[acnumber9]

I think Sanchez and Pogba are the perfect examples of how bad we are. Two players who in my mind are world class or very close to it yet cannot show it consistently due to how uninventive we are as a team.


Put either of them in Citys or Barca's of this world and we would be crying out for them.


Honestly think of the number of great players we are signing who don't live up to potential. No one player can make us play well. Our team has got to improve as a whole.

Sanchez running like he’s trapped in mud is not the teams fault and neither was his shit form at Arsenal.

 

[laughtersassassin]

Sanchez running like he’s trapped in mud is not the teams fault and neither was his shit form at Arsenal.

The team's inability to get the ball forward though isn't his fault though. I am not saying they are blameless but it is clear they are not the problem.

Why have none of attackers excelled? Only Jesse has performed above expectations. Even Lukaku hasn't done good enough. 16 goals aren't enough in the league.

 

[AgentP]

After watching Sanchez play a few games for us, I'm able to clearly predict the pass he is going to make. He picks up the ball, looks up and tries to play a through ball to the first player who makes a run. And the pass he makes is always a high risk ball with only 10-15% chance of making it to the player. Has he always played this way?

 

[AP88]

At this point he has to play exclusively at #10 - doesn’t have the legs to play wide or the disciple to lead the line. He’s a decent player but will ultimately prove to be another argument against signing Woodward-friendly ‘names’.

The club needs to start signing hungry young footballers again, ready to take the next step on the platform United provide for them rather than mercenaries - it’s a formula that facilitated Ferguson’s dynasty.

 

[AR87]

I think the biggest issue for all of our flair players is the lack of numbers we get into the box. I thought both Sanchez and Lingard frequently did well yesterday to get the ball into threatening areas in and around the box, but when they were looking to play somebody in or cross there was maybe 1 person in there. Shaw had a similar problem as there were rarely numbers to aim for.

Then there's the absolute gash pace with which we progress the ball forward. Even when we have the opportunity to counter it seems as if we have no interest in attacking at pace. Mind boggling.

 

[acnumber9]

The team's inability to get the ball forward though isn't his fault though. I am not saying they are blameless but it is clear they are not the problem.

Why have none of attackers excelled? Only Jesse has performed above expectations. Even Lukaku hasn't done good enough. 16 goals aren't enough in the league.

Well it is to an extent if he doesn’t provide an option further forward. I’d say this isn’t all his fault but last night was a perfect example of players all playing in the same space. Sanchez, Pogba and Lingard were all occupying the same space leaving no options to spread the play. That’s partly the managers fault and the players not having the gumption to make runs to other areas.

 

[acnumber9]

I think the biggest issue for all of our flair players is the lack of numbers we get into the box. I thought both Sanchez and Lingard frequently did well yesterday to get the ball into threatening areas in and around the box, but when they were looking to play somebody in or cross there was maybe 1 person in there. Shaw had a similar problem as there were rarely numbers to aim for.

Then there's the absolute gash pace with which we progress the ball forward. Even when we have the opportunity to counter it seems as if we have no interest in attacking at pace. Mind boggling.

Sanchez was the one supposed to be playing up front. Again the player and manager have to take responsibility for that.

 

[edgar allan]

He has been like a poor mans Tevez for the most part so far. Lots of chasing and harrying but little to show for it.

 

[AR87]

Sanchez was the one supposed to be playing up front. Again the player and manager have to take responsibility for that.

Thought he did play up front early on and when things weren't happening he started to drop deep. I'll blame him for that, but it's not as if even when he stayed high it mattered with the pace of our build up play. On the occasions when our wingbacks were able to get behind Sanchez was generally in the box, so the question, to me, is why our wingbacks so infrequently got forward to stretch the play.

When they did, we had our only bits of sustained possession in threatenind areas and kept West Ham pinned in. When they didn't we didn't threaten at all. Shaw ran out of steam in the 2nd half. Valencia just seemed to fall apart after a few positive moments in the 1st half getting forward.

 

[el3mel]

Sanchez was the one supposed to be playing up front. Again the player and manager have to take responsibility for that.

Agree. Pretty poor set up from Mourinho and Sanchez didn't help much either. We were never going to score this way unless one of these long shots got in but that shouldn't be our only way to score.

Sanchez dropping deep while Lingard and Pogba were in the midfilder did harm more than good. At least Zlatan last season when he was dropping deep he knew when to rush forward to get a position in the box, while Sanchez yesterday kept congesting the midfield and leaving the box empty.

 

[Bobski]

Sanchez coming deep often gets blamed on others, but it is something he has done throughout his career. People get taken in by the work he is doing when often times it would be better for the team if he was more disciplined, stayed higher up the pitch. He chases the ball like a child, and when we do win the ball back he is rarely in a position to help us launch a quick attack.

 

[Don _ Conte]

After watching Sanchez play a few games for us, I'm able to clearly predict the pass he is going to make. He picks up the ball, looks up and tries to play a through ball to the first player who makes a run. And the pass he makes is always a high risk ball with only 10-15% chance of making it to the player. Has he always played this way?

Yes he has or at least at arsenal. The difference was that one season he was exceptional for Arsenal, his end product was so good that players couldn't allow him to play that high risk ball because he was creating chances so they began to mark him tighter and dive in. Which for a player with Sanchez ability meant he had bare space.

 

[Camilo]

Sanchez coming deep often gets blamed on others, but it is something he has done throughout his career. People get taken in by the work he is doing when often times it would be better for the team if he was more disciplined, stayed higher up the pitch. He chases the ball like a child, and when we do win the ball back he is rarely in a position to help us launch a quick attack.

I'd agree with that. Dropping deep because he's not getting the ball is the reaction of child, not a professional. So what if he's not getting the ball? It's not his problem, it's up to Jose and the rest of the team to solve that issue. His job was to be up front yesterday, and he was dropping so deep that the only players in the box were occasionally McTominay or Pogba.

He's not impressed me so far... And I know nobody outfield has impressed this season... But he's a bit of a pointless signing.

 

[Canagel]

Why does never want to take players on? Dribble at them head on. Why check back inside and try to initiate play like a midfield player? We just end up with more opposite defenders goalside. He is not a good midfield player. And when he does come into midfield somebody needs to have the sense to push on. He is too detached from the team still. Maybe he doesn't trust the team who knows? The players stand there and watch him huff and puff to no avail. A lot of huffing and puffing but something needs to be done both player and manager to bring him back to that level he showed at Arsenal. The failings are on the manager mainly because he brought Sanchez in without a clear idea of how he was going to fit in and destroyed the season of two players who were doing OK rotating in that position. As of today we haven't seen anything to suggest why Martial should not be in his position.

 

[Oldyella]

I'd agree with that. Dropping deep because he's not getting the ball is the reaction of child, not a professional. So what if he's not getting the ball? It's not his problem, it's up to Jose and the rest of the team to solve that issue. His job was to be up front yesterday, and he was dropping so deep that the only players in the box were occasionally McTominay or Pogba.

He's not impressed me so far... And I know nobody outfield has impressed this season... But he's a bit of a pointless signing.

Especially given his wage and the fact it has cut the playing time for a couple of young talented players. Really needs to hit next season running.

 

[Rasfene]

Sanchez isn't world class. Maybe in one of his seasons at Arsenal, he was but other than that, he isn't.

He shows a lot of energy but he isn't positional discipline. For Arsenal, he was okay because Arsenal had a bunch of players who doesn't know what to do with the ball so they just pass to sanchez Eg Walcott, iwobi, xhaka. But overtime, it has been shown Sanchez doesn't improve Arsenal. Arsenal went from top 4 to top 6 when Sanchez was their pillar.

 

[MikeKing]

We play so disjointed and he didn't get the ball enough i thought, but he certainly disproved people who said he doesn't take players on anymore. He used his sharp turns more than a few times to get past players. I think he played well, probably our best player in that game.

 

[dogwithabone]

We have a whole load of footballers who make safe passes in non threatening areas of the pitch. Sanchez is the one player we have with quick enough feet to attack the opposition and get them to commit. It doesn’t always come off but at least his first thought is to turn and go at defenders. He’s a glimmer of light in a team that in general bores me to tears.

 

[Captain Obvious]

It's like a funeral in here, give the lad some time, he's always been known to have very high work rates, had a few solid seasons at Arsenal against the same teams we play. Just needs to get his feet on the ground after moving and having to adapt to United. Confident he'll smash it next season

 

[Smores]

Some on this forum seem to be willing for him to fail which is fecking insane. Given the hype prior to the signing its mainly because he's taken Martials place the horror

 

[edgar allan]

Some on this forum seem to be willing for him to fail which is fecking insane. Given the hype prior to the signing its mainly because he's taken Martials place the horror

Absolutely nothing to do with Martial he has just disappointed in most of his performances.

 

[MadDogg]

His match against West Ham was a bit strange. I thought he was actually very good on the individual level - he was getting on the ball a lot, running at and beating players for fun and was often leaving two or three players trailing him. He looked by far the most likely person to create chances. He constantly showed plenty of acceleration and speed off the mark, which is something that he was being questioned about.

The problem of course is that he was the only striker on the field, so him dropping deep was leaving us short up front. He was creating space but nobody else (other than sometimes Lingard) was in position to actually take advantage of it.

Like the rest of the team he wasn't as good in the second half, but he still looked the most likely.

 

[redflair]

Gary Neville's 'Box of Contradictions' moment on commentary at the London Stadium on Thursday.

'United's midfielders simply don't pass the ball forward quick enough to the front man, it's all side to side etc...'

Next moment.

'Alexis Sanchez isn't holding his position upfront, he keeps wandering to the side, it means United don't have a focal point etc, etc...'

Gaz Nev's footballing swingometer really is something. It has no boundaries whatsoever.

 

[TheFlagStaysDown]

Sanchez is definitely a player we should give more time to settle, he showed it in the premier league for few seasons already, he can be a top level player. Our football might be different to Arsenal's but I believe with full preseason, fresh start and a couple of other additions he should get back to his best. I am however slightly concerned about his position. He lost quite a lot of pace, while still remained the acceleration. Imo we should play him in the middle. His workrate is high, he can play as a second striker when needed, and when defending he can help too with pressing and winning the ball back, he's a bit too slow for a winger or in case we field 3 midfielders we need at leas one winger to have pace, which means we need inevitably buy a RW because as Jose showed, he's not gonna play Sanchez there..

But give him time, in a dull finish to the season like Mourinho often has when nothing to be played about, it is clear we won't see anything exciting from any of our players..

 

[JPRouve]

Gary Neville's 'Box of Contradictions' moment on commentary at the London Stadium on Thursday.

'United's midfielders simply don't pass the ball forward quick enough to the front man, it's all side to side etc...'

Next moment.

'Alexis Sanchez isn't holding his position upfront, he keeps wandering to the side, it means United don't have a focal point etc, etc...'

Gaz Nev's footballing swingometer really is something. It has no boundaries whatsoever.

Is that contradictory though? To me these sentences are complimentary, the midfielders don't pass the ball quickly to the front man because he is not holding his position upfront and the front man doesn't hold his position upfront because he is either not able to do it or the midfielders aren't able to find him.

 

[simplyared]

It's not working for him as it did at Arsenal. Still the same player with the same individual qualities. Even though Arsenal are well below us in terms of results, they move the ball about better than we do and they have an Özil in their side. He's faced with "mission impossible" far too often when he gets the ball for us. He's having problems with adapting to our attacking system (or lack of system) to put it another way.

 

[FerociousCorgis]

Is that contradictory though? To me these sentences are complimentary, the midfielders don't pass the ball quickly to the front man because he is not holding his position upfront and the front man doesn't hold his position upfront because he is either not able to do it or the midfielders aren't able to find him.

exactly. Those sentences literally explain the situation. Just as i said before the game there wouldn't be anybody to pass the ball up to. It was essentially a 5-5-0 with nobody near the backline of West Ham.

 

[George Owen]

It's not working for him as it did at Arsenal. Still the same player with the same individual qualities. Even though Arsenal are well below us in terms of results, they move the ball about better than we do and they have an Özil in their side. He's faced with "mission impossible" far too often when he gets the ball for us. He's having problems with adapting to our attacking system (or lack of system) to put it another way.

yep, Alexis had great chemistry with Monreal, a fullback that will run from box to box non stop. Our game will improve massively as son as we get proper fullbacks that make dangerous runs into space.

Also, Ramsey, Ozil, Bellerin, Giroud or whatever striker, all making runs into the opposition box. That gives Alexis plenty options to pick up a pass or run into the defence.

We on the other side, have absolutely no runners. Stiff as feck we are. Slow passing, slow movement, no runners.

Hopefully Jose will sort it out on the summer, and bring players willing and able to play a fast pace game. We will be much better next season.

 

[Silas]

His match against West Ham was a bit strange. I thought he was actually very good on the individual level - he was getting on the ball a lot, running at and beating players for fun and was often leaving two or three players trailing him. He looked by far the most likely person to create chances. He constantly showed plenty of acceleration and speed off the mark, which is something that he was being questioned about.

The problem of course is that he was the only striker on the field, so him dropping deep was leaving us short up front. He was creating space but nobody else (other than sometimes Lingard) was in position to actually take advantage of it.

Like the rest of the team he wasn't as good in the second half, but he still looked the most likely.

Exactly how I felt. Physically, he looked better than he has in previous weeks (I was worried he was slowing down) and also looked sharp on a technical level. The chemistry with the team was the problem.

 

[Krakenzero]

I think it's funny that Mourinho bought Sanchez to then try and use it as an Ozil. The workrate is there, but the attacking as a whole is not working fluently and that is in part his responsability too. I hope a preseason do wonders for him.

However, my impression is that Sánchez, Pogba and the team will be benefited from a 4-3-1-2 style, with Sánchez from the right or free to roam close to the box with at least two passing options (Lukaku and Martial/Rashford) in it.

 

[Beachryan]

Expecting him to be good in the Cup final - seems to rise to the occasion.

Still think if you have better movement and just more players around him he'll massively improve. Last match he was permanently isolated up front against a back 4, while occasionally Lingard popped up somewhere nearby. Not the way to get the most out of him, obviously.

Full summer break, good preseason and he should look much better. No reason to be hugely concerned yet.

Comparisons to Rooney at a similar age feel premature, especially when you see what shape Alexis is in.

 

[YouOnlyLiveTwice]

Even when he has been average or bad, i still see the top player qualities in him. I just think throwing him in halfway through the season fecked up the balance and he doesn't really know what his role in the team is.

With a nice rest and a productive pre-season, i am confident that he will prove how good he is for us next season.

 

[ivaldo]

After watching Sanchez play a few games for us, I'm able to clearly predict the pass he is going to make. He picks up the ball, looks up and tries to play a through ball to the first player who makes a run. And the pass he makes is always a high risk ball with only 10-15% chance of making it to the player. Has he always played this way?

Only 78-83% of the time. Only if we are using made up stats though.

 

[redflair]

Is that contradictory though? To me these sentences are complimentary, the midfielders don't pass the ball quickly to the front man because he is not holding his position upfront and the front man doesn't hold his position upfront because he is either not able to do it or the midfielders aren't able to find him.

No, the sentences are not complimentary because he did not connect them when he was commentating on the match. You've just done that for him, which is very nice of you, but I think you're being a bit too kind to G Nev in this particular case.

 

[breakout67]

Blaming Sanchez for leaving his position is nonsensical since Lingard was making the runs when he did.

The midfield simply refused to pass the ball to our forwards, which was why Sanchez went deep in the first place and almost never found Lingard's good runs behind the West Ham defense.

I felt that he was clearly on a different level to everyone else against West Ham, he was running past defenders with ease, winning the ball back, distributing the ball to good areas. It looked like he had an extra spring in his step.

 

[VeevaVee]

Even when he has been average or bad, i still see the top player qualities in him. I just think throwing him in halfway through the season fecked up the balance and he doesn't really know what his role in the team is.

With a nice rest and a productive pre-season, i am confident that he will prove how good he is for us next season.

Yeah same. Hopefully with some good buys and decent preseason he'll be clearer on his role.

 

[el3mel]

Thought he did well today considering the set up and that Rashford was unwilling to cooperate.

 

[mancan92]

Nah he was just poor again. Gave the ball away, made stupid passes didn't create any genuine chances. He has shown nothing to say he is better than Rashford or Martial in that position. But were going to lose both of them because of him. So frustrating.

 

[AltiUn]

Think he's been generally good since beginning of March, looks like he's properly settling in now and his attitude has been spot on. Hopefully we'll see the very best of Sanchez next season, his dribbling in tight spaces can be a joy to watch when he gets it right.

 

[SATA]

He's very good. We have lots of players playing today who aren't on his level. He'll be much much better again when half the regular team returns at Wembley