With last campaign’s title-winning 26-goal performance from Robin van Persie still fresh in the mind, it seems incredible to suggest Manchester United’s No. 20 may have played his last game for the Red Devils.
More absurd still is that a van Persie’s departure could be just what coach David Moyes needs to prove he is capable of managing among the Premier League elite.
United remain coy as to the recovery time of van Persie’s latest knee injury. With nothing left to play for in the league, it is unlikely Van Persie will play again this campaign. Van Persie’s rumoured unhappiness and a below-par season could see the Dutch star omitted from Moyes’ rebuilding plans.
You have to feel bad for David Moyes – bequeathed a team of ageing champions, full of stars well past their prime and young players who are now too old to still be labelled as promising talent.
That said, the brilliance of Ferguson still allowed them to walk to the title by 11 points. You can point to any number of differences between management styles as the cause of United’s dramatic decline, but the disruptive influence of van Persie has been a major headache for Moyes.
Moyes was only a few weeks into the job when the Dutch star began questioning his pre-season training methods. When Raymond Verheijen, the Dutch fitness specialist, took to Twitter in July to criticise Moyes, there would have been few who did not think van Persie has been Verheijen’s source of information.
Van Persie’s attitude this campaign can be described as apathetic at best. While he’s always been the type of player who can wander during a match, he would nearly always produce a moment of individual brilliance to steal the show.
The second leg against Olympiakos aside, van Persie has failed to be counted in big matches this campaign. He looks uninterested in the game, fails to make decisive runs and is unwilling to try and link with strike partner Wayne Rooney. The lack of passes between the two has been a well-publicised statistic.
Van Persie’s unhappiness came to a very public and ugly head with his open criticism of teammates occupying his space after the first leg against Olympiakos. He made his thoughts on his manager’s ineffective game plans abundantly clear, while blaming one of his worst performances of the year on his teammates.
To say Moyes has lost van Persie’s confidence and respect would be an error – it’s doubtful he ever had it in the first place.
For all his van Persie trouble, Moyes has shown little to inspire confidence in his managerial ability. He is unclear of United’s best formation, panic-bought Marouane Fellaini for an inflated price and has at times reverted to almost route one attacking tactics. The record 81 crosses in the draw with strugglers Fulham was absurd.
Yet van Persie’s reputation has meant Moyes has been forced to keep an underperforming player in the starting line-up. After coming on for an ill-disciplined van Persie against West Bromwich Albion, Danny Welbeck injected pace and running, managing to establish a more fluid strike partnership with Rooney in 20 minutes than van Persie had in 20 games.
When van Persie is absent, it also allows Mata to perform in a more central role – something that is essential if Moyes is to see his 37-million pound signing a success.
This summer may be the last transfer window in which United could hope to recoup reasonable money for their 30-year-old striker. Rooney’s new contract has made it abundantly clear that Moyes wishes to structure his team around the Evertonian star, and selling Van Perise would be the perfect opportunity for Moyes to prove he has the mettle of a United manager.
No player can be bigger than the team. Challenging your manager’s tactics and publicly criticising teammates should come with a ticket out the Old Trafford door.
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