[Anustart89]

Yeah it was very good striker, his technique is so good. Ball dipped just before Pickford got there and also he was beaten by speed of the ball too.

He could have saved it but not a blunder.

He wasn't really beaten by the speed of the ball since he went past it.

He misjudged the outward swerve on the shot (which was good, to be fair to Bruno) and overcommitted in his typical fashion to try to make a fingertip save at full extension. Instead he jumped too far and the ball slipped in under his outstretched arm.

 

[roonster09]

He wasn't really beaten by the speed of the ball since he went past it.

He misjudged the outward swerve on the shot (which was good, to be fair to Bruno) and overcommitted in his typical fashion to try to make a fingertip save at full extension. Instead he jumped too far and the ball slipped in under his outstretched arm.

Yeah, he wasn't beaten by the speed, it was the dip on the ball.

 

[SmashedHombre]

vs everton.



Every pass forward.

He's really gonna love playing with Rashford. Will be exciting to see.

 

[Anustart89]

Yeah, he wasn't beaten by the speed, it was the dip on the ball.

The dip and the outward swerve, and misjudging the flight/path of the ball for me is a mistake any day of the week from a professional keeper. Good shot though but I wouldn't expect it to go in against any PL goalkeeper.

Just looked it up and Understat has his shot at an xG of 0.02.

 

[Spaghetti]

The dip and the outward swerve, and misjudging the flight/path of the ball for me is a mistake any day of the week from a professional keeper. Good shot though but I wouldn't expect it to go in against any PL goalkeeper.

Just looked it up and Understat has his shot at an xG of 0.02.

Does that mean it’s a 0.02% chance of going in? Even against Little Arms? More like 100.2%.

 

[Anustart89]

Does that mean it’s a 0.02% chance of going in? Even against Little Arms? More like 100.2%.

2% from an average player against an average goalkeeper.

 

[roonster09]

The dip and the outward swerve, and misjudging the flight/path of the ball for me is a mistake any day of the week from a professional keeper. Good shot though but I wouldn't expect it to go in against any PL goalkeeper.

Just looked it up and Understat has his shot at an xG of 0.02.

You really overrate PL goal keepers then, check Liverpool vs Palace last season, worst possible exhibition of PL goal keepers. PL keepers makes lot of blunders and concede soft goals.

Also understat don't tell anything about the shot, it says the probability from that position, nothing to do with shot. Goal McTominay scored vs Arsenal also had xG of 0.02 but it wasn't a mistake. It was a clean hit.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Why the feck didn't we sign him in the summer? All those teams we couldn't break down he could have been a huge difference for us. If we can get a couple more quality players around him we will be massively improved.

 

[bosnian_red]

The dip and the outward swerve, and misjudging the flight/path of the ball for me is a mistake any day of the week from a professional keeper. Good shot though but I wouldn't expect it to go in against any PL goalkeeper.

Just looked it up and Understat has his shot at an xG of 0.02.

XG doesnt say anything about shot quality (that would be something like post shot xG, which I dont think anybody does), it's the chance before the shot is taken that is taken into account.
Was a good shot but yeah of course keeper should've saved it. But at the same time, 99% of goals can be prevented by someone not making a mistake of some sort. Bruno scores loads of goals because he can shoot from anywhere pretty damn well, and he isn't shy about taking shots. You dont try, you won't force opposition into mistakes.

 

[Vault Dweller]

I'm so frustrated we didn't get him in the summer. The type of player I love watching play football.

I love that he is constantly trying to get us on the front foot and isn't scared to try things. We need players doing more of that.

Brilliant signing so far and I think I may need to get Bruno on the back of one of my tops

@Suedesi does he not have 3 goals now?

 

[mav_9me]

Because we can't have good things anymore I worry about him and his form petering off. But then he has a very good mentality, that of a trier. That should hold him in good stead.

 

[Anustart89]

XG doesnt say anything about shot quality (that would be something like post shot xG, which I dont think anybody does), it's the chance before the shot is taken that is taken into account.
Was a good shot but yeah of course keeper should've saved it. But at the same time, 99% of goals can be prevented by someone not making a mistake of some sort. Bruno scores loads of goals because he can shoot from anywhere pretty damn well, and he isn't shy about taking shots. You dont try, you won't force opposition into mistakes.

Ah, fair enough.

No argument there as to what you've written. My initial point was disagreeing with the poster who said it wasn't a blunder though, and I still stand by that.

 

[pablotatt]

What has anyone ever learnt from xG? One of the most pointless football things I've ever heard of.

 

[Anustart89]

What has anyone ever learnt from xG? One of the most pointless football things I've ever heard of.

Look at the Leicester thread. Also, look at the people who were shouted down during Ole's interim period. In both cases they predicted the dips in form that would follow based on the teams vastly outperforming their xG.

 

[FootyGirl88]

 

[Stacks]

Had we signed him in Summer Pogba would still be fit and maybe Rashford

 

[Pexbo]

Had we signed him in Summer Pogba would still be fit and maybe Rashford

And Boris wouldn’t have won and Brexit would have been cancelled.

 

[Isotope]

He must be furious with his teammates (lack of) reaction to this draw. I bet that he just tones it down to "should be a bit mad".

 

[AJ Bullet]

Looks a class act and is already representing the fans thoughts and frustrations.

Hope we learn from the Pogba mistake and actually surround this guy with equal talent otherwise he will want out in a few years, will we learn though with our board...…..

 

[Rasendori]

Only things I didn’t like was taking too many stupid shots and moaning at team mates - I may be making something out of nothing but it did look like he was pointing and moaning once or twice towards team mates.

I both like it, and don't like it. Rashford used to be livid with Fellaini in particular, throwing his arms in the air, and shouting to the air. It was behaviour like that which led a poster on here to make a post about needing to burst his bubble. That's an example of when I don't like it.

An example of when I do like it, was evident in the most recent El Classico. Griezmann failed to make a pass which met Messi's expectation. As Messi turned around to look Griezmann in the eye and tell him he should've been released the ball quicker, Griezmann was smiling. Griezmann seeing that Messi was unhappy, placed his hand on Messi's back to defuse the situation, and tried to continue moving and Messi called him to give him further instructions. By the end, Griezmann wasn't smiling.

One of my favourite examples of it has to be Alexis Sanchez at Arsenal. I'm not saying he was always like this, as he wasn't. I forget which game, but there was a game where he was directing his teammates for at least 35 minutes. Gesturing with his hands which player his teammate should pass too, when to slow the rhythm of the game down, when to accelerate, instructing players to stay wide, and later instructing them to come closer. He was a real conductor.

I remember Carrick giving instructions to Tyler Blackett concerning his positioning, and in less than 2 minutes later, Blackett blocked a cross. In preseason, Wan Bisakka was benefiting from the council of Pogba. Pogba was telling Wan Bisakka which positions to take up in offensive areas.

It's not something that we as fans are privy too, but I'd love to know which United players specifically are sore losers in the dressing room. I remember it being reported that Thierry Henry would be livid in training if teammates weren't up to par, and was practically unapproachable in the dressing room after a defeat. Ideally the atmosphere would be so uncomfortable that it would serve as extra motivation to not be in that atmosphere again. Apparently there was a game which United lost the 2nd leg, but qualified overall. The players were celebrating in the dressing room, until Zlatan walked in and started throwing things around in frustration. The celebrations then stopped. Rashford once said he can't relate to certain players from Man Utd that look unaffected in the dressing room after a defeat.

 

[Inter Yer Nan]

Definitely want to echo the frustrations we didn't get him in the summer. We'd probably be 10 points better off and we'd have enjoyed the football this season more. I hope there's a genuine plan to add the necessary quality around him rather than just rely solely on him. If that's a re-dedicated Pogba, great. If not, then we have to add someone else in midfield and a quality player for the right wing. It's so annoying that we wanted him in the summer but pussyfooted around and are now in a genuine battle for Champions League places whereas had we just been more decisive we'd have nothing to worry about now.

 

[Stacks]

Definitely want to echo the frustrations we didn't get him in the summer. We'd probably be 10 points better off and we'd have enjoyed the football this season more. I hope there's a genuine plan to add the necessary quality around him rather than just rely solely on him. If that's a re-dedicated Pogba, great. If not, then we have to add someone else in midfield and a quality player for the right wing. It's so annoying that we wanted him in the summer but pussyfooted around and are now in a genuine battle for Champions League places whereas had we just been more decisive we'd have nothing to worry about now.

Had we signed him in Summer Pogba would still be fit and maybe Rashford

 

[Rasendori]

Brilliant goal. However I actually don't think he played brilliantly. Its a good sign though because he has demonstrated quality and we can expect a very high level.

He wasn't "brilliant" for me either. Fortunately, he didn't need to be. I'd say Martial's performance against Everton in the 15/16 Fa Cup Semi Final is the best performance against them in the post Fergie era, with Pogba's away performance against them in 17/18 being a noticeable second.

 

[Isotope]

I both like it, and don't like it. Rashford used to be livid with Fellaini in particular, throwing his arms in the air, and shouting to the air. It was behaviour like that which led a poster on here to make a post about needing to burst his bubble. That's an example of when I don't like it.

An example of when I do like it, was evident in the most recent El Classico. Griezmann failed to make a pass which met Messi's expectation. As Messi turned around to look Griezmann in the eye and tell him he should've been released the ball quicker, Griezmann was smiling. Griezmann seeing that Messi was unhappy, placed his hand on Messi's back to defuse the situation, and tried to continue moving and Messi called him to give him further instructions. By the end, Griezmann wasn't smiling.

One of my favourite examples of it has to be Alexis Sanchez at Arsenal. I'm not saying he was always like this, as he wasn't. I forget which game, but there was a game where he was directing his teammates for at least 35 minutes. Gesturing with his hands which player his teammate should pass too, when to slow the rhythm of the game down, when to accelerate, instructing players to stay wide, and later instructing them to come closer. He was a real conductor.

I remember Carrick giving instructions to Tyler Blackett concerning his positioning, and in less than 2 minutes later, Blackett blocked a cross. In preseason, Wan Bisakka was benefiting from the council of Pogba. Pogba was telling Wan Bisakka which positions to take up in offensive areas.

It's not something that we as fans are privy too, but I'd love to know which United players specifically are sore losers in the dressing room. I remember it being reported that Thierry Henry would be livid in training if teammates weren't up to par, and was practically unapproachable in the dressing room after a defeat. Ideally the atmosphere would be so uncomfortable that it would serve as extra motivation to not be in that atmosphere again. Apparently there was a game which United lost the 2nd leg, but qualified overall. The players were celebrating in the dressing room, until Zlatan walked in and started throwing things around in frustration. The celebrations then stopped. Rashford once said he can't relate to certain players from Man Utd that look unaffected in the dressing room after a defeat.

Good observation!

 

[reddevil80]

Seems to me that he's a little ticked off with the boys and the result. He knows they had a poor 2nd half and he is calling them out behind a veil. This just endears him to even more of us fans I would guess.

From what I read there, he really does have a winners mentality and most definitely wants Utd to be better and get back to where they should be.

Kudos Bruno.

 

[roonster09]

 

[Tony247]

Reading between the lines, it sounds like few players were not so upset with the result as one expected to be... wonder who could be those...

 

[jamesblonde]

I read this very good article on how analytics departments are valuing midfielders (mostly around Liverpool's limited midfield):
https://global.espn.com/football/en...key-to-their-remarkable-premier-league-season

TLDR; midfielders are there to hold their shape, and players who shoot from distance are not worth much, as xG is too low. Average distance from goal for goals has been consistently declining in the premier league for years now.

Bruno is exactly what an analytics team doesn't want. Loads of shots from distance from impossible angles. But he also scores lots of them, because of how well he can strike a ball. I think the reason nobody else big was in for him was they were all trend followers - save your money on midfielders, splash the cash on forwards and wide players.

 

[sglowrider]

I read this very good article on how analytics departments are valuing midfielders (mostly around Liverpool's limited midfield):
https://global.espn.com/football/en...key-to-their-remarkable-premier-league-season

TLDR; midfielders are there to hold their shape, and players who shoot from distance are not worth much, as xG is too low. Average distance from goal for goals has been consistently declining in the premier league for years now.

Bruno is exactly what an analytics team doesn't want. Loads of shots from distance from impossible angles. But he also scores lots of them, because of how well he can strike a ball. I think the reason nobody else big was in for him was they were all trend followers - save your money on midfielders, splash the cash on forwards and wide players.

We just hired 8 of them. Ole may have a battle on his hand with every transfer window.

 

[Berbasbullet]

And Boris wouldn’t have won and Brexit would have been cancelled.

Ffs Woodward is the worst.

 

[GledTheRed]

Reading between the lines, it sounds like few players were not so upset with the result as one expected to be... wonder who could be those...

Jlingz was learning a new dance apparently, totally oblivious to the result.

 

[ash_86]

 

[Utdstar01]

Reading between the lines, it sounds like few players were not so upset with the result as one expected to be... wonder who could be those...

Probably everyone apart from Bruno, Maguire and Matic.

 

[AltiUn]

Reading between the lines, it sounds like few players were not so upset with the result as one expected to be... wonder who could be those...

You're not reading between the lines, you're reading a different book entirely. Not everything a player says cryptically means something else.

 

[MyOnlySolskjaer]

Not a great game.

 

[charlenefan]

Love how he always wants/is available/gets on the ball

Too many times Pogba actually goes missing in games

 

[charlenefan]

Not a great game.

 

[DoomSlayer]

He's basically been showing our midfielders and attackers how to utilise space better. A lot more players are looking at how fast he tries to play and try to do the same, which changes our whole dynamic and we start creating chances with ease.

 

[Utdstar01]

First half was struggling to find his range. Second half Bruno and Mata were just playing the game at their pace and controlling the rhythm and looked like they were playing in 3rd gear. Good idea to take him off.

 

[Paul_Scholes18]

Lacked end product and gave the ball away a bit too much. Did feel like he was new into the side which he is.