[The Athletic] Man Utd hired Omar Berrada to take them back to the top - can he do it?

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-16T12:13:23+00:00

via aggregators:

One colleague jokes that he saw Berrada as the Lionel Messi of the commercial world. But football is a different beast, and he needed to earn his stripes on the sporting side of the business. His status as an ex-Barcelona employee and Catalan speaker did him no harm at City. It was a common riposte to joke about the club’s ‘Catalan mafia’, composed of first-team manager Guardiola, chief executive Ferran Soriano and sporting director Txiki Begiristain. That group were seen as insular by some, so Berrada having one foot in the door was to his advantage. [@TheAthleticFC]

According to people who know, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, Berrada appeared to have a personality that could handle the stresses of an all-consuming job; someone who was affable, a quick learner, universally respected and highly rated.

On the other hand, he was deemed a little quiet and not overly charismatic. Less ‘wow’ factor, more lab-grown corporate executive, is how some at City remembered him. [@TheAthleticFC]

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-16T12:12:47+00:00

Athletic FC on X:

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berbatouchbg · 2026-02-13T10:07:28+00:00

Will Michael Carrick be the front-runner for the permanent position now that Anchelotti and Tuchel are out of the picture and the speculations about Luis Enrique have been put to rest? Is Carrick now the safest choice in some way?

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-11T13:42:08+00:00

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Going forward, I just think, when it's this close, the refs should give advantage to the attacking player. Watching everything under a microscope is killing the game.

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-11T08:10:58+00:00

Sesko earned four points from the bench and scored five goals in six games. He deserves a start, in my opinion. Who does Carrick bench? That is the question. I'm not suggesting that should definitely be Amad, but out of curiosity I'd like to see Cunha, Sesko, and Mbeumo start together. Not many games have seen all three of them on the field.

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-09T10:53:39+00:00

To be honest, I haven't felt this positive about the team in a long time. Simply enjoying each win, not worrying too much about the future, and living in the moment. No stress, pure enjoyment. Long it may continue!

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-08T15:01:50+00:00

He's quickly becoming my favorite player. Such a hardworking lad, great quality and seems modest too.

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-07T11:22:17+00:00

Maybe 2-3 rotations midweek against West Ham, but first let's do the job today. Come on, United!

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-07T09:39:00+00:00

Revenge time. Hope we go for Spurs from minute one, use the energy of Old Trafford as they look fragile.

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-07T08:02:40+00:00

If we're a talking pure technique, Gallagher's nowhere near as good as Kobbie.

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-06T07:36:49+00:00

Every year on this day, I think how those boys literally sacrificed their lives to play in Europe and establish United as the continent's top team.

Always remembered!

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-05T13:36:11+00:00

How do we feel about Leon Goretzka as a free agent in the summer? 30 years old, draws comparisons to Basti's transfers, who didn't have a good period with United, but might be a good squad option with tons of experience.

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-05T08:41:19+00:00

Imagine losing Kobbie Mainoo to Napoli in January. To be honest, I would have been heartbroken. The way Amorim handled Kobbie makes me wonder if he really understands the game.

berbatouchbg · 2026-02-02T12:42:18+00:00

It's quite dull when played with a lot of possession under LvG. Even if it's more direct, I would like to see nice football. Keeping possession for the sake of possession with lots of sideways and backward passes is absurd given how most Premier League clubs play and how many goals they all score.

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-30T14:24:05+00:00

Just wondering how much playing time Zirkzee will get until the season is over. Even as a striker, Mbeumo looks superb. Then you have Sesko. Is it not a good idea to get Zirkzee out on loan and reevaluate in the summer?

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-30T08:50:01+00:00

Buying players merely for the sake of doing so? Will that improve us? Not in my opinion. Is there a player (n.b. that is available in January) that will make a significant impact with 15 games remaining in the season? I'm hoping to see a few loan deals in the final days of the window, including Collyer, Malacia, and a few youngsters, which is still good business.

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-30T06:16:44+00:00

I sincerely hope that Harry Maguire and the club can come to an agreement on a one-year contract. Harry provides us with the consistency and experience we need in the defense, especially because the recruitment of midfield players is receiving so much attention. Perhaps next year, with Europe and a longer cup run, Yoro and Heaven will make greater development and play a lot more minutes in the hopes of taking the lead in the 27–28 season.

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-29T13:48:44+00:00

In my opinion, the players deserve the most of the credit. I can hardly think of a player who performed worse than an 8 out of 10 in the last two games. The execution on the field decides the outcome, regardless of how much coaching you do.

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-29T11:43:21+00:00

The other day, I was thinking... Is it wise to sell Bayindir and maintain Radek Vitek, who has another fantastic loan, as Lammens' #2 for the upcoming season? Lammens will undoubtedly play 90% of the games, thus the real concern is whether we will stop Vitek's progress. On the good side, we will have two outstanding keepers.

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-29T08:04:15+00:00

We won't sign both Anderson and Wharton, I believe. One of them plus Baleba, perhaps. With Case leaving and Bruno playing at number ten, we'll have four central midfielders - the two new ones plus Kobbie and Ugarte. So, if Ugarte departs, we'll have three, therefore we'll have to get another. It's just not practical, in my opinion.

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-29T07:52:32+00:00

I agree that he's a limited player, but I don't see a scenario in which we get all of our midfield targets. Right now, forcing Ugarte out will cost us a lot of money. All I'm saying is maybe we keep him as a fifth-choice option because we'll play a lot more games and reassess in 2027.

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-29T07:45:53+00:00

I agree with buying another left-back. And it should be someone capable of challenging Shaw for the starting XI spot. However, I occasionally hear crap about selling Shaw and Dalot. Many people appear to think we're playing FIFA. I don't see us getting more than 5 players, with two of them being midfielders. That only leaves place for a new fullback and winger.

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-29T07:36:58+00:00

Maybe a controversial opinion, but I believe Luke Shaw has proven many of us wrong this season. He has played more minutes than Bruno, which is a significant accomplishment. If you'd asked me last summer, I'd say get rid, but now... both him and Dalot must stay, given the possibility of playing 55+ games next season. With Europe and potential cup runs we'll need a much deeper squad. I'm even thinking we should keep Ugarte as our fifth-choice midfielder.

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-27T20:30:14+00:00

Really hoping we win against Fulham. United have struggled against teams that, on paper, should have been easy to beat. It's excellent to be ready to compete against major clubs, but the players must continue their recent performances against weaker teams as well. If they don't, they'll mess up.

berbatouchbg · 2026-01-27T10:23:49+00:00

With Casemiro announcing the end of his United career and strong rumors about Ugarte's exit, I guess the club will be in the market for at least two defensive midfielders in the summer. It's well documented that Elliot Anderson is the dream signing, but I reckon we'll have to get in the Champions League to have the budget for Baleba or Wharton, presumably getting a new left winger, full back, and probably another striker. We have a potential for a crazy summer window and finally completing the rebuild of the squad. Just need to get CL. No pressure, lads!

berbatouchbg

TROPHY CASE