[Mike09]

Again just like against City, Fellaini was doing one man in midfield. Others were ball watching a lot. Second goal why didn't Pogba pick up his man, if he was just standing there mark no one at least intercept the pass but he didn't do any of those. Shaw was ball watching by giving his man so much time and space in dangerous place, as a result a free easy through pass for opposition goal. And Fellaini has to take the blame
Being labeled as a top class is so good, you can always get away from abuse for making errors.

 

[11101]

I don't get complaints of Fellaini with these stats. With as bad as Pogba and Rooney were today, the fact he was still able to show something in the midfield is amazing.

He is the reason Pogba is playing badly. Pogba is NOT a game controlling CM. He is a flash of brilliance who wins you games but he needs his midfield partners to keep things ticking over.

We need a CM (or two) to do the following:

1. Control passing and tempo
2. Provide an outlet for a pass at all times
3. Position themselves to prevent dangerous situations
4. Tackle and intercept

Fellaini on his own is really only any good at 4, and he has a go at 2 and 3, although a good midfield easily bypasses him. He's actually a liability at 1 because he plays the safe pass when it's not necessary and breaks attacks. Pogba will never flourish playing in a 2 with him, or anyone probably.

Carrick is brilliant at 1 and 3 and very good at 2, but he's not a long term option. Herrera could possibly be the man for the job in a 3, or Blind.

 

[InfiniteBoredom]

He's a rugby player on a football field.

That's the kindest way I can put it.

 

[Mike09]

He is the reason Pogba is playing badly. Pogba is NOT a game controlling CM. He is a flash of brilliance who wins you games but he needs his midfield partners to keep things ticking over.

We need a CM (or two) to do the following:

1. Control passing and tempo
2. Provide an outlet for a pass at all times
3. Position themselves to prevent dangerous situations
4. Tackle and intercept

Fellaini on his own is really only any good at 4, and he has a go at 2 and 3, although a good midfield easily bypasses him. He's actually a liability at 1 because he plays the safe pass when it's not necessary and breaks attacks. Pogba will never flourish playing in a 2 with him, and it will be one hell of a player who can make that work.

Carrick is brilliant at 1 and 3 and very good at 2, but he's not a long term option. Herrera could possibly be the man for the job in a 3, or Blind.

Pogba was still playing bad against Feyenoord in midfield 3 with Herrera who played alongside him and Fellaini wasn't even playing.

 

[11101]

Pogba was still playing bad against Feyenoord in midfield 3 with Herrera and Fellaini wasn't even playing.

Look at the four items. Fellaini does a job, and with him out no-one else was doing it.

 

[Mike09]

Look at the four items. Fellaini does a job, and with him out no-one else was doing it.

I guess Schneiderlin was just useless in your view.
So Fellaini wasn't the reason why Pogba plays bad then. According to your theory it's because Pogba has so many limit that he needs to play with 3 men midfield who can do the tasks that he can't do.

 

[In Rainbows]

I guess Schneiderlin was just useless in your view.
So Fellaini wasn't the reason why Pogba plays bad then. According to your theory it's because Pogba has so many limit that he needs to play with 3 men midfield who can do the tasks that he can't do.

I think that midfield was also lacking that guy who will dictate play with his passing. A lot of the passing seemed negative which was a problem.

 

[finneh]

There's a reason Mourinho bought Matic in his second stint as Chelsea manager. He wanted to play Fabregas in a deeper position, particularly against wesker opposition, but realised you could only do that with a strong, mobile and physically fit destroyer next to him.

Pogba can play that same position, his performance against So'ton illustrates that; however the second we come up against a decent midfield the lack of mobility and intelligent defensive cover will show.

That isn't saying Fellaini is playing badly, it's saying he's incapable of playing the Matic role. He loses concentration and doesn't have the mobility for it. He gets caught out too far up the pitch far too often and any midfielder with a bit of drive passes by him like he isn't there.

If we're intent on playing Fellaini for his height and physicality we need to realise it can only be next to Pogba in the position he played well under LVG (the advanced 4 in a 4-1-4-1). But in truth we need to realise that in our team no matter how great form he's in there are better advanced midfielders ahead of him and his best role will be from the bench.

 

[11101]

I guess Schneiderlin was just useless in your view.
So Fellaini wasn't the reason why Pogba plays bad then. According to your theory it's because Pogba has so many limit that he needs to play with 3 men midfield who can do the tasks that he can't do.

Pogba is our star player now, and he is capable of spectacular things. Juventus catered to it and so should we. A 3 man midfield is ideal and Fellaini can have a part to play in that, but if Mourinho insists on a 2 then Fellaini just isn't good enough to play the required role.

 

[BigTimeCharlie]

Doesn't mean anything when the pass is always to the man closest to him. Cleverley was the same although he did manage to not be so gormless and clumsy.

But it wasn't always the closest man. The Ibra header was from a diag ball in from Fellaini, wouldve been much easier to find the closest man.

Fellaini is here to disposses, win the ball back and dominate physically. Hes been awesome this season, no arguments there. Sometimes you judt have to appreciste a player playing well even if you dont like them.

 

[Yagami]

Over the years I've been a critic of Fellaini's but I thought he played well again yesterday.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

He did play well and has been playing well all season. Paul Doyle nails it in the Guardian, though:

From a poor selection Marouane Fellaini was United’s most inventive central midfielder although he seemed to have been assigned holding duty, which tends to default to him on the grounds that he is big rather than exceptionally vigilant.

Carrick or Blind should be in Fellaini's role. He just doesn't have the smarts to adequately shield our defence. He's willing as anything but too often in the wrong place. He's best used further forwards or not at all.

 

[InfiniteBoredom]

It doesn't really matter whether he was playing well (to his strengths) or not. His mere presence in that holding role impede us from controlling the tempo of the game, and his poor spatial awareness makes us vulnerable to fluid movement of fast counter.

The times we've looked best with him in the team came with him playing further up the field, destroying the oppo build up from deep in their half.

 

[finneh]

He did play well and has been playing well all season. Paul Doyle nails it in the Guardian, though:

Carrick or Blind should be in Fellaini's role. He just doesn't have the smarts to adequately shield our defence. He's willing as anything but too often in the wrong place. He's best used further forwards or not at all.

Correct. You can't criticise a player for not doing things he's never been able to do. Although I think even Blind/Carrick would struggle in a midfield two alongside Pogba. I'd say the only player with the mobility combined with the required defensive attributes to cover Pogba when he charges forward is an in form Schneiderlin.

 

[#07]

He did play well and has been playing well all season. Paul Doyle nails it in the Guardian, though:



Carrick or Blind should be in Fellaini's role. He just doesn't have the smarts to adequately shield our defence. He's willing as anything but too often in the wrong place. He's best used further forwards or not at all.

This.

You can't criticise Fellaini for being Fellaini. You can criticise Mourinho for picking the least mobile, least defensively aware holding player he's used since before his Porto days though. Fellaini is doing a job in a role he's unsuited to. Why Mourinho can't or won't see that is beyond me.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

Correct. You can't criticise a player for not doing things he's never been able to do. Although I think even Blind/Carrick would struggle in a midfield two alongside Pogba. I'd say the only player with the mobility combined with the required defensive attributes to cover Pogba when he charges forward is an in form Schneiderlin.

Schneiderlin is similarly lacking in defensive nous though. He's mobile and an aggressive tackler but not a natural at screening the back four. Hence he did well with Wanyama at Soton. For example, he was nowhere to be seen when Feyenoord scored. Not even within 10 yards of our box. He's actually kind of similar to Fellaini IMO. A box to box midfielder who should be allowed the freedom to roam and not expected to sit.

 

[finneh]

Schneiderlin is similarly lacking in defensive nous though. He's mobile and an aggressive tackler but not a natural at screening the back four. Hence he did well with Wanyama at Soton. For example, he was nowhere to be seen when Feyenoord scored. Not even within 10 yards of our box. He's actually kind of similar to Fellaini IMO. A box to box midfielder who should be allowed the freedom to roam and not expected to sit.

For the more difficult games particularly we really need to be playing a midfield 3. That way you can combine the qualities of Carrick/Blind with Herrera/Fellaini and of course Pogba.

Watford away is one of those games, likewise City last week and Leicester next week. You can get away with two against Bournemouth at home.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

For the more difficult games particularly we really need to be playing a midfield 3. That way you can combine the qualities of Carrick/Blind with Herrera/Fellaini and of course Pogba.

Watford away is one of those games, likewise City last week and Leicester next week. You can get away with two against Bournemouth at home.

We played a 3 against Watford though. More of 2.5 really, seeing as Rooney was so incompetent.

 

[Raees]

Poor positioning throughout but it can't be easy being the sole DM when you're partnered by Pogba and Rooney.

 

[Perrick Dubois]

Thought he played well, he's definitely picked up an ounce or two of speed. He closed and defended a few times with some good speed that is promising. In a three you definitely need him staying home and linking play. Ideally a Herrera or a Schniederlin beside/behind The Pog to do the midfield legwork and link Felli and Pogba up. Not really sure if Rooney is the answer for such a role.

 

[sugar_kane]

One of our better players yesterday (despite the penalty) and it was pathetic how the BT lot were ripping into him while giving Rooney a free pass.

 

[TrustInJanuzaj]

I think it comes down to what you want, a big lump that just wins the ball back and plays it simply or a top player that can set the tempo of attacks and play balls between the lines. Fellaini is getting hugely overrated because everyone sees a player getting around winning tackles and in typical English style that then equates to a good performance, yet they completely fail to see that the guys passing is so poor and slow that as a team we are just static.

We need a player (cough Carrick) that can get the ball in deep zones and in just a single pass get the team straight into a counter realising the likes of martial and Mkhitaryan or playing between the lines early into Ibrahimovic. Fellaini will almost always require a second touch and his passing is always backwards and sideways, and while he doesn't lose the ball much that's not enough for this level. The game yesterday was crying out for Carrick, not Mata or Depay because from minute one we didnt have any penetration from midfield so the attack never really had a chance to get in the game. It's a shambles that after another 100 odd million we still don't have that Carrick replacement that is the most important style of player in every top team.

 

[finneh]

We played a 3 against Watford though. More of 2.5 really, seeing as Rooney was so incompetent.

I think it's more about playing a 3 that compliment each other. Having Carrick-Fellaini-Pogba would be a mixture of strength/power and intelligence (but be potentially too immobile against opposition with box to box runners). A mixture of Blind-Herrera-Pogba would be a mix of mobility/movement and intelligence (but may struggle against teams that bypass midfield and play a target man).

Both would be effective against different types of opposition. The second you put Rooney and Fellaini together you end up with a lack of intelligence, a lack of mobility, a lack of passing ability and/or a lack of defensive balance and unless we have a 26 year old Roy Keane hiding in a cupboard somewhere it'd never work (and even if we did we'd partner him in a midfield 2 with Pogba and have 2 players doing the job of 3).

The only place for Rooney in a midfield three that could ever even slightly work (when he's playing ok) is in place of Pogba, which is never going to happen.

The truth is one of the first things Mourinho said was that he wanted specialists in every position. Unfortunately the second you play Rooney centrally with a striker ahead you condemn every other midfielder to a non-specialist role.

 

[revel911]

He is the reason Pogba is playing badly. Pogba is NOT a game controlling CM. He is a flash of brilliance who wins you games but he needs his midfield partners to keep things ticking over.

We need a CM (or two) to do the following:

1. Control passing and tempo
2. Provide an outlet for a pass at all times
3. Position themselves to prevent dangerous situations
4. Tackle and intercept

Fellaini on his own is really only any good at 4, and he has a go at 2 and 3, although a good midfield easily bypasses him. He's actually a liability at 1 because he plays the safe pass when it's not necessary and breaks attacks. Pogba will never flourish playing in a 2 with him, or anyone probably.

Carrick is brilliant at 1 and 3 and very good at 2, but he's not a long term option. Herrera could possibly be the man for the job in a 3, or Blind.

Pogba is going to suck with practically anybody in a 2 because he wanders away so easily.

 

[Walters_19_MuFc]

All the talk about Rooney, but technically, Fellaini has been dropped too, which is a shame, considering his good start to the season.

 

[Walrus]

I don't mind other players being given a chance. I am sure Fellaini is very much still in Jose's plans, just wants to try something different today. Leicester aren't the most physical team and I think Herrera is perhaps the better choice for this game.

 

[Bwuk]

Leicester sit back and try to kill teams on the counter, it makes sense for Fellaini to be benched for ball players today.

 

[TrustInJanuzaj]

He's not even been that good this year, average at best and at worst he's been a huge reason why the team lacks balance. Herrera will add much better passing and pace in there I'd be surprised if that didn't help us improve. Still would prefer Carrick in the DM role though as he's still different class to the rest.

 

[devilish]

He's badly missed today

 

[Amadaeus]

He's badly missed today

Where is the white text?

I believe his(Fellaini) exclusion was as important to our team balance and performance as was Rooney's exclusion.

As I stated before, it is difficult to play good football with Rooney and Fellaini in your team together.

 

[justboy68]

Where is the white text?

I believe his(Fellaini) exclusion was as important to our team balance and performance as was Rooney's exclusion.

As I stated before, it is difficult to play good football with Rooney and Fellaini in your team together.

Sometimes sarcasm is obvious enough not to need white text. You are right though, Fellaini's exclusion shouldn't go unnoticed in freeing us up to play good football. United have to aim higher than Fellaini. He can do a job for a midtable side, but not much more.

 

[Amadaeus]

Sometimes sarcasm is obvious enough not to need white text. You are right though, Fellaini's exclusion shouldn't go unnoticed in freeing us up to play good football. United have to aim higher than Fellaini. He can do a job for a midtable side, but not much more.

Yea, I figured as much. Even though a lot of fans believed that Fellaini has been doing well, his lack of technical abilities has really held our football back. I doubt our football would have been anywhere as good if we went with him over Herrera.

 

[shamans]

Yea, I figured as much. Even though a lot of fans believed that Fellaini has been doing well, his lack of technical abilities has really held our football back. I doubt our football would have been anywhere as good if we went with him over Herrera.

Such nonesense.

 

[Ixion]

The problem with Fellaini is his contributes nothing offensively (outside of set pieces) and it's just accepted. No one expects through-balls, balls over the top or anything intricate around the box from him, if he plays it's simply a free pass to offer nothing going forward yet we've seen from Carrick and Herrera it doesn't have to be like that. It doesn't surprise me we offered far more going forward without him.

 

[Amadaeus]

Such nonesense.

Not really. When you play him in our setup, his lack of technical ability makes our play less progressive and less dynamic and more predictable and safe. As the data showed last match with his passing attribute, he does not contribute to the conscientious team effort towards attacking in a attractive manner or producing the right decision in making progressive passing. The difference between playing Herrera in this holding position and Fellaini in this holding position is like night and day. Same thing can be said if you replace Herrera with our other players including Carrick, Schweinstiger, and Blind.

 

[harms]

All the talk about Rooney, but technically, Fellaini has been dropped too, which is a shame, considering his good start to the season.

It's amazing that after such performance, with both our midfielders having an almost perfect game (and performing much better than anything Fellaini did in the red shirt as they are actually all-rounded) someone finds a time to post a sorrow on him being dropped from the side

He creates such radical opinions about himself, be it negative (me included) that are often over the top or positive that were absolutely dreadful at times this season

 

[LouisDanGaal]

I thought he was doing a great job but we really are better without him.

 

[Walters_19_MuFc]

It's amazing that after such performance, with both our midfielders having an almost perfect game (and performing much better than anything Fellaini did in the red shirt as they are actually all-rounded) someone finds a time to post a sorrow on him being dropped from the side

He creates such radical opinions about himself, be it negative (me included) that are often over the top or positive that were absolutely dreadful at times this season

I said that before the game.

Of course in hindsight, it was right to 'drop' him, but as Mourinho said, it's a long season, and all the players are going to be very important to him.

 

[harms]

I said that before the game.

My bad then, sorry

 

[izec]

We could sell him for 20m and invest the money further or keep him as a squad player. I would sell him.