In the 13 years since the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson retired, Manchester United have constantly found themselves in a revolving door.
This great sporting institution has been floundering in mediocrity during that period, with countless false dawns being the only thing keeping fans and the club afloat. A club built on “youth, courage and success” has now become a club under constant change.
Players and managers have come and gone; billions of pounds have been spent, but, in the year 2026, United are still in search of their seventh permanent manager.
With yet another rebuild looming large over Old Trafford, the club faces its greatest challenge so far, especially with heightened frustrations over the club’s ownership and the dark cloud under which disgruntled former head coach Ruben Amorim left the club.
The Red Devils are one of, if not the most well-known sports teams in the world.
Its global fanbase is a product of its dynastic 26-year reign under Ferguson, which saw the club lift the most prestigious trophies in the sport while at the same time being responsible for the development of many of the greatest players to have ever played the game.
During the club’s 13-year period of transition, there has been an attempt to recapture what made the club so successful, but to no avail.
Whether it was hiring serial winners such as Jose Mourinho or club legends such as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, or even more recently taking a chance on an up-and-coming manager such as Ruben Amorim, each reign has ended in dismay, leaving many wondering who or what the problem is and whether United will ever be good again.
One of the club’s main criticisms during this period has been the club’s brash decision-making.
This has ranged from overpaying on transfer fees, resulting in over a billion pounds being spent on players while recouping very little, to managers being sacked too early or, in some cases, being kept on longer than they should’ve been. These issues have been levelled at the club’s ownership.
The lack of personal investment from the owners, the Glazer family, since they acquired the club in a leveraged buyout in 2005, has left the Glazers’ reign marked by immense hostility between them and the fanbase.
Opting to sell a minority stake in the club and relinquish control of footballing operations to INEOS in 2024 rather than accepting a full takeover from Qatari investor Sheikh Jassim only added to these tensions.
INEOS’ short tenure at the club has not been viewed very favourably so far with fans seeing little to no improvement in the club’s fortunes.
The club’s recent sacking of manager Ruben Amorim due to internal tensions over his role as “manager” as well as the desire for transfer activity at a time when the squad depth was extremely thin due to injury and 2025 Afcon commitments might have shed light on the type of regime that INEOS really are.
Fast forward a couple of months, and the dark cloud over the club has somewhat lifted after a period which saw significant improvement under interim manager Michael Carrick. In the process of finding a new permanent manager, Carrick’s name has appeared to be near the top of the list.
However, repeating the same process of appointing a former player after a run of good results, like the club did with Solskjaer would be a mistake given the way that ended last time out. Especially with the plethora of top-tier managers available after this season.
If United and INEOS are serious about always going for “best in class”, the club needs to really go for the best, and Luis Enrique fits that mould, especially with the uncertainty over his future at PSG.
However, after Amorims’ departure, it is clear that the club will be looking for someone more passive and willing to follow the instructions given by the board rather than someone who wants their own share of control. If that is the case, the list of managers shortens
dramatically.
Whatever United do, the eyes of the world will be watching. The owners, team and manager will be under scrutiny and rightly so in what is a crucial appointment for the club. Now they sink or swim…
- In the 13 years since the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson retired, Manchester United have constantly found themselves in a revolving door.
- This great sporting institution has been floundering in mediocrity during that period, with countless false dawns being the only thing keeping fans and the club afloat.
- A club built on “youth, courage and success” has now become a club under constant change.
- Players and managers have come and gone; billions of pounds have been spent, but, in the year 2026, United are still in search of their seventh permanent manager.
- With yet another rebuild looming large over Old Trafford, the club faces its greatest challenge so far, especially with heightened frustrations over the club’s ownership and the dark cloud under which disgruntled former head coach Ruben Amorim left the club.
