Manchester United, one of the most successful football clubs in the entire history. Nicknamed as the red devils, the club being one of the oldest clubs in England has a rich history. They have dominated all the tournaments of the United Kingdom like the FA cup, English Premier League, Community shield and many more. Their campaign in the UEFA Champions League is also quite remarkable. Ruling the world of football for a hundred and forty years with more than sixty trophies in their bag, the club has produced various talented players in every era. From George Best to Eric Cantona, David Beckham to Ryan Giggs, Cristiano Ronaldo to Wayne Rooney everyone has donned the legendary jersey of the red devils. The club has witnessed its golden era under the management of Sir Alex Ferguson.
From 1986 to 2013 the club has won thirty-eight trophies under the management of the Scottish legend. Under his management the club reached new heights, dominated all the domestic tournaments and even the European ones. During this era their home stadium, the Old Trafford was known as the factory of dreams. The numbers of fans grew in large numbers and they also start earning money by participating in betting during live games. This has increased the participation of the fans to a great extent.
It didn’t take much time for the dreams to turn into nightmares though. It started in 2009 with the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo. The Spanish giant Real Madrid bought the Portuguese superstar with a huge transfer fee. During this time their rivals, Manchester City started spending lump sum amounts to rope in talented players in their squad. The final nail to the coffin was driven in 2013 when Sir Alex Ferguson decided to step down as a manager. Although the club won the league title in his last season, and also the last one till now.
With Ferguson gone, David Moyes was appointed as the new manager, but he was an instant flop. They also failed to find a replacement for the gigantic hole that Ronaldo left in the squad. With deteriorating forms of key attackers like Robin Van Persie, Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez and even worse defence, they started a losing streak in the 2013-14 Season. Moyes failed to set in Ferguson’s boots, and faced the wrath of the supporters. He received severe negative criticism from media and fans, and was ultimately sacked in July. Ryan Giggs took the responsibility and became the interim manager for the final four matches.
That year was no less than a nightmare for the red devils. They finished at the seventh position in the English Premier League that season. The supporters were extremely unhappy with the results, and what pained them more was that their arch rivals, Manchester City became the league champions that season. Upon further interviews, Moyes claimed he was promised that Cesc Fabregas, Toni Kroos and Gareth Bale will be signed by the club. According to Moyes, Vice-chairman Woodward promised him that the club would also try to bring back their super star Cristiano Ronaldo.
In 2014, after the FIFA world cup was over, Louis Van Gaal was appointed as the new manager of the club. He had quite a successful world cup campaign as Netherlands finished in third place. With new players like Ander Herrera, Luke Shaw, Marcos Rojo, Daley Blind and Angel Di Maria the supporters were hyped for the new season. The season started with a bumpy ride as they lost their first match against Swansea City making their first home loss since 1972. Swansea City also managed to bag their first league win at the Old Trafford. Their first win came after three matches against Queen’s Park Rangers at the Old Trafford. The season ended with a Draw against Hull city in an away match and the club finished at the fourth position that season. Although the results were not that satisfactory, yet they managed to stay at the top four, thus securing a spot at the UEFA Champions league.
The following season, players like Memphis Depay, Anthony Martial, Sergio Romero and Bastian Schweinsteiger were introduced to the squad, whereas players like Robin Van Persie, Nani, Javier Hernandez and Di Maria were sold out. With Memphis wearing the number 7 jersey which was previously worn by the Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, they started their season with a 1-0 win against Tottenham Hotspur at the Old Trafford. The fans were extremely hopeful. The club however had an extremely poor season as they managed to finish in the fifth position at the English Premier League and also had an awful Champions League campaign. They however managed to win their 12th FA cup trophy that season.
The next season began with the departure of Van Gaal as their manager. Jose Mourinho was appointed as the new manager of the club. Players like Memphis and Bastian were sold out as they failed to impress the new boss. Paul Pogba was bought back to the club with a huge transfer fee from the Italian giants Juventus FC. Also, players like Ibrahimović, Eric Bailly and Mkhitaryan were introduced to the squad. Although the club managed to win the UEFA Europa league that season, they performed miserably in the domestic league securing the sixth position.
Next year began with some big transfers. The club’s heartthrob Wayne Rooney was released by the club. Also, Mkhitaryan, who performed quite well, was sold to Arsenal. Adnan Januzaj was also sold that season. The club bought Victor Lindelöf, Lukaku, Matic and Alexis Sanchez was introduced to the squad. Although the club performed horribly in the Champion’s League and were disqualified in the first knockout stage, but they managed to secure the second position in the English Premier League.
The following season although the club started with a good performance, but their form started to deteriorate after a few matches. Sanchez failed to perform and met with an injury, Lukaku was terrible and a quarrel between Pogba and Mourinho was their final blow. Mourinho was sacked from the manager position and Ole-Gunnar Solskjær was appointed as the new manager. They finished in the sixth position that season in the Premier League and did not manage to win a single trophy.
The following season, junior players like Markus Rashford, Jesse Lingard and Antony Martial tried their best to provide some fruitful results, but were unsuccessful because of various reasons. One of the main reasons was the underperforming Paul Pogba and one of the worst defenceline-ups the club saw in its history. Their old rival Liverpool FC won the Premier League after 30years. Although the nightmare still continues, the fans believe that their good times are near. They all have complete faith in the club, and firmly believe that this season they will perform superbly and start their reign again. |
