Bet it looks nice. I find it thearpeutic going to the hairdresser.
Manchester United vs Leeds (Wed 17th July, 12:00 UK time)
- Thread starter Samid
- Start date
agreed
Positives from today
Greenwood - Got his goal, looks a real player.
James - Always available, blistering pace.
Rashford - Quality
AWB - Solid, turns defense into attack like a rocket. Him and James will totally transform our team.
Chong - Composed, full of trickery. Always looked dangerous.
Gomes - Always drives forward, keeps the ball moving. Lot's of give and goes. Always wants the ball. Assured performance.
Pereira - Didn't look out of place. Made the right passes, linked up well and controlled the midfield.
Pogba - Showed his quality, created chances, could have scored a few.
McTominay - Longwho? He provided a real solid DMF performance, won the ball back and gave it to the attacking players.
Lindelof - Easily our best defender. Brought the ball forward when there was space.
Negatives
Martial - Still not at the races. Chong and James ahead of him in that left hand side position.
Lingard - He's been average since the WC, Gomes is far better at the moment.
Smalling - Even when he had space, still looked shaky and passed backwards.
Young - What is he even doing in a United shirt. A liability.
Bailly - Just get Maquire signed please.
Mata - Way off the pace of this counter attacking side. No where near the play. Caught in procession. A passenger, unfortunately.
All in all, the youngsters keep the fire burning for the coming season. Bruno and Maguire will make a huge difference to this team.
Greenwood - Got his goal, looks a real player.
James - Always available, blistering pace.
Rashford - Quality
AWB - Solid, turns defense into attack like a rocket. Him and James will totally transform our team.
Chong - Composed, full of trickery. Always looked dangerous.
Gomes - Always drives forward, keeps the ball moving. Lot's of give and goes. Always wants the ball. Assured performance.
Pereira - Didn't look out of place. Made the right passes, linked up well and controlled the midfield.
Pogba - Showed his quality, created chances, could have scored a few.
McTominay - Longwho? He provided a real solid DMF performance, won the ball back and gave it to the attacking players.
Lindelof - Easily our best defender. Brought the ball forward when there was space.
Negatives
Martial - Still not at the races. Chong and James ahead of him in that left hand side position.
Lingard - He's been average since the WC, Gomes is far better at the moment.
Smalling - Even when he had space, still looked shaky and passed backwards.
Young - What is he even doing in a United shirt. A liability.
Bailly - Just get Maquire signed please.
Mata - Way off the pace of this counter attacking side. No where near the play. Caught in procession. A passenger, unfortunately.
All in all, the youngsters keep the fire burning for the coming season. Bruno and Maguire will make a huge difference to this team.
It was a penalty without any doubt
I really would not miss Lingard or Martial for a moment. Young needs to be offered an ambassadorial role!Lingard, Martial, Andreas and Rojo are trash, Young well past his best - hope Dalot plays LB in serious games in future if Shaw's out, Joel Pereira looked very nervous so hopefully he gets another loan (/sold), everyone else I was pretty pleased with. Especially delighted the way Rashford took his goals, Wan Bissaka with a great assist, Gomes and Chong did well I thought, and obviously fantastic goal for Greenwood to open his account with! Feck off Lids!
I think we need a couple of star players, but this is looking really promising. Too early to get carried away but you can't be unhappy with that, was great to watch at times.
First half-
Romero - no goof ups and did his role well
AWB- solid defensively and an assist for Greenwood goal. Attackers met with the wall when trying to take him on.
Baily - Average performance and nothing outstanding
Lindelof - Only defender who has bit of class and can actually play football, the driving run was superb and almost resulted in an assist
Rojo - cant pass nor defend, should not start and sell if someone is silly to put a bid in
McTominay - did his role well and is currently a better choice than Matic
Pogba - did win ball back by tracking his player couple of times, few good balls and nothing to brag about
Mata - bench player at best, nothing to call and lost possession few times as defenders were too strong for him
Greenwood - good show and a goal, did well his role
Rashford - good show and took his goal well. Directness he offers is something which no others offers in team
Dan James - Few pacy runs, hit the post and decent in possession. Want to see him play on right than left where he may not get start. He probably is a good option at right compared to mata or lingard
Second Half-
Joel P - not good enough and made few goof ups
Dalot - nothing outstanding to mention in 45 mins
Smalling - bad in possession and won few headers, right defender spot is open for a new player or lindelof need to play here if a new LCB is purchased
Jones - was average and headless runs, will be punished against good opposition. After a long time united scored a goal from a corner
Young - went missing in defensive positions and crap in passing, bench him or sell
Matic - was he on pitch?
Andreas - decent showing today and somebody who can take corners.
Lingard - under-hit or overhit balls, lost possession. Bench him as he is good only for beans beans beans
Gomes - impressed in second half, very good with passing and never loses possession, bullied leeds defender 2 times, he is strong for his size and ready for first team
Martial - Nothing outstanding and took penalty well
Garner - expecting to see few sub appearances, he has that proper holding midfielder approach to games
Chong - his timing on runs is bad and is not ready for first-team yet, but can be an impact player.
Romero - no goof ups and did his role well
AWB- solid defensively and an assist for Greenwood goal. Attackers met with the wall when trying to take him on.
Baily - Average performance and nothing outstanding
Lindelof - Only defender who has bit of class and can actually play football, the driving run was superb and almost resulted in an assist
Rojo - cant pass nor defend, should not start and sell if someone is silly to put a bid in
McTominay - did his role well and is currently a better choice than Matic
Pogba - did win ball back by tracking his player couple of times, few good balls and nothing to brag about
Mata - bench player at best, nothing to call and lost possession few times as defenders were too strong for him
Greenwood - good show and a goal, did well his role
Rashford - good show and took his goal well. Directness he offers is something which no others offers in team
Dan James - Few pacy runs, hit the post and decent in possession. Want to see him play on right than left where he may not get start. He probably is a good option at right compared to mata or lingard
Second Half-
Joel P - not good enough and made few goof ups
Dalot - nothing outstanding to mention in 45 mins
Smalling - bad in possession and won few headers, right defender spot is open for a new player or lindelof need to play here if a new LCB is purchased
Jones - was average and headless runs, will be punished against good opposition. After a long time united scored a goal from a corner
Young - went missing in defensive positions and crap in passing, bench him or sell
Matic - was he on pitch?
Andreas - decent showing today and somebody who can take corners.
Lingard - under-hit or overhit balls, lost possession. Bench him as he is good only for beans beans beans
Gomes - impressed in second half, very good with passing and never loses possession, bullied leeds defender 2 times, he is strong for his size and ready for first team
Martial - Nothing outstanding and took penalty well
Garner - expecting to see few sub appearances, he has that proper holding midfielder approach to games
Chong - his timing on runs is bad and is not ready for first-team yet, but can be an impact player.
meanwhile City get away with a clear foul in penalty area and two mins later get the softest of penalties themselves. Is there a City penalty version of Fergie time?
Like it
I have a gut feeling that Maguire would be a huge signing for us. A game changer even.
It's nice being pampered now and again.
Indeed. The only one making runs in the second half, won a penalty and looked generally lively. He was better than everyone around him bar Gomes, Pereira and Jones.
he'll be sacked by January if they aren't running away with the championship
yup loved his performance and his balance is awesome, has a look of good player and dont be surprised if more passing based teams come hunting for him. There will be demand for him and need to get his contract sorted soon. Also will see if OGS really can spot if a player is ready for first team, if he continues with Lingard who was bad, I predict OGS wont be here come December.
"Smashie"?
Thing is though it comes down to experience. If Ole played him week in week out, he won’t have enough experience to grind out games. He should definitely get more minutes this season though from the bench and see how he is next season.
I think moving on those 3 would be terrific for the squad, though I would prioritize Lingard and Martial.
Axel is probably going back on loan to Villa
Positives
- Smashed Leeds
Negatives
- Had to play Leeds.
- Smashed Leeds
Negatives
- Had to play Leeds.
It seems that Gomes is having a great tour. Which position has he been playing? No 10, or RW? Can he play right wing aka Lingard position?
We would if we sell Rom, fail to replace him and Marcus gets hurt.
Who is bashing their chong?
but I would sign a new forward (or not sell Lukaku)
1st half best players for me: Pogba, Greenwood, Rashford. A lot of the players otherwise had good moments, and none stood out as bad except Rojo missing his man, almost allowing Leeds to score. Daniel James had some poor passes, but his pace is out of this world and can certainly make up for a lot of his growing pains. Very exciting player, deserved a goal this half.
Mason Greenwood is the real deal, he's joining the first team this year. He's so fast on his feet he will give any player trouble 1v1. Pogba, along with most of the team, is going at 80% and is just dominant when he's engaging. Marcus Rashford took a huge gamble on his goal as opposed to passing the ball to Greenwood who was free (or was it james?), but it paid off. Wan-Bissaka and Lindelöf were also great in the back. Mata delivered a steadfast solid performance, he's not really making any mistakes.
2nd half best players for me: Phil Jones Offensive Linebacker. Chong who was engaging, running and creating a lot of chances and noise in the Leeds team, one of his better performances for the club in my eyes. Pereira looked lively and Angel Gomes is a very exciting talent. Not a ton of involvement for Garner today but the few he had were good enough to not warrant any criticism.
Based on these two not-at-all-conclusive training matches, my starting XI for the season opener v Chelsea is:
De Gea
Wan-Bissaka - Lindelöf - Cardboard cutout of Maguire - Shaw
McTominay - Pogba - James
Martial Greenwood - Rashford
Ok we need a new signing, because as much as I am neutral on Lingard, today was really, really bad. Ashley Young has no business being in this squad, and the other kids are not ready for permanent duty. I only list James there because he's been better than the options.
Mason Greenwood is the real deal, he's joining the first team this year. He's so fast on his feet he will give any player trouble 1v1. Pogba, along with most of the team, is going at 80% and is just dominant when he's engaging. Marcus Rashford took a huge gamble on his goal as opposed to passing the ball to Greenwood who was free (or was it james?), but it paid off. Wan-Bissaka and Lindelöf were also great in the back. Mata delivered a steadfast solid performance, he's not really making any mistakes.
2nd half best players for me: Phil Jones Offensive Linebacker. Chong who was engaging, running and creating a lot of chances and noise in the Leeds team, one of his better performances for the club in my eyes. Pereira looked lively and Angel Gomes is a very exciting talent. Not a ton of involvement for Garner today but the few he had were good enough to not warrant any criticism.
Based on these two not-at-all-conclusive training matches, my starting XI for the season opener v Chelsea is:
De Gea
Wan-Bissaka - Lindelöf - Cardboard cutout of Maguire - Shaw
McTominay - Pogba - James
Martial Greenwood - Rashford
Ok we need a new signing, because as much as I am neutral on Lingard, today was really, really bad. Ashley Young has no business being in this squad, and the other kids are not ready for permanent duty. I only list James there because he's been better than the options.
I wouldn't be! Its my big concern because its clear what would suit him stylistically. Ole needs to move our style of play forward quickly.
Good summary, from what I managed to see.
As others have said, a couple of real quality stars and we're set, plus it's obvious which players in our squad we can get rid of to make room in the wage bill. Possibly why fans are often annoyed, as it's plain as day who won't be delivering enough. The positives with what we have is good, the potential to improve is also there but it can't deliver what we want. Plus it's likely to go to pieces under pressure and bad results without the extra star quality. Our nearest rivals we need to catch have that, come on Woody, do the business.
Yeah well you arent in charge. I agree Martial needs a kick up the hole but we arent in a position to jettison two forwards right now
Seriously? That's hugely concerning.
That'd be truly shocking considering they've bought 4 CBs.
Yep! Martial has been such a disappointment but something needs to click in his head. All the ability you could hope for but something big missing.
Lingard. Just annoying. Everything about him. Luckiest player ever to be anywhere near our starting 11. Rubbish nickname too! Keep him only as a sub, nothing more.
We may need to move Lukaku on to buy Maguire and Bruno.
If Marcus does get injured we still have 3 decent strikers in Greenwood, Martial and don't forget about Sanchez who just had a decent Copa America. We can't get anyone to buy him, so we need to get him back to the player he was for Arsenal. Bruno can chip in with goals, too.
Hes a 10 in a 4231, most advanced of a midfield 3 in a 433 or left wing at a push like how Coutinho/Iniesta could play there. Greenwood is the main choice for the right IMO, or Chong/James (though I think both are better on the left).
Eh. There's a lot of misinformation put out by that gobshite and his pals that can reel decent people into supporting his huckster work.
He isn't. Villa have bought 2 CBs, and Ole already mentioned that he is in our plans.
I didnt know that. Id rather he stayed anyway
Nice!
Agree about Sanchez. If we could get him playing well it would be like a new signing - I really thought his goal against Arsenal in the cup would spark him back to life but...
Morons come in all shapes an sizes. I doubt very much he can name 10 members of our team
We are probably ok upfront, just about. But midfield creativity needs to improve.
And Bailly is deteriorating, he is not as good as he used to be.
And Bailly is deteriorating, he is not as good as he used to be.
4. Mings, Hause, Konsa, Engels