As Manchester United look to wash their hands of David Moyes’ ‘legacy’ for good, the bloodied stains of a torturous 10 month reign will remain impossible to scrub away the marks. Least of all in the coming months.
One of the ‘legacy’ stains that the Scotsman leaves behind are his two signings: Juan Mata, Spanish success, and Marouane Fellaini. Belgian bungle.
It was on deadline day when Marouane Fellaini scrappily signed for the club that fate screamed a combination which served up connotations for a recipe of disaster. It was because the Belgian giant came from Everton, and not Barcelona. A summer that once promised glory in abundance delivered nothing short of that.
Seen as a panic buy, most United fans were unsure over how Moyes was going to utilise the midfielder from the very start. Others relied on the same blind faith to believe that Fellaini would become an instant success as they did upon the appointment of David Moyes. Neither repaid well.
Another factor that played into the hands of uncertainty was down to Fellaini not fitting into ‘the United way’, which Ryan Giggs recently boasted about resurrecting into the side. Also, stumbling upon what Harry Gregg had once said: “A United player is a passionate mix of skill, heart and youth. Manchester United are all about flair and improvisation; a club with history and style bred on romance.” Fellaini… Flair? Nope. Skill? Nope. Passion? Nope.
The premature signs of an uncertain Manchester United future for Fellaini appeared in the 4-0 win over Norwich where the Belgian not only did not feature in the starting line up for the Red Devils, but did not make the match day squad. Juan Mata didn’t make the starting line-up either, but a quick-fire brace was the response sent to Giggs that he was wrong in not selecting the Spaniard, something that Fellaini has not been able to do with the fans thus far.
To be fair to the player, injuries have also played the part of the struggles in his debut season as well as the burden of the much anticipated and prolonged arrival of a world class midfielder in the middle of the park. Tom Cleverley has also been heavily criticised for not delivering in the same position.
Little signs of improvement have appeared after his return from the wrist injury that had kept him out for months. However, all of his better performances have come against the sides in the bottom half of the league whilst continuing to involuntarily getting played off the park against Bayern Munich and Manchester City.
Fellaini’s inclusion in the club’s set-up under a new manager, which looks likely a bookies favourite to be Louis Van Gaal, remains to be told and more importantly is seen as a gamble. His final playing card was David Moyes, and now that he is gone, his signing may soon follow in his path much like he did from Goodison Park to Old Trafford.
Do you think Fellaini has a future at United? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Add Sportslens to your Google News Feed!
