CHAMPIONS IN REBUILD: PART TWO- MANCHESTER UNITED
CHAMPIONS IN REBUILD
PART 2
MANCHESTER UNITED
-Samarth Purohit & Mitansh Kagalwala
We're back with the second part of our Champions In Rebuild series, where we take a look at clubs that once dominated the footballing world, but have since fallen down the pecking order, and are currently in a state of rebuild. In Part 2 of the Champions In Rebuild series, we visit cold, dreary Manchester and the legendary Old Trafford, to meet with the Red Devils.
THE
GLORY DAYS
Ah,
Manchester United. The Red Devils are probably the biggest club in world
football, and they have had some legendary teams, players and managers worthy of
the title. First, there were Busby’s Babes. The job of manager of Manchester
United in the early 1900’s wasn’t the glamorous position it is today. The club
was relegated from the top division twice in the 1930’s, coming dangerously
close to bankruptcy. In 1941, during the Second World War, the Nazi Air Force
bombed Old Trafford. Following that, Manchester United were forced to play
their home games at Maine Road- home of rivals Manchester City, an insult of
the highest order. If not for Matt Busby and his “Babes”, it is hard to imagine
the Red Devils reaching the heights they have today.
Matt Busby
took charge at Old Trafford on 19 February, 1945. It was an appointment that
would cause huge controversy had it happened today, for Busby had previously
played for City in the 1930’s. He saw something different at Manchester United;
a vision for attacking football and homegrown talents. Busby’s United won the
FA Cup in 1948, and then the league in 1952. The squad however, was ageing, and
it was time for Busby to bring in the academy lads, who had Manchester blood
running through their veins. Not all of that team was homegrown, however, with
Busby signing center-forward Tommy Taylor from Barnsley for £29,999. A crucial signing, as Busby’s United Babes ran away with the
1955-56 title. The average age of that team was an astonishing 22. They reached
the European Cup semi-final, only losing to Real Madrid, while establishing a 10-0
win against Anderlecht, a game that still holds as United’s biggest ever win in
a competitive match. Bobby Charlton joined the team as the Babes marched on,
retaining their league title. They were only denied the first domestic double
of the modern age by Aston Villa in a controversial game. A third successive
league title and a European championship beckoned. United sailed smooth,
beating Arsenal 5-4 before they took on Red Star Belgrade in the second leg of
the European Cup quarter-final…
A day that was
supposed to lead United to another European semi-final and further to glory
ended in darkness. The infamous Munich plane crash plunged Manchester and the
rest of the footballing world into despair. The disaster claimed the lives of
23 people, including 8 United players and 3 match officials. A dark day for the
Red Devils, and assistant manager Jimmy Murphy was to pick up the pieces. The
players who survived, and were able, however, needed to play again. Goalkeeper
Harry Greg wrote in his autobiography: “It
(playing football) saved my sanity. I couldn’t get to the ground quick enough
for training. Those brief moments spent running, diving, kicking, arguing and
fighting were my escape valve.” Just
13 days after the crash, a packed Old Trafford witnessed United play their
rescheduled FA Cup tie against Sheffield United, under the banner “United Will
Go On.” The brave Red Devils made it to the final of the FA Cup, a miracle in
itself.
Manchester United's Legendary Busby Babes
United did go on, though, and Matt Busby was once again key to the rebuild. Having pulled United from the ashes once, he was convinced by his son and wife he could do it again. Ten years after the crash, in 1968, Manchester United won the European Cup Final, once again with a team based on youth.
Legendary Ex-Man United manager Matt Busby
In 1986, Sir Alex Ferguson joined Manchester United. He had enjoyed a wildly successful spell at Aberdeen, winning the European Cup Winner’s Cup. It was to be the start of a legendary 26 years for the Scot, taking the Red Devils to even greater heights than anyone could have imagined. Widely regarded the greatest manager of all time, Sir Alex won 38(!) trophies, including 13 Premier League titles, 5 FA Cups, and 2 UEFA Champions League titles. He had spearheaded a United rebuild of his own from 2002 to 2006, which culminated in United reaching three Champions League finals in 2008 (winners), 2009 and 2011 (denied by FC Barcelona on both occasions. That Manchester United is counted amongst the greatest of all time, including players such as Cristiano Ronaldo (left for Real Madrid in 2009), Wayne Rooney, Edwin van der Sar, Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic, Patrice Evra, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Michael Carrick and Dimitar Berbatov.
Sir Alex Ferguson retired from coaching after winning the
EPL in 2013. He retired with the Red Devils being England's biggest and most
prestigious club, having won, at that time, 65% of all titles contested in the
Premier league era. The Scotsman goes down as a club legend, having won the
most trophies by a manager ever. Surprisingly however, the English giants have
not won a single league title since his retirement.
THE FALL
Manchester United have
been in a state of perpetual rebuild since the same, with several
different managers coming in to try to make the difference and bring winning
ways back to Old Trafford, with Ralf Rangnick being the most recent one.
David Moyes, Louis Van
Gaal, Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer have all come and gone, without
achieving the same level of relative success that the Old Trafford faithful
have come to expect. A Europa League, a League Cup and a few second-place
finishes just aren’t going to cut it at the biggest club in the world. United
have made several prominent signings in that time, but none of them have truly
lifted the side. Collectively, United seem to have lost their identity and team
spirit. They have looked an attacking side, a defensive side, a possessive
team, a counter-attacking team, but, above all, a disjointed team.
The Red Devils haven’t
won the Premier League since Sir Alex retired, and that is a long time for the
fans to keep returning from Old Trafford empty-handed. There is an apparent lack of desire and
team loyalty, an abundance of ego in the dressing room, power given to the
players over the manager, and no sense of "playing till you die", a quality that
made Sir Alex’s United their fearsome self, scoring so many goals in injury
time they were even credited with their own term: Fergie Time. The rot started from the
top, with an incompetent board and management. There is only so much the
coaches can do when everyone, from the board to the players and even the fans, seem against them.
THE PRESENT, AND THE
FUTURE
United fans were
hopeful for much-awaited success at the start of the season. The club had made
terrific (on the surface) signings in the form of Jadon Sancho, Raphael Varane
and Cristiano Ronaldo, who returned to the club from Juventus. They started off
the season by dispatching Leeds 5-1. Finally, United were ready to challenge
Chelsea, Liverpool and City for the title, and make a deep run in Europe.
Reality has been terrible for the Red Devils. They languish in 7th in the Premier League (as of 19th January), and face a daunting trip to Atletico Madrid in the UCL Round Of 16.
However, this is far
from the end for United. The team will take time to settle into Rangnick’s
style of pressing play, but once they do, performances should improve. Fans
will hope Bruno Fernandes, Jadon Sancho, Mason Greenwood, Marcus Rashford and
Luke Shaw will find some form. Further, Rangnick has already agreed to take
over in a sort of “Director of Football” capacity at United in the summer, a
move that has been wildly hailed as the first good thing the United board has
done.
Ralf Rangnick: current United manager, future United "DOF"
Erik Ten Hag is
rumoured to join the Red Devils in the summer. If this happens, we can expect
United to revert to their exciting attacking style under the current-Ajax
manager. However, he will have his work cut out for him. United
essentially need a holding midfielder and a strong defensive midfielder, as
well as reinforcements for Centre Back, and an offensively minded Right back
who can defend as well.
If Ten Hag is to manage next, it would be unsurprising if
midfield reinforcements are brought in directly from his current club of Ajax,
as their style of play is something Manchester United will definitely strive
for. Ryan Gravenberch could be ideal.
Under a more tactically potent manager, we may begin to see
the end of Cristiano Ronaldo's long and famous club career, as Ten Hag, much
like Pep Guardiola, will demand a high-octane style of play, which Ronaldo may
not be able to provide. We may begin to see him get subbed off more and more,
and see Greenwood get chance to flourish under a tactically astute manager.
For signings, United will try to engineer a big money move
for Declan Rice, though Franck Kessie may also be in the running along with
other midfielders; the AC Milan man’s contract expires in the summer. Ajax
right back Noussair Mazraoui would be an ideal fit as well, though United will
face stiff combination from Europe’s best, most notable Barcelona, while a new
permanent manager may finally cause Donny Van De Beek to shine. A tactically
astute and suitable manager, and getting rid of the negativity in the dressing
room is what United most desperately need right now.
The Red Devils have fought through worse odds before, and they will once again come out on top. United will always go on.
Sources:
www.manutd.com
www.transfermarkt.com
Impressive
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