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Weekend review
Sorry I’m a bit late to the weekend review, I hope there’s still time. The performances in the first three games have been exactly what I predicted they would be prior to the season; we would do alright against top six rivals who are more attacking in their mindset, and struggle against teams who are happy to sit back and defend in numbers. A draw against Wolves is not a bad result, particularly away from home, but a defeat at home to Crystal Palace is an embarrassment. Dominating possession counts for diddly shit against any team if you can’t put the ball in the net while you’re doing so.
Crystal Palace are perfectly entitled to defend for 89 minutes and look to take any opportunities that do fall their way. Manchester United, however, have absolutely no plan to deal with this and will continue to struggle against any team that has a similar game plan for the rest of the season. Why is this? Well, there’s a few reasons:
Firstly because we have only one truly creative player. As good a technical player as Pogba is (completely forgetting the personality debate), you can completely nullify him with numbers; surround him in the midfield and he won’t be able to get his passes away or dribble through into the box. On the odd occasion he does get a pass through or make a positive run, either his teammates waste the opportunity or he is faced with yet another wall of defenders. Lingard, playing in that number 10 position, is supposed to be that guy but he offers so very little other than running, I just don’t understand how he has everyone else in the football world so fooled.
Secondly because we have assembled a team, the primary strength of which is pace. What use is pace against a team that doesn’t leave any space in behind? James, Rashford, Martial and Lingard are all fast but speed is not an asset when running towards a wall. Speed is great against teams that are going to leave a little bit of space to run into but 75% of the teams we’ll play this year aren’t going to do that because they know it would play into our hands. What we haven’t got in this team is speed of thought; no one clever enough to see an alternative way through, or skilled enough to execute it.
Thirdly is our utter lack of anyone who can take a set piece. Seriously, when was the last time we delivered a corner or free-kick that actually found a teammate at all, never mind presented them with a reasonable goalscoring opportunity? I think we did a couple in 1999 but I’m struggled to remember many since. Every corner and free-kick outside of shooting distance either goes over everyone’s heads or straight to an opponent. Maguire’s supposed aerial threat is completely absent if no one can get the ball to him. Then there’s Rashford’s free-kicks. Good grief, someone needs to get the message through his thick skull that he is not Ronaldo. For every one of his attempts which actually troubles the ‘keeper – not even score, just make the guy between the sticks work – we have to endure about 50 which go flying over the bar, way wide or straight into the wall. Get him off that job for good.
Finally, is our total lack of strikers. I cautioned this at the close of the transfer – “where are the goals going to come from?” I asked – and other than one rather fortuitous performance against Chelsea, thus far so it has proved. Rashford and Martial are not now, nor will they ever be pure strikers. That’s not necessarily their faults – they’ve been subject to the whims of three very different managers now, during their formative years in the first team, so they’ve not had the same sort of consistent development as, say, Harry Kane (can’t remember him ever playing out wide, but happy to be corrected). There was no evidence whatsoever to suggest that either of them could be 20-goal strikers and, on current form, that doesn’t look like changing any time soon. Martial doesn’t have a strikers positional instincts, even if he can occasionally finish like one, and Rashford is too greedy in all the wrong areas and not a good enough finisher. Case in point: the penalty. There is literally no easier chance to score than a penalty and he couldn’t even hit the target – we’re not even talking about the ‘keeper saving it here, he just missed. Lukaku wasn’t the answer either but selling him without replacement was a monumental f*ck-up.
Naturally, we’re now seeing rumours drip fed through about James Maddison and Jaden Sancho in January but that is just a PR exercise. United totally ballsed-up yet another transfer window and we’re now going to pay the price until the end of the year (at least – those selling clubs can already see us coming). Maybe I’m being overly cynical and things will turn around but I think most people will probably agree that this year is going to be more of the same. But our current record puts us on level standing with all the teams from 5th to 14th, which is the perfect summary of where we are right now – the tenuous “best” of the average bunch.
Ted, Manchester
What will happen when Klopp eventually leaves?
The top story in today’s Mediawatch got me thinking – what will happen when Klopp eventually leaves? The recent conversations about ‘world class’ players in the mailbox touched upon the fact that some of the current Liverpool squad look significantly better in Klopp’s system. And that this enables them to play at a level that they may not necessarily carry into a different setup.
Which brings me to succession plans. If you look at the other Top 6 clubs: City seem to know exactly what they’re doing. I’m sure they’re already shortlisting candidates for when Guardiola leaves. Arsenal are rebooting a bit under Emery, and it seems like he’ll be there for a few more years at least, so the jury’s still out there. Chelsea are a wildcard, because if Lampard doesn’t work out, there’s no telling how Roman will react. And United don’t seem to have a clue on how best to proceed, and will continue to wing it until a better structure is introduced.
Spurs are probably the closest to Liverpool in this regard. The identities of the two teams are closely intertwined with the managers who have moulded them. Which, to me, puts them in an oddly precarious position. Klopp will no doubt see out his contract, and Pochettino will probably be there for another few years as well, but what after that? The sport is growing ever more short-term, but even in that environment, the impact these two in particular have had at their clubs in just a few years is remarkable, and the patience they have been afforded has been quite impressive. If they were to depart, would the clubs be able to adequately replace them? And if not, would we see a United-style post-Fergie drop-off, or will it be a minor setback followed by a swift recovery?
As someone who doesn’t closely follow either club, I’m probably missing something, and maybe the structures are safely in place for both. And I realise this mail has been a bit of a ramble, so I’ll wrap it up. Basically it all boils down to this: If every Top 6 club were to lose their managers tomorrow, who would be the best placed moving forward?
DJ, MUFC (wouldn’t blame you if you decided not to publish this) India
An open letter to Jim
Here we go again, one bad result and some fans are foaming at the mouth. Today it’s an open letter to “Mr Skolskjaer”, tomorrow it will be a whip-round to get a banner flown over OT reading “You never responded to my open letter, Ta Ra Ole”. I’m sure Jim Bellis was a great supporter in his day, back when footballers weren’t entitled or didn’t throw their toys out the cot (didn’t the late, great G Best go AWOL), but given he hasn’t watched a match since the start of March (the last time both Lingard or Matic weren’t selected) one wonders what he is basing his opinions on. Nevertheless to hopefully encourage some perspective, I want to build on a point made by Vernon yesterday in the mailbox by taking a look at the start of Klopp’s Liverpool reign, given they were in a bad way too when he took over.
In his first (part) season Klopp accumulated 1.6 points per match, taking Liverpool from 10th to 8th; this involved losing 8 games including Palace (2-1 at home), Newcastle (2-0), Watford (3-0), West Ham (2-0), Southampton (3-2), Swansea (3-1) and a lot of “embarrassing” draws (Sunderland and West Brom being prime examples). Note that season Liverpool accumulated 1.5 points per game before he joined, not exactly a vast improvement. In his second (first full) season, Liverpool gained 2 points per game and finished 4th. Good progress no doubt but this also included defeats to Burnley (2-0), Bournemouth (4-3), Swansea (3-2), Hull (2-0), Leicester (3-1) and Palace (2-1 at home). Plus a few “embarrassing” draws (Sunderland again and Southampton at home 0-0 for example). Although they did have good wins against Chelsea, City and Spurs that season and there were lots of encouraging signs.
Now looking at “Mr Skolskjaer’s” first part-season, when he took over we had accumulated 1.5 points per game; he subsequently accumulated 1.9 points per game, losing 5 games – with the 4-0 defeat to Everton and 2-0 loss to Cardiff being the only defeats of note in terms of games we should not be losing. This season has only started and we have won one, drawn one, lost one (2-1 to Palace at home, what’s that all about); this is the exact same number of points as Liverpool after 3 games in Klopp’s first full season. As shown, they had ups and downs but managed to finish 4th. There were lots of crazy mails about Klopp then too, some even calling for his head (although not literally).
The similarities are striking and, if anything, Ole fared better in his first part-season in terms of points won in the league. This doesn’t mean we’ll end up on the same trajectory of course but it does show that things take time and it will not be a smooth ride back to the top. It’s a work in progress, give the man a chance to show if he can build a winning team/squad or not. He’s trying to play attacking football, he’s playing youngsters when he can, he’s not bitching and moaning at the players after every bad result, and he’s making it more enjoyable to watch United again. Get behind the team, accept there’ll be good days and bad days and hopefully we’ll see the team improve as the season goes on. If you want to be a fan then feel free to switch off when you don’t like the starting line-up. If you want to be a supporter, the clue is in the name.
Garey Vance, MUFC
Another letter for Ole
Good day Mr Solskjaer,
Firstly congrats on your position as head of such a formidable team.. or let’s say use to be.. as a South African living all my life in Cape Town South Africa and following Manchester United from the min I could walk and kick a ball I must say what your doing at the club is not as close as to where the club needs to be..
I am no manager but a huge fan…I do know football…I do know that your job is high pressure…
Mr Solskjaer.. I am not in a position to criticize your judgement calls when it comes to our players..yes our players as we are Manchester United..no matter where in the world we are we are Manchester United…
With that said sir..it is with great dismay as to how the team selection is done..yes there are players out with injuries…yes there are players who strive to play for Manchester United..and yes there are players who want to be Manchester United…
Players such as Lingaard..he could be great..but his mentality is lost..he is not passionate enough.. Pogba is rated as one of the most expencive footballers In the world..but money dont buy class ..class is born..it comes natural..
There are a few players who wants to be Manchester United…then ere are players who just show up for a pay check..In South Africa in our PSL (premier soccer League) players don’t earn as much as In other leagues but the players show up they play with passion..for the love of the sport…
I miss those days…where football was played on the pitch and not in the boardrooms..
I cannot compare Mr Solskjaer to sir Alex Ferguson..that would be unfair.. back in the day Mr Solskjaer was the baby face assasin of football..the desire to find the back of the net..no one can be as the great sir Alex Ferguson..most people felt Jose Mourinho was or is the chosen one the special one..but in most eyes he has not accomplished what sir Alex has..there will never be another sir Alex unless he decides to come out of retirement..Mr Solskjaer want I am trying to bring across…is play players who wants to be Manchester United..not becos of price tags or hair styles..but becos they want to represent the club as a Manchester United player..
Yes pace players…is good..but with out direction the pace is misdirected..dont immulate sir Alex..be Mr Solskjaer..if you can’t be like sir Alex then do what’s needed to be one of the frets or even better…please bring back the glory days…get rid of players who don’t want to be at the club..I believe one rotten apple will make the rest go bad .. being Manchester United is like a religion..
Lastly Mr Solskjaer I appreciate the effort an the changes you implementing..but some of the changes that should have been made was overlooked and not dealt with…
In a club if a player wants to leave let them leave..replace with a player who wants to be at the club…
Thank you and please don’t concider this as a personal attack..we as fans pay good money for merchandise and support Manchester United to the end bad or good days..but for the last few seasons it’s been like a marriage …more downs than ups…we need impact players..not models focusing more on their hair styles and the colour of their boots.. or living lavish lifestyles but hasn’t worked to earn it..
Thank you for your time. Hope this email finds you in good health.
Regards,
Naz (Manchester United for life!!!!)
Colour blindness
I think more consideration needs to be given to colour blind supporters when allocating kits for match days.
I have hated playing West Ham at home for the last few seasons, as I can’t tell the difference between black and red kits. If I’m in the ground, it’s better, but on TV I am left trying to work out who someone is based on positioning/gait/hair colour or length/boot colour etc. In fast moving games, this can be difficult.
The visit of Arsenal on the weekend a case in point.
Is this a struggle for anyone else? Might start a petition if so.
Dom (I have never been able to enjoy the Newcastle Sunderland games for this reason) Littleford
Bolton
Mikey CFC says ‘something must be done’ to stop clubs like Bolton going into admin/liquidation.
Well it is – the EFL are trying to get clubs to operate on more sensible footings by imposing their own set of ‘FFP’ rules – Birmingham being deducted points last year for their breach.
Unfortunately the gap between the haves and the have nots – Premier League v everyone else – is now so huge financially that clubs will continue to try and reach the promised land by any means necessary.
Just this year Derby and Sheffield Wednesday have sold their ground to their owner to raise funds, not necessarily to buy more players but just to exist.
Currently the financial structure is heavily biased towards the PL – my club, Leeds, last year received the princely sum of £1.49m for appearing on TV 24 times. they also got a share of the TV rights deal approx £2.5m and their share of the ‘solidarity’ payment from the PL of something like £4.5m so c.£8m in total for finishing third. Huddersfield got nearly £100m for finishing bottom of the PL.
Perhaps the clubs in the PL will increase the solidarity payment – but I can’t see them voting for it, can you?
Bolton were kept afloat by an owner willing to chuck in loads of cash each year, eventually he couldn’t afford to keep doing this – not sure of numbers but I do recall they were c£80m in the red.
Chelsea were something like that amount in the red before Roman and his billions came along.
I suspect there will be more Boltons etc over the next few years because the finances just aren’t there any more. You only have to look at the leagues in Spain,Italy, Germany etc to see that 4 divisions of full time professional teams just aren’t sustainable any longer. This is the long term impact of Sky and their money – people no longer support their local club in sufficient numbers to keep clubs solvent as they can watch top flight games almost every day of the week. There has always been this issue of course but in my day, living in London as a long distance Leeds fan – I would go to games at Fulham,Brentford QPR etc (never your lot obviously!) as it was relatively cheap and the only way to see live football.
Nothing new here but for a long time people have been saying ‘something must be done’ but nobody has been doing anything. The proposed changes to the Champions League for 2024 onwards are just another example of how the game is travelling towards a limited number of super rich clubs making sure that the huge pot of money doesn’t get spread around too far (yes, I know we are already there really).
Be ready for a restructure of the EFL going back to a more regional based competition and only two National divisions as more clubs like Bolton and Bury bite the dust – even though I hope they don’t, it’ll be them or someone else fairly soon.
Steve, Leeds
We shouldn’t be moaning
We’ve just played what will in all likelihood be our toughest away fixture of the season.
We’re missing three of our first choice back four.
Pepe and Torriera aren’t quite there in terms of being match fit.
But we’re in third place (most likely the best we can hope for this season), the youngsters look pretty decent, Guendozi is a season further into his development, and with so many players to bed in fingers crossed we haven’t seen this Arsenal team peak yet.
And if it all doesn’t work out with Emery – he only has a season left so we don’t have to fire him and Freddie Ljunberg is waiting in the wings.
I’m with Rob A – as things stand, we really shouldn’t be moaning.
Graham Simons, Gooner, Norf London
VAR
After the weekend’s football, two incidents annoyed me immensely about VAR.
Firstly, when Martial was fouled in the box against Palace but managed to get a shot away, I have to wonder, was the penalty not given because Martial did in fact get his shot off, even if the shot was off target due to the fouling?
Secondly, the Kane non penalty against Newcastle. To me it was a penalty. But what annoys me about this is that those in charge keep spouting the line “VAR isn’t intended to re-referee the game”. But that’s inaccurate, it’s whole reason is to re-referee the game, well, certain scenarios in a game at least.
I have been trying to decipher the hidden meaning behind this, and all I can come up with is that, because the ref made an onfield decision about the Kane penalty, that VAR didn’t want to overrule the ref… but that’s its whole purpose isn’t it? To overrule the ref?
I thought VAR would work, but I’m beginning to think now that it won’t.
Ciaran (Cork City)
Sometimes you can just tell by looking
Dear Football365,
When Premier League managers complain of fixture congestion, we need to remind them that while their players had their feet up on the bank holiday, there was a full fixture card in non-league yesterday. To put it another way, 48 hours after playing in the heat of Saturday, the players were back out there in the even more stifling heat. F365’s man usually in Japan and I went along to arguably the biggest fixture of the day, Grantham Town versus Basford United. This isn’t an argument anyone’s likely to win.
*The home side had one of the better excuses for a player being unavailable for selection. Defender AJ Adelekan wasn’t able to play owing to work commitments – he was on call as a heart surgeon. They lined up in a 4-1-3-2 with Jack McGovern moved from central midfield to cover at left-back. With only five named substitutes allowed at this level, every team needs a versatile player like McGovern, who can play their own position well and be trusted to do a job covering just about anywhere on the pitch – a couple of years ago he was even an emergency goalkeeper. He did well, given that United knew he was playing an unfamiliar role and targeted his wing – there were a couple of moments where inexperience shone through but he was able to recover through hard work. If you didn’t know, you wouldn’t necessarily have realised he wasn’t usually a left-back.
In contrast, sometimes you can just tell by looking at someone what their position or role will be. The best example of this is Grantham’s Gregg Smith, who looks every bit the old-fashioned target man, even when he’s warming up or training. He’s a more outwardly aggressive Christian Benteke – a player who relishes the physical battles with his opponents and relies on strength and determination rather than speed. He’s also not shy about giving opponents or officials an earful when things go against him. He’s the sort of player who, if he can channel that aggression positively, is a nightmare to play against, but who always runs the risk of boiling over. The other trouble is that most of the time, you need to play the ball exactly to him, because he isn’t the most mobile of forwards.
*The visitors, managed by former Nottingham Forest defender Steve Chettle, lined up in 4-5-1, looking to dominate the midfield and play on the front foot. In goalkeeper Kieran Preston and centre-back Stefan Galinski, they had two players I was a big fan of when they represented the Gingerbreads two years ago. As it was incredibly hot – enough for official drinks breaks, but not too hot to stop me drinking Bovril – this was not a day for intricate passing. Grantham decided to play a direct style, with mixed success; as with two years ago, Galinski got his head to almost everything, but under pressure from Smith he gave the ball away a few times.
*There were few clear-cut chances in the first half – United made most of the better openings but lacked accuracy in their finishing, with Tom Nicholson in the home goal only called into action a couple of times. At the other end, Preston had to dive full-length to claw out a header from James Berrett, but neither team could break the deadlock and they went into the sheds goalless.
*Grantham started the second half more brightly. Smith had an early chance, which flashed wide from outside the box, and looked for all the world like the shot of a player knowing he’s not had much luck and was going to be substituted soon. A few minutes later, the hosts won a free kick on the left. Danny Racchi aimed it perfectly and Smith rose almost unchallenged to plant a header past Preston.
After this the visitors were spurred into life, forcing the Gingerbreads back further and further. I wondered if a substitution might have been imminent, as the midfield was managing the otherwise impossible feat of being simultaneously very narrow and very stretched. In the end, United made the first change, removing a midfielder for a centre-back to play 3-4-3, and created some good chances. However, the only time Nicholson was properly beaten, the ball was still cleared off the line by a defender, and as the visitors’ frustrations grew, Grantham were able to exploit gaps to counterattack.
*Amusingly, the last chance of the match was a free kick taken just inside the visitors’ half by Preston, who wellied the ball slightly too far and into the hands of his opposite number, so it ended Grantham 1-0 Basford. The game didn’t quite hit the heights of the FC United tie, but was a hard-earned win nonetheless. At this early stage, both teams are in the mix for the playoff positions, and the Gingerbreads remain unbeaten. This could all change in the next couple of games, as first they host Whitby Town, who have the same number of points as them, and then travel to Matlock Town, currently top of the table after four wins out of four.
Ed Quoththeraven
Reasonable Bobby
I read David Watson’s response to Bobby and I’m not sure what he is on about. I reread Bobby’s email three times and I have not found anywhere where he insults City fans in general. He took a small dig at ignorance but that happens to 85% of mails here.
At best there was a line that said “One thing not many City fans seem to have mentioned was the…’, which was clearly not “I am not all city fans” that David outs in his bracket. Yes David, Bobby didnt say you were all City fans either. Most of his points was about football arguments in general.
95% of Bobby’s mail focused on pure examples in association football. Even if David Watson disagrees with the points as he is entitled to do, none of Bobby’s verge on hate or unreasonable even by mailbox standards, let alone comment section ones.
David Watson also said something about about up-onemanship and how most people support teams because of where they were born but Bobby didnt touch this anywhere. He was merely saying how many people take examples of things that support their point and ignore the rest and even explain some basic.
And finally, Bobby said “we”. That means he is referring to us fans as a collective. That means you too David. He disagreed with you with the incident and said you misunderstood the rules, but nowhere did he insult City fans as a group – unless simoly disagreeing with your point about how City deserved a penalty I’d an insult or attack.
Yaru, Malaysia
