Manchester United Banter Archive January 20 2020

 

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20 Jan 2020 21:41:52
Lets look at some positives that have come from essentially the first half of the season please feel free to challenge or debate if and where you differ.
1. The emergence of Williams and greenwood. I think both have been superb in their contribution.
2. We are still in the fa cup.
3. Rashford was improving and looking like he could develop into a top player.
4. The continuing improvement of mctom. Not quite top class but he brings s hunger and desire to the team and that's missed when he is not around.
5. Fred. Duracell bunny. Again not top class imo but he has upped his game considerably and will never be caught not trying unlike some.
6. James. Again not top class but its been a huge step up for him he looks knackered. He has played his heart out in every game. We have relied on him and he has made a very good contribution .
7. We enjoyed a good cup run in the league cup and have a million to 1 chance of still making a final.
8. We are still in the Europa cup.
9. Amazingly despite being 30 points behind the leaders we are still only 5 points chelsea and still in the hunt for a cl place but i think that's a long shot.
10. AWB a really good defender and tackler 1v1. A better set of coaches will develop his attacking side. Technically good with the ball at his feet great material to work with for the right coach.
That's the 10 most obvious ones to me.
Ddg his form has picked up but his flaws exposed.
Martial some might say. I don't see it week in week out so can't really say that.
So i'm struggling to find much else.
The list of negatives ill leave to someone else.
Ill be glad to add to that debate.
So are the above positives and can anybody else see any more?
I don't see a disaster situation i really don't. I see we have fallen a long way behind but with the right coach even with these players and this squad we would be 10 to 15 points better off and sitting close to city and Leicester.
There is the bones of a good young squad there with some players with high potential.
Awb and Williams have so much more to their games. i'm not quite sure but maybe a better coach good get more out of martial.
James when used correctly can improved a lot. Rasford is developing really well.
Then of course its what a new coach can add to that in terms of experience and flair. It s the signings that will gel this bunch together.
Get the right partner for maguire is a huge priority. Bailey looks made for a chance.
The new coach needs 6 new players. Cm×2 rw×1 cf×1 cb×1. 300m plus in one summer. Moving on pogba jones smalling rojo l ingard periera will recoup half the money leaving the owners to find 150m. Give him 3 seasons as long as we see gradual improvement and a clear plan and we get our identity back i think most would be pleased with that.
I more excited about the prospect of a new coach than new players. Any top coach would have this squad plus 6 new signings fighting for trophies.

Believable4 Unbelievable0

20 Jan 2020 22:05:13
Like van gaal would, like mourinho would, like Ole would.
Groundhog day.

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20 Jan 2020 22:24:58
Ken

A scouser suggested AWB might be a good partner for Maguire, it wasn’t a ridiculous suggestion but would need some serious coaching, which we haven’t got. Williams and Greenwood have done well, but it is disappointing to see Gomes unsettled. There are questions as to why Lukaku was sold but not replaced, why Smalling was loaned whilst Jones retained, why Pogba wasn’t shipped out in the brand new Ole world. We are where we are, but a glib smile and platitudes isn’t working.

I read an interesting point about when the Scouse looked at Klopp, they realised he was an inspirational leader. We just haven’t got that anywhere in the club.

I just hope for a plan, to see a plan that isn’t emotionally driven, an inspirational leader in the managers chair and see the club heading in the right direction. It can happen quickly and that is the hope I have, that someone will wake up and grab the situation to make the difference.

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20 Jan 2020 22:46:15
Ross do you think that's a fair representation of the positives?

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20 Jan 2020 23:18:33
Wouldn't Ole not have us further up the table with 6 new signings though? Regardless of whether he's the right man or not I don't see another manager having this squad any higher up the table with the injuries we also have to key players. 5th is probably about right with this squad all the teams above us have stronger teams.

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20 Jan 2020 23:52:35
Yeah it's pretty much what I've been saying all the time and hasn't changed but what also hasn't changed is be I right or wrong I still believe Ole is the man to keep this going. I know we are not winning titles and hard to watch City and scousers.
Do people not see that we're now basically gone back to the football under lvg. I again believe lvg should not have been sacked. I do not want another mourinho, I'm willing to take the risk with Ole.

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21 Jan 2020 00:32:56
ken i am begining to think ross is a scouser.

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21 Jan 2020 04:31:41
Ken. That's a really good post.
We have some very good young players with the right attitude.
By bringing 3-4 quality players, the team can become consistent.
The team is seriously lacking leaders to look upto, that's the main concern.

Injuries to Martial, Rash, Pogba, Tuanzebe and McTominay have had major impact this season.
Really hope we bring in a DoF to oversee a long term plan.

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21 Jan 2020 08:06:26
Top perspective Ken

Axel is also a bit of silver lining but had a few little injuries.
Timbo and Dalot now back in training too.
Hoping both make an impact in the 2nd half of the season.

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21 Jan 2020 08:18:03
Ross, the league table is a bit of red herring. I would rather focus on what I see week in week out being served up. We simply have no way to know if any manager could have us performing better. But the list of teams that have beaten us this season are criminal.

The squad is extremely unbalanced with 32 centre backs and very few midfielders and attackers but this is Oles mess too. Letting players leave after the transfer window has closed was a risk and the threadbare squad are dropping like flies.

I wouldn't look at 5th in the league and be impressed. I would look at the worst win ratio of a manager in over 3 decades. A squad that plays like strangers and a manager and coaching staff that don't seem to know what they're doing.

Just because the teams like Chelsea, arsenal, Spurs are also having a poor season is not some excuse to let Ole off the hook.

There are better managers available right now and a whole host more will become available in the summer. This Ole experiment hasn't worked. Let's hope the powers that be are putting in a plan to rectify the situation because he's not the manager to push us on.

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21 Jan 2020 09:25:27
Apart from the best team in the world right now, all the other teams in the league can beat each other on any given day. Stronger teams than ours have lost to much 'smaller' teams this season.

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21 Jan 2020 09:39:30
Damon i doubt think so he got 3 this season spent 150m took over a team that had finished 2nd the season before and had taken us backwards.

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21 Jan 2020 10:15:41
Ross back to the football under lvg my ass we can't keep possession at all now. That statement process you are totally delusional. Our football could not be further away from whit wad under lvg. In fact or tactics are the exact opposite. You are not making sense at all.
Please tell me how our football is like it was under lvg. What a load of cobblers.

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21 Jan 2020 10:25:00
Top post mumbles. It’s quite ridiculous that people are using the fact we are 5th in the table to justify Ole’s position. Let’s put context onto the situation.

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21 Jan 2020 10:53:46
How is Tuanzebe a silver lining, we have mo idea how we will so as he has been continually injured.

Ken, I agree with your list but its 'positive' from the tallest dwarf view.

We have too many players who will never be good enough for United, even with new coaches and the structure remains a major issue.

I was all for allowing Ole to reshape the squad but I fear this could go either way and right now, my guess is it is going to get worse.

The Rashfird situation is a disgrace, Maguire is playing with an injury, the players were supposed to be fitter but look knackered. If Ole was not an ex player he would be gone by now, his win rate since being appointed is the worst in our history. As I said yesterday I apathetic now, I don't see anything changing and therefore we will fall further behind.

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21 Jan 2020 11:35:53
I think we all need to take a step back and look at the bigger picture here.
Ken post is spot on we are not a millions miles behind the top teams in this league and we have showed we can beat any the top 6 on our day probs apart from liverpool but that will come no problem.
It's the lesser teams that are the problem for us as they sit in but it's really hard if you don't have any flair players to unlock defences. If we can get fernandes in then you get the players back who are injured added to the youngsters who have came through we have the makings of one of the best squads in the league 2nd only to liverpool and maybe city .

I'm happy with what's oles doing I see a structure there's a plan you can see what he's trying to do much the same way liverpool fans seen with klopp. its took him 3 seasons to get them challenging for titles and oles in his first full season with IMO a stronger squad than what klopp started with.
We
need to be patient and ole needs to be backed by the board and well be back challenging soon I've no doubt .

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21 Jan 2020 11:39:23
I agree ajh totally.
I was just trying to point out that its not all bad if we have a decent coach. There is some decent material there to work with if you know what your doing.

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21 Jan 2020 12:27:29
Ken -in part agree re decent material to work with but we need 3/ 4 first teamers as a matter of urgency imo. add to that a couple of squad players, good ones not medicrity that we have resorted to and we will see us move upwards.
One earlier point above was made regarding injuries : ALL clubs have players suseptable to injuries look at city, no cb playing a 34 year mid as cb!
The blame can be pointed at this one and that but fundamentally we require a plan and stick to it. I think ole is out of his depth and the coaching staff are poor but the recruitment and those responsible for the structure of the club need to be redressed and redefined, boardroom?

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21 Jan 2020 13:54:41
Ken, really good post and I agree with your positives (we all know lots of negatives as well) . AJH, I agree with your view on Ole and as an ex player we all want him to he successful.
For me he has steadied the ship and there is the start of a team who could compete in years to come (loving the youngsters and with some new signings) . My biggest question for next season is whether this is Ole's ceiling, great player, okay manager, nice guy. And as such aside from adding players we will be top 6 fighting for a CL spot. Or if he really has it and gets us into challenging for the tile.
You can see the impact Rodgers had at Leicester with his coaching ability.
This for me (along with appointing a DOF) is the biggest decision.

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21 Jan 2020 16:13:45
2nd the year before is irrelevant we were 6th when he came after an absolute battering from liverpool. That was probably the worst Anfield performances I've seen and 1 of the worst I can remember from United. We didn't have a spell in the whole game and scored from an Alisson mistake. +==$! ='pp

So Ken are you saying we are now worse than under Mourinho? Let's cast our minds back how dreadful it was the players didn't even look like they were trying.

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21 Jan 2020 17:47:36
Damon i'm saying its miles worse. And the worst its been since 1978 to 81 actually under Dave sexton.

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Ask The Ed

20 Jan 2020 20:55:31
{Ed's Note - Ed001 has posted a new podcast entitled, Ask The Ed

Believable1 Unbelievable0

22 Jan 2020 08:57:33
:) Thanks Ed.

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{Ed001's Note - welcome mate.}

mbd              

20 Jan 2020 20:31:36
Not here to gloat but wanted to say we understand where you are now. We went from bad owners to clueless ones. When Hicks and Gilet came in we were nearly wiped out financially. The biggest problem with US owners is the sports are run completely different, no relegation, playoffs to win trophy, salary caps and so on. The Glazers saw an opportunity to take over from an excelllent group of owners invest small amounts and take out huge amounts of money. After 10 years of this the club are under financial pressures but more importantly it's being run by clowns like ours was under H&G. If the Glazers don't sell they need to at least recognize they are destroying the brand. We were extremely lucky with FSG and they made mistakes at the beginning but they learned. They adapted. The fix for you won't be the next 2 windows buying new stars it's about setting up the club for success. If they can do that now you could see results in a couple of years, if not it could be like us and take 20 more. Good luck for the rest of the season and let the gloaters gloat, after 30 years it's a bit of pressure to be released. Cheers.

Believable3 Unbelievable0

{Ed007's Note -

via GIPHY

20 Jan 2020 21:29:36
I hold no love for the Glazers. I regard their leveraged buy out and the amount of money that went to covering debt over their first 8-10 years to be the starting point of our decline, but at this point in time, the reason for the malaise is not necessarily the ownership but the management. The Glazers themselves are not responsible for the club structure, it's the CEO. Nor are they responsible for the selection of manager and players. New owners would not necessarily cure anything, especially if they leave the operational structure in place.

Some of this (a lot, perhaps) is down to bad management but some of it is cyclical. No team can stay at the top for ever. Regime changes result in changes in ethos and style, and results. United have not yet discovered an identity for the post-Ferguson era. Neither have Arsenal in the wake of Wenger's departure. New owners per se won't solve the problems - they will need to make the right decisions.

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21 Jan 2020 04:39:49
I'm not sure if the owners are mostly to blame.
We have spent close to 1 Billion in recruiting players over the last decade which have also seen us having the world's 2nd highest wage bill.

This means although we have spent money, it has been spent poorly.
Ultimately this means, we have poor decision makers with respect to footballing matters.

Unless the structure is fixed, every manager will just be another pawn.

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21 Jan 2020 09:44:30
The owners only started throwing the money around when things had started to go wrong . If they had spent some of that money on players in Fergie's later years the club would have been in a better position for the hand over post Fergie .

I know some will say when fergie left we were champions but in reality he got one last tune out of great players coming to the end of the line and decent but not hectic squad players, and was lucky it was a season with no really outstanding team around of the calibre of the current Liverpool and City teams.

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20 Jan 2020 19:25:50
So the match yesterday was a cruise did you lot even turn up, it was an easy and obvious win.

Believable1 Unbelievable0

20 Jan 2020 19:49:07
Ah there he is. Predictable mate, every village has its idiot every bell has its end.

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20 Jan 2020 19:52:04
At least when times are tough like they are at the moment, we can take solace that we are not a juvenile like mighty reds.

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20 Jan 2020 21:15:08
As someone once said, "the misfortune of others is the consolation of fools".

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20 Jan 2020 21:17:45
They do that doh don't de doh 🤣😂.

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20 Jan 2020 22:47:01
De doh.

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20 Jan 2020 19:17:50
I saw something about Lyon's Dembele, but what about Odsonne Edouard from Celtic. I've seen him a couple of times and I expect him soon in the Premier league. Which clubs have shown interest in him and are United one of them?

Believable0 Unbelievable0

20 Jan 2020 20:44:18
Get real, shopping around in the minor leagues like spl are well below the level of us united supporters, we demand the best fanciest names from the likes of Pari and Madrid.

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20 Jan 2020 22:18:09
Sooooo, you suggest we should go for Neymar, Cristiano and Messi

:D.

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20 Jan 2020 19:02:47
I've more than lost my patience with our current situation. But honestly my support of United will take an even more of a back burner if we do not sign at least a midfielder and attacker by the end of Jan. It's excuses, fake optimism and pure bs span by all levels of the club. 002 is 100% right. We are falling by the wayside. I will always love and support this club but we are dead in the water. A completely rudderless ship. Extremely embarrassing.

Believable4 Unbelievable0

20 Jan 2020 19:17:51
Until the captain and crew change, the ship will continue drifting in the wrong direction.

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20 Jan 2020 19:27:53
You really think we will sign anyone.


The club always speak out loud about all this bs but nothing gets done.


WE HAVE been searching for a dof for the past 2 years it's getting to the point now where its beyond embarrassing.

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20 Jan 2020 19:59:08
Bruno Fernandes is an easy signing.
we have no strikers and we didn't put a recall option for Sanchez even though we pay a decent chunk of his wage.

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20 Jan 2020 19:00:24
Jeez its depressing on here. What did people expect yesterday? We have a thin squad and were missing 3 big players against scream that has won all bar one of their league games this year.

I know people want to let off steam but shambles, disgrace, ridiculous, won't sign anybody, just pay the money, what's the problem, we're amateurs, and so on.

I think we're pretty screwed too, but its just a game, far more important things to worry about right now.

Believable4 Unbelievable0

20 Jan 2020 19:17:35
It's not like there isn't another local team in town we can support instead!

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20 Jan 2020 19:43:07
I think after 7 years of mediocrity, people are just fed up AJH.

I'm not entirely bothered anymore, it is what it is, swings and roundabouts but for a lot of people, they've had enough and I don't blame them to be honest.

They've seen the club been run by a bunch of amateurs, millions of pounds mis spent, players sold without replacing, owners who have taken millions of pounds out of club and ulitmately, one of the biggest clubs in the world who have fallen from grace in an incredible fashion.

Why shouldn't they be fed up or negative about it? Many a person on here spend an awful amount of money on this club and they at least have the right to say something about it.

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20 Jan 2020 19:46:25
Tony, it's not just about that one game. It's an amalgamation of the last 6 years summed up in one game. We're playing against our rivals that went 30 points ahead of us and singing "we're going to win the league". We were in a better position than them in every aspect of a football club 6 years ago. They are the champions of Europe and will lift the premier league, while our biggest player takes the piss out us and even the mediocre players like Young and Lingard want to leave.

The club is an absolute shambles at the minute. From top to bottom there are probably very few people who are doing their jobs correctly. If you are a young superstar playing football in Europe you would not want to join United.

There is no optimism for tomorrow because from the outside, the club barely know what they will do tomorrow.

It's sad that we have spent close to a billion pound on transfers since Fergie left and have the 2nd highest wage budget in football and we get served up rubbish most weeks.

It's not about being beaten by Liverpool. It's a realisation that the road back to the top might take 10, 20, 30 years. It might never come for some fans. It's the realisation that in a few short years we have squandered our position as European elite.

It's the hope that we are only a few signings away. 1 or 2 good windows away from challenging again but the reality is that we are a country mile away.

The people in charge are like kids of rich parents. They didn't work hard to get us here and they havnt a clue how to fix it.

I wasn't angry after the defeat yesterday, I was just incredibly sad at the state our football finds itself in.

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20 Jan 2020 19:51:15
I don’t disagree angel, I’ve also become almost apathetic. My wider point was some of the hysteria about what is ultimately a game. Maybe I’m just getting old.

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20 Jan 2020 20:39:18
If I hadn't seen such riches, I could live with being poor. Or something like that.

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20 Jan 2020 20:48:28
I've no issue with purple calling it as it is either angel.
But i don't get peoples frustration with signings and following the updates hour by hour.
I do understand the frustration of watching dire football and i believe everybody as a right to critisise that and the right to critisise the way the club is running the football side of the business.
Like you i'm older than some (ok most😭) on here and I've seen and experienced a lot worse as a united supporter in terms of barron years. But in all those years in the 70s and 80s I've never seen such a poor style of play that goes out week after week not knowing what we are going to get.
Its not all his fault we all know that but even with a thin squad most coaches at that level should be able to come up with a more cohesive unit than we are seeing regardless of the lack of flair.

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20 Jan 2020 18:39:16
Cant believe how shambolic our squad and depth of squad is.
And I'm not hopeful we will see any game changers with the experience we are desperately seeking arrive this window.

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20 Jan 2020 18:53:56
The fact that our wage bill is so high for the little depth we have is shocking.

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20 Jan 2020 19:13:46
We can do things in the market that others can only dream of. Pay bang average players on the same level as the world's best, yip we can do that alright 😂.

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20 Jan 2020 14:23:13
So McT and Pogba not available till Feb end. we are overplaying Fred and we all know Matic can not definitely play consecutive matches.

So those who are following the youngsters, is Hannibal mejbri ready for the first team? Would ole look to play him given the lack of available options?

Believable0 Unbelievable0

20 Jan 2020 14:41:06
He’s good, he eats the opposition for breakfast.

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20 Jan 2020 14:51:54
Ofcourse, with some fava beans! 😜.

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20 Jan 2020 14:54:22
Loves a good Chianti.

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20 Jan 2020 15:16:36
He's a kid, a talented one but Levitt and Garner are well ahead of him. Plus TFM might get a run at DM now he's back from injury.

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20 Jan 2020 16:38:51
It quite frankly will be a disgrace now if the club don’t get Bruno Fernandes deal over the line. It’s not fair even considering throwing Mejbri into the first team yet. He’s only a 16 year old kid and this is his first year in England. A player we wanted in the summer is available and we continue to mess up negotiations. We knew the price in the summer and we know it now- either pay it or move on. So much time gets wasted.

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20 Jan 2020 17:22:52
What baffles me is Garner used to make benches regularly until recently.
And suddenly he doesn't train with the first team.

If we continue playing like this
Fred, Matic, Martial, AWB and Lindelof will get injured again.

The club is a shambles and if I was someone like Rashford, I'd want to leave next year.

Don't know who, but someone said Rashford would have scored 30 goals for man city. I can't disagree.

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20 Jan 2020 17:53:37
Rohan garner and levitt have both just come back from injuries mate. Only played one 23s game.

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20 Jan 2020 18:06:12
So rohan if you were were a player you would leave. yeah?
Why hang around as a supporter then?

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20 Jan 2020 18:20:08
Garner has been injured since the Colchester game. He is just getting back to match fitness with the under 23s.

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20 Jan 2020 20:05:07
Garner has played 2 u23 games. and been back for nearly 2 weeks.
We have no midfield.
McTominay makes the bench when he's half fit.
And a almost fit Garner doesn't.

And Gomes and Chong who were training with the reserves are suddenly now first teamers.

They have no plan.

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20 Jan 2020 13:51:22
I'm seeing a lot of complaints about Zonal marking being to blame for our poor defending. The British public have never been a fan of zonal marking, just as they have taken a long time to embrace playing out from the back, technical quality over physicality, or anything that seems to have started off our shores. These things have always been viewed with suspicion and are turned on and blamed every time something goes wrong.

There is nothing wrong with zonal marking, the fact that nearly every top successful side mark zonally will tell you that it can be a very effective way to defend. Every side above us in the league marks zonally, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Dortmund, PSG, Juventus etc.

However, just like marking man for man if you do it badly it will fail, and you will concede goals. Marking zonally is a more front foot approach to defending, where as man marking is reactive.

Ultimately regardless of which method you use it is about organisation, teamwork, communication and winning your individual battles. Do all of those things correctly and you will defend well no matter which method you use.

Believable5 Unbelievable0

20 Jan 2020 13:57:41
Nice to see you found another way of defending ole and his staff.

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20 Jan 2020 14:06:23
You’re right there is nothing wrong with zonal marking.

There is something wrong with how the players are being coached to adopt zonal marking.

We are always at risk from set pieces, and never a threat at the other end. After a year of Ole, the only reason for this is a lack of coaching expertise.

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20 Jan 2020 14:09:15
Whats next out of you box of tricks? All defenders hate zonal its common knowledge when they talk about it they are like sitting ducks if the ball isn't near them.

depth ole of out. put them words in order we all know it except you and the menopausal gds2.

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20 Jan 2020 14:24:47
The one thing you forgot to mention there, is that it needs to be coached effectively to be effective.
If you have bad coaching it won't work if its coached well it will work.
So if we keep failing, and we do, i suppose its the players fault and not the coaches this season. Other seasons it was the coaches fault and the players were being coached badly.
Poor coaches and coaching will inevitably bring about poor results.

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20 Jan 2020 15:22:53
Red whiskey, there was no defence of Ole in my OP. If anything it could be seen as me suggesting that the coaching at United is at fault, which I am by the way.

The idea or method of zonal marking isn't a problem, many top teams all around the world win many titles every year with zonal marking.

My post was about the idea how people will instantly jump on something they don't understand to find blame when something doesn't work out.

Either the coaching isn't good enough and that is why we keep conceding or the players aren't good enough.

In truth it's probably a bit of both, I don't know many people who think we have a world class defence. But the reality is that after a whole year to work on defending as a unit, in whichever system the manager wants the players are still struggling to play it effectively.

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20 Jan 2020 15:26:41
your more likely to not concede if your man marking than zonal.


how anyone before a game decided that Williams would be zonally marking the best defender on the pitch is what the problem is.


keep it basic and man mark, stupid tactics.

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20 Jan 2020 16:10:00
Shappy zonal marking is reactive. Because you react when the ball comes into your area.
Man marking is pro active as you stick with your man regardless so you have it arse about face.

We line up with 4 on the 6 yard line they Atack whatever comes into their area the 3 on the penalty spot are there to block and stay with runners. Asking light weights like fred brandon or the likes to block runs is futile and awful management.

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20 Jan 2020 15:52:32
Not entirely true I think, Shappy. As in most things in life, it's not one or the other. A lot of top teams use a mix of man marking and zonal marking, which is probably the best system. Full on zonal marking seems a bit foolish to me, and full man to man isn't ideal either.

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20 Jan 2020 15:55:33
Bolger, in zonal marking does the defender, in your example Williams zonally marking VVD. Is it not the case the defender has a zone to defend full stop but the attacker can very much choose which zone and therefore which defender he attacks against? Thus basically VVD sets himself against who he fancies as the easiest choice?
I'm struggling to understand from your post if you're in favour of man marking or zonal marking to be honest.

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20 Jan 2020 16:29:45
I think Barcelona, Madrid, Juve etc may play in leagues that have more smaller and technical players. You tend to see a lot more short corners from them than you would here in England.

You tend to get a lot of players who are tall and built well in our league whether they play up front or in defence and I think a bit of common sense needs to apply if we do want to stick with zonal marking.

Yesterday was an absolute joke. If the coaching staff suggested to mark VVD in that way then surely the players should step forward and give their input? Can you imagine if we had Rio and Vidic in the box and Fergie turns round and tells Evra your job is to block VVD or mark the zone he starts in? 😂😂😂😂

If we as fans can see it and pundits can see it then why can’t the coaches or players? It’s actual common sense. You let Maguire man mark VVD. We lose Williams or Fred in any defensive capacity if VVD practically runs through them like a bulldozer.

Joint with Villa and Norwich with most goals conceded from set plays. They’re two teams who have a real possibility of being relegated. Whatever we think we’re doing or working on needs to change. I think we should man mark if there is a specific danger in the box like a VVD. If there is no real threat then stick to zonal marking.

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20 Jan 2020 18:15:29
With zonal marking the primary goal is to attack the ball when it is crossed in. Only VVD attacked the ball, Maguire and Lindelof failed to react and by the time they did, VVD was already 2ft above them heading the ball.

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20 Jan 2020 18:16:01
Basically good players it works fine. Limited players should stick to man marking.

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20 Jan 2020 08:52:57
A long week of transfer stories awaits, be ready. After yesterday the united PR machine will be in full throttle. Until it appears on the official site or we get word from Ed002, my advice is don't believe anything.

Believable5 Unbelievable0

20 Jan 2020 09:23:04
we won't sign anyone its all bs.

if we wanted fernandes we would put an offer in that we know will get accepted.

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20 Jan 2020 09:54:14
I think the club wants to create the appearance of them being busy and trying to do transfers, when in reality there is little or no commitmment or determination to complete deals. some might see the lack of signs as an indication that they are moving on from ole, I don't think that's the case, ole may though give them the scapegoat and the excuses that they want. Just please whatever you do, don't buy into this BS that the club don't want to scupper their summer transfer masterplan by overspending in January. Utter BS.

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20 Jan 2020 10:43:40
ole has been given the tools to fail. any manager that come in with the team we have and the players we never replaced was always going to struggle.

we are only 5 points off 4th but how many more injuries can we take before we are in deep trouble.

we have obviously known since the summer who we wanted to sign.

the plan was to recruit and get rid of players over the course of so many windows,

it takes time but build.

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20 Jan 2020 10:47:01
I think that's a dangerous game to play. There is already murmurs coming from the fans that the people behind the scenes are incompetent and are at fault for the clubs current situation. Gary Neville has come out and questioned why Ed Woodward still has a job at the club.

If the club make noises that they are trying to sign a player or two then they don't regardless of whether they intended to or not then those murmurs will start to grow and become chants at the stadium.

It's not a good way to deflect attention, people are starting to question your competence, so you set in motion a plan where you will look like you've failed, but tried hard? Sounds like slipping a noose around your neck to me.

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20 Jan 2020 11:03:23
Shappy whilst I agree with your logic I have one question.
Does the board or owners of the club really care if the fans kick up a stink? We haven't exactly been singing their praises over the last few years and little has changed. Neville talking about the poor sqaud depth compared to wage bill and investment, and how the board should have to answer for that etc. Maybe they should but if their remit is to make money, which we are then they aren't really failing are they.

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20 Jan 2020 11:04:18
shappy i remember the times you only heard we was interested in a player when he signed.


they would come out of nowhere.

behind the scenes done and dusted.

now it seems the club or who ever handles the process wants the whole world to know what were doing.

how many times have we been told the club are searching for DOF. what's the hold up.

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20 Jan 2020 13:42:41
I think the Fernandes transfer sums up everything wrong with the club’s approach to recruitment.

During the summer we had the opportunity to sign him: we we’re interested, the player was open to coming, and Sporting were willing to sell and had a price set.

We approached the transfer with a sense of ‘big club’ entitlement and put in an insulting offer thinking that the ‘small’ club needed the money and the player would push for the transfer.

It didn’t work and we pretended that he was never a target, and the player signed a new deal.

Cut to this month. After half a season suffering without any creativity in midfield, and no available alternatives, we go back to Sporting.

Do we put a reasonable bid on the table?

Of course not, we come back with the same low offer and the same attitude. Then the media leaks start coming out falsely claiming that Sporting have upped the price etc. Trying to make it look like Sporting are the problem.

How can you expect to do business with other clubs if you don’t treat them with any respect?

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20 Jan 2020 15:26:43
Bolger, there isn't a transfer to a top team anywhere in the world that stays a secret anymore. There are too many people involved in the process, and far too much interest for no one to talk.

Transfers take a certain amount of time, agreeing a fee, negotiating terms, sorting out the medical and insurance paperwork, ratifying the deal with both leagues, notifying stock exchange etc. Someone will talk somewhere along the line.

Plus for scouts, agents and players it's in their interest to be scene to be linked with top young players and top clubs.

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20 Jan 2020 15:29:18
danny so who is to blame for this way of doing business?


we are told time and time again its not woody wood peckers fault.

clearly its not the managers fault.


but someone needs accounting for, its embarrassing.

pay the money and move on.

what does it matter how much he costs if he makes the team better.

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20 Jan 2020 17:00:54
Ed002 has said that our recruitment team behave like amateurs and are making other clubs wary of doing business with us.

That’s where the responsibility lies, and it’s up to the board to hold them to account.

Jose tried to bring in a DoF because he wasn’t happy with recruitment. In contrast, Ole has consistently said that there is nothing wrong with our recruitment strategy. So while Ole is not to blame, he is a symptom of a broader reluctance to change the way things are run.

My own impression is that there are endemic problems throughout the club from the board to the youth

Unfortunately, as seen on here, there are enough fans happy to buy into the PR spin - praising the club for not being held to ransom, etc. This allows the our failing recruitment, coaching, facilities to perpetuate without reform.

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20 Jan 2020 08:52:15
Maguire is able to do it for England and was able to do it for Leicester but the way we concede goals and set up to defend generally is awful.

We’ve bought in arguably the best header of the ball in the league (VVD probably pips him) and the best defensive right back in the league yet concede so many sloppy goals.

We were all worried about where are goals would come from when the season started and to an extent we have been proven right as we find it difficult to break down teams who sit back and we knew we would struggle if we had any major injuries. We have still done ok though with our attackers having some dips in form here and there.

The biggest contributing factor to our inconsistency has been our defence and this is the one area where Ole was backed. I’m not sure who is responsible for setting them up but whatever they’re doing is not working.

There are managers in the league who have set their teams up to be able to defend in an organised manner with so called lesser players. If we were not so incompetent in this department we would be in the top 4 for sure.

Are the board then right if they decide not to back Ole if the one area they did back him in, he can’t get right?

Believable1 Unbelievable0

20 Jan 2020 09:48:04
The midfield is over run in most of the games due to the lack of a proper combative defensive midfielder.
This inturn exposes our CB's even more.

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20 Jan 2020 10:53:36
I think that’s a factor and agree but we’ve been doing this all season.

The zonal marking at set pieces and playing offside come to mind the most and these can be rectified if we can organise the defence properly.

We don’t have the best midfield in the league but we definitely don’t have the worst.

As I said, other teams seem to be able to do it with “lesser players”.

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20 Jan 2020 11:17:49
He never really did it for Leicester or England, just been massively overrated, same deficiencies in his defensive play now as he's had for the last 2/ 3 seasons. £80m down the drain. Need to sell him as soon as if we want improve at the back, though the club lacks ruthlessness throughout, no wonder the likes of Jones, Smalling and Young stayed here for 7/ 8yrs + and continue to do so.

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20 Jan 2020 12:12:49
Sell him? He’s by far our best centre half.

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20 Jan 2020 12:43:18
Sell him we only just bought him😂😂😂.

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20 Jan 2020 12:44:10
Some have just lost their mind GDS2 :)

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20 Jan 2020 13:04:09
I think saying he’s never been able to do it is really harsh.

As well as our selves, City were in for him albeit not at the crazy price we paid. When we paid for him, he was bringing qualities to club we did not have. Someone to help clear up long balls, clear up set pieces and someone who’s confident enough to step forward time to time and pass forwards.

It’s unfortunate that Tuanzebe has been injured as I think he’s our second best CB.

I don’t think we’ve really seen the best of him. I hope there’s more to come or we could be looking at another really expensive mistake.

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20 Jan 2020 13:34:54
Amz how often have you seen tuanzebe play 90 mins?
He is still a way off the level reqired bailly if fit will jump ahead of him no doubt about it.

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20 Jan 2020 13:35:38
He's by far our best centre half? That sums it all up then, forget he's made Lindelof worse aswell. What difference does it make if we just bought him Ken? He just isn't good enough and never will be, flog him whilst we can gain something back on the ridiculous fee we paid for him. Having the likes of Maguire, Shaw, Andreas, Lingard in the team will literally guarantee us not winning the league for another 10 years, same fans happy with Maguire are clamouring for Grealish, even seen someone on here mention Lewis DUNK🤣.

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20 Jan 2020 15:57:00
Agree with Ken. Sometimes by not playing, a player seems to become better.

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20 Jan 2020 16:33:00
Just from what I’ve seen when he has played Ken. He seems assured, quick and can tackle well. He doesn’t seem to cause any panic when he does play as one of the cb’s. Looks pretty decent on the ball too. I think Bailly is great but he can be a headless chicken at times and not always the most reliable. Lindelof is really struggling to adapt here and I would have Tuanzebe ahead of him for sure.

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20 Jan 2020 17:04:55
I think he is a decent project but miles off starting weekly for us tbh.
Talk to any villa fan they will tell you he is well short of what's required just yet.

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20 Jan 2020 07:53:40
How bad has victor lindelof been lately? He was signed as a ball playing CB yet all his passes or clearance found liverpool players the whole game.

Shaw did well but again wasnt able to complete full 90. Along with a few players we need to fire the whole medical team as well.
They would have advised Ole and co about how serious was Rashford's injury rather than aggravating it over time, now he is out for 2-3 months it seems.
Same goes for Pogba, there was no need to play him in that cup game if he was not fully fit.
Thoughts?

Believable1 Unbelievable0

20 Jan 2020 07:39:01
{Ed's Note - Ed001 has posted a new article entitled, Review Of The Day 20th January 2020

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