Formation and team selections

Originally Posted by marlo

he isn't good enough at this early stage is his career, he has played about 25 first team games ffs.
he is young and wouldn't be starting games at any of our title rivals so why the hell should he be starting games for us.

he should be treated like kelechi, brought on if a goal is needed, or once we are need to change things and allowed to develop his game.

in the last few games he has been as poor as rooney was before he was dropped and its not his fault as he is a young player but its obvious he should be starting games.
he was tried up front in that europa game we lost...and was bullied and a (-1) in terms of presence up front.

wasn't he tried up front against some shite last season as well? city i think it was. at CoMS. did ok iirc.

Originally Posted by Marvel7

The team posted is a good team, if used right it would be capable of challenging for the premier league.

based on what evidence?

it's as good as we currently are and where we have been since Fergie retired.
the Europa League positions.

we have the squad to challenge, but not the manager. we've bought loads of midfielders, but we're still playing fellaini + 1. and we look uncoached in possession.

we're actually back to square one, with a shit central defence and the manager needing to set up defensively to protect them - exactly the same as LVG came into.

big shame. at least we'd got past that and had the youth coming through

hard to believe until a few weeks ago it looked like smalling would struggle to get back in the team

we're not set up to protect the central defence, though.

Originally Posted by jem

we're not set up to protect the central defence, though.

hence the words needing to set up to protect our shit central defence (smalling). well protected at anfield obviously. trusted more yesterday, which went just brilliantly.

Originally Posted by Tumescent Throb

hence the words needing to set up to protect our shit central defence (smalling). well protected at anfield obviously. trusted more yesterday, which went just brilliantly.

not well-protected at anfield either. and this need to protect the centre backs is really just a need to play a £#%&!ing midfield. every week.

our tactics yesterday were essentially exactly the same as at anfield, so you're just making yourself look stupid.

Originally Posted by jem

not well-protected at anfield either. and this need to protect the centre backs is really just a need to play a £#%&!ing midfield. every week.

our tactics yesterday were essentially exactly the same as at anfield, so you're just making yourself look stupid.

I think it's fair enough to say Jose's got a worryingly high amount of team selections & tactics wrong in so few league games.

The Fellaini issue is absolutely £#%&!ing baffling. It's pointless calling out his flaws as a limited player, but what - exactly - are his plus points to get him in the side? His attitude? I don't get it.

Giggsy did that article in the Telegraph about getting to know your squad, who to use & when, who you can trust & whatnot, seems that it takes a modern manager £#%&!ing months to work out what your man on the street can see in 90mins these days.

& whilst Klopp has been derided on here, he's been in the job for a year now, you can see a decidedly obvious style & attacking flair in that side. How much money was spent to achieve it? Moyes, Van Gaal & now Mourinho all seem ponderous to the point of incompetence in molding a coherent XI out of the available players.

I'm still happy to give Mourinho the time he needs, he's inherited a weird situation, but he's being ruthless with wrong the players & his approach undeniably scattergun at best at the moment.

A desperately obvious 4-3-3 exists with the players available, he has had incredible success with that formation, just £#%&!ing wake up & smell the beans

Arguably the most obvious formation that can fit our best players into their preferred position is a 442 diamond

Carrick holding with Herrera and Pogba box to box either side and Micki or Mata in the number 10 role
Then you can have split centre forwards of Martial and Rashford up top

It can be a tricky formation to get working right especially in the premier league but Southampton are playing it extremely well at the moment

Originally Posted by Tumescent Throb

we're actually back to square one, with a shit central defence and the manager needing to set up defensively to protect them - exactly the same as LVG came into.

big shame. at least we'd got past that and had the youth coming through

hard to believe until a few weeks ago it looked like smalling would struggle to get back in the team

No it didn't. As anyone could see, the second Smalling was fully fit he'd be back in, as he is physically much more of a Mourinho player than Blind will ever be.

I seem to recall he dropped Blind to fit Smalling back in..

I'm sure we can all see the deficiencies in smalling and blind (and all of the players - people are even slating valencia, rashford anx herrera). can you see the deficiencies in mourinho? because that's the main problem.

Originally Posted by jem

I'm sure we can all see the deficiencies in smalling and blind (and all of the players - people are even slating valencia, rashford anx herrera). can you see the deficiencies in mourinho? because that's the main problem.

It's whether he can, not whether we can.

2 clean sheets in 9 since smalling came back, one of them against zorya. incidentally setting this argument about smalling as a either or with blind is typical of the short-cut to thinking of some on here...

of course any fool can see that mourinho isn't really very likely to want his teams to play from the back. however, it was beginning to look as though he was changing his ways, maybe even as if he was going to attempt to build a united side of style and craft, using ballplayers and technique over power and pace and directness; blind and mata were regulars as we did well early doors; lo and behold he even found space for youngsters in the side and finally the introduction of rashford suggested he was onto something; if only he could pick rooney on merit alone we could develop into a team of verve...

but the weeks pass and rashford still hasn't started a meaningful PL game centrally, fosu-mensah hasn't had a single minute in the PL, martial has been £#%&!ed about instead of nurtured, mikhi has barely featured; fellaini is a staple, carrick sits on the bench as his career gets snuffed out, and chris smalling is the £#%&!ing captain.

we're a mediocre 7th placed team. and bar the odd flash, early doors from zlatan, latterly from lingard, and in between from rashford and mata and herrera, everything about the season so far screams mediocre. valencia is one of the very few who've shone. just as he did for van gaal. a true professional. make him captain and make all the rest of the c***s learn to speak grunt and stare pure contempt.

There are very few formations that work when you've got such a limited squad filled with mediocre players and good players reaching the end of their careers. That is van gaals legacy.

Originally Posted by believe

There are very few formations that work when you've got such a limited squad filled with mediocre players and good players reaching the end of their careers. That is fergies, moyes and LVG's legacy.

True

Originally Posted by Whip Hubley

True

Nearly good repped you. Laughable to be still blaming ferguson for what he left three years ago, especially when you consider what we've spent. Moyes was completely out of his depth but van Gaal was the so called no nonsense tactical master who had a blank cheque book to make the difference. Instead, he created the dullest footballing team in our history and failed to make the top four in a year Leicester won the league.

Mourinho has got twice the job Moyes had, it's a question now whether he's mentally up for it.

Originally Posted by believe

There are very few formations that work when you've got such a limited squad filled with mediocre players and good players reaching the end of their careers. That is van gaals legacy.

as with all managers, the only question is whether he is making the best of what is available to him. and he isn't.

van gaal didn't pick a proper midfield, but at least he had a plan. one we all (with notable exceptions) thought was horrible to watch and not worth the journey, but still.....

and for a while it was hard to tell what mourinho was trying to do. now we know. away against teams such as the mighty liverpool and the mighty chelsea, we will do what mourinho teams have always done. spoil. and he won't pick a proper midfield.

we do not have shit players. we've got the basis of an excellent team and a few bit part players. but mourinho is not getting the best out of them. and it's not because they are all stupid, gutless, preening, arrogant, tired, nervous and irredeemably cloggish. we're getting good individual performances despite the ridiculous selections and tactics.

Originally Posted by believe

Mourinho has got twice the job Moyes had, it's a question now whether he's mentally up for it.

not sure I agree with the first half. and looking at the way mourinho's teams have played over the years, not sure it is simply being up for it. if you think he just hasn't found his drogba..... he wants to turn us into a team we would hate.

Originally Posted by jem

as with all managers, the only question is whether he is making the best of what is available to him. and he isn't.

van gaal didn't pick a proper midfield, but at least he had a plan. one we all (with notable exceptions) thought was horrible to watch and not worth the journey, but still.....

and for a while it was hard to tell what mourinho was trying to do. now we know. away against teams such as the mighty liverpool and the mighty chelsea, we will do what mourinho teams have always done. spoil. and he won't pick a proper midfield.

we do not have shit players. we've got the basis of an excellent team and a few bit part players. but mourinho is not getting the best out of them. and it's not because they are all stupid, gutless, preening, arrogant, tired, nervous and irredeemably cloggish. we're getting good individual performances despite the ridiculous selections and tactics.

not sure I agree with the first half. and looking at the way mourinho's teams have played over the years, not sure it is simply being up for it. if you think he just hasn't found his drogba..... he wants to turn us into a team we would hate.

Right. And they weren't shit under Moyes and they weren't shit under LvG. It's all down to the manager, again.

And Jem would win the league with this squad.

Originally Posted by dunk

Right. And they weren't shit under Moyes and they weren't shit under LvG. It's all down to the manager, again.

And Jem would win the league with this squad.

I know. it's so frustrating.