We need to buy 2 players ..and a DM is a must..
We sold Fred and we might sell Mctominay, so we need to upgrade on them
We sold Fred and we might sell Mctominay, so we need to upgrade on them
Has the first game dampened your excitement for the season?
- Thread starter Kaos
- Start date
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik @Rood and Imran @Annihilate Now! start with the good news by celebrating Manchester United Women's emphatic FA Cup win over Spurs at Wembley and the future of manager Marc Skinner.
Then it's the bad news and the ever worsening form of our Men with losses to Arsenal and Palace.
Finally the main debate - ETH Out now or keep him until the end of the season - if not longer. Are you Team Nik or Team Imran?
It's dampened my excitement for life mate
My bank account dampened everything in my life so you didnt have to remind me of it by creating this thread on interweb online www forum
Shite excuse, literally every top team travels we are not the only ones
This is my concern too. Even last season, the majority of our football was dour and still very similar to Ole or Ralf ball.
Last night we had many Ten Hag players in the team but it was a shocking performance from start to finish. I'm certain Erik will get it right but I'd like to see some indicators that our style of play is improving.
Unless we change our approach to games I can see us coming close to repeating what used to be once in a century defeats at City and Liverpool. I think we're capable of scraping fourth but more than that..? Don't see it.
I’ll give it 5 games before I start panicking
They didn’t look fit or sharp enough. I can’t help but think those pre season tours are not what’s needed. They don’t build up the necessary fitness
It'll be nice to see if there are any improvements to the squad now that they're aren't flying around large swathes of land to entertain the locals like a travelling circus. If there's no improvement after a few proper training sessions then I'll start to worry, but I feel it's too early for that.
Well safe to say there’s no way we could get near to City or Arsenal level this season. At best we will be competing for top 4 again.
Yes. On paper thats probably our strongest 11 currently and we seemed to have no clue what was going on. I'd get potentially players being a bit off the pace (but they shouldn't be) but there was no style at all in our play. No seemingly clear pattern we were trying to implement and our defending was just throw bodies at the ball
The other reason I am more worried is cos our form after the League Cup final has been poor consistently
The other reason I am more worried is cos our form after the League Cup final has been poor consistently
I'm not sure why you or anyone else were expecting differently? Our squad depth is still appallingly bad compared to the likes of City, over the stretch of a season we'll get exposed for that. Any squad depth we do have is basically unproven but talented youngsters or average players like Maguire, McTominay etc
I feel like we are trying to build in the mindset of challenging properly next season, not this one
I wasn’t massively expectant before the game tbh. Preseason didn’t inspire huge optimism and I had been firmly against the signing of Mount from the beginning. I could not see an increased likelihood of goalscoring and the midfield is possibly worse than last season.
Not for me. I'm excited to have United back playing again. The game was pretty much as expected - the team is largely unchanged from last season and therefore most of the same strengths and weaknesses were readily apparent. Signings pretty much as expected, too - Mount was tidy and energetic but not much else, we're lacking a proper #9 and Onana looks like he'll be the cause of some entertainment...
My pre- and post-game expectations remain the same - we'll be in the mix for 4th/5th and should make last 16 of the UCL.
My pre- and post-game expectations remain the same - we'll be in the mix for 4th/5th and should make last 16 of the UCL.
No it hasn't. Yesterday was a shocker but we won't play like that most games. That was an all time bad level of performance that we'll remember for years to come.
I suppose if you thought we could challenge it would dampen your excitement but this team is a 3rd/4th place level side and that's what I've gone into the season expecting.
Yesterday just happened to be us showing all of our bad traits all at the same time. That won't happen often.
I suppose if you thought we could challenge it would dampen your excitement but this team is a 3rd/4th place level side and that's what I've gone into the season expecting.
Yesterday just happened to be us showing all of our bad traits all at the same time. That won't happen often.
Nah, predicted a 5th place finished and after the signings and pre season nothing happened there to make me think we’ll be much higher. Expected a shit performance against wolves. if you set your aspirations low you won’t be disappointed.
Thankfully 5th should be enough to qualify for the champions league.
Thankfully 5th should be enough to qualify for the champions league.
That is not the teams problem what the officials do, at the end of the game we scored a goal, they didn't and they might not have even scored the penalty. A win is a win.
It heightened my concern that Casemiro might not be able to make it through the season, and that we should have been looking to bring in younger cover for him.
I'm not sure what that midfield plan was, but it sucked, I hope there's something in the works to sort that out.
Otherwise I had us pegged to finish 5th at best, so not much has changed.
I'm not sure what that midfield plan was, but it sucked, I hope there's something in the works to sort that out.
Otherwise I had us pegged to finish 5th at best, so not much has changed.
We lost the first two games last season and still finished 3rd, we have more points now than we did at this stage last season, already 2 points ahead of Liverpool, Chelsea and Spurs. Why so pessimistic?
We look year after year the same damn team. Coaches, players, management changes but the same dull football is still there. On occasions we have a stint of good games to excite us to just be followed by series of bad games.
How can any one of us have even moderate hopes ? We were let down so many times before and this season appears to be the same.
How can any one of us have even moderate hopes ? We were let down so many times before and this season appears to be the same.
Really nice that PL:s back, and although last nights performance made me less optimistic about the Tottenham game, one must consider how bad we started last year, and the progress we made after the initial games. Yesterday we got three points although being under serious pressure. Those types of wins are also necessary over a successful season. Talking individuals, they're still reaching optimal fitness levels and adapting to the system. I don't think Rashford will be our main striker with LW being his strongest position, which also might partly explain why he was shit yesterday. Also, Garnacho should be an impact sub. For the tottenham game, midfield should be our main concern as tottenham with this new attacking approach will be trying to expose our midfield again, and both bissouma and madison had a decent game over the weekend, while our midfield was overrun several times.
That's a bit of a cop out i think, any squad worth their salt goes on globe trotting these days, we are not the only ones doing it anymore.
Must we do this every season?! 
It’s just the one game, possibly all the preseason travel cards catching up, and yes it was a terrible performance - but we won! That’s a positive and we are already better off than last season.
I think performance will build game by game, and we’ll be flying by the first intl break.
It’s just the one game, possibly all the preseason travel cards catching up, and yes it was a terrible performance - but we won! That’s a positive and we are already better off than last season.
I think performance will build game by game, and we’ll be flying by the first intl break.
ETH making the right subs yesterday, eased the pain, but Wan-Bissaka looking like AC Milan defender from the 90s was fairly exciting.
We haven't come up to speed yet from pre-season. Still we won. This is a great start. Soon the machine will be well oiled.
I still think it's a little early of course, but i can't deny that it's very deflating to see how we haven't improved our possession game. I think we gave the ball away 81 times last night, which doesn't sound great to me. We are so, so bad at it. Another worry I had coming into the season was having Cas being the only man covering the whole midfield, and how that would kill him. Well, that's exactly what we saw. Very worrying.
But a massive thing that stood out to me in last nights game, was how much stronger the Wolves players were. It was literally like men vs boys. Nearly every shoulder-to-shoulder and 50/50, they won. They just swatted our players aside as if they were nothing. Newcastle are the same. They have a lot of pace and power in that team. City as well now. There's a level of aggression to some of these teams, too. And I'm not talking about the stupid, chest thumping, launching-yourself-into-a-needless-tackle, kind I'm talking about proper physicality. We don't seem to have that.
But a massive thing that stood out to me in last nights game, was how much stronger the Wolves players were. It was literally like men vs boys. Nearly every shoulder-to-shoulder and 50/50, they won. They just swatted our players aside as if they were nothing. Newcastle are the same. They have a lot of pace and power in that team. City as well now. There's a level of aggression to some of these teams, too. And I'm not talking about the stupid, chest thumping, launching-yourself-into-a-needless-tackle, kind I'm talking about proper physicality. We don't seem to have that.
Whilst it's true there's also been a massive amount of player changes in the last twelve months, and those who are still here from before have started training under yet anothet completely different manager. We have a shitload of issues.
Having said that, I'm not trying to cop out of anything. Ten Hag needs to do better. It's been ten years of boom bust cycle for us. The boom being "I think we might play well in this game tonight, maybe we're finally on the up!" followed by the bust that is "for fecks sake, this shite again..."
Half of the team were players bought by our manager. Concerning that's the case and yet there was no obvious style of play
Cant exactly be excited after that miserable performance that showed what most people already thought from pre season, we're using the wrong system and the wrong personnel in that system.
Same as last year. If we dont change and make more signings we're going to be bombing out of the top five.
Same as last year. If we dont change and make more signings we're going to be bombing out of the top five.
I was really looking forward to the game but part way in I wondered why the feck I was bothering watching.
Been there plenty of times and will again. A fan's life I suppose.
Been there plenty of times and will again. A fan's life I suppose.
More points than last season
I actually don’t think it’s pessimism at all, it’s realistic. I genuinely don’t think we’re better than Arsenal, Man City or Newcastle as a unit. We’ve got a better defence than Liverpool but their attack is better. Chelsea are an unknown at this stage but Poch is a really good manager and will have impact there so it’s not a given we’ll finish above even those teams.
Our team is very unfit and out of form now. When it improves, then performance will change drastically.
The performance was definitely way below par. It looked like everyone was running in sand and way too many outfielders looking terrible but there were some flashes of potentially something interesting if it all comes together. I’m of the opinion the new manager change threw us a bit. This was O’Neil’s first 90 mins and he didn’t even have a friendly game to take charge of that we could have looked at to gain insight. I noticed a lot of passing around the back and midfield in the first 15 mins as if we were trying to gauge how they were going to play.
We definitely need another centre mid regardless of that game and performance. I’ve always felt that Casemiro would have his work cut out if Bruno and Mount are pressing up. Maybe the system is that one of the centre backs pushes up to act as a proxy centre mid partner for Casemiro and you can speculate whether that’s why Pavard is being looked at, along with Amrabat (a more obvious candidate to sit alongside Casemiro).
We definitely need another centre mid regardless of that game and performance. I’ve always felt that Casemiro would have his work cut out if Bruno and Mount are pressing up. Maybe the system is that one of the centre backs pushes up to act as a proxy centre mid partner for Casemiro and you can speculate whether that’s why Pavard is being looked at, along with Amrabat (a more obvious candidate to sit alongside Casemiro).
Meh, it allowed the home fans to give some shit to a scouser and Micah Richard’s. Seems like along with Sturridge, Sky are going for the bait approach this season.
All I am saying is we lost our first 2 games last season and still managed to get 3rd place. I wouldn't worry about our performance in the first game of the season, sometimes it takes a few games for teams to get going at this stage. The win was the most important.More points than last season
I actually don’t think it’s pessimism at all, it’s realistic. I genuinely don’t think we’re better than Arsenal, Man City or Newcastle as a unit. We’ve got a better defence than Liverpool but their attack is better. Chelsea are an unknown at this stage but Poch is a really good manager and will have impact there so it’s not a given we’ll finish above even those teams.
Watching Enzo Fernandez and Sandro Tonali run the midfield in their respective games and then watching the shower of shit that was presented yesterday makes one seriously doubt this team getting anywhere near top 4.
Nope I'm ready. It'll get better.
It certainly has. After the Cup final, I expressed our biggest issue was the midfield and got ran off. It has always seemed to me it lacked everything- progression, dynamism, creativity, passing and ball retention- and still does. It pales in comparison to top clubs, and apparently it pales in comparison to the Wolves’ midfield too.
For all the attributes Mason Mount may have, he’s not the player we needed, and needed not to get a different player and try peg him to a role he can’t excel at. We needed a deep lying midfielder to partner with Casemiro, who by the way, looks like shit too.
It’s a shambles. Waking up to the news Maguire may now be staying is the cherry on top of the shit ice cream.
For all the attributes Mason Mount may have, he’s not the player we needed, and needed not to get a different player and try peg him to a role he can’t excel at. We needed a deep lying midfielder to partner with Casemiro, who by the way, looks like shit too.
It’s a shambles. Waking up to the news Maguire may now be staying is the cherry on top of the shit ice cream.
Stay positive. Compared to the start last season we've made quite some progress.
Meh. First match of the season, no real no 9, I never really expect us to fly out of the gates.
We had some massive chances we didn’t put to bed, plus a whole lot of overthinking and poor decision-making in the final third. That should smooth out as we hit our stride, so I doubt this will be representative of our season.
We had some massive chances we didn’t put to bed, plus a whole lot of overthinking and poor decision-making in the final third. That should smooth out as we hit our stride, so I doubt this will be representative of our season.