When Jose Mourinho approved a new Manchester United deal for midfielder Marouane Fellaini, it was probably the beginning of the end for the Portuguese boss at Old Trafford.

Towards the end of last season Jose would state to The Independent:

“I want to see the white paper with the United crest and Ed Woodward’s signature and Marouane Fellaini’s signature.”

That kind of statement showed a lot of Man United fans that Mourinho wasn’t prepared to evolve and play the ‘Manchester United Way’.

The Belgian international has given his all for the club but at no point since his arrival in 2013 has he looked like a proper Man United star.

Mourinho, and Louis van Gaal before him, would often use the big midfielder as a battering ram or a Plan B. His strength and height would be used if games needed to be changed, with long balls up to Marouane being the order of that particular day.

In some occasions it would work extremely well, with Fellaini rescuing United from whichever whole they’d found themselves in. The most recent evidence of this was the midfielder’s late winner in Man Utd’s Champions League win over Young Boys, a goal that would secure The Red Devils safe passage into the all important knockout stages.

Fellaini would also help defensively when the team were under attack, again using his aerial strength to his and his side’s advantage. He’s also a player that can spoil games, when other brighter teams are looking to play football.

Now the issue is that under new interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the club’s need for that type of midfielder is no longer evident.

Solskjaer wants to bring an attacking philosophy back to Old Trafford and that style requires pace, pressing and passing, not really playing to Marouane’s strong points. If anything he can become a hinderance in this kind of set-up and a distraction.

According to a recent report in The Mirror, United could be willing to offload Fellaini if they get a bid in excess of £15m for the player during this transfer window. The same article has stated that AC Milan, FC Porto and Chinese side Guangzhou Evergrande are all interested in the thirty-one year old.

It has been very telling that Ole has been reluctant to give the Belgian international game time since the Norwegian coach’s arrival. Fellaini made a brief substitute appearance in Solskjaer’s first game in charge against Cardiff City and then had another cameo in the FA Cup against Reading.

The giant midfield man wasn’t even in United’s 18 man squad for their vital Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur last weekend. The Red Devils fought hard to hang onto their 1-0 win, yet unlike during the Mourinho or Van Gaal eras the manager on this occasion didn’t throw on Fellaini to spoil the game and see out the result.

I don’t think Manchester United fans should cheer the potential departure of Marouane Fellaini. The Belgian gave them his all and when some of their creative talent struggled on the big stage, he at least provided heart and goals at important times.

That being said, his time at Old Trafford should be coming to an end. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has shown that Man United can once again play a fast, attacking game that excites their faithful and can get positive results.

I simply don’t think Marouane Fellaini can fit into that style!

 

Posted on January 17th, 2019 by scott
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