Manchester United vs Dortmund (Mon 31st July, 02:00 UK time)

Wheato said:
Donny Van De Beek. It's not happening for him. Whatever it was that he once had, he hasn't found it here. He doesn't even look comfortable playing the one touch stuff that was his DNA during his entire career at Ajax. Which is a head scratcher. He needs to move on now and re-establish his career.
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He’s had 1 goal and 2 assists in his preseason, all showed good technique and clever play. I think he’s more than capable of putting in a shift as backup, and for a team struggling to find the net you can’t dismiss someone who’s had 3 goal involvements in limited starts.
 
It's only pre season and thought we were pretty good in between both boxes, but sloppy errors for the goals defensively and not ruthless enough in the final third.

The only real concern I have is the ability certain players have to pass it out from the back and not cost us silly goals, but even though that cost us 2 goals that is based on more than just last night alone.
 
Overall I'm pretty happy with the way things look. Yes, we made mistakes to cost us goals, but the overall play was a pretty high standard.

- More and more I think Jadon can do the job as CF. Between him, Hojlund and Martial, we should be pretty good. I think MG should also come back and be given a 2nd chance.
- The midfield of Casemiro, Mount and Bruno is top notch.
- I love Onana already. The confidence he exudes with the ball will help greatly and teams will not be able to press as much.
- If Antony can start scoring and assisting more we will be very dangerous going forward.

I also liked the interview with ETH and what he said about the culture. For some reason United have slipped here and let things go a little and that affects the play. As ETH says, when you have to play every 4 days, you must have the right life style with good rest and nutrition. I'm feeling good ETH is going to get us competing for big trophies soon.
 
Just finished watching on replay. Really weird half, we dominated possession, had some great chances.

The ref let Forsan get nibbled and bumped and kicked every time he was near the ball, and it was getting him too wound up. Right decision to bring him off early but the referee should have dealt with that earlier. In general the ref let them get away witha lot, like stop attacks with tactical fouls and never punished them.

Pellistri and Antony both are fast, direct, tricky footed - and just don't make the right final decision. Crosses over hit, shots off target. Antony should be sticking around after training every day and working on his right foot. Shocking miss in 2nd half.

Williams had a great half. I don't blame him for the goal. Lindelof gave the ball away and Williams was out wide providing a different passing option. When it turned over, the man on his side he had covered but the two in the middle he played on. Not his fault though. He was really good in attack, good passing. I'd still rather have him as back up to Shaw over Malacia. Shaw is still miles better, just a lot smarter and stronger, but Williams is a good deputy.

Sancho is better as a false 9 than any wing performances I've seen from him. Strange if that's what it's been this whole time: he just doesn't like playing wide. I was all for cutting our losses on him, but I think he provides a different dimension as a false 9. Can't see him displacing any of the regular wing players though.

Onana is going to be a fan favorite in no time. He is supremely confident and talented. The one element of DeGea's game that merited his place was his bullet-time saves. Maybe Onana pulls off saves like that, maybe not. HIs passing is excellent, and he is a beast in his own box. Loved it when he screamed at Maguire for Maguire's sloppiness and lack of fire.

VDB looks better now that the team around him is playing EtH-ball. He has a goal and two assists in his limited pre-season minutes. He's a cog in the machine, not a ball carrier, not really a playmaker, but keeps the ball ticking and keeps the attack going.

Eriksen had some brilliant long passes, created several chances. Plus that really good effort on a free kick. People talk like he's ready for the glue factory. He's still a very intelligent player. As long as his minutes are managed, he will be a good asset.

Maguire and Lindelof don't trust each other. It's clear they don't think the other can cover for them if they need bailing out. I was thinking maybe being relieved of the weight of the captain's armband would lighten his burden, but he's the same. If he was a youth player we'd need to send him on loan. Definitely have him behind Evans now, so 6th choice CB. Can't see having him around as anything other than a toxic situation/PR nightmare waiting to happen.

Dalot had a great goal and some nice attacking play, but plays like a midfielder filling in at fullback. Him and Lindelof in the same side are too passive.

The 2nd half subs.

Martinez - just watching his darting runs to open a lane for a pass from Onana, it was night and day difference from what Lindelof and Maguire did.

AWB was responsible for the 3rd goal. He had a poor game.

Rashford looked heavy-legged. Not sharp at all. Just not fit yet. Brain isn't up to speed yet either. I thought it showed great sportsmanship to slow up when Meunier pulled up lame. It's a friendly. A chippy friendly, but still a friendly. Rashford should have been commended for fair play.

Mount is one who I think is also going to win fans over quickly. We bypassed midfield a lot after he came on but he still did a lot of defending then immediately sprinted into space to launch an attack. He will be good for the speed of our transitions. Defense immediately into attack. He seems like a Fergie type of player. I think he's going to have a lot of assists and a handful of goals this season. Having another creator alongside Bruno should up our goals scored. He looks for the difficult pass like Bruno does but not as erratic. I think he's going to show the POTY form he showed at Chelsea before last season.

Hugill - good to get a look at him (although only 15 minutes) against a good team. With only Martial and Hojland in the side, Hugill should probably be included. Hugill showed good movement, picked up a good through pass and nearly scored. As soon as Martial gets his injury, we're going to need a back up striker, and he'd probably be able to see out a lot of games, even if Hojland starts well.
 
Wing Attack Plan R said:
Just finished watching on replay. Really weird half, we dominated possession, had some great chances.

The ref let Forsan get nibbled and bumped and kicked every time he was near the ball, and it was getting him too wound up. Right decision to bring him off early but the referee should have dealt with that earlier. In general the ref let them get away witha lot, like stop attacks with tactical fouls and never punished them.

Pellistri and Antony both are fast, direct, tricky footed - and just don't make the right final decision. Crosses over hit, shots off target. Antony should be sticking around after training every day and working on his right foot. Shocking miss in 2nd half.

Williams had a great half. I don't blame him for the goal. Lindelof gave the ball away and Williams was out wide providing a different passing option. When it turned over, the man on his side he had covered but the two in the middle he played on. Not his fault though. He was really good in attack, good passing. I'd still rather have him as back up to Shaw over Malacia. Shaw is still miles better, just a lot smarter and stronger, but Williams is a good deputy.

Sancho is better as a false 9 than any wing performances I've seen from him. Strange if that's what it's been this whole time: he just doesn't like playing wide. I was all for cutting our losses on him, but I think he provides a different dimension as a false 9. Can't see him displacing any of the regular wing players though.

Onana is going to be a fan favorite in no time. He is supremely confident and talented. The one element of DeGea's game that merited his place was his bullet-time saves. Maybe Onana pulls off saves like that, maybe not. HIs passing is excellent, and he is a beast in his own box. Loved it when he screamed at Maguire for Maguire's sloppiness and lack of fire.

VDB looks better now that the team around him is playing EtH-ball. He has a goal and two assists in his limited pre-season minutes. He's a cog in the machine, not a ball carrier, not really a playmaker, but keeps the ball ticking and keeps the attack going.

Eriksen had some brilliant long passes, created several chances. Plus that really good effort on a free kick. People talk like he's ready for the glue factory. He's still a very intelligent player. As long as his minutes are managed, he will be a good asset.

Maguire and Lindelof don't trust each other. It's clear they don't think the other can cover for them if they need bailing out. I was thinking maybe being relieved of the weight of the captain's armband would lighten his burden, but he's the same. If he was a youth player we'd need to send him on loan. Definitely have him behind Evans now, so 6th choice CB. Can't see having him around as anything other than a toxic situation/PR nightmare waiting to happen.

Dalot had a great goal and some nice attacking play, but plays like a midfielder filling in at fullback. Him and Lindelof in the same side are too passive.

The 2nd half subs.

Martinez - just watching his darting runs to open a lane for a pass from Onana, it was night and day difference from what Lindelof and Maguire did.

AWB was responsible for the 3rd goal. He had a poor game.

Rashford looked heavy-legged. Not sharp at all. Just not fit yet. Brain isn't up to speed yet either. I thought it showed great sportsmanship to slow up when Meunier pulled up lame. It's a friendly. A chippy friendly, but still a friendly. Rashford should have been commended for fair play.

Mount is one who I think is also going to win fans over quickly. We bypassed midfield a lot after he came on but he still did a lot of defending then immediately sprinted into space to launch an attack. He will be good for the speed of our transitions. Defense immediately into attack. He seems like a Fergie type of player. I think he's going to have a lot of assists and a handful of goals this season. Having another creator alongside Bruno should up our goals scored. He looks for the difficult pass like Bruno does but not as erratic. I think he's going to show the POTY form he showed at Chelsea before last season.

Hugill - good to get a look at him (although only 15 minutes) against a good team. With only Martial and Hojland in the side, Hugill should probably be included. Hugill showed good movement, picked up a good through pass and nearly scored. As soon as Martial gets his injury, we're going to need a back up striker, and he'd probably be able to see out a lot of games, even if Hojland starts well.
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Very good resume. I too thought Ericksen was a lot sharper. Three very sloppy mistakes in defence cost us. Poor finishing ....again. we didn't press as much in the second half. Feeling fairly confident for this season. Holland won't get us 30 goals but he has got tobe a step up from what we have had at 9. Sancho is better as a false 9 than winger so we are slowly but surely getting 2 players for each position
 
Wing Attack Plan R said:
Just finished watching on replay. Really weird half, we dominated possession, had some great chances.

The ref let Forsan get nibbled and bumped and kicked every time he was near the ball, and it was getting him too wound up. Right decision to bring him off early but the referee should have dealt with that earlier. In general the ref let them get away witha lot, like stop attacks with tactical fouls and never punished them.

Pellistri and Antony both are fast, direct, tricky footed - and just don't make the right final decision. Crosses over hit, shots off target. Antony should be sticking around after training every day and working on his right foot. Shocking miss in 2nd half.

Williams had a great half. I don't blame him for the goal. Lindelof gave the ball away and Williams was out wide providing a different passing option. When it turned over, the man on his side he had covered but the two in the middle he played on. Not his fault though. He was really good in attack, good passing. I'd still rather have him as back up to Shaw over Malacia. Shaw is still miles better, just a lot smarter and stronger, but Williams is a good deputy.

Sancho is better as a false 9 than any wing performances I've seen from him. Strange if that's what it's been this whole time: he just doesn't like playing wide. I was all for cutting our losses on him, but I think he provides a different dimension as a false 9. Can't see him displacing any of the regular wing players though.

Onana is going to be a fan favorite in no time. He is supremely confident and talented. The one element of DeGea's game that merited his place was his bullet-time saves. Maybe Onana pulls off saves like that, maybe not. HIs passing is excellent, and he is a beast in his own box. Loved it when he screamed at Maguire for Maguire's sloppiness and lack of fire.

VDB looks better now that the team around him is playing EtH-ball. He has a goal and two assists in his limited pre-season minutes. He's a cog in the machine, not a ball carrier, not really a playmaker, but keeps the ball ticking and keeps the attack going.

Eriksen had some brilliant long passes, created several chances. Plus that really good effort on a free kick. People talk like he's ready for the glue factory. He's still a very intelligent player. As long as his minutes are managed, he will be a good asset.

Maguire and Lindelof don't trust each other. It's clear they don't think the other can cover for them if they need bailing out. I was thinking maybe being relieved of the weight of the captain's armband would lighten his burden, but he's the same. If he was a youth player we'd need to send him on loan. Definitely have him behind Evans now, so 6th choice CB. Can't see having him around as anything other than a toxic situation/PR nightmare waiting to happen.

Dalot had a great goal and some nice attacking play, but plays like a midfielder filling in at fullback. Him and Lindelof in the same side are too passive.

The 2nd half subs.

Martinez - just watching his darting runs to open a lane for a pass from Onana, it was night and day difference from what Lindelof and Maguire did.

AWB was responsible for the 3rd goal. He had a poor game.

Rashford looked heavy-legged. Not sharp at all. Just not fit yet. Brain isn't up to speed yet either. I thought it showed great sportsmanship to slow up when Meunier pulled up lame. It's a friendly. A chippy friendly, but still a friendly. Rashford should have been commended for fair play.

Mount is one who I think is also going to win fans over quickly. We bypassed midfield a lot after he came on but he still did a lot of defending then immediately sprinted into space to launch an attack. He will be good for the speed of our transitions. Defense immediately into attack. He seems like a Fergie type of player. I think he's going to have a lot of assists and a handful of goals this season. Having another creator alongside Bruno should up our goals scored. He looks for the difficult pass like Bruno does but not as erratic. I think he's going to show the POTY form he showed at Chelsea before last season.

Hugill - good to get a look at him (although only 15 minutes) against a good team. With only Martial and Hojland in the side, Hugill should probably be included. Hugill showed good movement, picked up a good through pass and nearly scored. As soon as Martial gets his injury, we're going to need a back up striker, and he'd probably be able to see out a lot of games, even if Hojland starts well.
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I was a bit bemused that Hugill wasn't used last season. I know there's a process to go through with young players and their minutes have to be managed, but he's a more instinctive goal-scorer than Weghorst was. He's only a few months younger than Højlund, who may turn out to be a better player, but we don't know that yet.
 
Wing Attack Plan R said:
Just finished watching on replay. Really weird half, we dominated possession, had some great chances.

The ref let Forsan get nibbled and bumped and kicked every time he was near the ball, and it was getting him too wound up. Right decision to bring him off early but the referee should have dealt with that earlier. In general the ref let them get away witha lot, like stop attacks with tactical fouls and never punished them.

Pellistri and Antony both are fast, direct, tricky footed - and just don't make the right final decision. Crosses over hit, shots off target. Antony should be sticking around after training every day and working on his right foot. Shocking miss in 2nd half.

Williams had a great half. I don't blame him for the goal. Lindelof gave the ball away and Williams was out wide providing a different passing option. When it turned over, the man on his side he had covered but the two in the middle he played on. Not his fault though. He was really good in attack, good passing. I'd still rather have him as back up to Shaw over Malacia. Shaw is still miles better, just a lot smarter and stronger, but Williams is a good deputy.

Sancho is better as a false 9 than any wing performances I've seen from him. Strange if that's what it's been this whole time: he just doesn't like playing wide. I was all for cutting our losses on him, but I think he provides a different dimension as a false 9. Can't see him displacing any of the regular wing players though.

Onana is going to be a fan favorite in no time. He is supremely confident and talented. The one element of DeGea's game that merited his place was his bullet-time saves. Maybe Onana pulls off saves like that, maybe not. HIs passing is excellent, and he is a beast in his own box. Loved it when he screamed at Maguire for Maguire's sloppiness and lack of fire.

VDB looks better now that the team around him is playing EtH-ball. He has a goal and two assists in his limited pre-season minutes. He's a cog in the machine, not a ball carrier, not really a playmaker, but keeps the ball ticking and keeps the attack going.

Eriksen had some brilliant long passes, created several chances. Plus that really good effort on a free kick. People talk like he's ready for the glue factory. He's still a very intelligent player. As long as his minutes are managed, he will be a good asset.

Maguire and Lindelof don't trust each other. It's clear they don't think the other can cover for them if they need bailing out. I was thinking maybe being relieved of the weight of the captain's armband would lighten his burden, but he's the same. If he was a youth player we'd need to send him on loan. Definitely have him behind Evans now, so 6th choice CB. Can't see having him around as anything other than a toxic situation/PR nightmare waiting to happen.

Dalot had a great goal and some nice attacking play, but plays like a midfielder filling in at fullback. Him and Lindelof in the same side are too passive.

The 2nd half subs.

Martinez - just watching his darting runs to open a lane for a pass from Onana, it was night and day difference from what Lindelof and Maguire did.

AWB was responsible for the 3rd goal. He had a poor game.

Rashford looked heavy-legged. Not sharp at all. Just not fit yet. Brain isn't up to speed yet either. I thought it showed great sportsmanship to slow up when Meunier pulled up lame. It's a friendly. A chippy friendly, but still a friendly. Rashford should have been commended for fair play.

Mount is one who I think is also going to win fans over quickly. We bypassed midfield a lot after he came on but he still did a lot of defending then immediately sprinted into space to launch an attack. He will be good for the speed of our transitions. Defense immediately into attack. He seems like a Fergie type of player. I think he's going to have a lot of assists and a handful of goals this season. Having another creator alongside Bruno should up our goals scored. He looks for the difficult pass like Bruno does but not as erratic. I think he's going to show the POTY form he showed at Chelsea before last season.

Hugill - good to get a look at him (although only 15 minutes) against a good team. With only Martial and Hojland in the side, Hugill should probably be included. Hugill showed good movement, picked up a good through pass and nearly scored. As soon as Martial gets his injury, we're going to need a back up striker, and he'd probably be able to see out a lot of games, even if Hojland starts well.
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Forson didn't handle the nibbles well, he kicked out, VAR in use would possibly have seen him sent off, he's got to learn that this will happen in the PL

Williams was at fault for the first one, he dived in and got done, otherwise he had a good game IMO

Eriksen was good as well, who he plays against rather than the number minutes should be the determining factor in his selection
 
rpitroda said:
Someone explain to me what happened that resulted in Onana lambasting Maguire?
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Mis-controlled an easy pass and lost the ball leading to a counter and a shot on goal.

I wouldn't want to be the weak link in that backline with Onana and Martinez ready to jump down your throat.
 
11101 said:
Mis-controlled an easy pass and lost the ball leading to a counter and a shot on goal.

I wouldn't want to be the weak link in that backline with Onana and Martinez ready to jump down your throat.
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we've been missing this for a very ling time
 
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