"How many have tried since Sir Alex Ferguson?" - Gus Poyet blames Manchester United players for club's downfall 

Former Chelsea midfielder Gus Poyet has stated that the players should be blamed for the downfall of Manchester United in recent years. Since Sir Alex Ferguson retired, the Red Devils have been on a downward trajectory with their managers taking the bulk of the blame.

However, Poyet insists that the problem at the club is not the managers but the players. While speaking to Ladbrokes as quoted by the Manchester Evening News, Poyet said:

"For me, the problem at Manchester United is very simple to identify. Clubs will change their manager once or twice and you might put it down to them - but how many have tried since Sir Alex Ferguson? They are on their fifth permanent manager now... is it still the manager that's the problem? Because people only ever talk about the Man United manager."

"Right now, people are now starting to look at things a lot deeper - but a month ago it was Ralf Rangnick who was apparently the problem. Stop talking about the manager; stop blaming them."

Poyet believes that the problem at Old Trafford is down to the players rather than the managers as the same patterns emerge after a new manager takes charge. Poyet continued:

"On paper, it's an unbelievable team full of power, size and technique. But it's not working. When that kind of thing happens, the problem - for me - is the core of the team. The players who are the base of the team; the ones who they need to centre everything around; they're the problem. It's clear to me, it's not a question of managers."

"It's common sense; when somebody gets sacked and a new guy comes in and turns things around, you can maybe look and say there was a clear issue there with the previous manager. When you're five managers into a project and things still haven't changed, don't tell me it's the manager's fault."

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They destroyed Jose Mourinho but he won a couple of trophies: Guy Poyet on former Manchester United boss

Poyet, who had a spell as the manager of Sunderland, believes Jose Mourinho was brave enough to talk about certain players while in charge at the club. The Uruguayan concluded by hailing the Portuguese manager for winning a couple of trophies at Manchester United. The 54-year-old said:

"They destroyed Jose Mourinho but he won a couple of trophies with them. And he was supposed to be the worst thing for United? Maybe they need to rethink those claims. He said things, if you remember, about certain players... he said some very strong things about them - but he won trophies. The rest haven't been able to do that."

Manchester United saw their top-four hopes suffer a major blow on Sunday following a 4-1 loss against local rivals Manchester City. The loss at Etihad saw the Red Devils drop to fifth place behind in-form Arsenal, who have three games in hand.

The Red Devils are poised to bring in their next manager in the summer, with Ralf Rangnick set to take up a consultancy role at the club.

A host of names have been suggested as the next Manchester United manager and the club must ensure that they pick the right man. Whoever takes charge must be aware of the challenges he will have to face to lead the club back to the top.