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David Moyes accused of underestimating United job

By on April 24, 2014

Ex-Manchester United coach René Meulensteen has slammed David Moyes by claiming the Scot “ignored the advice” of his staff and underestimated his position in charge of Manchester United, saying these faults lead to his sacking on Tuesday.  Meulensteen claimed that Moyes “opted to put his own plans in place” instead of following the advice of his assistant managers, and described the result of that decision, which leaves United in seventh place in the Premier League outside of a European qualification spot, “too crazy for words.”

The 50-year-old, who was the assistant of Moyes’ predecessor Sir Alex Ferguson for the legendary manager’s finally seven years in charge at Old Trafford, said that Moyes made those decisions as he didn’t realize his move from manager of Everton to the replacement of Ferguson at United was going from a “yacht to a cruise liner.”

“You have to look at Manchester United and the job that David Moyes took on,” he said. “United were a very successful team, with many successful years behind them. The strategies in place worked. But David ignored the advice that was given to him by many of the staff in place at the time.

“He opted to put his own plans in place, which he was perfectly entitled to do, but I think it backfired on him. I always strongly believe the performances and the results are a reflection of what is actually happening behind the door and that wasn’t good enough, as simple as that.

“Don’t forget David was a respected manager in the Premier League who worked for 11 years at Everton in a very good way. But I did warn him: ‘Do you realize, after everything at Everton, you’re going from a yacht to a cruise liner? That’s how big the difference will be.’ It’s not just necessarily the work on the pitch. It’s everything that surrounds Manchester United, the players, the performances, the pressure, the style, the identity. And I think he underestimated that. It’s always easy in hindsight but unfortunately it’s cost him his position.”

Meulensteen also accused Moyes of ignoring more advice given to him and wanted to run United his way – a main factor in the former Fulham manager’s choice to leave his post at United.  “It became very evident to me after a few meetings with David Moyes that he wanted to bring in his own people and do it his own way,” Meulensteen said.  “I felt very strongly that things would change dramatically for myself and the position I held so I didn’t feel there was a good foundation to carry on.”

However, following Moyes’ sacking revelations at United are already soaring back up to those when Ferguson as still in charge.  The club’s stock value reached it’s second highest point since the club’s IPO on the New York Stock exchange in 2012 after news of the 50-year-old’s sacking was announced by United via Twitter, and the Red Devils have reportedly agreed a £30 million deal with Southampton to sign 18-year-old full-back Luke Shaw.  The English side, currently under interim manager Ryan Giggs, have even set their sights on signing Paris Saint-Germains’ Edison Cavani, according to various newspapers.

About Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan, founder of Football Every Day, lives and breaths football from the West Coast of the United States in California. Aside from founding Football Every Day in January of 2013, Alex has also launched his own journalism career and hopes to help others do the same with FBED. He covers the San Jose Earthquakes as a beat reporter for QuakesTalk.com and his work has also been featured in the BBC's Match of the Day Magazine.