[Akshay]

Are you serious?

Yes. He gave the ball away inside our own half quite a few times, then had the chance to cross it first time when Mata played him in down the right but dithered and ended up placing a cross directly onto the head of an Ipswich defender. He slipped on that 3 on 3 break in the second half, and gave away fouls whenever he tried to beat his man. The only things he did well were that half decent cross to Fellaini and the simple pass to Pereira for his shot. Darmian would have done at least that much, if not more.

Valencia has the talent to deliver more in attack on the right than Darmian, but he didn't show it against Ipswich.

 

[Sigma]

No difference between him and Darmian atm, both have been very good.

 

[Devil may care]

He's like the footballing equivalent of orgasm denial, he surges forward with those fast powerful runs and then stalls when the box comes into view.

 

[Wade3]

Good game so far by Tony V.

 

[limerickcitykid]

I still don't know how he fecked up that first one. He just seems to love ruining all his good work.

 

[VorZakone]

His crossing is atrocious, it's not even funny anymore.

 

[2mufc0]

Just a standard Valencia performance.

 

[Hed Zitin]

I thought he had a good game. Created tons of space for Mata. He'd be a really good player if his crosses were better.

 

[Randall Flagg]

Had a fine game

And darmian did well on the left too

 

[Bwuk]

If he could cross a ball he'd be great. Gets so much space.

 

[Sigma]

Thought him and Darmian were as good as each other tbh. Both very good

 

[Obiorahking_]

If he could cross a ball he'd be great. Gets so much space.

Didn't he set Anthony Martial up today with one of his crosses?...

 

[Obiorahking_]

His crossing is atrocious, it's not even funny anymore.

So are most full backs crossing, yet he seems to get the berating for it. hmmm..

 

[Devil may care]

If he had any quality on his delivery he'd be a weapon, instead his best attribute is making space for Mata.

 

[VorZakone]

So are most full backs crossing, yet he seems to get the berating for it. hmmm..

He is a Manchester United player, that's why. And his crossing is even worse.

 

[Varun]

If he could cross a ball he'd be great. Gets so much space.

Yeah. Has food movement and excellent pace which puts him I'm such great positions. Too bad his crossing is shite.

 

[Massive Spanner]

So are most full backs crossing, yet he seems to get the berating for it. hmmm..

Except Valencia is actually a winger playing as a fullback. Oh and just because others are poor at it doesn't mean it should be excused.

 

[Ash_G]

If he could cross a ball he'd be great. Gets so much space.

Definitely, I just don't understand it. He doesn't take set pieces, he doesn't do tricks, doesn't have the best range of passing etc and his crossing is still so erratic. What does he work on from a technical point of view in training?

As you say he could be such a good outlet, particularly in this team where we have so much of the ball he can push up high but he needs to get his crossing sorted.

 

[Sigma]

He is a Manchester United player, that's why. And his crossing is even worse.

So why isn't Darmian getting any stick when he is a worse attacker than Valencia?

 

[Jev]

Hope we stick with this setup, Valencia on the right and Darmian on the left, while Shaw is out. With Mata cutting inside so much, we need someone to maintain the width on the right and Valencia is more eager to get forward and has more to offer offensively than Darmian.

I generally didn't think he deserved to be dropped after a very solid last season and I still think he looks just as good as Darmian (who I've been happy with, mind you).

 

[VorZakone]

So why isn't Darmian getting any stick when he is a worse attacker than Valencia?

I don't know, I think his crossing is not good enough too. But I have seen plenty of criticism towards Darmian regarding his crossing though. Besides that, Darmian is a much better defender than Valencia.

 

[Sigma]

Except Valencia is actually a winger playing as a fullback. Oh and just because others are poor at it doesn't mean it should be excused.

Valencia is a right back now, he's changed and he is better defensively. But he can still get forward and take his man on, his only problem is the final ball. Like I said Valencia will predominantly play as a right back now, you won't judge BFS as a winger anymore.

 

[shivab]

I can't believe people keep questioning Valencia. I'm sure if van gaal was asked about Valencia's performance he would be thrilled. He puts in so much work and clearly Mata has a better understanding with him than with Darmian (who BTW seems hesitant to attack when played as a RB). Yes Valencia lacks some quality in the final third but he's an absolute beast in defense and compliments Mata well. we are lucky to have him.

 

[Obiorahking_]

Except Valencia is actually a winger playing as a fullback. Oh and just because others are poor at it doesn't mean it should be excused.

No, he is a full back now. I know, but you all berate him as if all the other top full backs are such amazing crossers of the ball when they clearly are not.

 

[Massive Spanner]

Valencia is a right back now, he's changed and he is better defensively. But he can still get forward and take his man on, his only problem is the final ball. Like I said Valencia will predominantly play as a right back now, you won't judge BFS as a winger anymore.

Completely incomparable. Valencia was a winger up until he was 28 years old. Bastian also plays in midfield, midfielders don't do the same stuff wingers do. Full-backs do. It's nonsense to suggest his poor crossing should be excuses because he's a full back now.

 

[Sigma]

I don't know, I think his crossing is not good enough too. But I have seen plenty of criticism towards Darmian regarding his crossing though. Besides that, Darmian is a much better defender than Valencia.

Didn't see anything different (defending wise) from them today. Last week Valencia was brought on as Darmian wasn't doing a good enough job and LVG said himself that Valencia done the job that Darmian hadn't. I'm not saying Valencia is better than Darmian, I'm saying that it's much closer than people think.

 

[Massive Spanner]

No, he is a full back now. I know, but you all berate him as if all the other top full backs are such amazing crossers of the ball when they clearly are not.

He's technically a fullback, yes, but he was a winger for his entire career so you would expect his crossing would be at a higher standard. Instead it's very poor.

Us berating his crossing is completely irrelevant to whether other full backs are good crossers or not, I haven't seen anyone in here say "his crossing is shitter than other fullbacks", they've just said "his crossing is shit".

 

[Raw]

250th league appearance, just the 2nd South American to do so (Solano did it too).

Crossing is absolute pants but his all round game is good. He makes very nice runs and defends very well.

 

[Sigma]

Completely incomparable. Valencia was a winger up until he was 28 years old. Bastian also plays in midfield, midfielders don't do the same stuff wingers do. Full-backs do. It's nonsense to suggest his poor crossing should be excuses because he's a full back now.

It doesn't matter when they adapted, the fact is they both changed position and both have different duties now. It's much harder to be composed and pull of a cross now that Valencia has to get up and down the field on a regular basis and do a job both attacking and defending. Also I'm not saying his crossing isn't good, but it's not bad either, the main point I'm trying to make is a full back shouldn't be the main attacking point to any team and so his crossing abilities shouldn't be the ones we mainly judge him on when playing right back.

 

[VorZakone]

Didn't see anything different (defending wise) from them today. Last week Valencia was brought on as Darmian wasn't doing a good enough job and LVG said himself that Valencia done the job that Darmian hadn't. I'm not saying Valencia is better than Darmian, I'm saying that it's much closer than people think.

And 2-3 matches earlier when Valencia was subbed on for Darmian who played very well suddenly the opposing team became very threatening on their left flank because Valencia's defending was bad. Overall Darmian has showed much more than Valencia. And Darmian is criticised too for his offensive displays.

 

[Sigma]

And 2-3 matches earlier when Valencia was subbed on for Darmian who played very well suddenly the opposing team became very threatening on their left flank because Valencia's defending was bad. Overall Darmian has showed much more than Valencia. And Darmian is criticised too for his offensive displays.

Yeah he is, but nowhere near as often as Valencia.

And that game he was subbed on was his first game after a very important operation.

 

[Obiorahking_]

He's technically a fullback, yes, but he was a winger for his entire career so you would expect his crossing would be at a higher standard. Instead it's very poor.

Us berating his crossing is completely irrelevant to whether other full backs are good crossers or not, I haven't seen anyone in here say "his crossing is shitter than other fullbacks", they've just said "his crossing is shit".

Yeah, but he has been playing much better as a full back than he has as a winger for a long time now. If he is a full back now, then we hold him to the standards of his position and not was he was in the past.

 

[Obiorahking_]

And 2-3 matches earlier when Valencia was subbed on for Darmian who played very well suddenly the opposing team became very threatening on their left flank because Valencia's defending was bad. Overall Darmian has showed much more than Valencia. And Darmian is criticised too for his offensive displays.

2-3 matches earlier? It was the first game of the fecking season that happened. I knew someone was going to bring that up.

 

[Kag]

He was a really good outlet today, to be fair. The thing with Valencia is that you get the same strengths and the same weaknesses week after week, which makes him all the more frustrating.

Defended well, however.

 

[Massive Spanner]

It doesn't matter when they adapted, the fact is they both changed position and both have different duties now. It's much harder to be composed and pull of a cross now that Valencia has to get up and down the field on a regular basis and do a job both attacking and defending. Also I'm not saying his crossing isn't good, but it's not bad either, the main point I'm trying to make is a full back shouldn't be the main attacking point to any team and so his crossing abilities shouldn't be the ones we mainly judge him on when playing right back.

No, incorrect, Valencia still has the same duty as before, crossing the ball. He has other duties that differ as a full back to a winger, namely defensive ones, but crossing the ball is still a very important facet of his game, just as it is for most fullbacks in the modern game. If it wasn't his duty, he wouldn't be attempting loads of them in every game, it's not like he's doing it of his own will, or something. He's clearly instructed to get forward, and cross the ball. His crossing is poor, and that's why he's getting slated for it. If it was not his duty and he wasn't putting crosses in, then I'm sure nobody would care.

What you're basically saying is that because he's a fullback and not a winger now, crossing is almost irrelevant, which makes no sense, because he put more crosses in than any other player today and was used as the focal point of our crosses for the majority of the game.

The bolded part is just insane logic, though, how exactly does him being in defensive positions more have a profound effect on his ability to cross the football. Is it that when he has the ball at his feet, ready to put a cross in, he suddenly thinks "oh shit, erm, better not feck this up, what if it goes wrong and I have to run all the way back to chase the defender, oh noes, panic, ahh, hit the ankles, hit the ankles!!"

 

[Massive Spanner]

Yeah, but he has been playing much better as a full back than he has as a winger for a long time now. If he is a full back now, then we hold him to the standards of his position and not was he was in the past.

Ok, I'll hold him to the standards of that position.

He's playing at full back for one of the world's biggest clubs and his crossing is not remotely close to the standards we should expect from one. Likewise for Darmian, actually.

There, happy?

 

[Obiorahking_]

Besides Valencia is a squad player. He is our back up right back. Most top club's back up players to a certain position, aren't that spectacular, but they rise to the occasion when they are needed.

Did Valencia do that these past couple of games he has received heavier minutes? Damn straight he has;in addition, his chemistry with Mata has further increased the productivity and creativity of our team;thus, us becoming a more dangerous team going forward. Hop off his dick and appreciate that he has been doing a solid job for us.

 

[Sigma]

No, incorrect, Valencia still has the same duty as before, crossing the ball. He has other duties that differ as a full back to a winger, namely defensive ones, but crossing the ball is still a very important facet of his game, just as it is for most fullbacks in the modern game. If it wasn't his duty, he wouldn't be attempting loads of them in every game, it's not like he's doing it of his own will, or something. He's clearly instructed to get forward, and cross the ball. His crossing is poor, and that's why he's getting slated for it. If it was not his duty and he wasn't putting crosses in, then I'm sure nobody would care.

What you're basically saying is that because he's a fullback and not a winger now, crossing is almost irrelevant, which makes no sense, because he put more crosses in than any other player today and was used as the focal point of our crosses for the majority of the game.

The bolded part is just insane logic, though, how exactly does him being in defensive positions more have a profound effect on his ability to cross the football. Is it that when he has the ball at his feet, ready to put a cross in, he suddenly thinks "oh shit, erm, better not feck this up, what if it goes wrong and I have to run all the way back to chase the defender, oh noes, panic, ahh, hit the ankles, hit the ankles!!"

When you are tired, do you perform worse? I think so.

And I didn't say crossing wasn't important I said we should judge him on more important thing as well as crossing. On this forum people mainly judge him on crossing and getting forward completely neglecting the fact that he is getting forward when others aren't.

 

[Massive Spanner]

When you are tired, do you perform worse? I think so.

Have you played 11 a side? Wingers probably run as much, if not more than fullbacks do, you know. And they sprint more, too. Why do you think most top clubs rotate wingers if they can but usually keep their full backs playing in every match?

 

[Massive Spanner]

When you are tired, do you perform worse? I think so.

And I didn't say crossing wasn't important I said we should judge him on more important thing as well as crossing. On this forum people mainly judge him on crossing and getting forward completely neglecting the fact that he is getting forward when others aren't.

Who are we talking about?