Ravel Morrison: 5 Things His Sale Says About Manchester United

This photo sums up Ravel Morrison's attitude toward Manchester United and Sir Alex Ferguson.

Wiping his nose on the shirt.

No player is bigger than the club, but Ravel tried Sir Alex's patience way beyond any other player--except perhaps Wayne Rooney.

Everyone at the club, including Rio Ferdinand, Brian McClair, Warren Joyce, Sir Bobby Charlton, legal advisers and of course the Boss, could not have tried harder.

Morrison's court appearances are in the public domain: he has assaulted his girlfriend and his mother, and been found guilty of witness intimidation. The Daily Telegraph carried a summary in May, 2011.

There seems little doubt that Manchester United and their advisers helped keep Morrison out of jail last May, as he had a 12-month suspended referral order hanging over his head.

Oliver Kay in The Times summarised the depth of the challenge last month.

It takes a lot to let go a player of such talent, which has been compared to Paul Scholes and dubbed potentially one of the greatest players of his generation.

Here we hope to give an insight into the significance of this debacle for the club and the player. For the time being, one must question whether Sir Alex has passed a poison chalice to his friend Sam Allardyce at West Ham.

No Player Is Bigger Than Manchester United

This video gives an extraordinary insight into why Roy Keane had to leave Manchester United and some of the challenges Sir Alex has to deal with over high-profile players, let alone a money-grabbing, self-serving, undisciplined prima donna like Ravel Morrison.

It has been said that clubs in general, and Sir Alex in particular, give more leeway to talented players than lesser lights.

Joey Barton is a very good example.

His brother Michael was found guilty of a racially motivated murder (which seems ironic now that Joey plays alongside Anton Ferdinand; perversely, he has come to the attention of the Attorney General for his tweets on the John Terry case).

Barton has been a handful everywhere, but a succession of managers has signed him and indulged him. He may be a reformed character but, like Lee Bowyer, you have to question whether the contribution is worth the indulgence and disruption.

And it is that very disruption that can lead a club to let a player go.

We shall not know the full story of Jaap Stam's departure from United until Sir Alex publishes his own memoirs. Maybe in that case he acted a little prematurely, as he has admitted over statements in Stam's autobiography.

It is hard enough to tolerate the behaviour, outbursts or other challenges that a mercurial player can produce. Wayne Rooney may be the one exception in Sir Alex's illustrious career. Such tolerance can undermine team and squad morale and the authority of the manager.

Given all the help and understanding that was offered to Morrison, it is to United's credit that they have let a potential multi-million player go.

Especially when you are dealing with youngsters who are not yet fully formed as adult characters, indulging Morrison could have reverberated through the ranks of youth at a time when they are desperate to hold on to Paul Pogba, for example.

Young Players Must Be of Good Character

Here is a complete contrast—and a lesson to Ravel Morrison.

Roberto Martinez was fulsome in his praise for Tom Cleverley last summer,having had him on loan at Wigan.

Tom first joined United as an 11-year-old from Bradford City.

Although he was given a first-team squad number in August 2008, he went on loan to a series of lower-league clubs from January 2009 until the end of the 2011 season.

He was a revelation in United's preseason tour of the US last summer, and from the moment he came on as a substitute in the Community Shield in August, he has drawn high praise.

He was not a standout as a youngster, like Morrison, but was very highly regarded, knuckled down and worked hard to become the footballer he is now. In the long run, he may turn out to be more valuable than Ravel Morrison would have been—even without the undisciplined behaviour.

But why should United staff and especially Sir Alex spend a disproportionate amount of time trying to save the career of a misfit? Other players of talent can come to resent that.

When you look at the characters of the players who have recently been bought by United, there is a common pattern. Valencia, De Gea, Young, Jones, Hernandez, Smalling—even Michael Owen—are well-spoken, almost humble in manner, delighted to be at Old Trafford, prepared to work hard and learn, whether or not they are established professionals or even internationals.

Four of those were younger than Cleverley when they signed and not much older than Morrison, who may be the last talented young player that Sir Alex indulges.

Manchester United and Sir Alex Are Very Fair

Reluctant though he sometimes may have been, Sir Alex has often tried hard to do the best for a young player.

He cannot accommodate all the talent that the Academy produces.

Both Giuseppe Rossi and Gerard Pique left because they were frustrated by the lack of first-team chances.

That does not mean that Sir Alex doesn't try to give everyone a chance. He has steadfastly held to a policy of playing younger players in his League and FA Cup squads, even when it has cost the club.

Danny Welbeck, for example, played three years ago in the team that lost to Everton in the FA Cup semifinal in 2009 (and indeed should have had a penalty that would have sent United to Wembley).

Sometimes helping a young player fulfil their potential involves letting them go. OK, so United got a fee for each of Chris Eagles and Fraizer Campbell, but Sir Alex ensured they went to clubs where they would be valued, nurtured and given a fair crack of the whip.

This is also true, as far as he is able, of his loanees. If they are not getting the games, he has been known to recall them.

There is no doubt—if he had signed a revised contract—that Ravel Morrison's next move would have been on loan. Maybe even to West Ham or Newcastle, who both tried to sign him before Big Sam won out.

Sir Alex is fair to players who are fair to him.

It is no surprise that there are rumours that Cristiano Ronaldo would like to return to Old Trafford. He has cited Sir Alex as a "second father." He joined the club as a shy, raw string-bean bursting with potential.

He left for Real Madrid with Sir Alex's blessing as the best player in the world.

That is what Ravel Morrison may be missing. At the moment, the odds are more in favour of "crash and burn" than becoming a mature professional who makes the most of his undoubted talent.

The Squad Is Abundant with Talent

It's easy to forget that Anderson is still only 23.

Before his move to United, he was regarded as one of the best young midfielders in the world, whose development had been held back by a broken leg the previous season.

He now has a nagging cruciate ligament problem that needs clearing up properly, for which Sir Alex is allowing time.

In his recent appearance in the Champions League, he was almost unrecognisable. The old sharpness was there, but he looked to have lost weight and had a "proper" haircut.

Tom Cleverley is 22, and Sir Alex is using the luxury of Carrick, Scholes and Giggs to allow him to get fully fit, also. He should be in the squad for the Liverpool match on Saturday.

Paul Pogba has been in the squad for several matches recently and looked very sharp when he came on against Stoke City.

Together, that makes three highly creative midfield players to carry the mantle of the old guard going forward.

In addition, Wayne Rooney can drop back into midfield, Ji Sung Park can come in off the wing and Phil Jones can play there until Darren Fletcher is fit, so that means there are at least 10 players who can be permutated for the next couple of seasons.

The Future Is Still Bright Without Morrison

Given the choice and his disciplinary problems, such as being late for and sometimes not even turning up for training, Ravel Morrison would always be standing in line behind Paul Pogba for a place in the first team.

The press has had a field day trying to unsettle Pogba and place him anywhere from Juventus to Manchester City.

But they have tried the same trick with Zeki Fryers, only to get a sharp retort via Twitter.

Sir Alex hasn't ruled out making signings this summer, and it is believed these would involve at least one midfielder and defender. Neven Subotic's name keeps coming up, and Wesley Sneijder's won't go away, although a younger player like Eden Hazard would be a better bet.

Even with the existing squad fully fit, Cleverley, Anderson and Pogba would be vying for the creative midfield role. Yes, Ravel Morrison is a talent, but he seems to think the world owes him a living, and if his egocentric attitude translated onto the field, he could be a passenger who scored the occasional spectacular goal and didn't tackle back. That can't be said of Pogba.

There are plenty of other young players who will also come into the equation in the next few years. Perhaps none quite as precocious as Morrison, but even Tom Cleverley had to knuckle down to become the widely acclaimed talent he now is.

If we look just at midfield, Larnell Cole and Jesse Lingard are on the fringe of the first team. Robbie Brady, Ryan Tunnicliffe and Oliver Norwood are all currently on loan to Championship clubs and have played at youth international level.

Davide Petrucci, now that he is free of his prolonged injury problems, could be the best of the bunch and has looked very impressive in the Reserves recently.

Matty James is also highly regarded and was included in United's Champions League squad this season. 

Not far behind these are Jack Barmby, who has been scoring goals for fun in the Academy, and Charnie Ekangemene.

So although letting Ravel Morrison go was a big blow to all at Old Trafford, Sir Alex and his colleagues had indulged him as far as they dare without disrupting team and squad morale. Maybe Sam Allardyce can turn him round, but the portents are not good.

He may be one of the best players ever to emerge from the United Academy, but Stan Bowles, Matt LeTissier, Paul Gascoigne and others only sporadically fulfilled their potential.

George Best was a huge handful for Sir Matt Busby before he finally conceded defeat.

As Manchester United have shown since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, when you play as a team and work for each other, all things are possible. It may lead to idiots like Alan Hansen deriding the squad, but a performance like Sunday's at Chelsea sums it up.

And even if not all these bright young things fulfil their potential, United have the resources to buy an Eden Hazard or a Paul Henri Ganso to fill the creative void that Paul Scholes will leave when he finally hangs up his boots.

For the time being, my money is on Tom Cleverley and Paul Pogba.