[Andersons Dietician]

I agree, Darmian is a natural defender, has all the 'dark arts' of Italian defending, can play either fullback position and has done so for Italy; however he needs another 'proper' fullback playing with him to get the best out of him. For me the season he got into the first team, he played around three or four games at RB with Shaw at left back (until his injury) and during that period we had probably, at that time, the best full back pairing in the country. He is not however a 'wing back' or even an attacking full back, because going forward is his weakness although you can occasionally see some marginal improvement. He needs to be played as part of a proper defensive back four, if we had that and either one or two sitting midfielders (depending on the opposition) we would not have to keep relying on massed-ranked 'Alamo' type defending, thus allowing our attacking players to do just that.

I love some of near mystical dark arts he performs. Always knows exactly where the ref is “ref vision”

I do agree that if you have him it’s good to have an attacking opposite fullback as Darmian was also a CB in a 3 at times hence why Rojo and he were purchased and Luke was a lot more attacking and penatrive than Valencia is.
Got to add Darmian first came to my attention in a game against England where he whipped in a stunning cross from deep. And he’s done it a few times. His crossing is very underrated for me and to be honest I think I would prefer him to Valencia especially with Lukaku and... give me a minute, this will hurt (almost spews) Zlatan returning

 

[I Believe]

give me a minute, this will hurt (almost spews) Zlatan returning

that's very brave of you, know how much it hurt... I feel your pain!

 

[Amar__]

Having one good game in the Mickey Mouse cup made people change their opinions on him. Great stuff.

 

[breakout67]

He's trying to be Azpilicueta when he plays left back, except he is half the player. So basically he's a bang average left back.

 

[King.of.Red]

very very solid performance today. I think in the recent matches, he looked stronger and faster.

 

[Dion]

Doesn't contribute anything outside of our half.

 

[Roboc7]

Like blind he does the basics but they are nowhere near good enough in terms of what the modern fullback should offer, I don't see the need to have both in the squad and better options are needed in both fullback positions. Valencia and Young are deservedly first choice at the moment but given their age it's time to look for new players.

 

[Sylar]

Strangely, I think he would be perfect for the weekend game where I believe were going with the same tactics we did against Liverpool. It will play into his strength right now

 

[VivaObertan]

I think he was our MOTM today... seriously.

Also props to him for trying to force the attack at times which is seriously out of his skillset.

 

[el3mel]

Though he had a solid game defensively today. Nothing to fault him at.

 

[Devil may care]

He's decent defensively but that's not enough from a fullback in the modern game.

 

[Lennon7]

Good defender and very occasionally puts in a decent cross. You’ll rarely see him beat a man, but he has an alright touch too. Wouldn’t be arsed either way if he stayed or left tbh.

 

[Fahad Jawaid]

The first player i would throw out of this club if given the chance. Any team who strives to become a top side and have any hope of playing with any sort of fluidity must never have him in the side. I hate the fact that he hardly crosses the half way line and so many times our players turn to the right side and then turn back and play from the left. All our play was from left side today, in fact he made Mata look poor as well since he never tries to link up with the right sided player and every fecking time he gets a ball in transition where we can counter he just hoofs it forward aimlessly. A nothing player which only plays unimportant games.

I actually believe Valencia is not good enough to be our fullback and we should aim higher, since he can't cross and lost the will to take on his man. But watching him makes me miss Valencia and Young soo much. They look like Cafu and Roberto Carlos in front of this guy.

 

[Acole9]

Solid display, I'd be tempted to play him against Chelsea, he's an old school type of full back who prioritises defending over going forward.

 

[haram]

You might as well keep him around as the more defensive option for both fullback positions.

 

[KingBojanDjordic]

Solid performance today for Italy, why can't he play like this for us?

 

[Mercurial]

Solid performance today for Italy, why can't he play like this for us?

Seeing him bomb the whole flank up and down and crossing/cutting it's fairly obvious that Mourinho shackles him heavily for us or only sees him as a bit part role filler. Tonight he had a big license to go forward. And looked a bit like I imagine Pericic would have been for us. Made me happy we have him.

 

[Garethw]

Seeing him bomb the whole flank up and down and crossing/cutting it's fairly obvious that Mourinho shackles him heavily for us or only sees him as a bit part role filler. Tonight he had a big license to go forward. And looked a bit like I imagine Pericic would have been for us. Made me happy we have him.

He looked like a really good right back when we first bought him. He bombed up and down the wing giving us great width.

He looked the real deal before getting Massively shackled under the crazy Dutchman.

 

[Bubz27]

Seeing him bomb the whole flank up and down and crossing/cutting it's fairly obvious that Mourinho shackles him heavily for us or only sees him as a bit part role filler. Tonight he had a big license to go forward. And looked a bit like I imagine Pericic would have been for us. Made me happy we have him.

Did Jose stop him doing it when Van Gaal was manager too?

 

[stevoc]

Seeing him bomb the whole flank up and down and crossing/cutting it's fairly obvious that Mourinho shackles him heavily for us or only sees him as a bit part role filler. Tonight he had a big license to go forward. And looked a bit like I imagine Pericic would have been for us. Made me happy we have him.

He looked like a really good right back when we first bought him. He bombed up and down the wing giving us great width.

He looked the real deal before getting Massively shackled under the crazy Dutchman.

So two managers in a row have for some reason stopped him from being a swashbuckling attacking fullback launching constants raids down the wing.

I think it's more likely that Darmian is choosing to play the way he does for us. Plus he was playing as a wingback tonight wasn't he?

 

[Bepi]

Rumors from his places in Italy are he finds the UK culture too different and him being shy / a good mama boy does not help for sure.

 

[Mercurial]

So two managers in a row have for some reason stopped him from being a swashbuckling attacking fullback launching constants raids down the wing.

I think it's more likely that Darmian is choosing to play the way he does for us. Plus he was playing as a wingback tonight wasn't he?

Yes, in a 352 and also hit the woodwork due to a slight nudge on the ball in defense. On fire tonight.

 

[Darkhorsez]

Rumors from his places in Italy are he finds the UK culture too different and him being shy / a good mama boy does not help for sure.

There could be something in this ! He started so well - it was amazing and then he became ultra cautious. Perhaps he is not enjoying his off field life. Too bad really - this comes with being a well paid pro and he needs to play like this for us too

 

[stevoc]

Yes, in a 352 and also hit the woodwork due to a slight nudge on the ball in defense. On fire tonight.

I haven't watched it so i'll take your word on him being on fire mate.

I keep hoping he can add some attacking contribution to his game, but he's been here nearly 3 years and theres still no sign of it. So i won't be holding my breath on seeing it during his time at United. It's either a confidence and/or poor stamina thing i think, he just very rarely seems willing to make an effort to get up the pitch for United. And it's almost certainly not managers instructions.

 

[badkins]

Wasn't he player of the month after his first debut games? Shaw was pretty decent too, those were the days.

 

[Mercurial]

Rumors from his places in Italy are he finds the UK culture too different and him being shy / a good mama boy does not help for sure.

There could be something in this ! He started so well - it was amazing and then he became ultra cautious. Perhaps he is not enjoying his off field life. Too bad really - this comes with being a well paid pro and he needs to play like this for us too

I haven't watched it so i'll take your word on him being on fire mate.

I keep hoping he can add some attacking contribution to his game, but he's been here nearly 3 years and theres still no sign of it. So i won't be holding my breath on seeing it during his time at United. It's either a confidence and/or poor stamina thing i think, he just very rarely seems willing to make an effort to get up the pitch for United. And it's almost certainly not managers instructions.

If it's a social problem then hard to say what the remedy could be, and if so what a waste. I have hardly followed Italy so no objective way to say if he plays consistently like this for his NT or if it was a one off special night.

 

[Bepi]

If it's a social problem then hard to say what the remedy could be, and if so what a waste. I have hardly followed Italy so no objective way to say if he plays consistently like this for his NT or if it was a one off special night.

He is neither Marcelo nor an amateur, possibly not United-level as a footballer but clearly underperforming, so the problem is the environment... Nagatomo was a laughing stock for Inter in the last five years but more than decent now under Spalletti. He will probably be better at home again, as many Italian mama boys recently.

 

[NoPace]

Desperately unlucky that Belotti missed the header after his cross. Excellent game. Considering how many of the top Italian sides could use a fullback that can play both sides and rarely gets hurt, I could see him trying to force a move this summer.

 

[Garethw]

So two managers in a row have for some reason stopped him from being a swashbuckling attacking fullback launching constants raids down the wing.

I think it's more likely that Darmian is choosing to play the way he does for us. Plus he was playing as a wingback tonight wasn't he?

LVG and Mourinho are both defensive coaches, so yes I do think it’s a tactical thing.

 

[Gusjaros]

Darmian played on the left wing and was one of Italy's better players, perhaps the best one, with some luck he'd gotten one goal and an assist.

 

[izec]

LVG and Mourinho are both defensive coaches, so yes I do think it’s a tactical thing.

especially since we have Valencia on the other side, who is naturally more offensive. Azpi was also more defensive under Jose, so it is really no coincidence. I wrote weeks ago that i would like to see Darmian getting instructed to bomb forward all the time, we would see an improved player.

 

[Garethw]

especially since we have Valencia on the other side, who is naturally more offensive. Azpi was also more defensive under Jose, so it is really no coincidence. I wrote weeks ago that i would like to see Darmian getting instructed to bomb forward all the time, we would see an improved player.

Agreed mate. I thought he looked really good at right back when he first joined.

 

[limerickcitykid]

Wasn't he player of the month after his first debut games? Shaw was pretty decent too, those were the days.

Shaw was easily better in the period as were our two CBs. He was massively overrated over a small period because he was a new signing and the defensive group as a collective were playing superbly. He was still the worst of the lot.

We're a top club and I'm tired of our full-backs doing nothing.

 

[Nick7]

Shaw was easily better in the period as were our two CBs. He was massively overrated over a small period because he was a new signing and the defensive group as a collective were playing superbly. He was still the worst of the lot.

We're a top club and I'm tired of our full-backs doing nothing.

Ah now, he did start quite well. Defensively he was excellent and wouldn't be beaten.

 

[limerickcitykid]

Ah now, he did start quite well. Defensively he was excellent and wouldn't be beaten.

He was good but it was massively blown out of proportion. The same way any new signing does anything decent here and its massively hyped up. There was nothing spectacular to his play even at that time and, Shaw, Blind, and Smalling were all better. His greatest spell which everyone always points back to and he was still the weakest one. He has been nowhere near good enough, its fairly simple. Full-backs are too important and we'll never be the best in Europe with the likes of him.

 

[100]

I remember thinking we’ve got ourselves a bargain after his first few matches. He looked superb one on one with the attacker. And then he had a bad game(think it was against Sanchez) and it all went downhill after that.

 

[stevoc]

LVG and Mourinho are both defensive coaches, so yes I do think it’s a tactical thing.

I doubt it mate, there's quotes from Shaw that confirms Mourinho gives his fullbacks licence to get forward if they want to. Couple that with the fact no other player who Mourinho has played at fullback is averse to going forward including Blind, Shaw and even Bailly tells us that Darmian is choosing to stay back and play as conservatively as he does. As opposed to it being specific instructions for one player, the same player by two consecutive managers.

Here's the Shaw quote to Mutv.

Speaking to MUTV , Shaw said: "At times people have said maybe he [Mourinho] doesn’t like his full-backs to go forward but that’s not the case. He gives both full-backs that license to go forward, obviously not at the same time but if I have the chance then it’s up to me if I want to go forward or not. It’s not that I’ve got to stay put or do particular things, I’ve got the freedom to play and that only gives me the confidence in what I want to do to help the team."

 

[Garethw]

I doubt it mate, there's quotes from Shaw that confirms Mourinho gives his fullbacks licence to get forward if they want to. Couple that with the fact no other player who Mourinho has played at fullback is averse to going forward including Blind, Shaw and even Bailly tells us that Darmian is choosing to stay back and play as conservatively as he does. As opposed to it being specific instructions for one player, the same player by two consecutive managers.

Here's the Shaw quote to Mutv.

I stand corrected then mate. Darmian needs his backside kicked if he’s not even attempting to attack when he has the licence too.

 

[Dinghy]

I doubt it mate, there's quotes from Shaw that confirms Mourinho gives his fullbacks licence to get forward if they want to. Couple that with the fact no other player who Mourinho has played at fullback is averse to going forward including Blind, Shaw and even Bailly tells us that Darmian is choosing to stay back and play as conservatively as he does. As opposed to it being specific instructions for one player, the same player by two consecutive managers.

Mourinho's played Darmian's almost only against the better sides and when we've set up to be more defensive. I highly doubt it's Darmian's own choice not to bomb forward whenever there's a chance to do so.

Here's the Shaw quote to Mutv.

That quote is from pre-season last year. Things might have changed a bit from then, and it seems like Shaw might not have fully understood what Mourinho wants him to do...

"He cannot play with my brain"
"Twenty-one is old enough to have a better understanding."
"He has to change his football brain."

 

[stevoc]

Mourinho's played Darmian's almost only against the better sides and when we've set up to be more defensive.

And if he only played against the better sides an/or only played conservatively against the top sides it would make sense, but he doesn't he plays just as conservatively in almost every match for us no matter the opposition.

I highly doubt it's Darmian's own choice not to bomb forward whenever there's a chance to do so.

Why? We know Mourinho doesn't mind his fullbacks attacking, we know Darmian has played the same way under two different managers, in two different positions, and we know every other player who has played fullback for Mourinho has shown more willingness to get forward and attack including centre backs like Bailly and Rojo.

So everything points to it being an issue with Darmian himself. Mourinho also recently said the below himself, which also explains why Young has started more games than Darmian this season despite not actually being a fullback.

"If you can have two [attacking] full-backs on both sides, not just Valencia on the right, if you can have another one on the left [like Young] it’s positive for us on many occasions," he told MUTV .