FDJ(ilted).
Frenkie de Jong | The last muppeting lap
- Thread starter davidmichael
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If only there was a club out there who had a dutch manager who knew how to get the best out of him... if only.
He’s exactly what our midfield has been crying out for since Carrick retired.
We don’t have anyone who can drop and pick the ball up off the CB.
We don’t have anyone who can drop and pick the ball up off the CB.
Or yesterday reports are true, Xavi told him the board aren't impressed with his performances....so this was his response.
Too lazy to dig up but fellow caftards have posted analysis on Schone's positioning when he played next to FdJ. Effectively his game is to pick up the ball deep, beat the press, carry it forward and link it to a forward who's peeled away from his marker. Schone did stay behind to cover for him.
Think that's fairly different from Busquets.
If he comes here, he will play next to someone like McT (or as bosnian_red pointed out above, someone like Kessie) whose job it is to cover for him when he surges forward.
If you fail to get Frenkie you can always buy Steven Berghuis. He was also excellent yesterday 
Did not compare to Busquets in his prime. I agree Busquets was fantastic in his prime, but also obviously because he was part of a fantastic team. That whole tiki-taka game was just made for him as he was the master of positioning and one touch football. With tiki-taka football gone and Busquets ageing, he is also clearly past those best days currently though. At this moment Frenkie de Jong is almost better in everything.
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For all the muppetry in here, you guys aren't even jumping on the golden quotes.
That last tweet should have generated 10 pages by itself!
The muppet crew is just warming up. You are right though, that response is him saying I look forward to play for United and Erik
It seems passive aggressive after Xavi told him the Baca board said he was shitI like those quotes.
De Jong needs to be the deepest midfielder, and his game is all about progressing the ball from defence into more attacking areas. Same as Busquets.
Schone allowed De Jong the space to do his thing right in front of the centre backs. McTominay and Kessie would also allow De Jong to play his natural game.
Are we gonna get a Arron Lennon to Everton type signing photo?
He was still the deepest player in that Ajax set up, granted he'll make occasional driving runs but he doesn't have any issue with his defensive responsibilities, in relation to Schone I meant He wasn't some defensive powerhouse like a Vidal-Pirlo thing, Because Frankie is capable defensively in both the duels and positioning.
A Fred-Frenkie midfield with Bruno in front works from a defensive and offensive point of view in a high pressing set up.
Think that midfield works as well, and that is what ETH is going for, for now.
or Frenkie/Levitt or Garner
People always jump to the Di Maria example of player being forced out (understandable) but Suarez was forced out of Barca and went on to have a great season at Atletico.
Pogba and FdJ are completely different players. Pogba is all about penetrating long distance passing. He’s awkward, defensively Ill disciplined and defends transitions really badly. De Jong’s key skills are carrying the ball progressively and his passing range is on the shorter side compared to Pogba, the type that is useful for build up play. He’s way shorter than Pogba, so defends transitions better and is a lot more agile.
Yeah but Busquets is a pass first player so can progress the ball while maintaining positional discipline. Frenkie’s natural instinct, and main strength is to carry the ball forward which leaves a hole in the pivot if he doesn’t have someone with that defensive discipline beside him.
Quality player.
On his own in a midfield with McFred I don’t see him thriving. But the more quality you add the better you hopefully get. What matters the most will be ETH and him implementing his strategies into the team play. With a quality DM next to him and particularly Sancho in front of him, then also having Bruno between the lines to feed into and Ronaldo ahead of that, then Frenkie should have a platform to try and run the game. Hoping that we sign him of course.
Yes I agree it Fred / McT + FdJ works perfectly for us.
My point was just that Frenkie + Gavi + Pedri doesn't work for Barca which is why I assume they want to get rid of him and not play Kessi + FdJ + one of Pedri / Gavi instead.
The quotes about being used better at the NT are Pogba esque too. Its 2016 all over again.
But this time instead of Mourinho and Pogba we have Ten Hag and De Jong.
De Jong himself won't be enough to fix our midfield problems, but with Pereira coming back into the team and Ten Hag reportedly keen on him, he would likely be our only midfield signing.
Pogba- De Jong
Matic- Pereira
You have to laugh, otherwise you would cry.
Pogba- De Jong
Matic- Pereira
You have to laugh, otherwise you would cry.
Antony is just perfect for the balance of that hypothetical team.
Except Pogba role is odd and unconventional needing a midfielder to play on the wing to support him due to his defensive lapses.The quotes about being used better at the NT are Pogba esque too. Its 2016 all over again.
But this time instead of Mourinho and Pogba we have Ten Hag and De Jong.
Hes just one of those players who looks like he has more time than he does because he know when and where to move the ball to maximise the time he has. You can see him constantly updating his mental map of where all the players around him are so he can make the best decisions in the least amount of time. Complete contrast to most of our current players who get the ball and then have a think about where their teammates are and what they should do with the ball.
Not flashy, just an effective player. The sort that is hard to appreciate until you watch them play.
Not flashy, just an effective player. The sort that is hard to appreciate until you watch them play.
I think another key difference is that when deep, Pogba pretty much always wants to hold up play, attract a player and beat him to get space to dribble/pass. In theory that's great, but every time he's closed down from 2 angles, he's got no recourse, as he's limited his options while holding onto it.
By contrast, whatever De Jong does, he tends to do it decisively. He doesn't hold onto the ball in one place long enough to attract two players to the ball at the same time. If one is coming at him in that position, he's usually already passing around or accelerating past him.
When he is met with highly coordinated pressure, as you say his agility is a big plus.
Manchester United, willing to reach figures for which the Blaugrana club would give the OK to the operation. The English club is totally focused on convincing De Jong. The next week, key for the transfer.
Sport reliable for Barca news as I recall? Frenkie De JONg
I like the look of Antony. Could be a game changer…but I’d like to see us become a half decent team before we sign him and the fans jump straight on his back because he’s flashy….and the team is poor.
Thats exactly what I said.
You could see him leaning to one angle when receiving the ball under pressure only to spin with the ball in the opposite direction leaving the opposition for dead. As a marker you don't want to go full in on him because you know he'll have an answer to whatever question you ask, he's very evasive.
Isn't Garner a holding midfielder? Not perfect but De Jong should work alongside both Fred and McTominay. Preferably Fred would have McTominay's physique but should get away with it with the graft he brings to the team. Van de Beek would be a step too far as a partner for De Jong generally for me, though Ten Hag did make it work with Schone who's far from an athlete.
Not really. De Jong is positionally disciplined. When the play is in advanced areas De Jong offers depth for the attack and insurance against turnovers at the base of midfield. His strength in carrying the ball forward does not stop him from being a holding midfield player - he dribbles to progress the play but has no inclination to go and 'join in' in attack, returning to an anchoring midfield position once releasing the ball.
It's so fun to watch as well. Like others have said, it looks simple but it's incredibly effective. He has a lovely array of "blink and you'll miss it" feints.
I think De Jong would be a great signing if we could pull it off. At the moment our midfield is so poor that he could play pretty much any role and be better than what we have.
Even though we have a lot of weaknesses in the squad I think if we were able to get a competent midfield it would massively transform our team.
Our defence and attacking players were on the whole poor this season but they also had one of the worst midfields in the league in front or behind them.
Even though we have a lot of weaknesses in the squad I think if we were able to get a competent midfield it would massively transform our team.
Our defence and attacking players were on the whole poor this season but they also had one of the worst midfields in the league in front or behind them.
I consider FDJ as the Pogba replacement and I still do think we need a proper DM as a replacement for Matic. Or FDJ will struggle against PL physicality and easily will be dispossessed.
Just imagine having someone sitting in from the defence taking the ball from them - then building up play - rather than the usual long ball out of defence to nowhere and giving up possession immediately…..
We can but dream…..
We can but dream…..
Imagine if we get FDJ and the centre backs still continue to pass the ball among themselves instead of forwards
Its gets to a point were he gets the ball and the opposition just shadow mark, its better to do that otherwise you're just exposing yourself. You can see why ETH wants him, he'll be crucial to us being a proactive side. Something we haven't manage to maintain post Carrick.
Tbf a lot of this was happening because neither Fred nor McTominay (especially him) were willing to get the ball from the defenders. They were constantly forced to pass it between themselves or to the fullbacks.Imagine if we get FDJ and the centre backs still continue to pass the ball among themselves instead of forwards
Do you know what we don't have a problem at Center back in regards to ball playing, this season the whole team has been a mess but last year Maguire and Lindelof weren't bad at all, just that Maguire tried to do the FDJ role and wasn't great at it, if he keeps it simple he's good.Imagine if we get FDJ and the centre backs still continue to pass the ball among themselves instead of forwards
Barca trying to force him out with comments about him not performing. I reckon the fees agreed just need to convince frenkie to move and his comments last night suggest he will. Only concern is if City or another half decent side come in for him…maybe we’ve agreed a silly fee to try and narrow down his options
Maguire: It looks simple. Let me try it on Tom Cleverley
Ten Hag won't stand for it.Imagine if we get FDJ and the centre backs still continue to pass the ball among themselves instead of forwards
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