Who is our most important player this season?

Well...

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Impossible to pick one player because we have so many holes in the team. Its a tie between the quartet of Martinez, Varane, Eriksen and Mctominay IMO. They are by far the biggest reason for the turnaround since Brentford. Can they translate this good run of form into a permanent step up in level? If they do, we may have the makings of a great team spine.

Other worthy mentions are Bruno (a return of pandemic era Bruno makes us infinitely more dangerous and productive upfront than we are right now), Casemiro and Antony. If all three players put in great seasons, we are in with a shout of top 4.
 
Eriksen.

We can’t control a midfield without him.
 
Maguire is our most important player... in terms of it is important that as long as he is not a regular starter in defence we will have a good season
 
Lee565 said:
Maguire is our most important player... in terms of it is important that as long as he is not a regular starter in defence we will have a good season
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I thought CR has a shout, in the same category.
 
Got to be between Eriksen and our 2 center backs.
 
In order of importance

Martinez
Eriksen
Varane
Bruno
McSauce
Rashford/Martial
Dalot/Malacia
Sancho/Antony
De Gea
Casemiro
Elanga
Ronaldo
Maguire/Lindelöf
Shaw
 
  1. Varane. He's a class above and transmits calmness and authority to the whole team.
  2. Eriksen. Similar to above, keeps the ball moving well
  3. Bruno. Energy, movement and, hopefully, goals and assists.
 
Eriksen, Varane and Martinez are probably the absolute key players for the structure, Bruno probably the star player output wise.

You'd expect Casemiro to quickly become a key player, but so far McTom has stepped up a gear from the emotional outpouring about how he and Fred should never play again after the first 2 games.
 
Eriksen/Varane/Martinez are obvious choices.

Judging by how Malacia has been taking up that Cancelo role in the centre of the park, it goes to show how he important he will become over the course of the season as our play develops.

I think a fit Martial/new striker in January will be key for the end of the season. Ronny is killing us, Rashford can only play on the break…we need someone with a neat touch, energy and someone who can hold it up.
 
So, I thought it would be close... turns out it's a landslide for Eriksen and a more competitive race for second.
 
Somewhat depressing that it's Eriksen given that he should have been here about ten years ago.
 
Fortitude said:
So, I thought it would be close... turns out it's a landslide for Eriksen and a more competitive race for second.
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Thing is Eriksen's description also engulfs the one you assigned to Bruno. Leave aside wishful statements about Martial and it's a team that barely works going forward, thanks to Eriksen.

For the defensive aspects the team effort prevails and there's several impressive contributions.
 
antohan said:
Thing is Eriksen's description also engulfs the one you assigned to Bruno. Leave aside wishful statements about Martial and it's a team that barely works going forward, thanks to Eriksen.

For the defensive aspects the team effort prevails and there's several impressive contributions.
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I could have put 'initiates play from deep and upon receipt from the defenders' but I do think people are aware of what each brings to the table.

The OP was never intended to be comprehensive, though.
 
Ive decided to go with the "will become" option and opted for Casemiro
 
  1. Eriksen
  2. Martinez
  3. Dalot
  4. Martial
  5. Varane
Martial might be up there at the top with Eriksen, has to actually play and show it though. I think CF is the position where only Martial can do what Ten Hag truly wants with his hold up and link up play. Rashford has done admirably but just isn't that type. Ronaldo is past it. Dalot at right back, same thing. No cover whatsoever. Martinez as LCB with how much he influences our play on the ball as well. Varane with his leadership and pace/physicality being something none of the others can replace.

Generally for me, most important tends to be - if they are out, can we play the same system, do we have adequate cover there to not be so hurt by their loss? So the cover for these guys is:
  • Eriksen - Fred
  • Martinez - Maguire
  • Dalot - Wan Bissaka
  • Martial - change system and move Rashford centrally
  • Varane - Lindelof
Lindelof is good cover but Varane does offer quite a bit do I'd still have him there. The rest probably need addressing. Replace Fred with someone more suited to that role, replace Maguire with a depth LCB, replace AWB with a right back who ten hag will use to compete with Dalot, buy a striker to replace Ronaldo and leave Rashford for the wing, and being emergency striker only (not 2nd choice striker).

The order for the rest would be:
  • Bruno
  • Malacia
  • Rashford
  • Casemiro/McTominay
  • Sancho/Antony
  • De Gea
Reason Casemiro/McTominay and Sancho/Antony are so low is that so far, I think they can provide something similar if the other is missing without dropping our level much. Casemiro will shoot up this list I'm sure, but McTominay has shown he can be trusted as the DM too which is nice. Improved massively on the ball and with his decision making and positioning. Sancho and Antony both I think can provide excellent creativity and playmaking from either wing. Rashford is the only winger who has that elite pace and the only one in our squad who can provide the deadly runs in behind to give us cutting edge. Antony and Sancho both very much like getting it short and linking up. Great to have them, and that's the perfect player situation we have there IMO. Able to rotate/change it up and have competition without missing a beat. Garnacho has it in him to be that same thing for Rashford.
 
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I think Eriksen is very important at the moment as he's filling in for the build up role that the manager wanted De Jong for and it's clearly a position he identified as crucial to improving us when he spoke about creating our own player for that position.

Martinez and Varane will also be very important because if we can keep clean sheets we'll be able to secure rresults as we start to become a better drilled attacking unit. At the moment I'm not sure we can afford to ship goals as we're still trying to get an understanding with Sancho, Antony and the striker options are not compelling.
 
Hard to nail it down to just one player.

For me, the ones who can potentially make the most difference relative to our (low) expectations are the likes of McTominay, Rashford and - not least - Martial, i.e. players who have been largely written off by many but who may prove themselves better under ETH than we thought.

Eriksen is "just" a very good player who's unsurprisingly a good fit for an ETH team. If anyone takes that as a slight on him, it obviously isn't: he may very well be a "first on the team sheet" type of player for us this season, and - as such - more important than anyone in terms of how well we play on a regular basis. But we did not go into this season with an ideal squad, and given this, the ones who can actually surprise us (by being more useful than we feared) are the ones I'd highlight in this context.

ETA Long term, it would be fantastic if we could establish an actual top notch CB partnership. Varane is still young (enough) for a CB - he should be entering his prime now. The problem is obvious: he's a crock. If he can establish himself as a non-crock and if Martinez lives up to his promise (so far, he looks very good), we could be in business (for years to come). So, if I were to pick just ONE player to keep an eye on this season, that is: keep an eye on his development as a United player, that player would perhaps be Varane. If he can become a steady presence at the back...let's just say that would be very nice indeed. He's got the talent but he is - right now - at a crossroads, I feel. And his potential - as a mainstay at the back for United going forward - is huge. We're talking five, six seasons of having a world class defender back there.
 
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1. Eriksen
2. Varane and Martinez
3. Bruno

There are other good players in the team of course, but the 4 above are in a league of their own in terms of importance.
 
Eriksen, there is no replacement. We don't have another deep lying playmaker. Non of Fred, Casemiro, Mctom or V.D.B have the passing range or vision to even be an able deputy to Eriksen.
 
Tough call between Varane, Martinez and Eriksen. Went for Martinez.

1. If we don't have good defense we are going to leak goals
2. Our attack is not that good that if we leak 2 goals then we can still score 3. Eriksen cannot help there unless we get a very good CF
3. We saw Varane and Maguire last season. Moment Varane sees Maguire his brain goes wild. Varane no longer is Varane. DDG starts shitting in pants, McT forgets he is a footballer.
4. Only person who brings balance in the entire defense line is Martinez. If with his help we keep a clean sheet or concede minimum then with help of Eriksen we can win the match by scoring one or two.

So, in nutshell to give our midfield and attack a chance to win us games, we need Martinez in defense.

This is not something we should be proud of, but it is what it is IMHO.
 
I think Bruno defines us a team in many ways (both good and bad), and that the only way for us to do well is if he can recapture his very best form.

I understand why people have gone for Eriksen, on the basis that the way he plays 'makes us tick' but in terms of outright impact I think Bruno.
 
horsechoker said:
In order of importance

Martinez
Eriksen
Varane
Bruno
McSauce
Rashford/Martial
Dalot/Malacia
Sancho/Antony
De Gea
Casemiro
Elanga
Ronaldo
Maguire/Lindelöf
Shaw
Click to expand...

RIP Fred not even fit for last place.
 
Hostage to fortune here, but I hope Tony Martial is the most important player. Everything I've seen of ETH's teams before suggests we need a striker who holds the ball up, who can turn an opponent, and who isn't afraid to press. With what we've currently got, Martial is the best option by a mile if he's fit and up for it.

If he comes good, I think the attack goes to another level - both in terms of formation and because you've got Rashford, Sancho and Antony (and Elanga and Garnacho) with two starting and the others competing for the sub/rotation roles as inside forwards (and competing with Ronaldo for sub/rotation time at centre forward). It also frees up Bruno and Eriksen to play, rather than having to try to spring Rashford over the top or feed CR7 who's playing a very different role.

I think we've seen what this team is with Rashford as the first choice starting CF - it will get better with practice, he will get better with confidence, but it's not what ETH wants long-term in my opinion. We haven't yet seen ETH's first choice with a fit (and even...motivated?) Martial playing the CF role as designed, and even though some of the personnel may change next summer I still think the sooner we see it the better.
 
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If one had to look holistically at the whole squad, compare skills and potential, as well as taking into account character and that rarest of all traits - a never-say-die attitude - then the answer is obvious: Martin Dúbravka.
 
Fortitude said:
I could have put 'initiates play from deep and upon receipt from the defenders' but I do think people are aware of what each brings to the table.

The OP was never intended to be comprehensive, though.
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I didn't mean to correct you. Just saying Eriksen seems the glue far more than Bruno. In fact, it just struck me as a fitting description that his absence would make our team come unstuck.
 
antohan said:
I didn't mean to correct you. Just saying Eriksen seems the glue far more than Bruno. In fact, it just struck me as a fitting description that his absence would make our team come unstuck.
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Ah, I get you. Yeah, you’re right, but Bruno’s role - especially with how we’re using his tank - has some of the same aspects to it. We have a sort of kinetic chain going on between Martinez, Eriksen and Bruno and all three of them are knitting the team via the threading they’re doing to get us up and through the pitch - if Bruno isn’t there to receive from Eriksen, I think we’ll have a problem because VDB is our other link-man, and he’s shown nothing to believe he’s capable in the role.
 
Yeah went for Martinez but difficult choice.
Difficult choice last year but for different reasons, ETH has transformed this team in a short space of time cant wait to see how it develops as they get further into the season.
 
Went with Eriksen. For me it boils down to who we would miss the most if he was injured. Eriksen is clearly that player at the moment as I don't think we have any other players in the squad with his range of passing and technical ability that could slot into the midfield and do the job he is doing. Varane and Martinez have transformed our defence but I still think the drop in quality from those 2 to Maguire and Lindelof is not as great a miss as Eriksen would be.
 
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Picked Martinez because he does offer a lot to the team :

- good at defending
- makes it possible to play from the back because he is actually good on the ball
- seems to add a combative mentality to the team

and most important of all

keeps Maguire out of the team
 
bosnian_red said:
  1. Eriksen
  2. Martinez
  3. Dalot
  4. Martial
  5. Varane
Martial might be up there at the top with Eriksen, has to actually play and show it though. I think CF is the position where only Martial can do what Ten Hag truly wants with his hold up and link up play. Rashford has done admirably but just isn't that type. Ronaldo is past it. Dalot at right back, same thing. No cover whatsoever. Martinez as LCB with how much he influences our play on the ball as well. Varane with his leadership and pace/physicality being something none of the others can replace.

Generally for me, most important tends to be - if they are out, can we play the same system, do we have adequate cover there to not be so hurt by their loss? So the cover for these guys is:
  • Eriksen - Fred
  • Martinez - Maguire
  • Dalot - Wan Bissaka
  • Martial - change system and move Rashford centrally
  • Varane - Lindelof
Lindelof is good cover but Varane does offer quite a bit do I'd still have him there. The rest probably need addressing. Replace Fred with someone more suited to that role, replace Maguire with a depth LCB, replace AWB with a right back who ten hag will use to compete with Dalot, buy a striker to replace Ronaldo and leave Rashford for the wing, and being emergency striker only (not 2nd choice striker).

The order for the rest would be:
  • Bruno
  • Malacia
  • Rashford
  • Casemiro/McTominay
  • Sancho/Antony
  • De Gea
Reason Casemiro/McTominay and Sancho/Antony are so low is that so far, I think they can provide something similar if the other is missing without dropping our level much. Casemiro will shoot up this list I'm sure, but McTominay has shown he can be trusted as the DM too which is nice. Improved massively on the ball and with his decision making and positioning. Sancho and Antony both I think can provide excellent creativity and playmaking from either wing. Rashford is the only winger who has that elite pace and the only one in our squad who can provide the deadly runs in behind to give us cutting edge. Antony and Sancho both very much like getting it short and linking up. Great to have them, and that's the perfect player situation we have there IMO. Able to rotate/change it up and have competition without missing a beat. Garnacho has it in him to be that same thing for Rashford.
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Martial? I mean...the guy has played 45 mins all season and he has been injured the rest of the time. I like Martial myself and wish he progressed from that 1st season he had with us but he's shot mentally and cannot function unless he's the undisputed starter. And he ain't good enough to have that privilege.

Anyway, its a long season. Hoping we can win a trophy or two. Otherwise this would be another failure of a season and we've had six of those already.
 
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