The Smalling question

He's played very well when he's abandoned his efforts to be a shit Rio Ferdinand pastiche and focused on using his strength to bully centre forwards.

When he tries to get on the ball and dictate things he's a £#%&!ing clown.

We need a proper leader to play football from the back and organise the defensive line, leaving Smalling to deputise as muscle.

Originally Posted by sa7

He's played very well when he's abandoned his efforts to be a shit Rio Ferdinand pastiche and focused on using his strength to bully centre forwards.

When he tries to get on the ball and dictate things he's a £#%&!ing clown.

We need a proper leader to play football from the back and organise the defensive line, leaving Smalling to deputise as muscle.

Yes, that sounds ideal but for some reason both our centre backs play the ball out from defence. Is this team orders or simply unavoidable?

Blind is excellent going forward.

Smalling is not good enough to start regularly for a team looking to win the league. He's unbelievably overhyped. Any pressure and he goes under.

Yeah, basically depends on the manager and style. In a team playing out from the back and especially this one where defenders are encouraged to carry the ball into the opposition half, he costs you a lot in build up. In a more defensive set up such as Mourinho's you could stick an organiser next to him and he will probably be very good.

His distribution is so woeful but he's a great athlete and very difficult to beat one v one.

Originally Posted by MUFC One Love

Smalling is not good enough to start regularly for a team looking to win the league. He's unbelievably overhyped. Any pressure and he goes under.

He isn't. A large majority actually think he's worse then he is. Whether he's a centre back for a side who want to win the league is a different matter and brings us back to the question of a better partner for him

smalling is the best defender we have. even king louis gets that and he's #@&%!ed.

Originally Posted by jem

smalling is the best defender we have. even king louis gets that and he's #@&%!ed.

did you even read the question?


btw jones has been out all season. he's at least as good as smalling.

i realise that's not saying all that much.

Smalling is a good player. Arguably the best defender we have. Not the best we've ever had, but potentially really good with a proper partner

Originally Posted by Harri Jaffa

Smalling is a good player. Arguably the best defender we have. Not the best we've ever had, but potentially really good with a proper partner

Major test for him this summer, will go to the Euro's probably established as England's first choice CB. Might not be saying much considering how weak the group is compared to almost any time over the last 30 years but a strong tournament and the confidence it can bring would be another step for him.

Originally Posted by Tumescent Throb

did you even read the question?

read your last post back and see whether you might ask yourself the same.

threads develop.

provided you don't post more than a couple of times, anyways.

Originally Posted by jem

read your last post back and see whether you might ask yourself the same.

threads develop.

provided you don't post more than a couple of times, anyways.

i'll take that as a no.

Originally Posted by Tumescent Throb

i'll take that as a no.

yes. you probably will.

Originally Posted by jem

yes. you probably will.

carry on like that and i won't.

In a world of lowered expectations where we just need to achieve 4th be is fine. He isn't good enough for what we want and I suspect he never will be. Decent squad player but it's lacking in took many areas.

Blind is not even close to being good enough at centre back. Relying on him there has been a huge falling of van gaal. Every premier league winning side has been built upon a solid centre back pairing. He has woefully neglected to address that area.

The idea that blind can replace Carrick is also laughable. He's a squad player at best.

Originally Posted by Lok

In a world of lowered expectations where we just need to achieve 4th be is fine. He isn't good enough for what we want and I suspect he never will be. Decent squad player but it's lacking in took many areas.

Blind is not even close to being good enough at centre back. Relying on him there has been a huge falling of van gaal. Every premier league winning side has been built upon a solid centre back pairing. He has woefully neglected to address that area.

The idea that blind can replace Carrick is also laughable. He's a squad player at best.

I find it genuinely baffling that people can feel this strongly. Can understand some skepticism, even if for me he's been excellent.

But being so disparaging is strange. Though it does always surprise me how much suspicion remains in England of ball-playing defenders with physical limitations, when the country's finest hour saw them led to the World Cup by precisely that type as captain. Just another example of English football forgetting itself during the kick and rush £#%&!ery of the 1980s, I suppose.

Smalling would be a backup in proper United sides that we've been used to - your David May to Stam and Johnsen, your Evans to Vidic and Rio.

Unfortunately that's not where we're at, but a solid centre-back pairing that the midfield can trust would hopefully kill off the negative play going forwards.

Originally Posted by S/Side.Red

I find it genuinely baffling that people can feel this strongly. Can understand some skepticism, even if for me he's been excellent.

But being so disparaging is strange. Though it does always surprise me how much suspicion remains in England of ball-playing defenders with physical limitations, when the country's finest hour saw them led to the World Cup by precisely that type as captain. Just another example of English football forgetting itself during the kick and rush £#%&!ery of the 1980s, I suppose.

I don't mind ball playing centre backs, I bloody loved Rio.

I just like them to be able to defend, have some positional sense as well as being able to read the game.

Blind is a liability at the back.

Originally Posted by Lok

I don't mind ball playing centre backs, I bloody loved Rio.

I just like them to be able to defend, have some positional sense as well as being able to read the game.

Blind is a liability at the back.

You genuinely don't think Blind has positional sense or reads the game? Honestly?

Rio a bit underused in terms of his ability on the. ball, imo.

Originally Posted by S/Side.Red

You genuinely don't think Blind has positional sense or reads the game? Honestly?

Rio a bit underused in terms of his ability on the. ball, imo.

The amount of times he gets caught out of position implies he doesn't have a clue what he's doing there.

If you think he's good enough you must have massively lowered your expectations.

Originally Posted by Lok

The amount of times he gets caught out of position implies he doesn't have a clue what he's doing there.

If you think he's good enough you must have massively lowered your expectations.

We're definitely watching a different player. For me his main problems come when he misjudges things and makes a wrong decision. I don't think it happens that often and it's something I'd expect him to improve on. Obviously he won't play there under Mou, though.