Counter-attack

One style should not exclude the other. Control and create through possession football against packed defensive units, but also exploit the opportunities when the other team do move forward with quicker more direct attacking.

We are capable of neither. Teams do tend to sit deep against us, but there have still been countering chances, poor delivery at set pieces with defenders up for instance. I have never watched a Utd team so adept at killing those chances though, the lack of awareness of the possibility combined with a generally slow team.

Originally Posted by Tiberian

One style should not exclude the other. Control and create through possession football against packed defensive units, but also exploit the opportunities when the other team do move forward with quicker more direct attacking.

We are capable of neither. Teams do tend to sit deep against us, but there have still been countering chances, poor delivery at set pieces with defenders up for instance. I have never watched a Utd team so adept at killing those chances though, the lack of awareness of the possibility combined with a generally slow team.

Slow striker, slow no10, midfielders such as Fellani who rarely even look for, let alone, play those types of early penetrative passes.

As much as Memphis has disappointed, you have to say it's a team that should be better balanced in the second season. I think that will happen either this window or the next, with those quicker, more dynamic and more creative attacking players arriving.

Not in enough time to save LvG though, I suspect.

Originally Posted by S/Side.Red

Slow striker, slow no10, midfielders such as Fellani who rarely even look for, let alone, play those types of early penetrative passes.

As much as Memphis has disappointed, you have to say it's a team that should be better balanced in the second season. I think that will happen either this window or the next, with those quicker, more dynamic and more creative attacking players arriving.

Not in enough time to save LvG though, I suspect.

Memphis and Lingard, who does make a difference to the overall attacking pattern even if his final ball/finish is not there yet.

Makes it all the more baffling when you look at his early transfers. Look how good we were in his first pre-season with the team building around mobile attackers, Welbeck a big part of it. I wonder if with hindsight he would like to keep the likes of Welbeck/Nani/Kagawa/Hernandez/Rafael involved. Some of those players may have wanted to go but at that point he has to be a man manager rather than just a head coach.

Originally Posted by andyroo

Counter-attacking is an important weapon to have in the armoury, but one annoying aspect of our attacking troubles is that it's discrediting the importance of control of the ball. It's almost like possession is becoming a dirty word, because we're doing so little with it. Pressing up the pitch, playing a high line, pushing deep into the opposition's half should be good things... but we're making it count against us, because oppositions have cottoned on that it's the easy way to play us and we get frustrated.

If the possession and control was giving us goals it'd be as exciting as swift countering, or more so. But we're slow and unimaginative so it isn't.

Yup.

Also agree with Baron that we desperately require somebody like Griezman.

Originally Posted by Tiberian

Memphis and Lingard, who does make a difference to the overall attacking pattern even if his final ball/finish is not there yet.

Makes it all the more baffling when you look at his early transfers. Look how good we were in his first pre-season with the team building around mobile attackers, Welbeck a big part of it. I wonder if with hindsight he would like to keep the likes of Welbeck/Nani/Kagawa/Hernandez/Rafael involved. Some of those players may have wanted to go but at that point he has to be a man manager rather than just a head coach.

I think he doesn't like to push players to stay.

With Welbeck and Chicharito it was suggested he wanted to keep them, but it changed quickly at the end of the window. I think in both cases the players were offered a first team spot elsewhere and Van Gaal was honest with them about their status, so he let them go.

I think he's mentioned this week that it was similar with Adnan and Dortmund: didn't think it was a good move for him, but bowed to what the player wanted. Perhaps that's a stubbornness, in terms of not wanting to ask a player to stay.

Originally Posted by That Boy Ronaldo!

Those days are gone unfortunately.

sage.

BOOM!

Proper United goal

Yeah was going to bump this myself earlier

Thing is only newcastle have been so stupid to allow the counter. Everyone else just sits back and counters on us.

Originally Posted by Ethers

sage.

We used to counter-attack and win games, mind, so still only halfway there

Originally Posted by armchair

Yeah was going to bump this myself earlier

Thing is only newcastle have been so stupid to allow the counter. Everyone else just sits back and counters on us.

Martial needs a kick up the arse for trotting throughout that move too. 19 or not, show some £#%&!ing desire. He is young and quick enough to have been in that box in case of it coming across. Nip that shit in the bud right off the bat.