You know the hype this lad would be getting off the press if he picked England instead of Scotland?
Good thing he didn't then
You know the hype this lad would be getting off the press if he picked England instead of Scotland?
You know the hype this lad would be getting off the press if he picked England instead of Scotland?
Wonder if he regrets his decision now considering a) how well he's doing and b) Englands lack of deep midfield options.
Or "summer" as its called in Manchester.McLeish made his way to Carrington during the middle of the beast from the east storm.
It was our 80m signing but you are totally right it was a really poor choice of passes from our CB.Stats don't tell the whole picture. You can play safe all game and have a 95% passing accuracy like Cleverley used too, but you go nowhere so whats the point? both he and Fred were forcing passes and trying to drive us up the pitch.
He did lose the ball once in midfield that I can remember, mainly from an awful pass from Lindelof that put him under pressure.
For the fact he's only trained for a few days, I was very, very happy with his performance. I think you're being massively picky and judgemental.
We're probably talking a different part. Lindelof laid the ball off to him but under hit it really softly, so by the time it got to him he turned then Eriksen nipped it off him.It was our 80m signing but you are totally right it was a really poor choice of passes from our CB.
I am so happy for the lad after all the grief our fan base has given him over the past few seasons. Patience is scarce commodity amongst football fans
Wonder what Roy Keane thinks of him?
I loved how he seemed to start a fight with Kane, Alli and Gazzinigga in one match he just doesn't back down to anybody.
Did anybody else notice Alli tripped him up off the ball when Mctominay was running back to cover? sly little bastard. He did well to keep his cool.
Their Gk was just a twat, trying to hurt his ankle.
Btw McT vs Kane
You're absolutely right (backed up by the stats) but some won't want to hear it because they already formed their opinions on him and it will look bad on them to go back on it. I would also argue the price tag make a huge difference when analyzing the performance.Fred carried him yesterday. Weird to see all this praise
You're absolutely right (backed up by the stats) but some won't want to hear it because they already formed their opinions on him and it will look bad on them to go back on it. I would also argue the price tag make a huge difference when analyzing the performance.
Yes probably, and I fully agree with you on our CB's.We're probably talking a different part. Lindelof laid the ball off to him but under hit it really softly, so by the time it got to him he turned then Eriksen nipped it off him.
Tbh both he and Maguire were shite on the ball last night. Genuinely no different than Smalling was.
Scottish McSauce
Bizarre. He absolutely was not carried by Fred if you actually watch the game instead of relying on stats.You're absolutely right (backed up by the stats) but some won't want to hear it because they already formed their opinions on him and it will look bad on them to go back on it. I would also argue the price tag make a huge difference when analyzing the performance.
I prefer McDominate.
I do agree somewhat, but I also think it's important to note how much McTominay has already improved in the last 12 months. Up until about March he'd regularly have great matches against top sides where he didn't have to do anything except harass and defend, but he pretty much never provided anything against lower teams that we were expected to beat. Then suddenly in the last couple of months of last season he started showing a significant improvement on the ball in terms of passing, touch and also driving the ball forward himself. There was a small period earlier this season where he seemed to go back into his shell, but overall he's continued showing that improved ability most of this season so far.He already has a very good shot on him. That said, with the ‘agenda’ accusations, I was reading all the glee over the last couple of pages afraid of being the one to raise the concern about the fact that he can’t pass a fecking ball anywhere near well enough. Thankfully a couple of others have mentioned it now. In all this unbridled praise, I’m here scratching my head that it doesn’t seem to bother people how often he gives the ball away. Reading the match day thread, I saw it mentioned throughout the game, and then came in here and the summary is ‘Roy Keane’s back’.
To me, he does a lot of things very well, but he isn’t good enough on the ball. My concern with the midfield is that we seem to be a ‘stop the other team playing’ midfield, even at our very best. A good performance is how often we broke up the play and all that stuff, and has been that way for a few years now, especially against the better teams. I think at our stature, we need to start moving towards controlling possession ourselves. I still see our midfield unable to make a lot of passes that would make the difference, and just the general play one-touch triangles etc. The emphasis on tackling, chasing, blocking and pressing is a bit too much for my liking.
Yeah - McTominays passing is actually very Keane-esque.
I feel a lot of people on the caf may never have seen Keane play in the flesh so your comparison has made me think . Keane did indeed drive a lot of forward passes through the lines the way Scott McTominay does.
They might have complained that Roy Keanes passing was poor too - because sometimes it was. I can’t really think of too many occasions where Keane directly -made- a goal, he had 33 assists in well over 300 games. But he always fizzed the ball in to the strikers or out wide and got things moving whenever he could - it was more the impetus he gave us and if you watch old Man Utd games it’s plain to see.
I’m extremely excited by McTominays continuing improvement. Scotland with him and McGinn will have one -hell- of a midfield. Man Utd look good with him and Fred even
Still think we need to sign someone to play next to him as I see Pogba getting sold.
I agree. It's not always what he does, but the impact he has on the team's performance.The point in bold is a good one, I feel. We’ve been missing someone who, with a firm pass, can indicate that it’s time for some quick combination play.
I do agree somewhat, but I also think it's important to note how much McTominay has already improved in the last 12 months. Up until about March he'd regularly have great matches against top sides where he didn't have to do anything except harass and defend, but he pretty much never provided anything against lower teams that we were expected to beat. Then suddenly in the last couple of months of last season he started showing a significant improvement on the ball in terms of passing, touch and also driving the ball forward himself. There was a small period earlier this season where he seemed to go back into his shell, but overall he's continued showing that improved ability most of this season so far.
Of course the big question is - how much further can he improve? RIght now I'd say he's at or close to an 'acceptable' level most of the time, but hopefully he can continue improving and turn it into an actual strength.
Fair enough. Personally, I think his passing is consistently at the same level, which isn’t very good. I’m not sure what the stats say, but I imagine the percentage isn’t very high.
I am warming to him for sure, but objectively speaking, I think the praise being lavished on him is extremely excessive. But I appreciate that from all corners, I am becoming something of a lone voice in that respect. Sometimes I wish some of us could watch the same game together, rather than me seeming like a ‘McTominay hater’, because it really isn’t making much sense to me. Like, I think Fred has easily been better than him this season, but the consensus seems very different. I watch games where I see him give the ball away a lot and genuinely think ‘I hope people are not too hard on him’, only to come into his thread and see a chorus of ‘amazing, future captain’ etc.
My main concern is what him as a mainstay means for the unit - the midfield trio. I think to control possession you need players of a technically high level in tandem. Having a class number 10 is only half the story unless he has an 8 who he can bounce off and play his triangles with.
Now I’ll talk about what I do like. He has great energy for a start, so him and Fred in there together makes us an uncomfortable team to play through. He has a good shot on him as I mentioned before, and I see him as a player with a goal threat. He has a good attitude to the game, and a physical presence. Ultimately, I see him as a more modern and useful version of Fellaini for us. He will get goals, he has nuisance factor, and crucially, more energy than Fellaini. But he is not a ‘world class talent’ or ‘could walk into most starting XIs’ as I’ve seen, which isn’t a criticism. He could never play for a Pep team, for example, as he cannot pass a ball to a high enough level. This is a fact, not a point of ‘hatred’, his passing and use of the ball is consistently not good enough.
I think we could theoretically have a midfield with him doing a ‘bit of everything’, Pogba doing some creating, and Fred doing the shielding, and while that is the best we can hope for now, and a layman view is that their qualities compliment each other - I don’t think it’s the best unit. For me, a great midfield needs at least two very good passers, as the notion of having just Pogba to create doesn’t really work. Especially when we don’t even have full backs who are very good on the ball, Pogba can’t just get the ball and ‘create’ - before the killer ball, he needs people to play with, in all areas. Ultimately, I’d like a midfielder better on the ball than Scott, but with a similar energy. I think Sean Longstaff was identified as this player, and he is an example who has the technical ability for him and a good 10 to bring the best out of each other.
My main concern is what him as a mainstay means for the unit - the midfield trio. I think to control possession you need players of a technically high level in tandem. Having a class number 10 is only half the story unless he has an 8 who he can bounce off and play his triangles with.
Now I’ll talk about what I do like. He has great energy for a start, so him and Fred in there together makes us an uncomfortable team to play through. He has a good shot on him as I mentioned before, and I see him as a player with a goal threat. He has a good attitude to the game, and a physical presence. Ultimately, I see him as a more modern and useful version of Fellaini for us. He will get goals, he has nuisance factor, and crucially, more energy than Fellaini. But he is not a ‘world class talent’ or ‘could walk into most starting XIs’ as I’ve seen, which isn’t a criticism. He could never play for a Pep team, for example, as he cannot pass a ball to a high enough level. This is a fact, not a point of ‘hatred’, his passing and use of the ball is consistently not good enough.
I think we could theoretically have a midfield with him doing a ‘bit of everything’, Pogba doing some creating, and Fred doing the shielding, and while that is the best we can hope for now, and a layman view is that their qualities compliment each other - I don’t think it’s the best unit. For me, a great midfield needs at least two very good passers, as the notion of having just Pogba to create doesn’t really work. Especially when we don’t even have full backs who are very good on the ball, Pogba can’t just get the ball and ‘create’ - before the killer ball, he needs people to play with, in all areas. Ultimately, I’d like a midfielder better on the ball than Scott, but with a similar energy. I think Sean Longstaff was identified as this player, and he is an example who has the technical ability for him and a good 10 to bring the best out of each other.