Moyes must banish hellish Red Devils to survive at Man Utd beyond the summer

The performance in Greece was so pathetic that the
Old Trafford boss must wield his power and make
sure those coasting never play again for the club.

David Moyes has justifiably
been criticised in his first
season as Manchester
United manager. His team have lost about a quarter
of their matches which is far too high a figure even in
a season of transition. United have not yet settled on
a style of play which defines the Moyes ethos and,
even in smaller-scale games, they have been shown
up to be unimaginative and limited.
The tactical shape of the team is something Moyes
alone is responsible for and it is he who must field the
questions when United are called out on being one-
dimensional. If his ideas are not coming across, then
the buck stops with the manager.
"Me and the team didn't show together," he told Uefa
after the defeat to Olympiakos. "We'll put it right,
we're determined to put it right and we'll have
opportunities to do it in the coming weeks. Old
Trafford's seen some great nights in the past and
we'll hopefully see another one. We'll do everything
we possibly can to reverse the 2-0 defeat."
Stepping up from Everton to Manchester United,
Moyes was always going to encounter some issues
with a higher calibre of player. He played with Robin
van Persie's fitness against Newcastle by refusing to
substitute him against his better judgement. He has
indulged Wayne Rooney far too much at the expense
of more lithe, creative players like Shinji Kagawa and
Juan Mata. He has at once overburdened Adnan
Januzaj but then cut him loose at the wrong time by
leaving him out at Olympiakos.
There is another side to it though. All the problems
cannot be laid at Moyes' door. He must have a look
around the dressing room now and ask honestly the
question: "Who is letting me down?"
On the basis of the display against Olympiakos, the
answer could be, conceivably, quite a few. Robin van
Persie seems on the verge of exasperation. But at
least he looked like he was trying.
If Moyes has any hope of salvaging United's season
then he cannot wait until the summer to begin his
clearout. There were players on the pitch in Greece
who look beyond saving and, as such, should not play
for United again.
Rio Ferdinand, one of United's most senior players,
has aimed thinly veiled barbs at Moyes for his
decision not to name the team far in advance of kick
off. He would be well advised to concentrate on his
football than the preferences of his manager. Not
once under Moyes has Ferdinand looked the part and
yet he is content to divert more criticism in the
direction of Moyes. He'd be first to be banished.
Chris Smalling does not measure up, simply put. He is
too ponderous and is incapable of making the right
decisions consistently throughout a match. He'd be
out.
Tom Cleverley and Ashley Young are all too content to
let matches pass them by without thinking to grab
hold of it and try to affect it in United's favour. Far too
passive. They'd go.
Remember that the midfield of Antonio Valencia,
Michael Carrick, Cleverley and Young, which started
against Olympiakos, was good enough to beat both
Chelsea and Manchester City away in the Premier
League last season as well as Arsenal at home.
These players simply are not performing for the
manager.