The curious case of Patrick Dorgu

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Arrived from Lecce, where he had played LB, RB, LW, RW. Amorim immediately played him RWB, then shifted him over to LWB. Looked at first to have poor technique, but otherwise really good physical attributes. Then when Amorim finally abandons his single idea and plays more fluid attacking football, Dorgu is playing RW and is MOTM against Newcastle. Then Amorim went back to his single idea. Fletcher played him LW and he provided attacking width with Sesko as the focal point up top. And then there were those two amazing matches under Carrick in which Dorgu was MOTM (or co-motm) in both, scoring two great goals, one where he shows the hunger and desire to get there before the City defenders and against Arsenal he scored our goal of the season.

Comparisons by the most exuberant of us were made with Gareth Bale's development. Alternative MUCF commentary christened him Ballon D'Orgu. And he got that hamstring injury.

He's the player I'm most curious and excited about for next season. How high is his ceiling? Where will his best position be? There are still plenty of posters saying he's not a winger or a wide forward, but I disagree. That's where he should be used.

And this goal today:



edit: And that header too



He's got a lot in his locker.
 
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Great goal. Admittedly I’ll put my hand up and say I don’t think he’ll develop to be a top winger and want him shifted to fullback but I really, really hope he keeps pushing on and proves me very wrong!
 
He’s got an eye for goal. You can’t really teach that.

I can see him kicking on and becoming a starter. I don’t think technically he’s one of the better players, but his power and pace running in behind will always be a threat, and he’s got a good strike on him.

He could force himself as the RW in this side. Spot is very much open.
 
It's impossible to know what his actual ceiling is but other big clubs were certainly sniffing around when we bought him and statistically he was standing out in a poor team in Seria A. What I find most intriguing about him (and Rasmus) was that they were sold as youth players on really really cheap deals and there's a few Danish clubs that are supposedly pretty cutting edge when it comes to data and player development. Seems like they weren't really rated at youth level? If we don't buy another winger I think Dorgu is going to play a lot and as we've seen he's effective in front of goal and really hard to stop on the dribble once he gets going...
 
Fascinating example of a player that is extremely efficient at making the best use of the powers mother nature gifted him.

I don't know how long this is going to last, but at this point it's not just a glitch in the matrix.

I also think he's underrated here, especially the knack of getting in the right place right time. He will not score a goal like today every game, but he will find a way to be a threat. And that's what I love about him.
 
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You wouldnt think he is incredibly talented but then he pulls out something extra ordinary. A bit surprising indeed
 
People were overly harsh when he was struggling and they've been overly confident about him since his run of form before the injury.

I'm not really sure he has the skills to be first choice at left wing or left back. Or elsewhere.

Could certainly be a very handy squad player though.
 
I think he has a really good shooting technique which will always be useful but I don't think he's really got much in the way of dribbling. He's more of an off the ball mover into space, great work rate, and seems like the type to just grind to do what the coach wants. I think he's got everything it takes to be a good full back long term but while he can be useful in the wing, especially for balance, I don't see him there long term.

Generally I just think a team like United for where we want to get to (competing for CLs and league titles regularly), the way we like to play, we need the wingers to be some of the most talented players in the world. I think you need the Kvara level winger, not a dorgu level. He's functional and can do a job and pop up with a great shot from range clearly, but generally he's not a creative player or one whose technique is that refined. That's why I put him as a long term fullback.
 
To me he’s pretty clearly a winger first and a back-up left back second. He might be very raw, but he has more qualities in the final third than as a defender. With his physicality and ability to play on both sides, he can be a decent squad player, especially if he continues his development.
 
So far the most dissapointing thing that Carrick has done is not give Dorgu a game at LB. It could have really helped our decisions this summer with regards to recruitment unless we sign both a new LB & LW without hesitation.

If anyone remembers Dorgu's pre season - he was our best player of that.

Amorim being a defensive minded manager came back on our first day of the season making us play stuck to a system that never let players play with freedom. You could see that Dorgu was anxious and most of all had no one to link up with in a midfield 2 which is important because he uses coordinated passing to beat his player more so than direct dribbling.

So I'm fairly confident this isn't just a bit of form and this is his actual potential.

Honestly, I have no wonder why but he's my favourite player at the club, im going to really enjoy the lad grow. He looks like a very annoying player to play against and he looks like he is built in he's in his prime but is still only 21.

Whether it's at LB or LW I'm fairly sure he's going to be a very good player for us. His versatility is a pure cheat code & we should learn to utilise it whenever possible than just stick him in one position for life.

We had John Oshea playing multiple positions, Dorgu can be used that way even if eventually he grows to be better in one position than the other.

This is a winger who can tackle and a defender that can score. He can use both legs as well.
 
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Throughout Amorim's time here we couldn't understand why he used someone who looked so limited going forward as seemingly out key outlet.

Then when we moved to a more sensible 433 system he suddenly had that mad purple patch pre injury.
That is a hell of a hit for Denmark so who knows how he could develop.
 
Ish said:
Great goal. Admittedly I’ll put my hand up and say I don’t think he’ll develop to be a top winger and want him shifted to fullback but I really, really hope he keeps pushing on and proves me very wrong!
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I'll go the opposite and says he's going to keep developing. Physical tools are fantastic, scoring goals - bangers at that - and also has a wicked cross.

He isn't a LB in my opinion.
 
JJ12 said:
I'll go the opposite and says he's going to keep developing. Physical tools are fantastic, scoring goals - bangers at that - and also has a wicked cross.

He isn't a LB in my opinion.
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Fair enough. Like I said, I hope he proves me very wrong. It’ll save us a wad of cash in having to sign a LW option plus it’s very exciting seeing them develop
 
Mike Smalling said:
To me he’s pretty clearly a winger first and a back-up left back second. He might be very raw, but he has more qualities in the final third than as a defender. With his physicality and ability to play on both sides, he can be a decent squad player, especially if he continues his development.
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I never really understood this.

Why is he not a good defender?

He was a better defender than an attacker for us under amorim. He barely made any mistakes defensively compared to his attacking ability (particularly crossing) which is why many people rated him.

Now he has become a better attacker than a defender under Carrick & suddenly people question his defensive ability?

What makes you think he was defensively bad? He was aerial, making sliding tackles, he was good at beating the press by making the right timed short passes with defenders and midfielders.

Considering he was a LWB and not a LB which are two different roles, I dont really understand why his defensive ability is bad when he was actually better defensively playing as a LWB and not even deeper.
 
Definitely had some dodgy games at LB...
 
Think his best position is actually right wing, but feel he might be a brilliant utility player for us.
 
Ryan Greggs said:
I never really understood this.

Why is he not a good defender?

He was a better defender than an attacker for us under amorim. He barely made any mistakes defensively compared to his attacking ability (particularly crossing) which is why many people rated him.

Now he has become a better attacker than a defender under Carrick & suddenly people question his defensive ability?

What makes you think he was defensively bad? He was aerial, making sliding tackles, he was good at beating the press by making the right timed short passes with defenders and midfielders.

Considering he was a LWB and not a LB which are two different roles, I dont really understand why his defensive ability is bad when he was actually better defensively playing as a LWB and not even deeper.
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I think he's shown plenty of examples of dodgy positioning and awareness when playing both LWB and LB. Also doesn't seem sufficiently comfortable playing out from the back. He can utilize his pace and power much better up front.
 
Was pretty clear he's not a confident decision maker on the ball, and he's not a technical dribbler.

The shooting technique is something none of us could see but I always thought he's a useful player. Smart managers can work around his weaknesses while he develops
 
I think his productivity since Carrick came in is deceiving.

I don’t think he has the attributes to be successful as an attacker for a top club in the long term but I’ll be happy for him to keep proving me wrong.

(Btw, goalkeeper should surely be saving that, albeit being a good strike from Paddy)
 
Ryan Greggs said:
So far the most dissapointing thing that Carrick has done is not give Dorgu a game at LB. It could have really helped our decisions this summer with regards to recruitment unless we sign both a new LB & LW without hesitation.

If anyone remembers Dorgu's pre season - he was our best player of that.

Amorim being a defensive minded manager came back on our first day of the season making us play stuck to a system that never let players play with freedom. You could see that Dorgu was anxious and most of all had no one to link up with in a midfield 2 which is important because he uses coordinated passing to beat his player more so than direct dribbling.

So I'm fairly confident this isn't just a bit of form and this is his actual potential.

Honestly, I have no wonder why but he's my favourite player at the club, im going to really enjoy the lad grow. He looks like a very annoying player to play against and he looks like he is built in he's in his prime but is still only 21.

Whether it's at LB or LW I'm fairly sure he's going to be a very good player for us. His versatility is a pure cheat code & we should learn to utilise it whenever possible than just stick him in one position for life.

We had John Oshea playing multiple positions, Dorgu can be used that way even if eventually he grows to be better in one position than the other.

This is a winger who can tackle and a defender that can score. He can use both legs as well.
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I do. He was very promising. It's hard to evaluate what a self-serving asshole like Amorim saying publicly that he feels his anxiety on the pitch does to one's confidence, but I suspect it takes a toll.

But I do think he can develop further technically as a forward.

How good was Bale technically when he was a left back?
 
His shooting technique/finishing was absolutely abysmal the first few months after he signed. Unbelievable turnaround but he does seem to be one of those we have that works incredibly hard off the pitch, the sort of character we seem to be signing more often now.
 
Bwuk said:
He’s got an eye for goal. You can’t really teach that.

I can see him kicking on and becoming a starter. I don’t think technically he’s one of the better players, but his power and pace running in behind will always be a threat, and he’s got a good strike on him.

He could force himself as the RW in this side. Spot is very much open.
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Yeah. There’s a lot of talk about him possibly edging out Cunha. I think it’ll be him and Cunha as our first choice wide players before next season is over, with Dorgu claiming the RW.

Looking forward to seeing him more next season!
 
Ryan Greggs said:
So far the most dissapointing thing that Carrick has done is not give Dorgu a game at LB. It could have really helped our decisions this summer with regards to recruitment unless we sign both a new LB & LW without hesitation.

If anyone remembers Dorgu's pre season - he was our best player of that.

Amorim being a defensive minded manager came back on our first day of the season making us play stuck to a system that never let players play with freedom. You could see that Dorgu was anxious and most of all had no one to link up with in a midfield 2 which is important because he uses coordinated passing to beat his player more so than direct dribbling.

So I'm fairly confident this isn't just a bit of form and this is his actual potential.

Honestly, I have no wonder why but he's my favourite player at the club, im going to really enjoy the lad grow. He looks like a very annoying player to play against and he looks like he is built in he's in his prime but is still only 21.

Whether it's at LB or LW I'm fairly sure he's going to be a very good player for us. His versatility is a pure cheat code & we should learn to utilise it whenever possible than just stick him in one position for life.

We had John Oshea playing multiple positions, Dorgu can be used that way even if eventually he grows to be better in one position than the other.

This is a winger who can tackle and a defender that can score. He can use both legs as well.
Click to expand...
It's a good post apart from the start. Dorgu has been available to start 3 times for Carrick and we've had our best performances when he played on the left. City at home/Arsenal away and Brighton away. He hasn't really had the chance to play left back and Carrick was the first to start him high on the left.

Not comparing ability but there's shades of Bale there. Looked an average left back, moved to the left, beats his full back more often than not, hitting some worldies and could be good on the air after seeing that Brighton goal.

He's very raw and lacks technical ability but defenders wouldn't wanna play against him and I think we look a bigger threat when he's playing. Moreover I think he creates space for our other attacking options.
 
Always looked to have quality, it was just consistency that was his biggest stumbling block under Amorim. I think he'll surprise a lot of people next year by stepping up a gear. He's settled and enjoying life at United but also I don't think he has much pressure here.

He's got the tools to be a very, very effective player in the PL.
 
Jed I. Knight said:
Yeah. There’s a lot of talk about him possibly edging out Cunha. I think it’ll be him and Cunha as our first choice wide players before next season is over, with Dorgu claiming the RW.

Looking forward to seeing him more next season!
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We're not going to play him on the right. He's the only attacker we have that stretches the game horizontally, we're losing that if he plays RW.

This will also generate more space for Amad/Mbuemo on the right. It will be either him or Cunha on the left.
 
We really missed his energy when he was out for a while. He keeps the opposition on their toes and creates space for our other attackers.
 
He’ll go down as a young player (still only 21) who accumulated the highest number of Redcafe ‘experts’ making definitive long term opinions about his potential over the shortest period of time. Completely written off during his first half season.

Real Paddy Evra vibes, come to think of it. Expect Evra was a bit older, with more top flight experience.
 
He doesn’t really have elite skills, he’ll be a solid park ji sung type player for us though. Which honestly isn’t bad.
 
Pogue Mahone said:
He’ll go down as a young player (still only 21) who accumulated the highest number of Redcafe ‘experts’ making definitive long term opinions about his potential over the shortest period of time. Completely written off during his first half season.

Real Paddy Evra vibes, come to think of it. Expect Evra was a bit older, with more top flight experience.
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Not sure about the Evra comparison? I couldn’t remember calls for Evra to move out of left back to play as a winger, nor did he often pick the ball up around the box and smash it in from 35 yards (Munich goal excluded)

Dorgu has all the attributes to be a quality winger
 
Ish said:
Great goal. Admittedly I’ll put my hand up and say I don’t think he’ll develop to be a top winger and want him shifted to fullback but I really, really hope he keeps pushing on and proves me very wrong!
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Problem is hes not all good fb, its not his position. Hes played there for Leecce but never that well, was tearing it up at rw. I imagine long term he will be a bench option for either wing and an emergency fb option. Let's not try and shoehorn players in to positions they dont favour
 
Strange player. I’m still not entirely sure on his baseline level but he seems to have repeatedly scored some absolute bangers recently
 
DWelbz19 said:
Strange player. I’m still not entirely sure on his baseline level but he seems to have repeatedly scored some absolute bangers recently
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I can't really figure out if he's a class player with poor moments or a poor player with class moments
 
He is an enigma, conundrum. The headline of this thread is appropriate.

But the reason I struggled to see him as a winger(and I still do) is the lack of technical skills/dribbling ability.
 
DWelbz19 said:
Strange player. I’m still not entirely sure on his baseline level but he seems to have repeatedly scored some absolute bangers recently
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He's very, very confusing.

I'm still assuming he's a fullback as he doesn't have the touch to play on the wing but he's also starting to score goals at the same age as Bale was when he started running and shooting his way to greatness and away from fullback, and for me Bale's lack of first touch/link play was always a level below his Real Madrid teammates (which is why they didn't drop a level in the CL when Isco came in, as his help in the midfield, creativity and general narrow #10 qualities made up for not cnuting the ball into the net after running past several defenders or scoring a header every few weeks like Bale), so maybe Dorgu could be 85% of Bale, still a quality player?

Dream of an international player. They can play him anywhere out wide where they don't have a quality option and he'll defend and apparently score bangers.
 
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