Moyes Experiment Not Working

The David Moyes experiment simply isn’t working. In fact at this moment in time United look more like Frankenstein’s monster than anything resembling former champions.

The transformation to a body made up of dysfunctional parts now looks complete though Sunday’s abysmal showing against Liverpool finally cemented the view in many fans minds that enough is simply enough.

Like the tragic figure of Victor Frankenstein, who ultimately perishes on his mission to set things right it looks increasingly difficult to imagine Moyes not suffering a similar fate.

Few United supporters would hold the former Everton manager to account for his bungled succession to Sir Alex Ferguson’s throne.

Nor should he be expected to shoulder the blame for a catastrophic first transfer window that promised the likes of Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Cesc Fabregas but delivered Marouane Fellaini.

His move to employ his trusted lieutenants from Everton was also more than understandable. Who better than the men he knew and relied upon at Goodison Park to deliver new messages, schedules and methods alongside a legend like Ryan Giggs promoted from within.

Time has always been a key factor – Moyes himself admitted there would be ‘bumps and bruises’ along the way as his players adjusted to his demands.

And few Reds have begrudged him that. Indeed the backing he has received during sterile performances even in victory has been vehement.

However that support is wearing thin and after almost 9 months in charge the question that many are rightly asking is, ‘where is the blueprint for a positive and cohesive style of play – not necessarily a recovery – but style of play associated with the fabric of Manchester United?

Unfortunately that evidence doesn’t exist. Too much of his philosophy and work being conducted on the training pitches at Carrington appears to stem from the attitude of not wanting to lose.

As a result the Reds appear to be lurching from one disaster to another through poor decision making or none at all.

While the Scot is hardly ever found not patrolling the technical area his continuous barking of instructions is doing little to galvanise the group. In fact from experience I can say that this can create confusion, bewilderment and even resentment.

The norm for most (though there are exceptions) is to try and follow instructions - yet on the field of play who is best placed to know how and what to do with the ball?

The best players tend to make the best decisions around the use of the football – that’s a fact and while Moyes inherited a far from vintage United team, it was one that cantered to the league title last term.

There’s plenty of room for encouragement and of course exuding authority by delivering forceful dressing room edicts but issuing incessant orders to those that can’t reconcile with them can destroy the spirit of a team.

The Sky Sports coverage of the Crystal Palace last month will also have done little to quell rumours that the Scot simply isn’t keen to take advice on board from Giggs.

Moyes was shown quite clearly dismissing the Welshman’s input while the team struggled to find an opening goal against stubborn opponents.

Since then Giggs has looked increasingly withdrawn at a time when the manager can ill afford to discard a veteran, who unlike him has known nothing but success.

The expensive panic signings of Fellaini and Juan Mata sum up his tenure. The Belgium midfielder looks as near now to being a United player as he got to Steven Gerrard and co last Sunday.

Alongside Michael Carrick, the Reds look shorn of the power and creation that is a pre-requisite for any successful central midfield axis.

While Juan Mata has fantastic technical skills, doubts exist over how and where he’ll feature in United’s first XI. Certainly the decision to deploy him out wide in a conventional 4-4-2 appears ill advised at best, a fact rammed home again by Liverpool.

Time after time he found himself bullied by the opposition full-backs. Both were too strong and blessed with too much athleticism for him to impact. As early as the 5th minute Jon Flanagan overpowered the Spaniard to play in Luis Suarez who could arguably have won the first of 5 penalties from a clumsy Fellaini challenge.

With United crying out for an injection of pace on the wing the substitution of Adnan Januzaj was even more baffling.

The teenage talisman was starting to come good, making Flanagan, a player already on a booking, look pedestrian as he drifted by him on the rare occasions he received the ball one v one. Yet he was the first to be sacrificed.

Mata is a clever visionary who is most effective operating between the lines so why place him in a position that nullifies his talents and why substitute the only player who looked likely to get behind the Liverpool defence?

Equally there appears no clear tactical direction on how the Reds should approach games. The former Chelsea man would be right at home in a 4-2-3-1 but what if there’s a desire to maintain a 4-4-2 formation that captured the Treble and is now being so imperiously employed by Bayern Munich and Manchester City?

That sparks further enquiries over what if any long term strategy has been devised to evolve from also-rans to Europe’s finest.

To suggest that patience is granted for appearances sake is as inadvisable as drawing comparisons with the start of Sir Alex Ferguson’s reign. In fact that offers even less solace.

When Fergie took over during the November of 1986 the Reds were languishing in 21st position (second from bottom) in the old first division.

They finished 11th and with the same nucleus of players ended the 1987-88 campaign, his first full season, as runners-up to Liverpool.

While 1988-89 was underwhelming there were highlights, namely the 2-0 defeat of Nottingham Forest and fledgling inspired 3-1 savaging of the champions on New Year’s Day.

That Fergie was forced to field ten of the same players at Middlesbrough 24 hours later is oft forgotten as is the Brian McClair goal that wasn’t during an ignominious 1-0 exit to Forest in The FA Cup.

Who can forget the fans turning during the 2-1 home defeat to Crystal Palace after Mark Hughes had been dropped or the chants of ‘Fergie out’ being aired during the 5-1 derby day humiliation against City.

Yet for all the lows and there were plenty - there were also sporadic moments of sparkle. A 4-1 romp in the sunshine against (champions) Arsenal, a 5-1 mauling of Millwall and a euphoric FA Cup run that contained several nail biters including a 3-2 win at Newcastle and 3-3 thrillers in both the semi and the final.

The point being that even during those darkened days the team attacked with a certain panache that appears to have fallen completely by the wayside.

It’s difficult to remember the last time United threatened to force an opposition keeper into any prolonged action.

In fact to some degree all that has saved them from far greater humiliation this term is the clinical ability of the forwards, who for all intense purposes have worked wonders with the scraps they’ve been thrown.

Take last season’s top scorer van Persie. Prior to the 3-0 win at West Brom the Dutch maestro had fired 11 Premier League goals from just 16 appearances at an average of a goal every 119 minutes – which compared to his record of a goal every 120 minutes last term.

However the same statistics produced by OPTA highlight an inordinate 100 per cent downturn as far as far as goal assists and chances created for and by van Persie.

That assessment has been frustratingly obvious to those watching all of United’s forwards who at times toil to chase down aimless punts forward and are then expected to work minor miracles to retain possession.

Time and time again too few have been prepared to offer attacking support, where once there was bold ambition, there is now just a void which Moyes ever increasingly looks like falling into.