Cant believe hargos back soon..........Thats all ive got.
Owen Hargreaves | 2010/11 Performances
- Thread starter SharkyMcShark
- Start date
- Status
How dare you continue with this constant gushing?
I don't see the problem with people remembering fondly Owen Hargreaves performances in a double winning season. So what if we're overrating them slightly.
Who knows what part he could have to play in the future but what is the point in arguing over how good he was in the past.
Personally, i dont think we've ever seen him at United at his best, but theres no doubt from his time with Bayern and his 42 caps for England that at his best, he's a very good player who could have a big impact at this club if he gets back to 100% fit.
Who knows what part he could have to play in the future but what is the point in arguing over how good he was in the past.
Personally, i dont think we've ever seen him at United at his best, but theres no doubt from his time with Bayern and his 42 caps for England that at his best, he's a very good player who could have a big impact at this club if he gets back to 100% fit.
Bad analogy because Ole was never the same player after the injury. Even 06/07 he was injured towards the end of the season and had to retire the next season. But in Ole's case it was a bonus because at the time he was a backup striker. If Hargreaves' has trouble getting back to his level he will struggle here since he is expected to play in big games.
Hargreaves, in full fitness and in form, is an extremely good player. If we get him back, he will make a huge difference. It's a big if obviously, but this seems to be the best chance we've had.
That's rubbish mate. He was very useful in the run in, as Carrick dropped off a bit.
Spot on.
Especially the bit about the introduction of Tevez and Anderson against Arsenal. We were getting the runaround in midfield until those two came on.
I think people underestimate the impact he had in our first season, i recall a time where Scholes and Carrick were considered our back-up midfield pairing behind Anderson and OH, during Scholes/Carricks injury both those players put in good performances against top level opposition, we also played some good stuff along the way. But for some reason those performances have been discredited because we didnt batter the team 7 nil or those performances werent as good as we remember - well i thought they played very well and it was because of that period i really believed that squad was going to win it all.
The only time where i thought OH was having a bad time was once he returned from his mid-season injury and he looked a shadow of the player i saw against City or Liverpool. That said hes still a great player to have, in the UCL final people always say "oh he played on the right so he cant be a good DMF" but to my knowlegde we played a 442 on the break but a 451 when we would defend OH would move back into the middle and we'd see Tevez or Ronaldo or Rooney (which ever 2 where on the wings) track back. Because he can offer us more than just protecting the back four he has a good cross on him that we can use
Also against Asnl i dont think they were giving us a run about in midfield, i actually recall the game quite well and it was a scrappy game but they werent out playing us. OH did what his job was and denied them space to play in front of the defence and he did that job pretty well - just like he did at the away game earlier that season
The only time where i thought OH was having a bad time was once he returned from his mid-season injury and he looked a shadow of the player i saw against City or Liverpool. That said hes still a great player to have, in the UCL final people always say "oh he played on the right so he cant be a good DMF" but to my knowlegde we played a 442 on the break but a 451 when we would defend OH would move back into the middle and we'd see Tevez or Ronaldo or Rooney (which ever 2 where on the wings) track back. Because he can offer us more than just protecting the back four he has a good cross on him that we can use
Also against Asnl i dont think they were giving us a run about in midfield, i actually recall the game quite well and it was a scrappy game but they werent out playing us. OH did what his job was and denied them space to play in front of the defence and he did that job pretty well - just like he did at the away game earlier that season
I remember us outplaying Arsenal at the Emirates the previous season, yet losing to them in the end, with Scholes and Carrick in the center. The" smash and grab" worked pretty well for us that season, at Emirates, Anfield and the Nou Camp. Hargreaves played a big role in each of those games.
Thank feck.
We really need someone in the side to take a decent fecking set piece.
And I trust Hargreaves more at the spot than Rooney even though Rooney has gotten much better at them
We really need someone in the side to take a decent fecking set piece.
And I trust Hargreaves more at the spot than Rooney even though Rooney has gotten much better at them
Deliberately conceding the midfield battle would be a terrible tactic. We won most of those games you mention despite our central midfielders, rather than because of them.
At the Emirates in 2007/08 we ended up giving away a last minute equaliser. Not exactly a great endorsement. And the 1-0 win at Anfield was no more smash and grab than O'Shea's 1-0 the previous season. And at Camp Nou Hargo played at right back. He did a good job, but to call it a big role in the uletra defensive way we played that night would be an exaggeration.
Wigan - Came on as sub.
West Ham - right back.
Barca home - right back.
Chelsea - Early sub, played at the back.
Barca away - right back,
Blackburn - Didn't play.
Arsenal - He played, don't remember if it was on the right or the center.
Roma home - Played on the right wing.
Boro - Sub for O'Shea.
Roma away - Sub for Anderson.
Basically, there seems to be very little connection between him and Carrrick. Like I said originally, he WAS useful. But let's not make him one of the stars of that season. He wasn't, and during the run in he seemed to play at right back most of the time. Did a fine job at it as well.
I dont think you give him enough credit, against Barca/WH/Chelsea/Roma/Boro we had a few defensive injuries at that point of the season which forced him to play at the back as we had no one better and for the Roma and Chelsea games we more or less put out a lot of back up players because the Roma tie was won and against Chelsea we rested a few players for the Barca game.
In fact i believe it was because he did so well against Chelsea he played RB vs Barca as we previously used Fletcher in that position
In fact i believe it was because he did so well against Chelsea he played RB vs Barca as we previously used Fletcher in that position
You didn't outplay us. Carrick should have got a early yellow for taking out Diaby. And Vidic should have given away a pen and been off.
The Chelsea game was sandwitched between the two clashes with Barcelona, and he played right back in both. So his performance against Chelsea was not what sealed his spot at RB against Barca, as he started there in Spain even before we faced Chelsea.
I am giving him enough credit. He did a job, and he did it well. He was a useful player, no less, but nothing more either. Some people here are making him one of the stars of 2007/08, someone who made a big difference to our midfield. He wasn't, he didn't.
Might be my mistake then, but i do remember a defensive problem at the time because i thought that was going to reck our chances in europe for another season.
And for the record i agree, he was a important part of the squad (not the first team as he was injuried for a fair bit), however, i do believe when he was called upon he did a great job and the time he was paired with Anderson we won a lot of games and you could say that kept us in reach of the title. But there are a few posters here that seem to discredit everything the lad did because he played RB a few games (this was during a time we were short of numbers at the back i am 100% sure of this) or that he played on the right wing for a few games (again i said it in a previous post but we used him similar to how we used Fletcher vs Tottenham last season, on the wing when we attacked but would tuck central when we defended)
There were obviously some problems. Vidic missed both Barcelona matches. so Wes moved inside and Hargo took his spot on the right. We could have played O'Shea, really, but there's no question Hargreaves is better.
He did a good job, he made a difference and that is enough. I just think it was more of a squad player contribution rather than a vital first team member.
During that season you could say that about any of our midfielders then, Carrick/Scholes/Anderson/OH all missed large chunks of it through injury or form issues.
I still think that with him we finally have that DMF type player who would protect the back four, right now you always see a single pass that exploits the hole between midfield and defence, with him lurking about that should be cut out a lot more and in the "bigger" games it will provide a great service.
I still think that with him we finally have that DMF type player who would protect the back four, right now you always see a single pass that exploits the hole between midfield and defence, with him lurking about that should be cut out a lot more and in the "bigger" games it will provide a great service.
Thats more of a Carrick feature than a Hargreaves feature. Or it was when Carrick used to play deep with Scholes attacking beside him.
Hargreaves doesnt sit in front of the defence, he plays more like Fletcher closing people down on the half way line and being combative.
To provide an example, a match where Owen Hargreaves played in central midfield and helped us to a good result and is often talked about is when he was paired with Anderson against Liverpool away.
Even though our central midfield was deep and didnt have or do a lot with the ball, Owen Hargreaves made 0 interceptions that day. Because thats not really his game. He's not someone who sits and defends he's someone who chases the ball and tackles hard.
Not sure i can agree with that, Hargreaves himself in his debut season talked about how he tends to get carried away in Uniteds attacks because of all the attacking talent they have but he has to remember to sit back as thats what hes been brought up on. There was a article a while back where he said hes a holding midfielder.
Here it is BBC SPORT | Football | Owen Hargreaves column
Chasing down the ball, his drive in midfield are definately two things that were highlighted in his first season with us but i feel that was mainly because of the sides we would play and how his holding duties werent really required. But he is a DMF by trade and in the big games i saw for Bayern he would play there.
Here it is BBC SPORT | Football | Owen Hargreaves column
Chasing down the ball, his drive in midfield are definately two things that were highlighted in his first season with us but i feel that was mainly because of the sides we would play and how his holding duties werent really required. But he is a DMF by trade and in the big games i saw for Bayern he would play there.
I've missed our Curly Haired Warrior.
Let's hope this is the breakthrough we've all been waiting for. How unlucky can one player be? Surely he deserves a chance to get his career back on track.
Even so im trying to keep my expectations low for the time being. He needs to rediscover his abilities and trust his body to adjust to competitive football matches again. I want him to get some reserve games under his belt before he get's near the first team. Only then should he become a viable option to our team.
Let's hope this is the breakthrough we've all been waiting for. How unlucky can one player be? Surely he deserves a chance to get his career back on track.
Even so im trying to keep my expectations low for the time being. He needs to rediscover his abilities and trust his body to adjust to competitive football matches again. I want him to get some reserve games under his belt before he get's near the first team. Only then should he become a viable option to our team.
Well people would call Essien a defensive midfielder too but that doesnt mean that he's best sitting and cutting out passes in front of his own box. I'm not saying Hargreaves cant make an interception, just that the major thing he brings to the table in central midfield is getting into people and tackling them, not positioning himself to cut off threats. Thats something Carrick is better at.
In that same Liverpool match where Hargreaves made not a one interception, he made 11 successful tackles and 1 unsuccessful one. Thats what he's good for.
Spot on!
Refs have it in for l'arse don't they?...,.and the opposition all kick them
You'd think he'd be joking with their history
Owen will be 30 in January. I reckon he'll need an exceptional second half of the year to get another contract.
If he comes back playing at all and he is anyway decent, he will get a new contract. You think Fergie is going to dump a 16m+ player after a 2 year injury layoff just after he comes back? Not a hope.
Nonsense. He will get a contract if he comes back a good player and proves he can stay fit for more than half a season. Two big challenges for a player in Hargreaves' position.
Or if he's unable to do that he might perhaps be offered a pay as you play contract. But if you were Hargreaves would you even consider that kind of contract? That could easily go tits up for him.
Well, he should definitely accept it. He owes it to the club, considering he's probably getting full wages since he's been here.
Always wondered what the full percentages are to make full pay?
Players get win bonuses, appearance fees, trophy shares and perhaps still get goal payouts. Add on United additional payments for club events and marketing I wonder what Curly has actually been paid? Probaly more than 50% but doubt it's more than 75%. Just curious to see if there is a financial aspect to him playing again although I know players like him are not primarly motivated by money.
If he plays a couple of first team matches then he will be granted at least another 1 yr contract. I hope that he isn't an arse and ask for more.
Why? Playing a couple of first team matches doesnt mean he wont miss half that next year on his contract through injury. Its about staying fit and available for a long period and showing he's still up there as a player. If he cant do one of those, we are unlikely to renew.
If he is capable of playing a couple of first team matches AND remain fit till the end of his contract then SAF will definately consider giving him at least a 1 yr contract. We are talking here about an English international, who can play in multiple positions and should be at the peak of his career. Im sure that SAF will give him another try.
He's not going to be anywhere near a peak for a long time. Can you name a single player who came back from such a long time out and didnt take at least a season to get their sharpness and form back?
He's no longer an English international and even if he's fit and match fit now, it'll still take a long time till we see the best of him.
He played rightback three times, probably the same number of times O'Shea played in centremidfield that season.
Fergie apparently speaks very highly of Hargo, unlike some of the expert spazzers on here.
Why wouldnt he?
yay
he's back
he's back
He played rightback three times, probably the same number of times O'Shea played in centremidfield that season.
No problem. That was a reply to someone who talked about his importance during the run in that season when Carrick had a wobble. As he barely played in the center of midfield during those matches, it rather contradicts that statement. That's all.
- Status