United Hour - The Positive Pod !

[Rood]

Nik @Rood and @Raees are feeling relatively upbeat after a week of good results - have we turned a corner or is it another false dawn?
Liverpool, Partizan and Norwich covered with previews of Chelsea and Bournmouth
Focus on debuts for Williams and Garner plus the vital return of Anthony Martial.

As usual, we want your comments and feedback !

Big thanks again to @12OunceEpilogue for the top editing job

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

Podomatic (stream or download): https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/redcastpod/episodes/2019-10-28T17_07_38-07_00
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6BKcIaN8Mcjg6v4iYLnCNY
iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/united-hour/id902792476
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/manchesterunitedpodcast/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/United_Hour

 

[Alock1]

Good episode overall gents!

I was a little surprised that you didn't call out the fact that Liverpool and Norwich are teams who play on the front foot, who commit men forward and play a high line. We've known for a long time that those teams are going to suit our tactics and even more so, personnel vs a team who sit deep with a low block, get men behind the ball.

Our Achilles heal all season has been getting that 2nd goal. We rarely have. And naturally as the game progresses we start to sit deep, lose confidence and get nervy, and teams who haven't shown a great deal during the game are able to force a point with a late goal (and even against Norwich, that late goal came!). I don't think there's many teams in the league which concede the 2nd goal we scored.

Surely that plays a bigger role in the improved performance? Particularly considering the display in the Europa league.

On buying players on personalities. Is this not just a PR thing? Matic, Lukaku, Sanchez all came in with a fantastic reputation for their mentality - leaders, high work ethic, known winners (beside Lukaku perhaps), and with Premier League proven experience. Re age, sure, - but Lukaku, Dalot, Lindelof, Bailly were all of a good age and with bright futures ahead. And he wanted Maguire too.

Lastly, agree that the problem isn't necessarily VAR but it's current implementation. Though @Raess, weird that you say how seamless it works in foreign leagues but suggest something totally different here, and an additional gimmick taken from another sport in review requests. Not saying it's a bad idea - but why wouldn't you just encourage we follow what other leagues are doing?

 

[Rood]

Good episode overall gents!

I was a little surprised that you didn't call out the fact that Liverpool and Norwich are teams who play on the front foot, who commit men forward and play a high line. We've known for a long time that those teams are going to suit our tactics and even more so, personnel vs a team who sit deep with a low block, get men behind the ball.

Our Achilles heal all season has been getting that 2nd goal. We rarely have. And naturally as the game progresses we start to sit deep, lose confidence and get nervy, and teams who haven't shown a great deal during the game are able to force a point with a late goal (and even against Norwich, that late goal came!). I don't think there's many teams in the league which concede the 2nd goal we scored.

Surely that plays a bigger role in the improved performance? Particularly considering the display in the Europa league.

On buying players on personalities. Is this not just a PR thing? Matic, Lukaku, Sanchez all came in with a fantastic reputation for their mentality - leaders, high work ethic, known winners (beside Lukaku perhaps), and with Premier League proven experience. Re age, sure, - but Lukaku, Dalot, Lindelof, Bailly were all of a good age and with bright futures ahead. And he wanted Maguire too.

Lastly, agree that the problem isn't necessarily VAR but it's current implementation. Though @Raess, weird that you say how seamless it works in foreign leagues but suggest something totally different here, and an additional gimmick taken from another sport in review requests. Not saying it's a bad idea - but why wouldn't you just encourage we follow what other leagues are doing?

We have mentioned how our best performances come again teams who come to play on past episodes but yeah it is particularly relevant for the last few matches. Struggling to break down deep defensive teams has been an issue for years now.
I still think the main factor was injuries so the return of Martial and also AWB who had been missing makes a huge difference

I dont think its just a PR thing, the focus is all about squad harmony and players of a certain mentality.
Dont forget that Matic and Lukaku came to play for Jose over United, they are the epitome of his toxic era so not a surprise that they might not fit the mould of what Ole wants to create

 

[DVG7]

Nice listen, I find that I tend to agree more with @Rood in general but this episode I was nodding along to everything you said, particularly the Andreas Pereira sentiments and the comment about Rashford looking more effective on the left. I’m not quite sure @Raees where your idea that Rashford should be on the right comes from? To my knowledge he’s never really played there from the start, and it’s only really common to see him on that side when he’s chasing down a ball ala his wonderful shoulder barge on Van Dijk. He looks more comfortable on the left and his right foot will catch fire again, so being able to go past almost any defender on the inside or outside... surely the left is where he can be most effective. I personally think he’s brilliant and will get better and better.

I like the point made by raees about the little flick Pereira tried. He is clearly growing in confidence and we seen what he is capable of in Spain when he is on a role, so we can only hope that an extended run in the team brings out even more of that Brazilian magic he clearly possesses. I bet he’s one of our top performers in training games.

thanks again for the podcast guys

 

[Raees]

@Alock1 you make some very valid points and I kind of tried to allude to that point when we discussed how I thought the Norwich game would go as well as in my Liverpool game prediction from a few weeks back.. it does suit Ole when he can set up to Counter or play against an ‘open’ opposition and I’d also argue @DVG7 that this also plays into Rashford’s hands too as it allows him to stretch his legs and ‘attack the space’ as Boss would put it and that is why he has looked back to his best again.

When Rashford is in form then doesn’t really matter where he plays as long as it’s not as a 9 in a 433. Free roaming forward who favours the left is probably his best position when he’s in the mood and the game is open. In a tight game with little space, against an opponent in form.. those are the games where previously Rashford has attracted a lot of criticism for being self indulgent, running out of ideas and over propensity to shoot - in that situation if he’s on the right, my theory is he would be forced to become more of a supplier and less of a ball hog in possession and his ‘bottom level’ would improve. It’s a hunch but can’t really determine its worth until we see another season or so from Rashford. Generally though he’s better out wide and getting into central areas rather than as a fixed focal point centrally.

As for VAR - even though I do think European football is operating VAR in a more slicker manner ... it’s still open for debate as to which decisions get looked at. It’s nowhere near as bad as in England but I just think the appeals aspect would really work well in football in general and take some pressure off referees.

 

[Rood]

Nice listen, I find that I tend to agree more with @Rood in general but this episode I was nodding along to everything you said, particularly the Andreas Pereira sentiments and the comment about Rashford looking more effective on the left. I’m not quite sure @Raees where your idea that Rashford should be on the right comes from? To my knowledge he’s never really played there from the start, and it’s only really common to see him on that side when he’s chasing down a ball ala his wonderful shoulder barge on Van Dijk. He looks more comfortable on the left and his right foot will catch fire again, so being able to go past almost any defender on the inside or outside... surely the left is where he can be most effective. I personally think he’s brilliant and will get better and better.

I like the point made by raees about the little flick Pereira tried. He is clearly growing in confidence and we seen what he is capable of in Spain when he is on a role, so we can only hope that an extended run in the team brings out even more of that Brazilian magic he clearly possesses. I bet he’s one of our top performers in training games.

thanks again for the podcast guys

cheers for the feedback mate - glad someone agrees with me, usually not many do

That #10 role is obviously up for grabs, Pereira has the slot at the moment - on the pressing side he is doing well but need to see more from him on goals and assists if he wants to be more than a squad player in the future

 

[2 man midfield]

Anyone else have issues with the levels in this one? It seemed to go from quiet to really loud, and shit me up a few times

 

[Rood]

Anyone else have issues with the levels in this one? It seemed to go from quiet to really loud, and shit me up a few times

Just making sure everyone is still awake

 

[Roosney]

Thanks guys, enjoyed it!

Found it funny that you guys (@Raees?) talked about Pereira manning up to the PL standards and then co-incidentally last night against Chelsea he protected the ball really well against the big defenders who're double his size.

 

[mark_a]

Enjoyed this one, particularly @Raees contributions.

 

[Raees]

Thanks guys, enjoyed it!

Found it funny that you guys (@Raees?) talked about Pereira manning up to the PL standards and then co-incidentally last night against Chelsea he protected the ball really well against the big defenders who're double his size.

Yeah I’ve noticed he’s just more willing to hold on to it under pressure and try and be a tad more riskier with the ball - positive signs that his confidence is growing.

Enjoyed this one, particularly @Raees contributions.

Cheers mate - much appreciated!