no call for panic stations yet but if he doesn’t score for united at the weekend then we’re in flop territory.
11
Season Average Rating
- Appearances
- 43
- Goals
- 13
- Assists
- 2
- Yellow cards
- 2
-
In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik (@Rood) was joined by comedian Ali Woods to look back at the best and worst moments of a rollercoaster season with the annual United Hour Awards.
Has Ten Hag been sacked yet? We're not sure and we hope not, but it's looking more likely as the days pass.
Who should replace him and why is it taking so long to make a decision?
Rashford's cross was deflected and think it came a bit surprising for him, so he didn't really "find" him. What's the other chance you're referring to?
He still does many things well, and he was pretty unlucky not to come away with an assist yesterday. Still, he needs to putting at least one of those chances away yesterday. Actually I think the header was the worse miss of the two. His first chance came at an awkward height after the deflection, and he was unlucky not to bundle it over the line. The header he just has to get on target.
Last season he returned 0.44 goals per 90 from 0.47 xG per 90 in Serie A. This season in the small sample size from the PL so far he has returned 0.00 goals from 0.33 xG per 90.
So if his finishing was to par he "should" have scored one or two league goals already. But in the longer run I'd be less concerned about that finishing (which will likely revert to the mean anyway) and more concerned about the chances he's getting, because our CF should be expecting to score more than one goal every three 90s.
So if his finishing was to par he "should" have scored one or two league goals already. But in the longer run I'd be less concerned about that finishing (which will likely revert to the mean anyway) and more concerned about the chances he's getting, because our CF should be expecting to score more than one goal every three 90s.
It's just a flukey season where it's hard to read into our stats. Doesn't tell us much in terms of football beyond we haven't been good, but we all know there has been a variety of reasons for that. Hojlund in the CL is at 0.91 xG per 90 and has 1.33 goals per 90. Combine his stats for league and CL and he's at above 0.5 xG/90 (and you can't ignore CL or write it off like it's Europa League). Small sample size either way, but the bigger thing for me is that when a team is in a shit mental state like us, I always think any data is entirely pointless, because that won't give you anything meaningful in terms of why we're shit. We're shit because confidence is rock bottom, because off the pitch issues. Tactical changes can only do so much, injured players can only do so much, players getting form back can only do so much... It's one of those where when it all normalizes, then it'll be relevant to look at our stats and see what our players are doing IMO.
I hope he won't be out for too long and will get his first league goal ASAP. The longer it drags on the more pressure he will face and the harder it will be for him to score.
Like everything about him so far!
Like everything about him so far!
That's all good and game until the biggest context would be inserted: Premier League vs Bundesliga. It's not only different leagues thing. Premier League is the top league with higher level of competitiveness and defensive quality on average.
Can't just conveniently exclude CL stats for Hojlund either. It's not like CL is a tournament held separately without league games and domestic cups in between like World Cup, Euro.
If he had 5 goals in the league and none in the CL people wouldn't be being as critical as they are.
It's just a strange season in terms of where he is grabbing the goals.
It's just a strange season in terms of where he is grabbing the goals.
It’s also strange that every game he’s scored in we’ve lost
. Think I’d rather take he didn’t score and win games at the minute.He'd already be looking like a good signing with a more in form team behind him creating chances. He was a lot of money but also one for the future. No reason to worry about him so early.
Our chance creation has been really messed up all season. Apparently Bruno has created just two chances for Hojlund so far. He’s created seven for Rashford. Bet you can’t guess the other United player he has also created seven chances for?
Martial hasn't been fit or focused in years, finished as a pro.
But anyway, your probably just joking.
I feel its one of those situations where 1 goal opens up the flood gates.
Maguire? No, Casemiro!
One for the future, he's not that young is he, he'll be 21 in three months. Surely if he was going to be a superstar, he would be banging them in already, like Rooney was at 18 years old for example.
Himself.
I was listening to an interview with Wes Brown the other day when he made a very simple but important point. When he started playing for United, he was surrounded by serial winners who made adjusting to first team football at Manchester United much easier than it probably should have been.
Hojlund is a 20 year old Danish kid with raw potential, but he's surrounded by players who aren't exactly helping him and putting a lot of burden back on his shoulders. He's also got a coach who for some reason is playing him in such a way that clearly isolates him and starves him of opportunities to score. And yet in all competitions, he's still our top scorer, which tells you how poor we have been collectively.
The key to getting the best out of a player like Hojlund is giving him someone to play off and having genuine width in the side. The worrying thing is that Ten Hag doesn't seem to get that concept, despite saying that he wants us to 'be direct'. Hojlund needs to be receiving the ball, laying it off and bombing forward, but he's rarely had the support to do that, and he has had nothing from the flanks either because we are constantly cutting in.
Reguilon has offered that in the Luton game but sometimes it feels like ETH doesn't want to play him; but in the last game we created far more because we had one of two options out wide. Plus, we have players with a good range of passing who can spread the play. The sight of Reguilon hugging the touchline in the last game was pleasing to see, but the right hand side needs much more improvement.
The only way to get anything out of Hojlund other than running him into the ground is to have someone supporting him and players out wide. Hopefully Ten Hag realizes that, but it should be obvious to him.
Hojlund is a 20 year old Danish kid with raw potential, but he's surrounded by players who aren't exactly helping him and putting a lot of burden back on his shoulders. He's also got a coach who for some reason is playing him in such a way that clearly isolates him and starves him of opportunities to score. And yet in all competitions, he's still our top scorer, which tells you how poor we have been collectively.
The key to getting the best out of a player like Hojlund is giving him someone to play off and having genuine width in the side. The worrying thing is that Ten Hag doesn't seem to get that concept, despite saying that he wants us to 'be direct'. Hojlund needs to be receiving the ball, laying it off and bombing forward, but he's rarely had the support to do that, and he has had nothing from the flanks either because we are constantly cutting in.
Reguilon has offered that in the Luton game but sometimes it feels like ETH doesn't want to play him; but in the last game we created far more because we had one of two options out wide. Plus, we have players with a good range of passing who can spread the play. The sight of Reguilon hugging the touchline in the last game was pleasing to see, but the right hand side needs much more improvement.
The only way to get anything out of Hojlund other than running him into the ground is to have someone supporting him and players out wide. Hopefully Ten Hag realizes that, but it should be obvious to him.
Very funny.
Any news on 009's injury?
It’s definitely a laughable take that a 20 year old isn’t young and/or a young striker who doesn’t keep track with one of the most freakish prodigies ever to play the game is somehow failing.
He did score some great goals last year. We are 12 games in and he's getting little help chill out.
Is everything this black and white?
Not that young
Pele already had a world cup at this stage of his career.
Henry didn't start banging them in until he was 22 the fecking loser
Wasn't a 20 yr old Harry Kane on loan at Leicester in Championship?
Not sure if this post is serious. He has been banging them in, in the CL and unlucky in the PL
I would say his trajectory is way above where most PL strikers are aged 20.
Certainly things to improve on but I like what I am personally seeing so far.
Knowing our luck it’ll be a month out. On the positive side…back for the scousers away and we get to see Martial banging them in for fun until he’s back.
Rasmus Hojlund and Christian Eriksen have been withdrawn from the Denmark squad with injury.
GET IN!
Was my initial reaction to this, keep them in Manchester and get them fit for Everton. Unless the injuries are long term in which case FFS!
I don't even rate Hojlund that much but comparing any young player to 18 year old Rooney is unfair. He was one of the best wonderkids ever, absolutely ridiculous at that age.
It's over, might as well start looking for his replacement.
Rashford and Greenwood both broke into the first team at 18. Martial came when he was 20 and scored against Liverpool on his debut. But Hojlund is just a big kid.
And there are much more examples where brilliant players didn't look as special at 20 yo but later down the line, so what are we talking about here.
People can rant on whatever they want and wave their little stats and numbers while ignoring the context of it all, this lad looks very promising.
I guess not everyone has to be a Rooney to break into the PL at an early age. He could be a late bloomer though. But at the end of the day, numbers are what he needs, so it's not that harsh to look at them, even with context.
Next game is 5 days before the end of November. Hardly a disaster.