Defend well or attack well...

[Randall Flagg]

... We seem incapable of both

We were shocking at the back tonight

 

[Cheesy]

Yeah, it's very worrying. As soon as we revert away from our dull, tumescent football and actually try to attack, we suddenly look vulnerable and suspect defensively.

 

[mu4c_20le]

Lack of leadership at the back

 

[Someone]

It's mind boggling, it's like they can't mentally handle both.

 

[Pexbo]

I've been saying it for a while. Van Gaal rightfully backs this team to concede less than the opposition but he can't trust them to score more.

 

[mu77]

attack

 

[Annihilate Now!]

Its disgusting to be honest. How can anyone regard themselves as a good manager if he is unable to do both well?

 

[VanGaalEra]

Smalling had an off game tonight, but yes we struggle to do both.

Whether people like it or not, we get better results playing defensively.

 

[DWelbz19]

We didn't attack well. The first goal was an extremely suspect penalty and the third was gifted due to the complete lack of pressure on Memphis. The second was excellent played - probably some of the best passage of football from us all season. Beyond that, there was nothing special at all.

 

[RedStarUnited]

We didn't attack well. The first goal was an extremely suspect penalty and the third was gifted due to the complete lack of pressure on Memphis. The second was excellent played - probably some of the best passage of football from us all season. Beyond that, there was nothing special at all.

Yeah we had no other chances apart from those...

 

[Timdbro]

I suppose LVG knows what he's doing when he sets us up not to take risks. It's his own fault though, 3 of that back 4 are not good enough (and Smalling also had a bad day, but can't blame the coach for that).
Ok Shaw has a long term injury, but we have no backup left back, Darmian was his choice, and it was also his choice not to buy a partner for Smalling.

Also, Fellaini in front of the midfield is absolutely pointless, he makes the other team even more dangerous than they normally are.

 

[J-Stander]

No leadership at the back at all. When the going gets tough we crumble big time.

 

[ADJUDICATOR]

It's going to be hilarious when we meet a decent team in the Europa League.

 

[simonhch]

It's the inability to do the transitions well. Football, especially EPL football, is all about fast transitions. Defense to attack, and vice versa. We cannot do that at all. Hence we are either set up to attack or defend at the expense of the other. Set up to defend? Can't score for shit. Set up to attack? Cant' defend for shit.

Van Gaal is just a terrible manager.

 

[Jed I. Knight]

Smalling had an off game tonight, but yes we struggle to do both.

Whether people like it or not, we get better results playing defensively.

I'll take a hundred matches of what we saw today before I concede that we should be sticking to the tumescent style that gave us what we saw against Norwich and more.

That said, it's a bit concerning that we're so shit at defending.

 

[Ryan7]

This is what happens when you don't buy a centre back and expect Fellaini to do a job in front of the defence.

 

[Hed Zitin]

Showing no leadership and poor coaching. We really can't do both. This was just like the Wolfsburg game where we had to go for it.

Newcastle hadn't scored for ages.

 

[rpitchfo]

Yes, we have shown again tonight that we can't do both...but what we also know is that the answer can't be going back to our defensive style - it won't get us the points we need for 4th.

So, we MUST carry on attacking and try and sort the defence out in training.

 

[DWelbz19]

Yeah we had no other chances apart from those...

Lingard and Fellaini had two very good chances but we were hardly free flowing in attack. It's the same as after playing other shite sides like Swansea and Chelsea, people get disillusioned into some form of progress again.

 

[charlenefan]

I actually think our world class goalkeeper and our possession based football is what's conned people thinking we have a good defence... We don't

Smalling and Darmian are good enough as will Shaw be when he gets fit but still need that real beast at the back

 

[Kostur]

It's not like we've been rocking shit upfront either, Fellaini, Rooney, Lingard all missed easy chances, you have to wonder, yet again, what the feck we are doing during trainings because we're 1) shit at corners (both defending and attacking) 2) shit at creating chances 3) shit at finishing 4) shit at any sort of defensive cohesion (pure tactics and discipline trained, putting aside shocking performances at the back today). At the moment it's hard to imagine our training sessions as something other than mindless passing in beautiful triangles and running around like idiots. We can't even press.

 

[walkinhop]

I think the answer is absolutely obvious. It doesn't need to be one or the other. Get Fellaini off, change system the faster midfielder is closer to Blind, cover those loose balls and there is no space or option for Newcastle to run into. Fecking ridiculous. The funny thing is this particular problem, we studied at the 2nd level of coaching school...to train Under12s!!!.

 

[Livewire1974]

2 gears. Not good enough.

 

[Roboc7]

We have a makeshift defence in every game, if they aren't well protected they aren't up to the job.

 

[ivaldo]

The irony being we could've done with another defensive midfielder today, the game was ideal for schweinsteiger.

 

[Sparky Rhiwabon]

If you try to attack more, you are going to leave more space at the back. Can't have it both ways.

 

[Silverman]

The team hasn't a bulls notion what it is at.......when we focus on defence, the attack is lost. When we focus on attack, our defense is exposed. Imo this has to be considered LVG's fault.

 

[Sammyjunn]

No balance whatsoever in this team.

 

[kouroux]

Even in the matches we didn't concede many goals, we didn't defend that well. DDG was and has been a key player. We have been deluded into thinking our defense is good.

 

[Di Maria's angel]

We have a makeshift defence in every game, if they aren't well protected they aren't up to the job.

Pretty much. Smalling is hailed as god these days, but he's been helped out so much by having 2 DM's infront of him. I don't actually think he's as good as he's been made out to be. Awful today and was woeful against Wolfsburg and Stoke.

 

[Annihilate Now!]

If you try to attack more, you are going to leave more space at the back. Can't have it both ways.

At which point you need to defend better, and we defend like a sack of shit.

There are teams that exist that are able to do both well.

 

[FC Ronaldo]

I wouldn't draw conclusions from this game.

We had Fellaini and Schneiderlin fighting fires for us against a team of attacking runners and a target man turning Smalling back into Jones-mode.

With the above acknowledged and the lack of Schweini, Juan and Carrick, there was never going to be control in this game and as such we were always going to be reactive to the game and not proactive.

 

[Sparky Rhiwabon]

At which point you need to defend better, and we defend like a sack of shit.

There are teams that exist that are able to do both well.

Our team is not good enough to do both, that's why he's used a conservative approach to try and eke out results with a limited personnel, like he did with Holland.

Now he's had to attack more, due to overwhelming criticism, and this is the result

 

[Annihilate Now!]

Our team is not good enough to do both, that's why he's used a conservative approach to try and eke out results with a limited personnel, like he did with Holland.

Now he's had to attack more, due to overwhelming criticism, and this is the result

Yep. True enough... and the blame for that lies at LVG's feet.

 

[Striker10]

If we had have attacked more this season, we'd have lost more games . We have a soft core and that was exposed tonight. Blind isn't a center back. The only thing Darmian improves on Rafael is his fitness. We have too many nice players and not enough winners. We need to take our chances and we've missed like 8 or so chances all together from 6 yards out this season. The players have to take responsibility and work harder in training.

Depay is working hard and Rooneys improving but most of them don't know how to win

 

[Sparky Rhiwabon]

Yep. True enough... and the blame for that lies at LVG's feet.

Could say that. Or could say Woodward for failing to land LVG's key targets

 

[Hammerfell]

Yep. True enough... and the blame for that lies at LVG's feet.

Especially when he's spent £250 million to try and avoid this exact situation, the bloody charlatan.

I'm unhappy.

 

[Roboc7]

Pretty much. Smalling is hailed as god these days, but he's been helped out so much by having 2 DM's infront of him. I don't actually think he's as good as he's been made out to be. Awful today and was woeful against Wolfsburg and Stoke.

I just don't think it is surprising that a defence with one cb and one fb who is playing on the wrong side struggles without two holding midfielders and in a team that is passing the ball side to side. Anytime we are attacked with any intensity we are all over the place and that is what happened tonight.

Until we buy a cb and get shaw back we are either going to have to protect our defence at the expense of our attack or leave ourselves open.

 

[RaptorSlo]

Are you not entertained ?!?!

 

[Heinzesight]

Why are so many people and pundits saying we were entertaining? It was sloppy as hell!