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Jose Mourinho - SACKED

DubaiSpur said:
This tactical analysis is also an early indicator of our priorities for the summer, I would suggest.

The first and by far the most important addition that *has* to be made is a defensive midfielder, to sit alongside one of Winks/Lo Celso/Ndombele. This one is absolutely essential, and nothing else can happen until that's sorted.
I don't think it's actually necessary to have some world-class all-rounder (although it would help) - the advantage of tactics that involve sitting deep is that you can have a fairly limited player in the destroyer role, as long as he's a) press-resistant, b) tactically astute, c) a leader on the field to coordinate the defensive block, and d) able to play accurate long passes to set players away in transition.

There's only one player I can think of who would fit, be cheap and ticks all the boxes. That's Matic. I think he will be a priority in the summer, if he's available.

The second addition that would be useful is, I would suggest, a center-back who is equally comfortable playing at left-back. If the tactic is to shift the left-back into the center when in possession to create a three-man backline, having an actual center-back who is also mobile enough to play on the left will help with defensive solidity, and allow Davies to be rotated. It also kills two birds with one stone, as this left-footed player can be played alongside Alderweireld in the middle as a traditional center-back when necessary.

Nathan Ake is one of those players. Lisandro Martinez at Ajax is another one. Malang Sarr at OGC Nice is another one. Options available here.

The other useful additions would be a) a backup for Kane, and b) a right-back more reliable than Aurier. Backup for Kane is fairly self-explanatory - there are options available here, including Artem Dzyuba (represented by Mendes) and Giroud on free transfers.The right-back is just icing on the cake - Aurier is functional, if also functionally brain-dead. If there's space after clearing the deadweight, finding a right-back better than Aurier would signal a successful window if the other priorities have been addressed. Nordi Mukiele, Tyler Adams, Nelson Semedo, Max Aarons, Thomas Meunier on a free - there are options here.

If we address those areas, we'll improve as a team. And, theoretically, the whole lot could cost less than 50m combined if you were being really cheap. Matic won't cost much if United want to sell him. Dzyuba and Meunier can be had on frees. Only the center-back might cost a bit, and the top end would probably be Ake at or around 40m.

We don't have to buy big. But we do have to buy smart.
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Matic can’t run and can’t really defend
People come back to the Matic that left Chelsea second time ... he hasn’t been that player for a long time
I still think the priority is the full backs as they just shocking for us
And look at the analysis you post above... it talks about a double pivot in MF. We have that but then we get exposed wide constantly.
 
Bedfordspurs said:
Matic can’t run and can’t really defend
People come back to the Matic that left Chelsea second time ... he hasn’t been that player for a long time
I still think the priority is the full backs as they just shocking for us
And look at the analysis you post above... it talks about a double pivot in MF. We have that but then we get exposed wide constantly.
Click to expand...

Actually, he's been playing pretty well for United recently - certainly, the United fans I know (and Redcafe) are actually pretty enthusiastic about him now, and don't mind if he remains their mainstay for the remainder of the season. Apparently he was really crap in 2019, but he's significantly improved in 2020, and looks a lot fitter/sharper. I think he's got a year of top-level football left in him.

It's also interesting - people have a mental image of the guy as a big bruiser type, and certainly that's something he does, but his primary skill (as far as I can see) is actually not losing the ball. He's very good at holding on to it and playing long passes to switch it to the opposite flank. We could use that, as well as his leadership - we sorely lack leaders, and balls when the chips are down.

As for full-backs, the tactical system we use doesn't really allow for 'traditional' full-backs. And, thinking back, Mourinho hasn't really ever used two traditional full-backs in any of his teams. Most of them had one really attacking full-back balanced by a defensive one - Gallas on the left balancing Paulo Ferreira on the right at Chelsea, Zanetti on the left balancing Maicon on the right at Inter, Arbeloa on the right balancing Marcelo on the left at Madrid, Ivanovic on the left balancing Azpilicueta on the right at Chelsea, and so on.

in all those teams (bar maybe 14-15 Chelsea), the attacking full-back has very few defensive responsibilities, and the defensive one has very few attacking responsibilities. In Aurier and Davies, we have functional full-backs for that tactic.

It's been individual mistakes that have been killing us - all over the field. The full-backs are just the most exposed when that happens.
 
DubaiSpur said:
Actually, he's been playing pretty well for United recently - certainly, the United fans I know (and Redcafe) are actually pretty enthusiastic about him now, and don't mind if he remains their mainstay for the remainder of the season. Apparently he was really crap in 2019, but he's significantly improved in 2020, and looks a lot fitter/sharper. I think he's got a year of top-level football left in him.

It's also interesting - people have a mental image of the guy as a big bruiser type, and certainly that's something he does, but his primary skill (as far as I can see) is actually not losing the ball. He's very good at holding on to it and playing long passes to switch it to the opposite flank. We could use that, as well as his leadership - we sorely lack leaders, and balls when the chips are down.

As for full-backs, the tactical system we use doesn't really allow for 'traditional' full-backs. And, thinking back, Mourinho hasn't really ever used two traditional full-backs in any of his teams. Most of them had one really attacking full-back balanced by a defensive one - Gallas on the left balancing Paulo Ferreira on the right at Chelsea, Zanetti on the left balancing Maicon on the right at Inter, Arbeloa on the right balancing Marcelo on the left at Madrid, Ivanovic on the left balancing Azpilicueta on the right at Chelsea, and so on.

in all those teams (bar maybe 14-15 Chelsea), the attacking full-back has very few defensive responsibilities, and the defensive one has very few attacking responsibilities. In Aurier and Davies, we have functional full-backs for that tactic.

It's been individual mistakes that have been killing us - all over the field. The full-backs are just the most exposed when that happens.
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The full backs are most exposed as their the ones making the errors. It’s why teams go wide so quickly against us

and matrix has played well for 6/7 games. That isn’t a player who has turned a corner again yet

Football is so short term now it’s scary. United would play McTominay over Matic when he is fit with Fred which says it all

The other things I’ve said loads is how a a manger played isn’t how he will always play. The Mou haters say his teams are defensive yet when I highlight that he managed teams that set scoring records that gets ignored ...

I certainly expect us to be upgrading the full backs to ones who can do the basics first and foremost and that will change the team dynamic massively. Imagine attacking and having support from midfield rather than having the midfield cover a RB staying further forward than the CF...
Or a LB that can’t decide whether to tackle or jockey the man and does neither
 
Bedfordspurs said:
The full backs are most exposed as their the ones making the errors. It’s why teams go wide so quickly against us

and matrix has played well for 6/7 games. That isn’t a player who has turned a corner again yet

Football is so short term now it’s scary. United would play McTominay over Matic when he is fit with Fred which says it all

The other things I’ve said loads is how a a manger played isn’t how he will always play. The Mou haters say his teams are defensive yet when I highlight that he managed teams that set scoring records that gets ignored ...

I certainly expect us to be upgrading the full backs to ones who can do the basics first and foremost and that will change the team dynamic massively. Imagine attacking and having support from midfield rather than having the midfield cover a RB staying further forward than the CF...
Or a LB that can’t decide whether to tackle or jockey the man and does neither
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Man Utd's uptick in form seemed to directly correspond with Solksjaer putting Matic back in the team. It's a shame as it looked like Matic was on his way out before that and we could've massively upgraded our defensive midfield area with him in there instead of Dier for no transfer fee. Unfortunately Solskjaer seems to have realised how important he is to the team and I think I saw a story of Man Utd exercising their option of a year's extension a while back so I think he is no longer likely as a signing.

I am at odds with you Bedford. I do see mistakes made by our fullbacks, who can be too easy to get in behind. However we also often have a huge chasm of space in front of our central defenders and teams exploit that. A wide forward just has to drift inside and drop off a tiny bit to have a radius of 10 to 20 yards of space around them. That doesn't happen with a good defensive minded central midfield player in there.

Dubai looking at your post you said the player didn't have to be brilliant but then listed a bunch of requirements. Unfortunately players who are defensive minded but who can also play through a press and be good long passers of the ball are the brilliant ones. The player that I would get in above all others for that role would be Kalvin Phillips from Leeds. He was an attacking midfielder until Biesla coverted him to the deep lying playmaker. Has great feet, is a beautiful passer of the ball, can dribble, is mobile, brave and positionally sound. I'm certain that he'll be in the England team within a year, even if he stays at Leeds. If we don't get him this summer then I don't think we'd be able to get him at all.
 
Finney Is Back said:
Man Utd's uptick in form seemed to directly correspond with Solksjaer putting Matic back in the team. It's a shame as it looked like Matic was on his way out before that and we could've massively upgraded our defensive midfield area with him in there instead of Dier for no transfer fee. Unfortunately Solskjaer seems to have realised how important he is to the team and I think I saw a story of Man Utd exercising their option of a year's extension a while back so I think he is no longer likely as a signing.

I am at odds with you Bedford. I do see mistakes made by our fullbacks, who can be too easy to get in behind. However we also often have a huge chasm of space in front of our central defenders and teams exploit that. A wide forward just has to drift inside and drop off a tiny bit to have a radius of 10 to 20 yards of space around them. That doesn't happen with a good defensive minded central midfield player in there.

Dubai looking at your post you said the player didn't have to be brilliant but then listed a bunch of requirements. Unfortunately players who are defensive minded but who can also play through a press and be good long passers of the ball are the brilliant ones. The player that I would get in above all others for that role would be Kalvin Phillips from Leeds. He was an attacking midfielder until Biesla coverted him to the deep lying playmaker. Has great feet, is a beautiful passer of the ball, can dribble, is mobile, brave and positionally sound. I'm certain that he'll be in the England team within a year, even if he stays at Leeds. If we don't get him this summer then I don't think we'd be able to get him at all.
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United improvement in form came from some decent fixtures ... and having a creative player come in, in Fernandes. That why he won the POTM
Matic has played 22 games this season so far (that includes cup and Europe I assume) and he really hasn’t pulled up trees
But if everyone else does their job he can look better and actually look mobile. He has defenders defending wide for a start

The guy IMO is a lump in the middle and can’t run or pass. Basically what diers been doing in there, and we know the pasting he gets

kalvin Philips is quality and won’t stay in the championship for sure. He won’t leave Leeds if they get promoted though
 
I keep seeing PR of him volunteering and visiting this and that. Added to him turning up unannounced at NDombele's door, you just know he's one of those people that can't stay home for more than a few hours.

Imagine trying to lock him down in this 6 week Premier League training camp.

The poor players will be climbing the walls wanting out.
 
Mourinho's comments on Alli's ban for racism are a disgrace.


Of course he will be pointlessly taking a knee tonight. But when racism happens in his club he does this.
 
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