Shinji Kagawa

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So unlucky not to have scored. Just felt if he had scored then moyes would have a serious decision to make for next weekend. As it stands, I'm sure he will be dropped for Rooney. Nonetheless, would like to see him play behind the striker more. Even if it means benching welbeck (from time to time) and playing Rooney upfront!
 
Irwhine said:
Just said int he post match thread. He was the difference. Called it at half time too. Against these passing teams we need two holding MF and someone like Kagawa to get around them and to open them up. So happy for him.
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Spot on actually, while everybody will give all of the plaudits to Januzaj, Kagawa was actually the one who came into the center and started to link almost everything. It might sometimes look simple but it get's the team moving, ticking and building in confidence. Januzaj was through the center instead for 35 minutes and we barely did anything.

None of that's a knock on Januzaj, he was great once we made the tactical change, but it's quite annoying seeing everybody bashing one off over him and not realising how important Kagawa was in us taking control of that game.

It also highlighted again why we should be looking at a midfield three, which is basically what it was once Kagawa went into the middle. Two central midfielders with Kagawa just playing slightly ahead of them. He'll continue the same if we don't give him a proper run in this exact position and role, it's that simple.
 
I felt really sorry for him when that chance didn't go in. He's definitely got a bigger nose for goal than he's shown at United so far.
 
It will be all doom and gloom, when,he gets benched against Chelsea for no apparent reason.

He did very well today. Most of it comes from the tempo we played in the second half. He was almost running the show in that position. No more of this left wing shit please,,Moyes..
 
The ball he slipped into the box for Valencia sums it up, really. He gets the ball and holds it for ages because Valencia is incapable of moving in from the flank. As soon as the run comes - about five seconds too late - Kagawa pokes the ball through and Valencia is in a dangerous position.

If all of our players could make those runs instinctively instead of Kagawa basically having to tell them five times where he wants them to move our play would become so much quicker. No-one else in our team has the ability to receive a pass, turn on the ball and release it as quickly as Kagawa does, but he needs to have players making those runs to get the most out of him. Januzaj knows where to run and our play looked really good down the left. Valencia is crap and we just stopped using the right altogether. If the team can work on making the movement more fluent and Kagawa gets a couple of games (and hopefully a goal or two) to build his confidence and get back to where he was last season, we could actually start to look like a decent side on a consistent basis.
 
He won't win us games single handedly but when we play good football he will make it even better. Once he has players moving around him and comfortable playing quick, inventive football he will become a huge asset. In fact if we can instill this philosophy consistently in our team I could see him being effective from the left too.
 
Mickeza said:
It won't be for no apparent reason, it'll be because Wayne Rooney is a better player than him, and if it's choice between Januzaj and Kagawa on the left then it really isn't a contest.
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Januzaj won't play against Chelsea. I'm pretty sure of it.
 
Did well today though frustrating in spots, should have a a goal and an assist to his name as he should have played in Welbeck inside of shooting in the second half.

He also needs to be told that we shouldn't have to be a goal up before he attempts to take a game by the scruff of the neck as he did in the second half. Still very promising performance, more please!
 
Red Stone said:
The ball he slipped into the box for Valencia sums it up, really. He gets the ball and holds it for ages because Valencia is incapable of moving in from the flank. As soon as the run comes - about five seconds too late - Kagawa pokes the ball through and Valencia is in a dangerous position.

If all of our players could make those runs instinctively instead of Kagawa basically having to tell them five times where he wants them to move our play would become so much quicker. No-one else in our team has the ability to receive a pass, turn on the ball and release it as quickly as Kagawa does, but he needs to have players making those runs to get the most out of him. Januzaj knows where to run and our play looked really good down the left. Valencia is crap and we just stopped using the right altogether. If the team can work on making the movement more fluent and Kagawa gets a couple of games (and hopefully a goal or two) to build his confidence and get back to where he was last season, we could actually start to look like a decent side on a consistent basis.
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This sums up why it's a pity that Nani can't find consistency because his style of play would suit this kind of system much more than Valencia's ever could.
 
I've heard him described as a "multiplier" and that seems accurate to me. He won't drive on a team that's playing badly, but he'll make a good one play even better. Speed really suits his game and the team as a whole. His ability to turn and pick a pass isn't being exploited enough. Surround him with movement and he'll find those gaps in defences.

Just needs to find his composure in front of goal. Too many good chances are being wasted by him.
 
kidbob said:
He won't win us games single handedly but when we play good football he will make it even better. Once he has players moving around him and comfortable playing quick, inventive football he will become a huge asset. In fact if we can instill this philosophy consistently in our team I could see him being effective from the left too.
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I agree, you've basically summed him up for me. He needs that movement around him to make him more dangerous and we do nothing like that.
 
I'd rather he never play on the left. Even Buttner would be a better option. In the middle with players moving around he was able to really influence our play. On the post game here they talked about Janujaz influence in both goals but Kags also had a role in both.
 
akash02 said:
More down to the fact that we've played with purpose and pace rather than any change in position imo

He's even tackling now!
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Absolutely spot on. It's more about our tempo than his position. And Fletch's pressing in midfield helped him a lot too.

I agree that Shinji is somewhat a luxury player. But at United, we should be able to use him much better than we had done. Tonight was an example.
 
Mickeza said:
Why? He's our best attacking player at the moment, it will be good for his development and we haven't got anyone else.
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I just think he will be shielded from the responsibility. Long term, it will probably be good for him.
 
TheGame said:
The other option would be to drop Welbeck?
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I'd much rather drop Valencia and put Januzaj on the right. He should be one of the first names on the team sheet when fit and isn't tired, none of this nonsense of him being too young. He's our most talented player pretty much already, is on a different level intelligence wise to everyone but Rooney and Van persie pretty much. Kagawa is up there as well with his football intelligence although he doesn't impose himself as much.
Personally I don't see why Januzaj-Rooney-Kagawa behind Welbeck wouldn't work if we play quick enough. They're all very good technically and link up well together so they should be fine. Play a more narrow formation and let the fullbacks overlap, gives us more options in the middle to control the ball and makes it harder for them to play through us.
 
Would have loved him to have got the goal but he was a massive plus today and a turning point in the game was him and Januzaj swapping positions. Kagawa was more impactful through the middle (and Adnan got more joy down the flanks)
 
LR7 said:
Would have loved him to have got the goal but he was a massive plus today and a turning point in the game was him and Januzaj swapping positions. Kagawa was more impactful through the middle (and Adnan got more joy down the flanks)
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I thought Januzaj played a bit too far forward in the 10 role, Kagawa dropped into midfield more and gave us more options.
 
Very, very good in the second half, invisible like the most team in the first. Unlucky not to have scored/assisted today but he's done fairly well I think. It's visible that hes trying to score, plenty of shooting from him today.

Pretty much we improved when Adnan and Kagawa changed positions, Kagawa went #10 and Adnan on the wing ( although I still think that Adnan does better on the right wing than the left one ).
 
Hopefully today was the last time we see the Kagawa on the left bullshit
 
datura said:
I thought Januzaj played a bit too far forward in the 10 role, Kagawa dropped into midfield more and gave us more options.
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Yeah spot on. Januzaj is still learning that role at this level and his positioning isn't perfect but I believe he will get better at it with experience. Eventually I think he will be a brilliant number 10, but yeah, today I totally agree that Kagawa gave the Carrick and Fletcher more options by dropping deeper and linked well with Danny. Adnan was also more effective wide than Kagawa was.
 
datura said:
I thought Januzaj played a bit too far forward in the 10 role, Kagawa dropped into midfield more and gave us more options.
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There's no doubt about it. Most of the time in the first 35 mins when we didn't have the ball Adnan was further forward then Danny.
 
LR7 said:
Yeah spot on. Januzaj is still learning that role at this level and his positioning isn't perfect but I believe he will get better at it with experience. Eventually I think he will be a brilliant number 10, but yeah, today I totally agree that Kagawa gave the Carrick and Fletcher more options by dropping deeper and linked well with Danny. Adnan was also more effective wide than Kagawa was.
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Yep, agree with all that. It's good to have more flexible players who can switch during games, we lose that a bit with Valencia, although he player inside a bit more today.
 
Fact is the more static the team is, the less impact he will make. Plus on the left, he's almost useless for us, both going forward and tracking back. The first half we were completely owned down that side. He improved in the second half when we upped the tempo and played a lot faster. He needs movement from his team mates, simple as that. Unlucky not to score, think he tried a little bit too hard.
 
Thought he was good today, well second half. Wasn't any worse than anyone else in the first half but I think he showed again, that whilst his confidence is as it is, he's just not suited to playing a fixed role on the left. He doesn't deal well with being isolated. Even in the first half when he did come central he immediately picked his game up.

I like him in the middle. I think that whilst he's not as defensively strong as Rooney/Welbeck are there he plays it in a way that maybe more what we need. He takes up positions that they wouldn't, being happier to come short, and his choice of passing is different too, he'll play more short passes where as Rooney is more inclined to look to switch play. He's also good at turning and creating space. He still has a lot to do and you can see his confidence isn't there quite but I did like him centrally.

Hopefully he's given a run there and with Adnan making runs from wide, Carrick and Fletch giving him the service he needs then I think we might be able to get him to show how good he is and in turn I think he might be able to bring even more out of Januzaj than we've seen so far. It's a shame it's taken a while to line up as we did in the second half.
 
I hope he'll start as No.10 against Chelsea with Rooney as our only striker. He's very good in that position.
 
He was better than normal today (well at least the 2nd half) but he's got the Berbatov about him - loads of talent and when everything's clicking and the team are playing well, you get a contribution from him but he goes missing for huge portions of games and IMO is lazy - I'm not expecting a headless chicken around the field but he never looks like he's broke a sweat and half jogs everywhere. If he was contributing with assists/goals and exciting play then it can be excused to a degree but he rarely does . His position/our tempo contribute to how well he plays but he has to take some responsibility and work harder.

But hopefully he can build on it and finally realise his potential.
 
izzydiggler said:
He was better than normal today (well at least the 2nd half) but he's got the Berbatov about him - loads of talent and when everything's clicking and the team are playing well, you get a contribution from him but he goes missing for huge portions of games and IMO is lazy - I'm not expecting a headless chicken around the field but he never looks like he's broke a sweat and half jogs everywhere. If he was contributing with assists/goals and exciting play then it can be excused to a degree but he rarely does . His position/our tempo contribute to how well he plays but he has to take some responsibility and work harder.
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Disagree. 200%
 
Fantastic, took his chance well. Everything we have struggled to do as a team this year, he done single handedly with ease. Crosses, passing, composure, awareness. Although, I am sure he will be dropped next game, and will remain benched when Persie and rooney return.
 
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