I really dont get the criticism after this match. We all know what kind of player he is and that he is limited on the ball. He isn’t a defensive midfielder – never was and never will be. He is a dynamic player, who needs the freedom to join the striker in and around the box, while adding hustle and strength in midfield. He needs at least one defensive/controlling player next to him, eventually two.
Personally I doubt that a top club (= club that wants to compete for titles in league and CL) wants him as a regular starter, because he isn’t top-notch quality and he shows his best in a niche-role (I am inclined to say opportunistic role), that many top club just don’t use.
So all that in mind LvG fields him as the only proper midfielder with 3 defender, 2 winbacks, 3 striker and a #10 in a weird 5-1-4. Overall Rooney played well, but he failed to support him in the first HT and Mata wasn’t even existing as midfielder during this period, while Liverpool constantly pressed him. There are maybe 4-5 players in the world that would look good under these circumstances. Carrick struggles almost every time when he is getting pressed and doesn’t get solid support. Even genuine world-class holding player (e.g. Alonso, Schweinsteiger, Kroos, Pirlo) often look fairly useless against strong pressing, when the rest of the team isn’t doing well.
So why would anyone expect miracles from Fellaini?
He deserved a lot of stick for his performance against Southampton, because he chickened out and was in hiding. He didn’t do that all today. He was available and tried to maintain possession and to link defense and offense. Of course he struggled heavily, but other than Mata or Rooney at least he tried to take over responsibility. Without him there wouldn’t have been a United-midfield in the first HT. In the second HT he got more support and looked much better.
LvG certainly deserves a lot more stick for using this lineup. Furthermore regardless of what the manager told Mata and Rooney, they should have supported Fellaini.
It’s one thing to acknowledge Fellaini´s limitations – we talked about this a thousand times – but it’s another thing to actually criticize him, while doing reasonably well considering the difficult circumstances. It’s not his fault, when the manager plays him out of position without proper support and it’s not his fault, that other player, who should have helped him, didn’t do that.
I am not his biggest fan and it was a mistake to buy him, but that doesn’t mean that I need to criticize him all the time. He is showing the right mentality and is performing on a reasonable good level this season – something that I can’t say about the majority of our players.
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