Succeeding Fergie: A tactical outlook

Sir Alex Ferguson, though by no means a tactical buffoon of the Harry Redknapp ilk, has never been considered a master tactician. His approach, while extremely effective, is fairly fundamental – pacy wingers, overlapping fullbacks, clinical strikers playing a 4-4-2, or variations thereof. If things go wrong, a good rollicking, an inspirational team talk or an inspired substitution is deemed to be more effective than a switch in systems. And he is a master at that, as United’s countless comebacks over the years have proven.

That is not to say that he is tactically naive. A tactically naive manager cannot stay at the helm of a top European club for 26 months, let alone 26 years. He has moulded teams around the individual genius of Cantona, the swashbuckling skill of Ronaldo and this season, the unmatched finishing prowess of Van Persie, bringing the best out of not just these virtuosos, but the team as a whole. He possesses the acumen to set his team out to counteract the opposition’s strengths (for instance, the use of Phil Jones as a man marker this season), but generally prefers a system and a set of personnel which amplify his own team’s strengths.

David Moyes, on the other hand, is a manager who preys on the opposition’s weakness and is far more flexible with the use of varied formations. Not afraid to change his team’s approach depending upon the situation they find themselves in, he is one of the most reactive managers in the English game, as is evidenced by Everton‘s habit of causing upsets and the frequent problems they have in winning matches when the game requires them to be more proactive. He is at times almost too keen to change things based on the opposition’s game rather than impose his own style of play.

One place where Moyes could look to improve on Manchester United‘s performances (yes, improve!) is in Europe. Extreme nitpicking could make one criticise Ferguson’s Champions League record. Two European successes is nothing to be sneezed at, but the majority will agree that this is one area where Fergie’s archive, although romantic, is not exemplary. Playing in three out of four Champions League finals between 2008 and 2011 is an amazing achievement, but the manner in which United conceded the Cup to Barcelona in 2011 had an air of embarrassment. Thinking that they could beat that Barca team at their own game was definitely not a smart ploy and the lack of any specific strategy to counteract Barcelona’s tiki taka football was noted by many journalists and footballing experts. This is not a criticism of Ferguson, rather an acknowledgment that his methods were better suited to domestic rather than European shores.

Inspite of Moyes’s Champions League inexperience, which is a major cause for concern among United fans, his knack of nullifying opposition strengths could prove to be the making of United in the knockout stages. Arguments can be made pointing out Everton’s ineffectual European campaigns, but with Everton, Moyes never had the kind of squad depth required to compete on multiple fronts. With United, he’ll have all that and more. And inexperience can be overcome, as Jurgen Klopp so enigmatically proved with Dortmund.

At the same time, I can see United struggling in the Champions League group stages and finding life difficult in the Premier League as well. Responding to opposition tactics will not be good enough any more; Moyes will have to be more inventive and efficient, especially against the smaller teams. Moyes’s desire to work with his own backroom staff is understandable, but he may have been better off keeping coaches Mike Phelan and Eric Steele on the books as well as they could have played a vital role in easing his transition into the United managerial role. Rene Meulensteen, United’s first team coach last season, however, is still with the club. Whether he stays is another matter all together as he, along with Mike Phelan, has been linked with the managerial vacancy at Wigan.

This is where United’s senior players have a very important part to play. The ruthlessness required to put the smaller teams to bed, the mentality of champions – winning when you’re not at your best – has been imbibed in them under Ferguson’s tutelage. They have a responsibility (hear, hear Wayne Rooney) to take some of the inevitable pressure off Moyes’ s shoulders.

David Moyes is a smart man. There’s nothing to suggest that he won’t be able to modify and add to his approach, and plenty to suggest that he can. It is time for him to step up and show his mettle, and he has the perfect foundation – Fergie’s stamp of approval.