premier League club told ESPN FC that Woodward suffers from "jockstrap syndrome" in that he's too easily dazzled by the association with big-name players and agents.

"Ed's problem is that he doesn't know what he doesn't know," one source told ESPN FC. "He means well and wants United to be Premier League and European champions again, but he thinks he has the solution to everything. He doesn't, United don't, and he needs to hire the right people in key positions. He's also too nice. One problem that both he and the Glazers share is that they lack a hard edge. That is not the case at City or Chelsea, or with Levy at Spurs."

One area of scrutiny is United's lack of a director of football, a position that involves mapping out the club's long-term approach on the pitch and recruiting players and coaches to fit that vision. When Mourinho was sacked, this role was cited as an urgent appointment. Almost 12 months on, sources tell ESPN FC that it is no longer a priority.

Woodward has admitted that he, at times, has been the man who has blocked transfers. "Sometimes I have to be the one who delivers the 'no,' which isn't easy," he told "United We Stand." "Our natural tendency is to back the manager in every possible circumstance, but we have to listen to the experts too."

'Ole is going to have to be selfish'

SOLSKJAER WAS IN A RELAXED MOOD as he sat in the coffee lounge of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, United's base, in Nur-Sultan. The United manager was making light of the bitterly cold temperatures outside, claiming that "it's colder when I go to my cabin in Norway." Less than 12 months earlier, Solskjaer was managing Molde in his homeland. There have probably been times in recent months when he could have used the solitude of his retreat.

"Fair play to Ole, he is making big changes," one of Solskjaer's former United teammates told ESPN FC. "But I don't know how much his voice is really heard at the club and whether he is able to do what he really wants to do."

Solskjaer's initial appointment as caretaker manager went so well, winning his first eight games and guiding the team to a remarkable 3-1 Champions League win against PSG in France, that he was given a three-year contract in April. Woodward declared that Solskjaer was the man to lead United's "cultural reboot" by delivering attractive, winning football with a team predominantly made up of homegrown players. Behind the scenes, the scouting department was up and running, with the Wan Bissaka signing an example of how United were using strategy and data to recruit players. For his part, Solskjaer offloaded high-earning, but under-performing, players such as Lukaku, Sanchez and Darmian.

When United took the field against Astana, the average age of their 10 outfield players was 20.1. The squad cull had been brutal and the lack of reinforcements -- only three signings arrived this summer -- means Solskjaer must use untried youngsters when he wants to give his senior players a break. It is why United have languished in mid-table this season, yet those at Old Trafford say the club won't go on a spending spree in January.

Gary Neville, a former United captain, has urged Solskjaer to protect himself by pushing for funds to sign players. "Ole is not going to be there to see the fruits of the labour he has put in, the foundations that he is laying, unless he gets players in around them [youngsters]," Neville said. "The young players won't develop the maturity they need without experienced players alongside them.

"Ole must demand it [money to spend]. He is going to have to be selfish, have a ruthless streak and protect himself in January."

The money is there to spend, but missing out on the Champions League will undermine the club's efforts to sign the world's best players. And the prospect of finishing in the Premier League's top four, which grants automatic qualification to Europe's top competition, appears as far away as Kazakhstan.


Sources have told ESPN FC that the United hierarchy are prepared to endure a period of "pain" to come out the other side in a better place. There is also a view that patience will deliver its rewards. City and Liverpool are the big two at this moment in time, but nobody at Old Trafford expects Guardiola to remain at City for the long-term, while there is also a belief -- maybe a hope -- that Liverpool will have to plan for life without Jurgen Klopp at some point in the next two to three years. But waiting for your rivals to fail is no plan for success. Six years of mistakes and false steps have been hugely damaging for Manchester United, but as they emerged from the Astana Arena the mood was one of optimism. Maybe this is as bad as it gets.

United have to come in from the cold at some point.

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline Flex

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5877 on: March 30, 2020, 11:18:42 AM »

Sethakorn grew up watching Manchester United from afar on TV and collects anything he can find connected to the Treble-winning team of 1999. Amanda Mustard for ESPN

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5878 on: September 04, 2020, 03:42:42 AM »
Sanchez wanted to leave Man Utd after first training session.
Yahoo News


Alexis Sanchez wanted to leave Manchester United following his first training session after an agreement with Manchester City failed to come to fruition.

City were expected to sign Sanchez in January 2018 but he ended up joining their rivals United from Arsenal in a swap deal that sent Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the opposite direction.

The Chile international, who was reportedly being paid £390,000 per week, failed to find the form he displayed at Arsenal, where he had become one of the Premier League's leading attackers.

He scored just five goals in 45 appearances in all competitions before spending the 2019-20 season on loan at Inter, who signed him permanently last month.

Injuries also limited Sanchez's impact at United, but he confirmed City had been his first choice and he did not feel comfortable with the Red Devils from the start.

"I want to tell you about my period at United, about many things that have been said which made me look bad," Sanchez said in a video posted on his official Instagram account.

"Before going there, I had an agreement with Manchester City but it didn't work out and I got the chance to join Manchester United. It was something nice for me, as a kid I liked the club a lot. Eventually I signed but I didn't ask for information on what was happening inside the club

"Sometimes there are things that you don't realise until you get there, and I remember the first training session I had, I realised a lot of things.

"After the session I got home and I said to my family and my agent, 'Can you not rip up the contract to go back to Arsenal?' They laughed, I told them 'There's something that doesn't sit right, it doesn't seem good.'

"But I already signed, I was already there. After the first few months I carried on having the same feeling, we weren't united as a team in that moment."

Sanchez felt he was often unfairly targeted as the team struggled in his first full season with team, which saw United slip from a runners-up finish in 2017-18 to sixth place.

"I'm telling you my experience, the journalists at times would speak without knowing the facts and it hurt, they had no idea what was going on inside the club," he said.

"They said it was my fault, and this, and that, but sometimes a player depends on the environment, the family that is created around him, and I think that in that moment we weren't really a family.

"And that translated onto the pitch, and since there needed to be someone to blame, they blamed me."

Sanchez felt a pivotal moment in his United career came when he was left out of the matchday squad by Jose Mourinho for a trip to West Ham in September 2018, a game that ended in a 3-1 loss at London Stadium.

"I remember a game against West Ham, I wasn't picked and that never happened during my career," he added.

"That changed a lot, it really bothered me and that day I told myself that it couldn't be possible to go from one of the best players in the Premier League to that in the space of five months.

"That bothered me a little, I got home and I was very sad for what happened, the next day I put in a double training session - as I've always been, I demand the best from myself in my job, I love what I do, I like football a lot."

Alexis Sanchez wanted to leave Manchester United and return to Arsenal after just one day of training
By Karl Matchett


Alexis Sanchez has issued an extraordinarily-honest assessment of his time at Manchester United, suggesting a poor atmosphere around the club made him want to leave immediately and was partly to blame for his woes.

The Chile international enjoyed a hugely successful spell at Arsenal, becoming one of the most-feared attackers in the Premier League, before his move north in January 2018 to join United.

He previously had the chance to join Manchester City, which was his initial preference, but Sanchez revealed the move fell through for “football reasons” and he was left with United, which also appealed at the time.

But matters quickly went south as he realised it was not the environment he had been expecting, while he says off-field matters didn’t help either.

“I wanted to talk a little about my time about United, about things they said which make me feel bad and speak a bit about my experiences in that club,” he said in a video on Instagram.

“Before moving, I had an agreement with Manchester City but for football reasons it didn’t go through.

“The chance to go to United came, I liked them very much as a child and in the end I signed without knowing too much about what went on inside the club.

“There are things you don’t know about until you’re there. I remember the first training session I realised many things and after the training session I spoke to my family and my agent and asked to rescind the contract to return to Arsenal.

“They laughed, but I said there was something which wasn’t right. But it was all signed and I was already there.

“After a few months I had the same feeling, we weren’t together, we weren’t a team.”

Alexis says the media and former United players who criticised him spoke without “knowing anything about inside the club,” suggesting that they blamed him for poor performances.

In reality, he says the disconnect between players within the club meant they weren’t a single unit, which has been a feature in most clubs he has played for and been successful: Udinese, Barcelona, Arsenal, the Chile national team.

Matters came to a head when he was dropped against West Ham by Jose Mourinho, which led Alexis to ask Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, when he arrived, for an exit.

“Sometimes when I didnd’t play, or played 20-30 minutes, the fault was always someone’s [mine]. I also self-criticise, you have to play the best you can. I also had injuries at that time, I wasn’t happy.

“Against West Ham I was dropped. It had never happened before as a player and it hurt and bothered me a lot.

“I thought ‘this can’t be possible, going from one of the best in the Premier League to five months later not even getting changed [for the match].’

“I was sad at home and the next day I trained a double session as I always do.

“The next coach arrived, the current one, and I spoke with him to say ‘I think I need to change scenery, that I have the opportunity to go to Inter.’ He said ‘no problem,’ and I went.”

Alexis finished by expressing “words of gratitude” at having had the “chance to represent the shirt” and reiterated that although “it hurt me a lot that things didn’t go the way I wanted”, he felt the atmosphere needed to be more “like a family” for on-pitch matters t improve.

Now at Inter Milan on a permanent deal, the forward thanked the fans and said he hoped they could appreciate his reasons for the message – and as he has already had a more significant impact over in Italy, perhaps his words will carry significant weight.

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

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Re: The Stretford End- Home of the Champions
« Reply #5879 on: October 05, 2020, 03:41:40 PM »
‘Many people need a good slap’ – Patrice Evra hits out at ‘shambolic’ United
By PA Sport Staff


Patrice Evra branded Manchester United a “shambles” after watching their 6-1 home defeat to Tottenham as they capitulated at Old Trafford.

United led after being awarded a penalty inside 30 seconds, converted by Bruno Fernandes, but Spurs quickly hit back through Tanguy Ndombele and Son Heung-Min before the floodgates opened following a red card for Anthony Martial.

Son scored again, while Harry Kane got two and Serge Aurier was also on the scoresheet.

Speaking on Sky Sports, Evra said he might have to quit his job as a pundit if it involved analysing any more such performances.

“Alexis Sanchez said after his first training session he asked his agent to end his contract,” he said. “That’s what I’m going to ask Sky because this is my second game working…I’m a positive person and I never want to talk about United because telling the truth can hurt.

“I’m passionate, I love my club. I know I have to have some filter when I talk on TV, but that was a shambles.

“They let down all United fans. I don’t care about the result, I’ve been beaten 6-1, but every year I feel the same, that’s why I prefer to work on a different game if I stay at Sky.”

The result will raise questions over the progress made under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but Evra said the blame should go higher up.

“We will talk about the manager but what about the board?” he said. “How many years now since (Sir Alex Ferguson) left, how many managers have been sacked now? We talk about Ole, maybe he’s the man, maybe not, but we don’t know about the transfers.

“It’s difficult to break a man like me, I’m a positive person. I don’t promote violence but many people need a good slap right now, that’s what I would do if I’m working for the club.

“It’s about the body language, the love for that shirt, the passion, I don’t see any players understanding wearing that shirt. You’re carrying on the story of the club.”

Deals for Edinson Cavani and Alex Telles could be completed before Monday night’s transfer deadline, but Gary Neville said a lack of action in the market to date was having an impact on the mindset of the existing squad.

“There’s no excuse for the 11 players on the pitch, or the 13, 14 players involved in the game because that was absolutely pathetic,” Neville said. “The body language was terrible, spineless.

“Off the pitch, the stuff with Harry Maguire, Mason Greenwood, the darkness around recruitment…You see Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea all signing players. The minute Spurs go 2-1 up all those negative thoughts drain every bit of confidence.

“It’s not right, but it’s what happened.

“City have spent £150million, Liverpool have signed (Diogo) Jota and Thiago (Alcantara). They’ve pulled away psychologically before the season even started.

“The psychological damage of not bringing in players is hampering the current players. The club’s job is to build title-winning teams. Manchester United have to win the title. We can’t drop those standards.”

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

 

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