Like I said in #1755 he's good at marking the opponents tight and preventing them to turn, and this was how he kept Mahrez in his pocket.
12
Season Average Rating
- Appearances
- 39
- Clean sheets
- 16
- Goals
- 0
- Assists
- 0
- Yellow cards
- 9
- Status
He's a like a tenacious puppy dog. What's not to like?
It was 100% a tactic and I'm sure ETH confirmed it in one the post match interviews too. In fact, he also said something to the effect Malacia was pretty much our only player who did well holding onto the ball.
See above for the point about positioning.
Again, I don't disagree that there are many things he can improve on but you're being perhaps overly harsh imo. His defending is a bit chaotic but he closes his man and space fast. He doesn't lock down players but he is a player that is generally safe where it comes to defensive duels, in transition or tight areas. That along with his press resistant ability and ball retention has so far made him a solid squad option, which for all intents and purposes is something that should be cherished, especially if he has potential to grow. Hence the positivity.
McT is an 'average' squad option. Malacia is above that for me.
It was 100% a tactic and the tactic applied to both Malacia and Shaw. Shaw came on and tucked in to midfield the same way Malacia did during buildup. It's just that he delivered a brilliant cross and gave the impression that he was instructed to play a different way. Nah, Malacia was also given the license to stay wide and break forward occassionally. He just offered nothing and people felt he wasn't there.
Barcelona 2:2 Man Utd
Thought this was the best performance he's had for the club so far in his time here. Excellent defensively and very good on the ball as well. Give him his dues
Really strong performance. Made a big difference. That quick freekick was daft though
Really good today. Proud of the lad
Played really well, some vital tackles and barely gave Raphinha a sniff.
He was very good but I thought Raphinha had the better of him as the game went on. I really like his spirit though, he's very aggressive and strong in his challenges.
Thought he was awful on the build up to their first goal. Just ran away from Raphina and Raphina went past him with ease a few times. He’s tenacious though.
Tenacious but very little quality. You almost just expect him to do something stupid when he has the ball.
I like how he can put someone in the ground from time to time. Like ramming over Lewandowski.
Having a good first season here.
Also helps when the guy you've replaced is Alex Telles.
Also helps when the guy you've replaced is Alex Telles.
I feel like his tenacity masks a lot of his weaknesses. Which is admirable in a way. Like a superior version of Buttner rather than an Evra regen.
Don't see him crossing at all. One area where he can contribute more.
Offers very little going forwards, I do wonder if that will ever change.
Fought really well. Just wish we could unlock more going forward. Feels like it should be possible, it's not as if he looks shite on the ball. Just seems to play very safe and uninspiring in the final areas.
I laughed out loud when I saw him just bulldoze through Lewa. 
I don't agree at all. He's good on the ball.
Terrific game by our little terrier to keep Raphinha quiet for most of the game. Seems to have improved in his 1v1s and provided a decent outlet in attack.
I wish he had taken that shot on the volley. Sometimes, you just gotta go for it.
The man put in a very solid shift tonight.
Pretty harsh comment considering our senior players like Varane, Casemiro, de Gea, and even Shaw did far more stupid stuff with the ball tonight than him.
Really want to see more of him for us.
Very good player
I didn't see the Barca game but that feels very deliberate since his early few games for United (vs Liverpool for instance) where you could see he had a good attitude and a willingness but he was really rough in some areas of his game. Since then it looks more like he's been focusing on getting the basics right. Hopefully the attacking side will develop in time.
He's ignored almost every time he overlaps for some reason. You'd think we'd try him every now and then to mix things up.
Not sure what I'll make of him long term but decent value for money so far.
Brilliant squad player, has a will to win we need badly.
I think this is his ceiling. Not necessarily in a bad way, but I'd be surprised if he could still improve dramatically.
Very happy with how he is coming along. Played a very good game against a tricky winner in rafinha. He is going to be the future left back for United. He is still young and has lots to learn.
He always looks like he's having an absolute blast.
He's exactly what you want from your second choice left back.
I like him a lot. He’s defensively solid and more importantly he plays with a lot of fire. It cannot be stressed enough how important that is after almost a decade of lifeless performances.
Will he get burned though, that is the question
It should given he’s only 23
City at home was another where he was fantastic if I recall correctly
He's an ideal backup player.
You need players like this in a squad that can come into the side and not let you down. That was the hallmark of the Fergie era.
You need players like this in a squad that can come into the side and not let you down. That was the hallmark of the Fergie era.
Would be a great question if I understood what you were getting at
These days the more fire a player has the more likely they'll get cards because of incompetent refs...
Antony, Casemiro, Bruno are all players with fire but sometimes I'm afraid they'll get sent off at any stage of the game
No doubt in my mind Malacia will be a long term United player though
- Status