Southampton was a blow but I'm still confident we'll get at least 4th. I believe we can win our next 2 games fairly comfortably, and I'd be very surprised if we're not ahead of Leicester in the table when we meet them on the final day.
Top 4 Race 19/20 | duffer: "We [Chelsea] are getting 3rd. Despite what the lunatics in here think, Man United are not all that."
- Thread starter Andy_Cole
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No panic here. Everyone has dropped points since lockdown and these aren’t the first we’ve dropped. The form remains superior to Leicester and Chelsea and we still closed the gap with that draw.
You’ve all been spending too much time concentrating on Liverpool’s season. Teams in third, forth and fifth don’t win game after game after game.
You’ve all been spending too much time concentrating on Liverpool’s season. Teams in third, forth and fifth don’t win game after game after game.
They signed Pulisic before the ban but he was still allowed to join.
We sold Lukaku and were relying on hope that Rashford and Martial would step up. No one knew that they would. Pogba was wanting out and Matic was on his last legs. No one knew if AWB would live up to expectations and Dan James was an unproven Championship player.
Kante, Jorginho, Kovacic, Azpilicueta, Alonso, Willian and Pedro would have been in or there abouts for Uniteds starting 11 at the start of the season if we did a combined 11.
People talking like Chelsea had a bad team without Hazard. It just so happens that Lampard is having a woeful time organising that defence.
Chelsea are 17th for goals conceded and 19th for away clean sheets kept. They have had 1 away clean sheet this season. This isn’t because Chelsea are such a terrible team, they have good players, but it’s because in my opinion the manager (Lampard) is not good enough.
No way if Conte was manager would you have such a terrible defensive record.
But there are plenty of doubts. I don't see how you can be so confident about winning the next two. It's just as likely that we'll collapse like last season.
They don't but that's the gap we need to make up if we don't want to continue being just a 5th placed side
He's not saying he expected us to finish top 4 though?
Oh dear.
Hazard on his own contributed to almost 50 percent of the clubs goals last season. A huge loss.
Saying that finishing below top 3 is a disgrace seems to indicate he did expect top 4...
Sounds about right. Bookies take everything into consideration. Form, fixtures, injuries etc. Unlike the doom and gloomers on here who lose their minds after one poor result.
United
- Top of the form table.
- Palace. Rock bottom on form table with five losses on the bounce. Pretty much on the beach.
- West Ham. Yes they 'need points'. But Brighton, Bournemouth, Villa also 'needed points' yet we dispatched them quite comfortably.
- Leicester. No form. Most likely missing 3/4 of their first choice defence. Their creative force (Maddison) is a doubt.
Leicester
- Have barely won a game since Christmas.
- Pereira, Soy confirmed out. Chilwell, Maddison serious doubts. That's half of the core missing.
- Sheffield. Rejuvenated in the last few games. Key defenders are back from injuries/suspension. They're 7th and Europa is in their hands (I've ruled out Arsenal winning the FA cup).
- Spurs. Have improved defensively. Also still in Europa contention. Mourinho has a history of screwing over Brenton.
- United. How will their makeshift defence cope with the most in form attack in the league? We made light work of Sheffield's makeshift defence recently.
Chelsea
- Defensively they're all over the place.
- Norwich. The easiest game any team could hope for at this stage. This will be a walk in the park.
- Liverpool. Three important factors here. 1) This is the trophy lifting game so they'll be motivated. 2) They need 3 wins to break the points record. They need 7 points to reach the century and equal City's record. 3) They'll remind you that they're unbeaten at home for god knows how many games.
- Wolves. They're a dark horse in this top 4 race. No one's really talking about them but in my opinion they're a bigger threat to Chelsea than Leicester are. If they beat Burnley and Palace they will be on 61 points. Assuming Chelsea win tonight and lose at Anfield they'll be on 63 points. A hungry wolf pack against a dodgy Chelsea defence and a potentially a CL spot on the line could be a really tasty proposition.
We should have won last night and ideally should have had top 4 secured before the final day. But shit happens. Nonetheless we're in the best position when you take everything into consideration.
Youre right. Hes saying he will only be satisfied with top 3 and anything under is a disgrace.
More so we should be aiming for that as we're Man Utd, not that its all that likely. That's my reading anyway.
we play Leicester in the last game so maximum points is out of the question for all
You're reaching now and you know it.
Talking about Romeu and that shocker of a tackle on Mason
Back to being overly reliant on other teams c*cking up.
got me there.However I had no perspective then and was saying it in the sense of Man United being historically expected to finish high, not that the team it self is the 3rd best.
I think next season the club should be challenging for the league, not because the squad is good enough, but because winning titles is what this club should always be aiming for and because the club is moving in the right direction.
frustrating feeling this morning
a midfield with Matic and Pogba was always going to struggle against a high press. Pogba needs to be sharper in possession as its far from the first time sloppiness in possession has cost us.
it would also help if our defence was a bit more solid. We look likely to give away soft goals and we will find it harder to come back against better sides.
we are still a point better off with 'easier' games than our rivals. Who saw those results for Chelsea and Leicester. I hope this doesn't give them a shot in the arm.
if we go into the Leicester game 3 points ahead with an inferior goal difference im not sure our team has the mental strength to finish it out. Winning mentally strong teams don't get so leggy I think and I think it was as much pressure than anything that affected us. Though Ole has named an unchanged side he's done well to withdraw key players.
Lets hope this is part of the teams learning curve and we are able to bounce back against Palace
a midfield with Matic and Pogba was always going to struggle against a high press. Pogba needs to be sharper in possession as its far from the first time sloppiness in possession has cost us.
it would also help if our defence was a bit more solid. We look likely to give away soft goals and we will find it harder to come back against better sides.
we are still a point better off with 'easier' games than our rivals. Who saw those results for Chelsea and Leicester. I hope this doesn't give them a shot in the arm.
if we go into the Leicester game 3 points ahead with an inferior goal difference im not sure our team has the mental strength to finish it out. Winning mentally strong teams don't get so leggy I think and I think it was as much pressure than anything that affected us. Though Ole has named an unchanged side he's done well to withdraw key players.
Lets hope this is part of the teams learning curve and we are able to bounce back against Palace
That is also true for Chelsea and for Leicester. If any one of the three of us take 9 points, top 4 is guaranteed, no matter what anyone else does.
Having said that, I don't think any of us are capable of getting 9 points.
But the team was set up for him. Correct me if I am wrong but is Hazard the reason that Chelsea have conceded so many goals? Chelsea have had no problem scoring this season, it’s the other end that is costing you. Like I said thats on Lampard and the coaching staff.
Manchester United : End Of Season review 19/20.It Was In Our Hands.
Yeah, don't see how anyone could argue it wasn't a red.
Also, I don't know many Chelsea fans who would claim Romeu as one our own. He's just a random ex player.
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We absolutely have had a problem scoring goals.
Weve had games where we dominated possesion had plenty of shots and lost 1 0 to teams having 1 or 2 shots a game.
To west ham newcastle Bournemouth etc just off the top of my head.
The defence has also been a problem. But with proper finishing these games wouldnt come down to a 1 0 loss to one or 2 shots.
I do get it but I think in this case there's a simple reason... the squad looks dog tired.
We've played so many games in such a short space of time and it's taking its toll now. They looked knackered first-half against Villa but we managed to come away with an impressive. Not so against Southampton where the chickens came home and were roosting their nuts off.
This one's on Ole for me who needs to start rotating a bit - although understandable because he didn't want to break up a winning team.
I guess the question is, can our squad players keep us performing? I hope so. Bruno needs a week's break. Rashford definitely does.
sorry
Anyway United will finish Top 4 and I wouldn't even be surprised if it happens on Matchday 37.
The fundamental lack of rotation on Ole's part could easily effect us even more in these closing stages. Fred and McTom especially look way out of schedule compared to their teammates and these two need to be heavily relied upon now.
Ole cant keep working Bruno,Pogba and Rashford into the ground with little respite,especially with the last two coming back from long injury layoffs.
Ole cant keep working Bruno,Pogba and Rashford into the ground with little respite,especially with the last two coming back from long injury layoffs.
Well beat Palace and a draw will see us through to top 4 v west ham.
Leicester are losing their next 2 games
Leicester are losing their next 2 games
Le Tissier gave it a go on Sky but let's just say his arguments are not going to be used in debate textbooks any time soon.
Quite confident you guys will win last three games and finish 3rd. Leicester I don't think will make more than 1-2 points, they look absolutely broken.
Palace absolutely outplayed us start of the season, they have a combative spirit in what world can you be absolutely confident ? They are just as much a bogey team as Southampton. West Ham have been in weird form so I fancy a decent result.
They absolutely didn't outplay us but I agree it's a tough game with no guarantee of 3 points.
Leicester will drop at least 3 points within their next two games, I'm very confident of that. I'd bet on them picking up just 1 point personally.
It's all about whether United can stop shitting the bed when top 4 is in sight.
It's all about whether United can stop shitting the bed when top 4 is in sight.
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Main concern for me is the players look jaded. If we can re-charge the batteries for Thursday then we should win. Also, Leicester are looking awful.
I kinda see Ole making some of the same mistakes Lampard has since the restart - namely a lack of squad rotation & inefficient use of subs.
Lampard played Kante for every minute of the restart until he finally broke down vs. Watford - this after having an attenuated pre-restart training period. Pulisic & Willian have played huge minutes as well. I would be worried for United that something similar may happen (and it may have started already with Shaw going off).
Obviously hindsight is 20/20 and it's hard to have perspective when every point matters, but I really think we should have rotated vs. Watford for instance and you should have rotated against Bournemouth. It'll be interesting to see what lineups come out for the FA Cup semi; for me I'd hope for Chelsea to play a weakened side as securing CL is far more important IMO.
Lampard played Kante for every minute of the restart until he finally broke down vs. Watford - this after having an attenuated pre-restart training period. Pulisic & Willian have played huge minutes as well. I would be worried for United that something similar may happen (and it may have started already with Shaw going off).
Obviously hindsight is 20/20 and it's hard to have perspective when every point matters, but I really think we should have rotated vs. Watford for instance and you should have rotated against Bournemouth. It'll be interesting to see what lineups come out for the FA Cup semi; for me I'd hope for Chelsea to play a weakened side as securing CL is far more important IMO.
I can see both sides playing average/weakened sides.
What a advert that would be for a Fa Cup Semi.
edit: Chelsea's weakened side would be alot more better than ours,which is Championship standard.
What a advert that would be for a Fa Cup Semi.
edit: Chelsea's weakened side would be alot more better than ours,which is Championship standard.
I don't know how you think we made up all those points on Chelsea and LCFC if not by capitalizing on them losing points?
We usually gain points on them when we play first. The last six times we played on the same day or after Chelsea dropped points, we dropped points as well.
Norwich playing with no pressure now, won’t be as easy as Chelsea expect it to be