Krishnan Sreekumar
Liverpool icon Stevel Nicol urges Manchester United to get rid of troublemakers in the team ahead of the new season
Speaking to ESPN FC on Youtube (h/t Express), Liverpool legend Steve Nicol has urged Manchester United to weed out the troublemakers from the squad in order to succeed next season and compete for trophies.
The Red Devils fell to an embarrassing 1-0 defeat to struggling Everton at Goodison Park last night, with Anthony Gordon scoring the only goal of the game in a massive boost for Frank Lampard’s men in their bid to stave off relegation this season.
Nicol, who won three FA Cups with Liverpool, ripped into the Man United side by saying that apart from the fact that they had their famous red kit on, you would not have been able to identify the team and that the players in the side don’t seem to like each other.
“Other than the fact that they had a Manchester United strip on, you wouldn’t have known it was Manchester United. The thing I took from this game is that this side doesn’t like each other.”
The result leaves Man United in seventh place in the Premier League table, denting their top-four hopes as Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, and West Ham United sit above them. Spurs are currently occupying fourth place, six points clear of the Manchester club.
“Nobody runs for each other”
The Red Devils looked lacklustre once again last night against the Toffees, unable to create goal-scoring opportunities against a side that was beaten by Burnley 3-0 last weekend. Thus far this month, Ralf Rangnick’s men have been unable to pick up a win.
Nicol said that the only way to succeed next term is to break up the dressing room, kick out the troublemakers and bring in good characters as nobody in the team looked like they wanted to run for each other or run the extra yard.
“This is a side where the dressing room has to be broken up. The troublemakers have to be turfed out and you have to bring good characters in. This is what a team that doesn’t get on plays like. Nobody runs for each other, nobody is backing anybody up, nobody is running the extra yard for any reason at all.”
Tasked with guiding the club to a strong finish by the summer and claiming a top-four spot in the Premier League table, Rangnick seems to be struggling to get his team over the line since being appointed as interim manager of the side late last year.
As Nicol said, the Red Devils were devoid of energy, playing against a side that had very few days of rest before their clash against the Manchester side, and were still the better team on the pitch as they pushed and fought hard to claim three precious points.
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With Arsenal and West Ham also losing their games, it seems like a missed opportunity for United to have claimed a victory at Goodison Park and leapfrogged the London clubs to a higher position in the league table.
Performances like this will not help the Old Trafford side in their bid to finish in that hotly contested fourth place. With only seven games to go until the end of the season, every game will need to be won in the remaining weeks if we are to have any chance of securing Champions League football next term – provided our immediate competition for fourth place do us a favour and also end up losing matches.
