Manchester United have given Michael Carrick more time, with no date, no number of games and no target attached. Ed and Dharnish look at what has to change in the meantime. The press comes first: a half-press in which players arrive late, leaving United’s back-four exposed. The build-up has lost…
Michael Carrick looks set to be sacked after a 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth, coming off the 4-1 loss at Como. Ed and Daniel go through the game and the week around it: Bruno Fernandes criticising the staff in public then sitting on the bench without being ued. Then the…
Manchester United were beaten 4-1 at Como in the Champions League. Ed and Dominic try to make sense of it. United’s pressing does not work; the players asked to lead it cannot do it, and Como passed through United at will. Carrick’s vision for the team is slipping by the…
Michael Carrick changed the system at Elland Road and United came home with a 1-1 draw. It was closer to a street fight than a football match for much of it. Ed and Dharnish go through United’s approach and performance, including a back three and Bruno Fernandes pushed out wide.…
*Sorry for some the dodgy audio on this episode* Ed, Dharnish, and Daniel open in meltdown mode. Manchester United have two wins from nine and the latest crisis is the fallout from Lisandro Martinez’ criticism of Jason Wilcox. The tactics tell the story. United conceded after 50 seconds at Atletico…
Ed and Dominic pick over United’s 2-0 defeat at Atletico Madrid at the Metropolitano. It was better than the scoreline and much better than Satuday but still leaves Michael Carrick under pressure. United started the game with another defensive blunder but grew into it, creating some decent chances before losing…
Ed and Andy catch up on four straight wins for United Women, which have turned the mood around after a difficult start to the season. 10-1 against Sheffield United, a narrow victory over West Ham, 5-1 against Durham, and a single goal victory over Liverpool. The team’s personality is becoming…
Ed and Daniel pick through Manchester United 1-1 Tottenham, a game Michael Carrick’s side led until the 92nd minute but in which they played badly for most of the 90. The first half was as poor as anything this season, with Spurs running through United’s midfield at will. One side…
Ed and Dharnish talk about Manchester City's cheating three weeks on from the verdict and with the appeal under way. City's “it was government money” defence falls apart when the government, the sponsors, and the owner turn out to be one family. With club and fan denial hardening, the likeliest…
Ed and Paul pick through the fall out from City’s guilty verdict and conclude this is a geopolitical story more than football. The outcome might well owe more to diplomacy than to Premier League rules. Andy Burnham's situation and UK ties to Abu Dhabi suggest where the pressure is coming…
Daniel joins Ed to make the case that this was never really a football story: Manchester City's ownership is Abu Dhabi's ruling family operating through the exact same statecraft logic they apply to war, espionage and geopolitics. And that family’s refusal to ever hear the word "no" from anyone. It’s…
Jamie's latest Substack note gets the deep dive treatment: United's newly published loan documents show a real, dated path to finally clearing the $550 million Glazer-era LBO debt. The new notes are repayable at par with no further interest from 10 June 2029, but only if it's tied to a…
The City verdict deserves a conversation about the reputations of the various parties involved. City's for organising the fraud, the Premier League's for taking eight years and letting itself be outmuscled by lawyers, and Pep Guardiola's, since virtually everything he won at City was built on financial cheating he spent…
Ed and Dominic discuss a momentous day. Manchester City have been found guilty on 114 of the 115 charges brought by the Premier League, after a process that's run more than three and a half years, during which City won six trophies. The charges centre on disguising owner funding as…
Manchester United's full-year financials landed the same week as defeats to City and Brighton and a nervy draw at Fulham. Ed and Jamie's read is that the numbers tell a positive story: record revenue of £677.6 million, operating cash flow more than double what United generated the previous year, and…
Women are three games into new manager Eva Olid's reign: defeat to London City Lionesses, hammered by Chelsea, then a much-improved 1-1 draw at Arsenal, undone by a 95th-minute equaliser. Ed and Andy assess Eva Olid's start given the circumstances, a very late appointment, barely any pre-season, no marquee signings.…
Another week another crisis? After United’s draw at Fulham, Ed and Dharnish push back on the reaction, arguing the underlying picture (29 shots, nearly 3 xG, more shots and box touches than any team in the league this season) suggests better times ahead. Shifts in fine margins turned this game…
United walked away from Fulham with a draw, Mateus Cunha's equaliser cancelling out Lisandro Martinez’ own goal. Fulham were there for the taking, though. United had 29 shots, 57% possession, and somehow still seemed very passive when it mattered. No disaster, but yet more points leaking away. Ed and Wayne…
Ed and Dharnish discuss United’s 3-2 defeat to Brighton in the Carabao Cup. United’s heavily rotated side led 2-0 before collapsing, with an increasingly ugly atmosphere at Old Trafford on display. Shea Lacey's goal and a well-worked press that teed up Mount for the second were the rare bright spots…
Daniel and Dharnish review United’s 0-1 defeat at home to Man City. City were down to 10 men for most of the second half after Foden's red card. The goal itself should have been ruled out: Enzo Fernandez was offside and interfering with Martinez in the build-up. VAR waved it…
The transfer window smashed Premier League spending records. The real story is how incestuous it all was: clubs buying from each other, squeezed by the same rules and looking to square their own books. United funded their window through a revolving credit facility and not player sales. They sold precisely…
Ed and Tom discuss United's return to the Champions League, which was a comfortable 4-0 win over Sabah. The game effectively dead by half-time. It was about all we could ask from an opener like this. Sesko and Dorgu both impressed in changed roles up front and at left-back, reopening…
Ed and Dharnish dig into United’s draw with Everton. The buildup through Mainoo and Tielemans was as good as it's looked in years but Carrick’s side lacked any real box presence, with Cunha and Bruno both dropping deep. Defensively, United's press still isn't working, and disconnected lines left gaps that…
United led twice away at Everton through Mbeumo and Sesko only to do a very good job of chucking it away late on Merseyside. Ed and Dan dig into the tension between United's new possession-based approach and a back four that isn't built for a higher line. And there are…