[RashysTekkers]

Some people here acting like we just lost the game 3-2. Both of Sheffield United's goal are just unlucky circumstances against us and people talking like they laid siege to our goal for 90 mins.

 

[Marcus]

Happy with the 3 points. But Ole’s substitutions were Feckin terrible decisions. I hope he learns from those awful decisions, as we were cruising along until his changes.

I am sure he knew he was weakening the team with the substitutions. They were not terrible substitutions, but a calculated risk, so that he can manage the fatigue of the best players in the squad through the many upcoming games. Winning with Matic playing 90 minutes is a very big deal actually. Because Scott and Fred have enjoyed some rest.

 

[RedBanker]

We got three points and that's what matters. Our gameplan of being woozy at the start of games has already lost us the most important game of the season but under the current regime expecting panache and domination is futile. So on towards the 85 points target we March, let's forget all other things.

 

[Wing Attack Plan R]

Henderson has a shaky game in his 2nd league start for us and people want to bin him. Jesus wept. De Gea was shaky for his first 12 months for us.

And DeGea is still a lot better than him both with shot stopping and distributing the ball, so why drop him?

 

[Marcus]

And DeGea is still a lot better than him both with shot stopping and distributing the ball, so why drop him?

I think it was some nostalgia on Ole's part or because he thought Henderson would be familiar with the Blades' style of play and it would be an advantage or something. I wouldn't have played him in this game because he might be a bit double-minded given the predicament of his former mates.

 

[Charlie Foley]

We can’t defend, we need to debut a new 0-6-4 formation. No point even playing defenders.

Ah yes. The inverted Spalletti. I like it!

 

[mitchmouse]

I can only fo on the radio commentary but seemingly the same old questions keep resurfacing: a) What the hell does Ole say just before the team comes out. Game after game he says we started to slowly... and then we start too slowly. b) When is the management/players going to realise we aren't good enough to play it out from the back (the radio put their first goal down to this as part of Deano's mistake

Sounded as if Pogba had a good game but still tried to do too much and got us into trouble at times, while one again (again only from radio) Bruno was on form (when he isn't we aren't).

Looking to find somewhere to watch at least the goals; I wonder if they'll be on Football Focus on Saturday

 

[RedBanker]

Ah yes. The inverted Spalletti. I like it!

Just vizualized an inverted Spaletti. Very unappetizing.

 

[Nicoseth]

Bare minimum performance and result required there. Somehow giving Sheffield 30% of all of the goals they've scored this season. We'll have to be much, much better than that against Leeds and every other team.




And when he's playing against the worst side in the league by a mile.

I thought Pogba was awful for most of the game. A couple of moments of quality, but overall sloppy and dwelled on the ball too much.

 

[jymufc20]

I can only fo on the radio commentary but seemingly the same old questions keep resurfacing: a) What the hell does Ole say just before the team comes out. Game after game he says we started to slowly... and then we start too slowly. b) When is the management/players going to realise we aren't good enough to play it out from the back (the radio put their first goal down to this as part of Deano's mistake

Sounded as if Pogba had a good game but still tried to do too much and got us into trouble at times, while one again (again only from radio) Bruno was on form (when he isn't we aren't).

Looking to find somewhere to watch at least the goals; I wonder if they'll be on Football Focus on Saturday

Check the first post of this thread pal.

 

[Longshanks]

I can only fo on the radio commentary but seemingly the same old questions keep resurfacing: a) What the hell does Ole say just before the team comes out. Game after game he says we started to slowly... and then we start too slowly. b) When is the management/players going to realise we aren't good enough to play it out from the back (the radio put their first goal down to this as part of Deano's mistake

Sounded as if Pogba had a good game but still tried to do too much and got us into trouble at times, while one again (again only from radio) Bruno was on form (when he isn't we aren't).

Looking to find somewhere to watch at least the goals; I wonder if they'll be on Football Focus on Saturday

Highlights will be on you tube.

We are fine playing out from the back IMO, plenty good enough although the second goal also come from building from the back, but it was Pogba undercooking a 5 yard pass to Donny which led to the corner.

Which brings me on to pogba who was a mixed bag some excellent play and some dreadful play all rolled into one something of a metaphor for the team.

Bruno was decent without being spectacular, Sheff utd were playing quite a high line and squeezing the space he normally likes to operate in so he was having to come deep to the ball or run in behind but that tactic led to our first two goals which were just balls over the top for rashford and martial to run onto.

You will enjoy the goals they all have some very classy elements to them.

 

[Inigo Montoya]

And DeGea is still a lot better than him both with shot stopping and distributing the ball, so why drop him?

He and a lot of our first team starters need a break now and again. Why keep a keeper of his potential on the bench? What experience is he and any of our squad gaining by not playing? The keeper is one of the 4 most important positions on the pitch and he'll never learn by not playing. You casually forget that he produced a good save at the end to prevent a draw and an even better one to keep out Creswell at West Ham.

It's not as if DDG hasn't cost us games is it? And he's supposed to be one of the best in the world

 

[Cnaiür urs Skiötha]

Well I did not see the full game as the idiots from Sky here in Austria did not show it despite me paying a fortune each month.
The goals are fantastic. What I just do not understand is that we are not able to switch on from the get-go. You can only have so many comebacks and gold teams like Leipzig do not run out of steam so easily.

 

[Ferguson’s Hairdryer]

On the contrary, it demonstrated how shaky the pairing of Pogba + Matic were. If it was Leeds or any other teams with more energetic MF, we would be 2 goals down by half time

Leeds are the one of the best coached teams in the league. But as pretty much every team that’s played then has discovered they are actually a pretty average set of players. So they score 3 we score 5.

 

[fps]

Rashford looked absolutely spectacular. Best performance of his I can think of for a while. I’ve been considering differences between counter-attacking monsters in Spurs and Man Utd and it made me think one of the best things Ole did was jettison Lukaku as that kind of centre forward simply isn’t necessary to create fluid football in this style.

Greenwood has been figured out by defences, jink, inside on left foot, interesting to see how he now develops in the evolutionary arms race.

 

[georgipep]

Have to question oles subs there, bringing on 2 slow and weak players as impact subs? Bit odd.

we are such a frustrating team, capable of world class goals and absolutely shocking misses and defending at the same time

Which subs would you have made?

 

[georgipep]

I thought Lindelof had a good game though.

I thought so too. I would even say he was our best defender last night.

 

[Member 113277]

Had full controll for 90% of the game and scored some wonderful goals, could have been more even.

The fact that SHU score two though is a bit concerning. We should have seen that one out comfortably, not hanging on for dear life at the end

I've said consistently that we are too loose at the back, this season, but these two goals don't really worry me. The first was a keeper howler - these things happen and it's a one off, the second was unlucky, the corner shouldn't have been given (but that's the rub of the green) and the ball could have gone anywhere from the melee of players and the keeper had no chance with the way it dropped down on the floor.

If we'd buried one or two more of our chances, there would never have been an uncomfortable last 10 mins.

Basic analysis shows we score 1.83 goals per match this season (v1.74 last year) - this rate of scoring over a full season returns us 70 goals, not enough IMO to challenge seriously. LIverpool won the league last season with 85 goals, City came second with 102 - positions 1-6 were all in the 60s.

This season Liverpool have 29 from 13, 2.23 per game extrapolated over 38 = 85 again. However, looking at goals conceded, they are on 19, same as us, though over one more game. How much of this is due to losing Van Dyck is arguable, but they will not dominate the league unless they tighten up (they may win it, but not at a canter). The tightest defensive team is Spurs, whch is perhaps not entirely surprising ;-)

Then again, statistics are sometimes misleading, Chelsea have a F/A 26/14 record (2.0 for, 1.1 against, goal difference +12), which is better than our 1.83 for/1.6 against/GD of +3, but we are a place above them and have one more point, so sticking at it and not losing is important - we're putting together a decent little run.

 

[Member 113277]

I thought so too. I would even say he was our best defender last night.

I thought Lindelof played well, too. He made some useful interceptions, held up their attackers to give the defence time to re-group and the ball he put through for Rashford's first goal would have sent people into ecstatic celbrations, had Pogba or Bruno made it. He may commit the crime of not being Nemanja Vidic, but I've seen a lot worse play for United and get better comments than Victor , who has an occasional bad game, but is generally calm and organised. Guy's a decent player IMO.

 

[Red_toad]

I am sure he knew he was weakening the team with the substitutions. They were not terrible substitutions, but a calculated risk, so that he can manage the fatigue of the best players in the squad through the many upcoming games. Winning with Matic playing 90 minutes is a very big deal actually. Because Scott and Fred have enjoyed some rest.

He just about completely surrendered he final third of the pitch, allowing Sheffield Utd to push forward. I don’t have issues with resting players, but taking off attackers and not replacing their positions was just wrong. If it were a calculated risk, then it very nearly backfired on him, I viewed it as very much being over cautious against the worst team in the league, whom we were controlling until he subbed our attacking threat off.

 

[georgipep]

I thought Lindelof played well, too. He made some useful interceptions, held up their attackers to give the defence time to re-group and the ball he put through for Rashford's first goal would have sent people into ecstatic celbrations, had Pogba or Bruno made it. He may commit the crime of not being Nemanja Vidic, but I've seen a lot worse play for United and get better comments than Victor , who has an occasional bad game, but is generally calm and organised. Guy's a decent player IMO.

If you ask me which of our four defenders do I feel the most comfortable when receiving the ball in our "play from the back" attempts, it is Lindelof right now. He also seems to have reached an understanding with Wan-Bissaka on how to move and create space for each other to provide options when pressed.

Maguire, for all his ability on the ball, does not move for Shaw/Telles to give him the option, except when he falls further back on the left touch line and sets himself to punt the ball upfield.

 

[Adam-Utd]

Which subs would you have made?

1 of Mata or VDB, and then James.

Personally I was itching to bring Rashford off as he was not doing his defensive duties and kept leaving Telles 2v1 - and that's exactly how they got their 2nd goal. Telles did a great recovery tackle but they ended up getting a cheap corner because Rashford didn't help him out.

Bringing on Mata, VDB and keeping Matic on the pitch is just too many slow players at once, especially when you want to counter attack. Seemed an odd decision but I guess Ole didn't expect the game to swing like that.

 

[Relfy]

Good result and three points. We should have killed the game off sooner, but fair play to Sheff Utd who kept going at it. Good to give a couple of players a rest heading into the Xmas madness. Onwards.

 

[Mihai]

Some people here acting like we just lost the game 3-2. Both of Sheffield United's goal are just unlucky circumstances against us and people talking like they laid siege to our goal for 90 mins.

Agree with this. I didn't watch the first half, but their second goal was against the run of play really and with better decision making in the final third, we would've been 5 up when we conceded.

 

[MikeeMike]

I thought Pogba was awful for most of the game. A couple of moments of quality, but overall sloppy and dwelled on the ball too much.

I thought this too. Many comments saying he was contender for man of match. He got caught on the ball over and over. Sheff U doubled up on him whenever he got the ball.
He seemed to rally at the end though and desire was there. For me he is always looking for a “magical” pass. He gets closed down quick but doesnt opt for simple pass.
If we hit top spot in next 2 weeks it will be game on and I can see all players revved up

 

[KiD MoYeS]

Sheffield United are terrible, the scoreline flattered them. They will go down, they can't tackle which is just weird for a Premier League side. We made hard work of it but definitely deserved to win, far superior team. Keep winning and we could come out of the year in a strong position to get top four. Any talk of title challenging is far, far too early.

 

[P.Head]

I thought Lindelof had a good game though.

Right up there with Fernandez & Rashford, easily our best defensive player.

 

[BeforeKeanetherewasRobson]

I can only fo on the radio commentary but seemingly the same old questions keep resurfacing: a) What the hell does Ole say just before the team comes out. Game after game he says we started to slowly... and then we start too slowly. b) When is the management/players going to realise we aren't good enough to play it out from the back (the radio put their first goal down to this as part of Deano's mistake

Sounded as if Pogba had a good game but still tried to do too much and got us into trouble at times, while one again (again only from radio) Bruno was on form (when he isn't we aren't).

Looking to find somewhere to watch at least the goals; I wonder if they'll be on Football Focus on Saturday

Download the free United app. The goals are on there (always are after games, as well as loads of other stuff).

 

[justsomebloke]

General reflection: I think it's really hard to figure out just where we are right now. When you watch them play, there are recurring things that just doesn't look good. The dawdling around with the ball and the insistence on playing through the press without being very good at it. The positional lapses from the full backs. The swings in intensity, particularly in terms of movement when in possession. The lack of concentration at the start of games. The persistent conceding of the first goal.

But then again, we're now undefeated in six (not sure if anyone else has managed a streak like that this season, I doubt it), and have scored 3 goals in 3 straight away games. There's a mismatch between what the games make you feel, and the results. So, what gives? Are some of the things that don't look good in fact unavoidable side-effects from things that are required in order to enable us to be so proficient? Are things being looked at in the wrong way?

For instance, does it actually matter if we look offensively dominant only in limited spells, as long as we score three goals? And is the fact that we're able to score those goals in some way connected to doing things in a way that means we'll only look dominant in short spells? Maybe it's not such a bad idea after all to try to play through the press patiently - hold on to the ball and just wait for the good opportunities?

Maybe people more versed in tactics and patterns can tell better than I can. But the experts and pundits sound just as lost as I am. You hear mostly critical comments underway, but then we score three wonderful goals. And given how often and regularly that happens, it has to somehow be connected with style, shape and tactics, not just with the skills of individual players.

 

[Bilbo]

Wow, people actually getting carried over a win vs a shit team. Wow!

3-2 is a trash scoreline. Giving them cheap goals.

Thankfully they are so shit at finishing that they only managed to get 2 goals. We let them bypass our midfield and defense plenty of times it's embarrassing.

That said, good comeback win and an important win. The football is boring though, and once again, I got distracted doing other things while this game is live. It suck the joy out of you watching it seconds by seconds. Watching highlights is the only fun thing of this shit.

They had plenty of enough chances in open play, but thankfully their finishing is so repetitively shit, it's forgettable like flies.

Sheffield playing a way high defensive lines suit us it's suicide. Just why? Is Sheffield always play this way? No wonder they're so shit, it's embarrassingly easy to exploit and have a go, free attacking. We only score 3 is just trash.

Do you realise how you come across with posts like these?

 

[slyadams]

And DeGea is still a lot better than him both with shot stopping and distributing the ball, so why drop him?

Because if you look at De Gea’s performances over the past 18 months it’s hard to justify his place. Also looking to the future, if Henderson can step up it’s a position we don’t need to worry about for a long time.

 

[georgipep]

1 of Mata or VDB, and then James.

Personally I was itching to bring Rashford off as he was not doing his defensive duties and kept leaving Telles 2v1 - and that's exactly how they got their 2nd goal. Telles did a great recovery tackle but they ended up getting a cheap corner because Rashford didn't help him out.

Bringing on Mata, VDB and keeping Matic on the pitch is just too many slow players at once, especially when you want to counter attack. Seemed an odd decision but I guess Ole didn't expect the game to swing like that.

I wouldn't have subbed Rashford until the 80+ minute because without him we had no threat for Sheffield United's team to worry about. Ole was going to sub James on but saw we were under pressure and held to that sub. When we conceded, it was always going to be McT.

 

[flappyjay]

I thought Pogba was awful for most of the game. A couple of moments of quality, but overall sloppy and dwelled on the ball too much.

I hope it's Scott and Fred vs Leeds. We are going to need runners in that midfield

 

[simplyared]

Seeing Mata come on for Mason doesn't get me excited. Nor does VDB tbh. MacT on the other hand I can go along with. Ole took an unecessary risk by weakening the team last night. He's lucky it didn't backfire on him!

 

[Adam-Utd]

I wouldn't have subbed Rashford until the 80+ minute because without him we had no threat for Sheffield United's team to worry about. Ole was going to sub James on but saw we were under pressure and held to that sub. When we conceded, it was always going to be McT.

I'm talking before he was making the last substitute.

putting 2 guys on that can't run and then leaving rashford on the wing where he was cheating - no wonder they were getting cross after cross into the box.

 

[big rons sovereign]

I thought we were poor tbh.

Luckily for some reason Sheffield United thought it was clever to play a high line for the whole game and then bring on Phil Jagielka 10 minutes in.

Pogba summed us up. The odd moment of undeniable brilliance scattered into 90 minutes of general, occasionally absurdly bad rubbish. No other team would concede that first goal and then in the same game play the bit of football that led to our third...and I don't even know if that's a compliment or a critcism.

Also picking Matic next to Pogba against a pressing side should be a sackable offence at this point. If you have to play Pogba you can't play Matic. I don't get why it's even a consideration at this point.

Thinly veiled ole out post. Sad really, rather than enjoy the win you've managed to turn the whole thing into one big negative.

 

[mancan92]

Because some of the posters shit posting about De Gea are mostly posting nonsense because of the shiny new toy on bench.
Hendo is a good gk and I really hope he does very well and becomes a permanent gk here and in english NT, but there is absolutely no need to throw dirt on De Gea to big up Hendo. Both can very well coexist.

Nothing to do with that Dave is a goal keeper with 10+ years of experience him making mistakes is not the same as henderson its not a comparison

 

[mancan92]

What we learned today:
De Gea is still our #1, Henderson is the future, but not yet.
Our center backs are still slow, not very good in the air, only Lindelof is good on the ball, Maguire is no captain, But: they are not terrible and are always ready to play.
Telles is an improvement to back up Shaw, but Shaw is better. This is the type of match to use Telles.
WBA is good in defense (no one slides better), but in an attacking match comes up a little short.
They really need to spend some training time on defending set pieces.
Pogba is great on the long passes, but does he get lost (along with the ball) when he gets in a crowd of two or more opponents.
Most the others were good and steady, with Rashford as MOM.

De gea made exactly the same mistake last season against Everton. So we did not learn anything like that.

 

[cyril C]

Leeds are the one of the best coached teams in the league. But as pretty much every team that’s played then has discovered they are actually a pretty average set of players. So they score 3 we score 5.

Sure, just remind me of Leipzig and Istanbul. Pretty average players.

 

[Skåre Willoch]

I hope it's Scott and Fred vs Leeds. We are going to need runners in that midfield

I actually hope it's Pogba, Fred and Bruno. With Leeds' naive approach to defending and gung ho attitude, he could/should have a field day. Pogba and Bruno shuold thrive against opponents like Leeds.

Of course it can backfire, but a lot of the criticism against Ole is his "defensive" approach playing two holding midfielders against supposedly inferior opponents.