[pacifictheme]

I am so gutted i missed this game (as i was at a wedding). The 3rd and 4th goals are things of beauty. Just brilliant team and individual play. Martials explosive pace and cool finishing are a joy to watch, same as last week. Glorious. This must be our best start to a premier league season. Two 4 nil wins is brilliant, even if thr opposition have been poor teams.

 

[Amir]

That's not always how football works. The other side is trying to win too btw.

Yesterday's match was pretty much a master class in how to get 3 points on the road.

Swansea had that early chance that hit the cross bar that wrong footed De Gea and Rashford bottled his clear on goal chance. But hey, that's football.

We got the job done and I have no complaints. But when I look at the first two matches I think we still have a clear problem breaking down defenses, thats it. It meant we needed a counter and a set piece - we're strong at both - to score the first goal against West Ham and Swansea and from then on it was far easier for us. But we won't always get that.

Obviously getting the first goal to force the other team to come out and play is vital. I still remember Fergie making that very same remark in his 96/97 book about the Sunderland 5-0 win (with THAT Cantona goal). English defenses are far better than they were back then. At the same time, we still lack sharpness against those in the final third, with Mata and especially Mkhitaryan not offering enough for long periods.

Obviously the first couple of games were very positive. But that aspect is still an issue for me.

 

[fellaini's barber]

Looks like we have a relatively easier early run of fixtures compared to some of our rivals. Let's make sure by the time we get our tough run we'd have put made a nice gap for ourselves dispatching teams like these with ease

 

[Sparky Rhiwabon]

We got the job done and I have no complaints. But when I look at the first two matches I think we still have a clear problem breaking down defenses, thats it. It meant we needed a counter and a set piece - we're strong at both - to score the first goal against West Ham and Swansea and from then on it was far easier for us. But we won't always get that.

Obviously getting the first goal to force the other team to come out and play is vital. I still remember Fergie making that very same remark in his 96/97 book about the Sunderland 5-0 win (with THAT Cantona goal). English defenses are far better than they were back then. At the same time, we still lack sharpness against those in the final third, with Mata and especially Mkhitaryan not offering enough for long periods.

Obviously the first couple of games were very positive. But that aspect is still an issue for me.

I thought this match was quite reminiscent of many of last season's displays until we got the first goal to be honest.

 

[Fingeredmouse]

I thought this match was quite reminiscent of many of last season's displays until we got the first goal to be honest.

...and that's the difference.

 

[Sparky Rhiwabon]

...and that's the difference.

True, in those matches last season we would have tried to hold on and ended up drawing 1-1

 

[jackofalltrades]

Sometimes it's difficult to decide whether a team park the bus or are forced to go defensive by the momentum of the attack. Whichever wat it's positive or flattering, especially away.

It will usually take time to breakdown a well organised defence so no complaints there. The problem last season was we were not getting that second goal often enough but this season we've got 8 in two games, which is excellent.

Slow starts are very typically part of the game tactics followed by a build up of pressure, but to score a goal in the first 15 minutes less common.

Thought we were a bit lucky not to concede early on yesterday and pretty poor in attack .most of the second half

 

[glazed]

I thought this match was quite reminiscent of many of last season's displays until we got the first goal to be honest.

Does that mean once teams work us out it's going to be back to square 1? Hope not. I don't feel quite convinced I'm watching an exponentially better team than last year yet - but I think it could be possible.

 

[Cascarino]

It will do!

Fixed

I meant a different saturday, the game at Old Trafford obviously.

 

[Crackers]

I meant a different saturday, the game at Old Trafford obviously.

Surrrreeeee

 

[Trizy]

I think we need one more top level player and we can compete on all fronts

Literally only one player: Sanchez.

 

[buckooo1978]

pretty happy with the result though it was a difficult game against stubborn opponents

Swansea played with very little ambition but we will have to get used to that - I wasn't overly impressed with our creativity in the first 75 minutes and it makes you realise how important direct football might be to us.....

Pogba was relatively poor in the first half and Mata didn't have much impact at all during the game - Mhiki got 2 assists but I wouldn't have put this down as a specially good game for him - Swansea defended well though and we couldn't get Lukaku into the game at all

I still think we are short of a player with that x factor in terms of creativity and I think there will be games that we might struggle more in....

it might seem a bit negative given we blew them away in the last 10 minutes and maybe this is just part of the process of developing the winning habit and confidence in front of goal

some big tests to come - how will we react to being a goal down and how will Jose line up in the big games - think we've Liverpool in 4 games time

nevertheless a good start

 

[No Idea For Nickname]

sorry if posted before, embargoed part
Jose,

 

[PieCrust]

We got the job done and I have no complaints. But when I look at the first two matches I think we still have a clear problem breaking down defenses, thats it. It meant we needed a counter and a set piece - we're strong at both - to score the first goal against West Ham and Swansea and from then on it was far easier for us. But we won't always get that.

Obviously getting the first goal to force the other team to come out and play is vital. I still remember Fergie making that very same remark in his 96/97 book about the Sunderland 5-0 win (with THAT Cantona goal). English defenses are far better than they were back then. At the same time, we still lack sharpness against those in the final third, with Mata and especially Mkhitaryan not offering enough for long periods.

Obviously the first couple of games were very positive. But that aspect is still an issue for me.

Hey, you have a fair point. I just feel it's a bit overly critical so early season and has a bit of the fan fear factor because it was such a weak point for us last year and we all want to believe we've improved on it (breaking the bus down). At least for starters, we're burying the ball in the back of net, which means we're at least taking a lot of chances. That's a good start.

But I'm too looking forward to whenever the fist time we fall behind and have to forcefully change the game, similar to what Jose was saying in the post match presser.

 

[el3mel]

sorry if posted before, embargoed part
Jose,

He really meant that Welsh part didn't he ? Wasn't a mistake at all.

 

[Ramshock]

Literally only one player: Sanchez.

Renato because have we even been linked with Alexis?

 

[Green_Red]

We didnt go route one.

Most of Fellainis touches were in our defensive third and were mostly 1- or 2 touch on the deck passing moments. His main contribution was disrupting Swanseas midfield and attack, he was forcing Swansea to go wide with his shape and positioning. Were our goals route one?. Fellainis job was to clearly sit in front of the defence which he mostly did. The person who then got forward a little more than he had before was Matic.

Yea you're right, probably should have said I thought we were going to go route one. But bringing him on worked. He disrupted their play perfectly and we scored 3 goals from it.

 

[vivaronaldo]

the difference it can make when you actually kill games off.......

 

[Jerch]

Some things I noticed ftom first two matches:

1. Scoring from set pieces. I don't know how many times we scored from set piece but I usually got a felling we will waste every set piece we got last season. We were not dangerous enough, especially as we had a tall team. Now we scored 2 from set pieces in two games, Jones had a chance to make it 3. We clearly worked on it and are much better in that aspect.

2. Counter attacking goals. How many times last season we had a great chance to go on counter attack but our players just stopped and passed it back? Now we scored mostly from counter attacks and even when we didn't score we tried to. We improved in that aspect a lot.

3. Smart pressing. A lot of times when we lost the ball last season we just dropped deep and let opposition to build an attack. Now we press when it is smart and there ia a chance to get the ball back asap but also when our players see that there is no point in pressing we drop deep and wait for the right opportunity to get a ball back.

4. Playing through the middle. We used to move the ball on the wing and cross it a lot last season when opposition packed the box and usually opposition just cleared the ball. Now we try to dribble or pass it through the middle which in many occasions is more dangerous then just pump the crosses in the box. Murphy highlighted that in the Match of the day in negative light that there was occasion when Blind and Valencia shood be higher up the pitch and we should pass it on the wing and crosd the ball but Mkhitaryan and Pogba tried to find space through the middle and I was thinking that I rather see that then Valencia and Blind crossing the ball where there is no chance our players will be able to convert this crosses.

5. And last but not least playing in intervals. Often our players just slowed down the play and passed the ball around and waited that opposition will lose concentration or try to brake our play and suddenly when that happened we passed it forward and 2,3 players just started running forward and the space oppened. It is dangerous because you surprise the opposition with quick switch. It is what we should the when we played possession football under LVG but then we just passed it around forever without switching to attack and it became boring and it was never dangerous for the opposition.

 

[Adam-Utd]

What I liked the most was Jose didn't just shut up shop with 15/20 mins to go and invite pressure like he did last year (thinking of Boro especially).

He clearly trusts the team more and was happy to keep the team looking dangerous. That's the perfect way to setup, drop off a little but still keep that pace and threat going forwards, you'll always get a chance against teams like Swansea when they're throwing everybody forward.

his quote about letting the wild horses run was perfectly fitting. Jose definitely seems in a better frame of mind, more confident this year.

Maybe he believes the hype himself about the 2nd season?

 

[Ekkie Thump]

Having finally watched the full game back I think the result flattered Utd quite a bit. Swansea were pretty solid for the most part and Utd lacked width and looked static around Swansea's box. I can't think of one chance created from open play until Lukaku's finish in the 80th minute and to be honest it all felt a bit laboured. It certainly looked less fluid than Arsenal and City's attacking play and I can see why Mourinho was in the market for a proper winger. Definitely room for improvement. I also felt Utd looked a bit vulnerable from set pieces themselves.

That said even though I'd like to have seen a bit more dynamism Swansea made it difficult with their low block and bar the 5th minute chance never really troubled from open play. What struck me most was the power and easy control Utd commanded - even if that was without looking particularly dangerous. A bit more of an understanding in attack (more minutes on the pitch together) and width (maybe a returning Shaw might provide that) and Utd will become properly formidable in pretty much all aspects.

Once Mourinho made his subs and Swansea decided to start exploring a bit more Utd looked fecking dynamite. I think it's a team that'll scare the willies out of any opponent that commits to a bit of adventure. Lukaku is clinical and Pogba on the break is a proper joy.

 

[wolvored]

I agree we are missing someone who hugs the touch line and it's quite obvious as to why Mourinho would want someone like this. The closest we have to someone like this in the squad is probably Ashley Young, but he's probably not up to the required standard.

Conversely, games like today and West Ham show why I think he favours Mata from the start. Mata requires a lot less space to operate in than all our other forward options and does not need much space in behind. Mata wasn't great yesterday but in the opening half hour against West Ham last week, it was often him who would be found in space in the West Ham box (what little they gave us).

Mourinho's management has been superb. He realises West Ham/Swansea have tried to go for it later on in games, so he brings Mata off in both games (both times for Fellaini), sits Matic and Fellaini, pushes Pogba up and now the trap has been set with Pogba, Mkhitaryan, Martial and Lukaku ready to spring on the opposition whenever they over commit.

Yes you can see his gameplan is to steamroll over teams when they have tired, or are really opening up chasing the game and long maty it continue. I still think he will make a bid for a proper winger though as it will suit Lukaku with quick crosses into the box.

 

[wolvored]

It has been such an enyoyable start to the season. Two real feel good performances. 6 points, 8 goals, you can't ask for better than that.

I thought Pogba was excellent. The less he tries to do the better he is. Lukaku and Martial's chance conversion is fantastic. That sort of finishing turns tight games into easy wins. 4 assists in 2 games is fantastic from Mkhitaryan and Martial has 2 goals in about 30 minutes of football.

The concern of breaking down a packed defence is still there but the team is now devastating on the counter attack and set pieces are getting much better. They still live dangerously defending set pieces and could really do with one of the centre backs being better in the air. But, all of that is nit picking. Hopefully they can keep this momentum going.

This is exactly right. When he tries to hang onto it he either loses it or slows the attack to VG like pace.

 

[wolvored]

Anything less than 152 league goals will be a massive disappointment for us.

You just killed it, we will only score 151 now lol.

 

[wolvored]

pretty happy with the result though it was a difficult game against stubborn opponents

Swansea played with very little ambition but we will have to get used to that - I wasn't overly impressed with our creativity in the first 75 minutes and it makes you realise how important direct football might be to us.....

Pogba was relatively poor in the first half and Mata didn't have much impact at all during the game - Mhiki got 2 assists but I wouldn't have put this down as a specially good game for him - Swansea defended well though and we couldn't get Lukaku into the game at all

I still think we are short of a player with that x factor in terms of creativity and I think there will be games that we might struggle more in....

it might seem a bit negative given we blew them away in the last 10 minutes and maybe this is just part of the process of developing the winning habit and confidence in front of goal

some big tests to come - how will we react to being a goal down and how will Jose line up in the big games - think we've Liverpool in 4 games time

nevertheless a good start

I agree with that and thats why I think we will try and get a wide player in before sept. If we dont swap Martial for Rashford, who is a better footballer, more creative, and calm under pressure in front of goal.

 

[Womp]

I know it's only been two games, but we are going to win the treble

 

[Schmiznurf]

We were quite sloppy for the first 15 minutes and Swansea made it hard for us to break them down but we won in the end thanks to perseverance.

 

[dwd]

I know it's only been two games, but we are going to win the treble

Three games in a row?

 

[Womp]

Three games in a row?

Don't be silly, we are going to score in 3 consecutive matches

 

[Bestietom]

I do think that 4-0 was a bit generous to us, did not tell the true story of this game.

Swansea played some neat football at times, and maybe with Llorente in their side, would have given them more firepower up front.

I didn't think we played as well, as against West Ham, and there is still room for improvement.

 

[buckooo1978]

I agree with that and thats why I think we will try and get a wide player in before sept. If we dont swap Martial for Rashford, who is a better footballer, more creative, and calm under pressure in front of goal.

a lot seem to be getting carried away in here and it was a great scoreline but Fabianski didn't exactly have a lot to do until those last 10 minutes

we can put some of that down to some iffy performances in the first 80 mins and some slow build up - Lukaku had 25 touches in the game which says a lot about service

I think it's a wide player we need and someone who can play on the right - think that we focused on Perisic as Mhiki or Mata in the right have more of a free role and tucking inside frees up space for Valencia

always felt Arjen Robben might play for us one day - no chance but he'd be ideal

Draxler maybe a bit more realistic

 

[Red71]

Maybe it's just as a result of the last few years insipid football but I thought we looked really threatening against Swansea and were good value for the 4 - 0 score line. It was, IMO, exactly what our pressure and control deserved.

Most teams struggle against ultra defensive set ups with two banks of defenders but this season, for now at least, we're finding solutions when we weren't able to last season.

If you've built a big powerful team, why not break down the oppo with a set play? Its almost as though posters feel a bit embarrassed by it. It's all part of the armoury and once we're ahead, they've got to come out and we've seen over the last two games how devastating we are on the break.

Stats can tell you so much and that's fine but my eyes told me I was watching a powerful, menacing team and that Swansea were having to work really hard to contain us (& that's away from home too!). I really enjoyed it for the most part personally and tbh, whilst I could nitpick it would take the shine off a really good performance for me. We can improve of course but which team can't? It's still really early days so just enjoy having something resembling United back I say. I'm going to anyway...it's been too long!

 

[Rusholme Ruffian]

Does that mean once teams work us out it's going to be back to square 1? Hope not. I don't feel quite convinced I'm watching an exponentially better team than last year yet - but I think it could be possible.

Good god man! I understand that we're only 2 games into the season and it's therefore too early to say anything for sure, but what more could the team have done in these first two games to convince you more?! 8 goals scored, 0 conceded...

 

[oLeSoLsKjAeR20]

Stop it lads, I won't have enough cum left for my honeymoon next weekend at this rate!

This post

 

[Achilles McCool]

I should be wearing glasses too but don't.

Did the two of you just become best friends?

 

[ManuMou]

In terms of our attacking, based on the first 2 games, I would break it down into 2 different moment, that is, counter attack and breaking up defense (especially against the bus).

Counter Attack
Compared to last season, this has improved significantly, thanks mainly to our clinical finishing. This allows us to finish the game when we have the lead and opponent attack us, as evidenced @ both West Ham and Swansea games. Also, with Jose likely to set up defensively against big teams like Real/Barca/Bayern/Juv, now I have more confidence playing against them with our much improved counter attack. Another thing is that, when our opponents know that we are lethal on the counter, they might set up slightly less offensive than otherwise would have been the case, and that could change the dynamics of the game to our benefit, whether it's psychologically or tactically. All in all, this could be the wild card for the season, whether it's PL/CL, especially in the big games and those "home games that we were supposed to finish them off".

Hope the team continue building this momentum, and with our solid defense and "hopefully good/very good midfield", then I would say we are definitely more than half way there.

Breaking Up Defense
Before the superb 5 minutues counter attack when Swansea finally started attacking us, I thought this aspect of the game is only slightly improved from last season. It is still our weakness. I think one of the main reasons is because our "middle" is still congested, albeit less so than last season. In other words, our width was still the weakness, same as last season.

More often than not, Mata cut inside and clashed with Mkhi and Pogba, and sometimes Rashford. Swansea defended the middle with lots of players, successfully nullified our attack through the middle. Although Rashford constantly attacked the space on the left where he did good, overall, I thought our width was still underwhelming. You can't expect Mata to play by the sideline. So when our fullbacks Valencia and Blind had an "okay" game, the weakness from our width was so obvious.

Not only against the small teams, but also this will affect our big games when opponents have the lead and start parking the bus, so we can't rely only on counter attack on the big games. It could come back and bit us some time.

Hopefully Jose will address this issue, Shaw will be back soon, or sign some "wing" before the window closes.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

In terms of the overall game performance, if West Ham game was 9/10, this game was 7.5/10

 

[Handsome Devil]

4-0 is the new 1-1

 

[noodlehair]

- Thought we were a bit sloppy and way too slow at times, and we struggled to break them down as a result. Apparently this is because Swansea sat back, as if this is somehow not what West Ham spent the entire 90 minutes doing the week before.

- When Valencia isn't in super human mode our wide play really suffers. Probably because our wide play is based entirely on the idea that Valencia is good enough to be an overlapping fullback despite not having anyone to actually overlap.

- We were still quite good, in the end

- Pogba, again, looks about 5 times the player when he just does things rather than strolling about for somewhere between 3-500 seconds before doing them. Keep it up please.

- Jones didn't do anything insane?

- Thought reffy the ref was Swansea's best player in the first half. Seemed determined to give them a free kick every time one of them fell over, yet when Rashford has someone literally run into his face to stop him getting through on goal, it's play on.

Rashford - DON'T do that next time.

- Thought Hitler (or whoever that was) had a quiet debut for Swansea.

- Thierry Henry saying "like I said" and Thierry Henry saying "Lacazette" are exactly the same thing.

 

[Crashoutcassius]

A lot of people mentioning that we need to replace blind... his free kicks were the only real threat we had in the game.

 

[Rusholme Ruffian]

A lot of people mentioning that we need to replace blind... his free kicks were the only real threat we had in the game.

you do know we scored 4 goals in that game right?! None of which came from a Blind freekick...

Agree on Blind though, he's the best of the current crop of left-backs imho.