Fred`s pressing and interception game is way better than Mctominay so Fred will get more playtime under Ralf than Mctominay.
Is Fred the worst regular starter for United in living memory?
- Thread starter PeteManic
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He is just such a weird and confusing player. Been with us for so long and I still cannot get my head around what to think about him.
Agree.
Take yesterday as an example. We kick off the second half. About 15 seconds later McTominay misplaces an easy pass, causing Arsenal to counter and get a corner which they almost scored from. That's so typical of our midfield today, they are horrible in possession.
It does hurt my brain than him and McTominay were our safe midfield choice for so long.
So true, he can do something brainless one minute and the next he looks like a Kante-Iniesta hybrid for a split second.
Overall he averages out at about 6/10. Worse than our first choice CMs of old, but on par with or better than most of our rotation options of the past 20 years.
He and McTominay would both benefit from being used more sparingly.
Why is Fred so fecking hated. 
He’s a very good player in my opinion, doesn’t get anywhere near the plaudits he deserves.
He’s a very good player in my opinion, doesn’t get anywhere near the plaudits he deserves.Wrong. There was another Fred.
Nonsense.
Fred is easily better than McTom in almost every aspect, pressing, passing, defensive coverage. Quite some times he's been scapegoated for the poor collective defense of the team.
Look forward to see him under RR.
Fred is easily better than McTom in almost every aspect, pressing, passing, defensive coverage. Quite some times he's been scapegoated for the poor collective defense of the team.
Look forward to see him under RR.
I think a lot of people will change their tune about our little Brazilian over the coming months.
Been MoTM in our last two games.
Been MoTM in our last two games.
I just don’t get how you can him watch every game and think this. To me a very good player doesn’t make nearly the amount of mistakes as he does, passes better, shoots better, does most things better.Why is Fred so fecking hated.
I’ve been one of his biggest critics admittedly, but I do think there’s a chance he’s reborn under Ralf and he’s played in a position and way that suits him much better.
I agree, he might even be first name on the team sheet under Rangnick.
We have seen him press, win the ball back and actually play well.
I don't think he is a CDM, he is more of a pressing midfielder.
People love to go a little over board don't they?
Fred was dire in the first half it's fair to say, but then he made up for it with the assist to Bruno.
He then won us the penalty to win the game. You can see people have an agenda when all they want to talk about is how bad he is, rather than how well he turned his performance around.
Fred was dire in the first half it's fair to say, but then he made up for it with the assist to Bruno.
He then won us the penalty to win the game. You can see people have an agenda when all they want to talk about is how bad he is, rather than how well he turned his performance around.
I thought after the 1st 20 minutes last night he was one of our better players. He seems to have been freed up a little under Carrick, arriving in and around the box and I suspect we will see more of that under Ragnick.
He had a very mixed bag yesterday, we saw the best and worst of him. It's not as if this whole thread exists off last nights game, is it?
Last night was a typical Fred performance, a catalogue of errors mixed with high energy and pressing.
He's technically sound as they come and is certainly someone who understands his role in the team, but I think he's prone to lapses in concentration, struggles to stay focused. There's a place for him in the squad if he can iron out those issues, but he's somewhat of a liability at present.
I think that's a great sign though, he can be having one of the worst halfs of his career but he didn't let it get to him. He didn't drop his head and sulk or hide. Most players would have probably subbed themselves at HT with that type of performance.
He just kept running and pressing, eventually his third man run into the box paid off, he kept his cool and slotted it to Bruno.
2nd half again another great 3rd man run into the box to earn the penalty. He then makes a goal saving block on Saka to keep us 3-2 up.
I think we all know by now Fred has this in him for some reason, hopefully the coaching staff can Iron it out.
Me too. A really strange player but I think he’ll show his best side under Rangnick.
No he is much better than McTominay. He never hides too.
I just don’t think he’s the problem. He plays in a dysfunctional midfield and team in general while having to carry McTominay game after game. He can be sloppy but by the same token he wins the ball back so much in key areas. He’s the only player we have who sniffs out danger and actually when on it he’s really not that bad on the ball either. Very underrated I think.
Thought he recovered well from the earlier de gea debacle
To me we’ve played him as a DM and played to his weaknesses rather than his strengths, like he played at his last club.
Even during that time, aside from some higher profile errors that seem to stick in peoples minds, he’s been more useful in midfield than any of Matic, Scott and Pogba (in this system/squad.)
Imo things would have been a lot worse for us without him, rather than this thinking that he is a leading cause for our problems.
He’s the only one that can tackle well for a start, has more energy than the rest of our midfield combined, turns over possession and springs us forward. He does this almost every game while closing down and pressing more than any other player.
He’s not the problem imo and I believe we will see the best of him under Ralf for the reasons outlined above. He’s not outstanding but in this midfield he’s a nailed on starter.
I feel sorry for the ones that think Rangnick would magically turn Fred into world beater. His ball control, passing and shooting is championship standard, and you can't polish a turd,
You're writing absolute nonsense. His passing might need improving and he may not be the most technical of players but that is not his role.
He's not supposed to be our new Carrick, he provides the energy. Now McTominay is the useless one here since he's slow to react (short of 2-3 chest-pumping tackles a game), doesn't progress the play and doesn't cover for Fred's liabilities.
All in all, you don't understand the player and how he can fit in a system by someone like Rangnick. He may not be the best in the world but he sure as hell is not terrible.
In fact, his best performances came when he played next to a still-mobile Matic at the start of 2020 who provides what Fed couldn't.
I agree. And if Rangnick can coach him to use his brain a bit more when he has the ball, he may yet remain a regular starter.
Not as much nonsense as you pal. His passing might need improving? You think that Sherlock? He's not supposed to be our new Carrick, maybe he is not supposed to play as a CM at all, and if that first 40 minutes was not terrible by Fred you need to go and buy yourself a new pair of glasses. He had a 79% pass success, and he hardly played Bruno esque passes, and since you have such a hard on to bring McTominay into it again, when Fred did not know his head from his arse yesterday, McT held that midfield together.
Yeah, we're done here. Maybe you need a course in English to understand what I've written. Pal.
Yeah I might and you might need to watch a bit more football, you just wrote that the role of this CM was not passing or technical, yeah right, but he brings energy.
He is the red bull of this team it seems, brings the energy and shit passing together with shit ball control, and of course this "energy" compensates for all that.
Yeah I get that feeling too. I'm very interested to see what Rangnick makes of him and how he decides to use him.
This is why I say we need to get the right CDM.
Every single one of our centre midfielders- be it Pogba, Fred, VDB, McTominay or even Bruno - all need a proper CDM that can guard the space for them to go do their work in their own way.
Can't just be buying another CM with 'some defensive ability' just because their the new hot property.
Well, he plays the role well enough for Brazil with a proper sitter. Since we cannot buy a whole new squad, we keep what's usable and since that doesn't include McTominay, I'd play him and Donny.Yeah I might and you might need to watch a bit more football, you just wrote that the role of this CM was not passing or technical, yeah right, but he brings energy.
He is the red bull of this team it seems, brings the energy and shit passing together with shit ball control, and of course this "energy" compensates for all that.
Not sure how you've passed judgment on a player who albeit inconsistent has been our best player against Chelsea (that wasn't McT that's for sure) and Arsenal.
He's unpredictable and very up and down in his performances. He was heavily involved last night, both positively and negatively.Why is Fred so fecking hated.
I think there's probably a place for him in the squad beside a more composed partner, but most people believe we can do better than having a starting midfield of Fred and McTominay.
And we should have more quality in there. Neither are good enough, but relatively speaking Fred probably has more qualities than McTominay. But it's not exactly where we want to be, is it? Discussing which of our midfielders is the least of our liabilities in such a crucial area.
I can completely understand all criticism of Fred, despite me being a supporter of him.
What I do find weird is the level of dislike some people seem to have for him on here, when he plays with energy, passion and personality every game. Never shies away from the ball or a challenge and covers a lot of ground. Vocal with the opposing side and ref. Normally you'd think those things would make him a bit of a fan favourite and make people have more of a soft spot for him, error prone or not.
What I do find weird is the level of dislike some people seem to have for him on here, when he plays with energy, passion and personality every game. Never shies away from the ball or a challenge and covers a lot of ground. Vocal with the opposing side and ref. Normally you'd think those things would make him a bit of a fan favourite and make people have more of a soft spot for him, error prone or not.
As for the op, Fred is nowhere near being the worst. What a dumb take to start with.
I do not understand Fred. He is Keane and Djemba-Djemba rolled into one.
That’s just it though I think Fred is more than good enough in a decent system/team.
Eh. While I wouldn't go so far as to call Fred shit, Brazil are nowhere near the force that they were in the past. They haven't had a sniff of the World Cup since they won it in 2002. Their midfield in particular is not impressive at all, so getting double-digit caps doesn't mean a whole lot. Bit like the way Marcos Rojo has over 60 caps for Argentina and yet his name is all over the thread with the worst United XI of the modern era. I think Fred is harshly judged here, but getting 23 caps for the least powerful Brazil team in living memory does not mean much.
Fred is the only Utd midfielder who would have a hope of getting into city and liverpools midfield.
you know, the teams we are desperately trying to catch up to?
the teams we’ve brought a new manager and style in to combat? Wake up guys. Pogba and Martial FC is dead. Walking around the pitch is over. Fred was just a precursor to that. We need more like fred, not less.
you know, the teams we are desperately trying to catch up to?
the teams we’ve brought a new manager and style in to combat? Wake up guys. Pogba and Martial FC is dead. Walking around the pitch is over. Fred was just a precursor to that. We need more like fred, not less.
No for me its Mctominay if your specifically talking outfield players but does anyone remember that absolute calamatous goalkeeper Massimo Taibi ? He was BAD
McTominay could not hold his own arse let alone a midfield.
Energy and passion do not offset individual errors
They never really had world class CM. Mostly. FB, forward, attacking mids
Why would he have more chance of getting into Liverpool or City? What are his strengths?