Confidence or just stupid mistakes?

[TheReligion]

Just can't get my head around that. United should have won the game but for stupid, silly mistakes. Is it a confidence thing? Why are we fluffing the ball around at home and giving possession away? Ashley Young launching the ball to no one, Lindelof hoofing it into the crowd, Tuanzebe gifting the goal. Basic, basic things going wrong in crucial areas. Even at the other end of the pitch Rashford falling over when one on one with the keeper and others making brainless decisions at key moments. So annoying.

That said we get the correct call on the handball and Mctominay finishes the sitter of a header and we bury Arsenal at 2 or 3 nil. All they had was manufactured by our own feck ups which makes it very frustrating.

 

[Judas]

Lack of quality and confidence.

 

[DoomSlayer]

The players can't handle the pressure. We do lack quality but we also lack composure and decision making.

 

[Fooza]

Stupid mistakes doesn't happen with an experience team. Our team ain't. I really hope we bridge that gap fast otherwise that 3year prediction of winning a PL is looking more like a 5-10year plan.

 

[PTSTSL]

We look a second behind the play all the time, makes the lack of quality more evident.

 

[Sandikan]

When you only score 1 goal a game you have zero margin for error.
That should have been a 1 or 2-0 job today.

 

[MrBrightside1989]

Must be an element of confidence, too many times going forward we made the wrong decisions or just seemed very indecisive. We don’t seem to have a style or have a pattern of play to break teams down. Will take a lot of work from Ole and his team to change this, we will certainly need to bring in one or two players to boost the quality though, and as bad as pogba has been he is our most talented player and we desperately need him to step up.

 

[charlenefan]

There's a lack of quality yes but there's enough quality to win most of the games we've played this season. The players are completely devoid of confidence though and I have no idea how you fix that other than keep changing the manager

 

[croadyman]

The problem is Utd players heads seem to go down when they are pegged back,only have to look at Wolves,Southampton & tonight.

Doesn't help when any schoolboy errors like the one Tuanzebe made tonight are so costly.

The brutal truth is we just don't create enough to negate these mistakes and so end up getting fully punished.

 

[b20times]

Pinning hopes on a young lad from Swansea isn't the way forward. He's the only shining light. Feel sorry for him.

 

[Rozay]

Lack of quality. The basics of pass and move are beyond us.

 

[arthurka]

Both

 

[meamth]

Both I think,

We should have buried those 1v1 chances.
We should stop troubling Lindelof with ridiculous back pass.
We need a center forward who can hold the ball at the back of the goal.
We need a player to calm the midfield.

 

[Lentwood]

Confidence should never be underestimated

I feel that fans (particularly the toxic twitter trolls like that weird Mike bloke and Michael Tunstall) are taking 6yrs+ of frustration out on players and a manager who don’t deserve it

Yes we know some of these players aren’t up to the standard but is that their fault? They are clearly trying unlike some of the shower we have had in the past

It couldn’t hurt to actually get behind this young side for a season, the atmosphere around the place and the eagerness to criticise can’t be helping at all

 

[meamth]

Confidence should never be underestimated

I feel that fans (particularly the toxic twitter trolls like that weird Mike bloke and Michael Tunstall) are taking 6yrs+ of frustration out on players and a manager who don’t deserve it

Yes we know some of these players aren’t up to the standard but is that their fault? They are clearly trying unlike some of the shower we have had in the past

It couldn’t hurt to actually get behind this young side for a season, the atmosphere around the place and the eagerness to criticise can’t be helping at all

I agree, but I think this is only in the internet though.

Old Trafford was lively, even in television.

I'm very much like you, I like this team. They are very likable compared to the past teams post Fergie.

 

[Ballache]

Lack of quality and composure.

 

[Tel074]

Confidence should never be underestimated

I feel that fans (particularly the toxic twitter trolls like that weird Mike bloke and Michael Tunstall) are taking 6yrs+ of frustration out on players and a manager who don’t deserve it

Yes we know some of these players aren’t up to the standard but is that their fault? They are clearly trying unlike some of the shower we have had in the past

It couldn’t hurt to actually get behind this young side for a season, the atmosphere around the place and the eagerness to criticise can’t be helping at all

OT is firmly behind the team and Ole . Feck what people say in here and on other social media outlets because it's mostly people who have never been to a game and love their own self importance. I believe Ole has a plan and I believe this time next year we will be in a way better position. The mess we are in was never going to be a quick fix but I think and hope that this time we are on track to build something that will last

 

[meamth]

OT is firmly behind the team and Ole . Feck what people say in here and on other social media outlets because it's mostly people who have never been to a game and love their own self importance. I believe Ole has a plan and I believe this time next year we will be in a way better position. The mess we are in was never going to be a quick fix but I think and hope that this time we are on track to build something that will last

We'll see.

I can't wait to see "The right United" signings next summer.
Too bad this season has just started..

 

[Bobcat]

Its both

• Vs Wolves we miss a pen and outside of a 10 minute we have complete control over the game. Of course they score from the only chance they have all game
• Vs Palace their fecking keeper gets an assist, the ref is utterly incompetent, we miss a pen, Pogba loses the ball stupidly and De Gea fails to make a routine save
• Soton same as Wolves. They score from their only chance while we waste one huge opportunity after another
• West Ham: Rashford fecking up a 1v1, Mata missing an open goal, Maguire missing from 5 yard out. Lazy defending and they score from their one chance the entire half and a worldie free kick makes it 2-0
• Arsenal: Gifts them a goal and McTomminay missing a free header for 5 yards out

Imo, we have largely been better than our points haul suggests, but we keep fecking up key moments every match that has cost us dearly. Some of this is Ole/The coaches fault, but most of it is down to low confidence and many players simply not having the quality

 

[CM]

Lack of quality. We need players who can create chances and stick the ball in the back of the net on a regular basis. It was a problem most could identify in the summer and nothing was done about it.

 

[Ekeke]

Ole emphasizing ball playing in our backline instead of solid defending and getting rid of our reliable players who helped us with that solid defending.

Its not just us though, there are examples of it all over the place where teams are inviting pressure and gifting goals because they are trying to play nice football in their defensive third and giving the ball away for an easy chance to opposition teams.

We're just one of those teams who arent good enough going forward to make up for being weak and making cock ups at the back.

If we averaged 2 goals scored every game as a freescoring team, then averaging 1 goal conceded every game isnt the end of the world. Even though it would still be disappointing given how much money we've invested in the players who play in our backline.

But the fact is that while plenty of footballing Einsteins on here suggested that the reason we couldnt play good football and score more goals in previous seasons was because we didn't have "ball playing CBs" and we had players like Ander in midfield who didnt play enough spectacular passes - the reality is we attack worse with this team than the one with solid defensive players taking defensive responsibility off some of our more forward thinking players.

Where we are in the table and our performances clearly show that. And while there will be excuses about injuries, we have that issue every single season. So no that isnt a reason.

 

[Lentwood]

OT is firmly behind the team and Ole . Feck what people say in here and on other social media outlets because it's mostly people who have never been to a game and love their own self importance. I believe Ole has a plan and I believe this time next year we will be in a way better position. The mess we are in was never going to be a quick fix but I think and hope that this time we are on track to build something that will last

I'm glad there are still plenty of sensible people around - seems like the trolls get all the air-time on social media. Add the fact the media and our ex-players love to kick us when we are down and it feels like the whole world is against the team!

 

[finneh]

Its both

• Vs Wolves we miss a pen and outside of a 10 minute we have complete control over the game. Of course they score from the only chance they have all game
• Vs Palace their fecking keeper gets an assist, the ref is utterly incompetent, we miss a pen, Pogba loses the ball stupidly and De Gea fails to make a routine save
• Soton same as Wolves. They score from their only chance while we waste one huge opportunity after another
• West Ham: Rashford fecking up a 1v1, Mata missing an open goal, Maguire missing from 5 yard out. Lazy defending and they score from their one chance the entire half and a worldie free kick makes it 2-0
• Arsenal: Gifts them a goal, ref misses a clear penalty and McTomminay missing a free header for 5 yards out

Imo, we have largely been better than our points haul suggests, but we keep fecking up key moments every match that has cost us dearly. Some of this is Ole/The coaches fault, but most of it is down to low confidence and many players simply not having the quality

Added... My only concern is that it's happening so consistently. We're relying on burying most simple chances and also relying on refs being consistently competent. Both aren't even close to a guarantee.

 

[#07]

The players can't handle the pressure. We do lack quality but we also lack composure and decision making.

This. The team is mentally not up to playing for Man Utd. Can't hack pressure. They know everyone is watching and they can't handle it.

 

[TRUERED89]

Must be an element of confidence, too many times going forward we made the wrong decisions or just seemed very indecisive. We don’t seem to have a style or have a pattern of play to break teams down. Will take a lot of work from Ole and his team to change this, we will certainly need to bring in one or two players to boost the quality though, and as bad as pogba has been he is our most talented player and we desperately need him to step up.

Stop playing him at CDM for a start, get McT and Fred behind him and let him do his thing, we've already seen under Ole what he can do when given the freedom to attack and create. As soon as Fred came on last night, Pogs went forward and we immediately looked more of a threat.

 

[TRUERED89]

Lack of quality. The basics of pass and move are beyond us.

Roy Keane summed it up perfectly last night on MNF, control the ball, pass and move. He mentioned players are over coached these days, and said Clough and SAF's brilliance was in the simplicity of their instructions, football really isn't a difficult game to understand.

 

[DoomSlayer]

This. The team is mentally not up to playing for Man Utd. Can't hack pressure. They know everyone is watching and they can't handle it.

I see it the exact same way. Precisely the reason why a lot of players who leave us go on to play better or do so for their national teams, for example. Here, everything is looked under the microscope and you get Manchester United coverage 24/7, there is not a day rest where someone somewhere is publicly discussing our club.

I see some players try to play progressive football, but they always get too hesitant and lose confidence after one or two mistakes. I feel like if we start scoring goals early in the games, it would help out massively, especially against the weaker teams. Those first one or two chances are always the most important and was one of the reasons why Lukaku failed here, so many games where we were starting well and he missed vital early chances, which could have given us the needed edge.

Right now, we can see in flashes what we can do, but the players lose belief in themselves as soon as a bigger mistake is made. It's so obvious to me that the players feel too pressured, mostly evident by our hesitant play in midfield and attack. One of the reasons I love Dan James is he seems fearless, is a smart player and makes decisions quickly, which gives him an edge over the opposing defenders. Same goes for McTominay, they don't hesitate and decide their action in a split-second, which helps them to unsettle the opposition. The rest rarely do any of this effectively, which is a major reason why our attack has been doing so bad.

 

[neilv93]

Last night was utterly frustrating. Tuanzebe actually had a fairly solid game in the unfamiliar LB position and marshalled the utterly useless Pepe well throughout - just a shame that one clumsy lack of concentration/composure cost us two points and him a night of appraisal. Should be a good learning curve for the kid, though, that even the smallest mistake at the very top level WILL cost you.

 

[TRUERED89]

Its both

• Vs Wolves we miss a pen and outside of a 10 minute we have complete control over the game. Of course they score from the only chance they have all game
• Vs Palace their fecking keeper gets an assist, the ref is utterly incompetent, we miss a pen, Pogba loses the ball stupidly and De Gea fails to make a routine save
• Soton same as Wolves. They score from their only chance while we waste one huge opportunity after another
• West Ham: Rashford fecking up a 1v1, Mata missing an open goal, Maguire missing from 5 yard out. Lazy defending and they score from their one chance the entire half and a worldie free kick makes it 2-0
• Arsenal: Gifts them a goal and McTomminay missing a free header for 5 yards out

Imo, we have largely been better than our points haul suggests, but we keep fecking up key moments every match that has cost us dearly. Some of this is Ole/The coaches fault, but most of it is down to low confidence and many players simply not having the quality

Do you think if McT scored the goal that it would have been ruled out by VAR? As the replay's clearly showed the ball came of James not Chambers for the proceeding corner.

 

[#07]

I see it the exact same way. Precisely the reason why a lot of player who leave us go on to play better or do so for their national teams, for example. Here, everything is looked under the microscope and you get Manchester United coverage 24/7, there is not a day rest where someone somewhere is publicly discussing our club.

I see some players try to play progressive football, but they always get too hesitant and lose confidence after one or two mistakes. I feel like if we start scoring goals early in the games, it would help out massively, especially against the weaker teams. Those first one or two chances are always the most important and was one of the reasons why Lukaku failed here, so many games where we were starting well and he missed vital early chances, which could have given us the needed edge.

Right now, we can see in flashes what we can do, but the players lose belief in themselves as soon as a bigger mistake is made. It's so obvious to me that the players feel too pressured, mostly evident by our hesitant play in midfield and attack. One of the reasons I love Dan James is he seems fearless, is a smart player and makes decisions quickly, which gives him an edge over the opposing defenders. Same goes for McTominay, they don't hesitate and decide their action in a split-second, which helps them to unsettle the opposition. The rest rarely do any of this effectively, which is a major reason why our attack has been doing so bad.

Definitely. The very best players aren't just marked out by their ability but by their self belief.

I remember a game at Reading where Ronaldo was having a mare in front of goal, but he kept shooting. The other players were getting annoyed with him but he kept shooting. Finally though he scored. That's what the best players do.

Our players don't have that. After one or two shots they go into hiding. They start laying it off hoping someone else will take responsibility for the ball. There's no leadership in this team. It's just sad to see.

In the past even when we didn't have great players we always had players willing to risk, who played with desire. Our current team lacks guts.

 

[rotherham_red]

I think they are good players, but a lot of them are absolute mental midgets.

 

[Thaila-X]

Rashford is playing like a man who has lost all confidence in his own abilities and I can't see where buys a goal from at the minute. I think his lack of confidence has led to him second guessing himself and that's leading to the mistakes. I really like Rashford and still think he can kick on and develop into a key player for us, but he really needs to find a way to break this slump and find some form.

 

[Maticmaker]

If you look at all our PL games;

Good if lucky win over Chelsea, scored 4 goals, can hardly believe it
Wolves and Southampton we should have won by half-time, sloppiness and lack of concentration in both games
Still cannot work out how we lost to Crystal Palace
Good, if workman like win over Leicester
Not only was it a bad day at the office against West Ham, but someone forgot the key and we were stood outside it all through the match!
Last night we had slightly more chances than Arsenal, but both could only score once, we should have shaded the game, if Greenwood had started second half we might have!

IMO its not confidence or stupidity, its lack of concentration and consistency and when half the team are doing it all at once we struggle, thankfully last night it was only Rashford and Lingard, who both at the moment seem to be going through some personal hell.

 

[Lee565]

It's a mentality thing passed down from the manager, why was it even under the likes of lvg and Mourinho we showed character and could come back from behind to win in the last ten minutes of matches, we are uninspiring and as flat as pancake under Solskjear.

 

[bosnian_red]

Young players make mistakes and lack consistency, that's normal. Confidence compounds the issue. Add on to that some gaping holes in the side and some key injuries and you get a struggle. Top teams need the depth to be able to overcome all this, and get the results at the end of the day and don't rely on youth, we don't have that.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

We have had this issue for 3 years now. When we go a goal up we get very complacent until we inevitably end up under the kosh. I think it is a mixture of arrogance that we are Man Utd whilst also not realising that our players are not particularly great.

 

[Jazz]

Lack of confidence mostly. We should really stop underestimating how much pressure there is at present United. For e.g.. another top 6 team gets a shit result but don't have to deal with half the headlines and comments. It takes a toll. No matter how mentally strong you are it's got to get to you.
Hence if a player gets a chance, anxiety takes over and you start snatching at things. You don't think clearly when you're anxious.

This is why we should have a set system and drill the players so this is automatic. When you're nervous you at least have something to fall back on. Giving players 'freedom' in this situation is not helpful. We obviously cannot depend on the players to consistently perform when they're left to their own devices.

I really can't think what else to suggest, but the pressure plays a big part.

Consider we came 7th under Moyes and our players at that time included Vidic, Evra, Ferdinand etc - all serial winners who are mentally strong - and still we had a really bad season. If it can happen to players like that, then it's understandable our current crop succomb to pressure which is greater now.