The Lost United

The sport we called Football and the game we loved which sadly ss gone for good. The commercialisation of the sport since the Premier League has Americanised the game into franchises and businesses. The working class game has been left behind.

Players now are assets and everyday are involved in more extracurricular activities and commercial deals, thanks to their agents, with many players even if very talented carry such commercial burdens their playing gets forgotten. Or is not the priority that we saw in the more working class roots of the game where it was blood sweat and tears … and an equal wage

Many premiership players, millionaires before they're twenty five….with many average players contracted for life, In our nostalgia we struggle to comprehend it all. But it is akin to accepting that Facebook is today valued at billions or whatever on Wall Street …. Yet produces  or manufactures nothing! Value today is seen very different and one feels a Dinosaur on many of these matters. 

Yet looking in rear view mirror does not help moving forward and so watch less football for that reason. Though the game last week in Champions League between ATM V Liverpool was a classic. But then again Simeone and Klopp are real managers reared on real football and a pedigree spotting good players. You get the sense at Old Trafford they just buy players for resale value and few actually fit the team. A total disconnect,

Therefore on the pitch it’s individualistic with no playing styles or ethos that years ago found space for a Best, a Charlton or a Law in the same team. If what we suffer is nostalgia I suppose we’ll be told steam had to replace sail at some stage on the high seas.. But clearly steam is not working at the Theatre of Dreams.

The wrong type of nostalgia allowed OGS get the job. But with absentee somewhat uninformed US investors as owners and Ed Woodward at the helm at the time … you got what you got. At least you have a feeling that Pep or Klopp stand up to their owners when needs be and make better decisions. They also both have a playing philosophy on the pitch honed over years at different clubs which players can understand. They also buy players that fit into their systems 

Who would have thought Grealish would have fitted into that City squad so well? Or how does Klopp manages Mane, Firmino and Salah so well? I mean Salah was a failure at Chelsea under Jose Mourinho was it and Klopp found him at Roma and brought him back.  Manchester City find players like Foden and develop them…. United buy Fred. 

You tell me?