Where will the width come from? Have you actually seen our fullbacks attack? It's tragic.
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Where will the width come from? Have you actually seen our fullbacks attack? It's tragic.
Gave us additional composure in midfield, kept the ball ticking around nicely. I was worried when he came on due to his lack of pace but it was a great call and nice little cameo.
We finally have a team that compliments his talents, pity it came too late. Hopefully he can give us a last hooray and get a trophy for it, but other than a super sub, he's time has been depressingly mistimed with us. Alternate universe, he'd already be a club legend for some.
I'm aware of that but the way we play atm, Rashford form and how our FBs performing make me think it's no difference if we try this formation out. The combination between Martial,Greenwood,Bruno and Poona has been good when we're in possession in front of other teams penalty area, adding Mata may make it even better i believe.
It was the perfect match for him to come into really.
Going into extra time, with the heat sapping both sides, everyone ended up with the same lack of legs he has now.
That being said he showed how good a footballer he actually is/was, I think his time with us has been a bit underrated really.
Going into extra time, with the heat sapping both sides, everyone ended up with the same lack of legs he has now.
That being said he showed how good a footballer he actually is/was, I think his time with us has been a bit underrated really.
Get rid of Lingard and Pereira and keep him for another season . Bit parts in certain games and he will be good with youth coming through as a good role model .
Fantastic cameo from him tonight. Felt sorry for him Vs LASK but great sub from Ole.
Is it though? I kind of rate it and think he was probably amongst the top 3 performers each year up to Mourinho's first or second season. I think he probably would have won a player of the season but for De Gea's form. He was never the problem and i think the only argument over his value was to how well we took advantage of it (we didn't really).
I think he's largely been rated in his time here.
very classy cameo.
His experience and simplicity when on the ball really calmed everyone down, and he quickly took control of our attacking tempo and shape.
His experience and simplicity when on the ball really calmed everyone down, and he quickly took control of our attacking tempo and shape.
He was good when he came on.
I thought he played very well tonight.
Yeah he was good last night. Felt like we really improved when he came on and the quality of our approach play Vastly improved. He has a good link I feel with Bruno.
Still one of our best players in breaking low blocks.
As with Fred nice to see him get some minutes along with the first team instead of our awful second string.
No surprise he looks better when surrounded by quality. There’s still a good player there.
No surprise he looks better when surrounded by quality. There’s still a good player there.
Class
I think he should have been on earlier. I was hoping Ole would take Rashford out for Mata all second half.
I never got why people bunch him in with the likes of Jones, Rojo, Pereira, Lingard, etc when talking about who to sell. He's far too talented to be saddled with that lot, and he'd be a very good squad player in the near future.
Don't put him out wide. Don't ask him to track back. Don't ask him to run for 90 minutes.
Do put him near his teammates, get him involved in the attack and use him in matches to unlock defences.
It's not hard. He can't play out wide, he can't defend, he can't sprint. So don't ask him to. He should absolutely be the 'last 25 mins' sub for Fernandes imo. I actually think if he was given the same amount of freedom to 'try sh*t' and do nothing else, he'd probably post really good numbers.
Do put him near his teammates, get him involved in the attack and use him in matches to unlock defences.
It's not hard. He can't play out wide, he can't defend, he can't sprint. So don't ask him to. He should absolutely be the 'last 25 mins' sub for Fernandes imo. I actually think if he was given the same amount of freedom to 'try sh*t' and do nothing else, he'd probably post really good numbers.
I've noticed a lot of Mata fans hyping him up again since his little cameo yesterday. A lot of people online have used his performance from yesterday as a justification that he has the talent and influence to be able to succeed with us going forward and that we do not need alternatives for him. I've always admired Mata's ability and technical attributes. But the truth is, he's finished and way past his best. He is at best a squad player who can give us 15-20 mins at the end of a game. Unfortunately, this is not enough to justify being a "squad" player. Because there will be instances where these "squad" players are required to play a full game or, God forbid, 3/4 games in a row due to injuries/suspensions.
We need to put his cameo role yesterday into some context here. He came on in extra time after 100+ minutes of football in sweltering heat conditions. Both teams were absolutely knackered at this point. Especially Copenhagen who had expended a large amount of energy in the first half with their high pressing and intensity. Mata coming on in these conditions was always going to find pockets of space which we know he is always good at utilising. It's hard to expect the Copenhagen players to close him down like they would in normal conditions and during normal time.
I would probably have pierced their defense with a few killer passes myself if I came on in the 100th minute in exhausting conditions.
He's been a great servant, but is absolutely not an option going forward if we are looking for strength in depth.
We need to put his cameo role yesterday into some context here. He came on in extra time after 100+ minutes of football in sweltering heat conditions. Both teams were absolutely knackered at this point. Especially Copenhagen who had expended a large amount of energy in the first half with their high pressing and intensity. Mata coming on in these conditions was always going to find pockets of space which we know he is always good at utilising. It's hard to expect the Copenhagen players to close him down like they would in normal conditions and during normal time.
I would probably have pierced their defense with a few killer passes myself if I came on in the 100th minute in exhausting conditions.
He's been a great servant, but is absolutely not an option going forward if we are looking for strength in depth.
He was good, but I'm keeping it in perspective, it was Copenhagen after all.
Only when around players like Martial and Bruno, it seems. But if he's the kind of player that can elevate our two best performers then that's a pretty good case to be in the starting XI. Wouldn't rule him out starting the final.
That confident against Sevilla, eh?
I agree, though. I'd start him against them. Plus, having a Rashford or Greenwood on the bench is a good option to have late on. If it does happen, which I don't think it will, I think Greenwood would be the one to make way. Though, right now, it should probably be Rashford.
It's honestly baffling, Copehagen were dead on their feet praying for penalties. If he started no doubt he wouldn't have been able to keep up with their intensity in the first half and probably would've been hooked at half time.
Mata is very much part of the deadwood. He's only useful in the EFL cup now that we're in the CL.
People have very selective memories where Mata is concerned. Yes he's lost a fair bit of pace, and he was never pacey to begin with. But to say he only played well on Monday because Copenhagen were tired is a bit of a stretch. Before the break, he started most Europa League games and played fine in pretty much all of them, especially the 2nd Club Brugge game where he was excellent. He has the best assist record in the tournament so far, so he must be doing something right.
Against a lot of the faster sides in the PL, he just isn't able to keep up anymore, but I didn't see any evidence to suggest he'd have struggled to keep up against that Copenhagen side. Had he started instead of Rashford (who looks dead on his feet) alongside Fernandes and Pogba (both of whom he's played well alongside in the past) I think his performance would have been fine. Mata has always played well when he's surrounded by good players. It's unfair to judge how he performs alongside the likes of James and Lingard as proof that he's useless overall.
Also I don't see anything particularly bad about saying he played well in his performance thread. The idea that his fans are "hyping him up?" - I don't think anyone is claiming this is some massive career resurgance. We're just merely pointing out he played well, which is allowed last time I checked.
Against a lot of the faster sides in the PL, he just isn't able to keep up anymore, but I didn't see any evidence to suggest he'd have struggled to keep up against that Copenhagen side. Had he started instead of Rashford (who looks dead on his feet) alongside Fernandes and Pogba (both of whom he's played well alongside in the past) I think his performance would have been fine. Mata has always played well when he's surrounded by good players. It's unfair to judge how he performs alongside the likes of James and Lingard as proof that he's useless overall.
Also I don't see anything particularly bad about saying he played well in his performance thread. The idea that his fans are "hyping him up?" - I don't think anyone is claiming this is some massive career resurgance. We're just merely pointing out he played well, which is allowed last time I checked.
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