The Casemiro/Mount/Bruno midfield

[Jeppers7]

There’s no balance or sense to this currently. You’d expect ETH has a clear idea of how it should be…but I don’t see it

 

[Rozay]

Told you guys that we’d never win anything of note with Bruno Fernandes in midfield. And now this clueless manager has gone and got him a twin brother, so in the words of Turkish from ‘Snatch’ - now we’re ‘proper fecked’.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

Told you guys that we’d never win anything of note with Bruno Fernandes in midfield. And now this clueless manager has gone and got him a twin brother, so in the words of Turkish from ‘Snatch’ - now we’re ‘proper fecked’.

Please don't quote snatch. Things are pretty bad but we aren't quite there yet.

 

[FriedClams]

It looked awful against wolves who packed the centre of the park. It looked awful today when often, it was just bissouma and sarr doing all the work with Maddison roaming. At no point did they have much of a numerical advantage in the middle, but they sure looked like they had one. This midfield doesn’t work, that is plain to see. It’ll only work against the Lutons and Sheffield uniteds of the league.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

I feel like last season Ten Hag got 2 games at the start of the season to try playing our from the back with De Gea before accepting it doesn't work.

He's now had 2 games with this midfield. I really hate to be saying this in 2023 but he now needs to replace Mount with McTominay in the next match.

 

[FromTheBench]

Reminds me of Pogba and Fernandez with Mctominay/Matic holding.

Not working won't work.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

Reminds me of Pogba and Fernandez with Mctominay/Matic holding.

Not working won't work.

Good lord I would kill for a 29 year old Matic in our squad.

That feels sad.

 

[OT_United]

Has ETH ever played with one CDM and two no8/10’s?
because I don’t get what an earth he’s thinking, this system will never work.

 

[Son]

Where is @tomaldinho1

I will hold my hands up, we debated this alot when Mount signed. I believed it would be an upgrade. I think I seriously underrated Eriksen as a partner for Casemiro. I apologise.

I still trust Ten Hag but unless there is something we are not seeing that can click very, very quickly then our midfield until we sign someone has to be Casemiro, Bruno and either Eriksen or even McTominay.

Before Mount signed I don’t think many ever thought he was better than a fit Eriksen as a footballer. I know he’s won the CL but he’s not been super consistent for years and years like Christian has.

I dunno with Mount. 70m for what is basically a squad player was strange for me. I still dont know what he brings to the table. Certainly he’s no playmaker that’s for sure which is what we actually needed to run a game.

 

[FromTheBench]

Good lord I would kill for a 29 year old Matic in our squad.

That feels sad.

He would look the same as Casemiro imo behind these 2.

 

[Escobar]

Bruno is the problem

 

[VictoriaRed]

Mount was mostly anonymous. Our field is woefully unathletic. We have 0 cohesion. Yes it's two games in, but I'm very worried. We are going to struggle. Oh ya, Shaw seems likes he's sneaking potato chips again. Shockingly out of shape it seems; just jogging about out there.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

He would look the same as Casemiro imo behind these 2.

I mean next to Casemiro. Having 2 solid central midfielders.

 

[FrankDrebin]

I get why we signed Mount longterm but I dont think he was paramount for this season over adding some much needed steel alongside Casemiro.

 

[Mr Pigeon]

He would look the same as Casemiro imo behind these 2.

Yeah, Case is obviously on the decline but he's going to get a lot worse when he doesn't have cover beside him at any point. Mount looked better in terms of his individual performance but it left Casemiro with everything to do. And when you're about as mobile as a bus that isn't going to end well.

We desperately need someone like Fred in that midfield three (like Fred but not actually Fred). Ten Hag can chuck Fernandes on the wing if he's desperate to play Mount and Fernandes at the same time.

 

[Rozay]

https://www.redcafe.net/threads/we-...ague-with-bruno-fernandes-in-the-team.473294/

 

[DWelbz19]

By far the worst midfield we’ve had post-SAF. McFred would actually show up in big games.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

Before Mount signed I don’t think many ever thought he was better than a fit Eriksen as a footballer. I know he’s won the CL but he’s not been super consistent for years and years like Christian has.

I dunno with Mount. 70m for what is basically a squad player was strange for me. I still dont know what he brings to the table. Certainly he’s no playmaker that’s for sure which is what we actually needed to run a game.

I really think I've been unkind to Eriksen and what he's done here and I'll hold my hands up to that.

 

[tomaldinho1]

Where is @tomaldinho1

I will hold my hands up, we debated this alot when Mount signed. I believed it would be an upgrade. I think I seriously underrated Eriksen as a partner for Casemiro. I apologise.

I still trust Ten Hag but unless there is something we are not seeing that can click very, very quickly then our midfield until we sign someone has to be Casemiro, Bruno and either Eriksen or even McTominay.

All good - people have different opinions and it still might work out but I think it’s likely Mount ends up bouncing around the wings/10. I didn’t see the gane but it looks like we had the same issues?

 

[theatreofdreams777]

But I thought Fred was the culprit in our midfield woes?

We paid 50m to worsen our midfield.

 

[Mr Pigeon]

https://www.redcafe.net/threads/we-...ague-with-bruno-fernandes-in-the-team.473294/

Your tag should be changed to Master of Foresight after that thread OP.

 

[ShinjiNinja26]

We needed a completely different profile of midfielder to Mount. It’s such a strange signing and has completely disrupted the balance of our midfield and Eriksen’s legs seem to have gone so we can’t just revert to last seasons midfield either.

 

[el3mel]

Drop Mount and start Scott.

We'll look better and more balanced. Shame we sold Fred and don't have better option for the holding midfielder than Scott but I'll take him ahead of that bang average, overhyped English player whom he himself doesn't know what his actual position is.

 

[Bobski]

Similar midfield set up in the pre-season and early games last season where you would have one deep lying midfielder and then the other 2 pushed very high isolating the DM. Didn't work then and only really started to click when he moved to the Case-Eriksen more orthodox set up.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

All good - people have different opinions and it still might work out but I think it’s likely Mount ends up bouncing around the wings/10. I didn’t see the gane but it looks like we had the same issues?

Not quite as exposed as Wolves through the middle bit till the main framework of us having no control in midfield and our front 3 being to weak and afraid on the ball.

We genuienly should have had 2 pens and Bruno missed a sitter but that came as a result of being a moment's team and not a good one.

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

Mount is just another Van de Beek.

 

[RedIan]

I see mount as Brunos understudy… the two together dont work.

 

[Xaviboy]

Won't work and will get him sacked if he continues.

He got this one wrong and if he doesn't hold his hand up and change it then very disappointing.

 

[Dominos]

Amazing that so many of us fans posting on a forum could predict that this signing made no sense and the midfield would have no balance, yet our football directors, our manager and his staff couldn't recognise this.

 

[RedAlert27]

That has to be one of Brunos worst games. Be interesting to see his pass rate. Think I'd rather have seen Mctominay over him or Mount today, at least a bit more steel and energy in that middle. Casemiro looks out of depth in this midfield

 

[KjaAnd]

I’ve said it multiple times before but I’ve got to repeat myself. Playing a midfield of an aging immobile DM with two weak AM’s is a recipe for disaster.

I just cannot fathom how EtH doesn’t see this. Same problem last season with no control and opposing teams cutting right through our midfield. In fact, this has been an issue for more than a decade. It’s like we refuse to invest in someone who can fill our biggest need. Rice, Caicedo, Bruno G would have been perfect but no…

Spurs played TWO mobile midfielders (Bissouma/Sarr) tonight and completely bossed us.

 

[Rozay]

That has to be one of Brunos worst games. Be interesting to see his pass rate. Think I'd rather have seen Mctominay over him or Mount today, at least a bit more steel and energy in that middle. Casemiro looks out of depth in this midfield

At some point people are going to start realising that we say that almost every week on here. The other weeks are then ‘not his best game but still goal/assist’ and then some actual great performances occasionally.

 

[tomaldinho1]

Not quite as exposed as Wolves through the middle bit till the main framework of us having no control in midfield and our front 3 being to weak and afraid on the ball.

We genuienly should have had 2 pens and Bruno missed a sitter but that came as a result of being a moment's team and not a good one.

Sounds like without the Wolves game before (if this was 1st game of the season) it would be seen more as two average sides being quite even and us unlucky with our modified looking suspect. But when you add in wolves a worrying trend is starting to develop.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

Sounds like without the Wolves game before (if this was 1st game of the season) it would be seen more as two average sides being quite even and us unlucky with our modified looking suspect. But when you add in wolves a worrying trend is starting to develop.

We certainly aren't in quite the drastic panic zone that we were at this stage last season (which gives me comfort) but I think Ten Hag needs to make some pretty pragmatic decisions this week.

 

[MDFC Manager]

Tonali looking class already. Could have done with him...

 

[RuudTom83]

Nothing.

Yeah I’m disappointed…that game was there to be won.

But hands up that’s another L for the trio.

 

[Rozay]

Tonali looking class already. Could have done with him...

Newcastle sensibly signed him instead of Scott McTominay, unsurprisingly.

 

[Sandikan]

Before Mount signed I don’t think many ever thought he was better than a fit Eriksen as a footballer. I know he’s won the CL but he’s not been super consistent for years and years like Christian has.

I dunno with Mount. 70m for what is basically a squad player was strange for me. I still dont know what he brings to the table. Certainly he’s no playmaker that’s for sure which is what we actually needed to run a game.

Do you work for the Sun?
How on earth have you hyped it up to 70m?

 

[Andersons Dietician]

Seems like one of either Mount or Bruno need taken out and put in McT to at least get someone in there to help Cas. or take a winger out, go 2 up top and get Eriksen in to at least try and get some sort of control in midfield.

Because right now it just isn’t working. Just doesn’t have any balance to it.

Before Mount signed I don’t think many ever thought he was better than a fit Eriksen as a footballer. I know he’s won the CL but he’s not been super consistent for years and years like Christian has

Generally this is the crux of the situation we find ourselves in. Mount is not a better footballer than Eriksen but what he is, is a more athletic player.

 

[Sandikan]

We needed a completely different profile of midfielder to Mount. It’s such a strange signing and has completely disrupted the balance of our midfield and Eriksen’s legs seem to have gone so we can’t just revert to last seasons midfield either.

GNev kept on about us needing to sign a midfielder.
Surely he realises this was Ten Hag's choice of midfielder, and not exactly cheap at that.