Soumare would be a good start and with 1 year on his contract it looks like Leicester (yet again) likely to pull off a great bit of business. How is this guy not an option. Similarly...how was Tielemans not an option. Leicester really are brilliant in the market
Totally agree here. It seems like another uncontested run on very good player. Lets see how he fares with the Foxes. I am not sure, if we are really missing out because there isn't a wrong or right way to "fix our midfield". There are more potential ways and even though I personally agree, that a DM would be a very good squad addition to have, I'd also say there are ways to get by without one.
Partner compatibility. Get in a player with speed complimentary to Maguire/ Lindeloff defensive style and it's literally a given.
Remember prime Rio and Vidic. Or even Terry and Gallas/Carvalho. Bonucci + Chielini. One slow one quick. One more aggressive and proactive one more of a sweeper. Yet together, they took care of what the other wasn't good at. As a result they could defend vs anyone as high as the half way line. Even behind two very attack minded midfielders if they so chose.
Interesting. I remember the Rio and Vidic combination more for their gracious-brutal contrast and/or their aggressive-containing style contrast than their speed difference. I understand your point, I think, there is a good chance to see if your hypothesis has substance when we add another CB to the team. I remain a bit concerned though because I think, even though the Bailly Maguire partnership wasn't the worst thing in the world, it wasn't light years and obvious that we just have to go for a better version of Bailly.
Besides. United don't operate a crazy high line like Bayern. But we do operate best with a higher line that we do currently. Because it disappears the "no man's land' between center halves and the midfield that enables opposition 10s to operate and inside out wingers like to cut into, critically cutting off a crucial part of any opposing team's attacking weapons and plans. It what makes sides like City and Pool (for example) bloody hard to play against when they defend that way
Another interesting observation. I agree, our high line certainly isn't as high as Bayerns even though they should hardly be a benchmark because they did it to an absurd level in the last two seasons. I'd add that the high line is just one piece of the puzzle if we want to defend on the front foot more. I always thought that our pressing, even when being very enthusiastic and motivated, didn't really feel all too structured or "planned". But you are right, it certainly is a problem of ours seeing Cavani and Bruno attack the opposition defenders just to see them overplayed and opponents having acres of space to work with because the gaps are too big.
(Just fyi: I consider that "no man's land" as the 2nd biggest midfield issue, I would focus first on the "further forward bermuda triangle" (there was a funny picture on the caf years ago, when we wanted a playmaker because our strikers played so high, the wingers so wide and the midfield so deep that we had absolutely noone facilitating play in the middle of the pitch)). I think, this is where a problem lies with Bruno, he either goes for hollywood pass from very deep, or he is almost as high as the strikers.)
I think he hasn't been allowed to show it yet due to circumstances. He has yet to show all he was doing at Ajax because he is still getting used to his team mates. On another not, personally I liked how he performed when we used him deeper.
Well, I feel that this is a lot of wishful thinking. Obviously we cannot know, what kind of traits Donny will be able to develop as a player but DVB hasn't showed a lot in terms of passing range. Not even at Ajax as far as I read. He is a multiplicator, someone who uses intelligent movement, good technique and first touch and fast short passing, which certainly isn't hurting as a kind of DLP but these days, these types of players usually come with very good long balls.
Personally I want the strict double pivot structure gone. I don't think it useful to the players we have. Our players are more suited to what we had when Keane/Butt paired with Scholes in our 1999 4-4-2.
It's why I believe if we sort out cb and rw. We will only need one guy to cover the center consistently meaning a Pogba/DVB and Pogba further up can operate more like box to box roamers. Helping out in defence but not being essential to it like a strict double pivot format. Or even we just go 4-3-3 with double 8s full time
Do I understand you correctly - you would want to go back to a double pivot with two players who would be mostly considered as mostly box-to-box? Out of interest - how would you have your wingers work then?
I am sceptical, that this can work, I mean, the two-man-midfields didn't just go forgotten. it stopped working due to so many employing more people in the center... be that with 4-5-1, 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1 or whatever. So not even bringing all the airy terms like system and philosophy into the discussion - first you would have to find a way to deal with the numerical disadvantage. Add to that, that our "wingers" are more like "wide forwards" and usually don't do the defensive work a David Beckham did back in the day.
Honestly I would applaud the boldness of us trying it because it isn't impossible to be working but my feeling is, these days are over. At least right now and for a foreseeable future.
I mean the latest move is Fullbacks moving into midfield to bolster numbers there, it would take a huge amount of adjusting to make a 2-man-midfield work. Especially for our team and our managing team. Again, I wouldn't be angry if we try but I think, it is very risky considering factors like numerical numbers and players(and youth players) not being suited for that anymore (just because a role like this isn't en vogue these days so nobody would go for it).
And it not this myth people have created that he had no defensive responsibility at Juve or France (at Juve he and Marchisio/Vidal did all the defensive running for Pirlo in the diamond). It just that it wasn't restrictive. He didnt ever have to just sit next to a partner and keep it simple.
Yeah I always chuckle when I read, that Pirlo did the running for Pogba ^^. But yeah, I agree, it isn't the workrate part this is Pogbas issue (in my view) it is more the responsibility part. And him sitting with said responsibility just isn't his natural play. He obviously can do it but then you end up with a good player while he could be an awesome player when deployed more to his strength.