Manchester United must give Fred exactly what he wants after controversial manager comments

Manchester United's CEO of Media Phil Lynch did the club no favours by being interviewed back in November.

Lynch spoke on an 'influencer' platform and he delved into the club's social strategy. United supporters were growing tired of hollow player apologies on social media prior to that video going viral and the clip just exacerbated the anger that was building.

The talk of 'social media fan sentiment graphs' was enough to make the stomach turn, without the other aspects of Lynch's interview, and Gary Neville led calls against United's stance on social media. Supporters aren't stupid. They know when a player's PR team is behind their accounts, albeit the majority of players in the Premier League have such teams behind them in 2022.

United fans want to hear directly from their players and is that too much to ask? Honesty and transparency are commendable traits in the modern game and, while they're now a rarity, United fans got exactly that when Fred was interviewed earlier this week.

Although Fred has been a divisive figure at Old Trafford over the last few years and he's often unfairly been made the club's scapegoat, his comments to TNT Sports Brasil on Monday were enough to make the biggest Fred sceptics warm to him.

There was an endearing honesty about the interview. Fred's self-awareness was admirable and his views on United were refreshing to hear in public. He spoke openly and without a PR team managing his every word, directing what he was permitted to say.

"It's a bit strange," Fred said when asked about working under an interim choice of manager, Ralf Rangnick.

"I know in football it's important to get good results as soon as possible, but it's also important to have a long-term plan.

"I think it's a little bit