West Ham v Manchester United : Official Match Thread : 7/5/23 7pm

Originally Posted by puressence

Still struggling to comprehend that shit show last night.

Not too hard tbh. Only scored 49 goals all season. Most of those will be Rashford/Bruno so if they don’t score we’re struggling. We average 1.17 goals away from home this season. Only won 7 of 18 away too.


We’re not that good away from home I’m afraid.

Originally Posted by puressence

Still struggling to comprehend that shit show last night.

You didnt see it coming after Brighton?

I fully expected us to be Manchester United nil again.

Originally Posted by Dr Stranger

It’s not a contest either. Our forwards were shit and so was the keeper. It was an all-round shit performance where £#%&!ing nobody turned up and there’s been far too many of those away from home this season.

Yes, but De Gea's mistake gets the panic going in was we know is a team of shit the beds. We were totally comfortable before he let that goal in. After that, panic.

Originally Posted by MUFC One Love

You cannot defend De Gea I'm afraid.

probs why no one has.

Originally Posted by shenwen

We were totally comfortable before he let that goal in.

totally comfortable not taking our chances.

Originally Posted by shenwen

Yes, but De Gea's mistake gets the panic going in was we know is a team of shit the beds. We were totally comfortable before he let that goal in. After that, panic.

Yep. He’s like Maguire in the sense he spreads unease.

Originally Posted by shenwen

Yes, but De Gea's mistake gets the panic going in was we know is a team of shit the beds. We were totally comfortable before he let that goal in. After that, panic.

Comfortable but not scoring, again.

Don’t disagree, the game changed after that £#%&! up because it emboldened West Ham who looked utterly shot prior.

Overall, a horrific day at the office. Bad from 10H - the wrong set up and formation and dreadful from all our players. De Gea especially.

I’d be delighted if we can bring in a better keeper. I’d be delighted if we can bring in better players in every position tbh. Desperately need a striker, I think Antony’s shite, so too is sancho, midfield needs some back up and the keeper needs changing.

Best of luck with all that.

Originally Posted by Gypsum Fantastic

Not too hard tbh. Only scored 49 goals all season. Most of those will be Rashford/Bruno so if they don’t score we’re struggling. We average 1.17 goals away from home this season. Only won 7 of 18 away too.


We’re not that good away from home I’m afraid.

We’re not that good at all tbh. Can only think of 3 performances where we looked good. Spurs and Barca at home and Barca away. Weirdly we’ve been a disgrace away all season but they were brilliant at the Nou Camp they don’t make sense ffs

Originally Posted by Gypsum Fantastic

Not too hard tbh. Only scored 49 goals all season. Most of those will be Rashford/Bruno so if they don’t score we’re struggling. We average 1.17 goals away from home this season. Only won 7 of 18 away too.


We’re not that good away from home I’m afraid.

Martinez and Varane are a huge miss for us, not just in a defensive sense either. The speed an accuracy which particularly martinez moved the ball through the lines is night and day compared to what shaw and lindelof do. We miss shaw out on the left who is pretty much the only player in the entire team who can deliver something resembling a decent ball into the box.

It's messed everything up. We build attacks ridiculously slow because nobody is confident in what they're doing at the back. The goalkeeper is terrified of kicking it, the centre backs are nervy about receiving it, so everything is done at a £#%&!ing glacial speed, meaning teams like west ham can easily get 9 men behind the ball, set up in their shape and deny us any space. Then West Ham win the ball 20 yards from their goal and go long towards Michail Antonio who bullies Lindelof and Shaw to get them up the pitch. That was pretty much the pattern of the entire 2nd half. The longer the game goes on, the bigger the gaps are for West Ham to exploit, their midfielders just carry the ball 50 yards up the pitch, strutting past our players who all appear to be running in slow motion, stroll into the 18 yard box with no opposition at all. The differences in energy levels and physicality are becoming really stark at this point.

On top of that you've got a forward line who play like they all met on the coach on the way to the game. They show no appreciation for where each other will be during attacks, the wide attackers think their sole purpose is to get the ball, cut in on their strong foot and shoot, all other considerations are secondary. On the very rare occasions one of our full backs overlaps and gets a ball into the box, nobody reacts or anticipates it and instead they're usually stood 18 yards out watching the ball sail into the goalkeepers hands. That's the extent of our imagination in the final 3rd. There's no great plan to exploit spaces, nobody seems to make moves to create space for their team mates, it's all make it up as you go along shit.

On top of that the only player who ever scores for us has reverted back to his usual standard of the last 2 years after a 6 month purple patch. Greedy, idiotic decisions, trying to run through 4-5 defenders and treating his team mates as if they are invisible unless he needs to just £#%&! the ball at someone out of panic. There's still far too many individuals out there and not enough players who think like a team. They do it occasionally when things are going well but as soon as the shit hits the fan they all start with their own little maverick crap that gets us nowhere. Case in point Fernandes from that corner in the last minute, every player in the box and he decides he's going to have a shot on his left foot from 20 yards out. You can't be surprised that you can't score when your players are making decisions like this every game.

I said it before and i'll say it again - we play the most naive, stupid football of any team in this division other than maybe Leeds. We are the architects of all our own problems.

we've reverted to how we were under rangnick. fragile, no fight, easily turned over.

i said not long after the 7-0 that in recent years, these united sides have previous for going on a fantastic run of form, only for them to suffer one bad result and then they just collapse. groundhog £#%&!ing day some of these players just don't have the balls to play for a club like united.

Originally Posted by Sparky***

Martinez and Varane are a huge miss for us, not just in a defensive sense either. The speed an accuracy which particularly martinez moved the ball through the lines is night and day compared to what shaw and lindelof do. We miss shaw out on the left who is pretty much the only player in the entire team who can deliver something resembling a decent ball into the box.

It's messed everything up. We build attacks ridiculously slow because nobody is confident in what they're doing at the back. The goalkeeper is terrified of kicking it, the centre backs are nervy about receiving it, so everything is done at a £#%&!ing glacial speed, meaning teams like west ham can easily get 9 men behind the ball, set up in their shape and deny us any space. Then West Ham win the ball 20 yards from their goal and go long towards Michail Antonio who bullies Lindelof and Shaw to get them up the pitch. That was pretty much the pattern of the entire 2nd half. The longer the game goes on, the bigger the gaps are for West Ham to exploit, their midfielders just carry the ball 50 yards up the pitch, strutting past our players who all appear to be running in slow motion, stroll into the 18 yard box with no opposition at all. The differences in energy levels and physicality are becoming really stark at this point.

On top of that you've got a forward line who play like they all met on the coach on the way to the game. They show no appreciation for where each other will be during attacks, the wide attackers think their sole purpose is to get the ball, cut in on their strong foot and shoot, all other considerations are secondary. On the very rare occasions one of our full backs overlaps and gets a ball into the box, nobody reacts or anticipates it and instead they're usually stood 18 yards out watching the ball sail into the goalkeepers hands. That's the extent of our imagination in the final 3rd. There's no great plan to exploit spaces, nobody seems to make moves to create space for their team mates, it's all make it up as you go along shit.

On top of that the only player who ever scores for us has reverted back to his usual standard of the last 2 years after a 6 month purple patch. Greedy, idiotic decisions, trying to run through 4-5 defenders and treating his team mates as if they are invisible unless he needs to just £#%&! the ball at someone out of panic. There's still far too many individuals out there and not enough players who think like a team. They do it occasionally when things are going well but as soon as the shit hits the fan they all start with their own little maverick crap that gets us nowhere. Case in point Fernandes from that corner in the last minute, every player in the box and he decides he's going to have a shot on his left foot from 20 yards out. You can't be surprised that you can't score when your players are making decisions like this every game.

I said it before and i'll say it again - we play the most naive, stupid football of any team in this division other than maybe Leeds. We are the architects of all our own problems.

Ugh. £#%&! off.

Because that’s all true

That Bruno shot at the end really did sum us. Box is loaded. Stick a decent ball in. No. Leans back, weaker foot, wild reckless attempt. We are criminally careless and stupid on the ball. From front to back. And when things go badly, everyone reverts to their inherent bad habits.

https://twitter.com/unitedstandmufc/status/1655529230321500161?s=46&t=46osAsCMaSbh7vgQsN2l

Very very well earned, I must say 👍

I did question if rashford form was a purple patch and i think it might seem that way.

he is playing like the idiot i had become familiar with.

while everyone is finding every excuse and throwing all the blame at de gea it’s not quite as simple as that

. Yes he destabilising the whole team and how it functions but regardless the setup of the team is diabolical and we have a host of back room staff all looking busy and serious yet we seem to be the one team who can’t even play decent football in any shape of form.

I’ve been at the last few London away games including Wembley and every team we have a played (even spurs) have a pattern of play and look competent on the ball. Regardless of our goalkeeper once the ball gets into our midfield we should have some sort of attacking style or way of keeping the ball and getting our attacking players on the ball in the right areas. . Players knowing where others are going to be , making runs, making angles.
I’ve seen one tactic from us. build from the left then switch it Anthony who stays wide right and isolates their left back…but then idiot then takes the ball towards the corner flag giving the other team time to get across and double team him….

ETH has managed to make us worse while spending 200m. We are basically carving teams open or even having shots at goal.

But yeah it’s de gear fault our midfield three always seem over run despite sometimes being up against 2 man midfields.
Why did Declan rice get so much time on the ball able to spring Bowen in a few times or even that other lad that was having a duel with awb.

It’s the coaching or lack of it. Not de gea.
Play weghost in midfield….

When is he supposed to coach them? In the 2-3 days between games which is largely spent travelling and recovering?

Just read the Athletic article on them getting a couple of days off..

After the 4-0 loss to Brentford in August Ten Hag cancelled a planned day off and made his players run 13.8km, the extra distance their opponents had covered during the game.

But he is taking a different approach after United played their 57th game of the season at the London Stadium, given the physical load that has been on their bodies. Since the World Cup United have played on average one game every 3.8 days.

Tight turnarounds have meant training in unusual locations. United stayed in Seville following their Europa League loss then flew the next day to London for a session on the outskirts of the capital before facing Brighton in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley 48 hours later.

After the defeat at Brighton on Thursday, United stayed down south and had a recovery session the next morning, only returning to Manchester in the afternoon. They did the West Ham game as a day trip, rather than stay in a hotel in London the night before.

United’s performances have notably dipped after intervals in games but Ten Hag has resisted questions about fatigue to avoid the issue becoming a psychological factor for his players. But he has begun to explain the pressures at play.

“It’s the first time since Christmas that those players have a full week,” he said after losing 1-0 to West Ham. “We have to reset, reload, get the energy back and keep going.

It’s utterly absurd and practically unworkable for the length of time we’ve had to endure it. We’re seeing the fruits of it on the pitch.

There’s been plenty of progress in all the areas you’ve mentioned above, no question they’ve gone horribly off the boil and are devoid of confidence, but the fact you’ve had to wait until May to make any of those points in an atmosphere in which they’ll be considered or entertained proves you’re wrong.

Originally Posted by dunk

When is he supposed to coach them? In the 2-3 days between games which is largely spent travelling and recovering?

Just read the Athletic article on them getting a couple of days off..



It’s utterly absurd and practically unworkable for the length of time we’ve had to endure it. We’re seeing the fruits of it on the pitch.

There’s been plenty of progress in all the areas you’ve mentioned above, no question they’ve gone horribly off the boil and are devoid of confidence, but the fact you’ve had to wait until May to make any of those points in an atmosphere in which they’ll be considered or entertained proves you’re wrong.

I’ve had to wait till may? we been ok at best in 2023.

even in our “good patch” we were making 2nd half subs and turning games around which means we weren’t set up right in the first place.

but yeah what can our well payed manager do….
No one’s fault, it’s just life.

After all we are the only team playing more than one time a week. Also our cup runs involved us playing some real top quality sides which would take it out of us. …wait a minute

Originally Posted by marlo

I did question if rashford form was a purple patch and i think it might seem that way.

he is playing like the idiot i had become familiar with.

while everyone is finding every excuse and throwing all the blame at de gea it’s not quite as simple as that

. Yes he destabilising the whole team and how it functions but regardless the setup of the team is diabolical and we have a host of back room staff all looking busy and serious yet we seem to be the one team who can’t even play decent football in any shape of form.

I’ve been at the last few London away games including Wembley and every team we have a played (even spurs) have a pattern of play and look competent on the ball. Regardless of our goalkeeper once the ball gets into our midfield we should have some sort of attacking style or way of keeping the ball and getting our attacking players on the ball in the right areas. . Players knowing where others are going to be , making runs, making angles.
I’ve seen one tactic from us. build from the left then switch it Anthony who stays wide right and isolates their left back…but then idiot then takes the ball towards the corner flag giving the other team time to get across and double team him….

ETH has managed to make us worse while spending 200m. We are basically carving teams open or even having shots at goal.

But yeah it’s de gear fault our midfield three always seem over run despite sometimes being up against 2 man midfields.
Why did Declan rice get so much time on the ball able to spring Bowen in a few times or even that other lad that was having a duel with awb.

It’s the coaching or lack of it. Not de gea.
Play weghost in midfield….

i said in the other thread that come the do-or-die crunch moments in a season, teams will show you who they are.

look at liverpool, they've had a poor season by their standards but now they're grinding out results because they've got a team comprised of winners who've won every trophy there is in recent years.

City just clicking through the gears at the right time and showing why they're streets ahead of everyone, with a manager who simply won't allow or tolerate any kind of drop in standard. This time of the season is where they shine and they are ruthless.

Then you have Arsenal who flattered to deceive. Spent far too much time chest pumping and performing little team unity huddles for the cameras and forgot to turn up for their title decider.

Lastly you have the likes of Man Utd and Tottenham who have become synonymous in recent seasons with car crash managerial appointments, terrible recruitment and bottling huge moments in seasons.

And there you see who is really about it and who is a £#%&!ing meme. Who can rise to the challenge and who shies away. We're the latter i'm afraid. A team of petulant losers who've reverted to type.

Originally Posted by Sparky***

And there you see who is really about it and who is a £#%&!ing meme. Who can rise to the challenge and who shies away. We're the latter i'm afraid. A team of petulant losers who've reverted to type.

This deffo describes you and marlo, nqat.

Originally Posted by dunk

This deffo describes you and marlo, nqat.

Originally Posted by Dr Stranger

Very very well earned, I must say 👍

They need a break, they've played the most football in Europe this season....

Erik knows what he's doing.

Originally Posted by Sparky***

i said in the other thread that come the do-or-die crunch moments in a season, teams will show you who they are.

look at liverpool, they've had a poor season by their standards but now they're grinding out results because they've got a team comprised of winners who've won every trophy there is in recent years.

..

Then you have Arsenal who flattered to deceive. Spent far too much time chest pumping and performing little team unity huddles for the cameras and forgot to turn up for their title decider.

..

And there you see who is really about it and who is a £#%&!ing meme. Who can rise to the challenge and who shies away. We're the latter i'm afraid. A team of petulant losers who've reverted to type.

Arsenal who are on for their record points total in 130 years are a "£#%&!ing meme" compared to Liverpool, a "do or die" side who may squeak past 70 points in the league 20 pts behind after throwing a 2-0 home lead after 15 minutes to lose 5-2 against Madrid.

Originally Posted by Bunker Buster

They need a break, they've played the most football in Europe this season....

Erik knows what he's doing.

Agreed. I’m just being a #@&%!.

Originally Posted by ErikvanHaaksbergen

Arsenal who are on for their record points total in 130 years are a "£#%&!ing meme" compared to Liverpool, a "do or die" side who may squeak past 70 points in the league 20 pts behind after throwing a 2-0 home lead after 15 minutes to lose 5-2 against Madrid.

And a 3-0 lead against spurs before a spawny last minute winner.