Sky Sources : Blind and Mata set to leave this summer.

[stevoc]

I didn't rejoice as he imbalanced the squad by not signing a CB or striker. Whilst letting go of CBs and strikers. Not sure you were paying attention. But the Caf was in meltdown when we weren't signing a striker or CB near the end of August.

Well i was referring to people on here in general not you specifically mate. Loads of people were delighted last year and the year before when Van Gaal sold 10+ players. Many of those same people were complaining the squad was full of deadwood again just 6 months later

Also stop saying LVG done this or that. Mourinho isn't a fool when it comes to squad building. He's built a good squad whenever he has been. Its a totally different situation. We have a manager who has been assessing the squad basically since December. I am sure he has a clear picture of who he wants in and out. If he wants to get rid of Mata, Blind and Depay. So what? I trust Jose to bring in better players. Some would think we getting rid of peak Ferdinand, Keane and Giggs.

Bringing in better players than Blind and Mata in isn't the problem, i want that to happen. Our first XI last season was for the most part average but our squad was also in my opinion very light and too small. So i want players like Blind and Mata etc. to stay and become squad players for at least a year and give us the numbers to deal with injuries and the amount of games we will have. And 3-4 quality players brought in to replace them in the first team.

No point in my opinion selling players from such a small squad and having to bring in quality for the first XI but also good back-up players to replace decent ones already at the club. Makes no sense to me. United as a club have to start telling managers they have work with whats already here to an extent. Van Gaal was given way too much leeway in my opinion and wasted a shit load of money buying and selling too many players needlessly.

 

[Dante]

The only person who knows whom Mourinho wants to sell is Mourinho. And he'd never reveal his plans to anyone at this stage, let alone the media. It won't be until after we've made some purchases that he'll look to start letting specific individuals go. Our squad is too small as it is for any of this to leaked. This entire story is clearly speculation masquerading as journalism.

 

[TwoSheds]

Kind of depends what CMs we plan on adding really. Blind's better than Rojo at both CB and LB but I can see why a manager wouldn't really want to play him in the middle when he very rarely wins headers against opposing strikers.

For my money he should replace Carrick in the midfield, but then if Mourinho likes Schneiderlin and plans to bring in another DM and Pogba then Blind'll struggle for games there too. And we don't really need a 3rd choice left back considering Darmian can cover there and, God forbid, Rojo might stay.

Mata is done you'd assume.

 

[3KDré]

How many of our players are over 6ft anyway?
Smalling, Fellaini, Schneiderlin ... anyone else? Shaw, Martial?

6 ft inclusive:

Fosu-Mensah
Borthwick-Jackson
Shaw
Martial
Carrick
Darmian
Smalling
Fellaini
De Gea
Rojo
BFS
Januzaj
Schneiderlin
RASHFORD
Herrera
McNair

May have missed out a few + our youth players.

 

[Bojan11]

The only person who knows whom Mourinho wants to sell is Mourinho. And he'd never reveal his plans to anyone at this stage, let alone the media. It won't be until after we've made some purchases that he'll look to start letting specific individuals go. Our squad is too small as it is for any of this to leaked. This entire story is clearly speculation masquerading as journalism.

That and we need to trust what he does.

Everyone besides DDG and Martial has a reason that they could be shown the door.

So I am not bothered who leaves besides those two. For me we need to build a good starting 11 before worrying about the squad.

 

[caid]

6 ft inclusive:

Fosu-Mensah
Borthwick-Jackson
Shaw
Martial
Carrick
Darmian
Smalling
Fellaini
De Gea
Rojo
BFS
Januzaj
Schneiderlin
RASHFORD
Herrera
McNair

May have missed out a few + our youth players.

Jeez,
Why are we so shit and over dependent on fellaini on corners so?

 

[JPRouve]

The only person who knows whom Mourinho wants to sell is Mourinho. And he'd never reveal his plans to anyone at this stage, let alone the media. It won't be until after we've made some purchases that he'll look to start letting specific individuals go. Our squad is too small as it is for any of this to leaked. This entire story is clearly speculation masquerading as journalism.

This, it's fun to speculate but lets not take it too seriously.

 

[stevoc]

That was more down to LVGs tactic.

What was down to Van Gaal's tactics? The team playing poorly and not looking at all comfortable. Yes maybe but also so many players coming in and out and players being played out of position every week contributed to it as well.

Your post again doesn't make sense. We can't afford a clear out. What if Depay and Mata are poor again? Their value is going to drop even lower and we going to make a bigger loss. So how is that good business sense? Good business is if the manager doesn't rate the player, get rid of him and make the small loss.

And what if they're not? I feel a lot of the poor showings from players last year was down to Van Gaal continually playing people out of position. And poor man management. We need to give players signed only a year ago for huge fees more time to settle and prove themselves.

None of Schweinsteiger, Schneiderlin, Darmian and Depay had great seasons. What should we do sell them all at a loss? That would be great business wouldn't it.

Again Real Madrid didn't look like a team when Mourinho arrived. They were a bunch of superstars thrown together. Chelsea signed 6 players the summer Mourinho came.

Inter signed Pandev, Eto, Sneidjer, Lucio, Motta, Milito and Armautovic in 2009. Guess who coached them? 6 of those players started in the champions league final. So Mourinho isn't stupid. He can build a squad with 6 or 7 in. He's proved that at every club.

Again buying players is not what i am objecting to it's the mass clear outs we have had the last two summers that i think are disruptive.

You think Guardiola is going to be happy with the City squad? Expect him to get rid of the likes of Mangala, Delph, Bony, Navas and Kolorov.

I neither know nor care what Guardiola will do with City's squad. But i imagine if he did have a clear out it's probably due. City haven't sold 24-25 players like we have in the last 2 years so they could do with one.

 

[JPRouve]

Jeez,
Why are we so shit and over dependent on fellaini on corners so?

We are not, that's just a poor excuse to put him on the field.

 

[DomesticTadpole]

We are not, that's just a poor excuse to put him on the field.

Might be that they weren't coached properly to defend set pieces etc. That the wrong person is marking someone and bad positioning. If Jose can drill them properly it could improve.

 

[JPRouve]

Might be that they weren't coached properly to defend set pieces etc. That the wrong person is marking someone and bad positioning. If Jose can drill them properly it could improve.

I don't know why we are not good at it, but in the air Fellaini isn't better than Smalling or Rojo. Fellaini was on the field because the manager rated his overall packacge not because of his non existent aerial prowesses.

 

[YouOnlyLiveTwice]

I don't know why we are not good at it, but in the air Fellaini isn't better than Smalling or Rojo. Fellaini was on the field because the manager rated his overall packacge not because of his non existent aerial prowesses.

Fellaini was clearly vital for us when defending set pieces.

 

[Bojan11]

What was down to Van Gaal's tactics? The team playing poorly and not looking at all comfortable. Yes maybe but also so many players coming in and out and players being played out of position every week contributed to it as well.



And what if they're not? I feel a lot of the poor showings from players last year was down to Van Gaal continually playing people out of position. And poor man management. We need to give players signed only a year ago for huge fees more time to settle and prove themselves.

None of Schweinsteiger, Schneiderlin, Darmian and Depay had great seasons. What should we do sell them all at a loss? That would be great business wouldn't it.



Again buying players is not what i am objecting to it's the mass clear outs we have had the last two summers that i think are disruptive.



I neither know nor care what Guardiola will do with City's squad. But i imagine if he did have a clear out it's probably due. City haven't sold 24-25 players like we have in the last 2 years so they could do with one.

Van Gaal sold and bought so many players that at times especially last season it looked like a bunch of strangers out there who had never played together before.

You posted that. That was down to Van Gaal and his piss poor tactics.

Did Chelsea or Inter look like strangers after signing whole new teams under Mourinho? It is about the quality of players you sign. If Mourinho signs 6 or 7 players then I trust him to get that team challenging for titles.

Mata has had two and half seasons to show he can be a star here. When Rooney was out injured, he had his chance to show he can play as number 10 and failed. Van Gaal even stupidly took him off for Nick Powell!

Mata has the least excuses. He has played most games and had already played in the premier league. It just hasn't happened for him at Man Utd. I know people talk about lack of movement from strikers. But at Chelsea he was playing with Torres who was past his best and yet he was their best player by miles. Also he wasn't happy being on the bench at Chelsea. What makes you think he will be here? Saying he is professionally contracted means nothing. As we seen that unhappy players can be disruptive. Mata played well under AVB, who has a similar style to LVG.

What is Depay good at? Serious question. I don't think he is fast or can dribble past players consistently like Martial.

We have never got good fees for players anyway. Do you think we will get the money back for Fellaini or Rojo? Top clubs rarely get good fees when they binning players.

Like I said. Lets improve the starting 11 before worrying about the squad. It is atleast 4 or 5 players short of quality. Jose prefers playing the same 11 rather than constantly changing.

 

[JPRouve]

Fellaini was clearly vital for us when defending set pieces.

He was not, Fellaini has less clearances than Rojo and almost as many as Martial. Rojo is considered shite by most and Martial isn't hailed for his defensive prowesses. Though someone said that Fellaini was a nuisance in the opposing box and I think that it's fair to say that he is also a nuisance in our box but that doesn't make him vital, just useful.

Edit: Smalling has been far more busy and a lot more efficient.

 

[Hugh Jass]

depay has been a real disappointment. he looks very nervous in matches as if he cant take the heat. then when we were playing poor opposition his confidence grew. what that spells for me is that he doesnt have the mentality for games. i dont know, maybe mou could get inside his head and make him believe. but i wouldnt be surprized if he and mata are ditched. id keep blind. hes a useful player to have. i remember saying to a friend that if blind was a couple of inches taller hed be a beast and a bit more speed.

 

[gregor]

I won't miss Mata if he goes, but Blind should stay. He can be quality back-up option for at least three positions (CB, LB and DM).

But as others have said, we should first get rid of deadwood (Rojo, Fellaini etc.).

 

[jesperjaap]

I quite like players like carrick and i dont think players like him are that common.



He gave an interview after the sacking and he wasn't impressed.



Unless were going out and buying half a dozen players (yet again) then some of these guys are going to be needed.
Personally, i'd rather we bought just 3 players, 4 at most. And i dont think any of them would be replacing our current players as opposed to supplementing them.
Maybe replace Phil Jones but i'd be inclined to give him one more year.
I just dont have the appetite for a complete overhaul of the squad. I'd rather give the players we've just bought a chance to settle a tiny bit.

Why would you want to sign players to supplement a squad that bar DeGea hasnt been good enough consistantly since Ferguson under two managers to be anywhere near challenging for the title? Apart from Shaw and Martial just about every signing has been poor. We can all talk about poor management and tactics, but a proportion of the blame has to lie with the players

 

[jesperjaap]

To be fair the only thing almost as exciting as a big name signing for your average muppet is a good old squad clear out. Because it could spark a huge spending spree and influx of new signings.

Last year Van Gaal shipped out 10-12 players and loads of them rejoiced, ''Yay finally we get rid of all the deadwood''. Six months later ''This squad is so full of deadwood, we need a good clear out''.

I think apart from one or two such as Welbeck, he was right to get rid of most of the players he did. The problem was he signed a couple of brilliant players only by name due to injuries in Falcao and Schweinsteiger, didnt use DiMaria properly who didnt settle either and also signed a few average players like Blind, Schneiderlin. Moyes did a similar thing wasting money on a goo dplayer in Mata who didnt fit what we needed, and an average one in Fellaini whose attributes are pretty much against the whole ethos of our football.

Personally I would be all for 3/4 stellar signings and 3/4 potential or squad signings and 7/8 players out but I think it wil be more likely 4-5 max each way. There arent that many players in the current squad I would be too fussed either way if they did leave to be honest, apart from keeping DeGea what is important is that Mourinho gets the right players in, if he gets 4 in 3 of them have to be really good rather than 1 each year which seems to have happened for a while now.

 

[caid]

Why would you want to sign players to supplement a squad that bar DeGea hasnt been good enough consistantly since Ferguson under two managers to be anywhere near challenging for the title? Apart from Shaw and Martial just about every signing has been poor. We can all talk about poor management and tactics, but a proportion of the blame has to lie with the players

Well for a start a large portion of this squad had nothing to do with Moyes or Van Gaals first year. I think half the problem is that we've had 3 squads in 3 years.
Second I think theres a lot more than 3 players in our team who are good enough to win a title. I dont think major reconstruction is needed or even helpful.
Buy a RW, MF and a CB give the half dozen players we bought last year a chance to settle and see what we need from there.

If we reach a worst case scenario with schweinsteiger, schneiderlin, hererra, carrick and blind
all failing in midfield then buy another midfielder in january or even next season and start letting some go
(some are bigger gambles than others but every one of them failing to create a decent partnership with a new midfield signing just seems unlikely to me tbh).

A striker to rotate with rashford would be nice too.

 

[jesperjaap]

Well for a start a large portion of this squad had nothing to do with Moyes or Van Gaals first year. I think half the problem is that we've had 3 squads in 3 years.
Second I think theres a lot more than 2 players in our team who are good enough to win a title. I dont think major reconstruction is needed or even helpful.
Buy a RW, MF and a CB give the half dozen players we bought last year a chance to settle and see what we need from there.

If we reach a worst case scenario with schweinsteiger, schneiderlin, hererra, carrick and blind
all failing in midfield then buy another midfielder in january or even next season and start letting some go
(some are bigger gambles than others but every one of them failing to create a decent partnership with a new midfield signing just seems unlikely to me tbh).

A striker to rotate with rashford would be nice too.

Sorry, I misunderstood what you meant by supplement, I took it as getting players for the squad rather than team. I actually agree with you then to a degree. Though I disagree with people saying we have a small bare squad, we dont we have a small bare first eleven. If for example we sign a central midfielder that is added to people that can play there like you mentioned but then add in some of the promising youngsters too and you have 7/8 central midfielders and a new signing, similar at centre back, left back, we actually have a lot of players for each position when you include utility ones, we just dont have quality ones in several positions. I would like to see a cb, MF or 2, a RW and either a striker or a left winger and move Martial back up front. Rashford has been a revelation but 2nd season is always tougher and we cant rely on him for the season. So for me 5 in 5 out

 

[Nighteyes]

Next year will be Memphis' fork in the road year imo - which will decide whether he goes down the Quaresma or Ronaldo road for the rest of his career.

 

[Raoul]

It's self explanatory really .

 

[caid]

Sorry, I misunderstood what you meant by supplement, I took it as getting players for the squad rather than team. I actually agree with you then to a degree. Though I disagree with people saying we have a small bare squad, we dont we have a small bare first eleven. If for example we sign a central midfielder that is added to people that can play there like you mentioned but then add in some of the promising youngsters too and you have 7/8 central midfielders and a new signing, similar at centre back, left back, we actually have a lot of players for each position when you include utility ones, we just dont have quality ones in several positions. I would like to see a cb, MF or 2, a RW and either a striker or a left winger and move Martial back up front. Rashford has been a revelation but 2nd season is always tougher and we cant rely on him for the season. So for me 5 in 5 out

Zlatan sounds like a pretty ideal option to rotate with rashford to me. Or a similar player.
I think long term we might need 2 midfielders but i'd be happy with one WC one and dont think theres any point in trading in our current decent players for other decent players.
Long term i'd probably let go of 2 out of Blind, Schneiderlin and Herrera but i'd have a hard time picking between them and short term they're good enough to do a job.
I wouldn't complain if we got in two great players but it just sounds like a tall order to me.

I'd be happy with one cb. Rojo is fine as cover imio. Lousy full back but i think hes ok at cb. Jones possibly being fit for 5 mins would give us good cover too.
I'm not really worried about our defence.

 

[C'est Moi Cantona]

There must be a profit for us in Blind, although he clearly has his limitations he's done well for us, surely we can make a profit on this one for change. Mata will no doubt be a big loss.

Wouldn't rule out them both staying in the prem given the money there is, Mata to Spurs, and Blind to Southampton maybe.

 

[Spock]

I honestly think he will bring in 6 or 7 new players. The club is going to give him a war chest this summer, I can foresee us spending £200m plus. I agree Blind is a decent squad player, but I still think Jose would prefer someone with more speed and physicality. I'd say Blind could carve out a decent career in the PL at a mid table side if we sell him. As that's the level we've been for most of this season with him starting.

I can't disagree with anything you've written as I have no knowledge to agree or disagree with the assertion that Jose will be given 200m plus to spend. But I think you've underestimated Blind as a footballer. He certainly doesn't have top speed or brute strength but he's nevertheless a player who's comfortable in all three thirds of the pitch, has experience in this league and he has a very good head about him. Blind should only be sold if in fact we're at least otherwise "two deep" in midfield and on the back line. Right now, we're nowhere close to that.

 

[Spock]

Paddy McNair can also play at centre half, full back and defensive midfield...

Shaw, Borthwick-Jackson, Smalling, Rojo, Jones, McNair, Fosu-Mensah, Carrick, Sneiderlin, Schweinsteiger can all play in Blind's positions. Mourinho is also planning to buy a centre half and centre midfielder by all accounts. Where does Blind fit in?

I am not lobbying for Blind to be sold. I'm just saying, first, its not true that there is nobody else in the squad who can cover the places Blind plays. Second, if we are serious about giving youth a chance, some of the senior players will have to be moved on. Blind, being less physically imposing than many of the players listed above, is a logical candidate to be moved on given Mou's style. If it leads to Borthwick-Jackson, McNair and Fosu-Mensah getting more chances is it so terrible that Blind leaves..?

But I think we can agree that Blind > McNair today. And I actually like McNair and see a bright future for him, but he's just not there yet.

I'm sure there's a thread out there where this point better fits, but we shouldn't get too carried away with youth. When they shine you let them play, but we aspire to lift the prem trophy next season and with all due respect we're not going to do that by starting our youth players on a regular basis.

Bo-Jack definitely sets up nicely as Shaw's backup, but I really can see Mourinho preferring the experience of Blind over the potential of Bo-Jack. At least against certain opponents. Where Bo-Jack excels is his crossing ability but overall Blind is the better offensive weapon and his reading of the game is simply better.

Fosu-Mensah is destined for all world greatness IMHO so if he's the reason Blind has to go I'm on board. The only point I'd make about that, and this applies to Rashford and Bo-Jack as well, is that Mourinho generally prefers experience to potential. For Mourinho, the game is as much mental as it is physical and one quality Blind has in abundance is experience and poise. TFM is a monster, a young Pogba-like prospect for us, but he's inexperienced (still 18, I believe) and will be prone to the oddball critical mistake, such as the pk he coughed up against Everton. Sure, TFM actually got the ball and it was a bad pk call but he took a bad risk with that kind of tackle in the box. I see only great things in his future but I wouldn't expect to see him on a regular basis next season. He's not ready to be a player we can rely on every week.

 

[stevoc]

You posted that. That was down to Van Gaal and his piss poor tactics.

Perhaps in part yes, but in my opinion it was mostly down to having so many new players in the squad in such a short space of time. And playing way to many players consistently out of their natural positions.

Did Chelsea or Inter look like strangers after signing whole new teams under Mourinho? It is about the quality of players you sign. If Mourinho signs 6 or 7 players then I trust him to get that team challenging for titles.

Like I said. Lets improve the starting 11 before worrying about the squad. It is atleast 4 or 5 players short of quality. Jose prefers playing the same 11 rather than constantly changing.

Again mate and i don't know if i am not articulating myself very well, which is a possibility but i have said it now several times in simple terms that i have no problems with us bringing in 4-5-6 new players. We need that, my problem is selling too many. Right now we need 5-6 players as you say, but if we sell 4-5 then obviously they will need replaced as well. So we are now needing to sign 10-12 players, can you see where i'm coming from now?

Yes lets sign quality players for the first XI i agree and worry about the rest of the squad in January or next summer when we can slowly replace certain players. Instead of trying to do it all in one go again like LVG tried to do.

Mata has the least excuses. He has played most games and had already played in the premier league. It just hasn't happened for him at Man Utd. I know people talk about lack of movement from strikers. But at Chelsea he was playing with Torres who was past his best and yet he was their best player by miles. Also he wasn't happy being on the bench at Chelsea. What makes you think he will be here? Saying he is professionally contracted means nothing. As we seen that unhappy players can be disruptive. Mata played well under AVB, who has a similar style to LVG.

What is Depay good at? Serious question. I don't think he is fast or can dribble past players consistently like Martial.

Mata to be fair like so many of our poor performers has rarely got a decent run in his best position, when he was played there for a run after Xmas he looked good. But before long he was shunted out to the wing again.

On Depay he obviously performed well enough for lots of big clubs to be willing to pay £25m for him. He obviously doesn't suit playing in a possession side, one bad season is not nearly enough time to write a young player off. If he's is poor next season again as Martials back-up then we sell him then.

 

[stevoc]

I think apart from one or two such as Welbeck, he was right to get rid of most of the players he did. The problem was he signed a couple of brilliant players only by name due to injuries in Falcao and Schweinsteiger, didnt use DiMaria properly who didnt settle either and also signed a few average players like Blind, Schneiderlin. Moyes did a similar thing wasting money on a goo dplayer in Mata who didnt fit what we needed, and an average one in Fellaini whose attributes are pretty much against the whole ethos of our football.

Personally I would be all for 3/4 stellar signings and 3/4 potential or squad signings and 7/8 players out but I think it wil be more likely 4-5 max each way. There arent that many players in the current squad I would be too fussed either way if they did leave to be honest, apart from keeping DeGea what is important is that Mourinho gets the right players in, if he gets 4 in 3 of them have to be really good rather than 1 each year which seems to have happened for a while now.

Van Gaal sold or released over 20 players, most of them were the right decisions. But for me 4 or 5 of them could have been kept to give us the numbers in the squad we sorely missed this last season.

We sold way too many players in too short a space of time, and i agree made too many poor or pointless signings. In general i think he poorly managed the squad rebuild in general, loads of money spent to create a fairly mediocre squad that is also small and lacking strength in depth in certain areas.

I also hope we bring in 4-5 quality players for the first XI this summer but keep the players who have been first teamers under LVG as squad players for a year at least.

 

[caid]

Van Gaal sold or released over 20 players, most of them were the right decisions. But for me 4 or 5 of them could have been kept to give us the numbers in the squad we sorely missed this last season.

We sold way too many players in too short a space of time, and i agree made too many poor or pointless signings. In general i think he poorly managed the squad rebuild in general, loads of money spent to create a fairly mediocre squad that is also small and lacking strength in depth in certain areas.

I also hope we bring in 4-5 quality players for the first XI this summer but keep the players who have been first teamers under LVG as squad players for a year at least.

I dont know.

Not having Hernandez around this season hurt us a fair bit. But it opened the door to Rashford and briefly Will Keane.
It wasn't a completely pointless exercise.
Di Maria not getting replaced opened the door to Lingard, who's done as good a job as ... pedro for instance would have.
And to be fair young was doing a pretty good job on the wing the previous season, losing him to injury didn't help matters.

We have enough youth at this point though. I'd be filling the holes around them guys with experienced players at or near their peak ideally.
De Gea and Smalling are a good start.

 

[stevoc]

I dont know.

Not having Hernandez around this season hurt us a fair bit. But it opened the door to Rashford and briefly Will Keane.
It wasn't a completely pointless exercise.
Di Maria not getting replaced opened the door to Lingard, who's done as good a job as ... pedro for instance would have.
And to be fair young was doing a pretty good job on the wing the previous season, losing him to injury didn't help matters.

We have enough youth at this point though. I'd be filling the holes around them guys with experienced players at or near their peak ideally.
De Gea and Smalling are a good start.

Rashford has done great but let's not forget he didn't make his debut until 25th Febuary and only then because we had a mountain of injuries, so between August and basically March we could have done with an experienced striker capable of 10-15 goals. Had we had that striker we probably would have qualified for the CL. And who's to say Rashford wouldn't have emerged anyway.

Allowing Di Maria to leave was a big mistake in my opinion, saying that his sale opened the door for Lingard while true isn't exactly a positive. Di Maira vs Lingard isn't even close, again with ADM available for us all last season i suspect he would have scored/created more than Lingard (lets be honest way more) and as above it's very likely we would have qualified for the CL.

I agree though we now need some quality experienced players for the first XI.

 

[caid]

Rashford has done great but let's not forget he didn't make his debut until 25th Febuary and only then because we had a mountain of injuries, so between August and basically March we could have done with an experienced striker capable of 10-15 goals. Had we had that striker we probably would have qualified for the CL. And who's to say Rashford wouldn't have emerged anyway.

Allowing Di Maria to leave was a big mistake in my opinion, saying that his sale opened the door for Lingard while true isn't exactly a positive. Di Maira vs Lingard isn't even close, again with ADM available for us all last season i suspect he would have scored/created more than Lingard (lets be honest way more) and as above it's very likely we would have qualified for the CL.

I agree though we now need some quality experienced players for the first XI.

I dont tbh,
I find it hard to miss a winger who looked outclassed by young ... hell mata looked better on the wing than him.

 

[drunkmonkmeth]

i think its just speculation because of the type of players they both are.. If barca want blind though he'd fit in well and i think jose would let him go.

 

[WR10]

Mata is the best player in his position and Blind is a unique central defender that along with Smalling and De Gea created a formidable defence

 

[Sereques]

Do you guys really believe Mourinho became the manager of Manchester United and 3 days later, he's already briefing the press on the players he will sell after meeting the team zero times?

Baffling.

 

[Sarni]

Far less likely than internet experts on a football forum being full of shit about a player.

We should be signing Chygrynski to bolster our defence then. Oh, and Song would compliment our midfield very, very well. Him providing the ball to Keirrison will be amazing!

 

[Jaybomb]

I dont tbh,
I find it hard to miss a winger who looked outclassed by young ... hell mata looked better on the wing than him.

Outclassed by Young? Young was only playing cause he was better at passing it back and playing it safe. Di Maria took risks and sometimes they paid off and sometimes they didn't. Van Gaal doesn't like his players taking men on as it risks losing possession. There's a reason he never played Memphis or Januzaj much.

Either way, Di Maria has more class in one toe than Young and Lingard have in their entire body. To suggest otherwise would be a ridiculous statement. And I like Jesse.

 

[VP89]

Outclassed by Young? Young was only playing cause he was better at passing it back and playing it safe. Di Maria took risks and sometimes they paid off and sometimes they didn't. Van Gaal doesn't like his players taking men on as it risks losing possession. There's a reason he never played Memphis or Januzaj much.

Either way, Di Maria has more class in one toe than Young and Lingard have in their entire body. To suggest otherwise would be a ridiculous statement. And I like Jesse.

Christ. If you don't think Young was better than Di Maria in his time here then you really need to re-watch the 14/15 season. Young didn't "play it safe" . He was a menace down that flank and could complete 5 yard passes. Di Maria often couldn't even string together 3 passes in a row. He was extremely poor after a great start for us.

 

[stevoc]

I dont tbh,
I find it hard to miss a winger who looked outclassed by young ... hell mata looked better on the wing than him.

I don't miss him either, but the team certainly did.

Last season Young and Mata had 10 assists in 52 starts between them in all comps.

This season Lingard had 3 from 32 starts, Mata had 8 from 46 starts and Young had 2 from 14 starts. So 13 assists from 92 combined starts.

While last year Di Maria despite not playing anywhere near his best had 12 from 24 starts. And this season he had 20 from 40 starts.

So not hard to discern which of these 4 players would have been the most useful to a team which struggled to create goals all season is it.

 

[Cassidy]

I don't miss him either, but the team certainly did.

Last season Young and Mata had 10 assists in 52 starts between them in all comps.

This season Lingard had 3 from 32 starts, Mata had 8 from 46 starts and Young had 2 from 14 starts. So 13 assists from 92 combined starts.

While last year Di Maria despite not playing anywhere near his best had 12 from 24 starts. And this season he had 20 from 40 starts.

So not hard to discern which of these 4 players would have been the most useful to a team which struggled to create goals all season is it.

Dude, please don't talk sense round here bro

 

[stevoc]

Outclassed by Young? Young was only playing cause he was better at passing it back and playing it safe. Di Maria took risks and sometimes they paid off and sometimes they didn't. Van Gaal doesn't like his players taking men on as it risks losing possession. There's a reason he never played Memphis or Januzaj much.

Either way, Di Maria has more class in one toe than Young and Lingard have in their entire body. To suggest otherwise would be a ridiculous statement. And I like Jesse.

Last year and even at the start of this season when people said this i had convinced myself it wasn't true as i didn't want to believe it but sadly it is.

Nani out the door twice at first opportunity, Di Maria misused and shunted around then dropped for Young, Herrera frozen out at times, Depay barely starting after Xmas, Periera rarely getting a sniff when other youngsters were being given opportunities left right and centre. And possibly the most frustrating one Januzaj shunted around every position on the pitch but his best the first year and pointlessly loaned out then brought back only to be given 5 minutes at LB before being frozen out as well.

Dude, please don't talk sense round here bro

I know i should know better by now, most of it falls on deaf ears.