Manchester United are sleepwalking into another crisis

Manchester United are sleeping into another diabolical season and nobody at the club appears to be trying to change it.

United’s boss Ruben Amorim can no longer be described as new, and with things as they stand, it might not be too long before he starts to be referred to as the “old” United boss.

As unfair as it might be, managers who are not given support are ultimately unable to turn things around and they lose the faith of the board, the players, and the fans. At that point, a sacking becomes inevitable especially given their plans for a new stadium.

Looking back at past managers since Alex Ferguson

While he was out of his depth from the start despite being the man selected by Sir Alex Ferguson, David Moyes was given Marouane Fellaini as well as Ed Woodward’s thoughts and prayers in the most important transfer window since they won the Champions League. The winter transfer window brought Juan Mata from Chelsea, a fine player in a squad that was crying out for youth and pace, two things the Spaniard did not possess.

Louis van Gaal was able to steady the ship, and his reward the following summer was to be told that Sergio Ramos was on his way, only to see the Spaniard stay at Real Madrid.

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Jose Mourinho reached second in the league and was gifted Fred and Diogo Daot. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at least managed to instil some counter-attacking verve to the side, yet Bruno Fernandes arrived only after they blew the chance to sign Erling Haaland, as Solskjaer had requested.

Erik ten Hag booted out Cristiano Ronaldo and signed Wout Weghorst, and was denied the chance to sign Cody Gakpo, now a Premier League winner.

You can, of course, criticise each of those managers for plenty of their faults. David Moyes was, well, David Moyes. Van Gaal would not allow his players to shoot with their first touch. Mourinho torched the atmosphere at the club when he lost his patience and never had the club playing exciting football. Solskjaer was unable to rouse his players out of pedestrian effectiveness, and Ten Hag’s soporific strategy was too miserable to support any longer. 

At every turn, when Man United sacked their managers, they were unquestioningly correct in the decision. Each manager had taken the club as far as they could in the circumstances. But after 12 post-Fergie years, who is responsible for those circumstances? The Glazers, and then Jim Ratcliffe. Until and unless a manager is given real support and influence, history will repeat itself until they appoint a coach who somehow possesses magical powers.

What is happening with Ruben Amorim?

Amorim’s first transfer window was a chance to strike a demonstrative chord at Manchester United, and instead they signed Patrick Dorgu from Lecce. It is too early to judge his potential, but it is soon enough to realise that when the club needed central defenders, a right-back, a midfielder, a striker, a winger and indeed a left-back, just one arrived.

Since November, Amorim has been asked to produce results with the same squad that has turgidly evolved from one year to the next without any meaningful improvement. His Sporting Lisbon exploits have rightly earned him an opportunity at a nominally big club, but Old Trafford is now the Theatre of Dreams only in the sense that any form of hope is mere make believe.

The needs of the squad have only intensified. Marcus Rashford has left, as have Christian Eriksen, Viktor Lindelof, and Jonny Evans. Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and – being optimistic – Diego Leon – are additions to the first team squad. Four have gone, three have replaced them.

However, Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho, Antony and Tyrell Malacia have all been ostracised as they look for new clubs. Amorim may be sincere when he says he will welcome them back should they fail to move on, but given the attitude of Garnacho, Antony and Sancho, and the injury record of Malacia, it would be foolish to expect them to offer anything but trouble should they return. United are really eight players down.

In addition, there are plenty of players who should really be culled if standards were raised to the necessary level at a stroke. Casemiro, Andre Onana, Luke Shaw, Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee have all fallen short so starkly that they should not be playing for United again. Altay Bayinidir plainly does not have the trust of his manager if he judges him to be an inferior option to the woeful Onana, so he should be on the list too.

Amorim had an unofficial transfer deadline of the pre-season tour to get his new signings in. That deadline has long since passed, with just Cunha and Mbeumo. For now, they have the benefit of the doubt, their previous performances good enough to suggest they are good enough to improve the squad.

The manager is believed to want a new goalkeeper, striker and midfielder. There’s no money, so they are now looking for bargains and hoping to sell players. No offers have come in for the bomb squad that have been deemed appropriate. If they need bargains, then the transfer team is slack in doing their job because they have found none and are leaving it to the last minute. Just as the club did for the manager before this one, and the manager before that one, ad infinitum. Amorim has made such a huge deal about needing time to work with his players and he has been ignored. If it all goes sideways in August, it won’t be the board or the transfer team who are sacked, it will be the Portuguese.

How does the new season look?

Consider this. In August, Arsenal arrive with Viktor Gyokeres, Eberechi Eze and Martin Zubimendi. It would be entirely reasonable to think that United could be on the end of a succinct and brutal bullyramming that makes it obvious that United are still nowhere near where they need to be. Looking at last season, there’s no reason to think United should win any of their games. 

United would then of course scramble around, players would arrive. Players Amorim doesn’t really want, just as every other manager has been given players they don’t want but are given zip-all as alternatives. No time in pre-season to turn three unwanted players into transformative arrivals that can turn a campaign around in a vehicle set in reverse. A goalkeeper back from injury who can’t reliably catch or kick the ball. A midfield with no pace. No striker who can finish.

September comes, the players are once again sick of being booed and once again put in the bare minimum effort and the supporters blame Amorim for failing to get even this shower to play for the badge. The club knows they need to act. Amorim is sacked, and everything starts again. Maybe 2026/27 will be different.