The Mailbox names four ‘spineless’ Man Utd players as Eriksen flops against City in the FA Cup final | OneFootball

The Mailbox has accused a number of Man Utd players of being ‘spineless’ as expectations of the Red Devils reach an all-time low. Plus more on Jose Mourinho and Anthony Taylor.

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The trebles (if City beat Inter) can’t be compared (but United’s was more fun!) If Manchester City rise to the occasion and manage to beat this generational Inter side, then they will have matched Manchester United’s 1999 treble. It’s impossible to compare sports teams from different generations. Brazil 1970, 90s Chicago Bulls and other legendary teams will go down in history for the way they swept opponents aside in a style that went down in history.

I don’t support Manchester City, but they are an efficient, ruthlessly, winning machine. No one will ever convince me that their (pending) treble, will ever be better than United’s.

Yes Utd spent money, but Giggs, Beckham, Scholes, Nevilles and Butt were a vital part of the team. I’m sure we’re all bored of ‘The Class of ‘92’, but it was undoubtedly pretty special!

They had some classic matches (Barca in the group, Juve away, Liverpool in the cup, Arsenal replay, Bayern in the final and even the league went to the final day.) I’m not being anti-City, they actually had the best ever prem win (Aguerooo) because that team was flawed.

Just saying, United faced Figo, Rivaldo, Ronaldo, Zidane, Del Pierro, Davids and more legends of the game. Which future legends did City defeat?

I won’t mention their money, this United have also spent, but the way they’re run, it is the equivalent of giving a toddler a big bag of money and expect anything more than a mismatch of sweets, frisbees and baseball caps! Your review illustrated this much more eloquently, when you compared the benches.

So the two teams are great, but you can’t directly compare them. At the end of the day, football is about entertainment, if we’re all honest (taking tribal loyalties aside) Manchester United’s 98/99 season was a buttload more entertaining than Manchester City’s 22/23. M (I know I compared them straight after I said you can’t compare them, but no one’s perfect!)

Erik Ten Hag is a very good coach and it was evident today regardless of the result. I have watched a lot of City games and I have not seen them resort to delay. It’s amazing what he has done this season, I looked at City’s bench and at that if United and wow, we have got absolutely nothing on the bench. Manchester United under this guy are a few players away from being a top, top team. A ball playing goal keeper is needed cos De Gea is actually hopeless at that. An energetic press resistant midfielder, a cover for Casemiro and two strikers. United should probably sell most of the players in that squad.

United have a lot of “spineless” players. Players who go missing at the big stage, Sancho, Eriksen, Varane to an extent and Weghoust. I saw why ETH wants Mount, Eriksen was non existent, he should be the lowest rated player of the match.

Joe Praise

No bottle job from city – well done. I think that was the toughest challenge to the treble but don’t count Inter out.

Ilkay Gundogan is a wonderful player – as a leeds fan who has seen him completely outclass us on his own this season, can i say he has been Pep’s best signing for City? There are more glamorous players for sure, but he makes everything look effortless. Tom

United have not had a good season  Dear F365

As a neutral watching the FA cup final, it made me realise one of Manchester City’s biggest achievements, which is not currently recognised, is how they have made United’s fans see their team as an underdog. As someone growing up under the Fergie era, a team which epitomised elite football, it is amazing how low United’s fans expectations are now of their team. They are one of the biggest, richest and most successful teams in the world and yet, listening to their fans (and some pundits) you’d think they were a Brighton or Brentford. Plucky up and comers. People can call Arsenal bottlers or take digs at Spurs for their shambles of a season, but has this been a good season for United? I remember a time when Manchester United finishing third and winning a “plastic” trophy was deemed an abject failure, not seen as a sign of progress. City’s real achievement is not their trophies, but lowering the bar of what is seen as success for United. Chris, London

Same old trope, man city have spent loads of money, man utd haven’t. Like city you only need spend the money, it doesn’t matter about the quality of player you buy, just spend the money

Man utd have spent as much as anyone, so have Everton, yet they’re nowhere near city, why?

BECAUSE THEY KNOW WHAT MAKE A GOOD PLAYER AND WHAT PLAYERS FIT THE SYSTEM THAT GUARDIOLA EMPLOYS!

Please grow up and move on, this childish assumption that you only need money sounds like the Boehly and Moshiri PFM bible of how to buy players.

F365 – just seem to be stuck in the PFM circle jerk. Fat Man (racist chanting is extreme shithousing, support shithousing and you support racist chanting – no surprise its rife in Spain and italy)

Nastiness personified Whatabout-ism arguments to defend something are always seem for what they are, an admittance of guilt. If it’s good for the goose…

Mourinho is a sociopathic narcissist. It’s always and only about him. All those who fawn over his antics or try and defend him in any way, fall into his trap.

It’s no surprise he’s more recently been likened to Trump, because he is of the same ilk. Mourinho has been getting worse, not just because his managerial skills are limited and dated but he clearly saw there was another level.

The fact he talked about his own team in a rather derogatory way – they did about as well as could be expected, they grafted hard, considering their limited skills compared to Sevilla (paraphrasing) – was intended to show how much he had done to get them there. They fell short despite his efforts. Right. Not his dated, boring tactics. But hey, blame the ref, blame the team, probably leave because the club aren’t up to his standards, etc.

But he has been whipping up the Roma fan base all year. He has a much higher regard in Italy and used that to keep his notoriety high. A country full of ultras. Did he consider that his outrage at the refs would likely cause fans to send death threats or possible physically abuse them later? Of course he did. You know he loved it. Yet another confirmation to his narcissism that he is a god in those fans eyes. Just like Trump loved seeing the idiots storm the Capitol – in his name.

He’s got history.

Hopefully he will be soon consigned to history and one in which we only remember what a truly disgusting person he is, through and through. Paul McDevitt

Refs and VAR Quite a bit of chatter all wk about Mourinho’s antics against Taylor (match official ) in last wks Europa final and not condoning mou’s behavior whatsoever, but if that wasn’t handball (and a resulting penalty for Roma) ,then how on gods green pitch do you call handball on Jack grealish today and a pen for Utd ?  Yes it’s across different comps and governing bodies and what not, but this is the same sport isn’t it ?  Didn’t affect todays outcome but makes for such ill dissonance… Eric, Los Angeles  CA

Anthony Taylor abuse… In response to Daniel, Cambridge, you can disagree with a referee all you want but you do not treat a human being like that. Not the way Mourinho did, not the way the fans did. There is simply no way that anything FIFA/UEFA have done justifies that kind of behaviour or removes blame from anyone but the fans/Mourinho for behaving like that.

If I disagree with a decision made at work I may well let people know I disagree, but I do not follow colleagues to the car park to shout at them or yell at them if I see them in the supermarket. And work matters, as they pay me. Football is a sport. A game. Hugely exciting, easy to get swept up in, but it will never justify behaviour like this.

But, yeah, thanks for making it clear you don’t blame Anthony Taylor for people abusing him. Good to know. Henry, Forest Fan

Mourinho and Ric Flair  I have to say, the first thing that came to mind upon reading Andrew Hill’s email was this Ric Flair promo, which perfectly encapsulates the Special One’s career – starts off cool calm and collected but then gradually loses all touch with reality by the end. Roland

Big baby Hey, ANON, no

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Always nice to be second guessed and called a baby by someone who signs their emails with “ANON”. So brave. So brilliant. A shining beacon to us all. First of all, Gary Neville isn’t Umberto fucking Eco. Predicting City to win the league is hardly Nostradamus-level foresight. And, to be clear, he was volunteering his anti-Arsenal forecast way before anyone was asking. It’s almost as if he is biased against his former adversary. Liverpool were never his rivals, by the way. Sky will always put him on the Arsenal games because he will always have some shit to say that will do well on the YouTube clips. It’s calculated. I’m not asking for Ian Wright every game. Just, not some cocky Manc who thinks Ten Hag is the messiah whenever Utd win, and the Glazers are the devil whenever Utd lose. Not speaking Spanish was not the reason he was a shit manager.

On listening to others’ valid opinions, it seems I might have genuinely missed the point of the 3pm blackout. If, indeed, the reasons given by a couple of emailers are correct. I understood it to be for the smaller clubs in the top division, not the smallest clubs at the bottom of the football tree. In any case, I still feel entitled to see all matches that are televised abroad. There has to be a deal made where everybody wins, and fans in England aren’t stiffed. You can’t say it’s fair for fans who pay three different subscriptions to have to miss out when fans abroad get the joyous moments you don’t deserve to miss out on. I am not responsible for any small club not making money. If I pay all the money to see my club but get denied when others in other countries get that privilege then you’d better believe I feel entitled to be pissed. There must be change. Simon, Norf London Gooner