Jonny Evans is a red...

Pogue Mahone

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Well, a rock compared to the others at least. Other than 16/17 (where our best combo was Rojo with either Jones or Bailly), pretty much every other season ended up with Smalling partnered with one of the others as our best combination. Even when Mourinho tried to use other options at the start of each season to get more ability on the ball back there, each season Smalling would end up being first choice as the others all failed around him due to both form and injury. While he wasn't perfectly reliable he was the only one that word could be used with whatsoever. Less injuries, less prone to brain-farts, less prone to long periods of poor form. All while also having the highest peak.
He was the best of a bad bunch. But would never describe him as a “rock” as he was frequently at the centre of some ludicrously poor defensive displays. The type of player you’re describing is someone who solidifies a back four and makes the other defenders around him look better than they are (an example being Vidic getting the most out of Evans). Smalling often had the exact opposite effect. He’s the sort of player who would probably have benefited from playing alongside an actual “rock” but was never that player himself.
 
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Tincanalley

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Smalling was downtown shopping last week. Have we signed him yet?
 

Tincanalley

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He was the best of a bad bunch. But would never describe him as a “rock” as he was frequently at the centre of some ludicrously poor defensive displays. The type of player you’re describing is someone who solidifies a back four and makes the other defenders around him look better than they are (an example being Vidic getting the most out of Evans). Smalling often had the exact opposite effect. He’s the sort of player who would probably have benefited from playing alongside an actual “rock” but was never that player himself.
Sea-Rock? Crock? Odile? Leave Smalling out of this. Mike is a United legend.
 

kerano.

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I simply love Erik for letting Jonny work on his fitness with us. And also take advantage of it, to help the young lads. Brilliant.
 

stoinz

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Yes it was a thing of beauty.




If I remember correcty he didn't even get booked. :lol:
I can't think of any martial artist who can land 2 kicks with 2 different legs on the same area while doing a 360. You gotta admire the beauty of it.
 

stevoc

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I can't think of any martial artist who can land 2 kicks with 2 different legs on the same area while doing a 360. You gotta admire the beauty of it.
Yeah like something out of Street Fighter.
 

PSV

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Didn't do much wrong. Wasn't a lot that could have gone wrong either though to be fair.
 

The Mitcher

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If Ten Hag ever has plans to play a back 3, he can be solid if utilized correctly. We could do a lot worse than signing him and just terminating Maguires contract.
He's past his best and was awful after Vidic and Rio left. To compare him to a player like Thiago Silva is madness. You don't change a team for the likes of Johnny fecking Evans.
 

Annihilate Now!

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Love seeing him in a United shirt again, great that we've given him this short-term contract to prove himself to other suitors, but I don't realistically think we should be signing him.

HOWEVER - if you're offering me the options of either a) Keep Harry Maguire or b) Sell Maguire for £30/40m and sign Evans for free as the replacement as we have budget constraints.... then I know which option i'm picking every time.
 

Pogue Mahone

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Love seeing him in a United shirt again, great that we've given him this short-term contract to prove himself to other suitors, but I don't realistically think we should be signing him.

HOWEVER - if you're offering me the options of either a) Keep Harry Maguire or b) Sell Maguire for £30/40m and sign Evans for free as the replacement as we have budget constraints.... then I know which option i'm picking every time.
I’ll take b please Bob.
 

Amar__

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Er....Garnacho? Elanga the year before that, Greenwood the year before that again, Mainoo coming in now, sold Garner for 15m - I'd say the academy is delivering.
Garnacho and Mason are good shouts obviously. Elanga is nothing special, I seriously doubt he will make premier league career. Maino we will see, if he can't make a squad player this year who will play 20-30 games then it will be tough for him. Garner was 9m, up to 15m, and I really doubt with Everton's form it will be 15m in the end, but nevermind, he didn't get much chance either, which means the manager didn't quite rate him, considering we were very weak in midfield and he hardly got any chances.

It's delivering, but I wouldn't say at the level we got used to.

There have been a few of really good quality that have had rotten luck with injuries. Laird, Tuanzebe, Kambwala, all defenders quite recently, MG is a separate issue altogether.

I don't think we hit or miss any more than a lot of big academies, if you have 1 that makes it out of every group of scholars then you have had a blinder.
Tuanzebe is what, 24-25 years old already? I wouldn't count him as recent youngster, he is more of a Rashford generation, and that's been 4-5 years ago when it was one or two years before and after in which we promoted lot of decent players. Laird would have gotten a chance maybe if he wasn't loaned few times? I am not sure what will happen with him and Kambwala, I guess we will see, but I don't think it's quite promising for them considering we are signing CBs quite often.

A couple points on this.

We have a lot of pre season games and will essentially need two full squads. With players still coming back from internationals/injuries etc, maybe that's proving to be difficult?

Maybe there's a plan for some of the younger players to go out on loan and doesn't make sense for them to fly to America and then fly back.
Yeah, I don't mind signing him by any means if manager thinks we are lacking in numbers.
 

Vault Dweller

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Love seeing him in a United shirt again, great that we've given him this short-term contract to prove himself to other suitors, but I don't realistically think we should be signing him.

HOWEVER - if you're offering me the options of either a) Keep Harry Maguire or b) Sell Maguire for £30/40m and sign Evans for free as the replacement as we have budget constraints.... then I know which option i'm picking every time.
Without doubt.
 

Big Ben Foster

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You put Maguire in the teams that got relegated wih Evans and it'd be the same outcome.
That's the point, isn't it? Relegation isn't an individual statistic. Holding it against a player is insanely stupid.
 

Sir Erik ten Hag

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Love seeing him in a United shirt again, great that we've given him this short-term contract to prove himself to other suitors, but I don't realistically think we should be signing him.

HOWEVER - if you're offering me the options of either a) Keep Harry Maguire or b) Sell Maguire for £30/40m and sign Evans for free as the replacement as we have budget constraints.... then I know which option i'm picking every time.
In what world could we sell Maguire for 30/40 millions?
 

Abraxas

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Lovely and kind of surreal seeing him back at United.

However...let's just leave it where it is. A nice deed.
 

Reiver

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He got a lot cheers today which was nice to see.
I don't know whether we should take him on for the season or not but I trust EtH to do what's best.
 

Bertie Wooster

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Would rather maguire than twice relegated Evans.
It's not just a 'direct comparison' on ability or anything, though.

Even if you thought it a slight downgrade, with our FFP issues, would it be a worthy trade off to cash in on Maguire, and get his wages off the books - and all the paper headlines when he doesn't feature - and replace him with a free Evans on cheaper wages for that 4th (or 5th counting Shaw) CB position that won't, hopefully, start many games?

Ideally, we'd sell Maguire and have the money to buy a better replacement than 35 year old Evans. But with bigger priorities elsewhere than the 4th/5th CB, I can't see us spending much on that position this summer even if we do manage to offload Maguire.
 

Tyrion

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Beautiful irony after Drogba spent years going down like he’d been kneecapped every game.
That's probably why he got away with it. The refs didn't even believe Drogba anymore. Evans probably could have kicked him a second time on the ground and gotten the benefit of the doubt.