Signing strong, bright characters means the manager now has the players to make up for a lack of personal magnetismFootball management is difficult – unless, of course, you’re a football writer. But otherwise – if you’re a football manager, say – it’s one of the hardest jobs there is, which is why almost everyone who tries it fails somewhere along the line.That’s the case even if they end up at Manchester United, whose standing in the game since the second world war is down to the achievements of just two men: Matt Busby and Alex Ferguson. And what defines them, along with all the others who’ve enjoyed even moderate success in the role – Tommy Docherty, Ron Atkinson, Louis van...
Four consecutive wins are reward for quickly integrating new signings, reinvigorating others and, most of all, being decisiveErik ten Hag is beginning to suggest he has several methods for reviving Manchester United after their remarkable resurgence from two opening defeats to four wins on the bounce, culminating with Sunday’s emphatic 3-1 victory over Arsenal.To be inside Old Trafford was to experience the stadium in a rare jubilant mood as United enthusiasts witnessed their team put away the league leaders and end the contest at a canter. The prevailing sense was of surprise at a memory: that this is how it felt during the golden years of Sir Alex Ferguson’s reign and that feeling may be starting to become present again....
Erik ten Hag’s plan for such major surgery in only a short amount of time at Old Trafford is both ambitious and flawedWe probably need to talk about the money first. It’s the 13th most expensive transfer of all time, slotting in between Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid. It brings Manchester United’s spending this window to about £200m plus potential add‑ons, and together with the signings of Tyrell Malacia and Lisandro Martínez means United are responsible for about 48% of the Eredivisie’s entire summer transfer income.“God decides my future,” Antony said in an interview last week, when he was still an Ajax player. But, you know, an £86m bid from one of the world’s richest clubs doesn’t...
The season’s first Merseyside derby, an Old Trafford blockbuster and crunch time for Bruno Lage at WolvesSeven games into the season in all competitions and Frank Lampard can finally select a recognised striker he wants in an Everton shirt. Providing someone at the Premier League has registered Neal Maupay in time for the Merseyside derby, that is. Lampard and Jürgen Klopp will be relieved to concentrate on the renewal of old rivalries after the distractions of a transfer window that both believe dragged too long into the season. Everton are without a win in the Premier League but building gradually. A derby debut for Maupay, signed from Brighton last Friday but not cleared to play at Leeds on Tuesday, would...
Manchester United pulled out the stops to run down the clock against Liverpool but we would miss waiting for the whistleIn the 76th minute of Manchester United’s win over Liverpool Lisandro Martínez boots it clear and collapses with cramp. As he lies motionless in his six-yard box like an extra from 1917, Michael Oliver stops the game. Fifty-three seconds later play restarts.In the 87th minute cramp has coincidentally taken hold in Martínez’s taller partner – this time in both legs of Raphaël Varane, the poor chap. He straightens them like a Playmobil figure as he gently falls over. Roberto Firmino kindly offers his hand. Varane refuses – there’s a tiny moment of him being dragged a few inches along the...