Hello Discipline, Hello Success

 

Fresh off the end of the 2026 World Cup I guess for a lot of people the REAL football starts. Pre season for Manchester United begins. It seems like we have been here before , the same optimism, the same anticipation, the same excitement. Its pushed me to the point of wanting to write this blog even, my brain moving faster than 2005 Ronaldo step overs, my fingers are typing on the keyboard pushing out Rabona key strokes to get it all on the page, and why? because things finally feel a bit different. 

Not Moyes different, Not LVG different, Not Jose or Ole or Ten Hag different. There's a slight tinge of , the board who by no means have been saints, at least want to win, atleast are putting the building blocks in place to be successful. Carrick is not another appointment where money is thrown, wait till he makes the UCL and then the purse strings are tightened, Carrick is not a jump from one style of football to another. Don't get it wrong, the Glazers are still a stain on the club and need to leave. INEOS have been dreadful in a number of ways, but at least the actual watching the ball be kicked on blades of grass has been changed.

Like the count down clock to every new year the second the season finishes silly season begins. The club is linked with anyone and everyone. If you have kicked anything resembling a spherical object whether you are 1 or 100, from Manchester to Mars you will be linked with signing for Manchester United. 

Only this summer is the first summer in what feels like an age in which the club has finally said "No, we know what we want, and we won't have our pants pulled down if we don't get it for the right price". We are not going to showcase all our inner deals, we are not going to drag out transfers like some Drift street car racer coming out of of the next Fast and Furious film, elongating an absurd scene for 10 times the length it normally would realistically occur. We are finally going to behave like a proper club.

                                             

There have been 3 signings so far, Andrey Santos, Yuri Tielemans and Karl Darlow. The first two nobody anticipated, not even the usual journalists who get drip fed information from the club like that leaky tap that never stops. This is a clear change in how the club deals with business and I for one am delighted. 

There seems to be a bit of irony with fans on twitter (or X if you call it that now). Fans of both Spurs and MUFC have been trading blows akin to a rally that the likes of Nadal and Federer would be proud of. One set claim " We no longer buy cheap and average, we buy premium and spend big", whilst the other returns the verbal serve with "We now no longer spend stupid money on average players, we are getting proven players for the right price who want to be here". Truth be told I much rather be sitting in MUFCs court than Tottenham Hotspurs's.  Money doesn't guarantee success, buying the correct players with the right mindset does. This can only occur if you put the blocks in place to control the environment, back the manager and work hard.

MUFC look to still be in the market, and whilst it seems like, at least to rivals who seem to take great pleasure in talking everything MUFC, that we are shopping in the sale aisle on boxing day pushing through hoards of other people wanting to save that extra £5.00 on an item they were never going to buy. The truth is far from that. The club rightly refused to offer ridiculous contracts out to players who don't want to be here. The club has a shortlist of players who fit our build, they've been scouted, noted to have ability and the club has gone after them. Make no mistake MUFC are getting their targets, the only difference is we are walking away from the ones that don't make financial sense or would simply disrupt environment dynamics. Discipline is vital to the club. from finances, to players making sure they apply themselves to the best of their ability. Post Ferguson it seems we never really got the discipline back. Player power ruled.

We cannot have an environment where average players get long contracts and then like a bad stench we just never seem to be able to get rid off. It will take a few seasons more, but the likes of Sancho, Antony, Rashford, Casemiro (albeit was a decent player) have either left the club or shortly will. It reduces player power and the club look like they are in charge.

Andrey Santos is expected to play a part. I will be honest, I don't know much about him. I would suggest to go watch YouTube videos but when is that a great indication of a player. I remember 18 odd years ago looking up Anderson videos and thinking he will be the next Ronaldinho. What I can say is, he seems to be a player that breaks up play, looks to get up and down the pitch and can make a pass. The biggest indictment I can give, I have spoken to several Chelsea players, they all are a bit down he is leaving.

Yuri Tielemans, this really took everyone by surprise. £35 million release clause for a Belgian international (that's CAPTAIN of the Belgian international team to you). In the peak years of his career. I don't need to say much about him, he's proven with the ball , to break the lines. He has experience and has played in Europe regularly. I really do this this could be out 9/10 signing.

Karl Darlow, if you ignore the swarm of bots/morons/clowns on social media for criticising this deal you realise it's an astute signing. Played in the premier league last season to come in as a No.2 GK. He also passes under the home grown rule so in theory it helps MUFC sign another foreign player. Oh any anything that pisses of Leeds United fans always helps.

I can sit here and speculate who the next signings will be, but ignorance truly is bliss. Nobody know, you could be a Tier 0.1 journalist and I still wouldn't believe you. There's a sense of calm and pleasantness in simply waiting for the club to announce the next signing and then the one after that whomever it may be.

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Time to get into the meat and bones! The reason why we all watch football, unless you're one of those "influencers" who seem to get free tickets to stream themselves at the game for no reason. Manchester United vs Wrexham hits our screens at 16:00 BST and I can't wait.

There is a mix of young and old which should help balance then game. Youth is ingrained in the club and make no mistakes, the likes of Harry Amass, Jim Thwaites, Shea Lacey, Chido Obi will all have eyes on them. As of writing this blog most play in positions the club are aiming to make signings more. LB, CM, and ST. Then there are the  likes of Heaven and Yoro who are still relatively young but are more senior. I would love to see the pair play together and see how they fare out. Michael Carrick will tell you preseason is about fitness, and it is. But for fans starved of real football we will want to, perhaps harshly, see a good performance. Even if it's a taster of what's to come. Just something to hang onto for the next few weeks before the season starts.

Enjoy the game! Don't expect to much, at least not yet and brace yourself. For the first time in a long while, Manchester United Football Club have the potential to be in for a good season. The circus and rigmarole no longer seems to be attached to the club. I will leave you with a quote from the great man himself. "Once you bid farewell to discipline you say goodbye to success"- Sir Alex Ferguson, maybe just maybe its "Hello discipline, hello success."