Apologies for a long one, but it merits it.
Firstly, some context - I’ve thought Jose was overrated for a while now. Ever since his last title winning season at Chelsea. Let’s talk why......
System
Football evolves, it always does. Most managers find their methodology outdated at some point. It happened to league winners like Clough and George Graham, it’s happened to exceptional managers like Wenger and Capello, and it has happened to Jose. Only Fergie has been able to adapt systems and tactics over a split of generations as football as modernised.
Jose has done zero of that. His ideal team and style is EXACTLY as it was at Chelsea in 2004.
- flat back 4
- Physical
- 4231
- Full backs mostly pinned
- Big man up top
- Wide forwards
The team selection and tactics have not changed since 2004. He wants exactly the same setup now in spite of football changing. The system (4231) was revolutionary at the time. It caught everyone out and credit to Jose for that. But he is behind the curve tactically now.
Tactics
Jose has never had a clue how to set a team up tactically going forward. Defensively, he’s great. He knows what to do. Attacking wise, he’s always relied on exceptional forward players to produce individual brilliance. His teams are never better attacking wise because of his management, and I’d ask anyone to challenge that.
The modern game and the way the top teams play is so far away from where Jose is at. It is based upon press, winning the ball high and “strangling” the opponents. Jose doesn’t subscribe to that style and never will. There is one top team across all the top leagues playing Jose ball these days (Atletico). That should tell you how archaic his tactics are.
Success
Clearly it’s impossible to attack Jose’s record of trophy success, but some context is needed. He was a failure at Utd. You can talk about his trophies of course, but he was sacked because he was a failure. I firmly believe in getting the right culture into a club and having consistent progression. If we do that trophies will come I’m sure of it. We also don’t have the incredible resources that his last 5 clubs have had. We have a much more restricted budget.
Since Inter, have we really seen him “mastermind” a trophy success or has it all been based upon having superior players?
Aftermath
Every club the bloke has left since the turn of the decade have been left with a path of destruction. Unhappy players, disrupted culture, negative feeling.
When Utd fans are delighted to have a mediocre manager like Ole instead of Jose you need to see why.
He will leave this club in ruins, and unlike Man U who have the power to tell Pogba he isn’t leaving, our top players will be asking for a one way ticket out of here.
Alienating Players
Don’t forget this guy didn’t think KDB, Salah or Lukaku were good enough at Chelsea. He scape goated Pogba and Hazard at times in his recent runs.
Ndombele has struggled for us. He has fitness issues and hasn’t applied himself appropriately by all accounts. But fuck me there’s a hell of a player in there! You can just see him going elsewhere and being a top class player. Instead of trying to figure out how to get the best out of him, he’s scape goating him, like he did Pogba. He always has to blame someone else. Will this happen with Son or Kane next? Don’t put it beyond him.
Further to this, the reason Jose so often falls out with top talented players is because he doesn’t want to play progressive football. I vividly remember the CL semi final Chelsea lost to Atletico, where he blamed Hazard for a bad attitude after. He was effectively asking the man to play full back against a pretty negative team themselves. He gave the game away.
He did the same for us this year against Leipzig. He has no plan other that to frustrate the other side.
Transfers
A lot of people asking for him to be given big money by Levy but I wouldn’t trust him with my pocket change personally. Look at his Utd transfers, they haven’t held up well.
Levy
A lot of people on here blaming Levy for our current predicament. It’s a different conversation for me and one I don’t want to dwell on. But whether you think he’s neglected the squad or not, we should not be getting tactically outsmarted by Sheff U.
I know this guy is all wrong for our club. I know this ends in tears. I just hope the club realise sooner rather that later too. We need to rethink what we’ve done here, and quickly.
