Andy Cole?
Late developing United signings
- Thread starter Nuts
- Start date
Ji Sung Park
He was a workhorse squad player for a couple years, then he stepped up to be one of Fergie's main men in big games.
Not only tactically astute, but scored many vital goals for us.
He was a workhorse squad player for a couple years, then he stepped up to be one of Fergie's main men in big games.
Not only tactically astute, but scored many vital goals for us.
Teddy Sheringham is the best example of this I can think of. Signed in 97, where he was pretty cack, then he had his best season in 2000-2001 where he was the leagues top scorer, and the PFA POTY
21yrs olds are now late developers? God help us.
Yup (and Teddy too)
Cole didn't actually step up fully until his 4th season with us (he broke his leg in his 3rd) where he was joint PL top scorer and runner up in the PFA Players of the year, yet even going into his 5th he was widely thought to be being sold to make way for Yorke...We all know how that turned out. In fact Cole's a player who got progressively better the longer he was here.
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There's no doubt that Carrick improved in time. However, I believe that your earlier assessment was a bit too harsh. Carrick was an excellent player for us from day 1. He became a world class player for us later on.
Scholes began to be phased out in Carrick's second season. Definitely noteworthy that it was Scholes and not Carrick who was substituted in the CL final against Chelsea.
Great shout, best example in the thread.
Ronaldo my arse. You can see who got their opinions from MOTD here.
Yeah, but the OP is nuts. On a more serious note, players before 24-25 should still be allowed grace as developing in my book. Also, Herrera should be biggest example in our current squad. He's 28 this month and really only came into his own last season.
I am old enough to have seen Forlan play and I can tell you that he did not improve. He kept missing chances for the short time he was with us.
The manager gave him chance after chance to show what he could do, but his scoring rate was similar to that of our current attackers. While Jose seems to accept this, Fergie didn't and for the reason, he was sold.
I think he scored about 10 league goals in 2.5 years he was with us.
Bizarrely, before he joined us and after he left, he was prolific. Perhaps the pressure of playing for MUFC got to him.
Although it was obvious from a young age that he was talented and loved doing tricks on the pitch, there was little end product. It took him 3-4 seasons before he was prolific.
The one thing that this doesn't include is age. He did start at a very young age and by 22, he was firing on all cylinders.
So, technically, he was a slow starter who improved quite dramatically.
Darren Fletcher. Technically not a signing, but I remember not rating him much for at least his first three years, yet he eventually turned in to a brilliant player.
Herrera was good a few years ago.
The problem was that LVG did not know how to use him. Had Jose (who did know how to use him) joined us 3 seasons ago and we got Herrera, my guess would be that at 25, Herrera would be just as good.
I think the main thing to get out of this thread is that different players develop at different rates and sometimes require a lot of luck to go their way, to get the right breaks. In Herrera's case, it was a change of manager.
It's in the thread title.
Agree with DDG but goalkeepers are sort of different. Forlan never improved and I think Carrick's game is great but more or less what he's been doing for many years.
I'm 33 so I well remember him playing too! It's hardly the busby babes era. He was never great at United but for the first season he couldn't buy shoal but he definitely improved in his second season. Granted his time at Atletico eclipses all that.
Lee Sharpe, Gary Pallister and maybe Andrei Kanchelskis all improved in 2/3rd seasons...
The OP named Shaw and Martial, two players who are quite comparable to DDG in this sense.
Paul Ince was fairly anonymous for a few seasons and turned into a beast once he got the midfield to himself
Was going to say Fletch. Took ages to get there but was unreal for a while.
How long ago do you think he played? Most on here will remember him.
You should finish that.. "..by people who don't know their arse from their elbow."
Was so young when he came though, he was still outstanding for a teenager. But he did have a blip around the age Martial is. At one point he was visibly getting better literally every week so he is a decent example in my opinion.
It was pretty much immediately obvious how good De Gea was to anyone that didn't listen to the media inexplicably getting on his back so much. A lot of people started repeating it and it became a thing.Noone mentioned David de Gea yet ?
Innit. As with above on that.
Wasn't as obvious that he was going to be very very good from the offset, but visibly improved so quickly and consistently it didn't matter and soon became apparent anyway. Hardly a late developer.
Nice one, I accused people of taking their opinions from MOTD and you go and use their exact phrase. Repeated every saturday night. By idiots.
This! Everyone forgets how inconsistent he was at Martials ages. Credit to him, he worked hard and the rest is history
How can Martial be classed at a late developer when he is only 21. As with the de sea scenario the talent is definitely there hence the reason we parted with so much money for him. He will come good. I think his potential ceiling talent wise is as high as anyone else we could sign right now. He has had good pre season and wondering if he has shown Jose enough that he doesn't feel we need another winger for wide left. Rotate Martial and Rashford and give them both the minutes they need to develop.
He was never a popular choice at Old Trafford until Scholes retired and then fans started to warm to him. It used to really annoy me when fans were getting on his back for trying to make a eye of the needle type pass to make something happen if he gave it away, but then were equally disgruntled if he passed sideways. Was a strange one for me always rated him even back then.
surprised by De Gea in this,
He was relatively very young, bloomed steadily as he was into a world class goalkeeper. That wasn't late, that was steady.
I guess the term "late bloomer" is player who shines at the latter stage of their career, becoming an instant key player at 27-35.
Late bloomer would be Fletcher?
He was as dull as Cleverley for few seasons, 22 appearances in 2003/2004 season. Remember during that time people we're bashing him to be a failed beckham successor,
loathed, hated, frustrating to watch.
then started to become more integral to the team for the next 7 season until 2010/2011. Particularly 2009-2011, he was the player who started in all the big games when fit.
Immense player before he got that disease.
There are none other that comes to mind other than Fletcher though,
Carrick wasn't a late bloomer, he was integral the moment we signed him, According to Sir Alex, Carrick was a player that will shine late every season (underrated since then).
But after Scholes left, he was already a player with great consistency, no longer needed to get some form.
Ronaldo? no he was a young exciting player.
Nani? good shout. He was important at some point of his latter career.
Rojo? shit first season, great 2nd season.
Martial? great first season, average 2nd season.
He was relatively very young, bloomed steadily as he was into a world class goalkeeper. That wasn't late, that was steady.
I guess the term "late bloomer" is player who shines at the latter stage of their career, becoming an instant key player at 27-35.
Late bloomer would be Fletcher?
He was as dull as Cleverley for few seasons, 22 appearances in 2003/2004 season. Remember during that time people we're bashing him to be a failed beckham successor,
loathed, hated, frustrating to watch.
then started to become more integral to the team for the next 7 season until 2010/2011. Particularly 2009-2011, he was the player who started in all the big games when fit.
Immense player before he got that disease
.There are none other that comes to mind other than Fletcher though,
Carrick wasn't a late bloomer, he was integral the moment we signed him, According to Sir Alex, Carrick was a player that will shine late every season (underrated since then).
But after Scholes left, he was already a player with great consistency, no longer needed to get some form.
Ronaldo? no he was a young exciting player.
Nani? good shout. He was important at some point of his latter career.
Rojo? shit first season, great 2nd season.
Martial? great first season, average 2nd season.
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Agreed on Martial, last season was more like second season syndrome, plus maybe Mourinho not getting best from him individually. Martial had to adapt his game a lot.
Tony V, had a good season or two in his time as a winger (even a great one irrc) but has bloomed since joining the defence.
Not really. He was as good an RW as he is an RB right now, until he got the 7 shirt in 12/13 (which he said he never wanted). 09/10, 10/11 (before and after the injury) he was very, very good. The best winger in England after Nani, alongside Malouda. 11/12 he was as good as any winger in the entire world, and won our POTY for it. That 11/12 Valencia still beats any other season from him, but agreed, he has recovered from his drop in form and transformed himself as a defender.
Fletcher, Carrick (who was always very good, but improved over time, especially since Scholes has been phased out), Evra, Vidic, VDS (who was still very good when he signed), Berbatov (inconsistent in his first, average in his second, the best striker in England in his third), Rojo, Park (always good, but became a vital player after an average 07/08), Nani I can think of. Rio was always a great player but only truly become WC in the 06/07 season, and continued to improve for several years (09/10 was his worst season, and 10/11 and 12/13 were two of his best).
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he seems to have deloped after he left united, seems it did him some good getting knocked down a few pegs