It was the absolute antithesis of a perfect platform for shining. The most any forward could have done in that situation is provide a bit of hustle and press, but for the most part the ball was in our half anyway with Spurs in possession. We needed some outlet and it would have been suicidial by inviting more pressure if he dropped back completely. He didn’t provide much hustle and practically no pressing though, so he did fail to impress on the less than favourable platform he was faced with.
9
Season Average Rating
- Appearances
- 45
- Goals
- 15
- Assists
- 3
- Yellow cards
- 5
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i mean if we dont bring on Lukaku our PPM(pointing per minute) would have been crap. Literally all he did was stroll about and point to various places on the field. No wonder he looked knackered the guy was tired from just randomly pointing to different parts on the field.
Seems people see what the want to see even with that gif. Maybe I’m just crazily biased against Lukaku, I seen him bumble a few balls and find a team mate, a bullet header back to Pogba I don’t think he meant, other than that he was being owned by the centre backs.
The bit where alderwierald just read him and took the ball off him soo easy by the flag was pathetic, that was after rom had fecked the pass to rashford and got lucky it bounced back into his path. The blocked shot was absolutely shocking too, one on one with a defender with a free man in the box or just choose to run it down, nope just shoot at the defenders shins. Great stuff.
All that lumped in with him ambling about for 20 mins after the rest of the boys had put a serious shift in tipped me over the edge.
The bit where alderwierald just read him and took the ball off him soo easy by the flag was pathetic, that was after rom had fecked the pass to rashford and got lucky it bounced back into his path. The blocked shot was absolutely shocking too, one on one with a defender with a free man in the box or just choose to run it down, nope just shoot at the defenders shins. Great stuff.
All that lumped in with him ambling about for 20 mins after the rest of the boys had put a serious shift in tipped me over the edge.
People love the term scapegoat to try and undermine valid points regarding poor performances, the term actually only applies if he was being blamed for something, like had we conceded an equalizer and he was blamed for it, but that didn't happen, there's nothing in a win that can be scapegoated, people are saying he was mostly crap and lazy when he came on, because he was.
One thing this video shows to me is that Ole is making the same mistake as Mourinho with having De Gea hit it long to him, Lukaku might be huge but his timing on aerial balls isn't one of his strengths, he's not a target man of any variety.
That's what I'm saying, if he did this everyone would have been satisfied with his performances and he failed even to threaten their CB and was constantly beaten in every duel and didn't help in pressing them. Even Fellaini would have been praised for just harassing their CB and giving them hard time.
That's not a terrible highlight reel for a relatively short stint on the pitch. And I'm mainly pleased I watched it just because I got to see Hererra's no look pass again.
I've kind of had it with Lukaku at this stage. I want to stick up for him and I want him to succeed but feck me, could he not have made a bit more of an effort?! A massive game, away from home, we're under the cosh, everyone is knackered, he's played feck all football in the last few weeks. Surely to christ the minimum expectation is to run around like an absolute lunatic, pressing Spurs like crazy and constantly running down channels. Instead we got... the usual... What's going on in his head? I just don't get it.
Exactly, I already know he’s not going to come on and hold it up and go on mazey runs, it’s not him but at least close the centrwbacks down when they’re lumping it forward.
Right at the end alderweirald lumped a long ball forward to Llorente who should have put Kane in for a goal. Lukaku just jogged towards alderwierald to close him down, I was screaming sprint!
Fellaini would have been a much better option of the bench IMO. He would have done everything that Lukaku attempted in that video a lot better than Lukaku. Apart from that one foot race with Vertonghen, which he would have lost. Still, though, a small price to pay.
Look at him. You can't expect him to run like Rashford or Lingard, he's be dead by the time the game is over.
You could say that to be honest but our team looked pretty knackered long before he came on.
In hindsight you could say he was probably the best player who could have came on for us out of a bad bunch but it is what it is.
As i said before its not his game to press high.
One thing i think we all have to remember though and a lot of people are clueless to this but we will not be playing this style of play week in week out.
Top 4/6 teams often change the way they setup and the tactics they employ vs other top 4/6 teams because they know the other top 4/6 teams have a certain quality that the other teams dont.
Lukaku could easily play against the rest.
2 successful headers out of 7 or 8 aerial balls, one pass to a Spurs player and 2 "headless chicken wobbling into the box with the ball" moments.
That's not even what really annoyed me though, it was the nil attempt to press at all, as well as his static play when we actually had the ball around the half way line and beyond. Aside from the one two with Herrera he actively hid from the ball, and even when we had it around their box there were 2 or 3 times he just stood there hands on hips.
That's not even what really annoyed me though, it was the nil attempt to press at all, as well as his static play when we actually had the ball around the half way line and beyond. Aside from the one two with Herrera he actively hid from the ball, and even when we had it around their box there were 2 or 3 times he just stood there hands on hips.
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Hazard plays that role in perfection against Brazil during the WC. Everytime the ball crossed the middle line, he gave defenders hard time and was closing down their CB preventing them from delivering perfect ball to the other players in the other half, and every time he got the ball it was a challenge for the CB to get it off him. Fellaini would have fought for every long ball and their CB wouldn't find it easy to deliver those balls they were lunching to Llorente.
Was thinking just that when watching Lukaku lumber about the pitch. it's a weird thing to say , but Fellaini is actually a better footballer in general and will see out games more effectively by keeping the ball ticking for one.
You can't expect him to run like them for 90 minutes but he bloody well should be able to manage it for 17 minutes!
Yes, that's true. I don't think he's the best fit for us going forward.
That touch at 90 where he couldnt sort his feet to release dalot is painful. The same thing happened in his last game where he got the ball stuck and missed an arriving Sanchez.
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He's very limited footballer. When he gets played through here all he's got to do here is turn inside and lay off simple pass to Dalot. It's too predictable . What he wants to do. I had feeling he was going to blast into defenders legs and that's what happened. There's zero finesse in his game
He is a good few levels below Rashford!
A lot of his goals are down to pure luck too. Balls rebounding of him and other players and so on and so forth. It was comedy time again. The things he did not do was the Lukaku turn, his dummying himself. But he did head to no one in particular and also passed to a Spurs player without much undue pressure.
The most he did was wave his arms about. Maybe all that arm waving knackered him?
The most he did was wave his arms about. Maybe all that arm waving knackered him?
Wow just wow..
To be fair he only had 20 min. He should have ran himself to the ground during that time.
Exactly. I don’t mind if he misses an open goal, all strikers do, but we were really under the cosh, and he needed to put some effort in and give us an outlet and put their defence under pressure. That’s the bloody minimum we should expect. Instead he looked like he’s already played 90 mins. It was pathetic.
Really what the hell was he supposed to do with 90% of these balls.
For his lack of effort and the rest of it yesterday, my biggest problem with Lukaku was summed up in his 1v1. I wasn’t mad at his hold up play etc. He just has a clear lack of actual talent. On the whole, he has done very well in his career. For the talent he has, he pretty much scores all the goals he can. But the fact that I knew that nothing would come out of that scenario is why I’ve never wanted him here, and why he belongs neither at United or any other top club. He may be able to ‘do his job’, the sheer basics to score goals, but nothing more than that can be expected.
The only way he was getting through in that chance is if it were some 16 year old skinny centre half he could just kick and power past. Otherwise, there’s no silk to his game at all. He can only finish in a certain way, powerful straight shot with a clear sight at goal. If he’s at an angle where he has to maybe use a different part of his foot, bend it, make a yard for himself etc, the shot 9/10 is scuffed, blocked or tame.
Said it before, but I don’t think he’s any more gifted a footballer than your average centre half. In fact I honestly think a fair few are better than him. He has half the technique of David Luiz, for instance. He’s on par with Chris Smalling.
The only way he was getting through in that chance is if it were some 16 year old skinny centre half he could just kick and power past. Otherwise, there’s no silk to his game at all. He can only finish in a certain way, powerful straight shot with a clear sight at goal. If he’s at an angle where he has to maybe use a different part of his foot, bend it, make a yard for himself etc, the shot 9/10 is scuffed, blocked or tame.
Said it before, but I don’t think he’s any more gifted a footballer than your average centre half. In fact I honestly think a fair few are better than him. He has half the technique of David Luiz, for instance. He’s on par with Chris Smalling.
He is so poor. Confidence player with 0 confidence and minimal ability.
Giflord has put the balls Lukaku touched. The ones he did not touch or attempt to do anything is much worse. That is the issue. How many miss passes he played. He even headed out for no reason. He was 1v1 with Toby, yet Toby took it off him like taking candy from a child. The second one, all he needed was to square it to Dalot and he banged it against the defender. You should look at him with his hands on his hips standing while the play was going around him and the rest of his team mates out on their feet as they have been playing for 90 mins and he has only been on the pitch for 17 mins.
The rush to write him off is farcical, he's 25 years old and has got 109 Premier League goals to his name.
This is 18 more than Rashford, Lingard, Martial & Pogba combined.
Sure, the form isn't great now, but there's clearly an effective and proven striker in there; it's the managers job to bring him back to form
This is 18 more than Rashford, Lingard, Martial & Pogba combined.
Sure, the form isn't great now, but there's clearly an effective and proven striker in there; it's the managers job to bring him back to form
I'm not old enough to remember the 80s, but since the 90s, we've never had a forward with so little technique and flair.
When a ball is hoofed up to you and you have little support the most you can do at times is flick it on. I dont think people appreciate how difficult it actually is to continuously hold the ball in those situations surrounded by defenders like Vertonghen and Alderweireld. People are acting like he was messing up numerous chances against Spurs when 90% of those balls towards him are just hoofs from de Gea.
The Lukaku Point (TLP) is just ridiculous, constantly does it when the ball isn't on or is literally impossible. Also Lukaku Head in Hands (LHiH) after ever squandered shot, mishit pass, sliced volley and bodged header riles me massively.
I've been a big critic of his since we signed him but have decided not to be harsh on him anymore, he simply isn't cut out to play in this system/isn't good enough and therefore don't see why we even brought him on. Would have rather Ole just brought on Pereira or Fred to sit on Eriksen for the closing period.
No one here has complained about him missing any chances or even for the lack of possession of lack of him holding up the ball. FFS he came on around the 72minute mark and he just strolled about the place as if he was Berbatov. While the rest of his 10 mates have been on the pitch from the start and defending for their lives and most of them out on their feet. Some of them down with cramp. At least he could have made an effort to make it difficult for Spurs to keep attacking us non stop by sprinting a bit and pressing their players at least in our own half. He just stood there with his hands on his hips while they played near him.
I just hear the Benny Hill theme tune when I watch these gifs
The Lukaku Seal Clap done with hands above his head to acknowledge a team mate for obeying The Lukaku Fingerpoint is a personal favourite amusement. The ball is squarely long gone ofcourse and he never had a chance of collecting it anyway.
If he doesn't fit into the managers plans and the demands being asked of the striker in this system you have a problem. The manager could get him back to form but on form Lukaku is very limited. And very far from being one goal a game striker that you're forced to accommodate him despite his weakness.
Therefore it won't matter how many goals he scores - just like Sturidgge is benched in favour of Firminho at Liverpool despite being the most natural goalscorer because of superior all round game ,we have similar situation here. if another club wants to play off him and build team around him they will most certainly do so but I can't see him being anything more than sub here whilst Rashford especially continues to progress at this fast rate.
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This was my thoughts exactly on Lukaku's performance straight after the game.
Im not bothered that he couldnt bring the ball down. You see the hail mary balls being hit up to him in the clip above... We already know his aerial timing is terrible to begin with. It hasn't changed since he's been here so its nothing new. (We seriously need to stop lumping it to him!).
It was his play when we didn't have the ball that was infuriating. The vid posted by Giflord actually is not accurate of this side of his performance unfortunately.
As you said, everyone was dead on their feet whilst he's just come on fresh as a daisy. I remember more than once, everyone running like mad trying to close down whilst he's stood there with his hands on his hips just watching... More than once Vertonghen/Aldeweireld were allowed to bring the ball out unchallenged whilst we were desperately trying to hang on... Keep in mind he was only on for the last 20 mins. That was consistent since he came on. I mean come on, how can that ever be acceptable? It was terrible.
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Is a swap with Arnautovic possible? Think he'll accept a rotating role and is actually a skilled striker.
This struck me as both predictable and annoying at the time too. A world class striker might even have burst inside and been able to shoot. By the looks of his body shape he didn't even consider getting the ball on that side where it could be dangerous. He's so shit when he has to do any work with the ball and not exactly trustworthy when he doesn't at the moment.
I mean really what he should have been doing there was taking that to the corner as it’s in extra time, and he’s never getting that ball across to Dalot from there, bad thing is he’s probably not even seen him which is poor but it’s still plausible that in his mind he was thinking I’m never getting this in to a decent position for a shot so i’ll Just blast it and hope it goes off of the defender and out to eat up time.
Personally he should be trying that chop Ronaldo does to pull it behind him on to his right and either whip one in the top corner or try and find Dalot.
Burst inside how? It's being covered. He is also left footed, there is less reason for him to shift it to his right foot.
One touch could've been enough to do it. When a defender is facing that way and moving out you have a body weight/momentum advantage, being able to go that way a lot faster. If not then anything other than what he did.
There's also the old one two off your other foot to take it round the defender's foot, which is more like something I'd expect most quality forward's to be able to pull off.
Davies meets him by the time Rom reaches the ball. The inside is cut off. The one two off your foot might work against Gareth down the road during a Sunday League game.
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