Ex-Manchester United manager David Moyes has taken enough criticism for 10 lifetimes after his failed tenure at the club last season.
With the tide quickly turning against him, after some terrible results, it got to the point where anything that he said or did probably would have been perceived in a negative light.
The soundbyte that really sticks in our mind is when he publicly stated that Manchester United would be underdogs against their fierce rivals Liverpool prior to a massive clash between the two sides in March.
Even though Manchester United were clearly lagging behind their rivals at the time, such defeatist talk was just not what was expected of a Manchester United manager and it further dimminished his support.
Any regular readers of this publication will know that we are admirers of Louis van Gaal – he is not only a great coach but a breath of fresh air in terms of his honesty, even to football fans who don’t support United – and he further embellished his popularity among Reds’ fans by stating in his press conference on Friday that:
‘I don’t think it was a great surprise that we won against Liverpool’
After three nil battering at Old Trafford by the Merseyside giants last season, Manchester United fans were absolutely desperate for a positive result in this one. And of course they got it with a 3-0 victory. These subsequent quotes perhaps illustrate that the new coach is far more in tune with the public tone expected of a Manchester United coach.
In truth, Liverpool’s performance against United last season was probably more impressive than United’s showing against their arch-rivals earlier this month. But the 3-0 scoreline is what will be remembered and it’s yet another huge step forward for a club which was in absolute turmoil last campaign.
