Need of the hour at Manchester United: Change of Attitude
‘Play to win’ attitude
Under Sir Alex Ferguson’s reign, Old Trafford was indeed a ‘Theatre of Dreams’ for Manchester United, whilst it was an absolute nightmare for visiting teams. Teams that came to Old Trafford, played to not lose. Such was the ordeal which the club caused to opponents. Nowadays, teams clearly enter Old Trafford and play to win. That shows how much has changed.
The reason Manchester United’s opponents have transitioned from a cautious style to a courageous one in recent years is due to United’s attitude. The Red Devils, under Jose Mourinho, simply do not ‘play to win’.
United’s all-time top scorer and former skipper, Wayne Rooney is known for his fiercely competitive nature. He hates losing and clearly expresses that, in his autobiography: ‘My Decade in the Premier League’.
"” I hate losing. I hate it with a passion. It’s the worst feeling ever and not even a goal or three can make a defeat seem OK. Unless I’ve walked off the pitch a winner, the goals are pointless. If United lose, I’m not interested in how many I’ve scored. I’m so bad that I even hate the thought of losing. Thinking about defeat annoys me, it does my head in, it’s not an option, but when it does happen, I lose it. I get angry, I see red, I shout at teammates, I throw things and I sulk. I hate the fact that I act this way but I can’t help it."
We need such players now who would do anything to win, and persevere to get the results flowing.
In Mourinho’s current crop, it’s difficult to find even one player with such an attitude. That is the sad state of the club at the moment. Players need to develop an attitude to go any bounds to not let the opponents get the breakthrough. Something which is either inbuilt in a player or needing to be inculcated by a leader.
With a never die attitude, the team would be in a completely different state than it is now.
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To sum it all up, in this time of crisis where a change of manager looks inevitable and sooner or later we will be a seeing a new manager walk in. However, along with an expected change of manager, the club also needs a change of attitude, or a return to its previous mindset, to regain itself as the glorious club it once was.