“Manager Not the Issue” – Ex-United Man Sends Bold Message to Club Owners

Former Manchester United defender Danny Higginbotham has warned his old club that only “consistency” and “patience” will get them out of their downward spiral following Erik ten Hag’s sacking.

Ratcliffe Urged to Look Beyond Managerial Fixes

Higginbotham, who started his professional career at Old Trafford alongside the likes of Teddy Sheringham, Andrew Cole and Ryan Giggs, also believes Old Trafford chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe must accept that the identity of the manager is not the root cause of the problems which currently see United languishing in the lower reaches of the Premier League table.

Although Higginbotham admitted he was not surprised to see ten Hag depart in the wake of Sunday’s loss to West Ham - United’s fourth in the competition so far this term - he said: 

Higginbotham on United’s 10-Year Cycle of Sackings

“Ever since Sir Alex Ferguson, the best manager of all time, left, there's been David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho and Ralph Rangnick and now Eric among others.”

Are you telling me they’re all bad managers? At what point does it dawn on you that the manager might not be the source of the issues you’re having? When do you get to the crux of it and realise that manager is not the issue? When the new guy comes in, things have got to look very different,” he told SportsBoom.com.

“Consistency is everything in football,” Higginbotham continued.

“That and patience. If you’re not going to be patient, then you need better systems and strategies in place.”

“Listen, I’m not putting Eric in the same bracket as these three but Pep (Guardiola) at Manchester City, Jurgen Klopp, when he was at Liverpool and Mikel Arteta at Arsenal, none of them got off to great starts at their respective clubs did they? They all had, by their standards, poor’ish seasons.”

“The difference was there was a sense of purpose and a sense of direction around them, which is something I don’t see at Manchester United at the moment.”

United Like the Dallas Cowboys – Big Name, Low Performance

Now a respected football analyst in the US, where he covers both English and MLS football, Higginbotham made seven senior appearances for United after progressing through their youth system before going on to represent the likes of Stoke City, Derby County, Southampton and Sheffield United.

His CV, which saw him make over 200 senior top-flight appearances, also includes three international caps for Gibraltar.

“Manchester United are still an absolutely massive club, one of the biggest in the world,” Higginbotham said. “But they’re not a massive team. They remind me of the Dallas Cowboys over here now, in the NFL - huge support, always the talking point but not performing as they should.”

Timing Critique: Ten Hag’s Sacking Questioned

Ratcliffe assumed control over United’s sporting operations when his group, INEOS, bought a minority shareholding from the Glazer family earlier this year.

Higginbotham said: “What I find strange is why they kept Eric in the summer, gave him a huge amount of money to spend and clearly control over the transfers given who came in, only to get rid of him now.”

“Was it because he won the cup last summer or because of the availability of others? Either way, that’s not great strategising because the new manager might come in and think, I don’t actually want a lot of the players who have just come in.”

Young Players Carrying United’s Pressure

“There’s so much emphasis, as always, on the young players at Manchester United.”
“But if you look closely, Sir Alex brought young players through knowing they were surrounded by experienced professionals who were good enough to look after the new lads and also their own games at the same time.”

“Now, because they’ve grown up with that pressure from a young age, it’s almost like it’s the younger one who are having to look after the team,” Higginbotham added.

“Trust me, there’s a pressure being at a club like Manchester United and a lot of the new lads who have come in have struggled to handle it.”