And you're posting laughing emojis at others.
7
Season Average Rating
- Appearances
- 38
- Goals
- 24
- Assists
- 3
- Yellow cards
- 9
- Status
Not quite sure if this is a parody or not…
That’s the thing. He’s a remarkable specimen but when the end comes it will come quickly. He’s never been the sort of cerebral footballer who can adapt his game when his athleticism fades. His game has always been 100% reliant on physicality. So it was inevitable his decline would be rapid when it finally arrived. And it’s hardly a massive surprise for a footballer to decline, physically, at age 37. In fact, it was utterly predictable. And it’s happening right in front of us. Right now.
The really worrying bit now is how he’s going to take the consequences of this decline. Less game time and struggling to make an impact when he does get the minutes he thinks he deserves. Judging on what we saw the other night (as well as previous lucky escapes from red cards) the answer is “very badly”
Was anyone on here slagging him off actually at the game?
He talked Elanga through the entire game, he was the most vocal player organising when we were defending set pieces and he literally gave a fecking teamtalk while the players were in the corner celebrating the second goal.
This talk about "pressing", I'm sure people on here think it's just running at people aimlessly. When the goalkeeper or centre backs had the ball he was positioning himself to cut off their diagonal passes which in turn stops the ball out to 2/3 players at a time more often than not, and is a far more effective use of energy that sprinting at them - which even then he still did do probably 4 or 5 times. The question is more why if he's cutting out passes are our other players allowing simple passes in the opposite direction.
He didn't have his best game but he played significant parts in both goals; his movement took two centre backs out of the game for the first and obviously his chest through for the second, and it was no real surprise that after we took him off we missed him organising from the front and we dropped deeper as a team.
As for being unhappy about being taken off, if the manager isn't bothered about it then why should we be? What a proper odd way to go looking for problems after an away win.
He talked Elanga through the entire game, he was the most vocal player organising when we were defending set pieces and he literally gave a fecking teamtalk while the players were in the corner celebrating the second goal.
This talk about "pressing", I'm sure people on here think it's just running at people aimlessly. When the goalkeeper or centre backs had the ball he was positioning himself to cut off their diagonal passes which in turn stops the ball out to 2/3 players at a time more often than not, and is a far more effective use of energy that sprinting at them - which even then he still did do probably 4 or 5 times. The question is more why if he's cutting out passes are our other players allowing simple passes in the opposite direction.
He didn't have his best game but he played significant parts in both goals; his movement took two centre backs out of the game for the first and obviously his chest through for the second, and it was no real surprise that after we took him off we missed him organising from the front and we dropped deeper as a team.
As for being unhappy about being taken off, if the manager isn't bothered about it then why should we be? What a proper odd way to go looking for problems after an away win.
Stopped reading after the first sentence, too silly even for a parody.
This is fantasy. I'd like to think it's a parody but you're deadly serious aren't you?
Wow.
Oh sweet lord.
I didn't like his reaction in so much as I didn't go "hell yea, throw a hissy fit and show that desire!" but at the same time you can see 90% of people here are armchair fans that have never seen an actual match. This sort of thing happens all of the time, you just don't see it on the TV because the camera isn't fixated on the bench, if it was Lindelof kicking off then you'd never have seen it. You only see this because it's Ronaldo & all eyes are on him.
This is just an excuse. Everyone knows Ronaldo is a drama queen and he wanted to make sure his reaction was noticed
Once again, the hate here is brimming…
Every bad thing is analysed and posters bringing up stats should be watching the game. How many chances does he get when on the pitch?
The guy is having to drop deeper to get a touch and its his fault if he doesnt get chances? Manchester was abysmal in the first half and it had little to do with Ronaldo.
The greatest thing about all the hate here is that is matters nada, he will still be playing here next season until his contract runs out.. so better keep on making that noise and soon your voice will be heard! I believe in the caf..
Every bad thing is analysed and posters bringing up stats should be watching the game. How many chances does he get when on the pitch?
The guy is having to drop deeper to get a touch and its his fault if he doesnt get chances? Manchester was abysmal in the first half and it had little to do with Ronaldo.
The greatest thing about all the hate here is that is matters nada, he will still be playing here next season until his contract runs out.. so better keep on making that noise and soon your voice will be heard! I believe in the caf..
It's reality. Go to a game once in a while.
I know its a game of opinions but I struggle to believe that some people think he's actually playing well. He looks so bad out there atm, the chest pass was probably the only thing he did right in an attacking sense yesterday. Not only does he struggle to make an impact to our general play, he's so easy for defenders to mark out of the game. His speed, strength and agility have all gone it actually makes me sad to watch because that is Ronaldo, you don't want to see him so ineffective.
Earlier in the season he seemed to still be able to gain a yard on his man or get himself into decent scoring positions, now he just looks like he's doing cardio on the pitch.
Earlier in the season he seemed to still be able to gain a yard on his man or get himself into decent scoring positions, now he just looks like he's doing cardio on the pitch.
He was always a bit of a moaner, but yesterday’s histrionics were cringeworthy.
There was no better manager to deal with such melodrama than Fergie. How badly I miss him.
There was no better manager to deal with such melodrama than Fergie. How badly I miss him.
He's an attacking player. You can see how much threat he produces in his match highlight on Youtube. At least against Brentford, aparte from the chest pass, was almost anonymous.
This is wrong and underestimates how well he reads the game. That chest pass alone should be telling enough that he can definitely link up play for goals even now.
I think most agree he's had poor games, I just don't wanna be quick enough to write it off as "this is the end". I want to believe it's a bad patch due to some hip issues.
His being injured for a final was claimed to be some great performance so I'm not surprised a hissy tantrum is built up as something special.
Pretty much. Time is undefeated.
It's actually a bit sad watching him at times when you consider the player he was the last time he donned the red kit.
The unmatched ego he has in the sport will likely lead to more and more situations like last night.
Assumptions get you nowhere
From an objective and purely tactical perspective this was always going tits up let’s be honest.
Disneyland stuff.
Disneyland stuff.
Write Ronaldo off at your own peril.
If there's one player I wouldnt bet against its Ronaldo. Normal rules just dont apply to him.
Yes he cannot put in 9/10 performances everyweek, but the rest of the team aint doint that either. I'm very sure he will have a lot of match winning performances this season, like he already has. He's gonna make a lot of people eat crow.
Agreed. With his current declining rate I'm fearful to think we're supposed to have him leading our attack the next 18 months. Hope Ralf doesn't think the same.
His body obviously would no longer handle the rigorous demands of the PL. Both on the pitch and the recovery rate. He surely looked much better last match than against Newcastle, Wolves etc. but truth is it still was basically a nothing, below average performance. And he didn't play like for two weeks between his last match and Brentford.
I don't think it's wise to start him next match since it's only three days. He should play maximum once a week now imo. Tbh I don't even want Ralf to start him anymore. He should be used exclusively as a super sub. It'd be the best for both him and United I think.
I mean, if we had a second striker with a some physicality and had wingers who could actually play as wingers maybe this would actually work out but we just don't. These are probably the worst conditions for him to play in. Time to move on, no point in running this back for another season. He's basically the worst player on the pitch every game at this point. It's painful to watch.
There’s an amazing cult around Ronaldo with some people where he’s the base point of God and everyone else is at fault/wrong at all times. It’s going to be a difficult few years for these people as his decline becomes sharper and more in focus.
The thing is. If Ronaldo is showing amazing passion/mentality by throwing a tantrum by being subbed, do they want all the others players to follow in his example since he's apparently a great leader and all that? I mean he was subbed against Brentford, not a major final.
CR has probably been a culture shock for a lot of players at the club. A player is always 100% committed to his job and doesn't accept anything else from his colleagues will cause people, who got too comfortable in their position, to get annoyed if they get put someone like Ronaldo in front of them who demands from everyone to meat his standards.
I'm far from a Ronaldo fan, I don't like the way he acts in public, and I haven't forgiven him for leaving us for Real, and especially not the manner in which he and his agent behaved back then.
But there is one thing I would never question, it's his commitment to his job and the fact his attitude towards his job is something a lot of our current players are sorely missing. So yeah if they have a problem with Ronaldo not being all buddy-buddy with them and demanding everyone to give no less than 100% in training and on the pitch, it's them who need a wake-up call and not Ronaldo.
But he's actually not very good on the pitch anymore. I'm sure some players are awed by having one the greatest of all time to play and train with them, but on the pitch he's declined so much that he's a shadow of that player.
Those two tweets are this thread argument in a nutshell.
Ronaldo is an intimidating figure and he doesn't seem easy to approach. The strops on the sideline only add to that. I wish he had a bit more self-awareness about that. With great fame comes a certain responsibility.
Someone in here asked for a comparison between Ronaldo and Zlatan this season.
Here's their numbers so far this season in their leagues:
Goalscoring + finishing:
Ronaldo (36y): 0,39 non penalty goals per 90 / 0,56 npxG90 - underperforming by 30%
Zlatan (40y): 0,82 non penalty goals per 90 / 0,67 npxG90 - overperforming by 22%
Honorable mentions:
(Bruno (27y): 0,38 non penalty goals per 90 / 0,18 npxG90 - overperforming by 111%)
(Haaland (21y): 1,0 non penalty goals per 90 / 0,68 npxG90 - overperforming by 47%)
(Lewa (33y): 1,1 non penalty goals per 90 / 1,16 npxG90 - underperforming by 5%)
(Benzema (34y): 0,82 non penalty goals per 90 / 0,53 npxG90 - overperforming by 55%)
Actual goalthreat per 90 minutes (npg90+xA):
Ronaldo: 0,39 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,11 expected assists per 90 - 0,5 npg90+xA90
Zlatan: 0,82 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,17 expected assists per 90 - 0,99 npg90+xA90
(Bruno: 0,38 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,30 expected assists per 90 - 0,68 npg90+xA90)
(Haaland: 1,0 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,29 expected assists per 90 - 1,29 npg90+xA90)
(Lewa: 1,1 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,20 expected assists per 90 - 1,30 npg90+xA90)
(Benzema: 0,82 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,24 expected assists per 90 - 1,06 npg90+xA90)
So far this season 40 year old Zlatan has offered double the goalthreat per 90 minutes 36 year old Ronaldo has. His finishing is a lot better and he offers more creativity and directness in his play. Bruno also offer more goalthreat from his offensive midfield position than Ronaldo.
Compared to other old top strikers and the hottest of the new generation his numbers looks, well, judge for yourselves.
Pressing and intercepting:
Ronaldo: 6,39 pressings per 90 / 1,87 successful pressings per 90 / 2,84 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 0,19 interceptions per 90
Zlatan: 9,08 pressings per 90 / 3,47 successful pressings per 90 / 6,33 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 0,61 interceptions per 90
(Bruno: 17,04 pressings per 90 / 4,84 successful pressings per 90 / 5,11 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 1,13 interceptions per 90)
(Haaland: 12,42 pressings per 90 / 3,67 successful pressings per 90 / 8,42 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 0,33 interceptions per 90)
(Lewa: 8,73 pressings per 90 / 2,98 successful pressings per 90 / 5,69 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 0,33 interceptions per 90)
(Benzema: 9,23 pressings per 90 / 2,30 successful pressings per 90 / 5,30 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 0,27 interceptions per 90)
This is painfull reading. The 40 year old puts in more than double shifts for pressing in the attacking 3rd compared to our man....
To be honest Lewa, Benzema and Zlatan presses well below average for forwards today.
Ronaldo's defensive contribution this season is shocking, nothing less.
Should we try to gel in the different constellations of Sancho/Rashford/Greenwood/Elanga/Diallo and let Ronaldo and Cavani chip in now and then?
...or should we invest time in trying to get the soon to be 37 year old back in scoring form?
The five youngsters puts in 2x + pressingnumbers btw.
Here's their numbers so far this season in their leagues:
Goalscoring + finishing:
Ronaldo (36y): 0,39 non penalty goals per 90 / 0,56 npxG90 - underperforming by 30%
Zlatan (40y): 0,82 non penalty goals per 90 / 0,67 npxG90 - overperforming by 22%
Honorable mentions:
(Bruno (27y): 0,38 non penalty goals per 90 / 0,18 npxG90 - overperforming by 111%)
(Haaland (21y): 1,0 non penalty goals per 90 / 0,68 npxG90 - overperforming by 47%)
(Lewa (33y): 1,1 non penalty goals per 90 / 1,16 npxG90 - underperforming by 5%)
(Benzema (34y): 0,82 non penalty goals per 90 / 0,53 npxG90 - overperforming by 55%)
Actual goalthreat per 90 minutes (npg90+xA):
Ronaldo: 0,39 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,11 expected assists per 90 - 0,5 npg90+xA90
Zlatan: 0,82 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,17 expected assists per 90 - 0,99 npg90+xA90
(Bruno: 0,38 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,30 expected assists per 90 - 0,68 npg90+xA90)
(Haaland: 1,0 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,29 expected assists per 90 - 1,29 npg90+xA90)
(Lewa: 1,1 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,20 expected assists per 90 - 1,30 npg90+xA90)
(Benzema: 0,82 non penalty goals per 90 + 0,24 expected assists per 90 - 1,06 npg90+xA90)
So far this season 40 year old Zlatan has offered double the goalthreat per 90 minutes 36 year old Ronaldo has. His finishing is a lot better and he offers more creativity and directness in his play. Bruno also offer more goalthreat from his offensive midfield position than Ronaldo.
Compared to other old top strikers and the hottest of the new generation his numbers looks, well, judge for yourselves.
Pressing and intercepting:
Ronaldo: 6,39 pressings per 90 / 1,87 successful pressings per 90 / 2,84 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 0,19 interceptions per 90
Zlatan: 9,08 pressings per 90 / 3,47 successful pressings per 90 / 6,33 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 0,61 interceptions per 90
(Bruno: 17,04 pressings per 90 / 4,84 successful pressings per 90 / 5,11 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 1,13 interceptions per 90)
(Haaland: 12,42 pressings per 90 / 3,67 successful pressings per 90 / 8,42 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 0,33 interceptions per 90)
(Lewa: 8,73 pressings per 90 / 2,98 successful pressings per 90 / 5,69 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 0,33 interceptions per 90)
(Benzema: 9,23 pressings per 90 / 2,30 successful pressings per 90 / 5,30 pressings in the attacking 3rd per 90 / 0,27 interceptions per 90)
This is painfull reading. The 40 year old puts in more than double shifts for pressing in the attacking 3rd compared to our man....
To be honest Lewa, Benzema and Zlatan presses well below average for forwards today.
Ronaldo's defensive contribution this season is shocking, nothing less.
Should we try to gel in the different constellations of Sancho/Rashford/Greenwood/Elanga/Diallo and let Ronaldo and Cavani chip in now and then?
...or should we invest time in trying to get the soon to be 37 year old back in scoring form?
The five youngsters puts in 2x + pressingnumbers btw.
I don't actually think he is that much worse. It's the way he would have always looked if the service had been as bad at other clubs than it is at ours.
TBF I think comparing Seria A and the PL is a bit different. But those are still great numbers for Zlatan.
That's not really how psychology works though, if you have a difficult personality in any workplace, it can inhibit certain people, the players are human. I don't question Ronaldo's commitment to being the best he can possibly be. I would question his ability to bring other people along with him.
Even in interviews, he's openly said the individual is key. His view of football is like that of an ultra-capitalist, if every individual fights to be the best they can be in a survival of the fittest game, then we will win the match. It really works and speaks to him on a personal level as a forward, but it doesn't exactly help the success of other players in his team. He will argue that I scored you 2 goals, which gave you a much greater chance of winning the game, because goals win games etc.
That's his opinion and it has worked, especially when he was a better player and at Real Madrid who are 100% set up as a club for that kind of individualistic point of view. Ronaldo and Real were a perfect match. Like in real life though, this isn't really what happens in practice, and to compare an opposite approach, a more socialist view of football would be that everyone works together and sacrifices themselves for the greater good, in order to reach the goal of winning the game. This is closer to how Man City play within a system, where it's full of players like Mahrez and Grealish who are brilliant dribblers, who spend a lot of time in strict positions and doing a role for the team.
A lot of his technical abilities have gone to shit. First touch, hold up play, beating a man etc. When I played football, I could still have good games when the team was shit. I could tackle as well, dribble as well, pass as well etc. But I guess sunday league football can't be compared. I'm just saying even when the team is shit, you could still do the best you can do.
Makes for some dire reading again, especially because he offers absolutely nothing in terms of overall play. If he's underperforming in terms finishing by this extent, then it's hard to see how he can be described as anything other a hard net negative.
I mean, I wouldn’t say he was in the top two players with the name Ronaldo. As much as he has done stats wise (which is unarguably over a career very impressive) with goals he’s rarely produced magic out of nothing. That’s what the greatest of all time do as their bread and butter.
If you think he’s not “cerebral” then you definitely don’t know football. And that should be that.
The moral of the story: Zlatan is a freak of nature, even more so than Ronaldo.
- Status