blanc or o'shea?

rick

Guest
who would be your picks for united's 1st-choice central defensive partnership? ferdinand seems quite obvious, but i'm not quite sure about blanc. loads of experience, but lacking in pace, and the premiership is full of pacey strikers.
give o'shea a go perhaps? or a fully fit wes brown?
 
not to forget silvestre and g.neville can play in that position as well.... and there's even david may (*gasp* he's been making the sub's bench recently!)
 
TBH, O'Shea has done really well since he came into the side, playing well in every defensive position possible. (Though central defense is undoubtedly where he plays best.) And Blanc does give me the occasional heart attack. I would prefer O'Shea, but that's not how things are going to turn out. Blanc would still play most of the games, with O'Shea getting the odd ones, unless Fergie has had a change of mind I suppose.
 
And with Phil playing so well at the mo, we could afford to put Gary in the centre
 
yea i would prefer o'shea or brown over blanc as well, i think they'd do well next to ferdinand. gary neville is reliable, but maybe lacking the physical presence to be a centre back? plus we'll miss his runs down the flank (something o'shea did quite impressively, by the way, when he played right-back)
 
Originally posted by rick:
<strong>not to forget silvestre and g.neville can play in that position as well.... and there's even david may (*gasp* he's been making the sub's bench recently!)</strong><hr></blockquote>

Yeah spot on! Neville played well when he played there and its Silvestres favoured position and where he plays for france although i think he plays better on the left doin the odd run. I think deffinatly O'Shea, Banc and when Wes is back him and O'Shea??
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Personally I would prefer O'Shea, but as Fergie persuaded Blanc to stay, if he drops him it's going to make Fergie look stupid. I Fergie will persevere with Blanc to save face.
 
i think fergie has it about right. he'll stick with larry til he retires at the end of the season. this gives Rio, and now O'Shea (who i think should be in front of wes for CB by now) valuable experience playing alongside him, and he's said he believes its rubbing off. Theyre both young and the kind of defenders who'd benefit from a skillset blanc has, in that theyre not stoippers but ball playing "thinking" CBs. JOS has time, and its good to use this time while we have it. next season for definite will be JOS and Rio and theyll be better for the experience of playing with old uncle larry. i do see though that the horrors of overseeing the defence through this time has made larry look even older about 70 i'd say :D
i think the more pertinent question right now and for the medium term would be JOS or Wes ? <img src="graemlins/angel.gif" border="0" alt="[Angel]" />
 
AND i think if the corner has now been turned or is about to be turned then some credit has to go to blanc. we dont see what he gives on the training pitch but if the yougsters remembered him at his peak, theyd be in awe of him :)
 
Originally posted by Canadian Dee:
<strong>Personally I would prefer O'Shea, but as Fergie persuaded Blanc to stay, if he drops him it's going to make Fergie look stupid. I Fergie will persevere with Blanc to save face.</strong><hr></blockquote>

He will do it because he thinks it's for the good of the team. I had enough of people claiming Fergie would make certain team decisions just to make himself look good.
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Originally posted by Canadian Dee:
<strong>Personally I would prefer O'Shea, but as Fergie persuaded Blanc to stay, if he drops him it's going to make Fergie look stupid. I Fergie will persevere with Blanc to save face.</strong><hr></blockquote>

Fergie has already praised O'Shea for several times this season. Knowing this is Blanc's last season with us Fergie will surely give more chance to O'Shea in this season. There is no such question as face saving or not because we haven't spent anything except wage on Blanc.
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Sharkey
face saving my arse. blanc has been great for us.

Hear! hear!
 
i dont understand this Blanc bashing at all. The guy has shown nothing but class on the field. Apart from one absolute clanger last season against Boro i can think of no other instances where he can be directly blamed for goals conceded. He's been professional & dignified on and off the pitch, a real example for budding footballers to look up too. Ive enjoyed watching him for the last season,he's been a pleasure to watch and i think its a pity we didnt sign him 5 years ago. If the likes of Rio, O'Shea and Wes cant learn from a man like that, then they shouldnt be professional footballers!
 
Agree. Our lads can still learn a lot from him this season. His ability to read the game is still top drawer.
 
I remember in an interview with O'Shea not so long ago claiming that Fergie told him that he and Blanc played the game the same way. It would be good for O'Shea to learn from Blanc.
It would be a mouthwatering prospect to see a player with O'Shea pace have Blanc skill in reading the game :D
 
From all the central defenders we have Laurent Blanc is the weak link.

He is easily caught in pace and with 5 Int ( 4 play or have played for England) we dont need a Papa to lead our defense

After all G Neville and Rio Ferdinand (former leeds captian) have enough experience to lead The red devils defense.

Laurent Blanc is an old article and he is too slow to play in a flat 4 defense.
 
Originally posted by devilish:
<strong>From all the central defenders we have Laurent Blanc is the weak link.
Laurent Blanc is an old article and he is too slow to play in a flat 4 defense.</strong><hr></blockquote>

Yet another clueless remark. Do you even understand football or do you just read the papers?
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Originally posted by devilish:
<strong>From all the central defenders we have Laurent Blanc is the weak link.

He is easily caught in pace and with 5 Int ( 4 play or have played for England) we dont need a Papa to lead our defense

After all G Neville and Rio Ferdinand (former leeds captian) have enough experience to lead The red devils defense.

Laurent Blanc is an old article and he is too slow to play in a flat 4 defense.</strong><hr></blockquote>

utter nonsense. do you watch any United matches at all, even highlights?
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I think Blanc is the better choice as to last man before Barthez to stop the goal. But obviously Blanc will make way to O'shea after one or two years. Hope that O'shea can learn something from Blanc's experience before he retire. By the way, where is Wes Brown?
 
1st of all i have been supporting Manchester United since i was born

2 In Malta I watch the serie A, Premiership and La Liga, week in week out.

3 What i am saying comes out from FACTS

Why do you think that Inter have sent Blanc for free?

Hes a good defender, but he is too slow in a flat 4 defense, expecially when facing the premiership lightning fast stikers.

Btw I was born in Manchester

You may know about war more than us

But leave football to those who had created is
 
Blanc will always be remembered as one of the best defenders ever to play football, but

1st At 37yrs I doubt whether he has the stamina and the pace to play week in and out in the Premiership.

2nd Blanc had made a name of being a wonderful SWEEPER, definately he isnt used to a 4-4-2 formation where the defense uses the offside trap as their main weopon

Mind you I am not against Laurent Blanc, but i think that Manutd have currently better options than the French LEGEND.

And btw to downgrade G Neville's and R Ferdinand's experiences is an insult to these players

G Neville had been an inspired leader

R Ferdinard had lead Leeds and England with pride and class.

You have been talking about experience, experience and experience. Do you know that you remind me of a fool who once said you cannot win anything with youths.

(BTW I WATCH THE PREMIERSHIP, THE SERIE A AND LA LIGA WEEK IN WEEK OUT AND I GO TO MANCHESTER 2 TIMES A YR)
 
Originally posted by devilish:
<strong>
You may know about war more than us

But leave football to those who had created is</strong><hr></blockquote>

:confused: :confused:

anyone know what hes chatting about?

btw next time you watch a united match live or on telly, i suggest you study the way Blanc plays. I think youll find he is rarely beaten for pace because he reads the game better than anyone else. any United fan will tell you that Blanc has been nothing short of CLASS for us since hes settled in. IMO anyone that continually brings up lack of pace etc as a whinge against Larry has:
a&gt; never watched a United match, and bases their opinions on hearsay OR
b&gt;is still bitter about Stam leaving, get over it OR c&gt; is a clueless muppet who knows squat about footie

which one do you fall into Devlish?

btw no-one has slagged off Gary Neville or Rio Ferdinand? we all know theyre experienced but they should all relish the chance to learn more from Blanc a man who's been in the game for 20+ years and has a WC winners medal. Im sure the lads would be the first to tell you how much they enjoy playing and learning from big Larry.

now, if you wouldnt mind closing the door on your way out, theres a nice chap.
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Larry is class.

All those who say otherwise, I'm sorry, but you haven't got a clue.

:mad:
 
Originally posted by golden_blunder:
<strong>

:confused: :confused:

anyone know what hes chatting about?</strong><hr></blockquote>

Yep, me. Obviously Israelies know nothing about football but should discuss war as they're so bloody good at it. <img src="graemlins/houllier.gif" border="0" alt="[Houllier]" />
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Originally posted by devilish:
<strong>Why do you think that Inter have sent Blanc for free?
</strong><hr></blockquote>

Why do you think Sir Alex signed him and keeps playing him just about week in week out?

How about showing some belief in your own manager rather than other clubs? Hector Cuper had his own ideas for Inter and wanted to create a different partnership for Inter in a 4-4-2 formation, and they nicely decided to let a good servant go for free rather than to demand compensation.

And once again, why don't you just watch matches and see how good Blanc is? Because he is, you know.
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Blanc is class, O'Shea is class, Rio is class. How Bad!
 
Originally posted by golden_blunder:
<strong>i dont understand this Blanc bashing at all. The guy has shown nothing but class on the field. Apart from one absolute clanger last season against Boro i can think of no other instances where he can be directly blamed for goals conceded. He's been professional & dignified on and off the pitch, a real example for budding footballers to look up too. Ive enjoyed watching him for the last season,he's been a pleasure to watch and i think its a pity we didnt sign him 5 years ago. If the likes of Rio, O'Shea and Wes cant learn from a man like that, then they shouldnt be professional footballers!</strong><hr></blockquote>


Totally agree. He has been a legend. Top class. He makes up for his lack of pace with his mind. The more I watch him, the more I think he is the business.

Nothing complicated. Just makes the tackle, takes the ball, makes a good pass. Wins the header, drops into position.
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blanc and rio for now. larry moves out of the back w/ the ball better than the other two. o'shea has nothing else o prove to me he's ready , so any mix of those 3 is fine. o'shea's faster than i thought.

anyone ever see this kid tate play? will he be able to be a squad player?
 
Well I have decided to make everything clear

1st of all Mr_blunder do not ask me again whether i watch Manutd's games or not. Pls do not show your stupidity in public

Secondly I am not against Laurent Blanc. he a wonderful person and a living Legend

What i am saying is that I dont think he can resist the entire 90min on the pitch week in week out.

I have faith in Sir Alex but let us be sincere

1st L Blanc would have never came at OT ( last season ) if we didnt have problems with Stam.

2nd Larry havent given us that solitidy we needed
(see last years results)

3rd Amir you got it right

Hector Cuper had his own ideas for Inter and wanted to create a different partnership for Inter in a 4-4-2 formation, and they nicely decided to let a good servant go for free rather than to

Inter and Manutd play on a flat 4 defense always attentive to trap the opponent in the offside trap. Blanc is not cut for this, because you need pure pace for it.

I wish Blanc all the luck and may he prove me wrong.

Yet i see O shea, brown and G neville as better options

About Sir Alex, well i have all respect for him ( after all I have met him a couple of times and he is wonderful) but he has his opinions and i have mine.

You can insult me how much you want but everyone has an opinion.

respect mine and i will respect yours
 
Originally posted by devilish:
<strong>

1st L Blanc would have never came at OT ( last season ) if we didnt have problems with Stam.

2nd Larry havent given us that solitidy we needed
(see last years results)
</strong><hr></blockquote>

1. wrong. Fergie originally wanted Blanc to partner Stam.

2. blame our style of play not Blanc.

last season he was pure class.. and watching him live was a pleasure... i wish we had him four/five years ago....

technically the best player i've seen at OT.
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With everyone saying O'Shea + Rio for next seaosn? Aren't we going to sign Mexes?
 
Anyone who lays into Laurent Blanc, as Devlish does, clearly hasn't seen him in the flesh. Those who actually go to the matches know that he is one of the most accomplished defenders we've had for a long, long time.
 
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