We actually have a very good squad

If every player on the squad performs at of near 100% of his potential, this team would be top 5 in Europe easy, being able to beat any side on its day.
 
Looking at our team play today, and pretty much how they've played in the last six matches, the team is starting to look as disinterested as the Chelsea players. Nobody are making runs anymore; only Young seems to be busting his lungs getting back on the counter, but he can't tackle so... even Smalling looked resigned for 70 minutes today, and then a spark lit inside him towards the end.
 
If every player on the squad performs at of near 100% of his potential, this team would be top 5 in Europe easy, being able to beat any side on its day.
Err... no, it wouldn't be.
But I guess any side can beat any side 'on its day', so that bit's true.
 
This is the worst squad we have had since the Djemba twins days. I'd even argue that was better.
 
Err... no, it wouldn't be.
But I guess any side can beat any side 'on its day', so that bit's true.

just imagine the best performance you've seen from every united player individually. now put that together in a team. wow. the world beating performances i've seen from Rooney, Mata, BFS and DDG alone would be nearly enough to justify my claim. our problem is that we play far below par right now, everyone seems to go through a slump. how can we unlock our potential?

I just hate the sentiment dominant on this forum that hitting the transfer market and fixing our problems with a fat wallet will solve our problems. It won't. Right now, we just suck at unlocking our potential. That's what needs fixing. Looking back at the heydays of Sir Alex, he had guys like Gary Neville delivering the goods week in, week out. How did he extract such performances from bread and butter players? That's the question we need to solve for our current squat first and foremost.
 
If every player on the squad performs at of near 100% of his potential, this team would be top 5 in Europe easy, being able to beat any side on its day.

If my auntie had balls she'd be my uncle.
 
Aside from De Gea ,Marshall, Shaw which players in the United squad would actually make the bench of Bayern Barcelona and Real Madrid?.....teams which United are suppose to be aspiring to.
 
Aside from De Gea ,Marshall, Shaw which players in the United squad would actually make the bench of Bayern Barcelona and Real Madrid?.....teams which United are suppose to be aspiring to.

Everyone knows the answer to that. But what can you do about it. We were mismanaged this last few years.
 
Aside from De Gea ,Marshall, Shaw which players in the United squad would actually make the bench of Bayern Barcelona and Real Madrid?.....teams which United are suppose to be aspiring to.
Who cares atm about those clubs, we are miles behind them and have been for years. Look what Barca did to us in two CL finals. We didn't learn our lesson then and it is going to take a big fall from grace of those teams and a lot of work at ours before we can attract those type of players. We just need someone to come in and strengthen our squad properly and get those players and the ones we already have performing properly.
 
Is the first team actually better than Tottenham's?
Genuine question.
 
The squad is not as well put together as in previous seasons in my opinion. We lack an experienced centre half and we have done for nearly 3 years. We dont have genuine threat from our wide players, the Mata, Depay & Young options are dismal for our club. We have very few front players and by playing 1 up front there is no genuine chemistry between our attacking players full stop. Personally I would love to see us move to a 4-4-1-1, buy at least 3 players i.e. Hummels, Isco/Reus & Lewandowski/Kane and then I think we will see a better brand of football and an improvement in results to boot.
 
The squad is not as well put together as in previous seasons in my opinion. We lack an experienced centre half and we have done for nearly 3 years. We dont have genuine threat from our wide players, the Mata, Depay & Young options are dismal for our club. We have very few front players and by playing 1 up front there is no genuine chemistry between our attacking players full stop. Personally I would love to see us move to a 4-4-1-1, buy at least 3 players i.e. Hummels, Isco/Reus & Lewandowski/Kane and then I think we will see a better brand of football and an improvement in results to boot.
Why would those players come to us the state we are in and with this manager? Unless we get a prestige manager that type of players won't come. The money is nice but players also want a happy environment and to know the manger knows what he is doing to win things in the PL.
 
Posted in the match thread, but more appropriate here:

Every single line-up posted shows just how average this squad is.

Take out De Gea and Schweinsteiger (just for 'prestige' reasons, not quality) and this could easily be Tottenham's team. In fact, Redknapp's Tottenham team looked better on paper, which translated to better football.

If someone told you, three years ago, that this was Tottenham's future line-up, you wouldn't be shocked (quality wise), and you'd probably say they'd regressed. You definitely wouldn't say these players were too good for Tottenham.

No one can seriously look at that team and expect them to be one of the very best in England. Yet some people think this is a really good squad of players. It baffles me.
Such a lack of quality.

Edit: fair enough, Shaw's missing.
So no, the squad isn't 'very good' at all.
 
Why would those players come to us the state we are in and with this manager? Unless we get a prestige manager that type of players won't come. The money is nice but players also want a happy environment and to know the manger knows what he is doing to win things in the PL.
Agree, thats the problem we find ourselves now, a downward spiral thats difficult to halt regardless of how much money we throw at it. We need to make the right appointment who can not only get the best out of the players but get them enjoying football again, at the same time identify who does not have the right talent &/or attitude to succeed at the club. If we can get that right, then top quality players will come. Mourinho for all his faults will attract quality players, its whether though they want to play for the club or for him thats the problem.
 
Yeah, our squad is terrible. On par with Crystal Palace's and Watford's. Nothing to do with knee jerk reactions after none of our players can get into any decent form under van Gaal, they are just shit and not one of them would get into Spurs' team. Or Leicester's.
 
Yeah, our squad is terrible. On par with Crystal Palace's and Watford's. Nothing to do with knee jerk reactions after none of our players can get into any decent form under van Gaal, they are just shit and not one of them would get into Spurs' team. Or Leicester's.
The first team genuinely is Spurs-level, though. Redkanpp's first eleven looked no worse on paper, and neither does Pochettino's current first eleven.

Other than a red shirt, there's nothing to suggest the eleven players in the line-up are United players. Most of the weekly line-ups could easily be for Tottenham, and nobody would suggest the players were too good for them.
 
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We do but it lacks real pace on the flanks and creativity/inspiration up front and in the middle.

It reminds of the Utd side without Cantona. When he came it galvanised the team. In previous years we would have looked for Rooney to that but he's way past his best
 
It's alright. We've not been anything amazing, Chelsea are more shit than we are good, really.
 
It's alright. We've not been anything amazing, Chelsea are more shit than we are good, really.

I agree that we weren't that great, but the fact is that our players actually look good and nowhere near as bad as people make them out to be.
 
It's alright. We've not been anything amazing, Chelsea are more shit than we are good, really.

Indeed. They've been shocking. We've still fashioned only one shot on target and hit the post.
 
Indeed. They've been shocking. We've still fashioned only one shot on target and hit the post.
Mata hit the bar too. Still, they're content to give us all the possession and soak up all we have and we still aren't creating enough to truly punish them.
 
That XI, with a good manager, in this league should be challenging for the league. Winning it would be hard with the lack of depth.
 
Still don't think Mata cuts it as a right winger. Not enough pace and doesn't do enough to create for the team. That's two managers he has played for and has yet to impress over a long period.

If Jose comes I think its curtains for him again.
 
Chelsea are fecking shite to be fair. we've been comfortably dismantled by everyone else.
 
No shite we have a good squad. You do not have a bad squad after spending quarter of a billion pounds in 2 years. I m more worried about how this squad is being limited by our manager's acumen on handling these players. Their is of course some bad apples in their like Rooney and Fellaini, but overall it is a very good squad.
 
I think we do have good players. Crap team though.
 
A line-up for Tottenham in the 11/12 season, under Redknapp:
Friedel, Walker, Dawson, King, Assou-Ekotto, Modric, Parker, Kranjcar, Bale, Adebayor, Saha

It's really no weaker. The squad/first eleven is average.
people expect too much from them.
Fourth is about right.
 
This is the worst squad we have had since the Djemba twins days. I'd even argue that was better.

This.

This thread title is beyond outrageous. How you can all this squad even moderately good is beyond me. I think there are only 5 players worth keeping.
 
The squad is very good. 12 months ago we'd be crying for some of the players we have now. Schneiderlin, Schweinsteiger, Herrera, Shaw, Smalling, Martial are all players that would get in virtually any other premier league squad.
 
Even if we forget about the Attacking quality improvement we need, we need to buy more players for depth.
If we get past Derby and Midgityland(spellcheck), we are looking at at least 7 games in both Feb and March.
Herrera will have to be trusted in CM by LvG.
If we get a Full Back, we could consider ourselves to be covered in defence and CM.
We have two strikers: Rooney and Martial. For this to work we have to play these two inter-changeably, right now, both start together.
For the front three behind the Striker: Memphis, Mata, Lingard, Januzaj, Fellaini, Young(he is more of a full back right now).
I think we should let fellaini go and buy a winger and a striker.

Three players to sign in this window. Full Back, Striker and Winger. That seems too much considering the fact that we are doing nothing right now.
The club needs one of the FA Cup or Europa cup right now and a top 4 finish. The cup win will really help the spirit at the club. We need a deep and well rounded squad to compete.
 
We will fall apart if Mike Smalling gets injured. If the club fancy Stones or Mane so much they should have bid by now. The lack of spending by us is telling me LVG won't be here the start of next season unless we go in a miracle run and start playing like Peles blue Brazil!
 
We have an excellent keeper, good backline, decent midfield, terrible wingers and short of strikers.

We must buy at least one attacker this month. Or else it will take a miracle to get top four.