Says a lot about Mourinho as a manager and coach if he needs to buy an entire side, especially when he's got the costliest squad in the world and already spent £150m+.
Greenlizard0 Weekend Football Thread ** spoilers ** [21st - 23rd October 2016]
- Thread starter Cosimo
- Start date
Says a lot about Mourinho as a manager and coach if he needs to buy an entire side, especially when he's got the costliest squad in the world and already spent £150m+.
Caporegime
- Joined
- 21 Nov 2005
- Posts
- 41,255
- Location
- Cornwall
Pogba really doesn't like running does he.
that's the spirit!
Well he's not even trying some of the players! He's obviously decided he doesn't rate them.
I'd give our strongest 11 (in my view) a good chance against anyone bar the very best European teams, but the players never play.
Coutinho? Not a big signing at the time but the one name I can think of that’s come from there and done well. Just checked his wiki page forgot how cheap he was. Two years younger then Pogba as well...
Out of interest, what is your strongest 11 in your book? For me, your best outfield players are all hugely attacking (Mata, Miki, Ibra, Pogba and arguably Martial, and even Shaw and Valencia in defence). Without a solid spine to back them up, how are you a) going to win the ball and b) get it to your best players?
It's the same issue Utd have had for years, even into Fergie's last couple of seasons. They have some great players, but are incapable of transitioning well through midfield. For me, with your most talented 11 on the pitch, you totally lack balance.
What's your best 11? My guess would be:
-------------DDG
??---Smalling--Bailly--Shaw
-------Herrera--Pogba
----Miki-----Mata---Martial
-------------Ibra
I think there's only 4 or 5 players there that Mourinho wants long term. Both full backs, Herrera, Mata and Martial are on borrowed time imo. Smalling I'm not too sure about and Mkhitaryan - that's the real odd one. You've got to assume Mourinho had a big say in his signing but doesn't seem to want to play him. Reminds me of the Cuadrado signing at Chelsea.
It really depends on the formation, but at the start of the season I was thinking:
-------------De Gea
Darmian - Smalling - Bailly - Shaw
--------Schneiderlin - Pogba
----Mkhitaryan - Mata - Martial
---------------Zlatan
And we have "OK" players who can fill in most of these roles. The main issue is where I've put Schneiderlin : can he play there? Is he good enough with the ball, is he good enough at screening the defence? Possibly not.
Other options would be to play Herrera/Carrick/Pogba for example as a midfield 3, at least then Carrick has energy around him and can focus on moving the ball forward.
Today Pogba and Herrera didn't work enough, they just walked about and it was pathetic. That's happened in other games too.
I'm struggling with the Mkhitaryan situation. He's not even getting a chance or making the bench. I think despite what the club say, there's some sort of injury/fitness problem.
My guess wasn't too bad. As for Schneiderlin, he's not a DM nor a sitting midfielder. He's not too dissimilar to Pogba, both box to box players but where Pogba is slightly more attacking, Schneiderlin is slightly more defensive. At Southampton he played alongside Wanyama who played the holding role so I'm not sure how he'd work with Pogba in a 2, in a 3 it might be better.
I'm surprised he's been frozen out by Mourinho. I didn't think he'd be a starter but I thought he'd be the sort of player Mourinho brings in to kill games off or in the big games, much like he did with Ramires at Chelsea.
Caporegime
- Joined
- 21 Nov 2005
- Posts
- 41,255
- Location
- Cornwall
It's a bit hard to agree with your comment that your manager's done it all but most of your players haven't Robbo when you post a team like that. Add the likes of Carrick, Rooney and Schweinsteiger and you have multiple league titles, multiple Champions League titles and a few World Cups 
It's a bit hard to agree with your comment that your manager's done it all but most of your players haven't Robbo when you post a team like that. Add the likes of Carrick, Rooney and Schweinsteiger and you have multiple league titles, multiple Champions League titles and a few World Cups
That's true, but a number of the more experienced players are on the way out now though, the younger ones haven't achieved that much compared (as expected).
I think we'll need to get at least a couple of players in January to plug the big holes that Mourinho is seeing in the team. Where they are isn't entirely clear, I'd say defensive midfield is definitely one area and then most likely a full back.
I've said it a few times i know but UTD's wing areas are so poor really, the few games i've watched have been highlighting it even further. You've got great players down the middle i think. Zlatan, Rashford, Martial, Rooney, Mata, Miki, Pogba, Herrera, Fell, Carrick, Schneiderlin, Bailly, Smalling, Blind.
Wing players are Valencia, Shaw, Lingard, Depay & Young. It's actually shocking...so imbalanced.
Wing players are Valencia, Shaw, Lingard, Depay & Young. It's actually shocking...so imbalanced.
Caporegime
- Joined
- 18 Oct 2002
- Posts
- 37,804
- Location
- block 16, cell 12
Need 442.
ddg
rb, baailly, smallthings, shaw
rw, cm, cm, lw
rashford, martial
playing one up front doesn't work for us.
playing without any natural wingers also doesn't work.
ddg
rb, baailly, smallthings, shaw
rw, cm, cm, lw
rashford, martial
playing one up front doesn't work for us.
playing without any natural wingers also doesn't work.
