46 shots, 2 scored - both from penalties

[Dante]

26 shots against Copenhagen, 20 shots against Sevilla. And yet all we could muster was two goals from penalties.

Overall, I think it's a good thing we're creating so much. So what's going wrong and how do we fix it?

 

[Adam-Utd]

It is a bit worrying, but I feel like it was just a freak occurence. Maybe the shots could have been better placed but none of them were off target and forced the keeper to save them. We just didn't have the luck.

 

[Schmeichel's Cartwheel]

I love martial but he’s missed about 6 “expected goals” in the last 2 games.

 

[OleBoiii]

26 shots against Copenhagen, 20 shots against Sevilla. And yet all we could muster was two goals from penalties.

Overall, I think it's a good thing we're creating so much. So what's going wrong and how do we fix it?

Just two of those days... Greenwood is probably our best finisher, but he didn't really get that many clear cut chances. Martial is great, but his finishing can still be a bit inconsistent. For some weird reason he seems to be better at finishing the difficult chances than the easier ones. Rashford is out of form. Bruno has gotten the "Pogba syndrome"(i.e. keeps hitting the post).

 

[Rozay]

Not worried about that. Several very good saves, hit the post a few times against Copenhagen, some VAR disallowed. It is what it is.

 

[el3mel]

Seems like the nerves got into the player yesterday for me, as if the size of the game was weirdly too much for them that they fecked it up in front of the goal.

I honestly didn't think their GK did any kind of brilliant job yesterday. We were shooting straight at him.

 

[TMDaines]

In all honesty, it’s probably just variance as much as anything. To paraphrase an old saying, you should concern yourself with the things you can control, accept the things you cannot control, and try to be able to distinguish between the two. Our finishing was good on the run in, but for whatever reason we left about 4.0 non-pen xG out there across those two games.

I’d probably focus more on addressing the soft chances given away at the other end.

 

[Irrational.]

We simply aren't ruthless enough.

Compare this to Sevilla's stats yesterday: 3 shots on target, two goals. We're missing a world class finisher, and someone that won't simply blast the ball straight at the keeper. A lot of our shots on target yesterday were literally straight at the keeper.

 

[Godfather]

Not worried about that. Several very good saves, hit the post a few times against Copenhagen, some VAR disallowed. It is what it is.

This. As long as we keep creating chances and get even better at it, the goals will come

 

[charlenefan]

The cynic in me says there's more to it than just luck, you can go back further than the Copenhagen game as well

1-3 v Chelsea - penalty
1-1 v West Ham
0-2 v Leicester - penalty
2-1 v Lask
1-0 v Copenhagen - penalty
2-1 v Seville - penalty

4 of our last 6 goals for the regular XI have been pens

 

[Striker10]

I wouldn't worry about it. We're still a developing team. To have that many shots is great. Let's think back to halves of football not too long ago, where we would be lucky to get a shot on goal. I think it's all part of the learning process.

 

[He'sRaldo]

The question is how good are our chances?

For Sevilla's, De Gea basically had no chance of saving them. Were ours of the same quality? If so, chalk it up to luck and move on.

 

[L1nk]

We don't have an out and out clinical striker, we have good forward players, however someone like Van Nistelrooy would have buried multiple of those 46 shots, and as good as Greenwood is, he's still only 18, we can't rely on his good finishing ability on a consistant basis yet.

 

[He'sRaldo]

The cynic in me says there's more to it than just luck, you can go back further than the Copenhagen game as well

1-3 v Chelsea - penalty
1-1 v West Ham
0-2 v Leicester - penalty
2-1 v Lask
1-0 v Copenhagen - penalty
2-1 v Seville - penalty

4 of our last 6 goals for the regular XI have been pens

Yes, the scenario where our first goal is a penalty has been a recurring theme this season.

 

[2 man midfield]

The cynic in me says there's more to it than just luck, you can go back further than the Copenhagen game as well

1-3 v Chelsea - penalty
1-1 v West Ham
0-2 v Leicester - penalty
2-1 v Lask
1-0 v Copenhagen - penalty
2-1 v Seville - penalty

4 of our last 6 goals for the regular XI have been pens

Said this in the match day thread, it’s worrying that we haven’t really scored from open play for weeks - the Villa 3-0 was the last time really. I think we’re just a confidence team, which you’d expect with the age of the squad. If we’d thumped Copenhagen 5-0 and played like we did against Sheffield United, we‘d probably be in the final.

 

[ManUArfa]

Fergus used to freshen up his coaching staff, mostly to help him move with the times. Maybe Ole should do the same...

 

[charlenefan]

Said this in the match day thread, it’s worrying that we haven’t really scored from open play for weeks - the Villa 3-0 was the last time really. I think we’re just a confidence team, which you’d expect with the age of the squad. If we’d thumped Copenhagen 5-0 and played like we did against Sheffield United, we‘d probably be in the final.

Well it was the Palace game, even against Villa we needed a penalty to get us on our way

 

[Red00012]

It wasn’t long ago we were registering no shots on target in 45 mins.

We just need to be more clinical

 

[DWelbz19]

Not worried about that. Several very good saves, hit the post a few times against Copenhagen, some VAR disallowed. It is what it is.

Yep. It really does just happen sometimes. I’m not worried about us scoring goals next season. We might not be a free flowing attacking force but we’ll score enough.

 

[redshaw]

Yeah, I added up the same thing after the Ole post match interview and remembering in the last match it was a pen too. Awful return.

We had been scoring well overall but in both games we we're just a few inches away in the shot going in or getting the angle right to shoot and not get blocked or saved. So frustrating watching it time and time again over two games.

 

[Hoof the ball]

I'm reticent to blame luck, especially you're dealing with multiple examples of something happening. I fully believe that excellence should be exclusive of luck. You should be good enough, in every area, that you make luck to be of no negative consequence. That's true excellence. I've never been a big fan of, "if we was a bit luckier on this occasion".

 

[12OunceEpilogue]

It wasn’t long ago we were registering no shots on target in 45 mins.

We just need to be more crinical

I'd definitely rather having us making chances than not. Hopefully all our forwards brush up on their finishing over the short break before the new season.

 

[Organic Potatoes]

Maybe we just don’t have the right tools.

 

[DJ_21]

To be fair most of the shots was well saved by keepers and just wasn’t our luck.

 

[DomesticTadpole]

Maybe we just don’t have the right tools.

We could do with a goal poacher added to our attack, someone to pick up the scrappy stuff.

 

[Cardboard elk]

What is needed is a no9 like Lewa, Haaland, Kane or something.

 

[YAMS49]

What is needed is a no9 like Lewa, Haaland, Kane or something.

He's playing for Inter right now, we sold him as we were creating sod all at the time.

 

[charlenefan]

He's playing for Inter right now, we sold him as we were creating sod all at the time.

It's an insult to those players to speak of him in the same sentence

 

[Organic Potatoes]

We could do with a goal poacher added to our attack, someone to pick up the scrappy stuff.

Yeah, one that can stay sober in the box.

I honestly thought this thread was just a Tool reference.

 

[rcoobc]

It wasn’t long ago we were registering no shots on target in 45 mins.

We just need to be more crinical

This is true, but I can't help feel that if you stuck an in-form Drogba at he spearhead of our attack we'd be averaging 5 goals a game

 

[sammsky1]

LVG had a policy that anyone who took a shot at goal, had to have taken a first touch controlling the ball first, before his shot. It was LVG's way to increasing the odds of increasing conversion. OGS obviously thinks differently.

Who knows who is correct?!

 

[DomesticTadpole]

Yeah, one that can stay sober in the box.

I honestly thought this thread was just a Tool reference.

Think as has been said a lot is the options that can come on. We cannot replace Yorke and Cole with Teddy and Ole. We were wasteful. For all their goalie had a good game, we should have been able to craft at least a couple of goals. Those front three need pressure for places put on them.

 

[Jackal981]

I'd definitely rather having us making chances than not. Hopefully all our forwards brush up on their finishing over the short break before the new season.

At least this is better than the shite Mourinho served us on weekly basis. You can get 0 shots in a half with him in multiple games

 

[YAMS49]

It's an insult to those players to speak of him in the same sentence

Oh I agree entirely, was just highlighting we tired the poacher/selfish striker route & it got us no where fast.

 

[DomesticTadpole]

What is needed is a no9 like Lewa, Haaland, Kane or something.

Which is why we were after Haaland, but you wonder what we said to him. Maybe not enough game time, when he would actually be a fixture in it. We will never know.

 

[ash_86]

Creating chances is the cue here. We can always add quality and improve our odds. It's much better than creating little to no chances and wonder where we are going wrong (as in manager, tactics, players ectt..) The problem in front of us is crystal clear. We need to add more quality players. This problem is easier to solve than others.

 

[sammsky1]

I'm reticent to blame luck, especially you're dealing with multiple examples of something happening. I fully believe that excellence should be exclusive of luck. You should be good enough, in every area, that you make luck to be of no negative consequence. That's true excellence. I've never been a big fan of, "if we was a bit luckier on this occasion".

Is isn't luck at all. There is an issue that our attacking unit has yet to resolve. If you think back to prolific scorers in the past like Saha, RVN, Rooney or RVN, they would have scored many of the chances that MMM have collectively missed.

I think its lack of experience in high pressure games, these guys are still young and inexperienced at the top level, and so it correct itself over time.

 

[Walters_19_MuFc]

We scored all our goals in the PL. Seriously though, I don't think its anything to worry about yet. On another day, we score 4/5 in both games.

We've got top finishers up top. Not sure it will be an issue going forward.

 

[Leftback99]

Luck plays a large part. Far better signs long term to be creating that many chances and not scoring than winning games with 1 shot from 40 yards out.

Keep creating chances and the goals will follow.

 

[DomesticTadpole]

We scored all our goals in the PL. Seriously though, I don't think its anything to worry about yet. On another day, we score 4/5 in both games.

We've got top finishers up top. Not sure it will be an issue going forward.

A lot of our goals are shots from players coming inside from out wide. It would be nice to have one who can pick up the rebounds and blocked shots and get them on target.