Why would any United fan want anyone associated with the club to fail? Stop being silly. You don't have to agree with everything posted but to argue that opinions being expressed are out of a wish to see our manager and new signing fail is puerile and I don't believe for a moment you actually think that's true. Most people who didn't want us to sign Fellaini this summer said they hope he proves them wrong. Stop trying to make it out to be something it isn't.
Marouane Fellaini | 2013/14 Performances
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Not having that. I don't even really have a dog in this fight over Fellaini but I'm fed up with any questioning of what's happening being painted as wanting United to fail.
No United fan wants United to fail. None of us.
If people are angry it's cos they wanted better for the side than what we saw yesterday. People who question the Fellaini signing and the player's quality are not wanting the team to lose. They just think the money we spent on Fellaini could've been used on better players, which like it of lump it is a fact.
Now he's here I'm sure all of us are hoping he develops but of course when he is as sleepy and static as he was at City people will worry their fears are coming true. Let's just keep our fingers crossed for him.
Do you think Moyes wanted a player like Fabregas and then, when this failed, resorted to Fellaini - in spite of the more or less obvious fact that he at some point wanted a double deal including both Fellaini and Baines? Where exactly does our documented interest in Fabregas fit in, then?
Nowhere and it never did anywhere. It was sheer lunacy from the start, launching a bid one day after Thiago left, offering a ridiculously low fee.
Alright. Sheer lunacy, then. Nothing to do with having an interest in, you know, football and all that. I see. So, we indulged in a bit of lunacy for a while and then splashed close to thirty million on Fellaini, who was a panic buy. Makes perfect sense, I suppose, if you actually believe we are sheer lunatics.
I approve of this post. I said a while ago that if Fergie hung up his boots then the next manager will have a big task in clearing out some of the dross that Fergie somehow got by with. This was laughed at at the time, but I think it's there for all to see. I've still got a good feeling that Moyes will do this if he's given the time.
Anyone with an interest in football would have told Woodward and co. that a 26m bid for Fábregas is going to get laughed at. Especially a day after Barcelona lost another creative central midfielder. We've yet to hear an explanation that makes sense regarding the whole Fábregas case because it looks like nothing but pointless posturing.
I'm still laughing at it. Which squads in the world don't have this "dross" that you are referring to? Every team has both overpaid fringe players, underperforming youngsters and players over the hill. Luckily, Ferguson left Moyes with 3 quality young centre halfs, 2 world class strikers, De Gea, Rafael, Nani, Kagawa, Hernandez, Welbeck etc.
If you think the best way for Moyes to go about clearing out the dross (Ferdinand, Young, Valencia, Fellaini) is by picking them every single fecking game then fair enough. I'd suggest it's not wise.
Seems to me that the most vocal critics of Fellaini didn't want him or Moyes at the club. They're apparently willing to give Moyes a chance to convince them (albeit grudgingly) but have no intention of showing Fellaini the same patience. I'm guessing the difference in their attitude to the two men is a reluctance to face up to the horror of having a man in charge of your club who is doomed to fail. They can slag off Fellaini at their leisure without staring into the abyss.
Personally, I think they could BOTH turn out to have been promoted above their abilities. However, unlike a lot of people on here, I'm not arrogant enough to assume I know better than the people behind these decisions. People who eat sleep and breath football, instead of just pontificating about it on the internet. Especially when on of those people is Sir Alex Ferguson. If he thinks Moyes is the man to take us forward (and, by extension, his first big money signing) then that's good enough for me. At the very least I'm not going to write either of them off before the frigging clocks go back. That would be absolutely mental.
The one thing that really irks me about opinions on Fellaini is this idea that he can only play as a target man. Duncan Ferguson with an afro. This can only be on the basis of watching the games against United last season. Which is fair enough. Who the hell has enough time on their hands to watch every United game, as well as having an opinion on all the other top sides/players in Europe AND watch all of Everton's games over the last few years? With all the firm opinions so many of ye have you must watch so much fecking football I wonder if you ever get any fresh air? It's interesting that the one dissenting voice from previous threads talking about Fellaini - in which loads of United fans insisted he was just a big, clumsy support striker - came from an Everton fan. Go figure. I haven't watched him anywhere near enough to have a very informed opinion but - for all that he was shite against City - I saw enough encouraging signs in his last two appearances to think he could be a good player for us. So I have no problem at all reserving judgement. Would suggest that others do the same, although I appreciate that's unlikely for many of you.
Personally, I think they could BOTH turn out to have been promoted above their abilities. However, unlike a lot of people on here, I'm not arrogant enough to assume I know better than the people behind these decisions. People who eat sleep and breath football, instead of just pontificating about it on the internet. Especially when on of those people is Sir Alex Ferguson. If he thinks Moyes is the man to take us forward (and, by extension, his first big money signing) then that's good enough for me. At the very least I'm not going to write either of them off before the frigging clocks go back. That would be absolutely mental.
The one thing that really irks me about opinions on Fellaini is this idea that he can only play as a target man. Duncan Ferguson with an afro. This can only be on the basis of watching the games against United last season. Which is fair enough. Who the hell has enough time on their hands to watch every United game, as well as having an opinion on all the other top sides/players in Europe AND watch all of Everton's games over the last few years? With all the firm opinions so many of ye have you must watch so much fecking football I wonder if you ever get any fresh air? It's interesting that the one dissenting voice from previous threads talking about Fellaini - in which loads of United fans insisted he was just a big, clumsy support striker - came from an Everton fan. Go figure. I haven't watched him anywhere near enough to have a very informed opinion but - for all that he was shite against City - I saw enough encouraging signs in his last two appearances to think he could be a good player for us. So I have no problem at all reserving judgement. Would suggest that others do the same, although I appreciate that's unlikely for many of you.
Signed the wrong Belgium should have been Dembele a season ago.
Excellent post!
Welcome back Pogue!
That isn't the point. We, Manchester United, with David Moyes as manager, were definitely (as per comments and confirmations from Moyes himself) in for three targets: Baines, Fellaini and Fabregas. We launched a bid for the former two at an early stage, that has been confirmed. And it has since been documented that Everton weren't willing to depart with both of them at the price we were willing to offer. It has also been confirmed that we were in for Fabregas and launched several bids for said player. At the time when these bids were launched we were still in for the double package of Fellaini and Baines - which only stranded late in the window. Everything suggests that we were, in fact, in for this double package AND Fabregas. Leave Thiago out of it, his case may in fact be wholly irrelevant: Fergie was interested in him, we know that, but there may have been factors in play from the very beginning which made that potential deal perfectly implausible.
It makes no bloody difference, either. The point is that Moyes wanted Fellaini all along, as part of the double package. In addition to that he wanted someone else, like Fabregas. When that turned out to be impossible we seemingly tried for other players, including both Modric and Herrera just before the window closed. Whether Woodward is a feckin' gimp or not is neither here nor there, the point is that Moyes wanted TWO midfielders, and that he wanted Fellaini as part of a package with Baines. That should mean, unless I'm missing something, that it's misleading to refer to Fellaini as a panic buy or a last resort backup option.
I don't really know where people have got this idea that Fellaini's a nailed-on starter for Belgium. He's started 4 of Belgium's 8 World Cup qualifiers so far, 2 less than Dembele. One of our resident Belgian's also had this to say about Afroman:
Me I gave Young a season but then again Im fairly observant and not a thick ignorant prick. Cant say the same for you
He's no Defour though, right Rams?
What exactly is wrong with Defour Brwned? Want me to look over all the candidates you picked for us that didnt work out?
I am willing to take on any bet that Fellaini will finish the season with 10 goals. 100 quid or equivalent currency.
Neviller are you in?
Neviller are you in?
That will only happen if we play him in the vast majority of the games as the number ten, behind the main striker. And God help us in that case.
Nothing, I thought he looked pretty good for Belgium. Injuries obviously haven't helped. It's just the fact that you said he fit the bill as a Scholes replacement and came up with this mental suggestion that he was our only target along with Benzema...I found it amusing from someone so observant.
I am just fairly confident in a player who has done very very well in the premiership, is still young and is international class. But then again I am not the sort of prick who thinks a player is shit after one bad game. A game in which everyone else on the team was shit
Jesus Christ I'm gonna crack up.
Fergie thought he was worth checking up on too. I still say Defour is a good player, the difference with Fellaini is he has been in the PL for a number of years already. That is a big difference.
Ramshock you saw him play one game and jumped on the bandwagon after that letter malarkey. That was your entire basis for thinking he was a quality player. That's why you banging on about not acting like a knee-jerk feckwit after one game from Fellaini is a bit silly.
ffsThere's no way anyone could watch him play more than one game and think he was the new Scholes.
Of course not. I don't suspect that of even the most...I don't know what to call 'em, actually. Posters who seem to advocate, whether they realize it or not, that the only way for United to reach an acceptable standard is to cease being United. Nevermind, though, that's neither here nor there.
The point is that some people are now melting down, pure and simple. They're losing it, going absolutely mental and spouting hysterical nonsense. And many of them were against Moyes from the start. They wanted someone else. They're now using the unpleasantness yesterday as an excuse to vent all sorts of pent-up...piss. That's all. It ain't complicated and it ain't unexpected. I'm sorry if that sounds condescending, that's not my intention. I understand very well that people are both angry and confused, as Rooney would say. I just think they should calm the feck down, like. Anger and confusion are the paths to the dark side.
This notion that the people here who don't rate him are basing it on 1/2 games is driving me fecking crackers. Some of these retards can't get it into their heads that we've seen him play in the prem for 5 fecking years now. But when you don't agree out comes the "I am not the sort of prick who thinks a player is shit after one bad game" bollocks.
What is wrong with stating an opinion that Fellaini isn't up to scratch? If we later turn out to be wrong and he comes good, we can change our minds. What's so wrong with getting off the fence once in a while and forming an opinion? It doesn't actually matter.
I tell you what, lets give the guy a few games chance and revisit it sound good?
I try to offer opinions that are at least reasonably informed. I'd like to think others do the same but they are, of course, entitled to jerk their knees as much as they want.
Does it matter? Probably not. Although I do think it's important that match-going fans are unwavering in their support for the manager and every player he selects, now that Fergie has retired, whining on the internet is probably neither here nor there.
I'm not sure it is knee jerk. He's played in the league for 5 seasons... anyone who follows English football will have formed a pretty solid opinion of him in that time. He's never looked close to a United player to me. I think he might do well individually, scoring a few goals, but he'll be a hindrance to the team and our style of play.
Thats the same retarded shit that The Neviller said about Moyes. 'He's shit until he proves otherwise, then I'll say he's actually good.' fecking stupid stance to take.
Well, for what it's worth, I think he's better than Anderson and Cleverly (at the moment, at least) so there's a place for him in the squad. He's an improvement, albeit not to the extent many wanted.
That said, if we have designs on winning a CL I don't see him as being a first choice player at that level, but he could do a good job as a squad player.
Would you prefer he stuck to his original stance, long after he'd been proven wrong?
Fellaini is better than what United currently have in that midfield, bar Carrick. That's not really up for debate.
The issue is that if you have a poor midfield, this isn't the path to go down. You don't improve a midfield that isn't up to scratch by signing someone who ultimately you would only ever want as a squad player.
If you want to draw wider conclusions, you could argue as well that the biggest worry with the Fellaini signing is that it might be a reflection on the manager. Safety first, stick to what you know. Strength and height over technical proficiency. Maybe that's pushing it.
The issue is that if you have a poor midfield, this isn't the path to go down. You don't improve a midfield that isn't up to scratch by signing someone who ultimately you would only ever want as a squad player.
If you want to draw wider conclusions, you could argue as well that the biggest worry with the Fellaini signing is that it might be a reflection on the manager. Safety first, stick to what you know. Strength and height over technical proficiency. Maybe that's pushing it.
Actually, thinking about it, I might change my mind on this. I actually think it does matter. Moyes has a fecking tough job to do (the toughest). If fans are even slightly too hasty to judge hin or his signings then that job gets harder. Naive to assume that fan unrest (even on online message boards) won't fuel media criticism. As a United fan that's the last thing I want. If reserving judgement makes his job easier then is that really a lot to ask?
Well he's a first choice player now. And yeah, I think we can all agree that our midfield isn't at the level we'd like, but clearly Moyes wants to strengthen, so to suggest that of him is a bit harsh. He chased your boy Cesc like a lovesick teenager and he's neither tall nor especially physical.
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