• We've just been notified that Microsoft have applied a fix for our server allowing email delivery again to their email services. It may take 24-48 hours to propagate across their systems. Thanks for bearing with us!

Manchester United Thread

Kagawa might be the most technically gifted player at Utd but the personnel of the squad (and history of playing) is better suited to 2 wingers, imo.

Valencia and Nani are probably the best 2 for Utd. The problem with playing Nani is your LBs aren't good enough defensively. Nani is a frustrating player but, from my perspective as a City fan, he always used to shit me up when paying against us. He is inconsistent but constancy can only come from paying. A new LB is probably the less costly option for Utd
 
again I didn't watch the full match but his partnership with Vidic is the best we've got going forward for this season IMO. The LB issue is a strange one with Fabio not being given a opportunity, I mean this kid started a Champions League final against Barcelona and played well.

Nani should be a lock on the right, the left should be Kagawa and Januzaj fighting it out. Defensively we need Vidic to be fit and to get him and Evans going in a partnership.
 
Last edited:
PIPA23 said:
what do you guys think of this interview?

http://www1.skysports.com/football/...e-not-good-enough-to-win-the-champions-league

Liverpool won 05 CL without many world class players..
Click to expand...

Yeah but that was due to a few factors. Mainly that Benitez basically gave up on the league and only played for the CL - which gave a big advantage. And the final was very much a one-off, that Milan team would defend a 3-0 lead in 99 matches out of a 100.

Generally very good teams make it to the final of the CL.

But, I wouldn't have said that if I were Moyes. No idea what his game is now. Spend all summer saying how great the squad is, wait for the window to close and now complain? Not great. The fans have known for years this is a budget squad with some ageing greatness from better days.
 
Yeah it's hardly motivation for the players for him to come out with this during a dip of form aswell. It's very strange IMO.
 
BobbyBox said:
Yeah it's hardly motivation for the players for him to come out with this during a dip of form aswell. It's very strange IMO.
Click to expand...

Yup. Very odd management.

I still have faith in Moyes and for the long stability of the club I think we should give him at least 2 seasons, but he isn't doing himself any favours.

It's gonna be fun. I was upset about the City performance, but watching us get rope-a-doped against WBA was entertaining.

United is the only team I support in world sports that tends to win all the time, it'll be way less predictable if we turn in to 'just another team'.
 
beachryan said:
United is the only team I support in world sports that tends to win all the time, it'll be way less predictable if we turn in to 'just another team'.
Click to expand...

That is Moyes problem. Most United fans are used to both winning and Ferguson. Not winning under Ferguson was acceptable because they knew that in the end they would win. They are not sure about Moyes, so they are panicking.
 
To be fair, Ferguson almost never lost two league games in a row. Maybe a handful of times in his whole career. It was part of the United identity - the ability to bounce back.

That's what is most worrying for the fans.

But I also believe the narrative is shaped by the result. United absolutely dominated the first half, and had Hernandez gambled could have been 2 or 3 up just off of Nani crosses. Then we'd hear that it was an amazing response and Moyes really had them up for it.

Instead, Adnan tries a risky pass (poorly) to Buttner who is overlapping, leaving an entire flank exposed, doesn't track his man who beats only one player, a static Ferdinand, and the narrative becomes how well WBA are playing. That was at 0-0 when United had had virtually every chance of the match.

To me we were exactly the same as last year, but this time RVP didn't produce some magic. Everything else felt the same. We're easy to play against, because you can sit deep and we don't create much except crosses, and our midfield is so slow that they can't protect the back four. At home when we're expected to attack all match, just bide your time waiting for us to get more and more desperate for goals, and then pounce on the break when a pass (like Adnan's against WBA) is done in a risky situation.

I'm shocked we haven't seen Moyes take us back to basics - a well-drilled, defensive solidity, and let the front 4 do the attacking. Instead he gives Ando and the full backs free reign to overlap, and we pay for it.
 
The RVP-factor in winning the league was underestimated IMO.
I've been saying this for a couple of year now (and i don't mean to offend the Man Utd fans, i really mean it), to me it's a miracle Man Utd are competing for titles and even winning them with this current crop of players.

They have 4 world class players: De Gea - Rooney - Kagawa and RVP (i might include Hernandez too, he must be one of the best finishers in the world, the problem is that he is not a starter).

Then there are the legends who are getting too old: Giggs-Ferdinand and Vidic. At their peak they were among the very best players but the yare past their peak now.

For me players like your Brazilian SB (sorry forgot his name) and Nani are also very good, but they aren't used that much.

It is too soon to judge Fellaini.

Carrick is great, but he should have a more creative players beside him.

The rest of the team is not good enough for a big club like Man Utd.

Compare this to the sqauds of Man City, Chelsea, but also Spurs and Arsenal and IMO Man Utd have less quality than those teams.

Yet the past seasons they always competed. That was overachieving.

Now you have a newe manager and the team is achiebing at it's level: performing normally for the quality that is in it.

Give Moyes the time, even if he makes mistakes (Zaha should get his chance, Januzaj should play more and Young should be shot towards in black hole in the universe).

It's not that Moyes is underachieving, but Ferguson was massively overachieving. The fact that Man Utd lost to a team like Basel and that Athletic de Bilbao outclassed them should have been a warning for Ferguson and the board, but the club did not buy enough quality players.
 
Once he utilises Nani and Kagawa and Van Persie is back, I think they will start to be a force again.

With those and Rooney moving forwards and supporting eachother, I have no doubt they will get back up and running again.

If you had another quality winger/attacking wide forward instead of Young say in January, then they are well on their way.

The problem is confidence, it can be a cancer if they don't start getting better results soon. Moyes saying what he said now, just was a silly move imo, he is probably right in some ways, but to say it out loud is not right, especially at this time.

He needs to start giving his team belief.

Start playing Januzaj and Zaha more as well, sometimes when you are down, putting on talented youngsters that are bursting to play, will give the team a lift and can offer something different.
 
There were whispers in the crowd at OT that RVP hasn't been injured lately, but that there's been a bust up between him and Moyes. Hopefully there's no truth to it though...

The whole setup is still trying to find it's feet. It was a discussion on the long (very long!) journey home on Saturday, and to me it's the new back room staff that's the biggest change.
We all knew Mulensteen would be a big loss, and it was always good to see Micky Phelan on the touchline talking/shouting to the players to guide them.

Rotating players is fine to do. In fact it's a good thing.
But one of Vidic & Evra need to be on the pitch otherwise we have no leaders.
One of my gripes with Jonny Evans is that he needs to be told what to do. He looks good alongside Vida, but on Saturday, everytime he turned to Rio, Rio was too far away from him & not communicating. Hence the nice big gap & static defending.
My opinion is that one of Jones or Smalling should partner Vidic, which lets them play in their favoured role, and let one of the twins play at RB.

I'm not going to start on the midfield...!
 
We've always known that we'll drop in quality for a few years...but this is really painful to watch. The poor decisions, squad selections....making it worst of all is how the press loves it and write all types of stories about the squad, staff, and all relations going abust.
 
Moyes trying to dampen expectations isn't a good idea, its alien to the fanbase. It doesn't take a genius to know were not at our powerful best at the minute so chellenging for all honours isn't likely however we always should aim for those dizzy heights irregardless.

to try and tell fans making the last 16 of the Champions League would be a success is baffling.
 
Small club mentality.

Agree with gerd's post, although the biggest factor Utd have had over the past seasons is that they've had decent strength in depth. Not top quality depth like Real Madrid's or Bayern's bench but good enough to get them through a title challenge.

It was clear Fergie was overachieving with the side ever since Ronaldo left but his failure to address long standing issues has left his successor with problems.

Having said that, Moyes does have enough talent at his disposal to finish in the top 4. My prediction before the season started was that we'd finish 3rd but have a good cup run in one of them.
 
Can't disagree with all the sensible posts here. Who knows what Fergie did to squeeze the performances out of some players, but he did and Moyes isn't likely to have that ability too.

It'll be interesting to see what happens. The Tamba Bay Bucs game this weekend was like half empty, and they slumped to another defeat. The Glazers have to start investing in that team or sell it - it can't be all that profitable as it is. That would obviously mean less is available for United.

Which is worrying, because as Gerd points out, this squad needs some serious refreshing. Almost a Spurs style clean-out. But can the Glazer's afford that? Do they care? I'm not convinced.

In fact, despite all the chat otherwise, I worry this new EPL TV deal might be the ruin of us - because the increase in revenues would basically offset the loss if we miss out on the CL. And if you're the Glazers, imagine being able to keep spending in line with mid-table teams, but keep earning as much as you currently are? Happy days.
 
Best reserve lineup in ages - including Cole, Fabio, Zaha, Janujaz, W. Keane etc. Tearing Bolton apart, goals haven't quite come but best I've seen United play in ages.

Wilf Zaha is an absolute monster. He is totally outshining everyone on the pitch - his pace and ability with the ball are almost literally unstoppable so far. No idea why we haven't seen him yet, looks seriously good.
 
Think there's an overreaction going on.

Utd have always had the odd slip up at home. It just so happens this year that it happened after a tough run of fixtures, the results of which would not have been alien under Ferguson.

3rd at worst in the league. As far as the CL goes, they'll get out of the group and then who knows what can happen
 
If he pulls a Pogba I'm giving up on football ;)

So, so graceful on the ball. As one of the commentators said - it look like he's barely jogging until you notice he's raced past a full back.
 
I don't think they were ever alerted to his availability or were probably too busy failing miserably to get Herrera/Fabregas. Arsenal were in the right place at the right time.
 
Ozil or no Ozil I think the same results would have happened, then Moyes would have been blamed for wasting 40 odd million

I think Moyes has to now keep a strong spine in the starting Xi with the likes of Vidic, Carrick, Rooney, RVP must starts. I'd keep Rio and Young well away from starting for a while

-----------------De Gea
Rafael-----Vidic-----Evans-----Evra
-------------Carrick----Cleverley
Nani-----Fellaini/Kagawa----Rooney
--------------------RVP

There's plenty of players to battle for places and keep things fresh, but never ever play such an unbalanced team like that on Saturday again!
 
bebo said:
still can`t figure it out Mutd said 'NO to Ozil' :CONF::LOL:
Click to expand...

Yeah nothing I've read indicates they ever pursued him in any way. Idiotic in hindsight perhaps but it seems like very few were aware Ozil was even an option to be released from Real. W our strikers Ozil could've broken some serious assist records. Hopefully the likes of Kagawa and Januzaj will deliver on their promise thisseason...:))
 
Metallica said:
Ozil or no Ozil I think the same results would have happened, then Moyes would have been blamed for wasting 40 odd million

I think Moyes has to now keep a strong spine in the starting Xi with the likes of Vidic, Carrick, Rooney, RVP must starts. I'd keep Rio and Young well away from starting for a while

-----------------De Gea
Rafael-----Vidic-----Evans-----Evra
-------------Carrick----Cleverley
Nani-----Fellaini/Kagawa----Rooney
--------------------RVP

There's plenty of players to battle for places and keep things fresh, but never ever play such an unbalanced team like that on Saturday again!
Click to expand...

Fellaini behind the striker?
tumblr_m77um7d6tW1rziwwco1_250.gif


Rooney should play behind RVP or upfront himself with Kagawa coming in if RVP isn't fit.

I think we'll go with 3 in midfield tonight though.
 
I think Moyse should play something like this:

------------Van Persie-----
--------------Rooney-----
------------Kagawa---------
Januzaj------------------------Nani
-----------Fellaini-------
Evra--Vidic-Smalling*--Rafael

Obviously it's going to be controversial, dropping Carrick for instance, but I think this would be an attacking team (perhaps too attacking out wide) and the full backs and Fellaini would have to be told to keep defensive discipline. The advantage is it would give game time to players like Rafael, Januzaj, Kagawa and Nani and he really needs to bring these players into the starting 11 now as you need to get the squad age down a bit. Maybe this season he can afford to grow the team a bit (at the expense of results) as bringing in younger players needs to be done sooner rather than later. You could really do with a young defensivly solid left back to phase out Evra.
 
I agree that Fellaini should eventually play at the side of Carrick but he needs to be bedded in and maybe playing behind striker is the only way he can get his fair share of game time. He didnt have a clue against City. The only other possibility would be to play him next to Carrick against the "lesser" teams and then further up or not all against top teams, for now that is anyway
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom