I can see us rotating between a 4-3-3 and a diamond, with di Maria either playing in the hole or on the wing.
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik @Rood and Imran @Annihilate Now! start with the good news by celebrating Manchester United Women's emphatic FA Cup win over Spurs at Wembley and the future of manager Marc Skinner.
Then it's the bad news and the ever worsening form of our Men with losses to Arsenal and Palace.
Finally the main debate - ETH Out now or keep him until the end of the season - if not longer. Are you Team Nik or Team Imran?
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It'll be interesting to see how we setup against Chelsea and City in all fairness. I have a feeling (particularly away at City) that we won't play all 5 of RVP, Falcao, Mata/Rooney, Di Maria, Herrera. The question is whether Carrick comes in for a striker, or whether we change formations. I think that might go a long way to seeing Van Gaal's plan for the team (rather than just get as much attacking talent on the pitch as possible and assume they'll be good enough to win).
Even though Adnan is an outstanding talent, a player at that age can't expect to feature to the amount of games he had last season at a top club. Yes, he carried us at times in the past year and was one of our best players, but that was also down to a lot of first team players weren't up to it anymore and not performing at all. He will be a magnificent player in the future and is far too good for reserve games, but he has to be patient at the moment.
The press will surely exaggerate things about him being unsatisfied about game time, other clubs sniffing around and compare the situation to Pogba, as some already did on here. But I think the club told him about his situation and that real game time will probably come around the second half of the season. He comes across as smart enough to understand that he didn't get Giggsys shirt for nothing and also has a coach who is known for developing young talent. We have unbelievable players in his positions and even just to train with them at the age of 19 is beneficial for his development. With van Gaal still implementing his philosophy, it's vital that he is with the team and I think that is more important than games at the moment.
We aren't exactly consistently good over 90 minutes as a team, alredy have a lot of inexperience at the back due to injuries and massively needed points over the last games. We can see the process on the field and once the ship has steadied, he will get his games.
The press will surely exaggerate things about him being unsatisfied about game time, other clubs sniffing around and compare the situation to Pogba, as some already did on here. But I think the club told him about his situation and that real game time will probably come around the second half of the season. He comes across as smart enough to understand that he didn't get Giggsys shirt for nothing and also has a coach who is known for developing young talent. We have unbelievable players in his positions and even just to train with them at the age of 19 is beneficial for his development. With van Gaal still implementing his philosophy, it's vital that he is with the team and I think that is more important than games at the moment.
We aren't exactly consistently good over 90 minutes as a team, alredy have a lot of inexperience at the back due to injuries and massively needed points over the last games. We can see the process on the field and once the ship has steadied, he will get his games.
Yeah its not like he was being played out of position, or that he was giving short cameo's. The only time he played in his position, he was massive threat.. (vs Swansea)
What are you saying ? I didn't said that he shouldn't play or that we shouldn't give him a chance. I just don't understand why all this negativity at this point of the season. He is playing, he is not a starter for the moment but he will start at some point, it's not as if he was out of the team and totally ignored like Anderson.
And against swansea he replaced Lingard as a wingback, if i'm not mistaken.
Edit: and he is initially a #10 playing him on the wing, is playing him out of position.
Think we'll go for
Rooney Falcao
Di maria
Blind herrera
Carrick
With Rvp in for Rooney for the Chelsea game as Rooney is suspended. Herrera, di maria and Rooney I'd say are automatic starters when available because of all they offer and the lack of cover for Herrera. Rvp and Falcao could change, you can put mata in there too, and then Carrick and blind would compete.Di maria
Blind herrera
Carrick
while you might be right, that just looks ridiculously narrow.
I seriously don't think LvG will ever play Di Maria as a No 10, and even if all Rooney/Mata/Herrera are unavailable, I really think he will play Januzaj or even Pereira there ahead of Di Maria.
Playing Di Maria as a 10 will eliminate the only threat and pace we have from the LMF/wing.
He wouldn't be a normal #10, he'd just have a free role to go out to either wing or go through the middle. He'd keep the same role he has now attacking wise, just defensively he will more focus on pressing the defenders rather then tracking back and covering Shaw. He'd still drift out to either wing so it wouldn't be any more narrow then now.
Really can't see it. I like your line up, but would say Di Maria, Carrick and Blind in MF and Herrera as a 10, Herrera could press the defenders then as he would have a bit less defending to do as a 10 than in midfield.
He's only gotten a good amount of minutes against Swansea and Mk Dons. He had 27 min as a cm vs Sunderland, 3 min vs Burnley, 8 min vs QPR, and 18 min vs Leicester where United were down to 10 men for half of the time he was in the game. He's had no pre season and has been playing in unfamiliar positions. He's had to play as a cm, rw, lw, rwb, #10, and striker in those matches. He plays numerous positions throughout a match. For example, against Swansea he played as a rwb, rw, and lw in the same match. Against Mk Dons, he played as a #10 and as a rwb. There is just no consistency in his roles. I think it's unfair on him to say he's had chances to impress.
I don't think people should panic about him. I like the fact that when he's not playing he's playing for the u21s and he will surely get more playing time as soon as December rolls around. I'm just saying that I would have preferred 1 start in either of the previous 8 matches or in the upcoming fixture vs West Brom.
While Van Gaal appreciates the international commitments his players have, he admits he is concerned about the adverse effect such lengthy journeys could have on his players.
"We have to train but now all my players are gone," Van Gaal told a press conference after the 2-1 win over Everton. "The rest are injured so we cannot train. Now I have to wait.
"Di Maria and Rojo are coming back from Hong Kong. They are playing two friendly games. They are coming back with jetlag so I cannot train at once and then I have to wait.
"Then I have only two or three days before the game with West Bromwich Albion. That is my problem I know and we live in this football world. I was also a national team coach but it is not as easy as everybody thinks."
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/louis-van-...s-rojos-12000-mile-international-trip-1468733
Hopefully Januzaj can get a start against West Brom if our first team players need a bit of a rest. Has he been called up by Belgium? Even then he won't really be a first choice player for Belgium and might get a few runs here and there, leaving him fresh for us
Talents don't become world class sitting on the bench.
I don't see why we can't drop one of Mata/RVP/Falcao and fit him in against West Brom. Having him and Di Maria in the same team sounds fecking brilliant to me.
He doesn't need to be protected. He needs to be unleashed so he can realise his enormous potential.
He doesn't need to be protected. He needs to be unleashed so he can realise his enormous potential.
Mata and RVP have been performing below average, one could argue LVG should have dropped either one of them to give januzaj a chance. People seem
to forgot he was our best attacking player last season. Not saying he should start every game, but I am surprised he has barely featured so far. You know as well as I do it is very difficult to prove yourself when given such limited cameos, especially the way we were struggling a few weeks ago.
I agree that they haven't been performing well, or well enough, but then again none of us know how they've been in training. His sub appearances have all been pretty ineffective, apart from when he was put on the wing. I'm sure van Gaal rates him, and he'll get his chances, he just needs to be patient.
I know he was class last season, but it was still his first season in professional football, and often you see players struggle to make that impact in their second seasons. He's still just a 19 year old so has loads of time on his hands, and he would be getting plenty of game time if we had European football. Because we don't, we don't rotate our team and so he has to settle for sub appearances.
I don't even think it's a dip in form that has contributed to him being on the bench. We have bought better players than Januzaj who fit our system so much better at the moment, it's that simple really. I do agree with you that people need to be patient, I don't quite understand some of the negativity and exaggeration in this thread. With the exception of the Burnley and Leicester games, he's done well when he's come off the bench, and it's worth noting that he's not had a set position under Van Gaal this season.
Whenever Januzaj has been called upon, he has been not that good so its understandable why Lvg is not trusting him anymore.He needs to improve his form and decision making or else he won't start that much this season.
Ofcourse he wont play well if he is constantly being played out of position and is put on in the last 20 min (this season, most of the times the pressure is on us during these minutes)
You can't use that as an excuse so whenever he get his chances he needs to take it, thats what differentiate exceptional talent from ordinary talent.
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^ David Moyes. TRUST
He's not even getting 20 minutes lately. He got 18 min vs Leicester where half of the time he was on the pitch United were down to 10 men, he had 27 min vs Sunderland as a cm (a position he has never played before), 8 min vs QPR, and 3 min vs Burnley. I think you're expecting too much in those sub appearances. Anybody would struggle in his shoes.
Also, it's not like every starter has played brilliantly in every match. It took a couple of players a couple of matches to start performing well. Januzaj isn't afforded those same chances as he's not a star player like they are.
This is genuinely the new Kagawa thread of the season.
Moaning about not being given a chance then being played out of position when he's brought on - as if the team needs to be adjusted just for him.
Moaning about not being given a chance then being played out of position when he's brought on - as if the team needs to be adjusted just for him.
Yeah, not even close to the Kagawa thread.
Deserves a start over Mata next game IMO.
Mata had another chance last week and failed to grasp it, Januzaj now needshis chance to start a game and show what he can do again from the hole.
Mata had another chance last week and failed to grasp it, Januzaj now needshis chance to start a game and show what he can do again from the hole.
Mata is actually putting up great numbers but I'd give Januzaj a shot. I think he's potential much more like the number 10 we need than Mata is.
Agreed.
No it's not.
The moaning is quite embarrassing and cringeworthy. If Van Gaal, who knows a thing or two about managing, feels it appropriate to play Januzaj, i'm sure he would do it. Ultimately, the club comes before any one player as well it should.
Adnan's time will come. Was a bit infuriated by his relative lack of game-time at first to be honest. But on second thought - he's just 19, not many players of that age starting week in and week out for one of the elite clubs. One can see an extended run-out taking its toll on Sterling already, he's looked decidedly knackered at times this season in part due to Liverpool's over-reliance on him. What happened to the likes of Owen should serve as a precautionary note for the future generation of young players. Trust Van Gaal to take a measured judgement on him, he's one of the best youth mentors around for a reason. Even Giggsy must be providing some input built around his experiences as a wunderkid and the exertion it puts on the still developing physiques. Reckon we'll start seeing more of Januzaj and Wilson as the season wears on and we pick up momentum.
PS : Good interview by Moyes. Agree with his assessment of Adnan.
PS : Good interview by Moyes. Agree with his assessment of Adnan.
Agree with this strongly, cosider Januzaj's performance against Hull at OT last year, almost running the game at times, everything flowed through him in spells, he's more a no.10 playmaker type we need behind our forwards than Mata who's more an eye for goal but doesn't contribute to the play as much as a Silva type.
Come to think of it, he does have that deceptive burst of speed that Waddle had.
It's effective, but at times it's not enough as the player can bully him with strength. Last season against Shaw was a good example of this. Januzaj had Shaw beat the first 2 yards with either his burst of speed or first touch only for Shaw to win the ball back by using his strength. That part of Januzaj's game will only become more effective as he gets older.
His lack of game time is a big concern. He was one of our brightest sparks last season. I know he is only 19 but he won't be happy with this bit part role if it continues. Adnan's potential is massive so his development should be a club priority.
Didn't play for Belgium either so hasnt played any minutes in nearly a month now except couple U21 games.
LVG needs to invest time in him and Wilson but he's almost over loaded the areas they play in.
LVG needs to invest time in him and Wilson but he's almost over loaded the areas they play in.
Nah, he was heavily overused last season and his form faded away as a result.
If LVG insist on the narrow 4-4-2 system then Januzaj wont have a real go. There's no way the guy will bench Rooney or Mata for him as no 10. Honestly Id wish we bring a quality defensive minded midfielder such as Vidal. That would allow us to play with wingers (Di Maria on one side and Januzaj on the other) and unleash Rooney and RVP/Falcao upfront.
He really wasn't. He started 15 games in the entire season with 12 more appearances as a sub. One of his best performances came at the end against Hull. Moyes handled him perfectly, one of the few things he got right.
Since then he's barely played. Didn't play too much for Belgium, next to no pre-season and a few sub appearances so far. Rooney and Ronaldo were regulars for us at this age. He needs to play, he's not going to get better sitting on the bench.
He's still young and if he has his eye set on becoming a first team United player it will come. The problem these days is loyalty though and if he's not getting first team football here he will certainty get it else where (Pogba to Jewventus)
Its just hard to keep young players happy these days, especially in a time we need our strongest 11 on the pitch at all times to get back into CL football.
Its just hard to keep young players happy these days, especially in a time we need our strongest 11 on the pitch at all times to get back into CL football.
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