Steve Nicol says the recruiters at Man United are ‘MAKING A MESS’ | ESPN FC

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Steve Nicol: Manchester United's recruitment is a mess, and the team is at best mid-table with no clear identity

The ESPN FC panel reacts to Manchester United's 1-1 draw with Leeds and argues that the team is at best mid-table, with no clear progress, identity or successful recruitment. They also debate United's pulling power, Chelsea's stronger summer window and whether Morgan Rogers would choose United or Chelsea.

ESPN FC’s Alexis Nunes is joined by Steve Nicol, Shaka Hislop and Mario Melchiot to discus the state of Manchester United who are currently 13th on the Premier League table. ✔️ Subscribe to ESPN Unlimited: https://plus.espn.com/ ESPN ESPNFC

Transcript

Let's talk about Manchester United, shall we? Here is a look at the papers after the 1-1 draw yesterday with leads United car stalls again. Carrick's week from L and bloody l as Shaka was giving us his best accent earlier on. Well, no surprise that Craig and the crew really went in on Manchester United on yesterday's show. Let's have a listen. >> United can't even dominate a team that have spent the last couple of seasons fighting to avoid relegation. They could not afford to lose this game and they did. But there was nothing about turning a corner. There was nothing really to to get you excited. >> It was a low quality football match. >> That wasn't enough. That wasn't really not enough when you are Manchester United. And as you said, maybe they can't do better. >> I can't say that anybody played well. I can't say anybody had a stinker for Manchester United. And that's just kind of where they are. >> If this team weren't wearing red and called Man United, we wouldn't be talking about >> Right. All right, let's get into it. Stevie, now I think we all know exactly where I lie when it comes to Manchester United. And Stevie, there is still the belief even amongst supporters that this is Manchester United. Surely they can bounce back even in the next game. Surely they're still one of the big teams. But as the boys were saying and as Craig was saying was saying, are they right that they are just a mid-table team at best now? >> 100% they are. And I I think unfortunately whilst the manager continues to tell his team and everybody else that they're actually doing some good things and they're in a great place, then they're not kidding anybody. [music] You know, at the end of the day, you can get you can get results that go against you for lots of different reasons. You know, you get you get a bad robin, you don't get you don't get a call, >> but you play well, you create chances, and maybe your center forward's having a bad day. >> That you can't say that about Manchester United this whole season. They've had bad day after bad day after bad day. And there is no progress that that certainly I can see. I can only speak for myself. I don't see anything other than a weaker Manchester United that finished last season. They're not as good this season as they were last season. >> And so Michael Carrick coming out and saying the things that that he's saying is making it worse. You know, I would prefer if I was a Man United fan that the manager told me the truth. And I said it the other day before this game, tell us that we need to play better and we want to do better and we want to do this and we want to do that and we want to win games. But don't come out especially after you've just had a horrible performance and try and tell us that today was a restart. Today was like a fresh new day. You love that >> and there's loads of there's I saw a lot of things that gave me hope for the future. I mean come on who's who's going to who's really going to >> do you believe it? No. >> You watch the game. Nope. >> So, it's Michael Carrick is not helping himself and he's certainly not helping the team cuz if I'm a manated player and I'm delivering that and the manager is telling me that I'm doing well, well, they're not they're not going to get any better. >> Well, Mario, what if it is just like that? Because we can pick apart what Michael Carrick says here and there, but a lot of people believe that the truth is just that these players are just not good enough. But at this point, how can Manchester United attract some top players? Because right now who would want to go there? >> Yeah. But you know it's not only like look if you look at the individuals you understand that come to your club you can say like okay they're not they're not you know up to the standards that you would like them to be. That's that's a possibility but you won. You went to you went after them. The second part is that the hunger the hunger to play for a team and play for a club it's different now than like what it was uh last season. last season towards you know towards the end the hunger got them where they ended up and end up playing Champions League football. Now you got people like you understand okay maybe you know the the the desire of Balaba you understand I always felt like okay he could make a difference to the team but a kid like Santos was at Chelsea getting used to the rhythm and the tempo and everything now he comes into Man United that is a team that is not even stable you understand Fernandez is the one that is the bright spot on the team but it's very hard for them because if you have Fernandez and Tielemans almost guys both want to go and pick up the ball and both so if you have two in your team want to pick up the ball, you have to find a solution and speak to both of them and saying like listen, one maybe goes this part is where he can pick the ball up and you are going at this part where you can pick the ball up. When they're going to do it together, it becomes a whole different story. So for me now it's too many similarities is it's some players are not for me not working hard enough and sometimes you also got to look in the mirror and think like if you want to talk about your history all the time you got to make sure you put history on the field in the sense of like I used to get shivers when I used to go on the field and play in Man United not because I was scared but because I knew that I had to step up my game and play really well. I don't think people have that now when they go and face Man United. Well, of course, we know that a rebuild has to come on, Stevie, and Liverpool kind of went through something similar. It took about 25, 30 years to get right back to where you believe Liverpool belong. Are we looking at the same timeline now for Manchester United at the rate things are going? >> Well, it's very difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel in terms of championships. Um, and for Liverpool, uh, it was about recruitment. >> Yeah. You know, at the end of the day, yes, Jurgen Clark made a huge difference, but after that, it was about recruitment, steady, good recruitment of younger players who were going to get better and who produced. And then, of course, at the end of it, you top it up with a Van Djk for nearly 100 and and the goalkeeper Allison for nearly 100. So, you top that up to take it to the to the championship level. And so, that's where Manchester United are. they are at the bottom of the ladder and the recruitment has has to change and right now the people in charge of recruitment are quite frankly making a mess of it and there's no other way to put it because whatever they're bringing in is not performing to the standard of a team that wants to go forward and win a championship. Yes, Bruno Fernandez might be your man, but around them isn't good enough. And so he eventually, as good as he was at the second half of last season, he eventually is going to suffer as much as anybody. And we saw that at the weekend. >> So yeah, it's all about recruitment takes time. So yeah, it's going to take another how many? If you get it right, it'll take you at least four wonders if you get it right. But Man United's history recently is of getting it wrong. So that makes it twice as hard. any major differences between Manchester United today and and and Liverpool and and enduring their their lean spells from from the 80s through to >> whenever it was um is the disparity in English football the money in English football now is far greater than it was when when Liverpool had to had to to go through that billing period. Now to to your question Alexis about um who joins Manchester United. >> Yeah. Even if right let's take the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona and Bayern Munich and and even PSG aside um in English football Manchester United are still a big name you've got Arsenal you've got City now with his charges whether whether they can continue to attract talent time will tell but right now let's leave that to the side after that if it's a Chelsea or United after the same player he would give it some thought if if it's um a Liverpool and and Manchester United after the same player he would give some thought those aren't those aren't givens. Now, and while I was critical of Landre Martinez and what he had to say, uh, as a player in that dressing room, he was right in a lot of respects. >> Yeah. >> You could also make the argument that Chelsea had a better summer transfer window with the likes of Morgan Gibbs White, etc. Um, than Manchester United did. At Chelsea that finished, where were they? 10th, eighth, 10th, some something like that last season. Manchester United finished third had had Champions League football. yet somehow Chelsea had a better transfer window. So it's not just a case of well who goes to Manchester United because um that's that's not the issue. We've had Brenford stripped of all their players who are way better. Brighton stripped of all their players who who who continue to be to to be way better. >> My [clears throat] question is who are Manchester United and what they do well? I I I'm I'm not sure that they have a foundation to build on. Now, quite a few years ago, I was talking to to to Alex Ferguson about his early years in Manchester United. >> Name drop. >> Yep. Yeah. That's that's what I do. My Frank move right there. But he I he made the point that >> he felt Manchester United were built on a strong academy bringing through incredible talent and then you top that up with with with the spending with bringing in stars in different positions. But you had to have a strong academy producing players every single year. Manchester United don't don't do that. You've got Kobe Mayu, Marcus Rashford. Um, but you don't see the academy turnurning out players. So, if you move away from that, fine. My question for Manchester United is who are you? What are you building your successes on? >> See, the likes of Morgan Rogers going to going to Chelsea. >> He's a he's a he's a finished article. >> Yeah. Manchester United I think find themselves in a position where the only finished articles they're getting are the likes of Tielemans guys who are not going to be playing at the highest level but >> and so that's why the recruitment has to be about younger players who are who are at a certain level and who who can take another step who will be interested in going to Man United but the Finnish articles the Esaxs and as bad as Esach and Verts and all these other guys have done not just at Liverpool but around in the country. They're not going to Manchester United. >> But that's my that's that's my question, Stevie. Well, Isaac Isak and Ver go to to to Liverpool when they're champions. I said Gibbs. Morgan Gibbs right. Sorry, Morgan Rogers. I meant [laughter] But let's be honest, >> Chelsea and Manchester United this summer go after Morgan Rogers. >> Yeah. >> Offering the same money, everything. Who does Morgan Rogers pick? >> Chelsea. >> Chelsea. And rightfully so. >> Chelsea in the really in the summer with with Manchester United finishing third. I I I don't I I don't think so. You got Manchester United to offer Champions League football. If all other things being equal, >> all other things, the pay packet, everything is the same. I think he goes to Manchester United. >> No, >> Mario. >> No, I don't agree. >> Yeah. But you know, like like you also Man United when we talking about like it's it's not okay, you have the money, but it's always critical how you spend it. And I think I I look now you know like we highlight like saying like okay the money is definitely there financially we I don't think any club in England has to has the difficulties like okay maybe the ones that just come up might don't have the budget that the ones who have been playing in the Premier League for so long okay I understand that but they also get a handover and say like at least they can recruit something because that's the bonus when you come into the when you enter the Premier League they give you an an incentive in the sense of like you can handle it for a season or two and then you got to be creative yourself. But when you look at Man United, they they have a journey. They have a history of being in there for so long. But why does it take so long to break through a different rhythm if what you have created so much and it take you so long to recreate it? Because you you're focusing on different things. You're focusing on on players that you bring to the also you got to look at the age group. Do you understand? If you look at the age group, you understand? We highlight let's say we talk about the Tielemans. You understand? I already said that. I said two similarities. You got to be careful. You got to be careful that you one you bring quality. They can win games for you and make decisions in games that you go like wow why are people coming to the stadium to watch Man United are now coming to watch Man United because they want to see Manu United draw games play 1-1 against leads. Okay leadeds is one of their big rivies but leads is not one of the most difficult teams to play against. So that's why for me I I what I have the problem with Man United when I go to that stadium and I watch is just sad that the development and the strategy is not where it's supposed to be >> right for uh my mental health. Shall we move on? [laughter] >> No.