2020/21 UEFA Europa League: Galloping to Gdansk

coremiller

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Jul 14, 2005
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Ole bottled it IMO.

United had absolutely nothing during extra time because he refused to make any subs, which is partly because he spent all year killing the confidence of players he would need. They spent like 90m on VDB, Diallo, and Telles last summer, as well as another 15m or something on James the previous summer, and none were good enough to bring on the pitch even when the team was exhausted and just hanging on (until right before penalties in the case of Telles and James). Then De Gea hasn't saved a penalty in literally five years but you don't have the balls to make the ruthless GK sub.

Emery is the Europa League GOAT. He was a diabolical manager for Arsenal but credit where its due.

It won't happen but I think if United was dead serious about catching their big rivals at any cost they would sack Ole and bring in Conte.
Man Utd have gotten 40 penalties the last two seasons. 40! That's crazy. By comparison, City have 27 and Liverpool have 13. I haven't seen any data that shows those kind of outlier penalty total are a repeatable skill rather than a fluke. You have to wonder how much different Ole's reign would look with a little less luck from the refs.

Also makes it ironic that Man Utd lost on penalties.
 

Zomp

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Watch the 40 penalties and see how many weren’t deserved. Then compare that ratio to any other team and it’s going to be in line. The luck talk is crazy, as is the overreaction of United losing on penalties, and the talk of getting rid of Ole.

They made improvements this year. Ole fully deserves another year to see if they can improve again.
 

coremiller

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Watch the 40 penalties and see how many weren’t deserved. Then compare that ratio to any other team and it’s going to be in line. The luck talk is crazy, as is the overreaction of United losing on penalties, and the talk of getting rid of Ole.

They made improvements this year. Ole fully deserves another year to see if they can improve again.
I'm not saying the penalties weren't actually penalties. I'm saying earning 40 legit penalties in two years is hugely fluky.
 

Morgan's Magic Snowplow

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Watch the 40 penalties and see how many weren’t deserved. Then compare that ratio to any other team and it’s going to be in line. The luck talk is crazy, as is the overreaction of United losing on penalties, and the talk of getting rid of Ole.

They made improvements this year. Ole fully deserves another year to see if they can improve again.
My post was overly harsh and I agree that Ole did a very good job overall this year, especially given the abbreviated preseason. But you honestly wouldn't take Conte if given the choice right now? He revived Juventus, then he took a team Mourinho had broken and won the league in his first season while going against Pep and Klopp, then he went back to Italy and ended Juve's run of league titles. If you can give him the resources to keep him from melting down, the guy is a killer.
 
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Zomp

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I agree that Conte is a better manager but I also think Ole has earned another season at the helm. I don’t think firing a manager who has improved the squad and results just to get a better name in is a good look for any club, let alone United.

Conte also comes with drama. I mean if he thought Inter’s board was stingy wait til he would deal with ours.
 

Morgan's Magic Snowplow

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I agree that Conte is a better manager but I also think Ole has earned another season at the helm. I don’t think firing a manager who has improved the squad and results just to get a better name in is a good look for any club, let alone United.

Conte also comes with drama. I mean if he thought Inter’s board was stingy wait til he would deal with ours.
That's fair. It would definitely be harsh on Ole to fire him after coming second. And Ole isn't just a random guy with no connection to the club.
 

Zomp

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I’m trying to think of another club I could use as an example but come to think of it a lot of them are looking for a new manager.
 

67YAZ

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Ole has improved as a manager the past 2 season and improved United’s place in the table. Plus, he bleeds red, so to speak.

The only way a club keeps Conte beyond 2 seasons is to give him total control of transfer business, which isn’t happening at United.

And in the wake of the Super League debacle, will the Board dump a well liked club star attached to the glory days? Only if trophies are guaranteed, which they never are.
 

teddykgb

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Probably the bigger problem is that two of United’s best players this season were their fullbacks and I’m not sure either would flourish in Contes wingback system. United don’t really have 5 CBs to rotate either so it would mean a lot of transfer business
 

wonderland

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I get the sense that Zidane doesn't really like coaching but liked making $20M or so the last two years.
In moving on from Ronaldo, they won the league last year and just missed the title this year while making the semifinals of the champions league. He must have been doing something right.
 

Tangled Up In Red

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Back to the final, penalties was as enjoyable and exhilarating I've seen as a neutral. My wife, too, was on pins and needles. Fantastic theater!
 

bosox4283

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In moving on from Ronaldo, they won the league last year and just missed the title this year while making the semifinals of the champions league. He must have been doing something right.
I did not intend to question Zidane's coaching ability. He's an outstanding manager and I think the perfect coach for Real Madrid. While he's been wildly successful, I'm not sure he's obsessed with coaching the way Simeone is or someone like Klopp is. Now, maybe that's an unrealistic bar, but I think there's a difference in commitment to developing a squad, cultivating young talent, building a program, integrating new players, dealing with the press, etc.
 
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Vinho Tinto

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Real Madrid is a very unique managerial job. It typically chews up and spits out everyone else they hire. And we’re talking about the managers who are among the best in the world. Zidane was a great former player and unique figure within the club. His managerial experience was with their B team. It’s not a job purely about tactics. The manager has to manage the big egos in the boardroom and locker room. It’s an extreme man management role with the highest level of performance expectation from the global fanbase and media. It says a lot about him that he navigated that job so well, but I’m also skeptical that it clearly translates to his next managerial role. It will be a culture shock for him to work at another club.