Spot on
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Spot on
I felt Mata linked up well on Tuesday and was reasonably good - i do think we needed two of Carrick, Schweinsteiger or Schneiderlein behind him though
The balance was better in one sense with Young and Memphis wide and Martial floating
At the same time we were missing that solidity that our midfield has provided
My biggest issue with Mata is that he seemed reluctant to shoot and he needs to be able to try and take more responsibility - do want to see him at 10 again tho
The balance was better in one sense with Young and Memphis wide and Martial floating
At the same time we were missing that solidity that our midfield has provided
My biggest issue with Mata is that he seemed reluctant to shoot and he needs to be able to try and take more responsibility - do want to see him at 10 again tho
Don't even think iur solidity was a problem, they created nothing apart from a fluke corner kick in injury time and one random counter attack, that will always happen. We just got punished both times. The end of the game chances only happened once we started hoofing. Our problem on Tuesday was us not taking our chances, and PSV basically finishing every chance they had bar the de Jong chance at the end. Just a fluke result imo, given the play.
damn it, they've made their pod for this week!End of season one then.
Haha mint.
Nah, we'll bend the rules and get that in next week's, top suff. Cheers for alerting us and helping to partially produce the show. @Successful was actually the inspiration behind ROTW after his Falcao post was read out last season, wouldn't be right if we didn't include him again.
The amount of shit Valencia (rightly) gets for being incredibly one footed should equally be directed at Mata. The way Mata plays makes it a bit less obvious than Valencia but he's still equally appalling on his weaker side. Inexcusable and had cost us goals on more than one occasion. While I get that not every footballer can be Cazorla, there's absolutely no excusing a professional not being able to so simple things with both feet.
Majestic.
@Amethyst @Annihilate Now! United Hour: Rant of the week, sewn up. Signed sealed and delivered.
Am I being followed around the forum now
I didn't mean all that I said. I just happened to sit in front of the computer and got angry.One out of the ordinary performance and you guys are questioning how good Mata actually was at Chelsea and whether or not he was actually good when he first got here. The obsession certain fans have with pace and useless skills and not the slightest attention to detail about end product is bewildering . Lets go ahead and sign another young pacey inexperienced prospect and sell Mata then. So that we can start blaming BS and starting claiming how overrated he was at Bayern.
I love Mata (somewhat unhealthily, I might add,) but it really is time for a game-changing performance. He's too talented to be turning in pedestrian performances like this. I'd love to see a return to the form he displayed in March, when he and Herrera were translating their off-the-field love into on-the-field magic.
What facts? Januzaj was SHIT that game. You know what is actually funny? You and only you on your own thinks that Mata wasn't the best attacking player on the pitch that game. Januzaj had a really good pass but he was nonexsistent that entire game. I will not further argue this with you if you are still going to stick to that pathetic notion that Mata was not effective at all during that game.
Mata is not any problem. It is Van Gaal that is the problem and the way he structured the squad. We don't have a single credible alternative right winger to back him up when he is not playing well and he dosen't have the slightest clue when or when not to play him.
Januzaj plays two perfect through balls= Januzaj shit. Mata does feck all=Very effective all game. You're double standards are glaringly obvious unless you're wumming but I doubt you're that clever.
Mata is lucky we don't have a credible right winger then. He's be on the bench if we did given LVG's reluctance to play him as a #10.
'Useless skills', such as the ability to turn his man, shield the ball effectively, dribble past players, keep hold of the ball under proper pressure.
You know, skills that actually aren't useless.
Not those skills, you know damn well what I meant. Those stupid tricks that Depay and Januzaj would try and fail. Any way that is not my point. If you want to blame Mata for everything then go right ahead.
I'm wumming? Your stupidity is what is glaringly obvious. Januzaj played a marginally offside pass and played a decent ball to Memphis. Since the notion of your argument is that Mata dosen't impose himself in games, Januzaj did the polar opposite aswell. He was getting muscled off the balls, slowing down counter attacks to take poor shots. If you are arguing that Mata goes missing during games( which he dosen't bar Swansea and 2nd half of PSV) then why would you suggest that Januzaj was our most creative outlet when he didn't do a damn thing for 90% of the game?
Throughout that Newcastle game Mata made his presense felt. He kept on stretching the defenses up with his passing and creating ample space for either Darmian, Shaw Depay to run into to produce the final ball or to have a go. Not to mention, he produced a great ball to Rooney that he squandered He also had one fantastic shot and a decent freekick and could have been a goals if it was not for Tim Krul great hands.
There is a reason why everyone who saw that game praised Mata as our best attacking player that day and criticized Januzaj for being our worst and suggested he go out on loan(that dosen't mean I agreed with it).
I thought you were done arguing...yet here you are still spouting shite.
My argument was plain and simple. Januzaj did what he was supposed to do as a creative player in the team. He wasn't fantastic, no, and more prone to simple errors but his highs in the game were quite comfortably higher than Mata who did almost nothing and missed a great chance to go along with it. And I'm not sure how it's possible for anyone with a set of functioning eyes to suggest Mata does not go missing in games. That's the one thing he's absolutely excellent at or has been since his move to United.
Absolutely hilarious how you big up a shit freekick from Mata and then downplay Januzaj's passes as "marginally offside" and "decent"
Had it been the other way around you'd be wanking yourself silly.Mata is the only player in the squad who gets over the top praise for doing very little. Simple pointless sideways and backward passes are labelled as great attacking and link up play (ala Newcastle). It's been a continuing theme from last season. Maybe because he's a handsome bastard or because he writes nice blogs...Not even saying he's bad. He's not. In fact, he very rarely has bad games but he's just meh in the overwhelming majority of games.
I thought you were done arguing...yet here you are still spouting shite.
My argument was plain and simple. Januzaj did what he was supposed to do as a creative player in the team. He wasn't fantastic, no, and more prone to simple errors but his highs in the game were quite comfortably higher than Mata who did almost nothing and missed a great chance to go along with it. And I'm not sure how it's possible for anyone with a set of functioning eyes to suggest Mata does not go missing in games. That's the one thing he's absolutely excellent at or has been since his move to United.
Absolutely hilarious how you big up a shit freekick from Mata and then downplay Januzaj's passes as "marginally offside" and "decent"
Mata is the only player in the squad who gets over the top praise for doing very little. Simple pointless sideways and backward passes are labelled as great attacking and link up play (ala Newcastle). It's been a continuing theme from last season. Maybe because he's a handsome bastard or because he writes nice blogs...Not even saying he's bad. He's not. In fact, he very rarely has bad games but he's just meh in the overwhelming majority of games.
Spouting shit? Ha.
Januzaj had two nice passes, but the fact is that one was offside(not saying it is his fault) and the second was was indeed nice, but you cannot possibly say that Januzaj was our most creative outlet because he definitely wasn't. He made too many bad decisions and was completely shut down or invisible. Mata was the one pulling the strings. It not me that saw it everyone but YOU seems to stick by the ludicrous idea that he was ineffective against Newcastle.
"Mata is the only player in the squad who gets over the top praise for doing very little"
Doing little? You mean being our 2nd most productive and probably creative player(maybe Herrera?) ever since joining Manchester United? Wow, I had no idea it was that easy...
I understand ya'll frustration whenever Mata has games like this. Damn, I was pretty frustrated too in the 1st half of Liverpool and when he played really bad Mata is the LEAST of our attacking problems. Sure Mata does have these games when he doesn't do what he is supposed to be doing or is ineffective but so does EVERY player.
Even though you are going to slam highlight videos, here is a reminder.
Agree with all of your post, but the first point you make is a very good one and stands out the most. Mata wasn't classed as a Mourinho-type player because he couldn't defend, but would you call Sneijder and Ozil Mourinho-type players? Defensively he was awful, but Sneijder and Ozil weren't that much better yet Mourinho almost had no problem having them in his best XI.
That's fair enough but I can't imagine the outcome being any different to what we have seen already. My assessment is largely based on his time at Chelsea. His performances under Mourinho and Van Gaal have all but confirmed his status as a #10 in a top team, and I don't mean to sound arrogant/disrespectful. There are certain elements of his game - such as struggling under pressure, not being able to shield the ball well, and not positioning himself in congested areas - that are often overlooked and a run of games is not going to alter that. It's the way he is and it's what makes him almost anonymous as a #10.
While Mata's 12/13 season was class, it's often romanticised and is lacking objectivity. The amount of space he received was bound to make a quality player like him look great. Mata's best position isn't even as a #10 in a top side IMO, it's as a RW where he can drift in and receive the space he needs. He needs complete freedom (no defensive responsibilities) to be effective, and no top manager is going to give him that, so there's absolutely no way he's going to be a viable #10 for us. I think Van Gaal won't play him as a #10 unless we face weak opposition or we have an injury "crisis". With all that said, I'm happy to be proven wrong.
Southampton 2:3 Man Utd
Completely anonymous so far.
Weird singling out a player like that when he had done more than Depay, Rooney and Martial before the goal. He created the only chance before being the instigator for the goal. Don't understand why people can't see how involved Mata really is but they want Young instead who's got frankly an awful record at creating chances and goals or keep Depay on who's not been up to par in the league.
Not even playing that well and he's still more likely to create a goal than any of our other players. Says a lot about both him and the team generally, I think.
Been much better in the last 10.
For people wondering what he brings to the team watch the 2 minutes of play before we scored.
Young creates more than Mata tho.
He makes things happen.. He is someone we should always play... we can/should be able afford to have an attacking player like him in the XI
No he doesn't.
At time of writing I don't think Mata had even been mentioned once.
Obviously he was involved with the goal and has done better since then, although it's worth mentioning that he was offside.
Memphis always looks more likely to create something to me, even if he is inconsistent and his decision making is sometimes off. He is a young player who will improve. Mata has a tendency to just play it safe and recycle possession, which is OK, but for someone who is meant to be a world class playmaker, in a team lacking creativity, it's not really what we need.
Directly involved with our only 3 chances of the game. He's not been good (better then Rooney and Depay for me mind) but he does at least make things happen.
Total Imposter of a winger would rather have any other winger at the club than this guy playing in this position! Yeah he does great bits here and there but the rest of the time we carry him. Get him off never to be seen in this position again please!
He does, and it isnt even close. He passes defenders so much more, and that creates loads of space. In stead od the obligatory sideways passes. Young showed it vs Liverpool and vs PSV.
Tbh I'm not sure we can afford to leave him out of the team given the lack of productivity from other players.
Indeed. People itching to bump certain player threads after 20 minutes of unanimous poor play. Absoutely everything we've done thats been even remotely dangerous has directly involved him..Mindboggling to have a pop, let alone single him out. I imagine half of them would've have hated Cantona. "Yeah he does the occasional good thing, but doesn't do enough over 90 minutes for me."
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Who else has been involved in all 3 of our chances in this half of football?
Mata isn't a world class playmaker. Your post sums up a lot of poster to me. You just don't get it. Mata doesn't waste possession. Depay and Young both do. Why should Mata cross the ball when there's so little chance of scoring? You just lose the ball. Look at our goal. It was a goal that came after "playing it safe and recycling possession". Southampton are playing with two strong DMC's and two big CB's and we've got Rooney and Martial in there. High balls are not going to do us any good unless their aimed specifically like when Mata made that pass to Depay that was headed over. Southampton are an extremely cautious and defensive side that are very quick on the counter. You can't be wasteful against them.
The final delivery is miles apart between the two, that is key in comparing them.
So we have a new scapegoat at least.
It is, only that we barely get to the stage for the final delivery. You need players who can break open defences for that with either dribbles or passing, it goes unnoticed but Young beats defenders with such ease.
Absolutely spot on, he's vital to the way we play. Memphis, Martial and Rooney need to up their movement around him. We're far too static at times and Mata is not the guy to solve the problem, his job is to keep us ticking.
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