[RedSky]

I really wish people would stop with this shite. You'd think Nani was fecking Obertan and not a former player of the year in a title winning season the way some go on.

Indeed. Nani was incredible for 2 seasons. Huge number of assists and goals. He always used to dick over Arsenal.

 

[11101]

I don't know what to make of him, I don't think he's lacking in confidence, neither is he lacking in talent but he's not very smart, which means he dwells a lot on the ball. In the Eredivise, that might not be a problem, but at this level, it is and I think that's why he's struggling. Look at Martial, even Lingard & Perreira, they have that speed of thought, before the ball comes to them, they know what they want to do, once the ball gets to them they go ahead with it, sometimes it works, other times it doesn't, but you can see what they wanted to do, their intention. With Memphis, I get the feeling that he's always caught in two minds, he lacks that speed of thought & he generally over thinks the whole thing. And one thing i noticed, his footwork is not impressive, the ball is always stuck under his feet, or something like that, he's never really in control of the ball.

I agree mostly with this. In NL he stood out with his pace and strength, but in England all defenders are equally quick and strong. He needs to improve the other areas of his game to succeed.

He is beginning to worry me a bit tbh. It was clear from his social media he thought he'd made it just by being here, and he needs to start showing signs he's knuckling down and progressing.

 

[bugmat]

I don't know what to make of him, I don't think he's lacking in confidence, neither is he lacking in talent but he's not very smart, which means he dwells a lot on the ball. In the Eredivise, that might not be a problem, but at this level, it is and I think that's why he's struggling. Look at Martial, even Lingard & Perreira, they have that speed of thought, before the ball comes to them, they know what they want to do, once the ball gets to them they go ahead with it, sometimes it works, other times it doesn't, but you can see what they wanted to do, their intention. With Memphis, I get the feeling that he's always caught in two minds, he lacks that speed of thought & he generally over thinks the whole thing. And one thing i noticed, his footwork is not impressive, the ball is always stuck under his feet, or something like that, he's never really in control of the ball.

This is very true imo. Hopefully he isn,t too old to learn ball sense and speed of thought (21 is young for a baller but his psyche has basically been set already as an adult). Usually in a country like Holland you expect players to have this ingrained in them as they start playing from in their nappies but... he did have a very troubled period as a young player stemming from his family situation before he went to PSV and it might have stunted his development there.

Also he does seem to have think he made it 9despite his media utterances - actions speak louder than interviews) and does need a reality check.

 

[RedDevil@84]

He needs to adapt to PL. People at the club must see that in training, he is showing something new. There is no point in playing him week in and week out if he does not show any signs of doing something new to tackle defenders.

 

[limerickcitykid]

2 of those goals and apparently 3 assists (whoscored has him down for 1 assist in all other matches) came in the UCL qualifiers against a crippled Brugge side.

It should really read 13 matches, 2 goals and 1 assist.

Got an assist against Ipswich, whoscored don't do league cup stats.

 

[Maradona10]

On this form he is the worst player we have bought in post fergie era. I think the waste of money headline might have suited him more.
Just does not know what to do with the ball, no decision making ability. He thinks like 5 seconds later than most players on the pitch and that includes the boro players. Same one trick pony if cutting in and trying to shoot which he completely messed up 3 times. Also messed up a counter and that air shot 10 yards from goal. I think he already thinks he has made it. Poor poor showing, i was thinking about our poorest of poor wingers and couldnt find many, nani would be above him, even kagawa on left was better than he is, maybe obertan would be a better choice than him in this form. Hope he improves otherwise we are looking at a loss of 10 -15million + on his resale in the future.

 

[Insanity]

I don't know if anybody has, but I am with you if you have called him the 'Dutch Zaha'.

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

I don't know if anybody has, but I am with you if you have called him the 'Dutch Zaha'.

Most apt comparison to be honest.

Memphis is nothing like Nani.

 

[kouroux]

Being in terrible form is one thing, being young and still adapting is also perfectly understandable. I personally don't expect much in terms of offensive contribution from Memphis (maybe I'm too cynical) but one thing that cannot be forgiven is the apathy and lack of energy display. Like when he gets dispossessed and nothing much to retrieve the ball, Martial came on and lost the ball but really the effort he put in just to chase back his opponent (even if it allow him to get the ball) shows you the big difference in mindset between the two.

 

[Devil81]

Still got time to adapt but doesn't even look like a footballer at the moment, his spacial awareness is awful.

 

[RedDevil@84]

He shows no hunger. Perhaps he thinks he is already a star.

 

[diarm]

Over the last few years, we have displayed a miraculous ability to take exciting and effective attackers and turn them into nervous, lazy and ineffective wasters.

Now we could say they were overrated when they got here, or that their previous leagues were weak. But when those same players look great at the beginning, only to deteriorate the longer they spend with us, when do we stop criticising the players so much and start looking at what the club are doing to them?

A lack of hunger isn't something anyone would have accused Memphis of last year or at the beginning of this season. It was never a label thrown at Di Maria before last year. We've never seen Rooney look so cautious and reluctant to have a go. What are we doing to these types of players to leave them looking so flat?

 

[Halftrack]

On this form he is the worst player we have bought in post fergie era. I think the waste of money headline might have suited him more.
Just does not know what to do with the ball, no decision making ability. He thinks like 5 seconds later than most players on the pitch and that includes the boro players. Same one trick pony if cutting in and trying to shoot which he completely messed up 3 times. Also messed up a counter and that air shot 10 yards from goal. I think he already thinks he has made it. Poor poor showing, i was thinking about our poorest of poor wingers and couldnt find many, nani would be above him, even kagawa on left was better than he is, maybe obertan would be a better choice than him in this form. Hope he improves otherwise we are looking at a loss of 10 -15million + on his resale in the future.

Please stop with this nonsense. It's way, WAY too early to start with this shite. He's 21, and everyone has been expecting great things from him. Then there's the fact that the Dutch media has been dogpiling him on the back of Holland's poor showing in the Euro 2016-qualifiers, basically making him a scapegoat. That's an ungodly amount of pressure to put on a 21 year old struggling for form while trying to adapt to a new league.

Yes, his attitude also needs improving, but shit takes time. If you'd read anything about him before he came here, you'd have known that he had a reputation of being kind of cocky and arrogant. It's something he's been working on, and hopefully he'll get it sorted. Right now, though, people need to cut him some slack. It's not his fault we're lacking in the attacking department, that's on LvG for failing to realize that Rooney's turned to shite and really shouldn't be starting games anymore, and that relying on two new youngsters for depth is really risky.

Don't get me wrong, I'm disappointed with his poor start, as I'd really hoped he'd have more of an impact, but it'll take a lot more for me to just write him off the way some seem to be doing. Di Maria showed last year that even the best can seemingly forget how to actually play football, so it's not like playing poorly is some sign that he lacks what is needed to make it.

 

[Godfather]

His lack of pace and mobility is worrying.

 

[ottosec]

Embarrassing performance, no effort whatsoever.

 

[Speak]

I don't know if anybody has, but I am with you if you have called him the 'Dutch Zaha'.

Na, he's Hulk.

Bulky (maybe 'too bulky') frame.
Loves shooting, and basically just cuts onto his strong foot all the time.
Completely one-footed.
Can't really beat a man.
Isn't THAT quick, but is powerful and hard to stop once momentum is gained.
Pretty useless from stand-still positions
Free kicks.
Tries random flicks.
And, like Hulk, he may end up being one of those players who people always say "Every time I watch him, he's crap"

Zaha's not great, but at least he's actually a winger. Memphis is an inside forward. Their styles/approaches are not very similar.

 

[K2K]

Now that Young is back, I'd love for him to play on the left and Martial at cf(Yes, I know I am asking for quite a lot).

Memphis should get cameos here and there and it should be a pick between him, Lingard and Perreira for the cover spot, based solely on form.

 

[Adisa]

It's his technique or lack of that's doing my head in. Runs into players every fecking time.

 

[Parma Dewol]

I thought Memphis was one of our most exciting acquisitions, but I'm being proven wrong in a big way! The boy looks absolutely lost on the football field these days, can't seem to get past anybody, is shrugged off the ball far too easily and his confidence is so shot he has resorted to crossing the ball from nearer the half-way line.

It's too early to say he's done for - he is only 21 after all - but he needs something to happen for him, and quick. Every time it goes wrong you can see him slump in disappointment. He desperately needs a good game, but I do wonder if he'll ever recover if he spends large spells warming the bench.

Nobody has too much talent not to fall off the cliff - Di Maria and Falcao are recent proof of that - yet Memphis has age on his side. Here's hoping he can rediscover the spark that saw him net 22 in 30 last season.

 

[Borys]

Over the last few years, we have displayed a miraculous ability to take exciting and effective attackers and turn them into nervous, lazy and ineffective wasters.

Now we could say they were overrated when they got here, or that their previous leagues were weak. But when those same players look great at the beginning, only to deteriorate the longer they spend with us, when do we stop criticising the players so much and start looking at what the club are doing to them?

A lack of hunger isn't something anyone would have accused Memphis of last year or at the beginning of this season. It was never a label thrown at Di Maria before last year. We've never seen Rooney look so cautious and reluctant to have a go. What are we doing to these types of players to leave them looking so flat?

I don’t think that’s true to be honest. He looked poor since day one (I didn’t feel the hype BTW), with a few exceptions in games against Brugge and PSV. In the league he always struggled.

I actually think that when it comes to him and Di Maria, the league adapted to them faster than them adapted to the EPL standards. It might sound a little ridiculous but as far as Memphis is concerned, he seems pretty easy to defend against if you watched 3 games of him running from the left.

 

[JoaquinJoaquin]

Being in terrible form is one thing, being young and still adapting is also perfectly understandable. I personally don't expect much in terms of offensive contribution from Memphis (maybe I'm too cynical) but one thing that cannot be forgiven is the apathy and lack of energy display. Like when he gets dispossessed and nothing much to retrieve the ball, Martial came on and lost the ball but really the effort he put in just to chase back his opponent (even if it allow him to get the ball) shows you the big difference in mindset between the two.

See, This is what's angering me the most about him, It's the lazy work ethic he is showing, There is really no excuse for it. It's like the Zaha situation in which his attitude is 'he has made it'. People had a go at me when I expressed concern when I seen those photos of him partying with Chris Brown's Ex GF but it seems I had a right to be concerned as his attitude is shocking so far.

 

[Sunny Jim]

Now that Young is back, I'd love for him to play on the left and Martial at cf(Yes, I know I am asking for quite a lot).

Memphis should get cameos here and there and it should be a pick between him, Lingard and Perreira for the cover spot, based solely on form.

Someone said that young players brought in at high price have some sort of advantage over home grown players. I wouldn't hold my breath. Lingard has done more than Mephis and hes still behind in pecking order.

 

[K2K]

Someone said that young players brought in at high price have some sort of advantage over home grown players. I wouldn't hold my breath. Lingard has done more than Mephis and hes still behind in pecking order.

I would believe that too..but Van Gaal kept Young in the team ahead of the British record signing. Except for Rooney and maybe Herrera, he's been rather fair on picking players on merit.

I really hope that players are chosen solely on merit, its good for team morale.

 

[Rozay]

Was terrible again last night, but I'm not buying this 'lack of effort' thing. His biggest issue is his inability to go past a player, and I'm not sure he will learn that dramatically. He also often makes poor decisions, and executes his passes poorly etc, but those are things he can improve.

I was concerned when he was linked that he may not be good enough, and that he doesn't have the skill-set we need on the wing. He is fast, despite people questioning this - his issue is that he is not fast with the ball. He is a productive player by nature, but given the over methodical nature of our game, I was desperate for us to add a wide man who can open up the game in an instant, by taking a couple of men out at speed perhaps. Memphis has a trick in him, but he is not this man.

 

[marjen]

I agree he doesn't look very good at going past his man.

He's an excellent counter attacking player though, because he's almost always the first man to run in behind when we win the ball high up the pitch. Sadly, we prefer playing a backwards pass to attacking at pace, which doesn't play to his strengths.

I'm uncertain what to make of him overall after his start here. He's bereft of confidence now that's for sure.

 

[Badunk]

I think it's his decision making that's his biggest flaw. He should get back to basics for a while. Get his head up, pass it to the nearest teammate, move forward and look for the return. Instead, he gets the ball, gets his head down, charges at defenders, gets easily dispossessed, then repeats that for the rest of the game. Once his confidence returns and he's doing the simple things well, he'll be much better.

 

[kouroux]

See, This is what's angering me the most about him, It's the lazy work ethic he is showing, There is really no excuse for it. It's like the Zaha situation in which his attitude is 'he has made it'. People had a go at me when I expressed concern when I seen those photos of him partying with Chris Brown's Ex GF but it seems I had a right to be concerned as his attitude is shocking so far.

What footballers do off the field has never had much importance in my eyes. He could be having orgies with pornstars every night for all I care. I just expect him to do the basics right.

 

[Eyepopper]

Looks completely devoid of any confidence to me, and also like he's trying a little too hard.

A bit of game time with the reserves probably wouldn't be the worst thing for him.

He's 21 and has made a massive move, he needs time to adjust and develop his game. While Martial has been excellent so far I think too much is being expected of him and fully expect him to hit a similar run of bad form at some stage, it's just what happens with young players.

 

[Santoryo]

One could tell that Depay was playing feeling the pressure. He knows he has underperformed and his confident isn't there right now. Still very early days(it's truly early), one ought to way and see how things roll as the season progresses.

I think Van Gaal has to figure a way to get Memphis playing w/o feeling the pressure(people are very demanding for him to perform, even in the stadium it seemed like the supporters lost a bit of patience with him yesterday which looked to have worsened his play as the game went on)

 

[Cassidy]

The second coming of ADM

 

[syrian_scholes]

Wow, are people really writing him off this early?

 

[RustyS]

He needs to improve two aspects of his game quickly if he wants to get his place in the team back:

1- Stop running into trouble. It is so annoying how he sees 2-3 defenders in front of him and tries to magically run through them, inevitably failing 99% of the time

2- When he loses the ball, he needs to show some interest in getting it back. As Kouroux mentioned, Martial was trying to win the ball back every time he lost it. Memphis would just stand there frustrated that whatever he just tried didn't come off.

 

[Eyepopper]

Wow, are people really writing him off this early?

Give it a few weeks, they'll be doing the same with Martial.

 

[Kostur]

Give it a few weeks, they'll be doing the same with Martial.

Doubt it as Martial has shown more in 2-3 matches than Memphis has since he got here.

I've got to completly agree with @kouroux 's point, he can have all the talent in the world if he wishes but unless he fixes his attitude he won't achieve shit.

Abysmal display yesterday, yet again. No effort whatsoever. If the distance covered was registered somewhere he'd be fecked, especially yesterday.

 

[MyOnlySolskjaer]

Shall we proceed with the roasting of a 21 year old 3 months into his Manchester United career?

 

[Di Maria's angel]

His lack of effort was not great to see, but he really is struggling with form and confidence. However, I'd rather he start over Young and Rooney, as he's go to get over this bad patch. van Gaal needs to give him a free run and role and allow him to simply express himself. Do away with the bullshit philosophy.

 

[Eyepopper]

Doubt it as Martial has shown more in 2-3 matches than Memphis has since he got here.

I've got to completly agree with @kouroux 's point, he can have all the talent in the world if he wishes but unless he fixes his attitude he won't achieve shit.

Abysmal display yesterday, yet again. No effort whatsoever. If the distance covered was registered somewhere he'd be fecked, especially yesterday.

Maybe he needs, you know, a bit of time. Plenty were fully of criticism for signing Martial before they'd seen him kick a ball.

Martial will hit a patch of rough form at one point or another. Some of our fans aren't particularly realistic with their expectations of young players.

 

[Sly]

I'm still confident Memphis will become a good player. Yong and lernin and all that. Thought United fans would have learned by now not to write off a young player in his first months, in a new and more competitive league and getting settled to a new country. A bit of patience will help.

 

[K2K]

His lack of effort was not great to see, but he really is struggling with form and confidence. However, I'd rather he start over Young and Rooney, as he's go to get over this bad patch. van Gaal needs to give him a free run and role and allow him to simply express himself. Do away with the bullshit philosophy.

What has Young done to lose his place though? He should be starting, he kept ADM out of the team last season, and with a chance to go to Euro2016, he'll be motivated enough to keep Memphis out of the team too.

Players should be played on merit. We are carrying too many passengers in our team. Its far too easy to blame Lvg for his poor form as he has been abysmal for the Netherlands too. I'd bench him , and with our upcoming games , try and get as many points as possible, to keep us in touch for a title challenge by Jnauary, when we can supplement our frontline with more depth and quality.

 

[Kostur]

Maybe he needs, you know, a bit of time. Plenty were fully of criticism for signing Martial before they'd seen him kick a ball.

Martial will hit a patch of rough form at one point or another. Some of our fans aren't particularly realistic with their expectations of young players.

But you know, there's a difference between waiting for somebody to hit a form where he'll beat players with dribbling, assist or score goals and actually giving a feck effort wise. Memphis is just not doing enough on the pitch with chasing back the ball, defending and putting effort in so it's not down to bad form or needing to bed in but it's an attitude problem.

I'm not even getting into the fact that Martial had about 10 times bigger burden on his shoulders when coming here yet he coped perfectly well with it, despite being 2 years younger, not speaking English and all that, one player will adapt quicker, one will take more time, fine enough. But show some desire, effort, whatever. If needed, play safe but be precise. Memphis couldn't do even that yesterday.