Jamie Redknapp doesn’t believe executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward is to blame for Manchester United’s struggles this season.
The Red Devils have endured a torrid start to the season, with their recent 3-1 defeat to Liverpool leaving them 19 points adrift of the Premier League summit.
Who is to blame for the shambles at Old Trafford? Five key things to know…
- Jose Mourinho was appointed Man United manager in May 2016.
- Won the League Cup and Europa League during his first season in charge.
- Came second in the Premier League last season, but called upon Ed Woodward to sign two centre-backs in the summer.
- Those centre-backs never came and United are now 19 points off the top of the Premier League, with Mourinho being sacked on Tuesday.
- Jamie Redknapp still thinks United’s problems are down to footballing issues, rather than in the boardroom.
This led to the sacking of manager Mourinho, with many fans and pundits levelling a large amount of blame on Woodward for not adequately backing the Portuguese.
But Redknapp has come to the defence of Woodward, maintaining that the ‘fortunes’ the 47-year-old spent was more than enough backing for Mourinho.
When asked if Woodward should shoulder some of the blame for the club’s league position, Redknapp told Sky Sports: “I don’t agree with that to be honest.
“Ed Woodward doesn’t play, he is not the one that gets the players onto the pitch. He’s spent fortunes.
“He’s given Jose Mourinho pretty much everything he wanted over the last couple of years, pretty much all the players Mourinho has signed, he plays.
“He gave him how much for Pogba and that hasn’t worked out. It is not Woodward’s fault.
“The last time Manchester United outran a team was Swansea last year. That has got nothing to do with the board.”
Manchester United are the only side José Mourinho has managed for at least two full seasons without winning a trophy at the end of the second campaign.
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Redknapp did admit that United made a mistake in giving Mourinho another contract last year, but felt it was an understandable decision.
He added: “Okay, maybe they shouldn’t have given him a contract last year but I get that one, I can see why you would want to do it.
“You’re trying your best to give the manager an opportunity to get it right, but it hasn’t worked. It is not right to blame him for that.”
Woodward as much to blame as Mourinho, says Ince
Who should be getting the blame for the slump at Old Trafford is a debate that is certainly dividing opinion.
While Redknapp doesn’t think Woodward should be shouldering any of the backlash, that is certainly not the opinion of Redknapp’s former England teammate, Paul Ince.
Speaking to Goal prior to Mourinho’s sacking, the ex-Man United midfielder stated that Woodward should have backed the manager better in the transfer market, especially when the Portuguese stressed the need for more defenders.
“Mourinho is the one who fronts it because he is the football manager but Ed Woodward is the one in the stands,” Ince said.
“He is not a football man, he is a business man. The club is the richest in the world from a business point of view, we understand that. But when Mourinho says at the start of the season that we need two centre-halves and he can’t get them, then someone has got to take the can. It can’t always be Mourinho.
“I presume Mourinho would have had a list saying that these are the six or seven players that I want to play for Man United to compete against the other boys.
“They didn’t get them. When they didn’t get them and the results don’t go well, as much as you point at Mourinho, you have to also point at Ed Woodward because he didn’t get the players he wanted.”
Ince then questioned why Liverpool were able to spend £75m on Virgil van Dijk, when the Dutch defender would have made such a big difference to the backline at Old Trafford.
“Klopp got the players he wanted.” Ince added. “Why is [Virgil] Van Dijk going to Liverpool and not Man United? If you ask me now which Man United player would get into the Liverpool team? Only the goalkeeper. That’s where we are now. At the moment he is the only one who would get into the Liverpool team.”
The post Ed Woodward not to blame for Mourinho’s failings at Man Utd – Redknapp appeared first on Squawka News.
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