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2021-22 Performances


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5.2 Season Average Rating
Appearances
46
Goals
10
Assists
13
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lex talionis

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We have to accept the madness that comes with Bruno's genius. That pass to Rashford was a moment of genius although I do accept the madness that comes with the rest of his game, I do wish he'd be a bit more discipled.
 

Smores

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I don't think there's a dumber view on this forum right now than insinuating Bruno is any kind of hindrance to this team.

Quite simply he carries this team in a creative sense. We don't have a system or a developed way of playing so he has to be the one to try and play the high risk ball because nothing else would happen otherwise. Everyone else just wants to shoot.

I'd rather he was a bit deeper and that his pressing was matched by the wide players but the coach doesn't it seems.
 

Nicoseth

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I don't think there's a dumber view on this forum right now than insinuating Bruno is any kind of hindrance to this team.

Quite simply he carries this team in a creative sense. We don't have a system or a developed way of playing so he has to be the one to try and play the high risk ball because nothing else would happen otherwise. Everyone else just wants to shoot.

I'd rather he was a bit deeper and that his pressing was matched by the wide players but the coach doesn't it seems.
Spot on.
 

Bebestation

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He's a top player but imagine him in a side that likes to recycle the ball.
I don't think this is much of a problem at all.

Under City Bruno would be used maybe as a false 9.

Sure he might have to tone it down a bit but he might use that to be a bit more selfish goalscorer too.
 

wise_old_man

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Criticism of him is justified - he was pretty terrible in the first half, which he himself acknowledged.

Praise is also justified. Second half a lot of his risky passes were paying off and he helped us win the game.

Such an unusual player. An assist machine that gives the ball away all the time. Deep down I wonder if he's the very soul of Moments FC - the genius that wins games with flashes of brilliance but will never control a game.
The embodiment of Ole's reign, you mean? It's fitting, in a way. :lol:
 

poleglass red

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He is so creative and crucial to our attacking outlet but at the same time, we aren't against top sides anyway, a possession based team, or a team that employs a high press. Him constantly giving the ball away puts us under so much pressure. If we pressed like the City and Liverpool team do then perhaps it wouldn't be so detrimental to us. The set up we have isn't doing him any favours. We don't have a defensively disciplined midfielder/s to cover him, he's been playing too far forward at times. It's hard enough to carry one player like that, never mind 2 when Pogba plays as well.
 

roonster09

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It's not about sideways passing ffs, it's about knowing when to recycle the ball and pass to ball to other well positioned and equally talented players around him to create. Greenwood, Rashford, Pogba, Sancho (soon) all can play killer pass, it doesn't have to be Bruno all the time, rather than playing impossible angled passes. It is absolutely obvious he will have some great assists and passes to his name because ehe's the central part of this team. He should create chances after chances in a Manchester United team full of capable footballers around him being so close to the goal. He needs to learn that it's not just about him.

If you lose balls 9 out of 10 times like it can be often case in his worst games, you will lose a chance to build a sustained pressure and keep the momentum, when this team can't press at all and win the ball back, it tires the team, the time passes, only the other team giving another chance to attack and we concede, it happen so many times before, when Bruno tried out something outrages only their team to win possession and score from something that they created after our impatient build up.

Now of course I know that our approach is direct under Ole and that doesn't mean I prefer Van Gaal boring style of passing around forever, it's about the balance and he lacks it often and if he's at his best he can obviously give this team the needed spark but he definitely had more too shitty careless games for us than the ones where he would dominate through his individual moments.
When you come up with nonsense like "He loses ball 9 out of 10 times" what exactly is the point of argument? He averages 78% pass completion, averaged around 55 passes per game. That's 12 misplaced passes per game. On an average even CMs misplaces around 7-8 passes per game. So all this moaning is for misplacing 4-5 passes more than a CM. And then Bruno tops stats like chances created.

Not sure why you think that he thinks it's all about him. Players trust him to create chances to more often than not they try to find him. It's same with Pogba too, players pass the ball to him as they believe he has quality on the ball.

So you know our approach is direct and that's what manager wants but somehow you have problem with player for executing that?

No player dominates games, coaches dominates game and their system dominate games. Bruno can't make McT to show up for the ball more often, Fred to cut the shit loose touches, Pogba to be defensively good, Greenwood/Sancho/Rashford to work their socks off.

All the time people just keep pointing at wrong players when it comes to dominating games.
 

devips

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Do I detect an agenda for Bruno bashing in this thread? Otherwise, this constant harping on his few mispasses last night does not make any sense.
 

El Jefe

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My word can you imagine the abuse De Bruyne would get if he played here
Why would he get abuse? Not only is KDB a better player than Bruno, he's a better passer who attempts more difficult passes than Bruno does with better efficiency.
 

IhabX7

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Why would he get abuse? Not only is KDB a better player than Bruno, he's a better passer who attempts more difficult passes than Bruno does with better efficiency.
Pass to who? Our players have to make unique decisions on every occasion on the spot, nothing seems rehearsed. Much harder to pass the ball in such a state.
 

roonster09

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Why would he get abuse? Not only is KDB a better player than Bruno, he's a better passer who attempts more difficult passes than Bruno does with better efficiency.
KdB before he played under Pep averaged 78%, 74.5%, 74% pass completion, Under Pep they play lot of short passes which increases his pass completion %.

Bruno averaged 78% pass completion in both seasons in PL playing under Ole.

If KdB was playing for us, he would have got lot of shit too for not being "efficient".
 

Jackal981

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KdB before he played under Pep averaged 78%, 74.5%, 74% pass completion, Under Pep they play lot of short passes which increases his pass completion %.

Bruno averaged 78% pass completion in both seasons in PL playing under Ole.

If KdB was playing for us, he would have got lot of shit too for not being "efficient".
Agree. KdB is efficient in his passing becaus he plays in pep system so he knows where to pass to before it happens. In our team it looks like the system is Bruno trying things up until we score so of course his number is not as good. Bruno is a weird in case in which he is very good but got underrated here. No player is perfect, and there is like this big expectation on caf to be a perfect player which plays perfect passes and make perfect decisions. Every single mistake he does got magnified 10x
 
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charlenefan

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Why would he get abuse? Not only is KDB a better player than Bruno, he's a better passer who attempts more difficult passes than Bruno does with better efficiency.
If you say so
 

El Jefe

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KdB before he played under Pep averaged 78%, 74.5%, 74% pass completion, Under Pep they play lot of short passes which increases his pass completion %.

Bruno averaged 78% pass completion in both seasons in PL playing under Ole.

If KdB was playing for us, he would have got lot of shit too for not being "efficient".
I don't see the relevance in comparing KDB when he was 21-24 to Bruno now, especially when he played a lot of games out wide for both Wolfsburg and City.

Bruno gets shit more for his bad decisions and attempting ridiculously high risk passes at the wrong time rather than the actual % stats. He has no feel for the game at times and can go for the hail mary pass when we are struggling for possession. KDB is a much smarter player as @Brwned mentioned previously is less likely to lose possession in key areas of the pitch.

The low cross from the inside right channel is probably what reduces KDB's passing stats to the 70s, it's a consistent mode of attack used by City and requires extreme precision to be successful. KDB is not infuriating with his passing so will not get anywhere near the same level as shit Bruno does.
 

roonster09

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Agree. KdB is efficient in his passing becaus he plays in pep system so he knows where to pass to before it happens. In our team it looks like the system is Bruno trying things up until we score so of course his number is not as good. Bruno is a weird in case in which he is very good but got underrated here. No player is perfect, and there is like this big expectation on caf to be a perfect player which plays perfect passes and make perfect decisions. Every single mistake he does got magnified 10x
Exactly.
 

He'sRaldo

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Honestly, Bruno is improving.

I don't care about him losing possession with risky passing, same way I don't care if Rashford loses possession with dribbling, or Pogba with feints and turns. That ideally should be handled with team pressing. What I do care about is him impacting the team's shape negatively when he plays far too high up the pitch (or wide), something he's gradually improving at.

That said, I wonder what's the difference really between Bruno + McFred, and Pogba - Matic - Herrera? In both setups it's still 2 primarily defensive players supporting 1 attacking player, with the same issue being the 1 attacking player is the sole creative source and can be marked out of the game.

I was excited for Bruno + Pogba because I assumed Bruno could solve that problem by being a more creative version of Herrera. But if he's going to play so high up and still need to be accommodated by 2 DM's behind him, what's the point of it? We still have the same problem, with similar results (aka nothing won).

There needs to be a rethink of this whole "2 DM's behind 1 attacker" thing. If a player of the calibre of Modric could adapt his game to accommodate playing alongside Kroos (and win a Ballon d'Or doing so), I see no reason why our two offensive mids couldn't adjust their game to play alongside each other. Problem is, it all depends on the manager, and we're not really getting much from that area in terms of tactical sophistication.
 

roonster09

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I don't see the relevance in comparing KDB when he was 21-24 to Bruno now, especially when he played a lot of games out wide for both Wolfsburg and City.

Bruno gets shit more for his bad decisions and attempting ridiculously high risk passes at the wrong time rather than the actual % stats. He has no feel for the game at times and can go for the hail mary pass when we are struggling for possession. KDB is a much smarter player as @Brwned mentioned previously is less likely to lose possession in key areas of the pitch.

The low cross from the inside right channel is probably what reduces KDB's passing stats to the 70s, it's a consistent mode of attack used by City and requires extreme precision to be successful. KDB is not infuriating with his passing so will not get anywhere near the same level as shit Bruno does.
Player who averaged pass completion in 70s all his career suddenly started to complete passes in 80s once Pep was his manager. Must be one huge transformation from when he was 24 to when he was 25. Or maybe playing style plays a big role in how efficient player is.
 

The_Midfielder

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Why would he get abuse? Not only is KDB a better player than Bruno, he's a better passer who attempts more difficult passes than Bruno does with better efficiency.
Is KDB really a better player than him now? Maybe a few years back, but how many goals /assists he has for the last 2 seasons.. He is good on the eye and can play multiple positions..
At the end of the day it is the goals/assists that counts.. If Bruno was in City, he would be competing with Salah for the golden boot ( as a midfielder)
 

Sviken

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We have to accept the madness that comes with Bruno's genius. That pass to Rashford was a moment of genius although I do accept the madness that comes with the rest of his game, I do wish he'd be a bit more discipled.
No, we shouldn't. Bruno can easily remove the bad parts of his game if he is coached right. So long as he isn't told to go on the field and have fun and have clear instructions as to what not to do and what to do, a balance can be found.
 

He'sRaldo

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Also if Ole wasn't so scared all the time, he would realize that a player like Bruno would react well to being hauled off or dropped.

If he's having a stinker sub him off, regardless of whether or not you're hoping for that "one moment of magic". Otherwise you're almost giving him permission to do as he pleases so long as something comes off in the end, which does nothing to help his personal game, and also is not the best for the team.
 

romufc

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Do I detect an agenda for Bruno bashing in this thread? Otherwise, this constant harping on his few mispasses last night does not make any sense.
There has been an agenda since last season. One posted wanted a compilation of his failed crosses, ignored the fact that his pass was the reason we got back in the game and is a fantastic player.

Ofcourse every player can improve but some United fans love their agendas. Imagine being a fan and all you want is to show Bruno's failed passes.
 

sebsheep

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Given the state of our defence losing possession is more costly than creating chances imo. Everytime teams have the ball against us, I'm holding my breath. Everybody is criticising midfield and attack. But truth is defence can't carry our attack they need their hand held. And somebody uptop just giving it away is putting us under pressure.
He gave away possession 33 times? We cant keep ignoring that.
That's where you insert context, you can't ignore his role in the team is to create. Creative players take more risks with their passing, it's pretty normal for them have quite high possession losses because no player in the world gets every pass right and no defender fails to position, intercept or put in tackles.
You also have to look at where he's losing the ball, losing it in bad positions matters much more than playing a throughball that doesn't work out.

If you're watching the game last night and think him missing those passes is worse for the team than the quality chances he created then I'm not sure what to say.
 

roonster09

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0.5xA from 9 key passes mind you. Something definitely wrong with that key pass statistic.
It was 1.2 xA . To put it into context, player with highest xA in PL is Salah who averages 3.3 xA, his xA per 90 mins is 0.41. So Bruno created thrice the number of chances than the player who is leading expected assists in PL.
 

FerociousCorgis

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bruno is such a weird player. Can play absolute shit balls, shit corners, then pull off string a great passes. Can crush a long perfectly weighted thru ball right after shanking a simple 10 yard pass.
 

sebsheep

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0.5xA from 9 key passes mind you. Something definitely wrong with that key pass statistic.
Considering the goal, the chances he set up for Ronaldo and Rashford others as well, I'd say there is something wrong with the xA stat.
 

abraz79

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bruno is such a weird player. Can play absolute shit balls, shit corners, then pull off string a great passes. Can crush a long perfectly weighted thru ball right after shanking a simple 10 yard pass.
The problem of having a superior tactical view and instinct for those passes, is that not always your team mates will guess what you will do. "That" pass that was misplaced might be because, for example, Bruno expected his team mate to have moved forward, instead of stopping and keep position.
 

elmo

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Honestly, Bruno is improving.

I don't care about him losing possession with risky passing, same way I don't care if Rashford loses possession with dribbling, or Pogba with feints and turns. That ideally should be handled with team pressing. What I do care about is him impacting the team's shape negatively when he plays far too high up the pitch (or wide), something he's gradually improving at.

That said, I wonder what's the difference really between Bruno + McFred, and Pogba - Matic - Herrera? In both setups it's still 2 primarily defensive players supporting 1 attacking player, with the same issue being the 1 attacking player is the sole creative source and can be marked out of the game.

I was excited for Bruno + Pogba because I assumed Bruno could solve that problem by being a more creative version of Herrera. But if he's going to play so high up and still need to be accommodated by 2 DM's behind him, what's the point of it? We still have the same problem, with similar results (aka nothing won).

There needs to be a rethink of this whole "2 DM's behind 1 attacker" thing. If a player of the calibre of Modric could adapt his game to accommodate playing alongside Kroos (and win a Ballon d'Or doing so), I see no reason why our two offensive mids couldn't adjust their game to play alongside each other. Problem is, it all depends on the manager, and we're not really getting much from that area in terms of tactical sophistication.
The problem lies with the fact that most of our forwards along with Pogba don't press. Once we lose the ball, we're basically left with 5 players trying to stop the ball while the other 5 are walking towards midfield and hoping someone can stop the opposing team and get them the ball.

Get the forwards to start pressing and Bruno's effect on the game would be much better because even if he misplace a ball, we have a higher chance of getting it back higher up in the pitch.

And we really should get a replacement for Scott. He's rubbish and basically just a waste of a spot in the starting lineup. Constantly trying to get in the worst position so his teammates won't pass him the ball and once he gets it, he proceeds to kick it away as soon as possible regardless of whether the passing option is there or not.
 

cyberman

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Bruno isnt a midfielder, criticising him for midfield woes is ridiculous to be honest.
 

Tomuś

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Most of those “lowlights” are good/creative ideas only narrowly failing. Really stupid tweet.
Can only see 4 or 5 proper bad pieces of play there, true. Mostly just overhit, ambitious passes or blocked shots. If you call that a bad performance then I wish all of our players were this bad.
 

Idxomer

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That's where you insert context, you can't ignore his role in the team is to create. Creative players take more risks with their passing, it's pretty normal for them have quite high possession losses because no player in the world gets every pass right and no defender fails to position, intercept or put in tackles.
You also have to look at where he's losing the ball, losing it in bad positions matters much more than playing a throughball that doesn't work out.

If you're watching the game last night and think him missing those passes is worse for the team than the quality chances he created then I'm not sure what to say.
Not to that degree, it isn't.

This team has a big problem with needless turnovers and Bruno is the biggest culprit.
 
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