[hubbuh]

I'm increasingly at a loss as to what sort of player he is, I must admit. Quite often he appears quite passive in games and I'm never entirely sure what he sees himself as. With Fred, you know he's a hustling, bustling little tyke that is dodgy at times but means well. With McTominay, that aggressive spark too often goes missing and he sort of fades into nothingness. What sort of player is he? He's surely not a box to box, and he sure as shit isn't a DM. He's very easy to cut through and he often isn't available for a pass. I really think he needs time out on the bench to see how the position is played by a proper, assured midfielder. He's still got learning to do.

 

[Aouer-United]

Mctominay is fecking shit. I could not believe my own eye that Ole moved Mctominay to CB which cost us 4th goals, I know it was mostly on Matic but Mctominay should have done better with marking Salah tightly like all top CB do instead of letting him have all space in the world he can run.

If Mctominay and Fred start next season as the first choice, I'm Ole out, we won't improve ourselves with them

 

[amolbhatia50k]

The problem we have with McTominay, is that he is Fergie's 'golden lad' in the team.

Fergie convinced McTominay to represent Scotland and not England. That kind of loyalty is gold to Fergie.

There is no way that Solskjaer removes McTominay from the first team - because of his relationship with Fergie.

We are stuck with McTominay whether we like it or not.
So it is something that we may as well get used to.

Yup. Adding to my deadwood thread. We will suffer from having unecessary favouritism and sacrificing on quality. Can see Mctominay as a prime example of that potentially being the case. He's seen as some golden boy, something used to be reserved for the likes of Rooney. Proper talents.

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

He only had a 66% passing accuracy tonight and lost possession 12 times. The experiment of playing him as a midfielder needs to stop.

Fixed for you.

Doesn't matter where he plays in midfield. He's nowhere near good enough on the ball if we want to win big trophies.

 

[Eternitiy]

I never thought I would say this, but I genuinely miss Andreas Pereira. At least he could pass a football.

 

[Adisa]

He has some good attributes but he's generally awful in possession. Should not be a XI player.

 

[NinjaZombie]

We should look at them all and think "we need better starters"

Yeah but I'm not holding my breath on transfers this summer, especially in midfield position. A RW, a CF and a CB are needed more, plus there are no standout players in those positions in the Academy who could be ready to make the step up.

Even Garner making the step up is a stretch, but he's got the best chance because of how poor Fred and McTominay are at their jobs.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Yeah but I'm not holding my breath on transfers this summer, especially in midfield position. A RW, a CF and a CB are needed more, plus there are no standout players in those positions in the Academy who could be ready to make the step up.

Even Garner making the step up is a stretch, but he's got the best chance because of how poor Fred and McTominay are at their jobs.

RW yes. CF no. We aren't signing one. Garner needs to develop

 

[Zen86]

McT is a good player and certainly has a place in the team. Some of the criticism of him is way over the top. That said, he has struggled at times since coming back from injury. Yesterday was the worst performance I've seen from him.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

McT is a good player and certainly has a place in the team. Some of the criticism of him is way over the top. That said, he has struggled at times since coming back from injury. Yesterday was the worst performance I've seen from him.

He deserves some criticism for not having learnt to pass yet.

 

[Jeppers7]

For all the talk of how poor he is on the ball....he’s worse off it. Defensively he’s absolutely terrible. He’s positionally poor, he leaves channels you could drive a bus through, he lets runners go all game, he gets sucked into the ball at terrible times and leaves space in behind him. He’s woeful defensively.

 

[jamesjimmybyrondean]

Try Tuanzebe in his position. Honestly can't be worse

 

[Bobcat]

Is it fatigue? We know his passing and technical ability is not at the level we would want, but lately it seems hes just drifting through games and you only notice him when he makes a clumsy challenge or a bad pass.

I tried to keep an eye on him last night when we had the ball and his positioning was simply awful. He would constantly wander into zones where he was surrounded by Liverpool players and thus marking himself out of the game.

Combined with the tendancy (which he shares with Fred) to treat the ball like a hot potato and just do a panicky short pass to a marked team mate when he gets the ball it completely disrupts the flow of our build up play

 

[Desert Eagle]

Is it fatigue? We know his passing and technical ability is not at the level we would want, but lately it seems hes just drifting through games and you only notice him when he makes a clumsy challenge or a bad pass.

I tried to keep an eye on him last night when we had the ball and his positioning was simply awful. He would constantly wander into zones where he was surrounded by Liverpool players and thus marking himself out of the game.

Combined with the tendancy (which he shares with Fred) to treat the ball like a hot potato and just do a panicky short pass to a marked team mate when he gets the ball it completely disrupts the flow of our build up play

He does this all the time. It's simply hiding because you don't want to feck up. Anybody who has quality n determination wants the ball to make things happen.

 

[NinjaZombie]

RW yes. CF no. We aren't signing one. Garner needs to develop

Well, we sure as hell are not signing a midfielder. Best we can hope for is VDB comes good. I've given up on Fred improving. McTominay might still come good but I'm close to giving up on him as well.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Well, we sure as hell are not signing a midfielder. Best we can hope for is VDB comes good. I've given up on Fred improving. McTominay might still come good but I'm close to giving up on him as well.

Were fecked if VDB is our hope. Where's Laim Miller when you need him?

 

[amolbhatia50k]

He does this all the time. It's simply hiding because you don't want to feck up. Anybody who has quality n determination wants the ball to make things happen.

He knows he's limited. Comes across as a CB sometimes whose trying to play midfield. He has to realise his weaknesses and hence can't show for the ball as much

 

[Desert Eagle]

He knows he's limited. Comes across as a CB sometimes whose trying to play midfield. He has to realise his weaknesses and hence can't show for the ball as much

I don't see the CB thing personally. Someone earlier said Darren Gibson and I think that's an apt comparison. Gibson had a bit more quality on the ball but less endeavor and arguably less football iq. He'd be a very good championship player and even a low half Premier League team could use his 5/6 goals a season but for united he's not even close to good enough.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

I don't see the CB thing personally. Someone earlier said Darren Gibson and I think that's an apt comparison. Gibson had a bit more quality on the ball but less endeavor and arguably less football iq. He'd be a very good championship player and even a low half Premier League team could use his 5/6 goals a season but for united he's not even close to good enough.

Gibson is a decent comparison. I think Mctominay is better though. He can show better feet and is physically more dominant. By CB I just mean that he's not got the qualities you'd expect from a midfielder in terms of passing range, pass and move, and just being a natural CM. Looks like he's been put together mechanically to play there but some things just didn't come off - like his complete inability to pass the football.

 

[Siorac]

Where's Laim Miller when you need him?

I'm not sure how to break this to you...

 

[amolbhatia50k]

I'm not sure how to break this to you...

Shit I didn't realise

 

[Bebestation]

I’m happy with mctominay as our squad player.

ole isn’t at a built club level yet, he is still rebuilding a dead club bit by bit and I can be patient as long as there is progress. Next year mctominnay should be on the subs for example.

 

[gajender]

Try Tuanzebe in his position. Honestly can't be worse

Oh you'll be surprised.

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

Is it fatigue? We know his passing and technical ability is not at the level we would want, but lately it seems hes just drifting through games and you only notice him when he makes a clumsy challenge or a bad pass.

I tried to keep an eye on him last night when we had the ball and his positioning was simply awful. He would constantly wander into zones where he was surrounded by Liverpool players and thus marking himself out of the game.

Combined with the tendancy (which he shares with Fred) to treat the ball like a hot potato and just do a panicky short pass to a marked team mate when he gets the ball it completely disrupts the flow of our build up play

He does this a lot.

He hides from the ball.

 

[Doracle]

I always find it odd when people criticise his passing. I think he tends to display a lot more range than Fred - some of his first time switches of play are excellent. As has been said, he does seem to have spells when he doesn’t get on the ball enough though.

He’s obviously a good Premier League player though - even if we’d ideally have someone better.

 

[Champ]

Is it fatigue? We know his passing and technical ability is not at the level we would want, but lately it seems hes just drifting through games and you only notice him when he makes a clumsy challenge or a bad pass.

I tried to keep an eye on him last night when we had the ball and his positioning was simply awful. He would constantly wander into zones where he was surrounded by Liverpool players and thus marking himself out of the game.

Combined with the tendancy (which he shares with Fred) to treat the ball like a hot potato and just do a panicky short pass to a marked team mate when he gets the ball it completely disrupts the flow of our build up play

It's confidence.

It's deserted him when we need a confident midfield the most.

I don't think he is comfortable recieving the ball in tight areas, which is where our deep lying midfielders tend to receive the ball the way we play out from the back.

It seems to be a fear of fecking up that is prohibiting him and affecting his confidence.

 

[Schmeichel's Cartwheel]

His biggest issue is we can’t find a position for him. He’s not creative enough to play further up the pitch but he’s not good enough defensively to play DM. You can’t play centre mid for United if you can’t pass or control a football.

I think his best role would be as the most advanced midfielder, driving into the box. He has an eye for goal, a good strike, a good engine, good work rate & is a target for crosses. I think he could be a good player in a midtable team. Think a modern day Kevin Nolan.

He’s not a DM. Never in a million years.

 

[L1nk]

I was on here months ago saying he wasn't good enough, that he's just an average player and he's only here because he's an academy player. Yet people here, one in particular, were trying to convince me he's a cornerstone piece of our eventual Title and Champions League winning team in the next season or two.

He has passion, that's it, he's god awful and wouldn't start in midfield for any team that calls themselves a big team.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

His biggest issue is we can’t find a position for him. He’s not creative enough to play further up the pitch but he’s not good enough defensively to play DM. You can’t play centre mid for United if you can’t pass or control a football.

I think his best role would be as the most advanced midfielder, driving into the box. He has an eye for goal, a good strike, a good engine, good work rate & is a target for crosses. I think he could be a good player in a midtable team. Think a modern day Kevin Nolan.

He’s not a DM. Never in a million years.

His biggest problem is his inability to pass the ball consistently and accurately. I hope he can get his shit together regards passing at some point. Because he does a lot of other good things. But he’ll never be much cop in central midfield so long as he keeps misplacing passes as frequently as he has this season.

Does anyone know his % pass completion for the season?

 

[Pogue Mahone]

I always find it odd when people criticise his passing. I think he tends to display a lot more range than Fred - some of his first time switches of play are excellent. As has been said, he does seem to have spells when he doesn’t get on the ball enough though.

He’s obviously a good Premier League player though - even if we’d ideally have someone better.

He hits more long range passes than Fred but Fred is streets ahead of him when it comes to passing between the lines. And much more two-footed too. And god knows, Fred has his own issues when it comes to being consistent and accurate with his passes!

 

[NK86]

His biggest problem is his inability to pass the ball consistently and accurately. I hope he can get his shit together regards passing at some point. Because he does a lot of other good things. But he’ll never be much cop in central midfield so long as he keeps misplacing passes as frequently as he has this season.

Does anyone know his % pass completion for the season?

It's his ability to retain possession under even the slightest press which is the biggest concern. If he had a half decent ability to control a football under pressure, he would do much better. His passing, with time om hand, is a million times better than Fred who consistently gives the ball away with no opposition player around him. That pass to Rashford in the second half which found TAA, who didn't even have to move, was so shambolic. And he keeps doing that almost every game.

 

[Schmeichel's Cartwheel]

I was on here months ago saying he wasn't good enough, that he's just an average player and he's only here because he's an academy player. Yet people here, one in particular, were trying to convince me he's a cornerstone piece of our eventual Title and Champions League winning team in the next season or two.

He has passion, that's it, he's god awful and wouldn't start in midfield for any team that calls themselves a big team.

City would’ve shipped him out years ago to be honest. We should probably be a bit more ruthless with our younger players. Look at Brewster at Liverpool, they identified he wasn’t good enough & shipped him while they could still get great money. If that was United he’d still be here 3 years from now “needing a loan” We had the chance to sell Williams to Leverkusen & Southampton in the summer with a buy back & refused. It’s mind boggling. Now his value has probably halved.

McTominay isn’t good enough to be getting the minutes he gets for Manchester United. I’m sorry but it’s just facts. If he gets similar minutes next season we will not be in a title race.

 

[slored1]

I like Scott. He is a very valuable squad player, has a good shot on him, high energy and the ability to sometimes dominate the midfield (if he is confident). However, having both him and Fred in a team really limits our ability to control a game, because both lack composure, cannot pass under high pressure and are too naive defensively. If we go into next season playing them two as the first choice CM pairing, we will get rinsed again and not win the title.

A good playmaker from deep is essential, but I don't know who is good enough to take this spot. Maybe someone like Saul, Zakaria or Rice, but not sure about any of them. A big, big summer ahead for us.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

It's his ability to retain possession under even the slightest press which is the biggest concern. If he had a half decent ability to control a football under pressure, he would do much better. His passing, with time om hand, is a million times better than Fred who consistently gives the ball away with no opposition player around him. That pass to Rashford in the second half which found TAA, who didn't even have to move, was so shambolic. And he keeps doing that almost every game.

Fred’s got a different problem to McT. He’s well capable of passing the ball very well. Off both feet. Crisply and accurately. When he has a good game he does this consistently for 90 minutes. Which we’ve seen many times this season.

However, he has this habit of occasionally playing a bizarrely terrible pass for no obvious reason. In previous seasons this was always followed by a complete loss of confidence and an anonymous/shit performance. This season he’s less likely to crumble completely (we’re more likely to see a shit first half, followed by a good second half) but those bizarrely terrible passes are still an issue.

 

[FrankDrebin]

He's reached his ceiling with us, I think.
If we can get over 15 million for him it'll be great business.

We really should take more advantage of moving on our so-so players, especially ones who've come through, like Liverpool.

 

[Rozay]

These days I read this thread (and the Williams one) and have flashbacks to the pages of arguments I had in the past.

Naturally, we look at the good and leave the rest with our young players. Anything we don’t like can be dismissed as youth, and the improvement in such areas are treated as certainties and foregone conclusions.

Objectively, anyone who has watched McTominay grow up at Manchester United from a teenager would probably say that he’s never appeared to be a top class midfielder in the making. If he were shipped out at 19/20 like the likes of Max Taylor, Puigmal and others are being at the moment, there would have been not a single complaint from anyone. Once he crossed the line as a senior pro, all the emotion kicked in. James Garner has ALWAYS looked a too class midfielder in the making, and even he may not make it. With Scott, it was never really there IMO.

As a lad, I like him a lot. There’s a lot to like. Great attitude, and other more heralded midfielders like Pogba have let us down at times with either performance or availability, and Scott has always been there ready to give his best. But I don’t see his level as better than many across the lower levels of the PL. Midfield is too important an area of a football pitch to sacrifice to averageness. We need to sort that part of our team out urgently. Find a system that works and find the qualities that fit. If it is going to be two box to box midfielders, then major surgery is required, not just on McFred - but even on the likes of Pogba who is clearly best suited to a different role.

 

[Garethw]

The problem we have with McTominay, is that he is Fergie's 'golden lad' in the team.

Fergie convinced McTominay to represent Scotland and not England. That kind of loyalty is gold to Fergie.

There is no way that Solskjaer removes McTominay from the first team - because of his relationship with Fergie.

We are stuck with McTominay whether we like it or not.
So it is something that we may as well get used to.

Ole needs to grow some balls then.

SAF is not the manager and who starts and who doesn’t is unfortunately nothing to do with him any more.

You don’t select a shit player week after week because you are worried about upsetting the old boss if you drop him.

 

[Shane88]

A complete clutz of a player.

Occasionally the middle of the field will open up and he'll stride forward and you'll be fooled, for a second, into thinking "He could be good..." and then he'll give the ball away.

The incident where he fell into the back of Mane and should've been sent off (the ref probably pitied him) said everything about him as a player. I just laughed when it happened.

 

[Stacks]

chickens have come home to roost. I am not gloating as I do enjoy it when he scores and his goals give him a use in the squad but fact is CM is too vital to carry the likes of him and Fred. he is very ordidary but could start for someone like Palace or maybe even Villa. For Utd its madness. He does have some occasional top games where is elevated above Fletcher and compared to prime Keane but I realise this is a forum. Deffo a 6/10 player who occasionally pumps an 8/10 performance but also drops 4's and 5's too.

 

[FrankDrebin]

But what are his strengths and are his strengths up there with the best in Europe ?