I hope he reaches the next level. I feel that he could do more in our games, especially going forward. But he's a huge reason why we do so well and have a settled midfield
21
Season Average Rating
- Appearances
- 50
- Goals
- 3
- Assists
- 11
- Yellow cards
- 15
- Red cards
- 2
- Status
Solid performance as per usual. He's Mourinho's favourite worker-bee.
Tho one thing i noticed sometimes he's too fast to get rid of possession and just pass the ball which isn't always the best decision.
Wish he would stand on the ball more often and look around as Carrick does.
Great player tho and we are relying on him the same way we are on Carrick. Would like to see TFM getting some minutes in his role when we're giving Herrera some rest.
Tho one thing i noticed sometimes he's too fast to get rid of possession and just pass the ball which isn't always the best decision.
Wish he would stand on the ball more often and look around as Carrick does.
Great player tho and we are relying on him the same way we are on Carrick. Would like to see TFM getting some minutes in his role when we're giving Herrera some rest.
well that's the problem when you have players like Carrick and Pogba in midfield who stand on the ball for long trying to make a creative pass you don't need another third midfielder to do the same, I am sometimes also quite disappointed that he doesn't want to create more but even if he doesn't do anything spectacular, he's the right man to balance the midfield, it was the case of last few games, but despite being tidy on the ball he always adds one or two great passes to create a chance or two while winning the ball back,
yesterday he hasn't won as many balls as befofer but sometimes the game is like this, that it bypass you, blaming him for that would be ridiculous and from what I remember he had that nice cross when Pogba missed with his header so I am fine we were dominating possession and he's the one who makes the running too, had like 25 shots from which 9 were on goal so I am glad enough with our midfield prformance, no matter who can be judged as a better performer in that area on the pitch, it's a team game
Has made 48 interceptions this season, highest of any EPL midfielder, 5th overall. The other 2 midfielders in the top ten are Kante in 7th with 47 and Kouyate in 10th with 45.
https://www.premierleague.com/stats/top/players/interception
https://www.premierleague.com/stats/top/players/interception
Superb numbers.
He's been awesome the last couple of months. Seems to be a Mourinho favourite also.
when you are better in interceptions then Kante it means something, I think ppl underrate him as they think he should be more creative or expansive but he's fecking brilliant defensive midfielder who adds a a lot of creativity and spirit apart other things to the team so, if we take him solely as an defensive midfielder he's not only by stats one of the best midfielders in the league at his position if not the best...
He's done very well as a player who should control the midfield and is somewhat sacrificed due to having a very young and audicious midfielder next to him in Pogba who tries things and very limited palyer in terms of movement in carrick. He's done brilliantly well either as no6 or no8
He's done very well as a player who should control the midfield and is somewhat sacrificed due to having a very young and audicious midfielder next to him in Pogba who tries things and very limited palyer in terms of movement in carrick. He's done brilliantly well either as no6 or no8
Unsung hero of the season so far. Mourinho has rightly called it the best season of his life.
One of the best defensive midfielders in the world presently. Very impressed by his transformation.
He's not a defensive midfielder. He's a box to box midfielder with great defensive skills
Semantics aside he presses the hell out of opposing teams and, as pointed out above, has the most midfield interceptions of any PL players. He has been reinvented into a monster defensive player.
A defensive midfielder is not someone who's the first player to press. Herrera is much more than a defensive player
Just to add that Michael Carrick's 2.8 interceptions a match in 13/14 was the most he accomplished over a premier league season. He did have higher over the course of a few champions league games mind you. But the comparison has to be premier league season to premier league season.
It is often talked about how great Carrick is at reading the game, how good he is intercepting rather than tackling. This season Ander is doing this more than Carrick has ever done in a premier league season.
It is often talked about how great Carrick is at reading the game, how good he is intercepting rather than tackling. This season Ander is doing this more than Carrick has ever done in a premier league season.
What he does is he ensures that pass isn't even played. Those won't appear on interceptions.
Carrick and Herrera are different players.
He would cut out the channel for passing thereby cutting supply. It's not rocket science. It's also why people say 'He reads the game well'
Just like every other player tries to do that. Ander does that too while he's intercepting
Carrick positions himself to stop the pass from being played in. Others curb the pass before it reaches the player. The former is tougher to do. No one else in our team does it as good. None of Herrera Blind Fellaini Pogba. That's why Carrick is right now indispensable.
Yeah, but Carrick does this better than just about anyone.
Herrera can't share a room with De Gea and hates De Gea's old grandfather music. 
Watch the video.
http://www.express.co.uk/sport/foot...ootball-kit-Premier-League-Jose-Mourinho-News
Watch the video.
http://www.express.co.uk/sport/foot...ootball-kit-Premier-League-Jose-Mourinho-News
Great stats, he's an absolute menace in how relentless he presses. 400 minutes less than Kante too.
He is obviously an all round midfielder with attacking capabilities, but its his contibutions to our defense that are now off the charts. He is consistently breaking up opposition teams and allowing us to launch frequent attacks. Ander is playing a different role this season and flourishing.
Yes that doesnt make him a defensive midfielder as you claimed
Interceptions Master Ander Herrera. Sounds like a Napoleonic warship officer.
Seriously though, he is definitely in his best form. Even outperforming Kanté. Kanté only beats him in pass completion rate and goals(1 goal against us). Everything else(per 90) such as, no. of passes, chances created, dribbles, tackles, interceptions, clearances, no. of shots, aerial duels and so on Ander comes out the better player. He even has less yellow cards.
Seriously though, he is definitely in his best form. Even outperforming Kanté. Kanté only beats him in pass completion rate and goals(1 goal against us). Everything else(per 90) such as, no. of passes, chances created, dribbles, tackles, interceptions, clearances, no. of shots, aerial duels and so on Ander comes out the better player. He even has less yellow cards.
Where are the posters calling him average?
He is a very good footballer and in some (all) ways, he's blown Schneiderlin out of the water. Schneiderlin was in similar vein at Southampton, but cannot read the game or transition into attack (via passing or movement, technique, shooting) when compared to Herrera. Herrera is such a versatile and intelligent player. His passion for the game adores him to his supporters.
What a willfully obtuse comment to a perfectly valid observation. Sadly one that sums up the modern day football 'expert' who places stats above else when evaluating a players worth.
There's a lot that stats don't tell you about a player.
The Fitness Shown by him and pogba has been something to behold. They just keep going
I respectfully disagree. As the player with the most intercetions and tackles in our side that that is precisely how he is being used at the moment. Call him a holding mid or defensive mid is semantics but its the role he is excelling at. Pogba is the box2box guy for the time being because he is more talented. From the horses mouth:
"But Paul is a very strong, very physical player who shoots with both feet. He can dribble, he can defend… he has it all! I can then stay back to steal the ball, to keep the position, and from there initiate attacks. I’m fine, and I’ll try to provide everything that the manager asks of me. With [Jose] Mourinho I have also played in attacking positions in the EFL Cup and even scored a goal. I am a team player and I will do whatever he asks of me, but I'm very happy ahead of the defensive line.
"But now I think I have some consistency. I know I have to keep working to earn Mourinho's confidence even more, but it is true that I feel good in the new position and it's also true that maybe that little change of position was what has allowed me to receive a Spain call-up."
Paul Scholes began his career as an attacking mid but obviously laterly became a holding midfielder (deep lying playmaker). No point still calling him an attacking mid once his position changed. Same goes for Hererra. He is being used presently in a DM role though obviously can fulfil others.
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Herrera is having a very good season so far, credit where it's due.
Yea I agree, its a weird one who said that
This idea we need a herrera upgrade is laughable, we seeing the fruits of our labor shine, what upgrade could we possibly want? he is the engine of this team that is perfect for this club slowly getting on the up. Herrera and Pogba's engine is one of the best in the PL
Ander is the best example of how far a strong mentality can take you - without his desire and force of will to impose himself on the game, he'd be marginally better than your average midfielder. There's a strong spine developing at United with players of that ilk - Zlatan, Pogba, Ander, Carrick, Valencia without meaning to be harsh on some of the other players. Under Fergie this mentality was both pervasive and infectious, and it looks like it's coming back, slowly but strongly. Exciting times to be a United fan.
EDIT: In retrospect, it's a bit harsh to describe Ander as marginally above average in terms of talent. He's one of the best jack-of-all-trades midfielders in the Premier League, does a bit of everything to a good, if not world class standard. He'd be an asset to any team in the Premier League.
EDIT: In retrospect, it's a bit harsh to describe Ander as marginally above average in terms of talent. He's one of the best jack-of-all-trades midfielders in the Premier League, does a bit of everything to a good, if not world class standard. He'd be an asset to any team in the Premier League.
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His reading of the game is good for us because his default mentality and approach is defense first thus he's on the back foot; he always puts himself in a position not to fail. It's great because you know what you're getting as it brings stability to the midfield but that doesn't mean his defensive contribution is flawless or even up to standard on the whole.
I don't want to repeat the many Carrick posts I've been posting lately but his off the ball contribution is lacking when we can afford to be on the front foot (in a 3 man midfield and dominating possession). That's not a recent issue as I'm sure many of us have lamented his lack of ability to get involved in the 'action' areas in the past.
To put it harshly, it's great cutting lanes and reading the game tactically but sometimes you just need to put a fecking foot in and be on the front foot. That doesn't just mean tackles but more proactive/physical shuffling of players into less dangerous areas, stepping into a player's initial movement instead of just tracking the run etc.
Good edit, lol. Don't think you would have got away with that lightly here.
He @Escobar is actually right, Ander isn't really a DM, that'd be Carrick in our team.
Herrera is more of a box to box who presses everywhere and also high up the pitch. You normally wouldn't see DM constantly pressing as high as the opposition goalkeeper.
Carrick is the one who sit in front of the defense, Herrera roams everywhere. The difference between him and Pogba is that the latter is tasked with the creative burden of the team and has a lot less restriction with his positional discipline and can wonder high up the pitch very often while the former in Herrera is more tasked with recycling and intercepting the ball and get our flow going. He also roams all over the pitch and press as high as the opposition's goalkeeper.
But Herrera is definite not a DM but more of a box to box with an inclination to more defensive duties.
A lot of myths created to explain pre-existing beliefs.
Christ I dont know. Even Hererra has stated his new role is to sit in front of the defense and now he is making the most tackles and interceptions in the whole team. Carrick of course is the holding defensive mid permanently parked deep which allows Herrera to press high if needed and attack different areas of the pitch.
But if you want to call him box2box with more defensive duties then sure why not. At the end of the day he is still the one player breaking up the most opposition attacks.
Maybe its because his attacking game has been on a decline since he came here but this could also be as a result of added defensive responsibility so its hard to fault him with that when you study his stats. Matching or bettering Kante is no joke and he deserves praise for that imo.
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