I just feel like too many people are blaming Ole (or Jose or LVG before) for things that he does not have control of or just has to deal with the bad consequences. I think people are quick to forget that the same issues have been there pretty much since 2009 and only the fact that SAF was pretty much running the club himself was minimising the impact of these issues.
Some short fun facts of since then:
- In 2006, the Glazers related loan was $660m pounds. Since then interest, fees, dividends and other loan costs of more than $1.3billion has been paid. The 2019 loan balance is still over $450m.
- In 09-10 we sold Ronaldo. We bought Valencia, Obertan, Owen and Diouf, followed by Smalling and Chicharito the next season.
- In 11-12 Scholes, Hargreaves, Brown and O'Shea left and we signed Young and Jones.
- In 14-15 Rio, Vidic, Evra, Fletcher, Nani and Chicharito left, we spent huge money on Di Maria and Falcao (plus some others that lasted a bit longer). Next season we signed Depay, Darmian, Schweiinsteiger and Schneiderlin, who are again are no longer here.
- In 18-19, after coming 2nd in the league, we bought Fred, Dalot and Grant.
As people have rightly pointed out, none of the issues are in isolation but with the hand that these owners deal to the managers, you are unlikely to do much better than a 6/10
OGS is not the cause of the problems, and neither is he the solution. Recruitment is very poor, there is literally no investment in the club (the roof at OT leaks, for instance), and the only long term plan is Ed saying there is so he can keep his job.
But.......OGS hasn't done well with the cards he has been dealt. His injury and in-game management is, at best, suspect. No one could turn Man U into a force with the conditions that we find ourselves in, but OGS also has to be accountable for his failings.
On the positive side, it does look like he has improved both Rashford and Fred.