Friday 11 May 2018 08:16, UK
Jamie Redknapp admits Manchester United's style of play leaves him cold - and says their big-name players are not working in Jose Mourinho's system.
United made sure of second place in the Premier League with a point at West Ham but they produced another uninspiring attacking display as they toiled in the London Stadium stalemate.
Redknapp was left unimpressed by a display low on "fluidity and joy" and declared them a "long way off" rivals and champions Manchester City.
Speaking from the Sky Sports studio after the stalemate, Redknapp said: "You'd normally say finishing second and reaching the FA Cup final, would be great but when you look at the money they've spent in the last few years and watch how they play...
"United fans have been blessed watching some great sides but it's hard to watch this United side. There's not a lot of joy in their play. I still think (Jose's) searching for something when you look at the teams and systems.
"The big-name players have not really worked for Jose. Whether they'd work for another manager, I don't know, but they're not working for Jose. He's questioned the mentality of his team often.
"I think they're a long, long way off from competing with Manchester City, if I'm honest. It feels like when Jose went to Real Madrid and had to find a different way to compete with Barcelona and disrupt them.
"At the moment, when I look at United, I don't enjoy watching them. There's not much fluidity, not much enjoyment. It's difficult to watch."
Teddy Sheringham won three Premier League titles and the Champions League with Manchester United and echoed Redknapp as he compared Mourinho's "strategic" style with the self-assuredness of the side masterminded by Sir Alex Ferguson.
"It's more silverware under Jose Mourinho - that's what they brought him in for - but I don't think anyone can be that impressed with the way they've gone about it, especially again tonight," Sheringham - who also spent three seasons at West Ham - said.
"It's the point they wanted but it's not really what you expect from Man Utd, going forward and forcing the issue.
"There's an FA Cup final between Manchester United and Chelsea to come but while you'd always expect humdinger between those sides, you know Jose is going to try and win the game in a strategic manner, not in the way Sir Alex would have approached it, saying: 'Show them what you can do, put them under pressure and they'll crack with our intense football'.
"It's not like that with Jose. You're breaking down teams and it's not easy on the eye."
