01 Jul 2020 11:50:03
While clearly the team needs a few signings to kick on I'd like to make a point about missing out on players.

The club want to sign Jadon Sancho, and there is a good chance we will sign him. Yet missing out on him might not be the worst thing in the world. On here I'd imagine there will be a meltdown if we don't sign him this summer. The usual cries of incompetence, penny pinching, not focused on football, of missed opportunity etc etc.

Yet when we missed out on Ronaldinho we instead signed a young players called Cristiano Ronaldo, which turned out arguably better than had we signed the Brazilian.

If we miss out on signing Sancho then maybe that will give an opportunity to Greenwood, or maybe we will sign someone else. Either way it might not be the disaster many will think while caught up in the hyperbole.

Greenwood at the start of the season looked like a talent for the future. However over the course of the season, and especially since the restart, he is showing that he is a player for the here and now. He seems like a player on the cusp of making that jump from young talent to genuine first team player.

He is starting ahead of James, Mata, Lingard and Andreas Pereira on the right side of the attack on merit, not on what he might achieve in a few years but on what he is achieving right now.

If we sign Jadon Sancho I'll be over the moon. Yet if we don't we might just have a player with more talent ready to make the leap that Sancho needed to move to Germany to make.

1.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 12:40:03
I agree about Greenwood. I think that place in the first eleven is his at the moment. When he plays he delivers.

He will need careful monitoring and resting at times. Also, he will need good coaching to improve on how to play that position on the right.

2.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 12:42:40
I don't see how people can or can't complain this year with C.V. Its got to have a big affect on transfers.

3.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 13:07:17
I wrote a predictably lengthy post about Greenwood a couple of weeks ago that wasn't met with much enthusiasm on this forum.

I hypothesised that Greenwood was perhaps a prefect solution to our problematic right wing/ right forward position. Many posters speculated that Greenwood could be better deployed upfront as a No9 or backup option for Martial and that he wasn't perhaps ready to be a regular starter in our first time.

I think at this stage of his career Greenwood is tailored made to play on the right side of our attack. As we saw last night, he is very good at finding little pockets of space in between the full back and CB making him difficult to pick up. This also creates space for our full back to over lap and provide the team with more width. When Greenwood receives the ball in or around the box he is brilliant at manipulating the ball creating just enough space to unleash a powerful shot where he is able to hit the corner of the goal with unnerving accuracy. The more we can feed him the ball in those pockets of space in and around the box, the more of a threat he will become and the more goals he will score.

In my opinion Greenwood is perfect for games where we will dominate possession because he has the ability to operate in tight areas and shoot with power and accuracy. In my last post somebody suggested that we are not a possession based team however with the signing of Fernandes and the return of Pogba I think we have already demonstrated that we are now capable of completely dominating possession against the vast majority of teams in this league. I think Greenwood can be instrumental in overcoming teams that will sit deep and try to defend their box.

Whilst I agree it's important not to get carried away or place too much pressure on young shoulders in my opinion Greenwood has the skill set to help balance our attack providing us with a lethal and deadly option off the right side.

His future may ultimately be at CF but at the moment he can make an enormous contribution playing off the right. Sancho is no doubt an attractive option and a brilliant young player but in Greenwood I honestly believe we have a very special talent on our hands. Despite his tender years and a feeling of responsibility to protect and nurture young players sometimes you just can't ignore raw talent or hold them back any longer. Greenwood has proved he is our best option off the right and he might just save the Club a fortune this summer.

4.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 13:15:03
100% jred, how can it not impact us in someway. Those who think it will be business as usual or that we can take advantage over other side's might be in for a ride awakening.

We may well weather the storm better than most, but that doesn't mean we can splash out and sign 3 players for 80m plus. We have a huge wage bill and need to offload player which will be harder than normal and we will likely have to accept lower than usual fees (which means lower than the low amounts we normally get when selling players) .

One thing that I took from last night's game which seems to have been skated over is the severe drop off in quality once Bruno and Pogba left the field. Which when we think that Pogba could very well leave this summer highlights the lack of quality in depth.

Bruno has been a revelation, but we are an injury to him away from being no better than last year.

Although I'd love to see Sancho sign, it might be more prudent to sign someone much cheaper and invest instead in squad depth in midfield and other areas so we don't have to see Lingard or Andreas Pereira too often next season.

5.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 14:40:10
shappy, do you not think by the time pog and co left (5subs ) the game was dead .
Both teams had a eye on the next game.

6.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 14:55:52
Completely Jred, we were happy to see it out, get some minutes in a few players legs and rest a few others. While Brighton will have seen it as a lost cause and thinking more about points they could pick up in other games.

I rate McTominay and I think Andreas could be a decent enough squad player. Yet the drop off in quality they have compared to Bruno and Pogba is huge.

When City rest KdB and David Silva they have a choice or Gundogan, Bernardo Silva and Foden.

When we rest Bruno and Pogba we have a choice of McTominay, Lingard and Andreas Pereira.

I'm happy with McTominay he offers something different, but is lacking in creativity. If we had Donny van de Beek and James Garner or Hannibal Mejbri on the bench instead of Lingard and Andreas Pereira then we would be a stronger squad for it and better able to sustain a title challenge across a whole season.

So I think the point still stands. We have given Lingard and Andreas Pereira a whole season to step up. They haven't been able to, at some point you need to cut your losses and move on.

7.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 15:12:32
Shappy they can't replace KDB or aguero imo far better team with them in it .
What do you think of the scouse with out salah and mane?

As for options we are looking at grealish, which is fine by me .
Was lingard even on the bench last night?

8.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 15:32:20
DLIB, a few months ago I suggested that we could give James and Greenwood a run at RW and not sign Sancho. While I feel that if Sancho is available and wants to come to United we would be fools not to pursue him. At the same time Greenwood has really stepped up in a way few expected (although many probably hoped) .

I could see Greenwood spending a couple of seasons wide right learning the game, developing and growing into his body before moving central.

2 years ago many people though Rashford was being wasted on the wing and that he would eventually become a centre forward. Now though most agree he is better out wide. Martial has shown this season that he shouldn't be played out wide and is a bigger threat when played centrally. Who knows where Greenwood will end up playing.

Generally I'm not a huge fan of having similar type players playing on either wing (forwards who will look to cut in onto their strong foot and shoot in Rashford and Greenwood's case), I feel you get more from a side if you have some balance, maybe one who'll cut in and another who'll stay wide and stretch the pitch. Yet, it works fairly well at Liverpool with Mane and Salah, so it can clearly work playing two players with a similar style.

If Greenwood is to play on the RW then AWB will need to be more productive in the final third offering an overlapping option. Although based on last nights performance of an assist for Greenwood and nearly an assist for Williams clearly AWB can improve his creative output.

Greenwood has as much if not more natural talent than Jadon Sancho, however, just like Sancho he needs to play games to show and to develop it. I don't think missing out on Sancho would therefore be the disaster many worry it could be.

9.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 16:06:50
Shappy I think we're on the same page mate I just think Greenwood can be a real asset for us on that right side. I don't like labelling young players and just because they've done well at youth level in a particular position it doesn't necessarily mean that's where they'll ultimately end up playing. At the moment Greenwood can do a good job for us on that right side and he is perhaps now ready to play more regularly in the first team than anyone could have expected.

James has been heavily criticised by some and whilst he sometimes lacks end product or composure he remains a real threat against teams where we can play on the counter. We have really good options in my opinion.

I can see why the Club like Grealish. He has quality, is creative and has that maverick ability to make something out of nothing. He can play in a variety of positions and will undoubtedly bring extra depth and quality to the squad! I think we all saw that when Pogba and Fernandes went off the standard of our attacking play and our ability to retain possession was significantly reduced. We also saw this against Norwich and if we want to be more consistent we must have more players than can impact the game in the final third.

With the emergence of Greenwood maybe Grealish might be a bigger priority than we realise.

10.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 16:12:14
Jred, City had KdB out for most of last season and broke many many records so I think they can cope well enough without him. While we are seeing at lack of depth at CB and CF with Laporte and Aguero missing large parts of the season has seen City drop and be unable to keep pace with Liverpool.

All teams have key players, players which when they are out of the line up the quality of the side drops. The issue is how big a drop in quality and whether the rest of the side have enough quality to cover for it.

With Liverpool for example Salah and Mane are big misses, yet the bulk of the creativity in that Liverpool side comes from the full backs in TAA and Robertson. So while an injury to one of them is problematic they still have the other three to step up.

City have the same situation with creativity by having KdB, both Silvas, Mahrez, Sterling and Foden who they can call on to bring quality chances to the team.

Our issue is without Bruno and Pogba who will create chances? Rashford, Martial and Greenwood are great finishers, but need players to facilitate them to create. James is good if given space in behind, but is otherwise a little limited. Our full backs aren't the most creative, while none of Matic, Fred or McTominay have anything like the kind of creativity in midfield as Pogba and Bruno have.

We need to bring in more creativity in the form of another creative central player and a creative wide player. Then we will have creativity from at least four players and we will be better placed to cope with injuries and suspensions.

Its the drop off in quality in the replacements for Bruno and Pogba in conjunction with a lack of creativity in other areas of the pitch.

11.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 16:29:56
DLIB, I think we need more creativity, Greenwood has proven himself the best player in that RW spot in our squad.

As I have said above the issue is once you take Bruno and Pogba out we lack that player to transition the ball from midfield to attack.

I think we need a creative wide player, someone who can act as a wide playmaker, James is good on the counter, while Rashford and Greenwood are more goal scorers than goal creators. So I can see why someone like Sancho who has 17 assists from wide positions is someone we are looking at. It would mean that all our creativity isn't restricted to the central area with Pogba and Bruno. While squad depth and having someone who can step in and replace Bruno or Pogba without such a drop in quality will make us more competitive over the course of the season.

I can see why Grealish is being targeted and he would be a good signing. My concern with Grealish is his attitude, while I don't think he is worth close to what Villa are asking for. 40-50m tops is what he is worth. We signed Bruno pre-C.V. for an initial 47m.

Donny van de Beek might be a good option if Pogba leaves, if Pogba stays then maybe Houssem Aouar might be a better option than Grealish, more talented, tested at UCL level, younger and available for less than Grealish.

12.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 16:42:56
Shappy i think you are over complicating it .

Bruno and pogba, who most people especially you would like to sell come off in a match that was over .
If both them players where Injured for a period of time the team would suffer.
But most teams would and you won't get a player of pogba or bruno quality to sit on the bench .
Bit like the scouse if both salah and mane where out for a period of time .
We are on a 15 game unbeating run pogba has missed the vast majority.

Dlib makes z good poing, I know your not keen on him but grealish makes a lot of sense and imo is a goid fit.

13.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 17:20:26
Jred, if Pogba was happy and wanted to stay I'd be more than happy for him to stay and sign a new deal. However, he isn't happy at the club and wants to leave. Worse still he has a year left on his contact and could walk away for free next summer, while apparently that is his intention if the club doesn't allow him to leave this summer.

Pogba is one of the best players in the world when on form. Of course I'd want him to stay. However, I don't want a single player at our club who doesn't want to be here. We need players who are 100% committed to the club.

This brings me to my point, I'm saying we need more creativity based not just on the fact that we only have two players who can create large numbers of quality chances, but based on the fact that one of those players wants to leave and will do next summer if not this one.

Pogba had been injured for most of this season, while there has been suggestions that he wasn't working as hard as he could to get back as soon as possible. I have no idea if that is true, no one but Pogba himself will know if that's true. Either way with Pogba out we struggled until we signed Bruno.

As much as I am loving watching Bruno it would be unfair and risky to hang all our creativity around his neck for next season. What if he picks up and injury? The way he throws himself about its very possible. What if teams figure him out next season, double up on him or man mark him out of the game.

Grealish does make sense and I wouldn't be unhappy if we signed him. I have concerns about both his attitude and his consistency. Maybe he would step up at a club like United, or maybe he would struggle under the pressure of the spotlight.

He is 24 and had one full year of EPL football as a starter. Has been ignored for international duty, and has had several "issues" off the pitch bringing his professionalism and attitude in to question. Hardly a glowing CV for a potentially 80m signing.

Houssem Aouar has played 3 years of top flight football, has played UCL, been called up for a significantly stronger national side, has been a perfect professional and is 3 years younger than Grealish with a much higher ceiling on his ability and is available for around 40m.

I know which one makes most sense. But like I said I would be unhappy if we get Grealish. I'd just have concerns. But he would add the kind of creativity in depth that we need and would be a far more dangerous option off the bench than either Lingard or Andreas Pereira.

14.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 17:48:27
Aouar? Have we even been linked to him . young lad never played in the epl . Creative force at a team like united. Replacement for pogba . Not in my book
We will see but I think it very unlikely we sign aouar. So not even going to discuss him further
I though pogba was a virus who needed to be sold . I said it would only take a couple half decent games .
At the moment we have both pogba and bruno add grealish and look at our options up front and i'm personally ok with that . We will add another attacker as well imo .

Just an over reaction and judging on a game to game basis.

{Ed002's Note - Aouar will move, perhaps to England but not to Manchester United.}

15.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 18:29:27
Where might he go ed002?
Ive not seen a great deal of him. He is highly regarded by most accounts.

{Ed002's Note - Houssem Aouar (CM/AM) Manchester City approached Lyon about Aouar and Ndombele last summer and it was made clear that only one of those two key players would be allowed to leave then - Manchester City maintain an interest but he is not first choice, as do Juventus but the interest of Barcelona and Chelsea will have gone unless other targets are not available or too expensive for them. If Juventus can sell Pjanic and Bernardeschi, they may look to Aouar as an option to the very expensive Kai Havertz but might want to include a player in any deal. Arsenal also maintain an interest but have a financial issue due to stupidity and will need to sell to bring in funds - they are also less attractive without Champions League football and I would strike Aouar from the list. PSG are interested as an alternative to Lucas Paqueta but might want to wait to their managerial situation is resolved first. I would have expected the player to stay another season at Lyon and that he would be the last of the assets to be sold - but the curtailment of the French season and no European football means Lyon will make him available with the likes of Dembele and Depay. And his availability could tempt others to look at him - perhaps Real Madrid if Asensio or Isco were to leave and perhaps Liverpool who have a need for an AM player or even Napoli is Fabian Ruiz were to leave.}

16.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 18:47:40
This summer if pogba stays is likely to be rw sancho if a deal can be done and grealish again if a deal can be done. Possibly ighalo in jan.
Im not sure sancho will happen due to the cost. I hope that the position would still be addressed in a plan b/ c if we can't pull off the sancho deal.

If pogba goes he will need replacing needles to say.
Ideally imo dm is next most important and then a cb.
The club took huge financial hit this year. So funds will be tight and sales of players less lucrative so i don't envisage more than 2.
Cl qualification may impact that.

Imo we are very badly exposed at dm with matic being the only squad specialist and only one capable of playing the role at the highest level. He is on the decline unless very fresh. A good dm provides the platform for any team to attack. He is very experienced and all those ahead and alongside him play better when he plays.
For bruno and pogba or fred and mctom to do what they do they all need a player like matic behind them.

Matic can't do it every week and its a gaping hole in the squad.
Mctom turns over possession too often just now its the part of his game that needs most attention and to a degree will improve with experience. Matic will go next summer probably and id rather have his replacement here to work with him for a year.

But this summer funds are allocated elswhere and its a summer when funds will be a lot tighter.
As i said cl qualification will have an impact on who we buy imo and perhaps on whether we sign an extra player.

17.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 19:57:42
Ken, I fully agree that DM is an important position to look at. Matic might have solved the immediate issue but he is declining and has only signed a one year extension.

McTominay and Fred aren't suited to the sitting role.

While money might be an issue there are some great players available for fairly reasonable prices. I really like the look of Ibrahim Sangare from Toulouse, he has been excellent in a team that has really struggled and have been relegated from Ligue 1 in France. He might be available for as little at 20-25m. Which is peanuts in the current market.

While Sancho should be the first choice as he is head and shoulders above anyone else available for the RW. That said I don't think the club should be held to ransom and that value can be found in the market.

With Greenwood showing true potential on the RW then we could afford to go for a less established "name" player to come in and challenge/ rotate with Greenwood. Emi Buendía at Norwich has been excellent this season, he is EPL proven, and with Norwich almost certainly to be relegated this summer he is another who could be picked up for a reasonable fee.

If Pogba leaves and we need a CM as well as a RW, AM, DM and CM.

We could sign Sangare, DvdB, Grealish and Buendía for less than Jadon Sancho's whole package would cost the club.

We would have a much stronger squad.

18.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 20:13:29
intreasting to hear Neville saying mctom considered for a cb role .

Personally I think he has all the attributes to play dm . Still young room for improvement he can play there.

19.) 01 Jul 2020
01 Jul 2020 21:00:42
Jred, McTominay can play DM, yet I think there are two issues for him in that position long term. Firstly, his passing from deep isn't great, he will need to work a lot on that. Look at our third goal last night, it all started with that pass from Matic, currently McTominay doesn't have that pass in his locker. Secondly, McTominay's greatest strength is his energy and running power. Sitting in front the back four and shuttling side to side to cover the full backs doesn't play to his strengths. He is better placed being given a more "free" box to box role, where he can put out fires where they start, and provide the energy in midfield.

Of course he can do a good job as a CDM, but it doesn't play to his strengths and ultimately that could be our downfall playing square pegs in round holes.