[Forevergiggs1]

They did first half. Not in that 15 minutes prior to the sub.

The second half we started terribly and went downhill from there. Awful stuff

 

[justsomebloke]

I understood that was likely your intention but you very clearly referred to your last 5 games and that put a much different spin on the results you were claiming.

Fair enough. I was trying to make the point that it's not like we've had a shit start to the season. Perhaps I'm being too focussed on the PL and frankly I'm not much concerned by a single goal loss to a good team by the second-stringers in the CC. But YBB was abysmal, and troubling. That was a far, far worse performance than today's.

 

[Desert Eagle]

It can.

Playing on the counter at home,
2 holding midfielders which don't get changed until the 82nd minute,
Villa with 70% possession at one point.

Oleball. Gonna be a rough season.

 

[PeteManic]

These are the types of days when relying on big game players to perform because you could rely on yourself to perform when you were a player is shown to be a flawed philosophy.

 

[MattyB1986]

Shit on a stick football... Expect more from this squad... Bunch of individuals not a team!

 

[justsomebloke]

The second half we started terribly and went downhill from there. Awful stuff

I'm not sure I'd say we went downhill from the forst 10-15 minutes (it hardly could have), but it certainly was a disappointing second half. I wonder how much Shaw's substitution (34th minute) was a part of that? We seemed to tail off a bit already towards the end of the first half, no?

 

[steffyr2]

Shocking performance. The individual talent is there, but United aren't playing like a team.

There were so many attacks where someone just dribbled the ball around for ages trying to force themselves into a good shooting position while everyone else just stood by looking on. There's so little movement, so few runs. Anything United create has to be a moment of individual brilliance, and it's been like this forever with a few notable exceptions and bright spots.

It's 100% a coaching issue.

I assume "someone" equals Greenwood?
Maybe Ole's plan is everyone needs to be nicey, nicey all the time rather than shrieking "Pass me the fxxxking ball!"?)
Be nice if some would shriek "Pass me the fxxxxking ball!"
(There would be people on here upset that Mason's feelings would be hurt if that happened.)
And Ronaldo meekly walked away from the penalty kick....

 

[Mr Anderson]

Then that is up to the manager and coaches to sort out. They obviously don't think it is a problem, but it is becoming a big one.

for sure. One step forward and two steps back. Won’t have any sustained success with Ole imo

 

[Ronaldo's Love Child]

Fellas....prepare for a difficult season.

Our whole tactical set up is just not functioning. OGS's way of "tweaking" that is by subbing a player and then asking them to play the exact same way as the played who's been subbed.

I don't know what the solution is but they say the definition of stupidity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result

 

[mu4c_20le]

It can.

Playing on the counter at home,
2 holding midfielders which don't get changed until the 82nd minute,
Villa with 70% possession at one point.

Fred is not a holding midfielder. He is a box to box in the same mould as Lampard and Gerrard

 

[ThatsGreat]

McGinn gets in for me but that’s it

I never understand the player doesn't get in our team argument. They might not have the individual players to get in but they do have a quality team. Ings, Watkins, McGinn, Martinez, Buendia, D. Luiz, Cash, Targett will trouble any team thats not on their game. And they can bring on Traore , Hause, Bailey. They're a team that have not got any team in the league to fear, including City, Chelsea and Liverpool.

Utd only lost because of a set-piece, missed penalty and Shaw going off(he's very important to Utd in progressing the ball, the drop off to Dalot is massive.)

 

[Forevergiggs1]

I'm not sure I'd say we went downhill from the forst 10-15 minutes (it hardly could have), but it certainly was a disappointing second half. I wonder how much Shaw's substitution (34th minute) was a part of that? We seemed to tail off a bit already towards the end of the first half, no?

Actually thought the last 5 or 10 minutes in the first half we played well , with a lot of half chances which is why I was surprised by our second half. I wouldnt like to put the blame on any one thing because it was a shitshow all over the pitch. With the players we have we should be carving teams open imstead of going for potshots. I've read somewhere we've had 50 shots at goal with only 7 on target the last 2 matches which is something that badly needs addressing.

 

[Hughie77]

Villa manager deserves all the credit. He played back 3 to make sure Ronny got nothing, played 2 up front to occupy out 2 CB that usually come out with the ball. Varane couldn't find passes like he did in previous games, there 2 strikers were pressing. CM was a no show this wasn't a game for a 4-2-3-1 . It was a 4-4-2 at least. We we limited to long shots etc ,Ronny being dragged out from central positions, were he does his damage . Poor all round didn't they watch the Chelsea game , were Villa played the same but Chelsea didn't have to compete with Martinez in goal. Wrong formation . That's it ,Shaw big miss

 

[That_Bloke]

Few positives today were Wan-Bissaka and, at least for me, Fred. Both were always where needed.

Villa's goal was offside and it came after what should have been a goal kick and not a corner kick. It's strange that VAR can't intervene in obvious errors.

Bruno rightfully missed the penalty, we didn't deserve shit.

 

[JoaquinJoaquin]

Fred is not a holding midfielder. He is a box to box in the same mould as Lampard and Gerrard

Please don't say that statement again.

Still defensively minded, no matter how much you try polish it.

 

[spiriticon]

Still so disappointed.

I thought that the players 'would go again" and "be stronger in the next match". I trusted their Instagram posts!

 

[HailtotheKing]

We need a lot of coaches.

Agreed, I was just saying we don’t need a new manager. Ole has done well. He needs better coaches. Only then will I judge him. He’s not doing well right now though that’s for sure. And he’s too stubborn to see it.

 

[Che Guevara]

This is always the dilemma of appointing a club legend as manager, if things go pear-shaped it's difficult to sack him. As it is, Ole has become the most difficult manager to sack and the longest serving post-Fergie despite having the worst spend/success record.

 

[justsomebloke]

No excuses for today.

I was as unhappy when the score was 0-0 as I was when they were winning 0-1.

How long can we blame individual performances for poor results?

Teams seem to have worked out how to stifle us. High press our defenders and McFred and we simply cannot cope.

Forget comparing us with City, Liverpool, Chelsea etc. We are being outplayed and out thought by the Aston Villa's of this world...................on a regular basis!

Either OGS needs to change the tactics or he needs to go

Not a viable analysis, in my view.

Firstly, considering how many shots and chances we create, it's hard to conclude that the problem is that our midfield and defence is being stifled. If that was the issue, then it'd turn up as a shortage of shots and scoring chances. Which is simply not the case. By all measures, we are not just dominating possession more than we've done in the past, we are also producing a high volume of offensive pressure and scoring chances. So opposing teams have not been able to prevent us from creating offense. Only City and Liverpool have created more (based on xG). That is not to say that the midfield has performed very well, or that we wouldn't produce more if it worked better - but that flaw clearly is not enough to stifle us offensively. The problem - at least in some of our games - have rather been what we do and don't in the attacking third.

Secondly, we were not by any stretch of imagination outplayed or out thought by Villa today. Not in terms of dominance, not in terms of tactics. They took one of their (few) chances, we did not take ours. If we had, we'd have won. Even though they probably played more or less up to capacity and we didn't.

.

 

[firstkuyttouch]

It’s a byproduct of having very individual players. That’s the thing those who keep banging on about coaching are missing. Ronaldo and Greenwood are going to shoot any chance they get and no amount of “coaching drills” will change that - it’s who they are. Bruno is going to play the risky pass - it’s who he is. Ditto Pogba. More often than not it will work - we will score goals - today it didn’t.

Isn’t Mason Greenwood a teenager? He hardly is who he is and it’s calcified, set in stone. Hahaha you talk about him like he’s some old sea captain who of course he’s gonna put out to sea. He is a teenager and it is called coaching.

 

[2 man midfield]

Two straight home losses. Not good enough is it.

 

[GMoore23]

Shit on a stick football... Expect more from this squad... Bunch of individuals not a team!

This 100%. How many times this past few games have we seen our players attempt to score wonder goals, either with a long shot or by trying to beat 2/3 men on their own. It's amateurish looking. I want to see one twos, movement and fluid football. We'd be smashing teams if we played with more cohesion.
Some of the team goals we scored from 2007 - 2009 were stunning, cutting through teams with one twos, flicks, back heels and great off the ball movement. We don't seem to score like this these days.

 

[SteveCoppellFan]

If you are going to get the sack then at least do it by having a right go.

Ole seems hell bent on meekly losing the best job he will ever get.

 

[Escobar]

These are the types of days when relying on big game players to perform because you could rely on yourself to perform when you were a player is shown to be a flawed philosophy.

But we cant! We cant expect that a moment of genius saves us on a weekly basis

 

[Mockney]

I don't read the media. Do you also read the bible? Would be funny to know where you'd find more lies and bullshit. Fair would be a draw. I don't know how many shots we had, but it was above 20. Yes, most was Greenwood missing, but still. And we had at two chances that should have produced something. Oh, and a penalty. Why Ronaldo didn't take that.. Well, who knows. All i know, he'd score.

I mean, I have read the Bible…in a research capacity, but I don’t subscribe to any form of organised (or non organised) religion, no …- a notion that would likely be greatly amusing to anyone whose encountered me on this forum no doubt - which is admittedly a deeply pathetic statement in of itself! - but I’d certainly be a bit more amenable to it if “being religious” meant “reading a huge variety of different Independant and non-independent sources and making a rational assumption based on the whole” rather than simply “this old book is good”

In fact the only people I hold in more sceptical regard than the ultra religious, would be people who refer to “the media” as some single homogenous entity to be wholely disregarded - particularly when it refers to fecking sports journalism!… as if “Big ABU” is conspiring with the Illuminati, the saucer people and the reverse vampires, to disseminate a sinister false appraisal of Aston Villa’s Premier League matchday 5 performance in the early kick off at Old Trafford!!

… but that’s just me. You do you King. Fight those evil radiowaves.

 

[VivaUnited21]

Two straight home losses. Not good enough is it.

Nowhere near good enough, not if we need to challenge this season.

 

[Mickeza]

Isn’t Mason Greenwood a teenager? He hardly is who he is and it’s calcified, set in stone. Hahaha you talk about him like he’s some old sea captain who of course he’s gonna put out to sea. He is a teenager and it is called coaching.

What are you talking about? How many goals has Greenwood scored coming from the right onto his left and shooting from a tight angle? That’s one of his strengths.

 

[Ixion]

It would have been robbery if Bruno had scored that penalty, they deserved the win.

We're the masters of having 20 shots without making their keeper work.

 

[AussieDevil]

Games lost:

- Young Boys
- West Ham
- Aston Villa

These should’ve been slightly challenging at best.

 

[RedDevilQuebecois]

This is always the dilemma of appointing a club legend as manager, if things go pear-shaped it's difficult to sack him. As it is, Ole has become the most difficult manager to sack and the longest serving post-Fergie despite having the worst spend/success record.

It is NOT difficult. Chelsea and Liverpool already dispelled that myth by sacking Frank Lampard and Kenny Dalglish when it was time to go. The problem are 1) the board being so gullible at eating whatever shit our blowhard of a manager is selling to them and 2) the percentage of the fanbase who think to be holier than thou by sticking with the manager instead of facing harsh reality. If Murtough and Fletcher really represent that change of mentality post-Woodward, then the manager better not think he will be as safe as before.

 

[reelworld]

£70million for a player to sit on the bench. McFred still stodging up our midfield. Pathetic team selection. Why spend so much on a player and then destroy his confidence by sticking him on the bench.

Sancho career would go the same way as VdB here. Rarely trusted and hardly played because the fecking manager didn't have the balls to do something different

 

[Member 58925]

It’s a byproduct of having very individual players. That’s the thing those who keep banging on about coaching are missing. Ronaldo and Greenwood are going to shoot any chance they get and no amount of “coaching drills” will change that - it’s who they are. Bruno is going to play the risky pass - it’s who he is. Ditto Pogba. More often than not it will work - we will score goals - today it didn’t.

Very nice spin but cohesion is one of the more basic managerial duties. Every club at the level we should be at with this squad has those type of players, but they can get them to play as a team.

 

[croadyman]

Just dreadful. We knew Villa would play like this. They caused Chelsea all sorts of problems earlier this season. Outworked and outplayed.

Yeah that game was proof you need a tactically sound manager to turn the tide against Villa which Chelsea were able to do two weeks ago

 

[TMDaines]

Right. What has that got to do with United dominating midfield and pressuring them? We weren’t. They may have had more shots before then if one of their players didn’t fall on his face when he was on his own in our box.

We were creating all the chances in the match at that point. Why would you want to change that match situation?

I'm probably going to get pelted for this, but does having the crowd back create pressure to shoot on sight and pass too quickly?

Stretford End was impatient as feck today.

 

[Che Guevara]

The commentators also pointed out that a Villa player in an offside position may have been in De Gea's eye line.

I haven't seen a proper replay to judge.

The keeper had clear sight of the ball, the header was into the nearside, the other Villa striker was in the middle. Not offside.

 

[Mickeza]

Very nice spin but cohesion is one of the more basic managerial duties. Every club at the level we should be at with this squad has those type of players, but they can get them to play as a team.

Completely disagree. Every club doesn’t shoehorn a Pogba, Bruno and Ronaldo into the same team. Klopp and Pep are all about the collective - and when Tuchel had to do the equivalent at PSG his team certainly didn’t look cohesive. I guess he was just a shit coach back then though right?

 

[Member 58925]

Fred is not a holding midfielder. He is a box to box in the same mould as Lampard and Gerrard

Not even close. He’s a mobile ball winning midfielder.

 

[Member 58925]

Completely disagree. Every club doesn’t shoehorn a Pogba, Bruno and Ronaldo into the same team. Klopp and Pep are all about the collective - and when Tuchel had to do the equivalent at PSG his team certainly didn’t look cohesive. I guess he was just a shit coach back then though right?

Deflect deflect deflect. Boring.

 

[Freak]

Not even close. He’s a mobile ball winning midfielder.

He wins the ball then gives it away so that he can win it again.

 

[antohan]

Fred is not a holding midfielder. He is a box to box in the same mould as Lampard and Gerrard

Blimey. I'm not on the knock Fred for everything bandwagon but that's such a depressing statement.

"Same mould", some fecker has been tinkering with that mould quite badly.