When a club start to struggle, it is often the manager who gets the blame. And while he sets them up for the games and gives out his instructions, I feel the players are usually the ones that have to take the stick. That is certainly the case at Machester United, for me any way, and it seems as though right-back Rafael is in agreement.
He told Sky Sports: “We are the ones who have to take the responsibility.
“I don’t know why everyone is looking at the manager. It is the players who have to do the job on the pitch.”
This is how I see it. There have been a few players who have performed poorly over the course of the season and I think that it is time for them to start getting the blame.
Javier Hernandez rarely got a chance under Sir Alex Ferguson to get a good run of games under his belt, but he has made 12 league appearances this season and scored a unimpressive one goal.
Tom Cleverley is another player performing well below his best, or at the very least below the standards of a Manchester United player. For all the hard work he puts in, his ability lets him down and it’s often the case that he is the one to lose possession or slow the attack down to a point where it’s ruined.
Players like Anderson, Nani and Ashley Young have all failed when given a chance in the first team, while Shinji Kagawa has never got going this term. Giggs’ displays have been woeful on the whole and Jonny Evans has been a shadow of his former self. Rafael himself has also struggled.
Yes there was always going to be patience during the Moyes transition and United fans have stuck by that, but I think those criticising the former Everton boss need to look a little closer to the players.
I think Rafael’s statement is spot on.