Thiago Alcantara | Pool bound

[#07]

Yeah but then I don't think he's going to come to play 2nd fiddle to them. He's as good if not better than both of them. I'd love him here because he's fecking brilliant but how do you fit them all in?

Those are good problems to have. I remember looking at a midfield of Scholes, Carrick, Hargreaves, Fletcher etc and being confident we were well covered for any eventuality. Now I am basically in the headspace that if we run Bruno into the ground over the next week we wont finish top 4 or win the Europa League. I'd much rather have the depth and have players disappointed than be in the situation we are in now, where if we take 1 or 2 players out our midfield dies.

I think in most cases it's just a question of where we should focus our investment given there will be a hole in everyone's finances including our own.

Yes and the Southampton game, and basically every game pre-February, shows that there's no point having pacy attackers if the midfield can't work the ball. We need more in midfield. We lost at home to Crystal Palace and Burnley FFS. It cannot be the case that we need to play Bruno and Pogba 60 games a season or we fall apart.

 

[Adisa]

Three absolutely quality players for two positions and one of them can even play a third. You people coming are strange.

 

[RedAustrian]

If we can offer him CL football he will surely consider an offer from us.
But no way he want to miss next season in the CL, because he is already 29.

 

[pascell]

We should bid €30m to test the waters. If Liverpool are the only club in for him, they'll be getting a bargain.

 

[Varun]

Those are good problems to have. I remember looking at a midfield of Scholes, Carrick, Hargreaves, Fletcher etc and being confident we were well covered for any eventuality. Now I am basically in the headspace that if we run Bruno into the ground over the next week we wont finish top 4 or win the Europa League. I'd much rather have the depth and have players disappointed than be in the situation we are in now, where if we take 1 or 2 players out our midfield dies.



Yes and the Southampton game, and basically every game pre-February, shows that there's no point having pacy attackers if the midfield can't work the ball. We need more in midfield. We lost at home to Crystal Palace and Burnley FFS. It cannot be the case that we need to play Bruno and Pogba 60 games a season or we fall apart.

Ofcourse, it'd a great problem to have. Doesn't make sense for him though but who knows, maybe he's confident he'll make 1 position his given his quality and it'd be upto Pogba and Bruno to fight for the other one. I don't think them in a 3 is going to work though

 

[#07]

Ofcourse, it'd a great problem to have. Doesn't make sense for him though but who knows, maybe he's confident he'll make 1 position his given his quality and it'd be upto Pogba and Bruno to fight for the other one. I don't think them in a 3 is going to work though

Most players will back themselves if a club makes them an offer. How many superstars do Barcelona and Madrid add year on year? You never hear players like Griezmann say 'I'm worried there's no place for me cos they've already got like 10 players in my position.' If we make a serious effort to sign Thiago he'll join and he'll think to himself he can muscle his way into the first XI. If he doesn't and in a year's time he wants to leave, fine. That's a problem for a year's time. Better to have him during that period than not.

 

[Rooney1987]

How can anyone watch the way this team crumbles without Bruno and Pogba and not be interested in Thiago? Even if he could only play 30 games a season, the fact it'd allow us to give Bruno and Pogba a rest would be worth its weight. Look how knackered both Bruno and Pogba looked against Southampton. Look how much worse we got when they got subbed. Are people really telling me they wouldn't prefer to see Thiago coming on instead of Fred and/or McTominay?

I think it's more to do with Bayern selling rather then the talent of the player. They never sell good players and we've been burnt before with them. I know he rejected a new contract but people will still question it.

I still would do if it's the rumoured price is between 20 to 40mil. Even with him being 29 and injury prone. If he plays half of the games in a season it'd be worth it.

 

[#07]

I think it's more to do with Bayern selling rather then the talent of the player. They never sell good players and we've been burnt before with them. I know he rejected a new contract but people will still question it.

I still would do if it's the rumoured price is between 20 to 40mil. Even with him being 29 and injury prone. If he plays half of the games in a season it'd be worth it.

Exactly.

If he can play 30 games a season that's time that Pogba and/or Bruno get to rest. They both looked shot against Southampton and, as bad as they were, when we subbed them off we fell apart. I can't remember us stringing together a series of passes for the last 15 minutes of Monday's game.

 

[Lash]

We could definitely do with someone like him and if it stops Liverpool getting him also, win win.

 

[jamesjimmybyrondean]

Someone explain to me why people think Thiago will come here to fight for a spot with either Bruno or Pogba

 

[Nou_Camp99]

He is refusing to sign a new contract. Not as if they are pushing him away.

He's still aging, injury prone and not as good as either Bruno or Pogba.

Do fans on here genuinely think Thiago would come to us to be a back up? Hahahahaha.

And no he's not good enough to play DM. It's not his game. Certainly not with how attacking the other two in our midfield are either.

This story is nonsense.

 

[Macern]

I think it's more to do with Bayern selling rather then the talent of the player. They never sell good players and we've been burnt before with them.

They did sell Kroos.

I’d love to see Thiago in a United shirt, but it doesn’t really make any sense. He wouldn’t get into the starting XI.

 

[Lash]

Someone explain to me why people think Thiago will come here to fight for a spot with either Bruno or Pogba

It's not like he plays all season anyway. He only played 20 games in the Bundesliga this season.

 

[jamesjimmybyrondean]

He's still aging, injury prone and not as good as either Bruno or Pogba.

Do fans on here genuinely think Thiago would come to us to be a back up? Hahahahaha.

And no he's not good enough to play DM. It's not his game. Certainly not with how attacking the other two in our midfield are either.

This story is nonsense.

I can't imagine Ole signing him tbh

 

[Ish]

Not old enough.

they have an ageing squad, don't they.

They replaced him with Pjanic.

Barca are massively skint btw.

Aargh, yes, I have forgotten about Pjanic. That's what a terrible transfer strategy does to you - pissing money down the drain.

But not to derail. A midfield 3 of Pjanic - Thiago - De Jong (Busquets' legs have gone like 5 years ago) midfield could have worked for Barca (if they were still stuck in their tiki taka ways).

 

[-Supreme-]

We have Fred and McT but they both lack the ball playing ability and haven't shown yet they are capable of playing in the deeper role.

Our midfield would be too unbalanced if we bring in another number 8.

 

[Kasper]

Someone explain to me why people think Thiago will come here to fight for a spot with either Bruno or Pogba

Well if he wants to play for a competitive club he'll have to expect to fight for his spot. It's not like he had it easy at Bayern. And as others have pointed out, 3 players for 2 positions is nothing unheard of, especially with so many games and injuries nowadays.

I'm still surprised why Liverpool seem to be reluctant to go for him. He fits their style and midfield is the biggest quality hole they have. They're either seriously worried about his injury record (which is not that awful I think), or Covid is hitting them harder financially then you'd think and they hope they can get away with another transfer window investing nothing. If it's the latter they're playing a dangerous game, because teams rarely keep their level for 2+ years without fresh injections.

 

[RDCR07]

If he can play there against Real in a CL semi, I reckon he'll be alright.

Didn’t we play Jones in the DM role against Real Madrid once? You reckon he will be alright there as well?

 

[VP89]

Someone explain to me why people think Thiago will come here to fight for a spot with either Bruno or Pogba

Why can't he fight for a spot with Matic? He'd be a superb deep lying midfielder. It's more than presumptious to assume the pair of them stay fit over the course of a season too.

 

[Clermontois]

How can anyone watch the way this team crumbles without Bruno and Pogba and not be interested in Thiago? Even if he could only play 30 games a season, the fact it'd allow us to give Bruno and Pogba a rest would be worth its weight. Look how knackered both Bruno and Pogba looked against Southampton. Look how much worse we got when they got subbed. Are people really telling me they wouldn't prefer to see Thiago coming on instead of Fred and/or McTominay?

Yeah but then I don't think he's going to come to play 2nd fiddle to them. He's as good if not better than both of them. I'd love him here because he's fecking brilliant but how do you fit them all in?

He isn't. Neat and tidy player who when fit, struggles to get in the bayern team. Good sub to have though.

 

[Mark Pawelek]

He isn't. Neat and tidy player who when fit, struggles to get in the bayern team. Good sub to have though.

He starts for at least half their Bundesliga matches. Not exactly 'struggling' is it?

Quality player. Buy if the price is right.

 

[Mark Pawelek]

We have Fred and McT but they both lack the ball playing ability and haven't shown yet they are capable of playing in the deeper role.

Our midfield would be too unbalanced if we bring in another number 8.

He's a DCM / pivot; not a #8.

 

[Okey]

It's really tiring hearing all these "where will he fit in? We have Pogba and Bruno" arguments. Just look at the teams we're trying to catch up to, and the depth they have in midfield. Take out Pogba or Bruno and we decline massively. Both out and we can't keep the ball for a few seconds. We're hoping to be playing in the CL next season right? You need to be able to field 2 competent midfield 3s to cope with that. There's more than enough room for Thiago (and indeed one more new midfielder) at United.

 

[ShinjiNinja26]

Don’t think there’s much in this one, where would he play? He’s not a DM so isn’t replacing Matic and he’s not getting in ahead of Bruno and Pogba. I can’t imagine he’d be happy playing back up to them either, doesn’t make sense this one. Someone like Grealish seems a better bet, don’t think he’d be as demanding of a starting position.

 

[Evans999]

Surprised members don't have PTSD from the 2013 Thiago thread.

 

[AltiUn]

Yeah but then I don't think he's going to come to play 2nd fiddle to them. He's as good if not better than both of them. I'd love him here because he's fecking brilliant but how do you fit them all in?

Possibly a diamond, only problem is we're then relying on just Shaw and Wan-Bissaka for width.

Bruno
Pogba - Thiago
Matic

 

[gajender]

Possibly a diamond, only problem is we're then relying on just Shaw and Wan-Bissaka for width.

Bruno
Pogba - Thiago
Matic

Where would Sancho play?

 

[AltiUn]

Where would Sancho play?

Nowhere by the looks of it, why signing Thiago is highly unlikely, we just can't fit him in anywhere and I doubt he, Pogba and Fernandes want to be rotating.

 

[iHicksy]

I think it's more to do with Bayern selling rather then the talent of the player. They never sell good players and we've been burnt before with them. I know he rejected a new contract but people will still question it.

I still would do if it's the rumoured price is between 20 to 40mil. Even with him being 29 and injury prone. If he plays half of the games in a season it'd be worth it.

It's not the same. Bayern don't want to sell him. They have tried to convince him to stay. It's the same with Alaba. Some players after playing for Bayern for some time and are getting older must get bored of winning the league at a canter every season and want to test themselves or experience another country. He knows if he signs another contract he's stuck at Bayern for the rest of his career. Unless they do something in the CL the German league isn't really in the spotlight. He'll also be much better paid in the prem.

 

[Infra-red]

Where would Sancho play?

In Dortmund, presumably.

 

[Giggsy13]

Someone explain to me why people think Thiago will come here to fight for a spot with either Bruno or Pogba

He’ll be fighting more with Matic for playing time. If we plan on competing on all fronts then having quality depth is incredibly important. Matic’s resurgence has been a positive development this year but there is no way he should be starting every game. We need more players with the profile and experience of Thiago, it would be a very good move if true.

 

[seegoblu]

I would love to get both Thiago and Alaba from Bayern. Perhaps offer Fred as a make weight (clears up some of the congestion in the 8 role) and additional cash to make it balance.

 

[Mcking]

Totally agree, I'm baffled by people thinking that would work. He's quality, but in that role? Unless we were against the very worst teams it wouldn't work, even then I think it would end in a lot of trouble.

He can play every position in midfield to a good level. There would be plenty of games for him to play.

 

[Mcking]

We have Fred and McT but they both lack the ball playing ability and haven't shown yet they are capable of playing in the deeper role.

Our midfield would be too unbalanced if we bring in another number 8.

He is not just an 8 though. He could come into the team over Bruno or Pogba without any significant drop in quality. He's disciplined too and could also play in a pair with Pogba.

Nowhere by the looks of it, why signing Thiago is highly unlikely, we just can't fit him in anywhere and I doubt he, Pogba and Fernandes want to be rotating.

I don't see Ole considering him, but I don't think having him, Pogba and Bruno in the squad would be too difficult to manage. There's about 60 games to play in a season, and I expect us to stick with our current formation for next season. That's 180 games to split between three positions.

 

[Nickelodeon]

Obviously, it's a long shot whether we're in for signing him or not. But Thiago would add so much quality to our midfield. We have Fred and McTominay as cover who might well improve but you just don't say no to a player like Thiago especially at that price.

 

[Ali Dia]

Surprised members don't have PTSD from the 2013 Thiago thread.

I do but here I am checking the thread again today. He’s class. Press resistant. Creative. A good price. My only argument would be we should have got him when he was leaving barca and maybe we should look for someone who fits the same profile of the player he was back then

 

[Mark Pawelek]

I do but here I am checking the thread again today. He’s class. Press resistant. Creative. A good price.

Yes.

My only argument would be we should have got him when he was leaving barca and maybe we should look for someone who fits the same profile of the player he was back then

How much do you think it'd cost to buy such a player today: £80m, £100m, £120m? There just aren't a lot of those top quality players around. Rarity drives up the price.

 

[croadyman]

I do but here I am checking the thread again today. He’s class. Press resistant. Creative. A good price. My only argument would be we should have got him when he was leaving barca and maybe we should look for someone who fits the same profile of the player he was back then

Yeah I remember it very well and still cannot get my head around Moyes not signing him,don't get me started on Kroos and LVG the following year either.

Would easily be worth the €40m they want but get the impression that Ole will think he doesn't fit the age bracket we are targeting.

 

[Van Piorsing]

Last year we were linked to almighty Longstaff so not gonna complain.

That amount of flair and creativity for 40m is no brainer.

 

[izec]

Last year we were linked to almighty Longstaff so not gonna complain.

That amount of flair and creativity for 40m is no brainer.

Newcastle wanted 50m pounds

Thiago at 36m pounds looks like the bargain of the century compared to him. I am just glad we didn't buy him.