 TALKING ABOUT A REVOLUTION

Those of you familiar with the retro music scene will note that this article’s title is also a popular song by the artist Tracy Chapman from the late eighties or early nineties. It is about the poor people in Africa at the time contemplating an uprising against the oppression from the authorities that was giving rise to an unfair divide between the privileged and the needy. But what has this got to do with United I hear you ask? Thankfully there is no poverty or lack of privileges at the club (although some fans did cause an uprising against the way the owners were running the club last year!). Ironically, however, back in the late eighties and early nineties a quiet revolution was being undertaken at Manchester United. Alex Ferguson was slowly but surely overhauling the sleeping giant that Manchester United was at the time. It took years but all the changes that were made from the very foundations bore fruit because the club subsequently embarked on a prolonged period of dominance both domestically and on the continent that only subsided once the then knighted Sir Alex retired.

I am writing this piece in the week after yet another humiliating defeat at the hands of our noisy neighbours and the media is awash with scathing articles and some strong punditry that is constantly delivering home truths aimed not

by Silvio Scicluna

only at the underperforming players but also towards those higher up within the hierarchy at Manchester United. Many are commenting on social media that it is crystal clear that yet another rebuild is needed…the fifth in nine years! I remember myself saying when Sir Alex left that our fall from grace will be a massive one since we were dropping from such heady heights and that it will take many years for our cycle to return. I just hope that the recovery does not take as long, and the demise will not be as catastrophic as the one following Sir Matt Busby’s retirement. That included the ignominy of relegation and six managerial changes to fix! Mind you, we are already into our fourth managerial change with a fifth one on the horizon!

Both prior to the match at the Etihad and also after, interim manager Ralf Rangnick was asked in his press conferences what it is going to take for Manchester United to return back to competing regularly for the top honours. And to be fair to him he remained consistent with what he said when he first was introduced as the club’s interim boss following Solskjaer’s sacking. That is that the club needs to forge an identity and philosophy and stick to them, however long it takes. I have to say that I am in total agreement that this is the way forward if the club truly wishes the glory years to return. And this is where the concept of a revolution comes in because unfortunately things are so far from where they should be at the club that something akin to a complete overhaul is required.

First and foremost, the hierarchal pyramid needs a revamp. Beginning with the appointing of a Director of Football whose remit will be to oversee all that is football related, from the footballing identity and philosophy, on to the coaching setup and right down to player transfers. Thankfully the club already has the perfect candidate for this role in Rangnick himself. As we all know, following his current stint as interim head coach (manager) he will move upstairs to start a two year consultancy position. And this, for all intents and purposes means Director of Football. The next step will be to appoint a new full time manager. In my opinion this will be a crucial decision. The incoming boss will need to be in synch with the philosophy and identity that Rangnick wants to adopt at Manchester United. He will need to have the same footballing principles and style of play that is in harmony with what Rangnick wants to embed into the players.

And what is this style of play? Before he came to United Rangnick was widely known to be the master of the gegenpress, or the high pressing game. What it means is using an

aggressive high press to win the ball when out of possession. This would then be followed by being proactive with the ball and not giving it away cheaply so as to then be able to create goalscoring chances. If and when possession is lost the whole team will invoke the high press once again to win the ball back. Rinse and repeat. It sounds simple but it takes a certain amount of physicality and stamina to be able to sustain it. A playing style that requires optimal fitness that can only be obtained by specialised training sessions. One that is ideally honed during a full and proper preseason. And in this regard the new boss will bring with him the right coaches to instil this footballing philosophy into the players.

With a Director of Football, the right manger and coaching setup in place, the next logical step would be to start building up a squad of players to fit this philosophy. As things stand, next summer is promising to be quite hectic insofar as transfer activity is concerned. A considerable number of players will be out of contract and most probably will not renew. Some are said to be disenchanted about one thing or another and may seek moves elsewhere. So a significant turnover is envisaged. Crucially though, whoever stays and any new arrivals will have to buy into the new identity and pressing style. They will have to be physically fit and will eventually set the standard for any future incomings. This pressing philosophy will also need to be transmitted to all the age groups at Manchester United, all the way down to the Academy. It’s hard to admit it but just take a look at the successful clubs like City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Bayern, Real Madrid et al. They all have a clear identity running through their organisation and any player they buy, or any youngster they promote, is done with their footballing philosophy in mind and, more often than not, they fit in straightaway. To conclude, in her song Tracy Chapman followed the lyric “Talking About a Revolution” with the hushed words of “sounds…like a whisper”. If Manchester United have their wits about them from this summer onwards, do things well, and quietly start that long overdue and proper reboot, we might just be able to start whispering and.…talking about a revolution!

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