Just wanted to write a short post in support of Ole and the players.
Yes we can partly question the team selection (Lingard shouldn't start games, generally) as well as some of the individual performances (Pogba had a bad game, but in his defense even when he plays badly he is good - plus he wants to leave and personally I don't blame him).
The main issue, however, is beyond the power of both Ole and the players. There simply hasn't been enough work put into this squad. In addition to the LF, RB and CB signed this past window we also needed a back-up LB, a CDM, a CAM and a RF. And that's not even getting into the players that should be shifted out.
It's not Ashley Young's fault another back-up LB wasn't brought in, for instance. Nor is it Ole's. Some of us fans have been calling for that position as well as a lot of others to be better covered for a long time.
I think progress has been made, in spite of this result and performance. Maguire and AWB have improved the defense. James is a player of great potential who is already proving that he should be in or around the starting eleven. We just need more signings. It's easy to forget forget just how badly we ended last season and the state of absolute disarray we have been in ever since SAF retired. A paltry number of only three signings, as good as they are and I do think they are very good signings, was never going to fix this.
Lessons (we already knew this):
- Lingard should start on the bench and be regarded an impact player
- James should play on the left
Next game, let's start:
Martial Rashford
(Mata or Gomes)
Pogba (Pereira or Fred) McTominay
Shaw Maguire Lindelöf AWB
DDG
Second half; bring on James, Greenwood and whoever of Pereira and Fred who didn't start.
I believe in this team, but further improvements from both within and the outside are needed.