News / Manchester United: Alex Ferguson delegated media duties to Carlos Queiroz yesterday, which made it a busy day for Manchester United's assistant manager.
The Scot was absent at the practice ground as Queiroz took training, worked on tactics for today's game at Fulham, announced the team, checked on injured players and dealt with the fall-out of Roy Keane's announcement that he would leave the club next summer. Everything, in fact, the manager is supposed to do.
Queiroz has taken an increasingly prominent role and as a result has come under scrutiny as never before. He and Ferguson could be called joint managers these days and it's no exaggeration to say it is not to the liking of most supporters.
Ferguson may have been booed after last Saturday's defeat to Blackburn but some of the most vitriolic criticism has been reserved for the Portuguese. He has been blamed for the abandonment of the 4-4-2 system that won the European Cup in 1999 and for bringing in a system that has led to a sharp reduction in goal output.
"This is a man derided by the fans, a man whose track record is one of failure," said Johnny Flacks of the Independent Manchester United Supporters' Association.
Queiroz is entitled to ponder how it has come to this. In his first spell at the club, in 2002-2003, he was credited with reorganising the defence to catch Arsenal and claim the title. Roy Keane has eulogised about his contribution and when Real Madrid headhunted him that summer Ferguson may have wished he had not sung his praises so loudly. The next year United trailed in 15 points behind Arsenal.
The most damning allegation is that Queiroz's system of 4-2-3-1, with Ruud van Nistelrooy as a solitary attacker, is too cagey and goes against United's famed spirit of adventure. They have not won any of their last 11 home matches by more than a single goal, the Champions League qualifying tie against Debreceni excepted, but Queiroz is unapologetic.
"The final product is to defend well, avoid goals," he insisted. "If we need to defend with 10 players behind the ball we are going to do that. Those results when you score three, four, five goals, they don't come often."
In mitigation he could cite the fact there is hardly a leading team in Europe who stick rigidly to 4-4-2. "It is a false problem," he said. "When you think about the Blackburn game, we created six or seven clear opportunities and would usually score more."
Since his one chastening season at Real Madrid the sceptics have begun to scrutinise his CV and found few medals, from Sporting Lisbon, Nagoya Grampus Eight and the New York/New Jersey MetroStars to national jobs with the UAE, South Africa and Portugal. Discounting stand-ins, he is the fourth assistant Ferguson has employed during his 18 years.
Archie Knox had a temper that could set off a car alarm whereas Brian Kidd was the sympathetic half of a good-cop-bad-cop routine. Queiroz's relationship is more like the one Ferguson had with Steve McClaren, his instincts being much more technical and scientific.
The difference is that Ferguson has given Queiroz far more responsibility and Ryan Giggs says as much in his recent autobiography. "Some said he had too much influence, but I don't agree," says Giggs. "He impressed me from the start."
It is unclear whom Giggs means when he says "some" - players or fans? If some of the players begin to doubt Queiroz's influence, United will have real problems.
