Recruiting a coach today, you should not expect him to stay with the club for a long time. On average in the Premier League, a coach’s tenure is 2 years, double that is a miracle. That doesn’t mean the coach isn’t important. Klopp and Arteta are the leaders who help the team’s vision become reality.
But I think a club’s identity needs to be determined first and the coach must match that identity, not vice versa.”
It seems that Ratcliffe and his colleagues are aware of this problem, publicly pursuing Dan Ashworth, Newcastle United’s sporting director. Don’t rush to comment on whether this name is competent or suitable or not, let’s look at the broader picture: Man Utd needs a Sports Director, they have not had a person to take on this role since 2021.
The coach simply cannot monitor the activities of the entire club. Nowadays the competition schedule is too tight, and if a coach really wants to coach like a general leading troops into battle, there is no way he can monitor and manage the recruitment of new recruits and long-term squad building plans. term.
If he continues to be greedy for power, that coach will cause Man Utd to continue to fail. Simply put, Liverpool or Man City own specialized departments, bringing together experienced experts to carry out this task.
In addition, by not being obsessed with a coach, Man Utd will avoid the difficult situation that has been constant for the past decade: Signing a contract with a coach, the coach recruits a few players who match his views, then fires them. Coach before the coach has enough squad compatible with the concept, and then the whole process repeats, repeats, repeats, repeats…
So who will be the first head coach in the Ratcliffe era? There seemed little chance for Ten Hag. Despite recent statements, Man Utd is still not on the right track. Under the guidance of the Dutch strategist, the “Red Devils” have not shown any truly clear vision on the field.
At the Etihad last weekend, Man Utd chose to counter-attack, instead of “playing football their way”. Are Scott McTominay, Casemiro and Kobbie Mainoo good enough to overcome Europe’s best midfield? Of course not, so why bother trying?!
That is where Man Utd is standing. That is the class of this team – several levels behind Man City in terms of football ability, boldness and cohesion.
The average age, based on minutes played, of the last 10 Premier League champions is 27. The peak age of football players is usually between 24-28 years old, so it is not surprising that teams The football team has many players in their prime who often win.
Liverpool, the team leading the Premier League rankings, has an average age of 27.1. Man City ranked second with an average age of 27.2. Meanwhile, Arsenal is only 25.5 years old.
This data shows that the London “Gunners” are gaining position and potential to conquer the pinnacle of English football in the near future, especially when comparing age with Liverpool and Man City.
Man Utd is a different story, even though in theory, the age of the “Red Devils” squad is ideal.
Besides problems from the top, one of the main reasons why Man Utd has continuously failed over the past decade is the frequent recruitment of aging stars: Casemiro, Nemanja Matic, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Raphael Varane, Christian Eriksen, Alexis Sánchez, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Radamel Falcao, Cristiano Ronaldo and many more.
These players have all moved to the other side of their career slope. It may be appropriate to make a few such signings to solve a short-term problem, such as trophy refreshment. Therefore, Man Utd recruits these players with the expectation that they can shine for 1-2 years before declining.
There are indeed such cases, but still not enough for the “Red Devils” to conquer major titles. The problem is that the trade-offs are too big. Man Utd has a lot of money, so the aging stars receive very high remuneration and it is not easy to push them away.
Casemiro, 32 years old, and Varane, 30 years old, are two of the 11 players most used by Ten Hag this season. Bruno Fernandes is 29 years old. Scott McTominay, the central midfielder with the most appearances, is also 27 years old. Harry Maguire is about to turn 31. And Victor Lindelof, the player who never lived up to expectations but still persisted at Old Trafford, is 29 years old.
To summarize, Man Utd’s average age is… 26.9, a very beautiful age to win the Premier League but cannot be crowned. If Arsenal needs 4 years of “hard work” with coach Arteta, a correct choice, to reach Man City’s level, then Man Utd also needs the same time or longer with an excellent coach like Arteta.
In addition, in fact, Man Utd only has 3 players entering their prime in the next 4 years, including winger Alejandro Garnacho (19 years old), striker Rasmus Hojlund (21) and midfielder Kobbie Mainoo (18 years old). ). And it should be emphasized that investing in stars is difficult, investing in young talent is even more risky.
Therefore, to be able to reach Man City’s level, not to mention winning noble titles, Man Utd must first overhaul the squad, with players under 25 years old and wait a few years for players to play. This player is “lucky” to be an adult.
