25 Oct 2023 09:22:56
I think it's time for ETH to grow a pair. Drop Fernandes and play Eriksen at 10, drop Rashford and play Garnacho. Bruno and Rash have been awful this year, time for them to have a rest.
Hats off to Harry, never moved, just got in with it. The abuse on here and elsewhere on the Internet has been pretty horrible. He may not be world class but he clearly cares and gives his all. Interesting that our win rate is higher when he plays, who'd have thought?
Too many players not delivering right now, time to shake them up. Right now, I can only think of a couple of players I want to keep, the rest can all go.
25 Oct 2023 09:46:11
I'm with you there AJH.
25 Oct 2023 09:51:00
AJH - i said exactly the same thing about Bruno.
People forget that Eriksen is a proper number 10. He was brilliant in that position for Ajax and Spurs.
He's been played in the wrong position since he came to United.
Maybe dropping Bruno might give him the kick up the arse he needs.
25 Oct 2023 10:28:10
AJH
Been saying this for weeks now. It’s blatant favouritism and it’s impossible to defend ETH on this. The Rashford non substitution last night was strange. Generally, he just goes inside puts head down gets tackled and does same again.
Do we ever cross a ball? Goal came from one, yet that apart it’s become alien to us, not using all methods to create a goal, the opposition know what we are doing.
25 Oct 2023 10:50:25
Agreed ajh, other than his worldie against Burnley Bruno has been crap. As for rashford I honestly don’t know what his problem is, seems completely disinterested and unmotivated. Question on that then, sancho has been exiled for poor training etc and then his childish reaction to being called out. so I assume rashford is training well? If so what happens on match day? Honestly they give an air of wanting the manager gone. I refuse to believe that they train all week like they perform during games so why the change.
25 Oct 2023 11:07:13
If Eriksen is second choice at number 10 and in cm, what did we buy Mount for?
This seems to be a major failing in the summer’s transfer policy. We spent a big chunk of the budget on a player that doesn’t seem to have any role at the club. I still don’t understand it.
25 Oct 2023 11:10:48
Hoijland must be pulling his hair out playing along side Rashford and Antony. He gets absolutely nothing from the both of them.
Rashford just keeps doing the same thing time after time running with the ball in to players.
Antony can't or won't even try and beat a player now. He's that bad at the moment he's not even cutting inside.
The full backs are the only hope for Hoijland. At least Dalot and Reguilon try and overlap ad cross the ball.
25 Oct 2023 11:17:13
I can understand why eth is persevering with a few. All managers try to play players through poor form I get that. However it's been a prolonged time now and not only is the form bad imo the body language is poor.
I firmly believe that until any player that was here under the end if Jose and the full ole and Ralph debacle need to labe the club.
They spent 3 or 4 years doing exactly as they pleased and were not professional. We will never get those players back. They have been let rule the roost for too long and don't like being asked to play to a plan so simply don't apply themselves. They do not like being told what to do and need to be moved on. They don't like what was done to sancho or ddg and are not applying themselves as a result.
Klopp had 78% of the squad he inherited with bag habits gone before he won anything.
Changing styles and habits takes time.
On the downside Anthony is looking very poor and ineffective and imo needs to be dropped.
Mount needs to get into the team in replacement of Bruno imo.
These lads don't like things unless they are allowed to do what they want.
Until most or all of them are gone things won't change. They don't even put in a tackle they are too precious. I can't imagine what a training game is like compared to when we had real men playing for the club.
25 Oct 2023 11:42:12
Have to agree, Bruno been very poor all season, but in his defence he been moved all over the place, hardly ever played in his best position, so maybe he not a happy bunny.
I don’t believe Rashford training bad otherwise the school teacher would not play him, maybe he unhappy at what he sees and hears!
I don’t believe Cas legs gone either overnight, maybe he not happy
Clearly there are problems behind the scene all is not rosey.
I keep being told how good it is having ETH because he instilled discipline well maybe he should instil some in himself.
Antony Rashford and even Bruno should not be in every game no matter what, but yep they are!
If you were a player and you keep seeing under performers picked week in week out, that causes dressing room problems and let’s be fair he wanted McT and McG out, but even though quality not there they give there all…and he probably would not be playing either if his favourites were back
For 60 mins of that game last night is was diabolical again as it’s been all season and let’s remember it’s Copenhagen we made them look world beaters!
30 mins we played sort of OK how much of that was due to Copenhagen tiring and the crowd assisting we don’t know, .
Amrabat is never ever the required level, Mount must think what I come to, they don’t even know where they want to play him
To me it all looks a mess and getting harder to sit and watch game by game, but I keep being told we’re going to come good when the players are back, why exactly I have no idea
Clearly ETH likes Dalot more then AWB anyway Varane can’t be relied on, so really all we’re missing is Martinez and Shaw and we took Reguillon and got McG Evans and Lindleorf to cover.
I said last year that this team got nowhere near enough goals in it, Rasmus is willing be he not at the required level atm but in his defence, he gets ZERO service anyway, so it’s hard being a striker in this team for anyone.
Antony had 3 years coaching from ETH still can’t cross a ball, how bad was he 4 years ago then!
We are so easy to play against it’s unbelievable even a novice manager could set up against us and look like a world beater
If we get out this group and it’s a big IF no idea what happens when we come up against a really good team.
Every game that goes past we are further away from top 4 too, it’s a real mess, but we get the defenders back and all will be ok, LOL. We could not get enough goals last season with the first back 4 and we not added any goals to that so why does anyone think it will get better, OK we may control the ball a bit more, but who is going to score!
25 Oct 2023 12:10:28
Right iw I'd keep Gara hi, provably Hojlund but yet to be convinced, and Shaw, who has been one of pur most consistent performers in recent years. Martinez was great this year but has been poor so far thisnyear.
Everyone else I would be happy to shift out. Arteta changed pretty much the whole squad at Arsenal, qe need to do the same.
25 Oct 2023 12:23:53
Rashford doesn't know what he is doing for United. The system is designed to allow players to rotate as they advance with the deeper player exploiting the gaps, the other players rotate to cover this. Rashford doesn't cover very well, he likes to do what he does ie run at players in space or he sulks. This fits in with rumours I have heard and I am sure others have in that he is a bit of a prima Donna and wants to be the main man.
25 Oct 2023 12:42:37
Oh dear. Ahmad is going into meltdown when he reads this thread.
25 Oct 2023 13:15:07
I'm not sure if Bruno is doing much wrong at all if I'm honest. His role is the create chances, only two players (Trippier and Maddison) have created more chances in the league THIS season, last season he was the single biggest creator of chances in the league.
I'm not sure if we will create more chances by dropping literally the third best creator in the league THIS season. That doesn't sound likely or logical to me.
As for Rashford, his form isn't great, he seems to be having a confidence issue. Taking too many shots from poor positions like he is desperate to get a goal. Which isn't surprising, strikers/ forwards performances are heavily judged on goals.
Also to be fair it's hard to score consistently when the team is playing poorly and you are feeding off of fewer chances and chances of poorer quality.
I don't think Rashford is the problem, but his form seems to be a symptom of bigger problems with the side currently.
The individual mistakes in defence are costing us goals and putting more pressure on our forwards to score. While our midfield are struggling to control games and effectively move the ball forward.
In Rashford's case I think he is badly missing Luke Shaw. Having that player who can overlap him effectively to pull a full back away from Rashford as he cuts inside. Shaw is also very good at finding Rashford at the right time of his run, while offers great cover defensively. All things that will be impacting Rashford's performances in their absence.
While having no right winger/ forward for most of the season for various reasons has also allowed teams to shuffle further across their back line to congest the areas that Rashford plays in.
So there are various reasons that will provide context and are having a significant impact on Rashford's form.
Even if we were to drop him, those issues would be just as prevalent to whoever replaces him. This was seen in the first few games of the season when Rashford played at CF and Garnacho played LW and was at least equally as poor as Rashford has been this season of not more so. The problems with our lack of goals are not strictly down to the form of our forwards, but that certain contextual situations have impacted the form of our forwards. Until those issues are resolved we will continue to struggle.
Bruno and Rashford contributed 70 goals and assists to our team last season. If they are the problem to our lack of goals this season then we actually don't have a solution.
25 Oct 2023 13:33:15
LOL
I am used to it. we have a divided fan base and how we look at things. Some think we should sell the majority of the squad and don't rate them.
25 Oct 2023 13:33:42
AJH,
I agree with you. It's about time Rashford and Bruno were dropped
Maguire is leading by example, hats off to the guy. His last 2 games he has played very well.
25 Oct 2023 17:56:29
First half yesterday we found it difficult to break down a solid compact team who made us play slowly and sideways! We massively missed Martinez I thought watch it who always looks forward and quickly and can break the lines, Maguire and varane couldn’t! Really thought that was a big issue last night.