Michael Keane| signed to Everton.

Do you want Michael Keane back at United?

  • Yes

    Votes: 259 43.0%

  • No

    Votes: 172 28.6%

  • Undecided

    Votes: 171 28.4%
  • Total voters
    602
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Smores said:
Our defensive situation has been mismanaged for years, we should never have signed both Jones and Smalling. We needed to sign at least one solid CB at that time to cope with the retirement of Rio and Vidic.

Keane suffered from this really, Jones and Smalling weren't and still aren't considered solid so you have the situation where they've perpetually occupied the prospect slot and also the seniors slot.

Especially now, we need a solid spine before we can really introduce youth and expect them to flourish.
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They were top prospects at the time we signed them, and were supposed to take charge after Rio and Vidic. People would have moaned again as to why we didn't sign them so there's no end to it. The injuries to both Smalling and Jones curtailed their development which resulted in us searching for better CBs. This is all hindsight. Its not that Fergie would have kept Keane in mind while he was busy signing up Jones and Smalling.
 
This thread is laughable.

Smalling and Jones are by no means perfect but they are far better than Michael Keane.

The hate Smalling in particular gets on here is ridiculous just because he is clumsy on the ball.

His physical attributes of pace and strength are tremendous and are invaluable in the PL.

The fact is he would start for every team in the league bar City because of Guardiolas ball retention obsession and perhaps Spurs if they played with a back two.

I keep hearing this we need a quality ball playing CB to complement Bailly.

Bailly makes far more mistakes than Smalling does and plays with zero intelligence, although he has potential but he is not ready yet.

People were saying Rojo was a Championship player only a few months ago yet he is our best CB on form right now and is playing at a very high level.

Our problem lies at the other end of the pitch and we should correct that first before looking at the defense.

If we fix these areas of the team first than Van Dijk is the player we should purchase as imo he has the potential to become a Rio Ferdinand level player and has outstanding technical and physical attributes which I do not see in any CB in the world currently bar Ramos.
 
He's an inferior player to Johny Evans who we also sold and looks very good for another mid table club. Had Jones and Smalling played for mid table they'd likely look even better. Mistakes, flaws and weaknesses are amplified ten times over at a bigger club. Smalling gets ridiculed for making one mistake after a set of good performances. The pressure and expectations are on another level entirely.

Anyone suggesting he's far better than Smalling and Jones needs their head checked.
 
Akash said:
He's an inferior player to Johny Evans who we also sold and looks very good for another mid table club. Had Jones and Smalling played for mid table they'd likely look even better. Mistakes, flaws and weaknesses are amplified ten times over at a bigger club. Smalling gets ridiculed for making one mistake after a set of good performances. The pressure and expectations are on another level entirely.

Anyone suggesting he's far better than Smalling and Jones needs their head checked.
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Exactly
 
AP88 said:
Vidic and Ferdinand ultimately had an awful impact on the development of Jones and Smalling, as their presence meant they never got key exposure to actually playing centreback in their early twenties because the former two were kept beyond their their sell-by. Rio and Vida themselves spent their early years playing and learning the position elsewhere, something Keane has evidently benefitted from.

Had Phil and Mike been signed then left at Blackburn and Fulham for a couple of seasons they'd be a lot more accomplished at this point.



If that was true, then it justifies exactly why when some are attainable to United, like Keane clearly is given his attachment to the club, they should be taken. Dele Alli was there for the taking when MK Dons smashed United out of the league cup in 2014....

You're simply regurgitating Mourinho's nonsense excuses for his pending failure here; modern moronic United opted to spend £90m on Pogba rather than £30m on Kante this summer. The reality is United only want to sign 'names' these days to market to fanboys.

Chelsea and then City were clearly outspending United from 2003 onwards; Chelsea signed Bridge, Ashley and Joe Cole, Scott Parker, SWP, Sturridge, Duff, Anelka and Cahill from within the league during the Fergie era, most of whom would have interested SAF. Arsenal actually beat United to the signings of Ramsey, Oxlaide-Chamberlain, while again City signed Barry, Lescott, Milner, Nasri, Clichy, Given, Tevez and Rodwell (who in a pro-Anglo environment like United or modern-day Spurs could have become a top player) he even kidnapped Berbatov when City actually had a bid accepted by City in 2008. Liverpool and Leeds also spent a lot of money in the Premier League era and could dethrone Sir Alex.

Youre telling me that United can attract Pogba, Di Maria, Bastian, Ibrahimovic, Mkhitaryan and soon Griezmann from some of the best clubs in the world, yet can't usurp other Premier League teams for the best internal talent? Get a grip.

The competition was always there, even going back to Blackburn and Newcastle; Ferguson always found a way to win. Interesting that the club that was allegedly winning easy in the era you specified reached three of four Champions League finals in 2008-11. Don't let insecure Jose do it down and brainwash the masses ahead of his mediocre tenure.
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Im not regurgitating no ones excuses I'm stating a fact. You need to look into the crap you've wrote. We tried to sign Kante but he preferred Chelsea. I havent said nothing of the second piece. If I was you I would go and have a lie down, you need to get a grip.
 
the unknown one. said:
Smalling and Jones are by no means perfect but they are far better than Michael Keane.
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Some people still live in 2014 apparently. Smalling is better than what he has shown this season but this statement is as laughable as suggesting Keane is far better than Smalling and Jones right now. Those two haven't fulfilled their potential, live with it.
 
I think we should bring him back. Jones can't be relied on.
 
Akash said:
He's an inferior player to Johny Evans who we also sold and looks very good for another mid table club. Had Jones and Smalling played for mid table they'd likely look even better. Mistakes, flaws and weaknesses are amplified ten times over at a bigger club. Smalling gets ridiculed for making one mistake after a set of good performances. The pressure and expectations are on another level entirely.

Anyone suggesting he's far better than Smalling and Jones needs their head checked.
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I agree regarding Smalling, but he looks more reliable than Jones though. Jones is nowhere near fit enough to be squad option here, especially when our first choice CBs' fitness is far from great.
 
Zoo said:
I think we should bring him back. Jones can't be relied on.
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With the sell-on discount, the fee would likely be circa £18m; even with his injuries, a Stoke or Palace would probably pay £10-15m for Jones, neutralising most of the Keane outlay anyway.

He's a class act and ultimately has a superb simplicity about his approach to defending; Smalling shares a lot of attributes but isn't nearly as good on the ball.
 
Akash said:
He's an inferior player to Johny Evans who we also sold and looks very good for another mid table club. Had Jones and Smalling played for mid table they'd likely look even better. Mistakes, flaws and weaknesses are amplified ten times over at a bigger club. Smalling gets ridiculed for making one mistake after a set of good performances. The pressure and expectations are on another level entirely.

Anyone suggesting he's far better than Smalling and Jones needs their head checked.
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I think Keane is great, but this is spot on.
 
AP88 said:
With the sell-on discount, the fee would likely be circa £18m; even with his injuries, a Stoke or Palace would probably pay £10-15m for Jones, neutralising most of the Keane outlay anyway.

He's a class act and ultimately has a superb simplicity about his approach to defending; Smalling shares a lot of attributes but isn't nearly as good on the ball.
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Whos going to pay that for an average injury prone player?
 
wolvored said:
Whos going to pay that for an average injury prone player?
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This season he's put in some decent performances, and his last two injuries have been freaks (damaged foot due to a broken insole then someone stamping on his foot and breaking his toe) plus he's still young and a versatile United player who's a regular in the England squad when fit; clubs would gamble on him, I have no doubt about that, especially as every club in the league has TV money to play with.
 
AP88 said:
This season he's put in some decent performances, and his last two injuries have been freaks (damaged foot due to a broken insole then someone stamping on his foot and breaking his toe) plus he's still young and a versatile United player who's a regular in the England squad when fit; clubs would gamble on him, I have no doubt about that, especially as every club in the league has TV money to play with.
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I hope your right. Lets hope someone buys him for what you think, and we can get a top class player in instead
 
I'd have Keane over Jones if it's a realistic and affordable possibility because Jones isn't good enough to be first choice or reliable enough to provide cover.
 
He isn't ours to bring back. He plays for another club. It's quite arrogant to suppose we can just go and take him like a child who's changed his mind about borrowing a toy. If he didn't previously play for the club nobody would be speaking about this. Criteria for who we sign shouldn't depend on whether or not they have the training ground pre-set in their satnav so are therefore unlikely to get lost on their journey to work on their first day.
 
Akash said:
He's an inferior player to Johny Evans who we also sold and looks very good for another mid table club. Had Jones and Smalling played for mid table they'd likely look even better. Mistakes, flaws and weaknesses are amplified ten times over at a bigger club. Smalling gets ridiculed for making one mistake after a set of good performances. The pressure and expectations are on another level entirely.

Anyone suggesting he's far better than Smalling and Jones needs their head checked.
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I'm glad somebody finally said it.
 
Akash said:
He's an inferior player to Johny Evans who we also sold and looks very good for another mid table club. Had Jones and Smalling played for mid table they'd likely look even better. Mistakes, flaws and weaknesses are amplified ten times over at a bigger club. Smalling gets ridiculed for making one mistake after a set of good performances. The pressure and expectations are on another level entirely.

Anyone suggesting he's far better than Smalling and Jones needs their head checked.
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In my opinion, Evans should never have been sold at all, but that's for another thread.

I like Keane. Felt it was a mistake to let him go, and I'd be delighted if he returns. The thing is, there are better, but more expensive options in the market, so what should we do? Buy a player who's already top class and slot them straight in beside Bailly, or trust the defenders we already have (who to be fair, have largely been rather good this season), and bring in a young lad who knows what the club is about and trust CB whisperer Mourinho to turn him into either a top player or a respectable squad option (I actually don't know the answer, I'm just posing the question).
 
He has taken his chance with the national team over the last week, fair play to him, but personally I don't see us buying him back unless it is to keep the English quota up if we sell one of Jones or Smalling.
 
Forget Keane. We need to sign Van Dijk when he recovers from the injury. He's the one in my opinion.
 
Devil may care said:
He has taken his chance with the national team over the last week, fair play to him, but personally I don't see us buying him back unless it is to keep the English quota up if we sell one of Jones or Smalling.
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To be honest, that's the reason I wouldn't mind having him back. He could be more reliable than Jones and also might be fine with being a squad player for United.
 
bucky said:
To be honest, that's the reason I wouldn't mind having him back. He could be more reliable than Jones and also might be fine with being a squad player for United.
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Yeah, I guess it depends on how he's looking at things as well, he left to play and has now gotten an England call up, would he want to go back to being a bench player?
 
Devil may care said:
Yeah, I guess it depends on how he's looking at things as well, he left to play and has now gotten an England call up, would he want to go back to being a bench player?
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Yeah, that's probably true as well. Didn't think of that.
 
One player who really needs to step us is Bailly. There seems to be a general consensus among fans that whomever we get in, is coming in to play alongside him. Call me skeptical, but I am not convinced about him. Yes he did look good when he first came but he hasn't really been convincing since he returned. He makes mistakes, he is rash and he is poor in the air. He obviously has good qualities but we haven't seen him play enough games consistently to automatically hang our hats on him being our centre half for next lot of yrs.He has the potential to be a great player, but so did Jones when he first came. I am not knocking the guy but he just hasn't totally convinced me yet.
 
poleglass red said:
One player who really needs to step us is Bailly. There seems to be a general consensus among fans that whomever we get in, is coming in to play alongside him. Call me skeptical, but I am not convinced about him. Yes he did look good when he first came but he hasn't really been convincing since he returned. He makes mistakes, he is rash and he is poor in the air. He obviously has good qualities but we haven't seen him play enough games consistently to automatically hang our hats on him being our centre half for next lot of yrs.He has the potential to be a great player, but so did Jones when he first came. I am not knocking the guy but he just hasn't totally convinced me yet.
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I agree, if we're buying a centre back it should be to partner Rojo. Smalling and Bailly can provide good cover with Jones being sold although I think Jose would rather keep Jones around.
 
1. We should aim higher, he isnt that good.

2. He wouldnt even be as good as he is had he stayed here so the retrospective uproar over by some posters his sale makes feckall sense to me anyways.
 
Varun said:
1. We should aim higher, he isnt that good.

2. He wouldnt even be as good as he is had he stayed here so the retrospective uproar over by some posters his sale makes feckall sense to me anyways.
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This really.
 
He would be a great player to have in our squad now, but he's not going to be an upgrade to our first XI IMO, nor would he be worth the £30m Burnley would ask for him.

And no, it wouldn't have just worked out if we would have kept him around - plenty of playing time and experience playing week in week out for Burnley turned him into the player he is. You could argue a loan/loan to buy agreement would have been a better option but, no use crying over spilt milk.
 
Just watched the Burnley Tottenham game. Not really impressive. I can't say I watch him enough to say about him as player, just this game. Was partially at fault in both goals by not marking his man well. Made some more mistake in marking his man alone, not counting other mistakes. Very sluggish & seems to have problem against energetic, mobile players. If anything, he's more suits a team that sits deep. Him having to go marking attacker would be a disaster. He doesn't have the pace to track his runner or getting back quick enough. I don't know, but seems like even slower than Terry & not sure about his last ditch tackle which is important for slower defender.

He is very strong in aerial though (despite made like a mistake leading to Alli chance). Seems like knowing how to time his header & direct it (better than Smalling who seems like can't control the direction when heading).
 
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MAME DIOUF 32 said:
I'd have Keane over Jones if it's a realistic and affordable possibility because Jones isn't good enough to be first choice or reliable enough to provide cover.
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So all the good games he's played for United show he's not good enough? Yeah I get the reliable thing, but saying he's not good enough is just wrong. Keane is not as good as Jones, he's just more likely to be fit.
 
Michael Keane isn't going to be the solution for next season. I believe Smalling, Jones, Bailly and Rojo are still better than him at the moment in both mentally and technically for a defender.

We need someone who can step up to lead our defense and Keane is the worse solution than what we are currently have right now. He's young and got some potential but at the moment I don't think he's ready for the next level.
 
I think if he was still here jose might keep him, but i cant see him going out and signing him. Hes just a decent playerm.
 
Lukaku bullied him for that third goal. It's not the first time that's happened to him.

I wouldn't get rid of Smalling or Jones for him.
 
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