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2019-20 Performances


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5.3 Season Average Rating
Appearances
9
Clean sheets
4
Goals
0
Assists
0
Yellow cards
1
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Foxbatt

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Agreed. Lindelof was playing his role in a back 3 very well, and the understanding and communication between Lindelof and AWB was very good.

Rojo on the other hand, was too tucked in, often in no mans land, while Williams was getting double teamed on the flank. Credit to Williams that he mostly handled it well.
He has not played half as much as Lindelof and is going to take a bit of time to get going. He may be a bit crazy and do anything but he is the kind of player who is tough as a rock and will lay down his body too. We need someone like him and now Scott in midfield.
 

Bwuk

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Love Rojo. He’s a bit of a bomb scare but he’s all passion.
 

sherrinford

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He hung Williams out to dry because he couldn’t or wouldn’t cover him.

Neville noted it in commentary and I was pleased he did. I’d been tearing my hair out about it since the first half.

Lindelof plays the three man centre half role very effectively, actually.
‘Hung out to dry’ is very strong. There was at least two situations in the first half where I thought he should have been further across when Chelsea had possession down their right (on at least one occasion this was an entirely conscious decision to defend the front post area - leaving too big a gap, for me). Similarly, I thought there was a couple of times where I thought Williams was too slow across himself and allowed his winger to take the ball into feet and turn unnecessarily. Perhaps he didn’t trust Rojo to move across with him and was therefore conscious of leaving too big a gap between Rojo and himself, mind. Everything promising down their flank came from Hudson-Odoi (I think it was) faced up against Williams. I don’t remember the space between them being exploited once.

I think the system with three centre halves really helps Lindelof with regards to the issue you had with Rojo tonight. In a standard back four Lindelof is perpetually slow and hesitant to move across the pitch. With the extra defender in the back line he is much more positive in covering his flank or applying pressure to an attacker going towards the ball. He is still very uncomfortable defending the space in behind him in that channel though, and both Wan-Bissaka and him look terribly awkward in the air defending a cross field ball.

Over the two games they’ve played together, I think Rojo has been quite comfortably more secure, barring one horrendous decision for the Liverpool goal. Also to clarify, I saw the first half and then last twenty minutes tonight, so I didn’t see the entire game.

Both players, as well as the two wingbacks, really failed to progress the play and exploit the spaces in behind the Chelsea full backs anywhere near as successfully as against Liverpool. Generally the two strikers didn’t actually look for the same balls into the channels though - both seemed to offer more into feet, coming towards the ball. I’m not sure why - Chelsea pressed high and both full backs were committed to closing down our wide men, so the space was there. Anyway, there wasn’t much to get excited about from Lindelof or Rojo in possession.

Certainly from what I saw Chelsea really struggled to create anything. So I think Rojo was far from the joke you seem to think he was.
 

MikeKing

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This is pretty much the perfect description of him. I’ve found a new love for him this season and I think it’s more just due to the kind of character he is. I feel like if we were to get rid of him it’d be a loss.
Had a good game but, that is stretching it:nono:
 

arthurka

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He will be back to his usual bollocks soon enough so I will say this he was better than Lindelöf.
 

Art Vandelay

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Hopefully he can keep up these impressions of adequacy until January and we can get rid for a decent fee before he does something ridiculous or gets injured again.
 

sammsky1

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Hopefully he can keep up these impressions of adequacy until January and we can get rid for a decent fee before he does something ridiculous or gets injured again.
So long as he keeps getting his rations of burnt toast, am sure he’ll be fine.

It’s when other people make his toast and don’t burn it that his problems start.
 

Eugenius

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He's playing pretty well, which means there is a two footed tackle 3 match ban or injury coming in the next couple of games.

Can't help but love him though.
 

Wednesday at Stoke

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Its like driving in the opposite direction on a freeway, you always know it will end in a crash but the lead up is too much excitement. Best center back in the game yesterday.
 

Alfie092

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Good game yesterday. If it wasn't for all his injuries and consistently played, he could have turned out to be a very good defender for us over the past few years.

Don't trust him to be a long-term starting player though with his injury record and recklessness :lol: Rather get rid of Jones before Rojo and keep him as a squad player, as Rojo is left footed and can also play at LB.
 

Adam-Utd

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Was cowardly in his passing in the first half, and positionally in the 2nd he was awful.

Did much better once we switched back to a 4231 though.

I'm personally not a fan of the back 3, think it makes our CB's look clueless. They all get in each others way.
 

VorZakone

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I quite don't get the amount of ridicule he gets. Wasn't he a starter during that period when Utd's defensive stats were very very good? In 2017?

I remember the duo Rojo - Bailly working very well.
 

Foxbatt

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He can be rash but he is very tough and will not be bullied about. He is also a good header of the ball. It may go in any direction but he is not afraid to put his head in dangerous places. He is quicker than Lindelof and I think he fancies a bit of football so he joins the attack like most South Americans.
I still think the more he plays the better match fit he is going to get and if he can keep his head he will be an asset. I also think he is quicker than Lindelof and Maguire so he is handy to have around. I think he is not used to playing in a back three and if better as the left side CB in a back four.

He nearly kicked Batshuayi in the arse.
 
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Class of 63

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Doesn't seem like a particularly nice thing to say.

Either way. Watching the Lingard gifs from the other thread reminds me that Rojo is decent enough on the ball and, if nothing else, at least tries a forward pass. If we had a competent guy playing in the 8 or 10 position, couple more chances might've been created.
I don't mean to go around punching opposition players, or putting in rash career-threatening challenges but to let the forwards know he's there and often - Bill Foulkes, a tough as teak central defender who survived Munich and was in the European Cup winning team in 1968 said he always hoped United conceded a corner/free-kick in the first few minutes so he could headbutt the back of the centre-forwards head so he'd be less keen the next time, and he would keep doing it till he stayed away completely, and he was considered a gentleman!
 

Zoo

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Looking in decent shape and had another solid game. Ahead of Jones in the pecking order now.
 

11101

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If he could stay fit and cut out the one mental moment each game he would be a well established starter by now. Hes a very good centre back for 89 mins.
 

NotoriousISSY

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There is something annoyingly lovable about him, but deep down we all know he's pretty rubbish :wenger:
 

drdoityourself

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His form is at least much better than Lindelöf's. Deserves a run in the team partnering Maguire.
 

Ban

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When he doesnt have his crazy moments he's actually good. Problem is he tends to have those moments.
 

Andersons Dietician

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His form is at least much better than Lindelöf's. Deserves a run in the team partnering Maguire.
Agreed, been a critic of his for years but in this sort of form and not including Smalling he’s probably our 2nd best defender. Have more faith in him in this moment than I do Lindelof.

‘See what he does if he gets a run but I’m sure one of his trademark crunches isn’t that far away or the usual Rojo injury.
 

Pughnichi

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He was the only one remotely interested in attacking in the last 30 mins. Played himself into a starting spot for me. Well played
 

432JuanMata

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Remember the season when he was a rock at CB with Jones ? He has the ability he is just a nut case. He will be MOM for 85 mins then do a two footer or something stupid. I love him though, deserves a start over Lindelof
 

MikeKing

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Had a good game. That's two or three this season, more than he had any other seasons. He has more pace and tends to a lot be more aggressive than Lindelof so If he can keep himself fit maybe he could partner Maguire, to resemble some sort of balance.
 

mu4c_20le

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He has a nasty edge in his game that I like to see in centrebacks. As long as there is someone to cover him, he's a wrecking ball.
 

MrBest

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There is something annoyingly lovable about him, but deep down we all know he's pretty rubbish :wenger:
He should never be a starter, which he is not, but when he comes in he seems to play well and shows a lot of beast mode.
 

kundalini

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Good performance.

Done well since allowing Lallana to get free to score late on in the Liverpool match.
 

He'sRaldo

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Better fit for Maguire than Lindelof IMO.

Should be Smalling's backup/ competition, with Lindelof being Maguire's backup and Jones sold.
 

Full bodied red

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Not too sure why everyone refers to him as a ' red card waiting to happen '

As I write this, eight games = one yellow.

Not exactly shabby for someone with his no nonsense approach to defending.

Which I like, by the way.
 

Adam-Utd

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Played pretty well tonight. Much less rash and played some nice passes.

When He’s got his calm head on he’s a decent defender.
 

TrustInOle

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Always had a soft spot for Rojo, but been dissapointed with his injury record mainly. He is a very solid defender, has pace about him, very strong, decent passer of the ball and always plays with his heart on his sleeve. Hs does have a reckless side to him, but that's down to passion, he never stops giving his fullest and that's gotta be respected.
 

Based Adnan

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Not too sure why everyone refers to him as a ' red card waiting to happen '

As I write this, eight games = one yellow.

Not exactly shabby for someone with his no nonsense approach to defending.

Which I like, by the way.
He's had the "red card waiting to happen" tag ever since that 1 week period 3 years ago where he dished out two 2 footed challenges in 2 games. To be fair I have no idea how he didn't get off for this challenge on Idrissa Gueye:


Ever since then even normal challenges he makes are exaggerated to be red card worthy when they are no way near.
 

Sterling Archer

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If he could stay fit and cut out the one mental moment each game he would be a well established starter by now. Hes a very good centre back for 89 mins.
He was a mainstay in one of our best defensive runs under Jose, if I recall. Maybe Jose's first season. Then injured ever since
 
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