Manchester United have fallen a long way since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement but former players still understand the desired mentality.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s 2013 retirement was always going to set Manchester United back.
Few could have predicted that, come 2025, United would be sat in 14th place in the Premier League table and with European hopes for next season dwindling.
David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Erik ten Hag and now Ruben Amorim have all had a crack at bringing United back to the top.
United are still stuck on 20 league titles though and the last 12 years have been a difficult ride for United supporters.
They say that it’s always darkest before the dawn but United fans will be left wondering just when the club will back challenging at the top again.
Photo by Marcelo Endelli/Getty Images
Photo by Marcelo Endelli/Getty Images
Ander Herrera on Manchester United mentality
One man who at least understood the demands at Old Trafford is Ander Herrera.
Snapped up from Athletic Club in 2014, Herrera became a firm fan favourite in his five years at Old Trafford.
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The Spaniard racked up almost 200 appearances for United before joining Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer.
Now 35, Herrera recently signed for Boca Juniors as he joined forces with Sergio Romero, Marcos Rojo and Edinson Cavani.
Herrera has now spoken about United and the demands around the club with a three-word verdict – ‘only winning matters’.
As quoted by Tuttomercatoweb, Herrera feels that ‘you have to win’ at Boca, exactly the same as with United or even Real Madrid.
That mentality has not brought results for United in recent years but Herrera believes nothing but success should be tolerated at Old Trafford.
“My career in Europe has gone well and I wanted to give myself this gift. To experience this club that is unique in the world. Whoever wants to be on par with Boca will lose because the passion here is incomparable,” said Herrera.
“At Boca you have to win, nothing else matters, you have to accept this request, it’s like when you play for Manchester United or Real Madrid, only winning matters,” he added.
Manchester United need Ander Herrera’s mindset
That mentality is something that Herrera may well have experienced under Van Gaal, Mourinho and Ten Hag but it seems to have been whittled away.
Not only are United in the bottom half, but Ineos are now aiming for Europa League football as a minimum over the next four years – and may not even hit that mark.
Ruben Amorim is even playing down the Europa League, suggesting that he is focusing on the long-term rather than winning a trophy.
That won’t sit well with some United fans, who want to actually experience some success after a fairly miserable season.
The standards have dropped; it was once unthinkable that United wouldn’t be in a title race, now Ineos are hoping for the Europa League.
‘Only winning matters’ sums up what United used to be and we want to see that mindset once again – but getting back to that point will take time, patience and investment with United a long way away from sustained success.