[ManUArfa]

Surely BFS was told to lose some timber and get in to shape before he could get back in the team. Sure there are opportunities with the departure of Morgan but if JM thought Morgan was a better back up than a fit BFS it would be BFS who was gone. OK there's player demands and contracts that play a part here but you have to admire Bastian's professionalism.

 

[Regulus Arcturus Black]

Keane left because he was finished. He spent 1-2 years walking on the pitch and then he gave saf the excuse to get rid of him. Thats what happen to these sort of players. Years tackling and bullying the midfield does take its toil

Do you think saf would have kicked him at age 25 because he was mean with poor nev? Would a 25 year old keane end at celtic only to retire few months later?

The idea that Roy or any other top player would have left their club at the same as Bastian (30) because they didn't want to become a burden is so incredibly far fetched.

Roy left at 34.5, Bastian was just under 31 and was still producing good performances for them the season before leaving.

 

[Hahao]

LMAO. I love how people are acting surprised.
This guy has been one of the best players in the world for a decade and has won everything. He didnt suddenly forget how to play. What exactly was Mourinho thinking by treating him so badly I dont know but clearly BFS is miles ahead of Fellaini and Morgan and probably not worse than Carrick.

 

[Hahao]

More likely Schweinsteiger has proven his commitment and worth.

And in the process we have lost so many points for playing the likes of Fellaini over him. Mourinho's team selection cost us so many points. Nothing else.
Oh well. Better late than never.

 

[Charlie Foley]

We're a sleeping giant but we're still a giant. Bayern and Bastian came to a mutual agreement. The former didn't need him anymore but were willing to keep him out of respect. The latter didn't want to become a burden for them if he can help it. Well they must be thanking their god we've stepped in

Ok, but that's not what I'm talking about re comparisons with Hargreaves, the truth was they had less of a drawing power back then, and we had more. Also I think there's differences in getting someone for free basically and having to give out a decent wedge for Hargreaves.

Also given the players' connections to the club, while with Basti maybe we should have thought 'there must be a reason they're letting this deal happen like this', it was easier at the time with Hargreaves to see it as a team on the verge of conquering Europe offering what was decent money for a midfielder who was English, rather than the most German man on the planet. Also the market hadn't entirely lost its mind by then, we offered decent fee. So there's a number of reasons other than 'finished player' that they were up for selling.

 

[Synco]

Goal, assist, couple of lovely dribbels, kept it ticking in the middle. All this after not starting a single game in 7 months.

111 passes with a 92.8% success rate

"Pretty poor" my arse.

Didn't watch the game today. But I noticed in the Pogba discussions that a good performance as an organising midfielder is likely to be labeled 'poor' by quite a number of posters.

 

[Sparky Rhiwabon]

When we bought him. I thought / hoped that he'd be used in rotation with Carrick, to keep both fresh and get the most out of them. That hasn't really panned out, but maybe it could now, although I doubt it.

After looking, understandably, rusty for the first 30 mins I thought he was superb after that, bossed the game and hardly wasted a thing. Looked fitter than he has previously whilst at United as well, I thought.

 

[Wednesday at Stoke]

Surely BFS was told to lose some timbre and get in to shape before he could get back in the team. Sure there are opportunities with the departure of Morgan but if JM thought Morgan was a better back up than a fit BFS it would be BFS who was gone. OK there's player demands and contracts that play a part here but you have to admire Bastian's professionalism.

A healthy preseason would probably do wonders for him, if he stays beyond this one ofcourse.

 

[Special_One]

Every game he's appeared in we've scored four times

 

[Dobbs]

When you're up against a team that sits deep he gives you more than Carrick in the final third. Possibly more than Herrera.

Not sure if that makes up for his legs (or lack of) but comes in very handy against teams like Wigan.

 

[strongwalker]

Not sure if that makes up for his legs (or lack of) but comes in very handy against teams like Wigan.

With his shitty legs in play, Bayern won a fair bit. Against teams even bigger than Wigan.

To be 100% honest, i wasn't entirely sure he would come back his full self after his superhuman effort in the WC. There have been players playing hurt and more or less ending their career thus for the one big win (you fellas may not have noticed it, but Jeremies was one such tragic case for the EC 2001) and as a consequence i wasn't absolutely devastated when he left Bayern, as a player with that kind of standing in the club but left with a body which can't cope can become a major problem - glad to see he seems to have recovered.

Didn't watch the game today. But I noticed in the Pogba discussions that a good performance as an organising midfielder is likely to be labeled 'poor' by quite a number of posters.

Schweinsteiger is a leader of the quiet type. At the german squad, he was the one taking walks and talking to the younger players, giving them confidence and the feeling to be part of the team. Not an Alpha showing everyone who had the biggest balls, like Effenberg or others.
Being a leader requires, in addition to the skill on the pitch, a certain ammount of brains, or (in the best case: and) balls of enormous size; the skill Pogba may have, i'm not certain about one the other two.

 

[WyoManU]

Goal, assist, couple of lovely dribbels, kept it ticking in the middle. All this after not starting a single game in 7 months.

111 passes with a 92.8% success rate

"Pretty poor" my arse.

We must be watching a different sport. First of all, I don't give a flip about pass %. When you pick the ball up in your third and pass it sideways to an unmarked fullback and get "credit" for the skill then you are missing the point. He was caught in possession several times, made several poor passes and looked slow throughout. I'm not trying to be mean, it's just an honest assessment. Yes, he lobbed a ball to the back post for Fellaini to boss home. Not tons of skill there. Yes, he scored a goal from 3 yards out after Wigan were done. Was a nice moment. I don't think he looked anywhere near sharp enough to figure in a match that actually mattered against true opposition. Yes, a nice, hard working professional and a legend. None of that means he is STILL good enough.

 

[Synco]

Being a leader requires either balls of enormous size, or a certain ammount of brains; one of those Pogba may have, i'm not certain about the other kind.

He has both, that's why I referred him in this thread after a (seemingly) good BS performance as an organising midfielder. Keeping the ball circulation up in a smart & efficient way doesn't win CMs many accolades, but Pogba really surprised me this season by doing exactly that from deeper positions. The way I see it, it's United's team game that mostly needs work in possession for better control of their games.

 

[littleman]

We must be watching a different sport. First of all, I don't give a flip about pass %. When you pick the ball up in your third and pass it sideways to an unmarked fullback and get "credit" for the skill then you are missing the point. He was caught in possession several times, made several poor passes and looked slow throughout. I'm not trying to be mean, it's just an honest assessment. Yes, he lobbed a ball to the back post for Fellaini to boss home. Not tons of skill there. Yes, he scored a goal from 3 yards out after Wigan were done. Was a nice moment. I don't think he looked anywhere near sharp enough to figure in a match that actually mattered against true opposition. Yes, a nice, hard working professional and a legend. None of that means he is STILL good enough.

Our game against Wigan wasn't a friendly, it was "true opposition".

We're talking about a team with Pogba and Ibrahimovic that can fall to the lowest teams.

Bastian doing well against a Wigan isn't the same as doing well against a Chelsea or Arsenal, but our fixture list isn't one playing against the top 3 of each country all year long right? It's a team game. We need everyone. I have no doubts there will still be many games this year where Bastian is a better pick than Pogba.

 

[Fracture90]

Pretty much dogshit for the first 20 minutes...MOTM performance after that.

Bit sluggish and rusty but that will change with more game time.

Mourinho and his baffling decisions this season when it comes to player management.

 

[The Man Himself]

@Damien @Niall , stats for Basti are not showing up in the banner at top. Ratings, goals, assists etc. Also clicking on his profile doesn't show any assists, missing yesterday's.

 

[Isotope]

When you're up against a team that sits deep he gives you more than Carrick in the final third. Possibly more than Herrera.

Not sure if that makes up for his legs (or lack of) but comes in very handy against teams like Wigan.

Agreed. He's much better in the final third than Carrick, albeit poorer defensively. Mou might use him more often when against parking bus teams.

 

[devilish]

The idea that Roy or any other top player would have left their club at the same as Bastian (30) because they didn't want to become a burden is so incredibly far fetched.

Roy left at 34.5, Bastian was just under 31 and was still producing good performances for them the season before leaving.

Age means very little TBH. What is important is the player's condition. Hence why Ibra at 35 is still smoking hot while Rooney at 31 is a burden.

Returning to Bastian, if you have a look in Bayern's transfer market in those years you'll notice that they kept adding midfielders. In 2015 they added Vidal, Kimmich and they recalled Hojberg from loan. In 2014 they brought Xabi Alonso and Sebastian Rode while in 2013 they added Thiago Alcantara. Its pretty evident that competition in CM was getting tough and he was become a bit of a non needed player. Hence why Bastian left and hence why Bayern didn't stood in his way. He wasn't an important player for them anymore.

Now let me ask you a question. If Bastian was still producing good performances for them why they didn't tried to sign him back when Mou offered him to them?

 

[devilish]

Ok, but that's not what I'm talking about re comparisons with Hargreaves, the truth was they had less of a drawing power back then, and we had more. Also I think there's differences in getting someone for free basically and having to give out a decent wedge for Hargreaves.

Also given the players' connections to the club, while with Basti maybe we should have thought 'there must be a reason they're letting this deal happen like this', it was easier at the time with Hargreaves to see it as a team on the verge of conquering Europe offering what was decent money for a midfielder who was English, rather than the most German man on the planet. Also the market hadn't entirely lost its mind by then, we offered decent fee. So there's a number of reasons other than 'finished player' that they were up for selling.

We're not half as good as we were before but there again we're not half as skint as we were before. Back then it was unthinkable for us to sign Juventus best CM or to go and sign the 3rd place Ballon d'or whose been scoring goals for fun at La Liga. Its not that unthinkable now.

The issues surrounding both transfers were evident. Regarding Bastian, Bayern were adding CMs year after year which clearly showed that something was wrong in their current CM. Regarding Hargreaves, we only had to read the German press, who labelled him as the 'English patient' for his constant injuries. TBF it made more sense taking a punt on Bastian (LVG philosophy was tough, our players were too 'stupid' to understand such 'magnificent' strategy and we needed somebody who implemented it on the pitch etc) then we needed Hargreaves. Back then we had Carrick and Fletcher in midfield + we had Marcos Senna in the bag.

However when you think about it, its all down to 2 managers throwing common sense out of the window to get the man they wanted at any price and under any condition. Both had disastrous consequences for the club

 

[RedPnutz]

Let's just be glad that we have a player with world class experience and technique to come on against a team like Wigan.

I don't understand the point of consistently harping about how he is past it and should be sold. First there must be a willing buyer.

Even if he may be past it for the tough PL games, he obviously isn't past it for our other three competitions. Think about who Liverpool have against Wolves and Southampton, then think about us having Schweinsteiger. It's a bit of a luxury but we sure can afford it.

 

[Ashley R1+O]

So surprised to see him get the nod, felt a little pang of guilt for Morgan. But I am so glad his little bromance with Rooney is blossoming, two very important leaders in our squad. Played well in the second half as well.

 

[RedPnutz]

Why did Mou play him today but not earlier in the season?
Admitting he was wrong?

Maybe he wasn't fit enough? Maybe he truly isn't ready for the higher intensity of PL matches? Maybe our matches earlier did not have results good enough to allow Mou the luxury of changing too much? Maybe a team like Wigan is a good match to get himself into rhythm? It's never just a simple black and white, right or wrong situation.

 

[Regulus Arcturus Black]

...

Giggs didn't just leave United when we started buying Ronaldo, Young, Valencia.

The idea is absurd, if Bastian thought he was on the wane, what better place than Bayern to be a bit more of a bit part player. Certainly better than risking what has happened at United. At Bayern they are top dogs & he could have games like yesterday against plenty of teams in the Bundesliga for a good few more years whilst being respected and loved in the process, just like Giggs in his later years.

 

[Robbie Boy]

I honestly thought he was well past it and that was the reason for his lack of game time. Bit seeing him yesterday, it was clear that he still has something left and that makes it stranger the fact that he hasn't been used this season. Surely he would be a good option to throw on for the last 20 minutes or so, or be used in rotation with Carrick form time-to-time.

I know it was only Wigan but he partly proved me wrong yesterday with that performance.

 

[RedPnutz]

We must be watching a different sport. First of all, I don't give a flip about pass %. When you pick the ball up in your third and pass it sideways to an unmarked fullback and get "credit" for the skill then you are missing the point. He was caught in possession several times, made several poor passes and looked slow throughout. I'm not trying to be mean, it's just an honest assessment. Yes, he lobbed a ball to the back post for Fellaini to boss home. Not tons of skill there. Yes, he scored a goal from 3 yards out after Wigan were done. Was a nice moment. I don't think he looked anywhere near sharp enough to figure in a match that actually mattered against true opposition. Yes, a nice, hard working professional and a legend. None of that means he is STILL good enough.

It's called recycling the ball and keeping possession. I know keeping possession has almost become taboo after LVG but when a team plays like Wigan sitting back, it is inevitable to have a lot of sideways passes and recycling of the ball to distort the shape of the opponent.

And you could be right that he is not sharp enough. That's probably why he is featuring against Wigan not Liverpool or Chelsea. He is certainly good enough to feature against certain teams. But look on the bright side, other teams like Liverpool bring on their second string or reserves against Wolves while we bring on Schweinsteiger.

I really don't know why fans are even complaining at all.

 

[Classical Mechanic]

I would like to see him against a PL team. The worry was his first 20 minutes when Wigan were full of confidence and pressing hard, he was fairly terrible. You can put that down to rustiness of course but the pace will be higher in the PL.

 

[Redlyn]

But look on the bright side, other teams like Liverpool bring on their second string or reserves against Wolves while we bring on Schweinsteiger.

I really don't know why fans are even complaining at all.

He is here so we might as well use him. But we can't carry on like this. Needs to get off the wage bill if all we are going to get out of him is Wigan in the cup. For 200k it's clearly not enough. Having said that I hope he plays Europa and makes a difference so we can get some value.

 

[devilish]

Giggs didn't just leave United when we started buying Ronaldo, Young, Valencia.

The idea is absurd, if Bastian thought he was on the wane, what better place than Bayern to be a bit more of a bit part player. Certainly better than risking what has happened at United. At Bayern they are top dogs & he could have games like yesterday against plenty of teams in the Bundesliga for a good few more years whilst being respected and loved in the process, just like Giggs in his later years.

Valencia and Ronaldo were right wingers. Young was never going to replace Ryan Giggs. He was always squad player material. You can't compare spitty with the likes of Vidal or Xabi Alonso, two world class articles who competed for Bastian for a first team place.

Players tend to be very good to understand the signs of time. Take Gaz for example who only retired following an humiliating last game. He's not alone. Baresi needed a humiliated performance in the derby to call it a day while Keane went feral, accusing everyone and everybody about United's issues when in reality the problem was him (we replaced him with Carrick and voila we won the league again). Bastian might have thought that he could still make it at the top level and that he shouldn't settle for just a reserve/honorary role. If he must settle for that role, he might as well do it on a rival club's payroll not on his beloved club one. I can't blame him for that especially since he was encouraged by United's manager to think like that with United throwing money at him just to leave Bayern. It turned out that both the manager and the player were dinasours

Ultimately Bayern got rid of a burden (which they were willing to carry but it was still a burden) and Bastian carved himself a great deal for himself at a club whose just a step away from home. Why should he move to the other side of the world when he's happy with the money United are obliged to pay him?

 

[Escobar]

I would like to see him against a PL team. The worry was his first 20 minutes when Wigan were full of confidence and pressing hard, he was fairly terrible. You can put that down to rustiness of course but the pace will be higher in the PL.

He wouldnt cut it, physically, he's just not fit enough anymore

 

[Regulus Arcturus Black]

Valencia and Ronaldo were right wingers.

Nani then.

It was obvious Giggs was fazed out whatever way you look at it, as is often done with ageing legends.

 

[devilish]

Nani then.

It was obvious Giggs was fazed out whatever way you look at it, as is often done with ageing legends.

Nani was the closest of the bunch that had the talent to replace Giggs. But there's a big difference between a 20 something Nani, who was still very raw and would need years to make the role his and two confirmed world class midfielders like Alonso and Vidal.

 

[Regulus Arcturus Black]

Nani was the closest of the bunch that had the talent to replace Giggs. But there's a big difference between a 20 something Nani, who was still very raw and would need years to make the role his and two confirmed world class midfielders like Alonso and Vidal.

He was fazed out whichever way you try to spin it, in his final years he was making very very few appearances really, but then most legends are and most stay around and take easy street. But apparently Bastian is just such a nice bloke that he couldn't do that to them

Giggs final 3 seasons:
19 PL starts
14 PL starts
12 PL starts

Miles older than Bastain too, but do carry on with your absurd suggestion that Bastain left to be nice to Bayern & not be a burden. Most players in his position would've taken easy street, he went for one last challenge.

 

[devilish]

He was fazed out whichever way you try to spin it, most legends are and most stay around and take easy street.

In a very slow way.

There's a massive difference between bringing a 20 year something winger whose still very raw and will need years to become first teamer (if he ever manage to do that) and to bring 2 world class midfielders like Alonso and Vidal. Surely you'll have to admit that.

Please note that I fully agree with Bayern's policy. The main priority for a club is to make sure that any weakness at first team level is sorted. If that means sending on the bench a legend, whom in turn, would feel excluded, then so be it. If we did that with Giggs/Scholes we wouldn't have had to spend millions to get Pogba back.

So lets be clear. We are the suckers who deserve the punishment we're getting, not Bayern or Bastian.

 

[Godfather]

When you're up against a team that sits deep he gives you more than Carrick in the final third. Possibly more than Herrera.

Not sure if that makes up for his legs (or lack of) but comes in very handy against teams like Wigan.

That's actually a very good point. Agree compeletely.

 

[Regulus Arcturus Black]

In a very slow way.

There's a massive difference between bringing a 20 year something winger whose still very raw and will need years to become first teamer (if he ever manage to do that) and to bring 2 world class midfielders like Alonso and Vidal. Surely you'll have to admit that.

Please note that I fully agree with Bayern's policy. The main priority for a club is to make sure that any weakness at first team level is sorted. If that means sending on the bench a legend, whom in turn, would feel excluded, then so be it. If we did that with Giggs/Scholes we wouldn't have had to spend millions to get Pogba back.

So lets be clear. We are the suckers who deserve the punishment we're getting, not Bayern or Bastian.

You're still not backing up the idea that he left so as not to become a burden. You think Giggs felt like a burden in those past 3 seasons when he hardly played or you think he cared? Or did he just love being at a club and had no problem being back up? Like most other legends?

It doesn't matter who Bayern brought in, in fact, the higher the level of player the better it would be for someone looking to have it easy and be a back up for a top player and still be massively involved in helping the club win things. Better that than joining Manchester United and being a back up to Fellaini and trashing your reputation.

But no, Bastian didn't want to do what tonnes of other legends do at clubs because "he didn't want to be burden" so he decided he'd go and rinse Manchester United and smear his reputation instead.

Absolutely laughable.

 

[arthurka]

He can do a good job here for the rest of the season.. Lot of games coming up where we will dominate possession ...

 

[Regulus Arcturus Black]

The truth is blindingly obvious anyway @devilish, Bastian had his share of injuries and Bayern responded by strengthening. Alonso especially was a typical Guardiola signing.

Rather than take the easy legend route, Schweinsteiger took on a challenge, and it's backfired.

But to claim he did it to be nice to Bayern, or because he knew he was finished (more reason to stay and be bit part in a winning machine), is as I've said many times, deluded beyond belief.

 

[devilish]

You're still not backing up the idea that he left so as not to become a burden. You think Giggs felt like a burden in those past 3 seasons when he hardly played or you think he cared? Or did he just love being at a club and had no problem being back up? Like most other legends?

It doesn't matter who Bayern brought in, in fact, the higher the level of player the better it would be for someone looking to have it easy and be a back up for a top player and still be massively involved in helping the club win things. Better that than joining Manchester United and being a back up to Fellaini and trashing your reputation.

But no, Bastian didn't want to do what tonnes of other legends do at clubs because "he didn't want to be burden" so he decided he'd go and rinse Manchester United and smear his reputation instead.

Absolutely laughable.

Giggs didn’t felt he’s a burden because he was still an instrumental player in our team. SAF only added two players in the left wing role, one was a cover (Young) and one was a kid (Nani), which means the team needed him. We also know that Giggs was given training as a CM, in the hope of adding mileage to his career. Things would probably have turned different if SAF went for world class left wingers in their prime.

Bastian’s end of career at Bayern is more similar to Robson’s career with us. SAF never said that Robson was a surplus and yet he kept adding more top quality midfielders (Ince and Keane) which pushed Robson further down the pecking order. Is also similar to what is probably going to happen to Rooney if we add Griezmann to the team. We’ll have Griezmann and Ibra upfront + Mata and Pogba as no 10. The club might never say that Rooney is a surplus. There again it is evident that he will be a surplus.

Now imagine if Bayern had to bid for Rooney this summer, offering him a 5 year contract on a higher salary then he’s currently got. He would, most certainly leave. Its a win win situation for both club and player. Rooney would leave with his reputation at the club almost intact and for a club that still believe he can edge it at first team level. United would avoid having to pay for a player whom they believe is on the wane and are keeping him here out of respect. If it doesn't work out, well, Rooney owes nothing to Bayern and has nothing to prove to anybody. He can stay put and enjoy his retirement with Bayern paying him what they owe him.

Unfortunately Bayern aren’t that stupid.

 

[devilish]

The truth is blindingly obvious anyway @devilish, Bastian had his share of injuries and Bayern responded by strengthening. Alonso especially was a typical Guardiola signing.

Rather than take the easy legend route, Schweinsteiger took on a challenge, and it's backfired.

But to claim he did it to be nice to Bayern, or because he knew he was finished (more reason to stay and be bit part in a winning machine), is as I've said many times, deluded beyond belief.

that's not what I am saying. Read the previous post

 

[Pyro19]

He wouldnt cut it, physically, he's just not fit enough anymore

Yup , he's still a wonderful footballer when in possession but any half decent team that presses well would run absolutely rings around him. I would like to see him get more games in the FA Cup though or at home against fodder opposition that just sit back and defend.