23 Nov 2017 20:49:00
An observation not a dissection of last night. First half we all saw the total control and focus then second half a lack of control and getting caught out of position. Easy to spot the full backs issue, yet to me I also saw a midfield that was caught upfield and didn't work hard enough to get back in position. Herrera, Fellaini and Lingard looked like they came out second half believing the work was done. A team tends to run further without the ball so given they chased first half, we chased second, you would think the overall distance covered would be similar. Stats can lie yet Basel ran 7km more than us and that seemed to resemble what I saw in the second half. I also remembered the video from a couple of weeks ago where the ref sprinted past Lingard. If they were not running hard enough then maybe they lost focus and it would perhaps explain a perceived lack of professionalism.
Maybe there are players who are too cosy. Under SAF, he was secure and if the players didn't work they went, not the manager, now there is that subtle difference that needs to be ironed out. The players need to know the manager is in control, has the support and it was interesting that the ones who looked to me like their level dropped were not Jose purchases. It is wake up time for some.
23 Nov 2017 22:57:47
Good post Redman I think the attitude was questionable in the second half. I think we got complacent then struggled to find any kind of rhythm when they improved in the second half and maybe caught us off guard. I think that's two defeats now that can be directly attributed to the attitude or desire of the team. Considering we went well over 20 games undefeated last season to have lost 3 of the last 7 (in all competitions) is maybe indicative of a bigger issue.
Fingers crossed for a better result on Saturday and hopefully we can take some form and confidence into the Arsenal and City games. I think come December 10th we'll have a pretty good idea of how our season will pan out.
24 Nov 2017 00:02:29
Redman
You missed pogba and matic out?
24 Nov 2017 06:40:15
Jred
Why do you think I did that? And it was meant.
23 Nov 2017 23:23:53
Agree RedMan. We are bottom of the PL when it comes to distance covered. Some talented teams can create a lot without over exerting themselves, however, we're nowhere near a good team, so we need to work harder to achieve results. Sadly, I do not see this happening anytime soon. We play narrowly with no width, and width requires a lot of running with and without the ball. Under Mourinho, he wants the team to stay compact and not commit and that's not going to change.
Our play is so predictable that it is mind numbingly boring.
24 Nov 2017 08:13:21
Matic done nothing when he come on pal.
24 Nov 2017 08:30:02
Attack
It's awful it's as bad as you say .
On the other hand second in the league.
24 Nov 2017 10:54:28
Jred
Exactly on Matic and Pogba did fine having just returned.
24 Nov 2017 23:35:09
What has matic just returned from?
The wig was out for 2 month with a knee injury.
25 Nov 2017 09:48:40
Jred
You do know Matic only came on after 66 mins don’t you? We lost momentum from the start of the second half.