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They were playing as forwards though. What am I missing?
Honestly I think McTom is better when playing in a more attacking role, box to box so to speak, as a DM I think he lacks a bit of sense for being in the right position and anticipating opponent moves faster. Carrick needs to tutor the lad, maybe he can teach him a bit about that.
Nothing, you don't want your attacking players to drop too deep, and both McTominay and Pogba turned over possession a bit too much, and that is an area to improve. Pogba has a tendency to do that at times, but that was very uncharacteristic of McTominay.
Fred did not have a full pre-season, joined late so is behind these guys in terms of being ready.
Because I see him developing his distrubution and starting to change the tempo of play. If he keeps improving this facet as he is displaying clearly, and also his defensive reading of the game then I feel we will have very mature well rounded midfielder in 2-3 seasons more in the Carrick mould. At 22 he has a high ceiling.
Lingard and Pereira played in attacking midfield.
About the only thing he has in common with Carrick is that they're both tall. I don't think he'll ever have Carrick's passing range.
Well I completely disagree. I think he is criminally underrated however its very early days for the young lad so I dont want to be pressured into big predictions. However I know what my gut instinct tells me.
He’s a decent player, works hard and is useful. He’s neat and tidy, looks solid but right now, in my opinion that’s it.
It's really not, it's just meant to indicate that he's not a top tier talent. He's not ever going to be one of the best midfielders in the world. Like, say, I don't think Lindelöf is a "donkey" but he's definitely no world beater either.
I just dont understand what people see in Matic in the ball, certainly not since signing for us. Matic takes far too long to move it on, if often gets caught on it and it's not as if his passing range is something impressive. He regularly messes up simple passes.
But why does it need to be said? It has been a constant since he came into the senior squad. The fact is that Mourinho who hates promoting youth gave 20yo Scott games and now Ole also highly rates him at 22. Yet he is constantly spoken of as a limited grafter by many of our fans. Yes he tries his arse off and fights, but I see him doing and attempting a huge lot more than what some are claiming. He is trying to develop into a highly athletic well rounded midfield who will impact big games. His progression is clear at 22, which is a baby in midfield terms.
Despite moving like a sloth, Matic is wonderfully composed on the ball. He’s never rushed (ironically
) and can comfortably skip past a couple of men to beat the press if needed. I said in the summer, which naturally was strongly opposed which I get, but McTominay does not look after the ball well enough for me. He’s better when the game is more open, but when it becomes tighter and more compact, he becomes less reliable with his touch and ‘tika-taka’ for want of a better expression. He’s not really got that Matic shuffle yet either where he can pass the ball from one foot to another quickly and skip past two players. He isn't though. If he was he wouldn't give the ball away repeatedly, he wouldn't be caught in the ball repeatedly. The dawdling on the ball we saw against Milan preseason isn't a one off. There's no assertiveness in his first touch, he doesn't try to play with a moving ball. It's far easier to look silky on the ball when you're stationary. Ask him to use his first touch to move into space and hit a pass and he can't do it.Despite moving like a sloth, Matic is wonderfully composed on the ball. He’s never rushed (ironically
Scott does have his strengths, and is useful, but is simply not a talented enough footballer to become this long-term automatic starter for me. If that happens it will be because we are just managing him, but we do need better on the ball to reach the top. He could never play in City’s midfield.
