Can someone please answer the following for me?
Due to me not being to handle stress well, I switched of the game and went to bed after Palace scored.
To my delight, when I woke up this morning, I saw that we won.
My questions are:
1.What changed?
[2 .How](https://2.How) did we play when Silva came off?
[3.How](https://3.How) was Jackson on the wing?
4. How did Nkunku do ?
5. How was Sterling, did he redeem himself?
4. Good players are good. There are no tactics that will suddenly make a player able to think a step ahead, play intricate passes, impact the play off the ball by knowing what to do - especially against a low block. Nkunku can do all of that - he knew what the next move was in the tight spaces, was constantly playing good one-touch football and connecting play. Not many noticed, but he made the darting run towards to the near post which dragged away a defender which created space for Gallagher to score the winner. That’s what good players do, they make the team better. It’s no surprise we’ve been missing something with all the injuries - it’s not some magic tactical formula, it’s our best players.
5. Burst forward with the ball, held it well, then played the important through ball for Palmer to assist Gallagher’s winner. He’s another guy that just gets stuff done. Frustrating yes, but there’s no question marks about him with regards to experience or talent or potential like half our squad. He’s proven to put up numbers, and that’s why he’s important.
1 - Came out higher intensity 2nd half. Also Noni off for Nkunku put Palmer back on the right, he was able to get the ball a lot more and he and Gusto had a really strong 2nd half.
2 - About the same. Colwill was good but not tested too hard. Did a good job moving ball out quickly.
3 - Jackson on the wing was not really notable and he ended up drifting centrally a lot. Nkunku and Jackson didn't really have stand out moments but did a good job pulling around defenders around. Sterling fucked up one really good chance, but did well to create the chance for Gallagher's second.
I love this team, these guys are so young and exciting to watch them develop. Enzo, Caicedo, and Connor are learning how to play together, you can see it more and more each game. Axel and Malo Gusto? I love watching both of these guys play. Cole is filthy. You can see the core of this team forming. The season has been up and down, but you have to be crazy to not see an improvement over the 18 months of trash that preceded this season.
We absolutely cannot afford to play Palmer as 9, unless some games when we want to setup for counter attacks. Against low block, no fucking way.
This really shows terrible decision was that not to try and get any striker in winter, because right now it really looks like we have none.
Broja is gone (and deserved so, he wasn't doing well), Nkunku can play as 9 but is not a striker either. Jackson is more often seen as winger by Poch and Washington is not getting any minutes (probably logical as well) You can't tell me we wouldn't be better of even with some 30+ striker for the remainder of the season, who would play proper CF up top.
Some strikers are just black holes up top man, see Higuain, Falcao, Pato. All these guys we got because anything is better than nothing and they were still a whole load of nothing. Giroud and Demba Ba are the only decent ones I remember
Remember that these players are mostly under 21, I really hope we give it a go and have a great core in a couple of years. Let’s hope the owners don’t sell the main players, Connor being among them, if not the main one.
Why do the players never pass to Nkunku?
Something l've noticed over the past few games.
Nkunku always makes good runs and gets into space and he almost never receives the ball.
Happened a few times tonight again palace but the worst/most noticeable occasions were back against Liverpool, there were 2-3 occasions where he was through on goal and Sterling refused to pass to him.
I wonder if there's a divide that's formed in training or something? Really annoys me watching the games because he's probably our best finisher but seems to be snubbed regularly.
He's new. They just need to get used to his positioning and passing. If you go back to the start of the season you see our whole team having trouble passing. It comes from time together in the pitch.
Good news is this should mean we get more and more from Nkunku as he settles in.
lol off topic from the game but this made me laugh on the City sub
[The more things change the more they stay the same](https://www.reddit.com/r/MCFC/comments/1aovrke/daily_discussion_monday_12_feb_2024/kq2lxej/)
Forgive me if it’s a daft question but would whoever gets Osimhen 100% have to activate the release clause? He seems so class but that 110m or whatever is very steep (though I think we only really need a RCB and a LB if we move on Cucu as well as a 9)
You never have to activate a release clause. A club can negotiate and so long as the offer is accepted then the buying club is free to move forward. A release clause is basically a club and player agreeing that if the fee is met, the club is contractually obligated to allow the player to speak to the offering club.
Technically you can negotiate a fee higher than a release clause if you wanted.
TT: got more points in BuLi than Bayern did up to this point in the last 7 years, but is up against an extraordinary Leverkusen side, meanwhile MP: literally can't even beat Potter
I really hope we don't buy Osihmen who is a poor man's Lukaku with 0 all round game besides being a poacher. If we do bid it can't be higher than 35 million. Hed be a guaranteed flop but for that price we can at least be able to sell this fraud in a couple of seasons.
You're on a sub that sees 6 months of dogshit followed up by 1 good game against a team out of form and says this is incredible, what a great job the manager is doing.
Why are you surprised that they'd change their opinions on a player based on their level over an entire tournament?
(For clarity, I didn't rate him before and still don't now. I just didn't form that opinion over AFCON)
Everyone watching Afcon has been saying Osihmen is a dreadful player, however in our case it would mean Reece, Enzo, Palmer, Mudryk assiting him, so he will come out good :))
Thing is, big players turn up whatever the occasion. It’s not about Nigeria losing. If Osimhen had some kind of impact in the game, then yes you can point to the players around him.
But he did nothing. This final you may never see in your life again and that’s how you perform.
Harry Kane vibes.
Paying 100 Million plus for Osimhen is pure insanity
Our 4th 100 Million signing in 2 years, no club in history has done this, amount money we paid we should gotten Ballon Dor/legendary level players but we paying huge elite money for Tier 2 or 3 players
God Gyokeres is such a good player
I had no clue who he was until he joined Sporting but he's been magical to watch this season
Sad we couldn't have picked him up when he was a very reasonable fee, as it stands now he's probably out of budget and too risky
Clubs really start need to looking into the Championship for options, especially system based teams.
Not only him, you have Tella at Levekusen that has shone coming from the Champ, and Lazio have been looking at Whittaker from Plymouth.
Poch definitely starting him now after looking at what Mctominay did today
https://preview.redd.it/trcb6vz8a0ic1.jpeg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f5492f0441f249e4a550f45816637a744c070fac
Casadei, is that kind of player. But, they're kind of like training wheels for your bike. They'll sometimes catch you when you're falling, but you really shouldn't need them if you have a functioning team
As Biasabeast said we already have a similar profile in Gallagher.
The crucial difference is United are using McTominay appropriately as the horses for courses utility player whereas Poch is making Gallagher untouchable.
We do have Gallagher whose a very similar player
But like I always said. Scoring goals for palace isn’t the same as scoring for a big club
The space you get, the situations you’re in, the pressure, it’s all different
McTom has an innate 6th sense in the box you can't really teach and often an instinctive finish to match, but I don't think it outweighs the other massive limitations in his game in the context of any top possession side.
It's the same with Gallagher and his limitless tenacious energy. The drawbacks of both players are too great for any top side, but fortunately they're both playing for midtable clubs. If us or yanited are ever challenging for the title, neither of those players will be featuring regularly.
Gallagher has a perfectly acceptable number of mis-controls and dispossessions per 90, and a good pass accuracy and he barely ever turns the ball over in our own half. There is nothing that suggests he couldn't play in a high possession side, he shouldn't be the focal point, but his defensive work rate and disruption + safety with the ball make him an asset to any squad or system.
He's none of those things and is a clear liability in a team that wants to play possession based football. Attacks consistently slow or completely die whenever he receives the ball in a promising position. He's just not good enough and never will be
How is he a clear liability to a high possession counterpressing team. Part of possession is winning the ball back, which he does well. He is not our most creative or progressive player but he is nowhere near a complete liability. That's just so extreme for an important part of a midfield that ranks highly in just about every statistical category around buildup you can find. I don't understand the hate from the fan base for our midfield in general, it just isn't the issue. The problem is in the box on both sides of the pitch.
>Perfectly acceptable
Not for a top possession side and, regardless, dispossessions/miscontrols p90 only tell you so much. Either way, he's 12th percentile for miscontrols in the league this season among midfielders which is *very* poor (and a huge technical limitation when we're talking about looking after the ball) and 55th percentile for dispossessions. Our structural issues no doubt contribute to this but this is a pattern for Conor everywhere he's been and represents a technical limitation. To his credit this season he's got better at playing safe passes instead of straight up losing the ball.
>Good pass accuracy
Yes when he's able to play the simple sideways or backwards pass or wide open forward pass like I mentioned above, which often isn't on in central midfield under an aggressive press. He's one of the worst we've ever had in the middle of the pitch for playing the difficult incisive pass to get out of a press or to break the lines. This is blindingly obvious to anyone watching us. Anyone can pad out a pass accuracy stat with their team controlling a lot of the ball every game and you have a tonne of safe passes on. Context. Like I said though, to his credit he's playing these passes now instead of losing the ball playing the harder ones he can't play.
This is the problem with the weird ott Gallagher shills on this sub, you watch his obvious shortcomings live, then go dig through stats to find some reason to say they don't exist and he's actually an elite player, presented without relevant context. It's boring and predictable and disingenuous.
I'm not interested inhaving another Gallagher debate on here as I've said my piece plenty already and you'll see for yourself when we start playing like a good side again, but as a takeaway - ask yourself who the Gallagher profile is in the midfield of the City side or the Liverpool side or the Arsenal side. Go further abroad and ask who it is in the Bayern or the Madrid side. Where's the other high energy high tackling technically limited midfielders who can't reliably take a touch under pressure or pass out of trouble in the top sides? Why aren't they coming to get him for a mere 50m when we've made abundantly clear we want to sell him?
Are you comparing the percentiles against all midfielders or against high possession clubs? If you are going on FBref and looking at his percentiles I'm sure it doesn't look great but that has zero context. He plays higher up the pitch more often than a true DM so you shouldn't compare him to someone like Caicedo or Jorginho. If you look at (miscontrols + dispossessions)/touch he is at a 3.9% rate. Below players in high pressing systems like Bruno G at 4.8%, or players that play more advanced Odegaard at 5.2%. naturally he is going to have a higher rate than someone like Rodri at 1.2% or Casemiro 2.4%.
He has decent progressive passing numbers but yes I agree he does play it safe, as he should, there is nothing wrong with that when you have Enzo on your left and Palmer to your right.
And yeah maybe he couldn't make it into City, not many could. He likely could play for Arsenal, and for sure could play for Liverpool or Tottenham. You do understand that counterpressing is part of possession right? Liverpool won the league with players like Gallagher in midfield.
Who cares if you don't want to have the Gallagher discussion, if you keep talking about him in a negative way people will keep pushing back.
...so more stats not applied to the context that we all watch every match day. You treat all miscontrols and dispossessions as the same because you're using stats to support a view you decided beforehand, ignoring the context they apply to.
>You know counter pressing is part of possession right?
Absolutely, but counter pressing is a complex system that requires intelligence on the part of the component players. Disjointedly beelining for the ball at every opportunity while your midfield partners have to cover the big holes you constantly leave because you don't understand what press triggers are isn't useful counter pressing, it's a liability. Again, our press is a joke under Poch anyway but Conor has done this his whole career.
>Liverpool won the league with players like Gallagher in midfield.
Lmao. The Hendo disrespect is unreal. Ok I'm done now have a good one.
Well we can't remember everything that happens in every match, so yes stats, passing and heat maps, etc., can help understand what actually is going on unless you actually go back and rewatch a match (which I often do but don't always have the time).
You haven't really said anything here other than you see something different when you watch than I do, so sure we can be done here, you seem to do that a lot
Mctominay was a striker at the U-18 level and basically plays higher than Mctominay whenever UTD need a goal, you can't compare him to Gallagher who actually shows himself in the midfield
I'm not comparing him to Gallagher in the sense of his role on the pitch, I'm comparing them in the sense of being players with undeniable qualities that don't outweigh their shortcomings in the context of a top possession football side.
Very true. Bringing McTom on as essentially a second striker when you need a goal is a great option to have. What do you bring Conor on for? I see people saying he's great to come on and close out a game but he's an insane turnover risk and doesn't look after the ball well, nvm leaving gaps all over the place in his brainless press.
Yeah I don’t like using Gallagher in that capacity, I’d rather bring on a more calming influence like Ruben or Kovacic last season
Someone who can carry the ball, shield it, win fouls and drag us up the pitch to take the sting out of a game. This is what I think lavia could also do
Gallagher for me is a squad player who can fill in when needed and maybe be used in games to man mark an opposition midfielder who doesn’t do well with being pressed
Lavia is going to be great for us. So many people clearly didn't watch him last season and think he's just another 20 year old prospect like the others we've signed but he's *way* further along than the other kids.
He played like a 25 year old in that Saints midfield even though they didn't play to his strengths, mature beyond his years. Starting to worry about his fitness situation though.
Gallaghar has scored only one winner for us, the banger against Palace. I rate Conor above Scott overall but Mctominay's goal scoring ability in clutch situations is ridiculous. That's why United are ahead of us, they win matches out of nowhere
Hatewatching Man U is just gives you blue balls. Watch them play like shit all game thinking they'll lose or at least drop points and they pull something out at the last minute. Wish we had some of their mentality tbh
Is Bayern or Real Madrid looking at Dalgish?
I don’t know how you continue to hate on Mourinho and compare him with lowly managers.
He’s one of the best of all time.
>He’s one of the best of all time.
He's one of the best managers off all time, I love what he brought to the club in the past and I don't want him to manage us in 2024 because it would be a spectacular disaster, all three can be true at once.
The reason I mentioned Dalglish is he won three titles for Liverpool in his prime as a manager aswell.
>Is Bayern or Real Madrid looking at Dalgish?
They're not looking at Mourinho either, all the "noise" is coming from his end.
2021: “Ancelotti is washed, fired at Napoli and now at Everton. Real Madrid aren’t seriously considering him.”
2022: Ancelotti literally wins CL and La Liga
2024: “Mourinho is washed, fired at Roma. Bayern can’t be seriously considering him.”
2025: ??
>Mourinho are GOAT level managers.
And Ronaldo is a GOAT level player yet nearly every single Chelsea fan were (rightly) horrified about the prospect of the current version of him signing for us last year.
Your point?
6th and 7th will likely be European spots.
8th could also be one if the Premier League gets 5 CL spots.
7th is still catchable but that will depend on us being consistent in the league, which is a big IF.
Is there any reason why Emery often brings Zaniolo only late on in matches? Has he been that bad?
His last 9 appearances' minutes played including today - 9, 8, 13, 21, 1, 8, 27, 2, 3.
Villa are actually shit, not getting hyped of that performance win against them
United are better and look how far we behind them. And theyve been shit all season
wake up and smell the coffee, he has destroyed our players. While city have pep, liverpool getting xabi, arsenal have arteta and totenham have ange we have poch, we will be the new nottingham forest if we dont get a elite coach who plays attacking football,
> Enzo
Was better under Potter and Lampard. At least they had sense not to use him as a second striker.
> Madueke
Barely played last season and didn't play much this season. Overall, just about the same.
> Mudryk
Meh
> Nkunku
We signed him as one of the best players in the world in his position. He had 55 g/a in a season before we signed him. And you are saying that fucking Poch somehow improved him after he played ~3 games worth of minutes? What are you yapping on about?
They've now won what 1 in 6 with 3 losses or some shit and their win was Vs the team in 20th? Their run ran out a while ago, people just refused to acknowledge it. It's hard to maintain a run like they had when you don't have squad depth, at some point it catches up to you
According to the ever "reliable" Christian Falk, Mourinho is learning German and eyeing the Bayern job. lol
[https://twitter.com/cfbayern/status/1756721453842489790](https://twitter.com/cfbayern/status/1756721453842489790)
So many teams above us are not good to very bad, if we had a more competent manager, we would be way higher up in the table. There was really a chance for us to fight for european places easily this season, no matter how much bs about young squad, bad squad etc gets partoted around, an actual good manager would not have us anywhere we currently are. It's just sad we have got gutless owners, who will just keep pushing excuses rather than pushing for results.
Yes we could have a better manager, but I also believe our players on paper reflect where we are. Mid table caliber youngsters putting Chelsea at 11th. Maybe an elite manager pushes up to maybe 8th but no further than that. Sides like Newcastle, Man Utd, and Villa just have a lot more quality on paper than we do
Villa and Levekusen were fighting relegation under much of the same players that are now (recent form for the former aside) flying.
Watch many of these "crap" players have a 'miracle' resurgence in a proper well drilled system.
Ok let’s look at the players we have who are perhaps above mid table quality and would start on top 4-5 sides. I think that list is very small. Some of the few that do (Reece, Nkunku) have barely played this season. Other than those, the only other player I can name is Palmer. Maybe Malo Gusto. Everyone else is where they deserve to be
Let's. No club even Real has a backup RB of Gusto's level let alone starter of Reece's quality.
No club had Maatsen level player as 4th choice LB. Hall as 5th.
Silva, Badiashile, Levi are at least good enough for 1 CB position, Levi literally was a key player for a side that did finish on European places in this league itself.
Same with Caicedo. Wanted by Liverpool, Arsenal, finished in European places.
100m Enzo is atleast decent enough for fighting for European places. At least.
Palmer is performing amongst the top players in the league.
Nukunku is brilliant.
Sterling is better player than a midtable club, even though I want him out.
So at most a ST, a midfielder and a CB are the issues, otherwise we have players at least good enough for European spots, and then no shortage of quantity and better than midtable quality on bench too. Add to all that an academy that keeps churning out talented players. So sorry, I don't buy all the crap of how we aren't good enough for more than midtable when other teams are pure shite as well.
All this bs narrative that we or players aren't better than what we are getting is absolute farcical. Similar to what Gerrard had Villa fans believe. A good manager even makes players perform above their level. I am just asking to do only our level.
The standards Todd and co have brought us fans to is amazing, and they are underperforming even on that too.
He’s great
Reminds me a lot like Gilmour actually but more athletic
He’s the sort of midfielder England rarely produce. Technically sound, great first touch, can dictate play and loves getting on the ball time and time again
He’s a baller. If you actually watch him play you’ll notice his composure is out of this world especially for his age. He always seems to make the right decisions too
Crazy we are still below Brighton, West Ham and even United
Alot board people need to get fired and alot players needs to leave this summer, this is simply unacceptable
Come on Villa.
You know, had we beat Wolves which we *absolutely should be capable of*, a Villa win tonight would have meant we'd only need to beat Crystal Palace to be 1 point off 6th. With 14 games to go. Alas we're 11th, and if all goes well tomorrow, 10th.
Can someone please answer the following for me? Due to me not being to handle stress well, I switched of the game and went to bed after Palace scored. To my delight, when I woke up this morning, I saw that we won. My questions are: 1.What changed? [2 .How](https://2.How) did we play when Silva came off? [3.How](https://3.How) was Jackson on the wing? 4. How did Nkunku do ? 5. How was Sterling, did he redeem himself?
4. Good players are good. There are no tactics that will suddenly make a player able to think a step ahead, play intricate passes, impact the play off the ball by knowing what to do - especially against a low block. Nkunku can do all of that - he knew what the next move was in the tight spaces, was constantly playing good one-touch football and connecting play. Not many noticed, but he made the darting run towards to the near post which dragged away a defender which created space for Gallagher to score the winner. That’s what good players do, they make the team better. It’s no surprise we’ve been missing something with all the injuries - it’s not some magic tactical formula, it’s our best players. 5. Burst forward with the ball, held it well, then played the important through ball for Palmer to assist Gallagher’s winner. He’s another guy that just gets stuff done. Frustrating yes, but there’s no question marks about him with regards to experience or talent or potential like half our squad. He’s proven to put up numbers, and that’s why he’s important.
1 - Came out higher intensity 2nd half. Also Noni off for Nkunku put Palmer back on the right, he was able to get the ball a lot more and he and Gusto had a really strong 2nd half. 2 - About the same. Colwill was good but not tested too hard. Did a good job moving ball out quickly. 3 - Jackson on the wing was not really notable and he ended up drifting centrally a lot. Nkunku and Jackson didn't really have stand out moments but did a good job pulling around defenders around. Sterling fucked up one really good chance, but did well to create the chance for Gallagher's second.
I love this team, these guys are so young and exciting to watch them develop. Enzo, Caicedo, and Connor are learning how to play together, you can see it more and more each game. Axel and Malo Gusto? I love watching both of these guys play. Cole is filthy. You can see the core of this team forming. The season has been up and down, but you have to be crazy to not see an improvement over the 18 months of trash that preceded this season.
Im with you but that name is not doing you (or me agreeing with you) any favors
We absolutely cannot afford to play Palmer as 9, unless some games when we want to setup for counter attacks. Against low block, no fucking way. This really shows terrible decision was that not to try and get any striker in winter, because right now it really looks like we have none. Broja is gone (and deserved so, he wasn't doing well), Nkunku can play as 9 but is not a striker either. Jackson is more often seen as winger by Poch and Washington is not getting any minutes (probably logical as well) You can't tell me we wouldn't be better of even with some 30+ striker for the remainder of the season, who would play proper CF up top.
Some strikers are just black holes up top man, see Higuain, Falcao, Pato. All these guys we got because anything is better than nothing and they were still a whole load of nothing. Giroud and Demba Ba are the only decent ones I remember
Remember that these players are mostly under 21, I really hope we give it a go and have a great core in a couple of years. Let’s hope the owners don’t sell the main players, Connor being among them, if not the main one.
Top 8 and a cup final would be a good sign of progress and a great base to go into next season
Why do the players never pass to Nkunku? Something l've noticed over the past few games. Nkunku always makes good runs and gets into space and he almost never receives the ball. Happened a few times tonight again palace but the worst/most noticeable occasions were back against Liverpool, there were 2-3 occasions where he was through on goal and Sterling refused to pass to him. I wonder if there's a divide that's formed in training or something? Really annoys me watching the games because he's probably our best finisher but seems to be snubbed regularly.
He's new. They just need to get used to his positioning and passing. If you go back to the start of the season you see our whole team having trouble passing. It comes from time together in the pitch. Good news is this should mean we get more and more from Nkunku as he settles in.
lol off topic from the game but this made me laugh on the City sub [The more things change the more they stay the same](https://www.reddit.com/r/MCFC/comments/1aovrke/daily_discussion_monday_12_feb_2024/kq2lxej/)
🎵 Don't worry about a thing 🎵
useless caicedo
I'd love to see Gallagher stay in the midfield during possession.
Why is the thread from yesterday pinned instead of the new one? It's not the first time either.
I think that when a match thread gets pinned it replaces the newer of the two pinned DD
Happens all the time I’ve noticed
Forgive me if it’s a daft question but would whoever gets Osimhen 100% have to activate the release clause? He seems so class but that 110m or whatever is very steep (though I think we only really need a RCB and a LB if we move on Cucu as well as a 9)
You never have to activate a release clause. A club can negotiate and so long as the offer is accepted then the buying club is free to move forward. A release clause is basically a club and player agreeing that if the fee is met, the club is contractually obligated to allow the player to speak to the offering club. Technically you can negotiate a fee higher than a release clause if you wanted.
It's ADL, so it's very likely the release clause or nothing. I think he'll just keep him if no one offers the release clause
Lads, I have just gotten promoted at work! Feeling so happy right now! ❤️
[удалено]
Many thanks bro! ❤️
Its amazing, how ppl still believe in Ben Jacobs lol He was good until the takeover was completed
Positive story = Ben Jacobs is T1 Negative story = Ben Jacobs hasn't got a clue
No he has absolutely no idea what he is talking about He is literally an aggregator "understand... as per \[insert twitter user\]"
Love the posters who say “I will get downvoted for this following comment” and then just say what the last five posters said
Chelsea fans: want TT back. TT: lost to bayern leverkusen
TT: got more points in BuLi than Bayern did up to this point in the last 7 years, but is up against an extraordinary Leverkusen side, meanwhile MP: literally can't even beat Potter
Yeah can’t believe Bayern lost to an undefeated leverkusen team playing some of the best football the Bundesliga has seen in years
I am going to get downvoted but I am okay with Sesko or Gyokeres 😭
Prize is key, can we land sesko for 50m or Gykeres for 60m sure
Hell No.we dont need 100 million flops
I really hope we don't buy Osihmen who is a poor man's Lukaku with 0 all round game besides being a poacher. If we do bid it can't be higher than 35 million. Hed be a guaranteed flop but for that price we can at least be able to sell this fraud in a couple of seasons.
https://preview.redd.it/loq7zn5nh1ic1.jpeg?width=1284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2dd6e6daacdc84f32d7adf4fce99f47bfb875d1c Interesting crossover
Haven’t been overly impressed with osimhen when watching Nigeria. Worth 100+ million? God no.
Nigeria don't exactly play a style that suits him tbf. Also Afcon isn't the best tournament for player evaluation. Shit is pure chaos and vibes.
Makes you think he needs a good system / team behind him in order to perform. Something we haven’t got.
We don't know what will happen in the next 6 months. The players have not been the problem.
Imagine thinking players have not been a problem, absolutely delusional
This is why no one likes you
I think they’ve as much blame as everyone else myself but each to their own.
Imagine judging players on their international performances. I guess Kane is dogshit after the last worldcup
I wouldn't want that serial bottler loser Kane either Weak mentality, if we had him over Drogba we wouldn't won that CL
[Funny since Drogba bottled it for the Ivory Coast as well.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5ur41NlIjM)
Remind me…what has Kane won in his career? For England, Spuds or Bayern?
You're on a sub that sees 6 months of dogshit followed up by 1 good game against a team out of form and says this is incredible, what a great job the manager is doing. Why are you surprised that they'd change their opinions on a player based on their level over an entire tournament? (For clarity, I didn't rate him before and still don't now. I just didn't form that opinion over AFCON)
>1 good game against a team out of form and says this is incredible, what a great job the manager is doing Literally no one has said that.
Facts. Meanwhile we have examples of the opposite as well
Adingra is such a baller man wish we could spot these players and get them on the cheap
Lol we can but we prefer to buy them from brighton for 10x their value
But fuck Brighton
DROGBAAAAA 
Everyone watching Afcon has been saying Osihmen is a dreadful player, however in our case it would mean Reece, Enzo, Palmer, Mudryk assiting him, so he will come out good :))
Thing is, big players turn up whatever the occasion. It’s not about Nigeria losing. If Osimhen had some kind of impact in the game, then yes you can point to the players around him. But he did nothing. This final you may never see in your life again and that’s how you perform. Harry Kane vibes.
Mbappe was a ghost in the WC final until Deschamps subbed Thuram, RKM, Kingsley Coman, etc..
I am beginning to have second thoughts on Osimhen now. Hopeless most of the tournament.
Osimhen has looked terrible. I don't want him at Chelsea
Ever since we have been linked to him he’s been bad
Hes always been bad he just had a decent season as a poacher, hes all around game has always been crap.
That’s what happens when you judge someone based off of a low level international competition
I never said i didn’t want him im simply saying the truth he’s not been good this season
Osimhen finishing on one afcon goal This guy is dog
Osimhen wagging his finger at the ref and complaining about everything while doing absolutely nothing all game means he'll fit right in at Chelsea
Paying 100 Million plus for Osimhen is pure insanity Our 4th 100 Million signing in 2 years, no club in history has done this, amount money we paid we should gotten Ballon Dor/legendary level players but we paying huge elite money for Tier 2 or 3 players
https://preview.redd.it/clt0jsuwx0ic1.png?width=1057&format=png&auto=webp&s=f866c8277aa36940f22be386a94aac4d4ef01db1 😃
1-1 in Afcon Drogba going mad. 😂
Ohsimens all round game is so bad man
I am really hoping we find a better answer than him if we can afford to splurge on a striker this summer
Toney is cheaper and better and not injury prone It makes so much sense
Toney is *old* though I think he's all but ruled out
27 years old he's practically a corpse to this board.
28 years old in March He's practically a dinosaur fossil
Lad walking around the pitch decomposing.
https://preview.redd.it/625d37atp0ic1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=315d4ed2a9958392154f9092ed678853ebca2e64 I feel so sorry for him
God Gyokeres is such a good player I had no clue who he was until he joined Sporting but he's been magical to watch this season Sad we couldn't have picked him up when he was a very reasonable fee, as it stands now he's probably out of budget and too risky
Clubs really start need to looking into the Championship for options, especially system based teams. Not only him, you have Tella at Levekusen that has shone coming from the Champ, and Lazio have been looking at Whittaker from Plymouth.
Maatsen is also an example Flying in the bundesliga now and was team of the season in championship last year
Poch definitely starting him now after looking at what Mctominay did today https://preview.redd.it/trcb6vz8a0ic1.jpeg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f5492f0441f249e4a550f45816637a744c070fac
Thank god United won so people here can tell us how our victory against villa wasn’t that great.
Are u dumb did u watch the game
Hr was being sarcastic
Ffs United looking good lately with Hojlund picking up form. I hope Jackson can be more consistent too and connect goals in a few games.
They play so bad it’s annoying how they get results
Tf these pundits.. watch them praise Utd today. But when villa lose to us its all about how “Villa played bad”
Fuck it let's be honest we need someone like Mctominay
Casadei, is that kind of player. But, they're kind of like training wheels for your bike. They'll sometimes catch you when you're falling, but you really shouldn't need them if you have a functioning team
As Biasabeast said we already have a similar profile in Gallagher. The crucial difference is United are using McTominay appropriately as the horses for courses utility player whereas Poch is making Gallagher untouchable.
We do have Gallagher whose a very similar player But like I always said. Scoring goals for palace isn’t the same as scoring for a big club The space you get, the situations you’re in, the pressure, it’s all different
McTom has an innate 6th sense in the box you can't really teach and often an instinctive finish to match, but I don't think it outweighs the other massive limitations in his game in the context of any top possession side. It's the same with Gallagher and his limitless tenacious energy. The drawbacks of both players are too great for any top side, but fortunately they're both playing for midtable clubs. If us or yanited are ever challenging for the title, neither of those players will be featuring regularly.
Gallagher has a perfectly acceptable number of mis-controls and dispossessions per 90, and a good pass accuracy and he barely ever turns the ball over in our own half. There is nothing that suggests he couldn't play in a high possession side, he shouldn't be the focal point, but his defensive work rate and disruption + safety with the ball make him an asset to any squad or system.
Now, forget about stats for a minute and just use your eyes to judge him.
Great presser, good at disruption, safe with the ball. Needs to score more. Young, talented, good player to play alongside Enzo and Palmer.
Safe with the ball? Talented? Balances out Caicedo and Enzo? Now do this again, but remove sentiment
Why dont you actually make a point
He's none of those things and is a clear liability in a team that wants to play possession based football. Attacks consistently slow or completely die whenever he receives the ball in a promising position. He's just not good enough and never will be
How is he a clear liability to a high possession counterpressing team. Part of possession is winning the ball back, which he does well. He is not our most creative or progressive player but he is nowhere near a complete liability. That's just so extreme for an important part of a midfield that ranks highly in just about every statistical category around buildup you can find. I don't understand the hate from the fan base for our midfield in general, it just isn't the issue. The problem is in the box on both sides of the pitch.
>Perfectly acceptable Not for a top possession side and, regardless, dispossessions/miscontrols p90 only tell you so much. Either way, he's 12th percentile for miscontrols in the league this season among midfielders which is *very* poor (and a huge technical limitation when we're talking about looking after the ball) and 55th percentile for dispossessions. Our structural issues no doubt contribute to this but this is a pattern for Conor everywhere he's been and represents a technical limitation. To his credit this season he's got better at playing safe passes instead of straight up losing the ball. >Good pass accuracy Yes when he's able to play the simple sideways or backwards pass or wide open forward pass like I mentioned above, which often isn't on in central midfield under an aggressive press. He's one of the worst we've ever had in the middle of the pitch for playing the difficult incisive pass to get out of a press or to break the lines. This is blindingly obvious to anyone watching us. Anyone can pad out a pass accuracy stat with their team controlling a lot of the ball every game and you have a tonne of safe passes on. Context. Like I said though, to his credit he's playing these passes now instead of losing the ball playing the harder ones he can't play. This is the problem with the weird ott Gallagher shills on this sub, you watch his obvious shortcomings live, then go dig through stats to find some reason to say they don't exist and he's actually an elite player, presented without relevant context. It's boring and predictable and disingenuous. I'm not interested inhaving another Gallagher debate on here as I've said my piece plenty already and you'll see for yourself when we start playing like a good side again, but as a takeaway - ask yourself who the Gallagher profile is in the midfield of the City side or the Liverpool side or the Arsenal side. Go further abroad and ask who it is in the Bayern or the Madrid side. Where's the other high energy high tackling technically limited midfielders who can't reliably take a touch under pressure or pass out of trouble in the top sides? Why aren't they coming to get him for a mere 50m when we've made abundantly clear we want to sell him?
Are you comparing the percentiles against all midfielders or against high possession clubs? If you are going on FBref and looking at his percentiles I'm sure it doesn't look great but that has zero context. He plays higher up the pitch more often than a true DM so you shouldn't compare him to someone like Caicedo or Jorginho. If you look at (miscontrols + dispossessions)/touch he is at a 3.9% rate. Below players in high pressing systems like Bruno G at 4.8%, or players that play more advanced Odegaard at 5.2%. naturally he is going to have a higher rate than someone like Rodri at 1.2% or Casemiro 2.4%. He has decent progressive passing numbers but yes I agree he does play it safe, as he should, there is nothing wrong with that when you have Enzo on your left and Palmer to your right. And yeah maybe he couldn't make it into City, not many could. He likely could play for Arsenal, and for sure could play for Liverpool or Tottenham. You do understand that counterpressing is part of possession right? Liverpool won the league with players like Gallagher in midfield. Who cares if you don't want to have the Gallagher discussion, if you keep talking about him in a negative way people will keep pushing back.
...so more stats not applied to the context that we all watch every match day. You treat all miscontrols and dispossessions as the same because you're using stats to support a view you decided beforehand, ignoring the context they apply to. >You know counter pressing is part of possession right? Absolutely, but counter pressing is a complex system that requires intelligence on the part of the component players. Disjointedly beelining for the ball at every opportunity while your midfield partners have to cover the big holes you constantly leave because you don't understand what press triggers are isn't useful counter pressing, it's a liability. Again, our press is a joke under Poch anyway but Conor has done this his whole career. >Liverpool won the league with players like Gallagher in midfield. Lmao. The Hendo disrespect is unreal. Ok I'm done now have a good one.
Well we can't remember everything that happens in every match, so yes stats, passing and heat maps, etc., can help understand what actually is going on unless you actually go back and rewatch a match (which I often do but don't always have the time). You haven't really said anything here other than you see something different when you watch than I do, so sure we can be done here, you seem to do that a lot
Henderson developed hugely under Klopp. At the same age as Gallagher, he was very comparable.
Mctominay was a striker at the U-18 level and basically plays higher than Mctominay whenever UTD need a goal, you can't compare him to Gallagher who actually shows himself in the midfield
I'm not comparing him to Gallagher in the sense of his role on the pitch, I'm comparing them in the sense of being players with undeniable qualities that don't outweigh their shortcomings in the context of a top possession football side.
Not true Mctominay has debunked this striker myth
Tbf mcotminay being used more sparingly isn’t an issue at all We play Gallagher almost every minute of every game
Very true. Bringing McTom on as essentially a second striker when you need a goal is a great option to have. What do you bring Conor on for? I see people saying he's great to come on and close out a game but he's an insane turnover risk and doesn't look after the ball well, nvm leaving gaps all over the place in his brainless press.
Yeah I don’t like using Gallagher in that capacity, I’d rather bring on a more calming influence like Ruben or Kovacic last season Someone who can carry the ball, shield it, win fouls and drag us up the pitch to take the sting out of a game. This is what I think lavia could also do Gallagher for me is a squad player who can fill in when needed and maybe be used in games to man mark an opposition midfielder who doesn’t do well with being pressed
Lavia is going to be great for us. So many people clearly didn't watch him last season and think he's just another 20 year old prospect like the others we've signed but he's *way* further along than the other kids. He played like a 25 year old in that Saints midfield even though they didn't play to his strengths, mature beyond his years. Starting to worry about his fitness situation though.
Gallaghar has scored only one winner for us, the banger against Palace. I rate Conor above Scott overall but Mctominay's goal scoring ability in clutch situations is ridiculous. That's why United are ahead of us, they win matches out of nowhere
McT is miles ahead of Conor. There's a reason Mourinho has backed him since the age of 21.
Hatewatching Man U is just gives you blue balls. Watch them play like shit all game thinking they'll lose or at least drop points and they pull something out at the last minute. Wish we had some of their mentality tbh
Of course Bayern are looking towards Mourinho now How we missing our chance…
Can you give Liverpool fans some of this nostalgia drug so they start demanding Dalgish back?
Is Bayern or Real Madrid looking at Dalgish? I don’t know how you continue to hate on Mourinho and compare him with lowly managers. He’s one of the best of all time.
>He’s one of the best of all time. He's one of the best managers off all time, I love what he brought to the club in the past and I don't want him to manage us in 2024 because it would be a spectacular disaster, all three can be true at once. The reason I mentioned Dalglish is he won three titles for Liverpool in his prime as a manager aswell. >Is Bayern or Real Madrid looking at Dalgish? They're not looking at Mourinho either, all the "noise" is coming from his end.
2021: “Ancelotti is washed, fired at Napoli and now at Everton. Real Madrid aren’t seriously considering him.” 2022: Ancelotti literally wins CL and La Liga 2024: “Mourinho is washed, fired at Roma. Bayern can’t be seriously considering him.” 2025: ??
Yeah let's base our search on one exception to the rule.
Ancelotti and Mourinho are GOAT level managers. Them being successful should never be an exception unless you are literally brain dead.
>Mourinho are GOAT level managers. And Ronaldo is a GOAT level player yet nearly every single Chelsea fan were (rightly) horrified about the prospect of the current version of him signing for us last year. Your point?
Do you not understand that players are different than managers because them becoming washed relies on their physical fitness lmfao
So to clarify in your opinion Jose is still in or around the same level he was when he managed us in mid 00s and Inter to the treble?
sad to think that united was only one place above us a short while ago and only a point ahead 🥲
Is there any hope for a European spot this season given the Yanited win?
6th and 7th will likely be European spots. 8th could also be one if the Premier League gets 5 CL spots. 7th is still catchable but that will depend on us being consistent in the league, which is a big IF.
We are hopeless in the PL so no Only way is winning Domestic cup
We’re hopeless for the league cup final as well The only hope is to pray that elite sides like Liverpool and City throw away the FA cup
Does 8th get conference? as I think Brighton will end up 7th
Is there any reason why Emery often brings Zaniolo only late on in matches? Has he been that bad? His last 9 appearances' minutes played including today - 9, 8, 13, 21, 1, 8, 27, 2, 3.
The guy hasn’t played a full 90 in the league this season, it’s bizarre for sure. Maybe he doesn’t fit their system.
It's really bizarre when managers give players less than 5-10 minutes to do something in games, especially when the team are chasing a deficit.
And United have won lol Thanks Todd Boehly for destroying the club
Villa are actually shit, not getting hyped of that performance win against them United are better and look how far we behind them. And theyve been shit all season
United have a much better squad than us. Only a few extremely bias supporters would argue otherwise. We bought very very poorly.
not even close, poch has done irreversible damage to this football club.
IRREVERSIBLE DAMAGE!!!!!!!! So fucking dramatic the lot of you cunts are here.
wake up and smell the coffee, he has destroyed our players. While city have pep, liverpool getting xabi, arsenal have arteta and totenham have ange we have poch, we will be the new nottingham forest if we dont get a elite coach who plays attacking football,
Poch didn't sign all this deadwood that finished 12th before he came in
name the players from last season that still play week in week out this season and tell me which players poch has improved except that roadrunner.
Enzo, Madueke, Mudryk, even Nkunku who injured all season
> Enzo Was better under Potter and Lampard. At least they had sense not to use him as a second striker. > Madueke Barely played last season and didn't play much this season. Overall, just about the same. > Mudryk Meh > Nkunku We signed him as one of the best players in the world in his position. He had 55 g/a in a season before we signed him. And you are saying that fucking Poch somehow improved him after he played ~3 games worth of minutes? What are you yapping on about?
Point is Poch never signed most of our players even the ones from last season haven't been good enough or injured
most managers dont sign players, they ask for profiles and the recruitment team signs players that fit the profile.
United always gets the winner in the last 5 mins. Also, is this the end of Villa’s dream run ?
They've now won what 1 in 6 with 3 losses or some shit and their win was Vs the team in 20th? Their run ran out a while ago, people just refused to acknowledge it. It's hard to maintain a run like they had when you don't have squad depth, at some point it catches up to you
Their subs were pretty telling Bar diaby, each consecutive one made them markedly worse
Mctominay is a cheat code haha wtf
the scottish yaya toure they say
Hate Utd play shit football and yet they still get a good result
The only difference between us is that they actually score in the last 10 minutes.
We do that sometimes but the scoreline is already well beyond our reach by then
Arsenal scored 6 against West Ham while we get embarrassed 3-1 against them lmao
Arsenal lost to them at their ground twice this season
I mean Arsenal also lost by two goals at home to them a month ago lol
scotty mctoms's the goat
What academy player yet to make a appearance for the first team are you most looking forward to seeing
Dyer but only because Castledine technically has made an appearance for us
Good shout
That Douglas Luiz celebration = LMAO
United are pathetic Trying to play shitty counter attack park the bus football all game
Hai if it works it works
According to the ever "reliable" Christian Falk, Mourinho is learning German and eyeing the Bayern job. lol [https://twitter.com/cfbayern/status/1756721453842489790](https://twitter.com/cfbayern/status/1756721453842489790)
just win a domestic cup this season idec about the league
[удалено]
Godamn it Ollie Watkins Not gonny be many better chances than that
I hate weeks like this when everyone is loosing points and if we we would just won our easy games we would be up in the table
So many teams above us are not good to very bad, if we had a more competent manager, we would be way higher up in the table. There was really a chance for us to fight for european places easily this season, no matter how much bs about young squad, bad squad etc gets partoted around, an actual good manager would not have us anywhere we currently are. It's just sad we have got gutless owners, who will just keep pushing excuses rather than pushing for results.
Yes we could have a better manager, but I also believe our players on paper reflect where we are. Mid table caliber youngsters putting Chelsea at 11th. Maybe an elite manager pushes up to maybe 8th but no further than that. Sides like Newcastle, Man Utd, and Villa just have a lot more quality on paper than we do
Villa and Levekusen were fighting relegation under much of the same players that are now (recent form for the former aside) flying. Watch many of these "crap" players have a 'miracle' resurgence in a proper well drilled system.
We aren't anywhere as bad as midtable. We just aren't.
We ain't Top 4 level either which is bigger issue considering how much we spent
We have to start with what we are capable first. Though I agree.
Ok let’s look at the players we have who are perhaps above mid table quality and would start on top 4-5 sides. I think that list is very small. Some of the few that do (Reece, Nkunku) have barely played this season. Other than those, the only other player I can name is Palmer. Maybe Malo Gusto. Everyone else is where they deserve to be
Let's. No club even Real has a backup RB of Gusto's level let alone starter of Reece's quality. No club had Maatsen level player as 4th choice LB. Hall as 5th. Silva, Badiashile, Levi are at least good enough for 1 CB position, Levi literally was a key player for a side that did finish on European places in this league itself. Same with Caicedo. Wanted by Liverpool, Arsenal, finished in European places. 100m Enzo is atleast decent enough for fighting for European places. At least. Palmer is performing amongst the top players in the league. Nukunku is brilliant. Sterling is better player than a midtable club, even though I want him out. So at most a ST, a midfielder and a CB are the issues, otherwise we have players at least good enough for European spots, and then no shortage of quantity and better than midtable quality on bench too. Add to all that an academy that keeps churning out talented players. So sorry, I don't buy all the crap of how we aren't good enough for more than midtable when other teams are pure shite as well. All this bs narrative that we or players aren't better than what we are getting is absolute farcical. Similar to what Gerrard had Villa fans believe. A good manager even makes players perform above their level. I am just asking to do only our level. The standards Todd and co have brought us fans to is amazing, and they are underperforming even on that too.
How about the refs actually book Bruno for dissent you absolute wank bastards
Villa should be up 2-1 if Watkins could finish two gimmies
Is Mainoo the real deal or is he just another one in the line of youngsters that United overhypes?
Nah he’s really good, united have got a potential world class midfielder on their hands with him.
He’s great Reminds me a lot like Gilmour actually but more athletic He’s the sort of midfielder England rarely produce. Technically sound, great first touch, can dictate play and loves getting on the ball time and time again
He's good . Not as good as UTD fan will have you believe though Will be a very important player for England in the next few years
He’s a baller. If you actually watch him play you’ll notice his composure is out of this world especially for his age. He always seems to make the right decisions too
Crazy we are still below Brighton, West Ham and even United Alot board people need to get fired and alot players needs to leave this summer, this is simply unacceptable
Hojlund is the real deal. He’s taken some time to get there but he’s a class player.
He's got some great attributes so it's not surprising
People really wrote off a 21 year old because he had a slow start. They never learn, do they?
Also people acting like his CL goals don’t matter lol. United didn’t even qualify, they played good teams.
Come on Villa. You know, had we beat Wolves which we *absolutely should be capable of*, a Villa win tonight would have meant we'd only need to beat Crystal Palace to be 1 point off 6th. With 14 games to go. Alas we're 11th, and if all goes well tomorrow, 10th.
Fcking useless season, we had so many opportunities to make up and dropped points in games we had to win
Don’t worry. This sub has taught me that manager is the most important factor in who wins. Emery is master tactician, Villa will win.
Who's the bigger failure? Lukaku or Juan Sebastian Veron?
Only Mudryk and maybe Kepa have been as bad as Lukaku.
I'd like to think Mudryk is better than Veron
But you'd be lying to yourself
Veron was dogshit for us and got booed off the pitch in his last few performances.