can we set some parameters please

Originally Posted by marlo

our squad atm in embarrassing.... not a competent striker in his prime, no proven quality wide players, no consistent attacking midfielders and 3 central midfielders who leave you feeling like we still need to buy a midfielder to partner 1 of the 3.

Originally Posted by marlo

i remember when we were not winning games in the champions league and the general consensus was they were not 'must win' games .....then when it caught up with us....it was stated that we werent good enough to win the champions league so doesnt matter when we get knocked out (group stages etc)

so what league finish in the league would be considered a failure by LGV?

should top 4 be the absolute minimum.

ideally you would think spending the money he spent in the summer, having a year to ship out the 'dead wood' a tame title challenge that fizzes out in late march would be the appropriate improvement on last seasons 4th place finish......

but anyway the goal post shifts so much for the dutch one so whats the new standard...

if we finish below 4th would that be a failure by LGV or is the poor squad (he assembled), scholes and rios bt sport curse et

So league position is what matters now in judging van gaal? Because it didn't seem to matter when we were top of the league a few weeks ago.

So what's is success between now and the end of the season, top 3 playing boring football, or 5th playing exciting, attacking football?

Originally Posted by utd99

You're right, it's not unthinkable, I merely suggested it was unlikely. If city, arsenal and leicester are nine and eight points ahead of us, that's 8/9 we have to make up in addition to whatever we drop between now and the end of the season, which the first half would suggest will be a significant number. So unless you see some reason to think that we are about to emerge as the form team of 2016, we are most certainly on the cusp of being out of the top three already. Even if leicester drop points, it's more likely that Spurs clinch third and we get involved in a game of catch up with them for fourth.

This is failing to mention the possibility of any of the five teams around us, including Liverpool, going on a decent run.

It's unpleasant viewing, but it is how it is and we only have ourselves to blame. This last month has £#%&!ing killed us.

It almost sounds like a competition.

Originally Posted by Albert Tatlock

We are rebuilding, perhaps not well enough for some, but we are rebuilding.

Top 4 is a must, everything else is a bonus

Forget what we had under Fergie. With him, finishing second in the league and losing a CL final were catastrophies as we always expected to win everything. We all believed that no matter the opposition, Fergie would find a way.

It's not the same now and perhaps it won't ever be that way again, so we have to adjust our expectations... downwards unfortunately...

Fergie finished 3rd and 4th when rebuilding around 2003-2005. And his team had van nistlerooy, Keane, Ferdinand, a peak age Scholes, Neville and Giggs, and the two best young players in Europe, Rooney and Ronaldo.

Originally Posted by Jammy Dodger

So league position is what matters now in judging van gaal? Because it didn't seem to matter when we were top of the league a few weeks ago.

So what's is success between now and the end of the season, top 3 playing boring football, or 5th playing exciting, attacking football?



It almost sounds like a competition.



Fergie finished 3rd and 4th when rebuilding around 2003-2005. And his team had van nistlerooy, Keane, Ferdinand, a peak age Scholes, Neville and Giggs, and the two best young players in Europe, Rooney and Ronaldo.

SAF never finished below 3rd in the Premiership era.

Re league position, I believe most of us moaners were moaning because we could see what was coming, it was staring us all right in the face we were 'getting away with it' at the back and creating bugger all with no goalscorer in the team.

The fact we were top of the league in the early months is nothing to cling to, thats happened to half the league at one point over the years.

Originally Posted by armchair

Last season it was top 4.
This season it was supposed to be challenge strongly for the league and get to the qf of the cl, maybe win a cup.
Next season was supposed to be win the league.

I was happy enough with last season but this season has been atrocious. I feel like we are the most naive team in the world while in possession. All we do is risk averse passes until we're camped in their half and most of the defenders have pushed forward then give the ball away and gift chances on the counter.

Or we knock the ball around so we don't surrender possession by playing silly long balls, which inevitably ends up back with De Gea who proceeds to punt it long.

I want a Rangers punishment on us and we'll see were saffers, Marlo etc are.

But yeah 4th and a trophy is still poor. 1st or challenging is the only option now in this climate

Originally Posted by utd99

Or we knock the ball around so we don't surrender possession by playing silly long balls, which inevitably ends up back with De Gea who proceeds to punt it long.

If that's really what's happening, then De Gea's long balls are incredibly accurate. Sers can post the stats, but De Gea has been above 80% completion with his passing in several games this season. Against Wolfsburg, he had a higher % than eight of the outfield players.

Just read on the bbc website that old Trafford is officially the most boring place to watch football the least number of goals scored in the football league.
Parameters.

Originally Posted by rebelcountyred

Just read on the bbc website that old Trafford is officially the most boring place to watch football the least number of goals scored in the football league.
Parameters.

Home form hasn't been great tbf.

We are scoring a distinctly average amount of goals overall though.

Originally Posted by Barcabal

I want a Rangers punishment on us and we'll see were saffers, Marlo etc are.

That would be funny tbh.

Gone forever.

Originally Posted by marlo

3 central midfielders who leave you feeling like we still need to buy a midfielder to partner 1 of the 3.

or maybe play all three. and herrera.

any @#%&! that still thinks a 2-man midfield is in any way acceptable should be told to £#%&! right off.

squad schmod. the players we have should be in the top four now.

People hanging onto every word a city fan says

Originally Posted by puressence

People hanging onto every word a city fan says

Slightly harsh on jemmers, tbf

Disgusted we haven't sacked him yet.

Moyesie style slow motion car crash is a Woody specialty. Hope he's happy.

Originally Posted by saffers

Disgusted we haven't sacked him yet.

Moyesie style slow motion car crash is a Woody specialty. Hope he's happy.

rotten to the core. we are doomed

Originally Posted by ScarFace

rotten to the core. we are doomed

Will at least be what everyone at the club deserves. And the morons who were singing anti Mourinho songs and cheering van gaal while the club is getting destroyed.

Would actually take another horrendous season if it meant Woodward joined LvG on the scrapheap.

Originally Posted by saffers

Will at least be what everyone at the club deserves. And the morons who were singing anti Mourinho songs and cheering van gaal while the club is getting destroyed.

Would actually take another horrendous season if it meant Woodward joined LvG on the scrapheap.

There's some sort of ridiculous soap-opera-esque power struggle going on in the boardroom. It wouldn't look out of place on that piss-poor Sky show "Dream Team" but unfortunately it's happening behind the scenes of Britain's biggest football club.

You've got the chubby investment banker who wants to prove himself so desperately that he'd rather watch his chosen manager dying on his arse every week than admit the situation has gone sour and sack him. You've got a retired manager who just simply cannot stop £#%&!ing meddling in team affairs even though he should be off playing golf or something, one of the top 2 managers in world football just sits there, unemployed whilst this utter farce of indecision and misplaced pride just goes on and on.

Originally Posted by jem

or maybe play all three. and herrera.

any @#%&! that still thinks a 2-man midfield is in any way acceptable should be told to £#%&! right off.

squad schmod. the players we have should be in the top four now.

Chelsea won the league last season with two in central midfield tbf. City often do, too.

Main issue is stopping the manager from ever starting Fellaini.

Originally Posted by S/Side.Red

Chelsea won the league last season with two in central midfield tbf.

they wouldn't have done if we'd had three.