Our formation then boys

Originally Posted by dragflick

We will, love.



Not forgetting Giggs benching him for most of the 3 games he had in charge. He did bring him on in the second half for one of them where he bagged a couple and looked miles better than the rest of the £#%&!ers on the pitch though tbf. Looking forward to how we line up at the home of football, Turf Moor, on Saturday...

Good shout. Everyone basically hates him

Originally Posted by S/Side.Red

Seems to be something against Mata from some close to the club. Neville and Yorke were digging him out on Sunday and I'm pretty sure Scholes was throwing subbies at him at the back end of the season. Doesn't feel like there's a great vibe around him.

Haven't the youth teams gone 3-4-1-2 this season? Would suggest it's not just a short-term thing.

there's 2 strikers so can we not describe it as 3-5-2 for some reason

it's actually playing like 3 separate departments with Mata disconnected from the midfield admittedly, but even so

Originally Posted by dragflick

DDG

Rafael Jones Rojo Shaw

Herrera Vidal

Rooney

Di Maria RvP Januzaj

Which really isn't that much different to the 4-2-3-1 that every @#%&! plays, as Rooney will clearly be further forward than the other two in the middle. Hmmmm. Our record signing from only 8 months ago now on the bench if that's the case/team

£#%&!ing good team though.

Swap round Januzaj and Di Maria tbf.

Mata may come into his own with quicker players around him, hard to tell atm. I think one of RvP, Rooney and Mata will give way by next season. Assuming LvG gets the players he wants between now and then, we’ll be playing with one striker and two wide attackers imo. One of the three will have to go.

Originally Posted by dragflick

Ogden says that we'll now play 4-3-3, meaning Mata could be fighting for a place.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/foo...Juan-Mata.html

Which would mean this:

DDG

Rafael Jones Rojo Shaw

Herrera Vidal

Rooney

Di Maria RvP Januzaj

Which really isn't that much different to the 4-2-3-1 that every @#%&! plays, as Rooney will clearly be further forward than the other two in the middle. Hmmmm. Our record signing from only 8 months ago now on the bench if that's the case/team

£#%&!ing good team though.

wtf is he on about 'yet to contribute in a big game'.

what big games? Our domestic season was £#%&!ing dead when he arrived and he wasn't eligible for the CL. We absolutely bombed in high profile league games as the ball sailed over his head.

mata has performed really well considering how utterly terrible - yes, not just average, but really bad - since he arrived.

just don't get the criticism. thought he looked the most likely to do something on Sunday. He just has £#%&! all going on around him.

He isn't fast? so what! he never has been and has been hugely successful elsewhere. that's not his game. amazing how rooney can get away with awful, half arsed performances and remain untouchable, but it's mata - who has performed far better in the last few months - who is the fall guy.

The rooney/rvp partnership is a big problem. We seem to be deploying any £#%&!ing formation we can to play to this supposed strength, when it's not even a successful partnership.

Originally Posted by The Watcher

Swap round Januzaj and Di Maria tbf.

Mata may come into his own with quicker players around him, hard to tell atm. I think one of RvP, Rooney and Mata will give way by next season. Assuming LvG gets the players he wants between now and then, we’ll be playing with one striker and two wide attackers imo. One of the three will have to go.

Agreed on those three.

Prefer Janners on the right, and think he plays better there. Defenders expect him to cut inside onto his left, but he's equally as good taking them on down the outside and getting round the back.

Originally Posted by Tumescent Throb

there's 2 strikers so can we not describe it as 3-5-2 for some reason

it's actually playing like 3 separate departments with Mata disconnected from the midfield admittedly, but even so

Making it a bit 3-4-1-2 ish

Don't mind us selling him Mata as long as we sign Vidal, doesn't send out the message really, one top player in one out, if we don't sign another one.

de Gea
Smalling Jones Rojo
Di Maria Herrera Fletcher Shaw
Mata
Rooney van Persie

Originally Posted by The Weeknd

de Gea
Smalling Jones Rojo
Di Maria Herrera Fletcher Shaw
Mata
Rooney van Persie

Originally Posted by woody78

Originally Posted by The Weeknd

Making Rooney club captain means absolutely £#%&! all as far as dropping him is concerned. Vermaelen was Arsenal club captain, not in the team, Vidic was our club captain, as was Neville and Keane, all with huge chunks of time out of the team. If your club captain is not playing you pick another, that's all.

I think Van Gaal rolled the dice making Rooney captain knowing that it was his best way to fluff him up and build his confidence, but in no way do I think it's important enough to him that he'll field a weaker team or lose games to preserve his status in the starting line up.

The good thing about Van Gaal is that his loyalty is to himself and his legacy, not overpaid nancy boys. Fergie was too loyal to people he bought, even in the face of failure, and Moyes was weak, trying way too hard to get 'superstars' onside. Van Gaal will do neither.

Originally Posted by S/Side.Red

Making it a bit 3-4-1-2 ish

no, just making it shit

that would be 4 anyway

keep hearing people saying we were 4-4-1-1 with Eric as well, as if it's not enough just to know how he played football and the positions he liked to take up as a striker

i will fight this bullshit indefinitely

Had an epiphany last night to keep a back-three, but to drop the wing-backs. Vidal and Herrera working as a pivot midfield, with one going and the other staying, alternating accordingly.

The front five all get to play in their best positions, with natural width and electric pace in the two wide players. Genuine creativity and imagination all across the attack, with ball-retention, energy and power in midfield. Carrick dictating things from deep, obvs.

De Gea

Jones --- Carrick --- Rojo

Vidal --- Herrera

Januzaj ------ Mata ------ Di Maria

Rooney --- Van Persie

Originally Posted by Neo

Had an epiphany last night to keep a back-three, but to drop the wing-backs. Vidal and Herrera working as a pivot midfield, with one going and the other staying, alternating accordingly.

The front five all get to play in their best positions, with natural width and electric pace in the two wide players. Genuine creativity and imagination all across the attack, with ball-retention, energy and power in midfield. Carrick dictating things from deep, obvs.

De Gea

Jones --- Carrick --- Rojo

Vidal --- Herrera

Januzaj ------ Mata ------ Di Maria

Rooney --- Van Persie

Originally Posted by Baron

His technique, weight of pass, ability to glide past seasoned defenders & his ability to find space & time are a nonsense for a 19 year old. Almost no one can do those things together at his age, especially the appreciation of space.



He should be eased in rather than relied upon, but while Utd were shit last year he continued to play his game, admirable courage in the face of a @#%&! of a manager who wanted to lump it & cross it repeatedly.



He'll be here for a long, long time. Or until Madrid come knocking with £100m.

Cheers, I thought the same about jones tbh with all the Duncan Edwards stuff, just starting to look the part now IMHO

I do like the idea of Di Maria playing infield in a 3. Giggs had a lot of success in the later part of his career from central areas, midfielders who can run with the ball are golden, changes the game when it is not just the passing threat.

He said he couldn't play 433 because he didn't have a winger like Di Maria...

But he seems pretty wedded to 3 at the back

With King Arthur i'd provisionally recommend the following to the big man:

De Gea

Rafael Jones Rojo Shaw

Vidal ........Hererra
Mata
Januzaj ........... Di Maria
RVP

Swap Rooney for RVP - not overly arsed - whichever is in the best form should start. Do not want to see Rooney anywhere near midfield.

Originally Posted by Tiberian

I do like the idea of Di Maria playing infield in a 3. Giggs had a lot of success in the later part of his career from central areas, midfielders who can run with the ball are golden, changes the game when it is not just the passing threat.

Yeah, I have read a few articles championing it. He did well for Madrid there last season. It will be interesting where he plays him. The way he's been talking about wanting a top level winger suggests he will use him from a starting wide position with freedom I presume.

Originally Posted by Jez Quigley