OPINION: LVG’s brand of football is undermining United’s global support
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I was born and raised in Manchester, but having lived overseas for many years, and having had opportunities to travel the world for work, I have witnessed first-hand the enormous popularity of United and the joy they have brought to so many people. Until 2-3 years ago, I seldom met a City fan and never saw anyone wearing a City shirt, but whilst I hate to say it, that has been changing these past few years. Thanks to the likes of Kun Aquero, winning trophies, and the style of football they have been playing, their global appeal has grown significantly.
United have built their own huge worldwide support on the club’s inspirational history, a number of legendary players, and an overall style of football that has endeared people from across the planet. But we can’t keep trading on our past. The Premier League has a worldwide following – games are broadcast in 212 territories around the world and reach an audience of 4.7 billion! Every year, new fans are attracted by the players plying the trade in England’s top tier, and by the passion and entertainment on show.
Currently, it’s hard to pick a truly iconic figure at United. It could turn out to be Martial, but we are not winning trophies, and arguably playing the most boring football the Premier League has to offer right now.
United play with no risk, constantly afraid of making a mistake, building an unenviable reputation for sideways and backwards passing:
We take a closer look at Manchester United’s style of play under Louis van Gaal #SSNHQpic.twitter.com/NN8zQMOiI0
— Sky Sports News HQ (@SkySportsNewsHQ) October 30, 2015
These days, United seem to rarely threaten the opposition keeper, leading Paul Scholes to bemoan the “lack of risk and creativity.” We also lack a real star player, and the worry is that we won’t win trophies playing like this.
This absence of attacking intent, star quality and silverware will hurt United off the pitch, undermining our ability to attract new fans, which in turn impacts sponsorships and income. Of course, this doesn’t all happen overnight, but, like any business, United have to stay on top of their game to have continued success.
My own opinion is that the current style of football is hurting United on the pitch, and, in the long term, will damage us of it. Unless there are some drastic changes by the start of next season at the very latest, LVG’s chances of remaining in charge seem uncertain at best. He is not helping himself when it seems the whole world can see we have a better chance of scoring goals with Martial as a striker rather than stuck out wide on the left, and his insistence on playing Rooney regardless of form does not reflect well on the boss.
What’s your opinion on Van Gaal after United’s latest goalless draw? Let us know in the comments…
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Van Gaal’s style is harming United on the pitch too. As Scholes said, world class strikers would fail at United currently. It happened with Van Persie, Falcao and Rooney. Angel di Maria is the saddest example of an attacking player not integrated into the team. Instead of blaming individuals time and again, we need to identify a flaw in the system. I said this on 2 of my articles for this blog, but was criticized for shallow analysis on one of them.
Your article is great and your travels shed a different light on the issue. Interesting read!
The lack of flair is a worrying prospect as it does not gel well with the brand United has become. More worrying is the low number of shots per game. But, we are still hovering near the top end of the table and are playing with 5-6 new players in the first team this season. So the slow start is understandable and also we look solid at the back. If United bring home the silverware at the end of the season, the style would not be too much of a bother in the short term atleast.
I now wonder how United faithful would react if Pep Guardiola turns out to be Van Gaal’s successor.