The Manchester United Thread

[sunilvk7]

Striker is the utmost priority, not just now, but for the future. Rooney may be looking shaper last few games, but he is only going to continue to decline. The sooner that gets sorted the better.

Rooney will start even if we sign Messi. So signing striker means Rooney playing as 10 which is again a problem for the team.

Martial, Mata, Memphis, Young - your best player yesterday?

I have already commented on Mata and Memphis. Young played as fullback, not as a winger. It's been so many months since Young and Valencia played as wingers, Van Gaal don't count them as wingers anymore.

Buying multiple first team players in January is never a good idea. People need time to gel and learn the tactics.

Yes, so we should sign a winger with pace who can also create chances. Mane ticks all the boxes.

If Martial leads the line then you need 2 wingers, not one.

Agreed. So for now we have to stick with Rooney leading the line with Martial and preferably Mane as wingers. If we sign striker to lead the line then Rooney will play as #10, Herrera on the bench and still the RW spot will be a big issue for United.

Most of the problems will be solved by selling Rooney but it won't happen, again which is a big shame.

 

[hughesman]

And what's our wing options? We need winger as much as striker if not more. Depay, Mata both completely out of form and Mata lack pace. Martial is our only good winger.

Again, why it should be in the order of Striker first and then Mane? We can do multiple deals at the same time right, why not just sign the player who is available first instead of risking the deal.

IMO we need winger more than striker. Martial can lead the line and anyways Rooney won't be dropped. If striker is signed Rooney will be moved to #10 position which means Herrera will be on the bench. At least if we have good wingers like Mane and Martial, they will create lot of chances.

We should start with striker as we have 2, one in **** form and the other plays on the wing half the time. As for wing players, we have Depay and Mata (I agree, poor form), but we also have Valencia, Young, Lingaard, and I can mention Martial here as well. That is why we need the striker most.

If we were to sign a winger and had Martial and Mane there, what happens if one gets injured? We have a wealth of options to replace them with. Whereas if one of Rooney or Martial gets injured where is the replacement?

Again, I am not saying sign one player and be done with it, I am saying put effort, money and time into finding the best striker we can get and not just a panic buy striker. We need to invest in this position now. We may have loads of money but certainly not enough to sign both Mane and a great striker. Seeing as buying mediocre strikers will only worsen the situation in the long haul.

 

[sunilvk7]

We should start with striker as we have 2, one in **** form and the other plays on the wing half the time. As for wing players, we have Depay and Mata (I agree, poor form), but we also have Valencia, Young, Lingaard, and I can mention Martial here as well. That is why we need the striker most.

If we were to sign a winger and had Martial and Mane there, what happens if one gets injured? We have a wealth of options to replace them with. Whereas if one of Rooney or Martial gets injured where is the replacement?

Again, I am not saying sign one player and be done with it, I am saying put effort, money and time into finding the best striker we can get and not just a panic buy striker. We need to invest in this position now. We may have loads of money but certainly not enough to sign both Mane and a great striker. Seeing as buying mediocre strikers will only worsen the situation in the long haul.

Our wing options are poor except Martial, so it's very important to sign one who is direct and beat his man.

If Rooney is injured, Martial can lead the line. If Martial is injured then we are ****** anyways even if we sign winger or striker.

Besides all these there isn't a very good striker available in Jan, whereas by the rumors Mane is. It would be great if we can sign Lukaku but that's looks unrealistic in Jan.

 

[Tyton]

So signing striker means Rooney playing as 10 which is again a problem for the team.

And Rooney leading the line isn't?

I have already commented on Mata and Memphis.

You've commented there aren't options on the wing. There are.

Young played as fullback, not as a winger.

Young played as wingback.

Yes, so we should sign a winger with pace who can also create chances. Mane ticks all the boxes.

No, he doesn't. The team doesn't have problem creating, it has a problem finishing.

 

[Subtle]

Our wing options are poor except Martial, so it's very important to sign one who is direct and beat his man.

If Rooney is injured, Martial can lead the line. If Martial is injured then we are ****** anyways even if we sign winger or striker.

Besides all these there isn't a very good striker available in Jan, whereas by the rumors Mane is. It would be great if we can sign Lukaku but that's looks unrealistic in Jan.

Yeah, you could do with an actual winger, someone to stretch play and stop the middle from being so **** congested. As counter intuitive as it sounds, signing a wide player who doesn't just go for goal will probably see you score a lot more. Problem is finding one who's proven and attainable.

 

[sunilvk7]

And Rooney leading the line isn't?

It is but signing winger means dropping under performing player, signing striker means shifting under performing player to other position and thereby pushing one of our decent player to bench.

You've commented there aren't options on the wing. There are.

And in the same post you agree that Young played as wingback but still list him as wing option. If that's the case, Depay is also option for striker position. Wingers, we have number but the quality is not.

Young played as wingback.

Exactly, so not a winger.

No, he doesn't. The team doesn't have problem creating, it has a problem finishing.

And we have created lowest chances among all top teams and rank something like 16th in chances created. We had just 7 shots on target in 4 home games. Our biggest problem is creating chances and putting pressure on players to take 1 or 2 good chances that are created in the game because if those 1 or 2 chances are missed then winning game is impossible.

 

[sunilvk7]

Yeah, you could do with an actual winger, someone to stretch play and stop the middle from being so **** congested. As counter intuitive as it sounds, signing a wide player who doesn't just for goal will probably see you score a lot more. Problem is finding one who's proven and attainable.

Mane is the good option for Jan window.

Nani would have been that player but well that's for another day.

Our biggest problem is not only just stretching play, it's also lack of overlapping runs. There is 0 team play when it comes to attacking. Full back attacks but won't combine with winger. Something we are very much used to with Evra as LB and also Rafael as RB whenever he played.

Also we should use Valencia as winger to stretch play but for some reason he is not considered at all. We play Mata as winger who drifts inside a lot, Martial on left who is like inside forward. We miss someone like Valencia of past who stretched the game so well.

 

[Vanjagl]

No, he doesn't. The team doesn't have problem creating, it has a problem finishing.

Actually, creativity is a big problem for this team. Lack of pace being the biggest problem. Having a pacey, direct player is so underestimated in modern football. Mane is a fix for that problem. Is he perfect solution? Far from it. Can he be useful player? He'll yes. Will he alone solve problems United have? **** no.

 

[ImAddicted]

Diabolical to think that Manchester United don't have problems with creating chances. They rank one of the lowest with very few chances created whilst having a high conversion rate I believe. Whilst buying Mane would be a good option, I still believe LVG's style of play negates Mane's qualities and I'm not sure how it will work out.

 

[razielioux]

Morning, guys!

Have you seen this? https://uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/journalist-broke-martial-man-utd-095057018.html

The Stones, Smalling partnership would be pretty sick.

 

[razielioux]

Let the rumor mill spin....

Chelsea offer was rejected what was about 40mil? They simply dont want to sell him, even less on mid season. Maybe money+player. Stone will be sold if they wont get to EL and then also for very big price.

I was thinking about Mane. Is there truly no one better to get for that money? Even Robben?

I believe Martinez wouldn't let Stones go to Chelsea even for 60 million. The way they've approached the young fella was pretty awkward.

But imagine if United comes asking....with a decent price, with a properly working faxmachine. Give ****** Fellaini + 30 million and bummm done.

The 35+ million pounds for Mane would be the joke of the year. Just like Simeone did, LVG shall also use FM's database to look for players...Balanta, Lozano, A. Zivkovic all available for 10 million SUM.

 

[Scouseinthehouse]

Nobody of any note is leaving Everton in January regardless of what's offered.

They seriously believe they can both win a trophy and get European football this season. And with the new TV deal, it'll take astronomical sums to bag one of their heavyweights Barkley, Lukaku or Stones the summer.

Kenwrights in no hurry to sell at all.

 

[Mike.]

Nobody of any note is leaving Everton in January regardless of what's offered.

They seriously believe they can both win a trophy and get European football this season. And with the new TV deal, it'll take astronomical sums to bag one of their heavyweights Barkley, Lukaku or Stones the summer.

Kenwrights in no hurry to sell at all.

They are on the way to being bought too. No one is leaving that club. No smart player will move till they see what happens.

 

[Scouseinthehouse]

They are on the way to being bought too. No one is leaving that club. No smart player will move till they see what happens.

Yup, that too. I believe there's some wrangling over shares but that's certainly ongoing.

Everton are really trying to build something and become a player again.

*Edit* Wrong thread, but I kind of like the idea of a much stronger Everton. Always a good thing when both clubs are pushing each other and to have the Derby as a game of National significance again and not just one of local pride would be brilliant.

It's been TOO long.

 

[zzeezzy]

I actually like the fact in general that there is a majority of so called 'smaller' teams in Premier League now mixing it with the big boys, it is making the Premier League the most exciting league in the world without doubt. Seeing teams like Leicester doing what they have done this season is fantastic, actually while I'm talking about them, Mahrez anyone? Shame we'd have to wait until the summer but still.

 

[zzeezzy]

Rather than spunking a load on Mane our priority should be getting the most out of what we currently have during this mid-season, Mata has gone off the boil and has been invisible last few games. (Admittedly he did nearly score a wonder goal against Chelsea but apart from that, pretty much nothing).

Also Depay.... what a bad first half of season but we need to try and get him back to his best considering we know what he is capable of and the amount we paid for him.

 

[steveorobbo]

I actually like the fact in general that there is a majority of so called 'smaller' teams in Premier League now mixing it with the big boys, it is making the Premier League the most exciting league in the world without doubt. Seeing teams like Leicester doing what they have done this season is fantastic, actually while I'm talking about them, Mahrez anyone? Shame we'd have to wait until the summer but still.

Just shows you what a good scouting network can do. You just need to have faith in these so called lesser players and trust them to do a job. Look at Mahrez, Kante, Dele Alli etc. Great players so far, but if we signed them it would have been who the **** are they? We want player X for £80m. Its ridiculous.

Obviously hindsight is a good thing and nobody could have predicted how those players would have done, but its the same story over and over again. A smaller team identifies a player and buys them for next to nothing, gives them a chance, then big teams come knocking and buy them for ten times what they paid, sometimes more.

 

[Tyton]

I actually like the fact in general that there is a majority of so called 'smaller' teams in Premier League now mixing it with the big boys, it is making the Premier League the most exciting league in the world without doubt.

Most exciting league that isn't able to compete on the highest level of european football anymore, yeah. You know its wrong when a club like Marseille can't compete financially with ******* West Ham for Payet's services. Far too easy for PL clubs to just buy another Spaniard instead of developing local talent.

So yeah, PL will continue to be the most exciting, English NT will continue to go down the toilet, and the clubs will continue to underperform in Europe, because nobody has ever build strongest league in the world with just hired guns.

 

[Alcaraz]

Most exciting league that isn't able to compete on the highest level of european football anymore, yeah. You know its wrong when a club like Marseille can't compete financially with ******* West Ham for Payet's services. Far too easy for PL clubs to just buy another Spaniard instead of developing local talent.

So yeah, PL will continue to be the most exciting, English NT will continue to go down the toilet, and the clubs will continue to underperform in Europe, because nobody has ever build strongest league in the world with just hired guns.

I think scrapping the League Cup and introducing a winter break would do wonders for our prospects in Europe

 

[Alcaraz]

And having harder rules about home-grown players like Italy (maybe not that hard), would let develop more English players.

Will never happen, it will **** off wider international fans once quality of league goes down and their favourite clubs cannot buy exciting foreign players. Direct impact on TV revenues