Former Manchester United assistant coach Rene Meulensteen has revealed his surprised at the team’s current struggles, even if he felt there were small signs of turmoil ahead.
Meulensteen is currently serving as assistant manager for the Australian national side.
The fact he was one of Sir Alex Ferguson’s most trusted lieutenants means his views have always carried weight, in my opinion. That’s why I would take note of what Meulensteen has to say – even when I don’t agreed with him.
Speaking to Flashscore about United, Meulensteen said: “I knew it was going to be difficult because of the whole way that transition took place with Sir Alex Ferguson leaving, David Gill leaving, and then David Moyes coming in.
“Hindsight is a great thing, but I was sort of in the middle of it. At the back end of April, we got the news that Sir Alex Ferguson is leaving.
“It was very clear that David Moyes was coming in and it was like, ‘David is coming in and everything stays the same’. Nothing was further from the truth and then I thought, ‘this is going to be a difficult time’.
“Obviously, I didn’t expect Moyes to be gone after only a few months but then you get that period of uncertainty. Every successful club is built on two main pillars; stability and continuity. Stability has to do with the people that are in there for a longer period of time.”
There has been a number of different managers come and go since Ferguson retired. That’s why I think Ten Hag deserves a chance to overcome this season’s struggles. INEOS need to ensure there’s some sort of stability, even if they want to make lots of changes to how the club operates.
Meulensteen continued: “Ferguson was there for 26 seasons. I was there with him for the last six years. Many of the staff had been working there with him for 10-20 plus years and that stability is important for the people and the constant quality you want to provide.
“You’ve got a vision of how to be successful and maintain it over the short, medium and longer period. If that all changes and that stability goes and other people come in, the vision changes. During Alex Ferguson’s era there was a clear culture and clear identity.
“There was a clear playing style. There were clear ambitions and goals that everybody wanted to achieve. Everybody understood the expectations. Everybody understood the standards that needed to be met. Everybody took the responsibility, both players and staff.
“All that over these past 11 years has basically been broken down and diluted. They try with quick fixes. Moyes comes in, then Van Gaal comes in. That doesn’t work. Let Mourinho try. And none of them have worked so far.”
When asked about Ten Hag’s system – specifically the one he was successful with at Ajax – and why it has gone so wrong at United this season, Meulensteen admitted his biggest surprise is the team’s lack of organisation. This, he admits, wasn’t so apparent with Ten Hag’s previous teams.
“I’m not sure. We all watch the same games. What I can’t understand is; if you look at Erik ten Hag’s history and development as a coach, going from Bayern Munich, learning from Pep, going into Utrecht, before getting to Ajax where he had a little bit of a difficult start. But he stamped his authority.
“He was very clear with his vision, the way that he wanted to play and he had very good players at that time with Ajax. Look where all the players went. And look how he played, won the league, how he did with Ajax in the Champions League. Especially the game away against Real Madrid was outstanding.
“That was all about good organization, good structure. That is the biggest surprise to me because I don’t see any of that at Man United. And the thing is this; at Ajax, it was based on dominating possession. Now, nine out of ten times, teams that come to Old Trafford have got more possession.
“I know he’s said at times, he doesn’t have the players to do it. I’m not too sure about that. I’m not sure whether he has been able to get the message across. I think that’s one of the difficulties you see at United and why they have been underperforming. There are certain questionable attitudes from certain players when it comes to the defensive duties. And that’s why United is all over the place. When they lose possession, the opposition’s got acres of space to run into.”
There has also been a lot of noise from former United players in the press. Meulensteen warns this is simply something every United manager must deal with because the players in question enjoyed successful spells at the club, and they expect better from the current crop.
“They have that relationship with Manchester United and they were very successful,” Meulensteen said. “The only thing they do is comment on what they see and what’s happening. If United would have been playing absolutely fantastic football, winning and going into the Champions League final and pushing City to the title, they would be full of praise.
“It’s not like they are the cause of managers failing. At the end of the day, the manager controls what’s around the squad.You need to be strong enough as a manager and believe strong enough in your own ability and make sure you get it right.”
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