David Moyes Let Down by Cesc Fabregas Farce? Manchester United Meltdown?

Did the dual retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill unwittingly leave incoming manager David Moyes with a "poison chalice?"

For all of us diehard Manchester United supporters, the passage of events since those retirements have hardly inspired confidence. And it now looks like the decent Moyes may be the unfortunate victim.

For all of those who have gradually come to appreciate the Glazers' "hands-off" style there are nevertheless worrying signs at the Theatre of Dreams that the new business leadership does not have the same intuitively canny touch that David Gill showed in tandem with Sir Alex.

Indeed, there is nothing whatsoever to commend Ed Woodward for in the daily diary of disappointment. While Moyes begins to look, at the very least, naive with the Fabregas debacle appearing to be more and more like a "smokescreen" to appease United fans, the new chief executive is pulling no rabbits out of the hat right now.

The Thiago and Fabregas Farce

Even before Moyes' arrival on 1 July (why was it so late with so much at stake?), we the fans had started to salivate at the prospect of one of Europe's most talented young midfielders pulling on the red shirt.

We were led to believe that all United had to do was to prise open Thiago Alcantara's ludicrously cheap release clause and their midfield problems would be at least half resolved.

In this last respect, the manager who we worshipped for so long cannot be entirely exonerated from blame. Whilst we believed his consistent line that he would only buy value in the market place, he didn't buy or develop a single world-class central midfielder for 19 years—none since the emergence of Paul Scholes.

And even despite the departure of Roy Keane in 2005 and the impending retirement of Scholes, he didn't acquire a midfielder of note other than Michael Carrick.

Now Sir Alex could rightly point to the trophies United won in the years since Keane left, but for a man renowned for building for the future, why did he not manage a single marquee signing in that department; and how could he possibly stick with the underperforming Anderson for so long?

It would be easy to look for excuses as to why United missed the likes of Lucas Moura, Luka Modric, Wesley Sneijder, Samir Nasri, David Silva, Mesut Ozil, etc. And Sir Alex was consistent in his preoccupation with value.

But why does money now seem to be no object for Cesc Fabregas, if that was true? Is Moyes throwing caution to the wind in his desperation to acquire the one player around whom he could construct his team, or is it all just a smokescreen by the new United management team?

If the latter is true, there are at least two possible explanations: one is that the presumed Plan B that will emerge (Marouane Fellaini anyone?) was actually always the Plan A; another is that in just a few weeks the United negotiation team has failed the new manager abysmally by being too optimistic or maybe even incompetent.

Were Thiago or Fabregas ever coming?

If you read recent media reports, it seems possible that there was never a chance of either player coming to United. If that is so, it is a worrying sign that United's "pulling power" has pretty much evaporated, whether or not it is a result of a new untried manager replacing arguably the greatest of all time.

Imagine how disappointed Wilfried Zaha or even the recently arrived Robin van Persie may have felt when Sir Alex suddenly announced his retirement.

Of course, it is true that neither might have signed if he had whispered in their ears of his impending retirement; and it wouldn't have stayed out of the press for too long, either.

But Sir Alex's world-renowned reputation can't be the whole reason. We should always remember that many if not most of the midfielders mentioned above went elsewhere for more money. That in itself makes them unsuitable as long-term prospects for United.

You have to want to pull on and play for the shirt.

Thiago's dad led us all to believe that his son wanted to come to United, via Jamie Sanderson of the Metro. But Thiago himself is telling another story, according to ESPN FC.

Given that Ed Wooward's negotiating team, rather than Moyes, was supposedly concluding the deal, that makes it look at the very least naive, if true.

Indeed, from a fan's perspective, it looked like United were relying on Thiago and his father exercising his release clause, while Pep Guardiola and Bayern Munich seem to have simply offered to pay a no-nonsense fee above the release clause amount, which Barcelona snapped up once they knew the player wanted out.

So having at first seeming to be in pole position and playing a patient waiting game, United were left looking "gazumped."

No doubt Moyes then demanded a top midfielder at once, at any price.  

Woodward then publicly made clear that there was "no limit to the transfer budget" and United set about a very public courtship of Cesc Fabregas.

This in itself was totally out of keeping with United's and Sir Alex's previous and long-term transfer strategy. The idea of Sir Alex publicly announcing his targets was anathema. So sadly, we start to smell a rat here.

Is it possible that, having failed abysmally to sign Thiago, Woodward asked Moyes who he really wanted and was given Fabregas' name?

But nobody in their right mind would have seriously expected United's very public pursuit of Fabregas to succeed once Barcelona had lost Thiago...at any price. 

The ex-Arsenal man has never apparently shown any signs of wanting to leave since returning to the club he loves, and surely he would look at Xavi and Andres Iniesta and dream of a soon-to-come day when he himself would be the pivot behind Lionel Messi.

Yes, of course Barca have more money challenges than Real Madrid or even United, but they are still supposedly the strongest side in the world and cannot be held to ransom.

Taken for mugs?

So have Moyes, United and their fans been "taken for mugs" in their desperate search for a Champions League-standard midfield duo?

The fans, for example, may have been almost as dismayed to see Kevin Strootman sign for Roma without even a whimper from the United hierarchy.

Manchester City have already spent £90 million; Bayern have signed two of the best young midfielders in the world in Mario Goetze and Thiago; PSG and Monaco are paying whatever it takes to sign the best; and Real Madrid are re-engineering their squad with little hindrance.

Meanwhile, United have signed Guillermo Varela for £1 million, but he was a relic of Sir Alex's transfer business.

There is no reason to believe the Glazers aren't wholly behind the new manager in signing the very best, but United's transfer business so far this summer has looked ham-fisted and inept—nothing like the deft touch of Gill and Sir Alex.

So, who is really to blame? Could it simply be players' agents?

Barcelona don't need to pay as much as the Premier League giants by way of salaries. Fabregas was reputed to be likely to double his wages if he came to Old Trafford. It is of course a function of supply and demand.

Thiago was probably always going to leave, hence the inclusion of his cheap release clause in the first place; after all it was inserted while his new manager was in place at Barcelona.

But once he went to Bayern, United would be more desperate and so presumably would Barcelona? Enter: the agent. Fabregas has not had the playing time he deserved and his pay is way behind Messi's—and Barca face the loss of a second key player.

So did the agent imply to the top club that needed Fabregas most, and who had shown interest, that his client would be minded to leave for double the wages if Barcelona agreed to let him go (knowing that would never happen)?

A new manager arrives at Barcelona, doesn't want Fabregas to leave, the board offers a juicy new contract, and together they make clear how important a player he is. End of story.

One happy player. One worried United manager.

Signs of meltdown?

OK, so the players have been saying nice things about Moyes, who, as he keeps telling us, only started on 1 July.

But what was happening behind the scenes between 8 May, when Sir Alex announced his retirement, and 1 July?

Of course, it's a courtesy to wait until the new manager arrives, but if Sir Alex marked Moyes' card about the existing squad, surely he also filled him in on United's transfer targets? Moyes would have his own views, of course, but wouldn't he have set the ball rolling before he went on holiday?

Because if he didn't, he is partially to blame for the growing crisis in midfield, which threatens to spill over into the new season with Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City all lying in wait in the first few weeks.

So where are the signs of meltdown?

Look no further than the preseason tour. Yes, there have been key players missing, but only Nani, Antonio Valencia, Nemanja Vidic and Javier Hernandez were missing for the latest match against Osaka.

And Wayne Rooney, of course.

But he threatens to be the most disruptive influence of all. If United demand he stays, he already looks less than excited at the prospect and is doing nothing to dispel the rampant rumours that he will leave.

And if he goes, where will United let him? Real Madrid and Barcelona have shown no interest. If he ends up at Arsenal, or especially Chelsea, he would remain an insidious threat to United's judgement for the rest of his career, fitness issues or not. You can bet Jose Mourinho's reputation on that!

Frankly, apart from three young players (Zaha, Adnan Januzaj and Jesse Lingard), United have been singularly unimpressive, especially in defence.

And the latter is Moyes' department. Nobody would say that United need a new defender, although Leighton Baines would unquestionably add quality and delivery.

But he doesn't solve the midfield problem where United have looked woeful in the absence of Michael Carrick, nor the defensive organisation, which is down to Moyes and his new team of coaches.

A worrying conclusion

So when you add it all up there are many worrying elements:

Manchester United seem singularly unable to attract the world-class midfielder that they need; and if Thiago really was interested, they appear to have dropped a massive catch in the protracted "negotiations," allowing the increasingly impressive Bayern to steal a march while United stumbled.

Is Moyes playing a canny game on transfers? Was he told that Woodward was in charge of negotiations, and so made the pursuit of Fabregas public knowing that the latter would not be for sale at any price?

And whether or not Moyes is playing a canny game, who are his intended targets and why are the obvious ones like Strootman and Thiago being allowed to slip away?

Of course, we may all suddenly be surprised by the unveiling of Luka Modric and Christian Eriksen in the next few days...nah...

Or it may be that Moyes has planned for Marouane Fellaini all along (better be quick, his release clause runs out on 29 July), together with the emerging talent of Januzaj and the rich promise of Shinji Kagawa.

Right now it seems that the tour could turn out to be the least successful in many a year. No signings are on the horizon in the near future. Rooney is likely to go (or disrupt team spirit if he stays), and the new management team is found wanting (hardly surprising, considering Woodward's apparent lack of a footballing background).

Certainly, there are no prizes for United's transfer communications strategy at the moment, if there is one. 

And currently, United fans are looking at a worrying start to the season and maybe the prospect of fighting off Arsenal, Spurs and even Liverpool for a Champions League place next season.

Let's be clear: For years, we the fans have been shouting about the need for at least one and ideally two world-class midfielders. Right now, things look as bleak as they ever have in that department.

And I've watched every minute of United's preseason tour and been largely unimpressed by either the performances, the organisation (especially of defence), or any sign of tactical genius from Moyes and his team.

The one bright spark is the emergence of talented young players like Zaha and Januzaj, but neither will bridge the quality gap in midfield this season.

These are worrying times. Sorry, it had to be said. Even if Cristiano Ronaldo arrived it wouldn't solve the fundamental midfield problem that has existed for at least eight years.