Louis Van Gaal Villa prematch press conference 13th August

https://youtu.be/SmyVDUcBYdg

State of Simon Stone on that Stoichkov question. What a @#%&!.

https://www.twitter.com/ManUtd/status/631819816152772608

https://www.twitter.com/ManUtd/status/631823223152357376

https://www.twitter.com/ManUtd/status/631824391148576768

https://www.twitter.com/ManUtd/status/631823880982761472

Rooney and Hernandez as our strikers. £#%&! me :shakehead:

Stone

Van Gaal says he will only buy players that will improve the squad.

By ANY centre back then

Originally Posted by barca99

Van Gaal says he will only buy players that will improve the squad.

Is that not why managers buy new players,to improve the squad.

Originally Posted by rustling jimmies

Is that not why managers buy new players,to improve the squad.

Of which we have done plenty of so far. Yet to see a top tier centreback become available

Originally Posted by rustling jimmies

Is that not why managers buy new players,to improve the squad.

Originally Posted by Sparky***

Originally Posted by Jethro

Of which we have done plenty of so far. Yet to see a top tier centreback become available

Give it up ffs. It's like Fergus in 2011 saying no midfielder available to improve us.

romagnolli (sp?) Just went to Milan for Roma for 20m+ apparently the next nesta.
Stones is about to sign for Chelsea.

Anyway what are the scouts for? If they can't find a better cb than Phil £#%&!ing Jones they need to be sacked.

Originally Posted by angrydimaria

Give it up ffs. It's like Fergus in 2011 saying no midfielder available to improve us.

romagnolli (sp?) Just went to Milan for Roma for 20m+ apparently the next nesta.
Stones is about to sign for Chelsea.

Anyway what are the scouts for? If they can't find a better cb than Phil £#%&!ing Jones they need to be sacked.

Good call. Sign in-experience to replace in-experience

Apparently ffs :shakehead:

The defensive options overall aren't as disastrous as being made out tbf. I'd fancy us to be relatively solid as long as Evans isn't playing, but getting that leader who is prepared to take responsibility on the ball is not easy to come by. Carrick dropping back there is a genuine possibility when Schweini comes into the starting line-up.

The other end of the field looks a slightly bigger worry to me right now.

Originally Posted by angrydimaria

Give it up ffs. It's like Fergus in 2011 saying no midfielder available to improve us.

romagnolli (sp?) Just went to Milan for Roma for 20m+ apparently the next nesta.
Stones is about to sign for Chelsea.

Anyway what are the scouts for? If they can't find a better cb than Phil £#%&!ing Jones they need to be sacked.

That would be the same Stones who got turned inside out and sat on his arse by Watford midfielder Odion Ighalo when he scored on Saturday would it?

https://youtu.be/RTiIH53zGTI

Originally Posted by Sparky***

That would be the same Stones who got turned inside out and sat on his arse by Watford midfielder Odion Ighalo when he scored on Saturday would it?

Nah, mate. He's the answer as is a player no one has seen more than 10 minutes of.

Expecting a good season from Jones. He improved last year, even if it was not as marked as Smalling because of the usual injuries. It will take a good year of performances to change minds on him though, most players in his position do not have the role fully down until their mid 20's.

Friday night at Villa Park, very positive about this game, a ground Utd have always tended to play well at, the fans will create a great atmosphere and Villa are a poor side led by a manager who plays very open football, great opportunity for the attack to answer some of the criticism.

Originally Posted by Tiberian

Expecting a good season from Jones. He improved last year, even if it was not as marked as Smalling because of the usual injuries. It will take a good year of performances to change minds on him though, most players in his position do not have the role fully down until their mid 20's.

Friday night at Villa Park, very positive about this game, a ground Utd have always tended to play well at, the fans will create a great atmosphere and Villa are a poor side led by a manager who plays very open football, great opportunity for the attack to answer some of the criticism.

It's going to be a huge let down. We'll go 1-0 down early in the game and end up huffing and puffing our way to a 1-1 draw or something.

Originally Posted by S/Side.Red

The defensive options overall aren't as disastrous as being made out tbf. I'd fancy us to be relatively solid as long as Evans isn't playing, but getting that leader who is prepared to take responsibility on the ball is not easy to come by. Carrick dropping back there is a genuine possibility when Schweini comes into the starting line-up.

The other end of the field looks a slightly bigger worry to me right now.

Exactly. Didn't we have one of the best defensive records in the league last year, too?

Defending isn't just about the two bodies that stand between the full-backs, ffs; it's about defending as a homogeneous unit, especially in a Van Gaal team. Communication, positioning and intelligence of all the players on the pitch are some of the keys to defending well.

Getting Schneiderlin or Carrick to drop in the space that Blind vacates when the Dutchman brings the ball up-field; getting Smalling to cover the space left behind Darmian when the right-back marches up field; getting Mata to track-back and double-up on the right side; getting Rooney and Depay to press the opposition defenders to win the ball in the third phase. All of these things clicking are more important than signing some big name centre-back which so many seem to crave.

Also, you're spot on when you talk about the concerns at the other end being bigger. We need to be creating more chances and scoring more goals, otherwise it doesn't really matter how well or poorly we defend. Of course, this just doesn't come down to Rooney, but the whole team working in the right way to create chances for the forwards, and the forwards to be clinical.

Originally Posted by Neo

Exactly. Didn't we have one of the best defensive records in the league last year, too?

Defending isn't just about the two bodies that stand between the full-backs, ffs; it's about defending as a homogeneous unit, especially in a Van Gaal team. Communication, positioning and intelligence of all the players on the pitch are some of the keys to defending well.

Getting Schneiderlin or Carrick to drop in the space that Blind vacates when the Dutchman brings the ball up-field; getting Smalling to cover the space left behind Darmian when the right-back marches up field; getting Mata to track-back and double-up on the right side; getting Rooney and Depay to press the opposition defenders to win the ball in the third phase. All of these things clicking are more important than signing some big name centre-back which so many seem to crave.

Also, you're spot on when you talk about the concerns at the other end being bigger. We need to be creating more chances and scoring more goals, otherwise it doesn't really matter how well or poorly we defend. Of course, this just doesn't come down to Rooney, but the whole team working in the right way to create chances for the forwards, and the forwards to be clinical.

Neo is on fire right now.

Originally Posted by Sparky***

Neo is on fire right now.

Jones is still awful tho, and will injure at least two players in training this season. Kit man probably isn't safe either.