Ish
Lights on for Luke
He is. Those giant strides sure helps as wellMatic is a good runner with the ball. He knows when to drive with it and when to release it
He is. Those giant strides sure helps as wellMatic is a good runner with the ball. He knows when to drive with it and when to release it
I agree. Mctominay has been tried in a more defensive position, and to be fair he doesn't have the knack of a DM type of player, spotting danger, watching runners, having a general awareness in the defensive third, similar to Fred. I think both would benefit from playing alongside a genuine defensive type of player, they could be more involved in the attacking part of the game, which is their strength. Matic gives them that little bit of protection, but he doesn't have the legs to play 90 minutes every game.We need a replacement for him. Scott isn't that and will never be.
A start?? Are McTom and Bruno injured? I hope, we don't have to deploy him against Atletico to be honest. Atletico will play just the same way as they did in the last match. If anything, they will be even more combatitive. I would be worried knowing that Matic is in there. At least as long as we are NOT trying to play a low block all game.Not great but necessary. Scott just can't screen a defense. Matic can and can also pass forward.
His problem is that a couple times a game he will get dispossessed or give it away due to being slow.
He's earned the start against Athletico.
We didn't concede the midfield. We played on the counter attack because we're a counterattacking team. We piss possession away and we drop back a lot instead of pressing.We completely conceded the midfield. It's very tough with Matic in there, he doesn't have the legs to get anywhere near his opposite number. He has this inclination to drop incredibly deep when we're in possession as well, to no tangible benefit as Varane and Maguire are capable of doing that job. It's a shame because he's still very tidy on the ball, he's definitely our most reliable over short and mid range passing and has a good touch but time has caught up with him.
Whether he's better than McTominay in this role is kind of hard to identify. You certainly gain something but it's not as if Matic has ever been this stout defensive force, he's always been more of a deep passer, and someone who could carry it forward in his younger days. Now you're left with some passing, yes, but losing McT's energy etc isn't nothing.
We played on the counterattack, mainly because we had none of the ball so what else are we going to do? If you can't keep the ball or win it you're left with countering once the opposition feck things up.We didn't concede the midfield. We played on the counter attack because we're a counterattacking team. We piss possession away and we drop back a lot instead of pressing.
Our midfield was the most organized it's been this season due to the fact that we played the midfielders in their best position.
Struggled in there today, looked like he was running in mud, Fred had to drop behind him at times to try and plug the gaps.
Yeah I fully agree on that. Stating that "dropping deep was the plan all along and look how great it turned out" is a legitimate reasoning but for me too not the most convincing one. If dropping deep was the plan, why didn't we play AWB for example. He is great in defending most of the time, why risk it with Dalot if the intention all along was stay deep and hit on the counter.We played on the counterattack, mainly because we had none of the ball so what else are we going to do? If you can't keep the ball or win it you're left with countering once the opposition feck things up.
To me dropping back and dropping off opposition players is conceding the midfield, it is saying we can't be arsed or are incapable of competing to win the ball back. Whether it was all part of the strategy or not is neither here nor there, we conceded the midfield. Which I guess is inevitable with Matic and Pogba.
His passing and assuredness on the ball really sets him apart
His passing and assuredness on the ball really sets him apart
Yep, like when he lost the possession three times in dangerous areas to set up a counter. One great pass won't save his screaming deficiencies and that is zero defensive contribution, not tracking back, careless passing, plus the forever waiting on the ball to release it to slow our game down massively.
He shouldn't be playing in the premier league let alone for us, yet some people come up with how good his passing is when he's so far away from being good enough in other parts important to play football, sums up football forum really.
From the rest of our midfielders for sure. It’s funny because when I watch other top midfielders, like Modrić in midweek, I always have to readjust my brain for how quickly they are able to pass through the lines instead of just going sideways to the full back. Like “oh yeah, that’s what a midfielder is supposed to do”.
United posted a video of Berba’s goal against Spurs, which featured a first time ball from Carrick. And to think he used to get shit for passing sideways until his last few years.
I always thought this. It’s such a widely projected idea that he can only play once per week or once every 2 weeks that you’d think he’s 50 years old or something.
I always thought this. It’s such a widely projected idea that he can only play once per week or once every 2 weeks that you’d think he’s 50 years old or something.
I always thought this. It’s such a widely projected idea that he can only play once per week or once every 2 weeks that you’d think he’s 50 years old or something.
I always thought this. It’s such a widely projected idea that he can only play once per week or once every 2 weeks that you’d think he’s 50 years old or something.
It's actually quite strange. In theory they have always been our most balanced midfield pairing, but in reality they've always struggled when paired together (I expect it probably has the worst win rate out of all our midfield pairings). They've had a couple of good appearances more recently though, so maybe it just needed Rangnick to tweek things with the pairing. In the past Matic would just fall back into the defence and Fred would then be in midfield by himself, whereas now Matic seems to be staying in the midfield more while Fred looks to push a bit further forward.After the display against Spurs I would love to see Matic and Fred play more together because they seem to complement each other very well.