{"id":297247,"date":"2023-12-05T23:26:47","date_gmt":"2023-12-05T23:26:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/?p=297247"},"modified":"2023-12-05T23:26:47","modified_gmt":"2023-12-05T23:26:47","slug":"riath-al-samarrai-paranoid-man-united-shoot-themselves-in-the-foot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/soccer\/riath-al-samarrai-paranoid-man-united-shoot-themselves-in-the-foot\/","title":{"rendered":"RIATH AL-SAMARRAI: Paranoid Man United shoot themselves in the foot"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1> RIATH AL-SAMARRAI: Manchester United have shot themselves in the foot by banning journalists. Their truth is that this season has quickly unravelled into a shambles\u2026 this is the last refuge of the desperate<\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Manchester United on Tuesday banned several journalists from Carrington\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Reporters from Sky Sports, ESPN and Manchester Evening News were banned<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Erik ten Hag has not located the soul and heartbeat of United and, without it, they are screwed &#8211; Listen to It&#8217;s All Kicking Off<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Losing on the pitch, taking leave of their senses off it. If anything could quite capture the turmoil, panic and sheer irrationality at Manchester United, it was their decision yesterday to ban a number of journalists. Naturally, they missed their target and the point.<\/p>\n<p>If this latest debacle serves as proof of anything it is that this is a once great club fumbling in the fog.<\/p>\n<p>But we knew that already, just as we know there is disillusionment among the playing staff. We know because we hear it from sources at the club and beyond and have done for some time.<\/p>\n<p>Those stories this week of a fractured dressing room, which prompted the ejection of toys and reporters from the Carrington pram, were new updates to an ongoing theme.<\/p>\n<p>That they were delivered by credible and respected journalists means they can be safely trusted \u2014 the cohort includes reporters who have been around the club for many years.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/05\/20\/78615261-12829015-image-a-16_1701809909499.jpg\" height=\"315\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Manchester United banned several major news outlets from attending Erik ten Hag&#8217;s press conference on Tuesday<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/05\/20\/78592963-12829015-Sky_Sports_chief_reporter_Solhekol_has_been_banned-a-21_1701809967476.jpg\" height=\"476\" width=\"306\"><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/05\/20\/78593245-12829015-ESPN_s_Dawson_is_among_the_other_journalists_banned_by_United_fo-a-22_1701809967505.jpg\" height=\"476\" width=\"306\"><\/p>\n<p>United did not allow either Sky Sports&#8217; Kaveh Solhekol (left) or ESPN&#8217;s Rob Dawson (right) to attend Tuesday&#8217;s press conference, ahead of their match against Chelsea at Old Trafford<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/05\/22\/78615397-12829015-The_club_were_angered_when_the_journalists_had_failed_to_contact-a-21_1701814579374.jpg\" height=\"460\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>The club were angered when the journalists had failed to contact the club prior to publishing several stories<\/p>\n<p>Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>They will know players, staff, agents and hangers-on and the journalists are well aware that United are not United.<\/p>\n<p>That doesn\u2019t make the club unique \u2014 look to a struggling team and you will find a tense mood and a few outliers. Look to a successful squad and you will see a player unhappy that he is not part of it.<\/p>\n<p>That is natural. That is life in the furnace, in football and sport, in newspapers and broadcasters and life in general.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/05\/20\/78592965-12829015-The_ban_was_put_in_place_by_United_s_communications_director_And-a-23_1701809971462.jpg\" height=\"310\" width=\"306\"><\/p>\n<p>The ban was put in place by United&#8217;s communications director Andrew Ward<\/p>\n<p>But United\u2019s manoeuvre in the face of journalistic criticism is very much the last refuge of the desperate. It is an act of paranoia. It is the wafer-thin armour of a club that wishes to evoke the muscular spirit of Sir Alex Ferguson \u2014 \u2018youse are all f****** idiots\u2019 \u2014 but their illusion left with him. It is the behaviour of a club no better at plugging leaks than manager Erik ten Hag is at stringing together wins this season.<\/p>\n<p>His employer\u2019s point in all of this is what we might consider insular territory. The nitty gritty. The weeds. It is interesting to journalists because it is part of daily life, but to the outside it was blissfully invisible, or it was until United made it public.<\/p>\n<p>The crux of their gripe is that they were not approached for comment on stories, citing their need for an opportunity to \u2018challenge or contextualise\u2019. Often there is great merit in those discussions and occasionally there is a legal necessity, too.<\/p>\n<p>But other times, and all journalists know this, it becomes a forum for the subject of enquiries to limit legitimate reporting. To muffle. To use those informal, background briefings to soften the edges of a story without putting a fingerprint on it.<\/p>\n<p>Those exchanges can be valuable and informative, and there are many excellent, honest operators at many clubs, but anyone who believes full transparency is forthcoming in such conversations has a remarkable generosity of spirit. They will see presents under the tree this month and see only magic.<\/p>\n<p>United\u2019s truth is not one of an organisation that has been hounded and criticised beyond reasonable boundaries. Their truth is that this season has quickly unravelled into a shambles of their own making, factoring in the flip-flopping of the Mason Greenwood saga, the Jadon Sancho mutiny, the immovability of the Glazers and the dross we have seen on the field.<\/p>\n<p>With six defeats in 14 Premier League games, they are in a mess. They are a club where the players can see what we see \u2014 backwards momentum from the promise of last season and no discernible playing style. There are no markers of progress.<\/p>\n<p>That the men on the pitch are not unilaterally onboard was as good as confirmed by Ten Hag on Tuesday when he said: \u2018I listen always to my players and I give them always opportunities to speak.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/05\/21\/78616881-12829015-image-a-34_1701811541531.jpg\" height=\"383\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Sir Alex Ferguson had tried to ban several journalists from press conferences when he was Man United manager<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/05\/22\/78615365-12829015-Reports_this_week_had_claimed_that_there_were_fractions_within_t-a-22_1701814579376.jpg\" height=\"482\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Reports this week had claimed that there were fractions within the Old Trafford dressing room\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/05\/20\/78615401-12829015-image-a-19_1701809954350.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>United have endured a difficult start to the new season, with the club&#8217;s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League hanging by a thin thread after their 3-3 draw to Galatasaray\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2018If the players have a different opinion of course I will listen, but they haven\u2019t told me that, or maybe one or two have. But in general, the majority, they want to play like this.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>It would perhaps be misguided to go in too hard on Ten Hag on this particular issue.<\/p>\n<p>He has shown strong leadership at times \u2014 the Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo situations showed backbone \u2014 and his intolerance of poor discipline is another trait we usually commend. At United they need it.<\/p>\n<p>But as a denial it was like so much else at the club \u2014 a swing and a miss in the act of United making themselves look foolish.<\/p>\n<h3>IT&#8217;S ALL KICKING OFF!\u00a0<\/h3>\n<p><span>It&#8217;s All Kicking Off\u00a0is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football, launching with a preview show today and every week this season.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube , Apple Music and Spotify<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2017\/08\/02\/636x90_facebook_ad_sport.png\" width=\"636\" height=\"90\"><br \/>\nSource: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/football\/article-12829015\/Man-United-Ten-Hag-Ferguson-carrington-journalists-Old-Trafford.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>RIATH AL-SAMARRAI: Manchester United have shot themselves in the foot by banning journalists. Their truth is that this season has quickly unravelled into a shambles\u2026 <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/soccer\/riath-al-samarrai-paranoid-man-united-shoot-themselves-in-the-foot\/\" title=\"RIATH AL-SAMARRAI: Paranoid Man United shoot themselves in the foot\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":297246,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>RIATH AL-SAMARRAI: Paranoid Man United shoot themselves in the foot - Sportstoft<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/soccer\/riath-al-samarrai-paranoid-man-united-shoot-themselves-in-the-foot\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"RIATH AL-SAMARRAI: Paranoid Man United shoot themselves in the foot - Sportstoft\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"RIATH AL-SAMARRAI: Manchester United have shot themselves in the foot by banning journalists. 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