At Manchester United, almost everything seems to be in constant motion. Managers come and go. Tactical systems are ripped up and rewritten.
Each new era arrives with fresh promises of revival and renewed ambition.
Yet, according to club legend Roy Keane, one thing has remained stubbornly unchanged — the core problems on the pitch.
Speaking after another disappointing United display, the former captain delivered a scathing assessment that shifted the blame away from the technical area and firmly onto the players.
In Keane’s view, the ongoing struggles at Old Trafford can no longer be explained by coaching decisions, formations, or instructions from the sidelines.
Instead, he believes the real issue lies with a group of players who have outlasted multiple managers and continue to fall short when it matters most.
“This isn’t about the manager anymore,” Keane said bluntly. “You can appoint whoever you like, but if the same players keep playing, the outcome won’t change.”
That statement alone was enough to spark renewed debate among supporters, many of whom have watched the club repeat the same cycle year after year.
Keane made it clear that he has seen this pattern before — and far too many times.
Different managers arrive with different philosophies, whether it’s possession-based football, high pressing, or structured counter-attacks.
Despite these changes, United continue to suffer from familiar flaws: a sluggish tempo in build-up play, a lack of aggression, soft defending at crucial moments, and an alarming inability to seize control of matches under pressure.
“Different managers, same problems,” Keane continued. “At some stage, you have to stop shielding players who keep letting this club down.” To him, the excuses have run out. The manager may change, but the mentality he sees on the pitch does not.
According to Keane, the pattern is painfully predictable. A new coach arrives and speaks about standards, intensity, and togetherness. The players respond briefly, performances improve for a short spell, and optimism returns.
Then, almost inevitably, the same habits creep back in — jogging instead of pressing, safe sideways passes instead of bold forward play, and heads dropping as soon as adversity strikes.
While Keane stopped short of naming names outright, he was clear that three particular players symbolize everything that is currently wrong with United’s mindset.
He described them as senior figures who regularly start games and should be leading by example, yet consistently fail to rise to the occasion.
These are players who slow the game down when urgency is needed, drain momentum just as pressure begins to build, and disappear when leadership is required most.
“They look comfortable with losing,” Keane said, in one of his harshest remarks. “And at Manchester United, that’s unforgivable.”
In Keane’s eyes, this isn’t a problem of youth, inexperience, or squad depth. It’s a mentality issue rooted in established players who have grown too accustomed to failure.
Until that changes, he believes no manager no matter how talented will be able to restore United to where they belong.
