David Moyes looks all set to succeed Alex Ferguson as Manchester United manager but is he the right man for the job? Two JOEs try to settle the debate.
Adrian Collins says… while I hate to admit it, simply put, this argument comes down to one thing: Show me your medals.
No one is going to try and argue the fact that David Moyes has done a great job on a limited budget at Everton; however, his biggest achievement has been to finish fourth in the league. Come the end of the week, Roberto Martinez at Wigan could be a man who has more winners’ medals in the cabinet than him, albeit that’s an unlikely outcome in the FA Cup Final.
In terms of signings, Moyes has done well. The biggest money that he’s spent has been on Marouane Fellaini, who will most certainly move on at a profit this summer, and his smaller signings have flourished, most recently in the form of Nikica Jelavic, our own Seamus Coleman and Kevin Mirallas.
However, at Everton the signings have had much more of an opportunity to bed in and settle without the eye of the media on them, we only need look at the criticism levelled at David de Gea after he made one mistake to see the difference there is between players in the spotlight and players outside it.
While it might seem like a clichéd argument to simply reduce it to trophies, there is one thing that the next manager at Manchester United will not get, and that is time.
While Alex Ferguson had a grace period to get his feet at the beginning and was almost sacked, famously, after a fateful cup tie against Nottingham Forest, that incident itself was a good few years into his United career, a luxury Moyes will not be afforded.
It’s all well and good to say this is an appointment for the long-term and looking to the future, but if you look at how much stick Brendan Rodgers has received when working with a fairly poor squad and trying to change a footballing philosophy at Liverpool, you can understand that time is of the essence. He has been, reportedly, under pressure all season, and unless Liverpool jump four places next season, the gossip suggests he will be gone.
On that note, we can expect that David Moyes will be given, at a push, 18 months to win something in the hot seat, and that is no easy task when taking over from one of the greatest managers the game has ever seen.
Speaking of footballing philosophy, it is not entirely clear what Moyes’ preferred style of play is. Ferguson himself criticised him for playing “direct” earlier this season, and that type of football will not sit well with the Old Trafford faithful.
The point to all this is that often Moyes prepares for his opponents, a task which he takes very seriously and does so with great detail. However, at Manchester United, he will need to impose his style on the team, rather than worry too much about his opponents.
When it comes to being given time, a CV that carries weight in terms of trophies allows some breathing space. Jose Mourinho would be the obvious one for that, given his outstanding record at every club he goes to, but Jurgen Klopp would also have the silverware to point to when the going gets tough.
David Moyes does not have this to fall back on, and when the tough questions are asked, he may not have an answer.
Conor Heneghan says… as a Manchester United fan, it is still hard to come to terms with the fact that Alex Ferguson will actually be leaving, never mind talk about a replacement and how he might go about trying to prove himself as a worthy successor to one of the best managers of all time.
But while myself and fellow United fans might still be reeling at the news, Fergie himself would have had a fair idea about his intentions for some time and given his inextricable links with the club over the last quarter of a century, you can be damn sure he’ll have done his utmost to leave them in capable hands before moving upstairs.
The least United fans owe Ferguson at this stage is trust and if he thinks that David Moyes is the best man for the job then maybe he is; judging by all the games and trophies he’s won and decisions he’s made over the years he knows far more than you, me and most football people after all so let’s give him the benefit of the doubt.
Many will see Moyes as a somewhat underwhelming appointment and it is not hard to spot some chinks in the armour. For one, he has precious little experience in Europe compared to Jose Mourinho or some of the more outside contenders linked with the United job and his record, particularly away from home, against the big teams in the Premier League is just awful.
He has no experience of competing for trophies having only reached one FA Cup Final in his 11 years at Everton and you’d wonder how he would cope in a title run-in for example, which was where, barring last year, Fergie came into his own with his ability to simultaneously inspire his own troops and undermine his rivals.
But Moyes’ record with the Toffees must be taken into context. Particularly in recent years, Everton have been consistently in competition for European places despite not having anywhere near the financial muscle of their rivals.
As the third-longest serving manager in the league, he is obviously a man for the long haul and he is a tough character cut from the same cloth as Ferguson; stability and strength of character are perhaps the biggest things needed for anyone trying to follow in Ferguson’s footsteps.
As Ferguson was at Old Trafford, he is committed to the development of young players and has a record of bringing them through and trusting them on the biggest stage, Jack Rodwell, Ross Barkley and of course, Wayne Rooney, being some of the most notable examples.
Since news of his becoming Fergie’s replacement emerged, many have said that Moyes’ teams do not play attractive football but anyone who watched Steven Pienaar’s goal against Fulham lately would surely beg to differ. Sure they adapted tactically and played a different game when needed but they could play some pretty good stuff when they wanted to as well. Tradition and history demand that Manchester United play attractive attacking football and Moyes will be fully aware of that. If he doesn’t adhere by those principles he’ll be told about it publicly and privately soon enough.
There are a lot of parallels to be drawn between Moyes taking the United job and when Ferguson was entrusted with the task over 26 years ago.
Moyes (50), as Fergie was (44), is relatively young in a managerial sense. Both were in charge of solid teams a level below the top for a significant period of time (Ferguson at Aberdeen for eight years, Moyes at Everton for 11), before taking the job, both are Glaswegians and both are hugely ambitious characters.
Yes, there is an element of risk in giving the job to Moyes but there was when Ferguson got the job too and after some teething problems earlier on that worked out alright.
When he arrives, Moyes will be surrounded with people who know what it’s like to work for one of the biggest clubs in the world, who know the standards required and as long as Ferguson himself resists the temptation to become too involved, his influence and knowledge could be a great tool for Moyes to call upon when times are hard.
Life is about to get a whole lot different for Manchester United and the club’s fans but Fergie’s reign was never going to last forever and no matter who was chosen to replace him, they were never going to be another Alex Ferguson; we won’t see his like again.
Time will tell whether David Moyes is the right man to manage Manchester United, but I look forward to finding out.
