Still think he plays like a midfielder at right back. Fantastic on the ball, but can be got at defensively.
His delivery is unrreal though. I wish we had him.
His delivery is unrreal though. I wish we had him.
Trent Alexander Arnold
- Thread starter Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik and Imran hold a long overdue conversation about United's awful league form with 1 win in 7. They discuss a disappointing draw at Bournemouth, a not so disappointing draw against Liverpool and a crushing defeat at Chelsea - Is time nearly over for Erik Ten Hag?
Then in a special second half of the pod, Nik welcomes Natalie ( https://twitter.com/natalie_17) to discuss the fortunes of Manchester United Women as they booked a place in the FA Cup Final after a historic first ever win vs. Chelsea.
It comes from the philosophy of prioritizing/maximizing the individual over the team. Sure, it might be a waste of his talent to play a lesser position for him. But from the team's standpoint, it's maximizing the team by having him at RB.
It's the same with people saying certain CB's are wasted at CB because they're so good on the ball and thus deserve to play at CM. I'll never agree with those people, and pretty much agree with you.
To me, it's clear the team should always be prioritized and having a player who is good enough to be a CM, at RB is much more desirable. Alaba was a classic example of being good enough to be a CM (with national team), but was a LB for Bayern.
I won't talk about the 2 Handballs but my goodness. What a player. Best fullback in football. Great English product.
If you could combine Wan Bissaka and TAA you'd have the ultimate fullback.
Reece James is the closest to that I can think of, for England anyway. Really good crosser of the ball and a solid defender.
He's perfect for a top team that needs to attack, even better for one that counter attacks. Crazy vision.
Wan Bissaka is a far better defender but the creativity is probably more useful for a big team.
Wan Bissaka is a far better defender but the creativity is probably more useful for a big team.
He struggled defensively but this pass was pretty special, it’s a really good goal all round really.
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Exceptional going forward and a bit suspect when defending. If he can improve on that the coming years then he will really be the complete fullback. With England's plethora of right sided fullbacks I could see him being used as a right-sided midfielder if needed as well.
He's probably as good as I've seen from anyone since prime Alves going forward. However he does need to improve defensively, he was getting roasted by Sterling in the second half today and Hazard/Mount have both had the beating of him when we faced Liverpool down the years, likewise Rashford at United.
Meaning Reece can play RCB, he did that a lot at youth level for us so Dujon Sterling (who's basically the Poundland Trent) can play wingback.Then Trent can play wingback and also Wan Bissaka can be in the mix aswell.
Given the strength of England's RB position combined with the midfield weakness it may be a good idea to go 343.
Meaning Reece can play RCB, he did that a lot at youth level for us so Dujon Sterling (who's basically the Poundland Trent) can play wingback.Then Trent can play wingback and also Wan Bissaka can be in the mix aswell.
Thought he struggled against Sterling in the second half. Going forward he’s incredible but he struggles when we’re on the back foot.
Those one on ones are where he needs to improve a bit for me.
Those one on ones are where he needs to improve a bit for me.
I think he could play as a 6 or an 8 in a 4-3-3 also.
Those of you saying he struggled against Sterling.....so do most fullbacks. And Sterling was pumped as feck today. If he’d kept Sterling quiet, plus turned in the attacking display that he did, we’d be talking about one of the great fullback performances of recent years
Says something that sterling ran rings around him, yet TAA had the better game of the two.
Crazy how much he influences a game from right back.
Crazy how much he influences a game from right back.
Right footed english Marcelo
We should sign him
We should sign him
If he was being managed by Guardiola, he'd be a DM.
Good player but he’s no Paul Parker...
You can understand Klopp going for 3 workhorse central midfielders, rather than having atleast one creative attacking midfielder, with having fullbacks like Robertson and TAA. I can't remember the last time a team played with their wing backs being the 'playmakers' in the team and not someone centrally or atleast on the wing. Both of their defensive weaknesses are supplemented with the 3 midfielders covering space left by them and allowing them to move forward without worrying of what's behind them.
This tactic is perfect against teams that want to attack you because you can expose space on the wings, but then you can see why they struggle when teams are defensively sound because then you're exposed to just playing crosses into the box, which isn't easy to score from if you are dealing with a packed penalty box and no natural header of the ball. I think then you need more creative playmakers to play tight passes in the middle, rather than only crossing.
This tactic is perfect against teams that want to attack you because you can expose space on the wings, but then you can see why they struggle when teams are defensively sound because then you're exposed to just playing crosses into the box, which isn't easy to score from if you are dealing with a packed penalty box and no natural header of the ball. I think then you need more creative playmakers to play tight passes in the middle, rather than only crossing.
It these cross field passes to switch the play which really disrupts the defensive shape. They scored a similar goal against City last season. Left-footed cross field pass to Robertson.
Great player going forward but looks suspect at times defending.
A cross between AWB and TAA would be the ultimate full back!
A cross between AWB and TAA would be the ultimate full back!
Good point. Out of all your players, I actually think an injury to TAA could be the most damaging to your side. He's so influential going forward. It's remarkable how the lack of creativity in your midfield is pretty much made up for by the passing and vision of your right back alone.
Given how stacked England are at rightback, and how light they are at DM, it seems an obvious thing to try.
There is no doubt he is a class full back going forward and will improve defensively in time, however would advise him to stay out of the City players way in England training this week. Let's just say Stones and Sterling will probably not give him a very warm welcome when they meet up
He's almost like David Beckham at fullback. If Beckham were coming through today, that might be his best position too.
The variety of techniques in his long balls is incredible. He can do them with either foot as well.
David Beckham’s beat position would be the one KdB is playing.
Fabinho wins man of the match. He was a machine for them again.
I meant Reece James as a 6 or 8. I think he has better short passing than Trent and is a better ball winner defensively. He could have a similar path to Fabinho who started as a RB too.
That pass was with his weak foot btw... Technically he's one of the best players in our squad. He needs more protection than Robertson though. Anyway, that's our RB position covered for years.
He's get a lot of stick for his defending but it's fair to point out that Salah doesn't help him out very much. I guess it's a risk vs reward thing tactically.
I would sure hope not. The engine and crossing was only a part of Beckham's game.
Imagine Beckham being coached out of being the goal threat he was (especially in his prime) and not consistently being in advanced positions. I think Beckham personally loved that side of the game even though his skill set was more of being a provider.
Great going forward. Poor defensively.
I think Klopp works on the assumption that we'll have the majority of the ball in most of the games we play, so yeah definitely a risk/reward thing. City are so good that they dominated large spells yesterday and TAA was exposed by Sterling in the second half, but most of the teams we play we're on the front foot so Alexander-Arnold gets to do what he's good at.
His defensive weaknesses are slightly exaggerated IMO. Any fullback will have trouble with Sterling. His offensive contribution far outweighs his defensive weaknesses.
Makes sense, and you gotta admire the work ethic of the midfield and the quality of their fullbacks. But if this is fully true, how does Liverpool keep picking up points against the lower sides too? I don't watch all their games, and have only seen them struggle against our low block
I went to the Napoli v Liverpool game at Murrayfield for the pre-season friendly as a few of my friends are Napoli fans. At the game, I saw something that I've seen many times with TAA. While he is cracking going forward and has a great passing range, there really are glaring defensive deficiencies in his game.
Too many times he loses track of his man, even when the opposition have the ball in their own half. He gets attracted to where the ball is quite often without being aware of the man on the wing, or his outside. That game at Murrayfield, he was ran ragged by Insigne and others because they were able to pull him out of position and isolate him, and keep him pinned back. It was something I thought I had seen before that game, and I've noticed more I have seen of Liverpool. The commentary said it yesterday, most attacks any team has against Liverpool go down TAA's side. Newcastle for example scored their goal against Liverpool on his side as well, and I thought United succeeded there to a degree too, so there is a trend. He is brilliant going forward and a tremendous asset to have, but I certainly think he struggles with defensive duties. I wonder could he be a better wing-back or right sided midfielder even?
More of an extra wide man than a real right back/left back. Man doesn't really care about defending. It's either one or the other, but it makes sense.
I think in this day in age you can still be a goal threat from right back.
Having Beckham bombing forward supporting three top class forward players would be practically cheating.
They have been struggling to win points against weaker teams, that's another reason why I'm saying this and a reason why I've been saying they need a more creative player in the center. I personally don't think they will have enough to win the season still, I can see them dropping points against weaker teams soon.
It’s because their play has increasingly been going through Mane and TAA who are both more equipped to break down a low block whereas Salah is easier to stop once his space is restricted.
If you take out games against Arsenal, Chelsea, Spurs, United & City we've only failed to win three games against the rest of the league since the beginning of last season. Those sides were Everton, Leicester & West Ham.
That suggests that we don't drop points against the weaker sides.