The key to keeping a top-tier club performing at the highest level is by reinvesting into it; Manchester United is deteriorating. The main reason for this fall from grace is simple: the club has no direction from the board and the Glazers are not properly backing United financially. Simply put, United needs someone to take care of transfers and provide clear guidance for the future of the club. That person is a director of football.
Direction for the Club
United have a pattern; the board brings in a manager who gives hope to the supporters and promises guidance. Then the new manager sets out a plan, has a decent season, and asks the board to bring in signings to build their vision. However, just the smaller signings arrive, the major ones do not. Without those players, the manager struggles in the following season. Then the board turns on the manager for poor results. Repeat.
This process only ends if United decide to sign a director of football. While the board has tried to bring stability to the club by signing top-quality managers, that won’t do enough. The only answer is a director of football. If United were to bring in a DoF, then the club would have a clear vision for the future, even if the club changes managers.
Overpaying and Bargain Bin Sales
Because United does not have a director of football, the transfer market has been cruel to the club. Woodward simply lacks the capacity to make quality signings in the market. Having a DOF would allow United to know the price of players and make it easier to bring them to United without having to price haggle. In the past windows, Woodward has spent months working on deals that United ended up overpaying for.
However, sometimes Woodward simply doesn’t get his man. In the case of Jadon Sancho, United spent so long on the deal that they missed out on other top targets. Then, Woodward and United resorted to bringing in cheap options that put Band-Aids on holes in the squad instead of actually fixing the issues for the future. Having a director of football would have eliminated that issue. A quality DoF would have understood the price of Sancho and either paid the fee or moved on to other players.
No More Buying High and Selling Low
Also since United don’t have a director of football, the club has struggled at offloading players for a fair price. When Woodward wants to sell a player, the whole market knows it and he can’t find quality buyers for the player. In addition, United also have struggled at selling players during the right time in their career.
Buying quality players is important, but overpaying for them and selling them once they are past their prime for a fraction of what the club should have got for them is killing United financially. In the instance of Alexis Sanchez, United overpaid for him when they signed him and couldn’t sell him for a decent price. With a DoF, United would focus on buying quality players for cheaper prices and selling them before their value has totally decreased.
Glory Glory Man United.
Written by CJ Szaz.
Very well written! Certainly need a DoF in this club or nothing will change!