Adnan Januzaj article in The Athletic

[TrustInJanuzaj]

Still had the stuff that made him potentially great. The dribbling, the creative passing, the intelligence.

At the beginning of the game he wasn't holding the ball up when played to feet, instead being knocked off the ball, but after a while he was holding off Telles and Maguire (!) and starting attacks. I honestly don't think he'd look out of place if he was still here, but he's definitely not reached his potential. I don't care what anyone says, he was a top talent.

I have my own views on why he failed (handed the no.11 then shipped out on loan etc). LVG wasn't a good fit for him at all.

Yeah, it was clearly a combination of factors including his own mentality which culminated in his demise here, but it's pure revisionism to suggest that he wasn't a top tier talent and never showed anything for the first team. There were games where even without the goals/assists, he was controlling large parts of the play, at such a young age that's impressive. I also recall Van Persie heaping praise onto the lad early on.

 

[pocco]

Januzaj, Morrison, Macheda, all the same. They look for excuses but in the end, they are to blame

I kind of agree but not entirely. In the case of Januzaj, there was an LVG shaped elephant in the room. He was so strict and rigid in what he wanted that he seemed to not have the patience for Januzaj and a few of our other flair players.

He has a bad rep with Brazilian players for the way he treats them, he never embraced a maverick that wasn't 100% reliable in keeping the ball or doing the work for the team. Lots of managers accept the bad because the upside is there and the entertainment is there. He isn't one of them. Probably the same with Jose to an extent.

 

[Idxomer]

He hasn't even reached the level of Zaha and Depay after he was sold.

This is a similar case to Rafael a few months back where some are pining for a player who proved to be not good enough for United the last few years.

 

[meamth]

Still had the stuff that made him potentially great. The dribbling, the creative passing, the intelligence.

His type of creative passing is something that he does and only a few top players do. He passes not between the line where the striker is running. If the striker is running between CB and CB, most players try slotting it through there, which defenders expect. But he goes between LB and CB to catch them out. He used to do it a lot in our u23s and even first team.

At the beginning of the game he wasn't holding the ball up when played to feet, instead being knocked off the ball, but after a while he was holding off Telles and Maguire (!) and starting attacks. I honestly don't think he'd look out of place if he was still here, but he's definitely not reached his potential. I don't care what anyone says, he was a top talent.

I have my own views on why he failed (handed the no.11 then shipped out on loan etc). LVG wasn't a good fit for him at all.

If Ole arrived earlier...maybe he could've saved Januzaj.

 

[pocco]

If Ole arrived earlier...maybe he could've saved Januzaj.

I think he'd have done a much better job than LVG.

 

[MattofManchester]

He had a free kick yesterday that he kicked out for a throw in.

He had another cross that he skied and another one that went nowhere near the intended target.

If he did that for us, he's have been slaughtered.

He's not even first choice for Sociedad. Why would he be even second choice here.
He knows there's a buyout in his contract. If he wanted to be here, he'd have worked much harder to prove that. He hasn't.

 

[Bwuk]

Too much too young. Got hyped beyond belief and it went to his head.

Januzaj is a fantastic footballer. Doesn’t have the mentality though, and I don’t think as a club we helped players as well back then as do now breaking through.

If he was in the current youth set up breaking through I think we have far better structures in place to help him make it.

 

[ClaytonBlackmoorLeftPeg]

Too much too young. Got hyped beyond belief and it went to his head.

Januzaj is a fantastic footballer. Doesn’t have the mentality though, and I don’t think as a club we helped players as well back then as do now breaking through.

If he was in the current youth set up breaking through I think we have far better structures in place to help him make it.

i went to a training session at Carrington just after Moyes left - there were about 20 of us. He was the first one to deck off, signed about 3 shirts. Rooney, Fletcher, Rio etc all stayed until everyone was done.

he looked like he believed the hype...

 

[SAFMUTD]

Nothing special to be honest, he's had a decent career in Spain but I don't think he'll ever play for a top team. Anyway good career for a youngster considering almost none of that generation is playing at top level currently.

 

[Sea-Cow]

He had a free kick yesterday that he kicked out for a throw in.

He had another cross that he skied and another one that went nowhere near the intended target.

If he did that for us, he's have been slaughtered.

He's not even first choice for Sociedad. Why would he be even second choice here.
He knows there's a buyout in his contract. If he wanted to be here, he'd have worked much harder to prove that. He hasn't.

The disconnect between his ability with a football and the end product that he delivers is mindblowing. He can do amazing things with the ball at his feet, but then lacks the pace needed to capitalize on his skill and his moves. For example, that ballet-dancer turn he did on AWB that was so pretty to watch, but then AWB was able to make a recovery tackle out for a throw (or a foul, I am not sure).

I watched him last night and some of the skills he pulled off and it is hard to fathom why he hasn't had a better career. But if footballers were judged only by skills compilation videos, I think he would be one of the best in the world. Show the amazing feint and piece of skillz to glide past a defender like he's not even there, and then cut away to a different piece of skill in a different match. That way you don't see the errant pass that follows, or the lazy dive trying to draw fouls.

Strange player, and one that I once told a friend was like Kaka but better.

 

[city-puma]

At this level of pro football, an extremely talented youngster definitely needs a lot of luck to go up one or two levels further. That’s the hardest thing very few can make. Especially more difficult for a player like him, because no one has figured out how to and where to play him. I just hope the talents in our next gen, such as Hannibal, doesn’t run into the same situation. Ole and the youth team coaches need to do it right for them.

 

[TwoSheds]

At this level of pro football, an extremely talented youngster definitely needs a lot of luck to go up one or two levels further. That’s the hardest thing very few can make. Especially more difficult for a player like him, because no one has figured out how to and where to play him. I just hope the talents in our next gen, such as Hannibal, doesn’t run into the same situation. Ole and the youth team coaches need to do it right for them.

It's not bad luck if you don't put the effort in.

 

[BluesJr]

Always looked too slow.

 

[Sandikan]

Who can forget us absolutely papping ourselves to hand him a massive contract after a few good games!

Was never that good. We were just on such a poor season under Moyes it seemed a rare sight of light.

 

[Lay]

Always looked too slow.

Yup. Was my biggest worry about him.

 

[shamans]

No. That’s a coach explaining why a supremely talented player will never fulfil his potential.

And you’re confusing doing very little work with not doing enough work to be the best he can be. Hence he’s looking bang average at a mid-table Spanish team, when he had the potential to be one of the elite.

Bang average? Hardly. He's had some very bright months and if not for recent injury would be starting. They are trying to break into the top four. In football sometimes things don't work out but there is often a logical/technical reason.

This "lad didn't want it bad enough" reasoning is honestly just for media soundbites. A player playing at the level he is doesn't just go "nah, don't wanna put in more effort".

Come on now, there's a big difference in the level of effort required to excel in top level football vs. just turn up each week. Maybe it was our fault for not motivating players properly as we had a lot of prospects fall by the wayside around that time, but it was pretty obvious he didn't have the desire.

Like I said, just turning up is Ravel Morrison. At the level Januzaj is it's not a case of him just bailing on it.

 

[RedRonaldo]

Back then I was fully expecting him to be our new Giggs, at worst new Nani, at best maybe new Ronaldo.

Turn out he is new Bebe.