The need for a second playmaker

Nick.

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We were reduced to long balls against Chelsea earlier today, we have not a single playmaker other than Pogba (no Mkhitaryan doesn't count, he's crap) to break down a capable defense. Who is out there on the market that would fit into the team? I don't personally care whether it's a creative central midfielder, a #10 or a wide playmaker; we just need somebody to take the creative burden off Pogba.

We must not be fooled by the scorelines against weaker teams earlier in the season; we will continue to drop points throughout unless we can bring in another player to help break down packed defenses so that we do not rely on Pogba evading injury for the duration of the season as our sole creator.

Chelsea used Eden Hazard and Cesc Fabregas to take us apart today; two creative attackers to ensure their football remained fluid and that the ball could be circulated in te event that we retreated back into shape quickly. City used David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne to take Arsenal apart earlier as well. Real Madrid won the Champion's League twice in a row with Luka Modric and Toni Kroos in their central midfield; we must do the same to have a chance.

I've compiled a small list of four creative playmakers I have seen people discuss on this website. Please help identify more.

Mesut Özil - Arsenal - AM:
+ PL experience, played under Mourinho before, good delivery on the final ball, functions in Mourinho's favoured 4-2-3-1, #10.
- Goes missing in the big games which account for approximately 30 points a season against the five other members of the top six, offers little defensively, doesn't run the game.

Nabil Fekir - Olympique Lyonnais - AM:
+ 23 years old, works hard defensively, difficult to dispossess, releases the ball quickly, goal threat, #10.
- Come back from long term injury, would he be considered a true "playmaker"? Will his ankles hold out from constant impact?

Malcom - Bordeaux - RW:
+ Young, skillful, can beat defenders, right winger (an area we must strengthen), big potential.
- Has yet to test his ability in a stronger league, likely expensive, can he make the step up to United from Bordaeux?

Jean Michaël Seri - OGC Nice - CM:
+ Creative, disciplined, good range of passing, central midfielder, not likely to be the most expensive option on this list.
- Has yet to test his ability in a stronger league, 5' 6", works defensively, the "budget" option?
 
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Barkley. His creativity is underrated by some on here, in my opinion.

Stats are not the be all and end all, but in terms of creativity, he's been mixing it with the big guns in the last few seasons.

He's also versatile. Can play deeper if Pogba is out, can play as a 10 or wide.
 
Yes 100%.

If Pogba isn't in the midfield, the whole side looks useless.

Pereira could do this if we hadn't chucked him out on loan.
 
I can’t help but feel that missing out on Griezmann fecked us up royally. Not that he’s a playmaker but you know what I mean.
 
You need creativity from multiple sources. Everyone in your attack capable of creating and not just having one role. Martial can be creative and can make things happen. Rashford as well (though younger and a lot of space to grow). They just have to be more consistent and have a set up behind them that puts them in advanced positions, 1 v 1 with their fullbacks more often so they can do damage. Then you want your striker to be creative and be able to hold up the ball, or be creative with his movement, play the wingers in, etc.. You want your fullbacks to do supporting runs and spread the pitch and be able to deliver crosses. Then you also want that creativity or ability in midfield to pass it around quickly and open up teams through general passing play so that your wingers can go at players.
Pogba obviously in midfield is the one we have who actually creates stuff, then Martial and Rashford also do it but with their dribbling (and we only ever have one of the 3 on the pitch these days). The rest of the team pretty much plays to give them the ball to do something.

Go back to Fergie days. He would try to move the ball quickly enough for us to give the ball to the attack in advanced positions while the opposition isn't organized. Wouldn't take us ages to get the ball up there by which time the opposition is fully organized. He'd try and get wingers 1 v 1 with fullbacks, and if they get doubled up, then we get a fullback overlapping to open up space in advanced positions. Or we'd switch to the other wing. Not have just Rashford or Martial on the left wing, then just Valencia on the right wing.
 
I want it to be Pereira, but if not, Valencia have a youngster called Soler. Fekir could be a good option, but isn't he more of a second striker like Griezmann as opposed to a playmaker?

As far as proven options go, nobody really comes to mind. Özil would be as useless as Mhiki in games like today's.
 
Walters_19_MuFc said:
Barkley. His creativity is underrated by some on here, in my opinion.

Stats are not the be all and end all, but in terms of creativity, he's been mixing it with the big guns in the last few seasons.

He's also versatile. Can play deeper if Pogba is out, can play as a 10 or wide.
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No please.
 
How about Mateo kovacic? Whats te situation with him in Madrid?
 
SS said:
I want it to be Pereira, but if not, Valencia have a youngster called Soler. Fekir could be a good option, but isn't he more of a second striker like Griezmann as opposed to a playmaker?

As far as proven options go, nobody really comes to mind. Özil would be as useless as Mhiki in games like today's.
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Though ozil has a good pass and vision in him , mkh can't play against low blocks.
 
Let's just get them all :lol: We need to get rid of a load of players anyway. Carrick, Mata and Mkhi can go in the summer and we obviously need more midfielders.
 
Griezmann, people perceive him as a SS but he has so much more to his game than just getting on the end of chances. His playmaking has come leaps and bounds over the last few years. It would be killing 2 birds with 1 stone, have a player who can offer us creativity and reduce the burden on Pogba while also scoring lots of goals to lessen the reliance on Lukaku.

I know he's having a poor season so far but the quality is undeniable.

Here are some videos showcasing his passing skills.

 
When people suggest United aren't good enough to win the title or challenge for the European and domestic honours there is an army of rabid supporters shouting them down, however, the more games we play against the top teams it's becoming clear that this team isn't good enough to win nothing. We need more creativity and dynamism across the board. It's not about adding a #10. There is no cohesive linkage from defence to the midfield to attack. There is no fluidity to the way we play. No top team resorts to 'hoofball' as often as us. To fix the problem we need to overhaul of the squad. We need a CB with skills to pass out from the back, we need a playmaker CM that can control the play like a general directing play and a #10 with pace and creativity and ball control, we need wingers that have pace and ability to beat a man and cross the ball, we need proper fullbacks not failed wingers and utility players and we need a manager that is interested in fluid attacking play rather than safety first defensive football.

To solve the problems I would suggest:
Aymeric Laporte CB
Ghoulam LB
Fabinho RB
Jorginho CM
Fekir AM
Leon Bailey RW

The players listed above are the technically skilled dynamic players Man City have in their squad. It is no coincidence that quite a few of the above players have been linked to Man City. Surely this is the direction Manchester United must head down as we can't keep hoofing the ball down the pitch hoping for a lucky break whilst hanging on grimly against superior teams. Lastly, if we bring in a better class of player lets not be afraid to remove players that aren't up to Manchester United standard. BTW many fans will say this kind of post is just a knee-jerk reaction to a loss, however, there are many posters that have thought this way for a very long time we are just afraid of being labelled negative and being shouted down.
 
poacher said:
When people suggest United aren't good enough to win the title or challenge for the European and domestic honours there is an army of rabid supporters shouting them down, however, the more games we play against the top teams it's becoming clear that this team isn't good enough to win nothing. We need more creativity and dynamism across the board. It's not about adding a #10. There is no cohesive linkage from defence to the midfield to attack. There is no fluidity to the way we play. No top team resorts to 'hoofball' as often as us. To fix the problem we need to overhaul of the squad. We need a CB with skills to pass out from the back, we need a playmaker CM that can control the play like a general directing play and a #10 with pace and creativity and ball control, we need wingers that have pace and ability to beat a man and cross the ball, we need proper fullbacks not failed wingers and utility players and we need a manager that is interested in fluid attacking play rather than safety first defensive football.

To solve the problems I would suggest:
Aymeric Laporte CB
Ghoulam LB
Fabinho RB
Jorginho CM
Fekir AM
Leon Bailey RW

The players listed above are the technically skilled dynamic players Man City have in their squad. It is no coincidence that quite a few of the above players have been linked to Man City. Surely this is the direction Manchester United must head down as we can't keep hoofing the ball down the pitch hoping for a lucky break whilst hanging on grimly against superior teams. Lastly, if we bring in a better class of player lets not be afraid to remove players that aren't up to Manchester United standard. BTW many fans will say this kind of post is just a knee-jerk reaction to a loss, however, there are many posters that have thought this way for a very long time we are just afraid of being labelled negative and being shouted down.
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Cohesive linkage will return with pogba and ibrahimovic with mkh forced wide, most us is are sure of it. Yes we do lack 2-3 players and quality on the ball in terms or creativity and passing but it comes down to the lack of balance you have as opposed to other midfeilds.

We just got a ball playing cbadt summer who is taking time to adapt to the league and the team. Rojo is a ball playing cb as well .
 
Hazard and Fabregas playing so well really underlined our need for a player that can create space by dribbling (Hazard) or movement (Fabregas).

Haven't seen anything but highlights of Arthur, the Brazilian kid they just called up, but he is supposed to be similar to Iniesta in style, which would be a great fit. Press said a final day bid from the Prem came in for his over the summer, but presumably that was not from us.

Lemar would cost a lot and he might not be quite the dribbler or insatiable pass and mover to be optimal, but he's only 21 and is incredibly consistent for his age. If we can't get Griezmann this summer, signing him would make sense in that he could play on the right and look to cut-in when we play 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 or be the 10 in the 3-5-2 or the 4-2-3-1, and he'd be close to a perfect fit if our big game lineup ends up being the 3-5-2 Spurs play a lot now, with Lemar and Pogba either side of Matic and 2 up top, with wingbacks and a back 3.
 
prtk0811 said:
Cohesive linkage will return with pogba and ibrahimovic with mkh forced wide, most us is are sure of it. Yes we do lack 2-3 players and quality on the ball in terms or creativity and passing but it comes down to the lack of balance you have as opposed to other midfeilds.

We just got a ball playing cbadt summer who is taking time to adapt to the league and the team. Rojo is a ball playing cb as well .
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I realise we brought in Lindelof as the ball playing CB but the guy has been rubbish thus far and can't be trusted. Imagine if we had brought in a ball playing CB that was good enough to make the starting eleven. Laporte would have been brilliant for us with his superb passing skills and composure on the ball. Jonathan Tah has reportedly got a 22m release clause, why we signed Lindelof instead of these two CBs is baffling. As for an out of position Zlatan and Mkh being the saviour, I remain sceptical. Rome was not built in a day but we really have to stop giving ourselves a pat on the back and awarding ourselves a 9 out 10 each transfer window when there remain so many holes in the team. How do posters rate our transfer activity 9 out of 10 when we have no LB or RW or quality depth at CM is crazy. It's time we filled the holes in the team and stop playing players out of position. It is a pity we had so many easy fixtures at the start of the season because if we had the tough games earlier in the season then we could have done something about the squad whilst the transfer window was still open. The easy start to the season fooled many fans into thinking we are better than we truly are. Man City is coming soon and no doubt we will attempt to park the bus again and hope to nick a goal whilst being totally dominated. Surely a club as big and prestigious as Manchester United can't continue to play this way.
 
Fekir and Jonathan Viera. Fekir can playmake but likes to get in the box whereas Viera is a pure playmaker and a damn good one. He'd probably create more than Pogba and them two together would create bucket loads for Fekir/Lukaku.

Keeps It tidy said:
It is cute that you guys think signing another "playmaker" would fix the major issue.
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It definitely won't fix our problems but it certainly helps. Without Pogba we lack a player who can create something out of nothing bar Martial who isn't getting a look in. Young's been our playmaker from LWB in a few games this season!
 
poacher said:
I realise we brought in Lindelof as the ball playing CB but the guy has been rubbish thus far and can't be trusted. Imagine if we had brought in a ball playing CB that was good enough to make the starting eleven. Laporte would have been brilliant for us with his superb passing skills and composure on the ball. Jonathan Tah has reportedly got a 22m release clause, why we signed Lindelof instead of these two CBs is baffling. As for an out of position Zlatan and Mkh being the saviour, I remain sceptical. Rome was not built in a day but we really have to stop giving ourselves a pat on the back and awarding ourselves a 9 out 10 each transfer window when there remain so many holes in the team. How do posters rate our transfer activity 9 out of 10 when we have no LB or RW or quality depth at CM is crazy. It's time we filled the holes in the team and stop playing players out of position. It is a pity we had so many easy fixtures at the start of the season because if we had the tough games earlier in the season then we could have done something about the squad whilst the transfer window was still open. The easy start to the season fooled many fans into thinking we are better than we truly are. Man City is coming soon and no doubt we will attempt to park the bus again and hope to nick a goal whilst being totally dominated. Surely a club as big and prestigious as Manchester United can't continue to play this way.
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You need to let this Jonathan Tah fixation go.
 
kouroux said:
Oh there is more than enough space in the PL, Morata's goal is a good example.
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:lol:

Everyone knows smallings level. Our transition on the ball is so slow we face low blocks most of the time on the ball.
 
Walters_19_MuFc said:
Barkley. His creativity is underrated by some on here, in my opinion.

Stats are not the be all and end all, but in terms of creativity, he's been mixing it with the big guns in the last few seasons.

He's also versatile. Can play deeper if Pogba is out, can play as a 10 or wide.
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I want us too add Barkley to our squad. He'd be a severe upgrade talent wise to all our current back up attackers and midfielders and is still young enough to be moulded. I'd also like Pereira to be recalled and given a proper chance to stake a claim for our right wing role.
 
Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber said:
I want us too add Barkley to our squad. He'd be a severe upgrade talent wise to all our current back up attackers and midfielders and is still young enough to be moulded. I'd also like Pereira to be recalled and given a proper chance to stake a claim for our right wing role.
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Barkley has got brain of another overrated typical english player like the likes of smalling and jones have got. It'd be a disaster to sign a player of than level of intelligence.

Letting go of peirera was a mistake itself but many posters argued otherwise and we have the result of it visible. I only want english players comming out of our academy.
 
Anderson Talisca is also a good option. He was linked with us in summer. He has good pace, good strength, good vision, can dribble past opponents, can score goals and he is Brazilian.
 
Rory 7 said:
I can’t help but feel that missing out on Griezmann fecked us up royally. Not that he’s a playmaker but you know what I mean.
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He is a luxury player according to most on here.
Signing a player who scored 25+ a season and who can create is just what we need.
 
Rozay said:
You need to let this Jonathan Tah fixation go.
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Yeah, I am a fan especially at that price but I would be just as happy with Laporte or Kalidou Koulibaly or any number of CB's over Lindelof. I don't think we could have purchased a worse CB for the money. We could really do with a CB that can help play the ball out from the back pity Lindelof can't defend so rules himself out from selection.
 
poacher said:
When people suggest United aren't good enough to win the title or challenge for the European and domestic honours there is an army of rabid supporters shouting them down, however, the more games we play against the top teams it's becoming clear that this team isn't good enough to win nothing. We need more creativity and dynamism across the board. It's not about adding a #10. There is no cohesive linkage from defence to the midfield to attack. There is no fluidity to the way we play. No top team resorts to 'hoofball' as often as us. To fix the problem we need to overhaul of the squad. We need a CB with skills to pass out from the back, we need a playmaker CM that can control the play like a general directing play and a #10 with pace and creativity and ball control, we need wingers that have pace and ability to beat a man and cross the ball, we need proper fullbacks not failed wingers and utility players and we need a manager that is interested in fluid attacking play rather than safety first defensive football.

To solve the problems I would suggest:
Aymeric Laporte CB
Ghoulam LB
Fabinho RB
Jorginho CM
Fekir AM
Leon Bailey RW

The players listed above are the technically skilled dynamic players Man City have in their squad. It is no coincidence that quite a few of the above players have been linked to Man City. Surely this is the direction Manchester United must head down as we can't keep hoofing the ball down the pitch hoping for a lucky break whilst hanging on grimly against superior teams. Lastly, if we bring in a better class of player lets not be afraid to remove players that aren't up to Manchester United standard. BTW many fans will say this kind of post is just a knee-jerk reaction to a loss, however, there are many posters that have thought this way for a very long time we are just afraid of being labelled negative and being shouted down.
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With the way he has played this season and improved as a CM, Fabinho won't be a RB in the future, that ship has sailed.
 
poacher said:
Yeah, I am a fan especially at that price but I would be just as happy with Laporte or Kalidou Koulibaly or any number of CB's over Lindelof. I don't think we could have purchased a worse CB for the money. We could really do with a CB that can help play the ball out from the back pity Lindelof can't defend so rules himself out from selection.
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I’m far from happy with the purchase of Lindelof either, largely because I don’t think we needed to buy a centre half at all in the first place. The fact that he isn’t any good is just extra cause for disapproval.

He’s pretty much been ostracised from the squad all season, yet we have still had better centre halves both on the pitch and in reserve. This is with Rojo out injured too.

A left back was an urgent priority.
 
poacher said:
When people suggest United aren't good enough to win the title or challenge for the European and domestic honours there is an army of rabid supporters shouting them down, however, the more games we play against the top teams it's becoming clear that this team isn't good enough to win nothing. We need more creativity and dynamism across the board. It's not about adding a #10. There is no cohesive linkage from defence to the midfield to attack. There is no fluidity to the way we play. No top team resorts to 'hoofball' as often as us. To fix the problem we need to overhaul of the squad. We need a CB with skills to pass out from the back, we need a playmaker CM that can control the play like a general directing play and a #10 with pace and creativity and ball control, we need wingers that have pace and ability to beat a man and cross the ball, we need proper fullbacks not failed wingers and utility players and we need a manager that is interested in fluid attacking play rather than safety first defensive football.

To solve the problems I would suggest:
Aymeric Laporte CB
Ghoulam LB
Fabinho RB
Jorginho CM
Fekir AM
Leon Bailey RW

The players listed above are the technically skilled dynamic players Man City have in their squad. It is no coincidence that quite a few of the above players have been linked to Man City. Surely this is the direction Manchester United must head down as we can't keep hoofing the ball down the pitch hoping for a lucky break whilst hanging on grimly against superior teams. Lastly, if we bring in a better class of player lets not be afraid to remove players that aren't up to Manchester United standard. BTW many fans will say this kind of post is just a knee-jerk reaction to a loss, however, there are many posters that have thought this way for a very long time we are just afraid of being labelled negative and being shouted down.
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Sadly I’ve heard Ghoulam has a long term injury, think we have to look into Danny Rose/Tierney.
 
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