We will never win the league with Lukaku up front

[ValenciasDrilledCrosses]

Replace Lukaku with Mourinho and you are talking

Well we obviously won't win anything with Mourinho up top, not tall enough

 

[Sandikan]

Certainly not the night for this thread! On a game where we played badly, massively upset by a freak first 10secs and own goal, and only had about 10 mins of decent play ourselves.

 

[Slimcharles69]

Who should we have signed instead? Morata? Aubameyang? Carroll? People just like to bitch but I have yet to hear an alternative that was realistic and would have better output than lukaku, maybe it’s the way we’re set up that’s the problem

 

[Dirty Schwein]

Kane was good today, because Ali, Eriksen, Son all knew their maneuvers, all understood each other moves, etc. Because they are training these things. I don;t see any evidence that United trains anything to do with attack. It seems to me that all our attacking moves and simple stuff, like kick the ball forward and ten fight for it, get it to the wing and cross. Or pure improvisation from our players. Ultimately we lack any design in attack.

Yeah yeah yeah three amazing players and all that but can they play piano as well as Sanchez? Thought not!

 

[Jonno]

He's slow, slow on the turn, slow on the turn and shoot, very predictable and gets his shots blocked a lot, he is very poor in the air, he isn't great at passing, he can't hold the ball up.

BUT.

He gets involved in plenty of goals, scores plenty, reacts well in the 6 yard box and to be honest he seems to play his socks off.

He is the least of our worries right now, we need another world class CM, after that, a world class fullback who can really bomb up and down and penetrate defences.

 

[The_Order]

Lukaku is fine, he can't do it all - and our style of play really leaves him shafted, he is an off-the-shoulder striker playing in a team that lacks movement and hardly plays the through ball, and breaks so slowly he is surrounded by 4-5defenders before the ball reaches him.

 

[Acecross1]

I think Lukaku comes under attack from supporters after games where we under-perform, not because he is necessarily any worse than anyone else, but because his approach and demeanour make him appear to be contributing a lot less and perhaps to lack some motivation.

For a big powerful guy he doesn’t really get stuck in - perhaps because he doesn’t really have to normally - he’s generally strong enough to win the ball with a modicum of effort - in contrast someone like Sanchez, although also strong, appears to do everything with a level of urgency and puts in a real shift.

We need more of those characters who get stuck in and do the basics regardless of the circumstances. I have no issue losing games - I have an issue losing games where it appears there is a lack of effort and commitment and to be fair Lukaku was not the only one in that category tonight.

 

[Canagel]

Lukaku isn't in a position where he's hurting us at the moment like Morata is for Chelsea. He works super hard but the service is really poor for him. He has to keep coming out of the box because our build up isn't good enough which then leaves us without a focal point. My only concern with him is that he never uses his physicality to bully defenders despite his strength. I remember our own Daley Blind dealt with him comfortably a couple of years back when we played Everton. That's very strange.

 

[kundalini]

Lukaku should not start big games. Bench him for matches against City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Spurs and Arsenal.

 

[Baby Groot]

We won it with chicharito who’s worse

Ballocks, would have Chicharito over Lukaku every day.

Lukaku so far has been the best player on the other team when it comes to matches vs the other big boys.

 

[Walters_19_MuFc]

He's a goalscorer, though, and will consistently score in a side that creates chances.

Yes, he's not always the type to create something out of nothing, but not all top teams have those strikers. That said, he isn't as one dimentional as some make out. He does, and can run with the ball.

If you get the right balance and create chances Lukaku will score goals.

 

[luke511]

Anyone who says this is 'bollocks' doesn't pay enough attention to Lukaku's overall contribution. He heavily limits us when it matters.

 

[paulscholes18]

Lukaku should not start big games. Bench him for matches against City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Spurs and Arsenal.

Understandable, saw a stat on Twitter that Wilson (Bournemouth) has 4 in 6 vs them and Lukaku 3 in 29

 

[pocco]

Lukaku isn't in a position where he's hurting us at the moment like Morata is for Chelsea. He works super hard but the service is really poor for him. He has to keep coming out of the box because our build up isn't good enough which then leaves us without a focal point. My only concern with him is that he never uses his physicality to bully defenders despite his strength. I remember our own Daley Blind dealt with him comfortably a couple of years back when we played Everton. That's very strange.

He is hurting us, especially in the big games. Such is his level of talent, if he's not scoring he's useless. So he's been mostly useless this season

 

[VeevaVee]

I think he could play in a title winning team.

He just isn't the guy who'll lift us into being that title winning team.

I agree with this, as things stand. Perhaps he'll improve his game as time goes on. It seemed like he had the right attitude to do so when he joined, but actions are louder than words.

 

[mannbeist]

He really need to up is hold up play. Mourinhos tactic rely to much of having a good a striker that can hold on to the ball.And Lukaku is really struggling with it. Just look at how much better Kane is at holding the ball.

 

[luke511]

He's a goalscorer, though, and will consistently score in a side that creates chances.

Yes, he's not always the type to create something out of nothing, but not all top teams have those strikers. That said, he isn't as one dimentional as some make out. He does, and can run with the ball.

If you get the right balance and create chances Lukaku will score goals.

His off the ball movement can be awful at times though, which makes it extremely hard for the people behind him to create chances.

 

[pocco]

He's a goalscorer, though, and will consistently score in a side that creates chances.

Yes, he's not always the type to create something out of nothing, but not all top teams have those strikers. That said, he isn't as one dimentional as some make out. He does, and can run with the ball.

If you get the right balance and create chances Lukaku will score goals.

In the big games you don't typically create a lot of chances, which is what Lukaku needs. As I said in the summer, a more technical striker wins out every time for me, even if you trade off in goals slightly. I was a big fan of the idea of signing Firmino from Hoffenheim, for example. The thing is in a good attacking side he's banging them in whilst having a huge contribution in the build up. That's what is needed at this level.

 

[James Peril]

He's slow, slow on the turn, slow on the turn and shoot, very predictable and gets his shots blocked a lot, he is very poor in the air, he isn't great at passing, he can't hold the ball up.

BUT.

He gets involved in plenty of goals, scores plenty, reacts well in the 6 yard box and to be honest he seems to play his socks off.

He is the least of our worries right now, we need another world class CM, after that, a world class fullback who can really bomb up and down and penetrate defences.

Two things are often said about Lukaku. One; he isn't getting any service and two; he scores plenty of goals. I beg to differ:
If you involve yourself, graft, and get into positions, you get chances - you automatically make way for other players and also make easy decisions for them. Lukaku stops when the first ball is played, he doesn't get into a new position. He has four goals in his last 16 league games, he does NOT score plenty of goals. Can we please stop saying stuff that just cannot be backed by facts? Four goals in sixteen league games, against relegation fodder. He is a player that thrives in space and with lots of time to finish, just like every other average striker in this league. He got a chance today, fluffed it. Got a chance against Liverpool, fluffed it. Got a chance against Stoke, fluffed it. He misses many of the big chances he gets.

Kane has 21 goals, Aguero has 17 - that's where Lukaku should have been by now (15-16 goals minimum), not stuck at 11 goals in the league when he has played almost every minute of this season. Got off to a great start and grabbed a few goals, since then his output has been absolutely woeful. Most fans of other clubs are branding him a huge flop, with good reason. I am not writing him off, he is new to a big club after all, but let's stop pretending he is doing a great job this season. Like I said earlier, since game 8 he has had a worse output than Nacho Monreal in terms of scoring goals. Good season for Everton last season, but he really looks like a 16-18 goals per season kind of guy and not a 25 goals a season striker that we really need.

People often point out that Drogba never scored that many goals.... well, that is true, but he sure as hell would have helped his team in a game like the one we had tonight. If you aren't a great goal scorer, which Lukaku isn't, you at least need to be a match-winner in some capacity. It most tough games, Lukaku just isn't good enough - three goals against Faroe Island or Yeovil will not change that impression.

 

[Slimcharles69]

Ballocks, would have Chicharito over Lukaku every day.

Lukaku so far has been the best player on the other team when it comes to matches vs the other big boys.

I’ve been following chicharito since before he joined us, trust me the difference between the two is the set up. He’s 10x worse outside the box and didn’t add anything to the build up play either yet we won with him on the side. Apart from Chelsea I don’t remember chicharito being effective against the top sides either

 

[Annouchez]

I understand that this is a popular feeling right now on the forum.

But seriously, we have so much more going wrong than Lukaku. Even if he was legit mid-table level, we should be playing better than this in the final third.

I'm genuinely convinced Ronaldo/Messi would look bang average playing this way.

I was ready to pull out the pitchforks and torches right after the match but now I've calmed down I'm going to have to agree with this.

Lukaku was poor... but you can chalk it off to being in a poor footballing side (as in how we played today). He doesn't have the ability to carry a team ESPECIALLY in a game like this. He needs quality service which we unfortunately don't have. Our team is crying out for a verrati/kroos/modric/thiago. We have an unbalanced midfield that gets over run time and time again when it matters. I wanna see us boss a game in the middle of the park for once. Today exposed how much more our team needs in terms of personnel. Such a shame this game happened at the end of the January window.

Real Madrid would never buy Lukaku in the first place, he isn't even good enough for their reserves.

They wouldn't buy him BUT he would score a shitload playing for them. Put him in a team that constantly creates chances and you'll see a striker worth having. World class he is not but he will be much more effective than we are seeing.

 

[extincti fugax hominum]

Lukaku may be the least of our problems but the OP has a point. This is not knee jerk at all. I didn't want him in the summer and expected exactly the same scenario in front of us right now. Lukaku is not a top quality striker and the difference between him and Kane was clear as day. His technique, first touch, understanding of the game are average at best for a striker of a club who want to win PL, CL etc. He's our over-priced battering ram or you can call it as 85m donkey too. I would have preferred that we spend that load of money on Kane in the summer or play Martial as our striker. I am really curious about how we will fit Sanchez, Lukaku and Martial in a team as neither of Sanchez and Martial is RW and both play their best football as LW or ST.

 

[Tapori]

Terrible game, but f'in hell the lad is still growing as a player. And I thought tonight he saw Kane show him what he has to do. let's see whether he grasps this.

 

[stevoc]

I agree he his worse. No idea how Fergie pulled that one off.

Yeah because the 2011 team was shit, no idea how Fergie managed to win the league.

 

[Cypriot]

Getting absolutely played off the park and dominated to viciously by Spurs had absolutely nothing to do with Lukaku. Yeah he was average at best tonight, but not one player played any better. The real reason we won't win the League is because we can't control a game or even match any of the top 4 away from home.

 

[Greck]

The poor service excuses are just that. Poor service could mean limited shooting opportunities but not limited link up opportunities.

Service goes two ways and the person spearheading an attack still has to bring others onto play. It's like assisting the assist. It's not enough to wait for others to create tapins.

 

[Silas]

While I disagree with the title, I do feel we could do better. Lukaku isn't really a clutch player, so even if he dominates weaker opposition, he's not someone you can count on to pull something out of the bag when the chips are down. You can complain about service, but even when he gets the ball, he's not what I'd call clinical. Against big teams, you don't get many chances, so you need to make use of the few you do get and he rarely does. In addition to that, service is a two-way street. If he's not doing enough to make himself available for the pass, it asks much more from our other players to find him. His all-round play has looked better recently, but it seems to go out of the window whenever he's under real pressure from the CBs. I wouldn't be surprised to see Martial become a better option than him eventually.

Can't really blame the club for signing him, considering our predicament with Ibra and the other options that were available.

 

[Giggs86]

Lukaku was the least of our problems today. This thread is completely irrelevant to today's game.

We will never win the league with dumb & dumber in defense.

 

[Gary_Walsh_Nou_Camp_Hell]

In the premier league he is fine. Results like today are down to a non-existant midfield duo and a couple of clowns in defence.

Given some proper service he'll be okay, it's also still his first season at the club so give him time.

Granted he might not fired United to winning the CL but I hardly think the club's inability at that level can be put on Lukaku.

Mourinho just needs time and yes more money. If the club support him he will rebuild United. Lukaku will prove to be a good long term signing.

Also, who else could we have signed? Clubs are limited to who's available and wants to sign for you.

 

[MyOnlySolskjaer]

I don't have confidence in him to be the striker we need to capitalise on that one-key chance you get in the big away games ala Van Persie, Ruud. That's the type of killer that's needed, especially in a Mourinho system. He's a player that's too dependant on having perfect service.

 

[grahamo]

United winning teams of the past were teams with leaders in them. No leaders tonight I'm afraid! Plainly obvious!

 

[cletus7]

I don’t think he’s entirely happy with how we’re attacking... didn’t seem to go for as many of the long balls for him to flick on as usual etc. Now seems a little goal shy too.. passing when he should shoot etc. He’s had it tough to be fair. Good luck to him.. deserves some breaks for working so hard and selflessly without quite the level of service our top strikers have had in the past.

 

[mancan92]

To be fair he is correct. Not one top club in recent memory has won the league when their main striker had as bad an all round game as lukaku. Every top club has strikers able to play others into the game.

You don't win league titles with your main striker who is a poacher. It's that simple.

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

Lukaku was the least of our problems today. This thread is completely irrelevant to today's game.

We will never win the league with dumb & dumber in defense.

We have tbf, even if they weren't 1st choice.

 

[Swift Football]

Someone needs to say it.

I'm not scapegoating Lukaku after our woeful performance against Tottenham as the whole team was atrocious but Lukaku simply isn't good enough.

Would you ever see Lukaku up front for Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern or even PSG now.....no you wouldn't. He isn't a good enough footballer to play for those teams. Physicality with limited footballing ability can only take you so far in football and Everton was about his level. He never performs against the big teams and isn't especially good against the rest of the league at the moment. I know having a big physical striker up front is Mourinho's style but if he wants to do that then at least find someone who can control the ball and link up play reasonably well.

I can't imagine how much better we would be with a more technically gifted striker. If Lukaku is to stay then he really shouldn't be playing in the big games unless there's a drastic improvement in his play.

No way can I see us winning the league or the Champions League with him playing up front every game.

Yes, LUkaku has been piss poor in holding up the balls. But he has scored many goals, and also he is good at running channels. He might not start for the likes of Real, Barca or PSG, but do you have any alternative who we could have signed last summer?

Actually, we will never win the league with our center halves.

 

[Giggs86]

We have tbf, even if they weren't 1st choice.

We had Fergie, who could polish the turds and make them look like half decent footballers. Times have changed since then. We are aspiring to be back at the top of European football. Now imagine for a second Phil Jones playing for Barca, Real or Bayern, and try not to laugh too hard. He should be a West Brom player.

 

[TheNewEra]

OP isn't 100% wrong, Lukakus hold up play and passing to other players is woeful.

Whenever I watch him, his knockdowns and passes always stray.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

To be honest, I'm not sure either way. The question for me is whether you need a top striker upfront to win the league. I don't think Lukaku will ever be one of the very best. But can we compensate for that by having a brilliant team in general which he suits well? Possibly. But it's a tough call.

 

[Raoul]

There's something about Lukaku that is really underwhelming. At least with Ibra last year, you could sense a goal coming. With Rom you get the sense that nothing is about to happen.

 

[PepsiCola]

Brilliant when we're a few goals up against poor opposition.

I agree. We will not win the league with him as our main striker.