It's more relevant than you think. Fergie is still in charge at United, Ole is just a front.
It's totally true because our learned friends from RAWK said so, and they are never wrong.
Jack Grealish
- Thread starter Samid
- Start date
-
In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik and Imran hold a long overdue conversation about United's awful league form with 1 win in 7. They discuss a disappointing draw at Bournemouth, a not so disappointing draw against Liverpool and a crushing defeat at Chelsea - Is time nearly over for Erik Ten Hag?
Then in a special second half of the pod, Nik welcomes Natalie ( https://twitter.com/natalie_17) to discuss the fortunes of Manchester United Women as they booked a place in the FA Cup Final after a historic first ever win vs. Chelsea.
It's totally true because our learned friends from RAWK said so, and they are never wrong.
I agree, Grealish is best out wide, but I don't see us having the funds unless we sell Pogba more than anything. I think it's clear Ole has higher priorities before Jack. Also I'm not so sure Jack will struggle playing a free role as one of the two advanced midfielders, alongside Bruno.
Oh me too. He's at that level now where you want us to buy him just to stop anyone else from having him, but I think he'll be at Villa for another couple of seasons. He looks like he is enjoying his football there a lot, and they are in a good moment
Sancho is equally as good on either wing IMO. And his play style is far more suited to us on the right. Rashford is an inside forward, we need the creator type on the right. It would be weird to buy Grealish and play him on the right. And if you look at our team, we can pick between Rashford and Martial for the left, Cavani, Martial or Greenwood for the striker position, Bruno/Pogba/VdB for the #10, and then Greenwood/Mata/James for the right wing. Rashford if we want to move him out of position to get to get best overall balance, but then you make the left a bit weaker. Generally, we are well set in 3 of the front 4 positions but a right winger is a game changer. Signing another LW/CAM, no matter how good, makes no sense.
I'll tag @Walters_19_MuFc in here too.
I don't want Grealish to play on the right because I believe he'll be a upgrade for us on the left.
And Sancho has played a significant amount of games on the right but Dortmund's right winger was Hakimi who was their wingback who provided the width which made a big difference to their attack. Sancho is naturally right footed and it would be a waste of his potential to play him in a position which wouldn't get the best out of him. He would be best utilised on the left and his coaches at youth level also believe that to be the case.
I get that, but he still performs to a high level on the right and would instantly become our first choice right winger if we were to buy him.
What if we play Rashford #9 and Grealish on the left, could you imagine the chances that would be put on a plate for Rashford with Grealish and Bruno supplying the magic.
Maybe wishful thinking but my god Grealish is a magnifcent footballer, would love to see him at United.
Maybe wishful thinking but my god Grealish is a magnifcent footballer, would love to see him at United.
Then who plays on the right?
Rashford on the left imo is his best position, grealish on the left is his, both are great but who you pick
The one who's already here instead of paying 80 plus million on another left-winger.
Sell Martial buy Sancho
Grealish - Rashford - Sancho
or
Rashford - Martial - Sancho
Which would you prefer?
I agree he would, but I honestly would wait and see how things pan out with Diallo before I make a judgement either way on our right sided forward problem.
We're in a situation now that Dortmund were in when they signed Sancho straight from City's academy at 17. Had they signed another top class wide forward at the time then that would've likely impacted on Sancho's development as a young player. I believe we should do the same and give young Diallo the chance to show what he can do, because it's been reported that for the last 4 years running, the United Scouts have recommended Diallo as a signing the club should make due to his enormous potential. The last scout to run the rule over him, if reports are to be believed was Marcel Bout who some say isn't easily pleased.
So the question is do we need a right sided forwarded? The answer to that question may already be at the club in young Diallo. And we need to see him in a run of games before we make a judgement either way on a new signing IMO.
Grealish would do perfectly fine anywhere in the attacking three behind a center forward. I’d feel much comfortable getting a PL proven player than fork out whatever unconscionable amount of cash Dortmund ask for Sancho after walking away in the summer.
Rashford has struggled massively almost every time he's played upfront by himself over the last 18 months. Basically the only thing he does there is use his pace to run in behind and try to beat the offside trap. He's got no hold-up play, can't win any long balls in the air, and doesn't really bring others into play when he's in that position.
I do agree with you about Grealish though.
He's a temptation but its a luxury we can not give ourselves at this time. Literally he plays in the two positions we have our best players in. He wont bench Bruno nor Rashford and trying to force him into a position that doesnt suit him will most likely be a mess. It doesnt make sense to spend the amount that would be required to get Grealish to either bench him or play him in a different position.
He's class, but he's not needed at the moment, he's way to good to be at the bench unfortunately and we have to focus on strenghtening the weakest parts of our squad. a RW, CDM and RB are way before in the list.
He's class, but he's not needed at the moment, he's way to good to be at the bench unfortunately and we have to focus on strenghtening the weakest parts of our squad. a RW, CDM and RB are way before in the list.
Not only that, but even if you were to try to shoehorn him in somehow some way, his other natural position is the attacking #8, where...Pogba plays. Spending 100m+ on a player who plays in positions you're already well-stocked in seems overkill. Unless you can actually do it, then in which case you might even go and sign Haaland and Sancho. Wouldn't want to play that team next season
Not so much what I prefer as such, but which one is more realistic and it's clearly the second one.
I think, for now at least, Martial will battle it out with Cavani, whilst also getting plenty of minutes of the left. That would potentially leave Sancho and Greenwood on the right. That being said, I do tend to agree with @Adnan, in that Diallo could be the answer. Would be a risk, though.
Next season will more likely be:
Rashford/Martial - Cavani/Martial - Sancho/Greenwood
Or
Rashford/Martial - Cavani/Martial - Greenwood/Diallo
Or
Rashford/Martial - Cavani/Martial - Greenwood/Diallo
The season after that, I have no doubt that Ole will spend big on a striker, especially if Martial doesn't up his game.
Imho, the likelihood of we're winning trophies with
is greater than
Striker
Grealish --- Bruno --- Rashford
Grealish --- Bruno --- Rashford
is greater than
Striker
Rashford --- Bruno --- Sancho
This is anticipating Pogba will be gone this Summer.Rashford --- Bruno --- Sancho
He's not really a left winger. He's an attacking midfielder who's being asked to start from the left. There's a big difference there in terms of how the two roles occupy space and engage in duels with opposition defenders.
Unlike an orthodox left winger who likes to beat his man on the outside and whip in crosses or an inverted left winger who likes to cut inside to shoot, Grealish isn't playing on the flank to take advantage of the extra space he'd normally get on the edges of the pitch. If anything, he's happiest in crowded areas weaving in and out of players. Smith is only putting him there because his teammates are too shit to do it themselves.
It's true that you sometimes you need to see a player perform in a certain position to know if he's suited to it. But occasionally it's obvious from the way he plays in other positions that there'd be minimal adaptation required to switch role. I mean, it wouldn't even be a new role if we're being honest. It'd just a different part of the pitch for somebody who doesn't seem to be affected by which part of the pitch he's on. This isn't like Rashford being forced off his stronger foot in shooting range, or Valencia being deprived of the opportunity to win 1-vs-1 battles based on pace alone.
I don't believe Grealish's game would lose anything from being central or on the right.
Unlike an orthodox left winger who likes to beat his man on the outside and whip in crosses or an inverted left winger who likes to cut inside to shoot, Grealish isn't playing on the flank to take advantage of the extra space he'd normally get on the edges of the pitch. If anything, he's happiest in crowded areas weaving in and out of players. Smith is only putting him there because his teammates are too shit to do it themselves.
It's true that you sometimes you need to see a player perform in a certain position to know if he's suited to it. But occasionally it's obvious from the way he plays in other positions that there'd be minimal adaptation required to switch role. I mean, it wouldn't even be a new role if we're being honest. It'd just a different part of the pitch for somebody who doesn't seem to be affected by which part of the pitch he's on. This isn't like Rashford being forced off his stronger foot in shooting range, or Valencia being deprived of the opportunity to win 1-vs-1 battles based on pace alone.
I don't believe Grealish's game would lose anything from being central or on the right.
Completely disagree tbh, just think the first one is much better balanced and people are really underrated Sancho. He's 20 years old and has had 2 ridiculously good seasons, and only now had a slow start (as he no doubt wanted the move, even their owners saying so). There's 5 years between them. Sancho is far more suited to the right than either of Rashford or Grealish and compliments that front 3 perfectly.
Think its a pointless discussion anyway. I don't think he leaves villa for a couple of years. And his price would be more than Sanchos at this point due to their money and recent performances being the only thing that ever matter.
If you rate Greenwood it might look like this in a year anyways:
--------Rashford----Greenwood---
Grealish -----Bruno ------------------
though that's asking for just a ton of Wan-Bissaka going forward which uh yeah I dunno.
I think we should buy him. I like Rashford, but you can't argue with Grealish's impact. He has that swagger and arrogance that befits a United player.
Saying that, it will be very hard to prise him away form Aston Villa. They have very ambitious owners and will be very wary of the backlash from Villa fans if they sell a superstar that came through their academy.
Saying that, it will be very hard to prise him away form Aston Villa. They have very ambitious owners and will be very wary of the backlash from Villa fans if they sell a superstar that came through their academy.
Bruno and Grealish could put in great cross from the right also. So does Rashford. We won't rely on only AWB for attacking input. Also I see Bruno and Grealish as two very mobile midfielders.
I just see Grealish as an exciting player you'd pay to watch. He's like Bruno, where' you're expecting something extraordinary whenever they have the ball. It's a very sign of great player.
I think it's because Rashford has not got a sustained run as a no 9 for a season, like Martial got last season. I mean, he burst on to the scene as a striker and actually did very well as striker, even though it was years ago. I feel like if Ole could train him as a no 9, he would actually be very good in that role. Imagine him, Grealish and Greenwood/sancho/amad as our frontline. That's a mouthwatering prospect. Martial could be a backup on the left or at the center, though a very expensive backup.
Nah Martial is just miles better as a striker than Rashford. Rashford simply cannot hold up the ball or win a header to save his life. Martial despite all the criticism (some justified) is brilliant with his back to goal. Its a necessity for the position.
sell martial, get Sancho
sell Lingard, get Rice
if Pogba goes get Grealish
nearly fixed
sell Lingard, get Rice
if Pogba goes get Grealish
nearly fixed
I think he's at a similar level now that Damien Duff was before he moved to Chelsea.
Everyone could see he was great and when he joined Chelsea and did the same for a top club everyone else wondered why no one else had forked out for him much sooner.
Everyone could see he was great and when he joined Chelsea and did the same for a top club everyone else wondered why no one else had forked out for him much sooner.
The thing quite interesting about Grealish at United as actually due to Ole being our al manager. He rarely sticks to one formation almost as if we are always sticking to one tactic.
Ole is changing it all the time and that's what gets me excited for Grealish.
There is times when Rashford is not a LW anymore and is back to playing like a CF. There is times when we dont need that bit of inside forward play from out left and could instead have some creativity. There is times when we could have 2 AM in the same team in a 4222 formation. There is times when we need more creativity from both central or wider areas. Imagine what happens when we buy our next CDM to replace Matic? Maybe we play more 433 or play other tactics that we haven't seen yet.
It's why rotation works very well with Ole. Pogba doesnt have to start every game. As good as Pogba is, he doesnt have to start every game in a season because Ole likes to change his tactics decide which player to choose rather than have his players choose his tactics. I honestly feel like there could be something similar to a city type squad being built up whilst carrying the United ethos still.
It's what gives me hope about Grealish at United (and Rashford both).
The way Ole rotates that squad is fantastic in my opinion and I wonder how it continues to develop/progress as both him and club does.
Ole is changing it all the time and that's what gets me excited for Grealish.
There is times when Rashford is not a LW anymore and is back to playing like a CF. There is times when we dont need that bit of inside forward play from out left and could instead have some creativity. There is times when we could have 2 AM in the same team in a 4222 formation. There is times when we need more creativity from both central or wider areas. Imagine what happens when we buy our next CDM to replace Matic? Maybe we play more 433 or play other tactics that we haven't seen yet.
It's why rotation works very well with Ole. Pogba doesnt have to start every game. As good as Pogba is, he doesnt have to start every game in a season because Ole likes to change his tactics decide which player to choose rather than have his players choose his tactics. I honestly feel like there could be something similar to a city type squad being built up whilst carrying the United ethos still.
It's what gives me hope about Grealish at United (and Rashford both).
The way Ole rotates that squad is fantastic in my opinion and I wonder how it continues to develop/progress as both him and club does.
Last edited:
Agreed 100%
https://www.sofascore.com/player/jack-grealish/189061
Check his heat map. It affects passing angles, cut backs and shooting positions/techniques if you play on the right.
Grealish is great on the left as he has all the dangerous angles open to him as he’s right footed. If you’re not used to playing on the right it’s not just a case of oh he’ll be fine.
I think Grealish is ready-made, world class. Along with Bruno he would be our best and most consistent attacker in my opinion.
Would Sancho? Maybe. But the past decade has thought us that there is a difference between Bundesliga and Dortmund and Premier League and Man Utd. Look at Havertz and Werner this year. If we spend that kind of money at this time of OGS project, it should be on a player who for certain takes us up a notch. Grealish would.
Furthermore, we have two huge talents who play RW, Greenwood and Diallo. Would it make sense adding one more?
I really like Sancho, but in my opinion Grealish would make more sense. Even if he do not play RW.
Last edited:
Why would you take one of the worlds best left, inside forwards and swap him for Jack?
Youre taking away so many goals from the side by doing that.
Rashford on the left is the perfect style of player for how modern football is played.
I do agree with you and Grealish is a superb footballer that has craft and guile in abundance which is something that I highly value as a fan. I also like Sancho who has similar traits but like you say it would represent a bigger risk in comparison to Grealish for the reasons you mention. But I hope we sign one of the two and Grealish definitely looks the more appealing at this stage.
I also agree that Diallo should be given the opportunity to make the right sided forward role his own. From all accounts the player is highly thought of by people who are paid to evaluate player potential and predict future projections. So I hope we give him the opportunity and I for one will be patient to see how he does because I absolutely love to see a young player develop and blossom into the player everyone hopes he becomes.
Because I believe Grealish is a more talented footballer and would improve our transitions and help us against teams who defend deep in numbers. What would be better for the team, a player who puts up numbers or a player who doesn't put up the same amount of numbers but the team creates more and hence scores more due to his ability in the build up phase?
But youre taking out too many goals from the side. Rashfords goals and assists and the way he stretches sides for Bruno etc to find space is crucial to how we play. A lot of Brunos forward passes are to Rashford on the run.
There arent many top sides that have slower playmakers out wide over pacy inside forwards anymore.
We are actually destroying non top 6 sides at the minute and have done for a while now and Rashford is a huge part of that.
The same could have been said about Bruno. Typically, how many players come from Portuguese Premiera and really succeed in the English Premier League? Sometimes it's worth the gamble. Although whilst Sancho does play in the Bundesliga, I think it's a slightly different situation to the likes of Werner and Havertz who, it must be said, are still in their first season.
A big part of moving countries is getting used to the culture and surroundings, thus allowing you to settle in better. That wouldn't be a problem for Sancho as he's born in England.
I just don't know how, having seen our struggles in the last few years on the right, people can say it makes more sense adding another left-winger/10 to our squad when we have Rashford, Martial, Bruno, and VDB (never gets a game).
Am I saying Sancho's the answer to our right? No! Ole may decide to go with Greenwood and Diallo but where on earth would we play Grealish? He's not Donny Van De 'thumbs up' Beek. He's Jack Grealish and would demand (rightfully so because he's class) games.
Rashford can do all those on the right wing. What he does better on the left is the dribbling, creativity and running with the ball and in all these things Grealish is better than him. Is other major assets of stretching the opposition defence, running in behind and getting on the end of chances he can do just as well on the right wing and with Grealish, Bruno and Pogba in a team, he doesn't really need to bother himself with creating anything but rather just focus on burying chances.
As regards Sancho or Grealish, am indifferent as they are both quality, which ever the club decides to go for is fine although Sancho might be cheaper this summer.
Rashford is half the player he can be on the right.
You can only stretch sides if they leave space and Rashford imo isn't a winger but rather a wide forward who should be judged on goals because he has a big goal threat. Our issue has been our inability to build attacks and then sustain those attacks hence we've been ceding possession and playing on the counter attack against big teams which suits Rashford due to him attacking the space. Below i'll give you reasons why I think Grealish would improve us further.
Most big teams have their fullbacks providing the width and having someone like Grealish ahead of Shaw would likely improve Shaw's output imo. Grealish is a player who is demonstrating fantastic ball retention skills, dribbling skills, movement and passing ability whilst under pressure and his decision making is also top notch. So what he adds to the team is more creativity, more control which benefits the collective rather than the individual as far as goals/assists are concerned. Now this doesn't mean we should banish Rashford to the bench because the season is long and there's games aplenty and having a big squad is important if we're to challenge for the big trophies domestically and in Europe.
Yes he is, but the team would be better. I like Rashford a lot too, but he can adapt and focus more on scoring goals. They can also interchange during games,Adnan explains it better above.