[Litch]

I will never get the Rice is Mctominay thing.

Either they have not watched Mctominay or they have not watched Rice.

Mctominay is a solid box to box midfielder who is good enough as a squad player.

The guy is not positional in his awareness so can't make interceptions. That's why he isn't a CDM.

That's why he has been played with Fred and not with Pogba like Matic has mostly.

Fred has some brain fart moments and Matic they say is too old and slow. I'd argue play either with Scott or Pogs, you have a long night at CDM as neither are defensively aware. Last night we played both...

 

[Pogue Mahone]

Anyone have any stats about McT from last night? It feels like he was bizarrely peripheral for a player in a position where everything should go through him. Would be curious to see how many touches he had compared to, say, Capoue. One of a long list of mediocre CMs who would probably improve us.

 

[NotoriousISSY]

Anyone have any stats about McT from last night? It feels like he was bizarrely peripheral for a player in a position where everything should go through him. Would be curious to see how many touches he had compared to, say, Capoue. One of a long list of mediocre CMs who would probably improve us.

Think it was 51 touches and 43 passes. Parejo and Capoue approx 75 touches and 65 passes each.

He didn't seem to want to commit to being on the ball. Didn't help our cause, and was noticeable how the game changed when Matic came on, and I'm sure it would have been likewise if it was McTominay off instead of Pogba.

 

[Deery]

Didn’t think it was his best game last night, struggled to see really what he did at times but he can play much better than that and is still early in the season for him..

 

[Pogue Mahone]

Think it was 51 touches and 43 passes. Parejo and Capoue approx 75 touches and 65 passes each.

He didn't seem to want to commit to being on the ball. Didn't help our cause, and was noticeable how the game changed when Matic came on, and I'm sure it would have been likewise if it was McTominay off instead of Pogba.

Well there you go. And we had 55% of the possession too. Those stats are unforgivable in that context. I like Scott and am inclined to always defend him but I have no idea how to use him. It’s increasingly clear he’s just not capable of the absolute basics you need from a CM. Getting on the ball and passing it to a team mate. If he can’t even do that, what’s the point of him?

 

[Flax_Generous]

Well there you go. And we had 55% of the possession too. Those stats are unforgivable in that context. I like Scott and am inclined to always defend him but I have no idea how to use him. It’s increasingly clear he’s just not capable of the absolute basics you need from a CM. Getting on the ball and passing it to a team mate. If he can’t even do that, what’s the point of him?

Agreed.

Our center backs had the ball by far the most, but McTominay was rarely an outlet for them. Matic managed in 15 minutes to have 26 touches, half of what McTominay had in a full game. Really, really poor midfield performance.

 

[sugar_kane]

Seems to have the same problem Fred and Matic have in that they're either playing like beasts or utter trash, needs to work on his consistency.

 

[Escobar]

Needs to benched but will not happen

 

[Bestietom]

Fecking hell, our midfield is wide open now.. all our other combinations are far worse. Will VDB finally get a lookin with Matic or Fred ? Or are we getting Pogba back down there..

Good timing that we have the international break soon at least. Need another midfielder now imo.

We have needed a holding Playmaker Midfielder since Carrick retired, but we still haven't brought anyone in for this role.
McTominay is best at box to box.
Fred is too weak and pushed off the ball too easy along with his crazy passing
Matic is past his best and far too slow to cover ground.
Pogba just doesn't fit in as a holding midfielder.
Van de Beek is another box to box player who doesn't fit in here it seems.

The sooner we address this area the quicker we will start winning trophies again.

 

[VivaObertan]

McTominay seemed intent on not making himself available for the ball. It's a feature of his game that Solskjaer has failed to address it seems

We don't use him in build up because he doesn't find space to receive a pass.

We wouldn't use his pressing ability because he was playing a lone DM role

I understand he was in a lone DM role but McTominay has never had a problem dropping deep or becoming the 3rd CB in build-up the same way Matic does, so why would've that changed yesterday? It was absolutely tactical that Dalot remained narrow and Lindelof/Varane were the ones probing.

Ultimately (and I rarely say this) I think that Ole and the coaching team got their tactics wrong and most of our players suffered as a result.

 

[FromTheBench]

If we want to play with a 6 then we need to buy a 6 instead of pushing players who arent a 6 there.

We need a destroyer there as things stand with Pogba as 8.

 

[Desert Eagle]

I can forgive him not being elite but to hide from the ball the way he does is fecking criminal. Should never be a starter if we're serious about challenging.

 

[Longshanks]

Well there you go. And we had 55% of the possession too. Those stats are unforgivable in that context. I like Scott and am inclined to always defend him but I have no idea how to use him. It’s increasingly clear he’s just not capable of the absolute basics you need from a CM. Getting on the ball and passing it to a team mate. If he can’t even do that, what’s the point of him?

He was bypassed alot, we played alot of balls from deep over the top or went out wide, very rarely used him to go through the middle.

When we did use him he was neat and tidy, kept it simple when he needed to and played a couple of nice forward balls when there was the opportunity.

He was showing for the ball all the time but was being ignored or bypassed. Pogba and fernandes were giving the ball away relentlessly putting us under pressure Mctom wasn't.

 

[rooney2009]

I don’t think Scot is match fit yet after his surgery but he was hiding from the ball yesterday which is criminal
I know people don’t rate Fred and Matic but they are always available to receiving the ball and they never hide away

 

[Augustus Gloop]

He was bypassed alot, we played alot of balls from deep over the top or went out wide, very rarely used him to go through the middle.

When we did use him he was neat and tidy, kept it simple when he needed to and played a couple of nice forward balls when there was the opportunity.

He was showing for the ball all the time but was being ignored or bypassed. Pogba and fernandes were giving the ball away relentlessly putting us under pressure Mctom wasn't.

Bang on assessment.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

I don’t think Scot is match fit yet after his surgery but he was hiding from the ball yesterday which is criminal
I know people don’t rate Fred and Matic but they are always available to receiving the ball and they never hide away

“Hiding” is a very harsh way to describe it. I just think his positional sense is terrible. Not sure of the best place to stand on the pitch, whether we have possession or not. Which is a terrible flaw in a central midfielder.

 

[nokoya]

Another type of Cleverly, doing good in one or two games and invisible for months. He is DM, but when we are under pressure he doesn't have any intention to keep himself close to the opposition and close down the ball or at least having an alert to get back into our box as quickly as possible. Maybe as others said, he is just back from injury and is not in full fitness.

 

[Strelok]

Imo the caf is a bit harsh on him. He was deployed as the sole DM in a very weird tactical system. And he's not even a DM. But he was our midfield yesterday. Tbh I feel a bit for him. Poor McT has to fend all by himself in the midfield, especially in a counter situation.

Our FBs defensive liability didn't help either. There were countless times they simply bypassed McT and found their wingers with a simple long ball. Had our FBs knew a bit how to position themselves so their forwards were marked out McT would have a little more time to deal with the situation.

Tbh I don't think there's any midfielder in the world could carry a midfield by himself alone unless he's the prime Makelele. Even Makelele couldn't if he had to shield for that back four.

When we're in possession all our attacking players suddenly turned into forwards and were generally very far from him. And he's no Pirlo or Scholes. Anyway at least he didn't lose the ball. Too much was expected from him yesterday and imo it's not entirely his fault that he had a bad game.

 

[Flax_Generous]

He was showing for the ball all the time but was being ignored or bypassed. Pogba and fernandes were giving the ball away relentlessly putting us under pressure Mctom wasn't.

That’s the thing: He actually wasn’t showing for the ball, which in turn forced the center backs to hit it long. He was way too often camped between Villarreal’s forwards, rarely able to receive the ball in space. Maybe because he expected them to press the center backs opening up space, maybe because he just lacks positional awareness, maybe because he was told for some impregnable reason to stay in that position by the coaches. Either way, it kinda looked like he was hiding. It was really strange.

 

[Idxomer]

His problem is he looks lost while playing deep whether we have the ball or not and he hasn't improved in that regard since Mourinho promoted him.

It does seem like the coaching staff believes he will turn into Carrick any day now considering how they keep playing him there.

 

[TMDaines]

“Hiding” is a very harsh way to describe it. I just think his positional sense is terrible. Not sure of the best place to stand on the pitch, whether we have possession or not. Which is a terrible flaw in a central midfielder.

I thought all three of the central midfielders had little idea where to position themselves, when to press and with whom they were responsible for engaging. McT wasn't familiar with what was being asked of him, Pogba got bypassed with fairly straight forward passes a number of times, and Bruno - with good intentions - was running about all over the place, which left gaps for the opposition to exploit, usually either side of Dalot. It's the first time we have really used this system though. I'd go again on Saturday, but with Matic deepest.

 

[Chaky_Best]

Clearly not played his best position yesterday. Pogba's positionning didnt helped also. Was alone in midfield when Pogba and Bruno got passed.

Not a deep lying midfielder.

Matic would have been better for 60 mins then Fred for the rest of the game.

 

[KennyBurner]

Well that's why he generally plays as a left winger sort of. But then we hear he's not that also.

Scott was poor in the 1st, a bit better in the 2nd. But he never hides, that's a silly notion.

He does hide from the ball. He is never there to receive it when we need the extra man. Matic came on and you could see the difference. Ole should not play pogba at all in midfield but he still does so thinking Ole knows what he is doing with team selection is just silly.

 

[Real Name]

He does hide from the ball. He is never there to receive it when we need the extra man. Matic came on and you could see the difference. Ole should not play pogba at all in midfield but he still does so thinking Ole knows what he is doing with team selection is just silly.

I thought Pogba is a midfielder.

As for McTominay I dont see it, maybe its true.

 

[Zen86]

Clearly not played his best position yesterday. Pogba's positionning didnt helped also. Was alone in midfield when Pogba and Bruno got passed.

Not a deep lying midfielder.

Matic would have been better for 60 mins then Fred for the rest of the game.

He was left high and dry in fairness to him. He's not a DLP or DM, and he was left on his own with 5 attackers/forwards in front of him. Not a surprise we were a shitshow.

 

[Martialfc]

I hate midfielders that don’t want the ball. Sadly, Scott is one of them.

 

[rooney2009]

“Hiding” is a very harsh way to describe it. I just think his positional sense is terrible. Not sure of the best place to stand on the pitch, whether we have possession or not. Which is a terrible flaw in a central midfielder.

I Just think as a midfielder you have to want the ball
Pass and move and create the space to want or demand for the ball
Scholes was the best as finding that space and wanting the ball
I just don’t think Scot demands the ball enough or maybe he is too scared to make mistakes
If he can add that to his game He will become the top midfielder we all want him to be

 

[Longshanks]

That’s the thing: He actually wasn’t showing for the ball, which in turn forced the center backs to hit it long. He was way too often camped between Villarreal’s forwards, rarely able to receive the ball in space. Maybe because he expected them to press the center backs opening up space, maybe because he just lacks positional awareness, maybe because he was told for some impregnable reason to stay in that position by the coaches. Either way, it kinda looked like he was hiding. It was really strange.

He definitely was showing for the ball. Villareal sat with a mid press and sort of mid defensive line trying to squeeze the midfield space. Bruno and pogba went forward and made runs into the channels and we quite often looked for them over the top, or we worked it out wide to drag villareal across and then played Crossfield balls to the opposite flank hoping to find one of our wide forwards in space.

Mctom wasn't hiding behind villareals forwards he was marked by them, they didn't press the cbs at all they stayed on mctom and In fairness when he received the ball from the cbs he quite often did well to hold off the 2 forwards and find a pass out.

Villareal wanted us to play balls through the lines to bruno and pogba where they were ready to immediately close down the space, thats why they marked mctom out of the game to try and encourage it, but we bypassed it anyway and went more direct.

 

[Siorac]

“Hiding” is a very harsh way to describe it. I just think his positional sense is terrible. Not sure of the best place to stand on the pitch, whether we have possession or not. Which is a terrible flaw in a central midfielder.

Yeah, I agree with this. "Hiding" implies cowardice, an unwillingness to step up and impose yourself. And McTominay isn't unwilling, just unable.

 

[arnie_ni]

Yeah, I agree with this. "Hiding" implies cowardice, an unwillingness to step up and impose yourself. And McTominay isn't unwilling, just unable.

I've used the word hiding but I'd probably agree more with this assessment.

 

[DomM]

Good in certain situations, limited in others, ok as a squad player but probably not good enough to control games.

 

[Dve]

Let´s imagine it was Donny delivering that performance instead of McTominay. He would have been fantastic, no?

 

[Foxbatt]

I felt sorry for him. He is not DM and he was asked to do an impossible job. Just him alone in midfield and a poor Dalot on the right.

 

[Foxbatt]

Yeah, I agree with this. "Hiding" implies cowardice, an unwillingness to step up and impose yourself. And McTominay isn't unwilling, just unable.

No I do not think he hides. I think as you say that he is unable to do it. He is a sort of box to box midfield player. He does not read the game well like Matic and he does not have the passing skills too. I saw a moment when he was outside their box and he hesitated shooting and the moment was gone. He has a good shot on him. He is a good squad player who is needed in some games but not all games.

 

[lex talionis]

McTominay has a huge heart and I definitely want to see him remain in the squad, but his ability as a midfielder is limited. Ghosting into the box to pick up a stray ball for a long distance shot is where McTominay excels.

 

[MO_Football92]

I think he's capable of playing the DM role for you guys and is obviously still young so can improve.

The issue is he'll never be that deep lying player to receive the ball from defenders; particularly when opposition strikers press high up. His technical ability isn't of that Busquets, Alonso, Pirlo level.

 

[Mickson]

Well there you go. And we had 55% of the possession too. Those stats are unforgivable in that context. I like Scott and am inclined to always defend him but I have no idea how to use him. It’s increasingly clear he’s just not capable of the absolute basics you need from a CM. Getting on the ball and passing it to a team mate. If he can’t even do that, what’s the point of him?

Of course he can do that! He's obviously just instructed to do other things, or maybe do what he wants. I'm not sure.

 

[Trequarista10]

I think he's capable of playing the DM role for you guys and is obviously still young so can improve.

The issue is he'll never be that deep lying player to receive the ball from defenders; particularly when opposition strikers press high up. His technical ability isn't of that Busquets, Alonso, Pirlo level.

I used to think he could develop in the DM role but I'm doubtful now. He's not exactly young either, he's 25 this year. Teenagers like Camavinga and Bellingham are already better players than him.

You don't need elite technical ability but you need willingness to show for the ball and positional sense. I thought he could replicate someone like Jordan Henderson who was a similarly energetic midfielder but adapted to play as a holding midfielder. He isn't showing it though. Sadly, Scott isn't even on Hendrson's level, and Henderson himself was dislodged from the holding role when Liverpool signed an actual, quality holding mid in Fabinho. Forget Busquets, McTominay is numerous levels below that.

He is what he is. He might be a decent partner for an elite defensive midfielder, but even that us no guarantee.

 

[izak]

Needs to be replaced with someone who is technically gifted.

 

[MO_Football92]

I used to think he could develop in the DM role but I'm doubtful now. He's not exactly young either, he's 25 this year. Teenagers like Camavinga and Bellingham are already better players than him.

You don't need elite technical ability but you need willingness to show for the ball and positional sense. I thought he could replicate someone like Jordan Henderson who was a similarly energetic midfielder but adapted to play as a holding midfielder. He isn't showing it though. Sadly, Scott isn't even on Hendrson's level, and Henderson himself was dislodged from the holding role when Liverpool signed an actual, quality holding mid in Fabinho. Forget Busquets, McTominay is numerous levels below that.

He is what he is. He might be a decent partner for an elite defensive midfielder, but even that us no guarantee.

I get that, but 25 is still fairly young for a central midfielder. Many players like Lampard and Scholes improved or adapted their game at an older age.

Henderson perfromed in that role because he had a coach who instilled confidence in his ability to do so. But even he struggled when up against high pressing sides because his technique isn't honed to withstand pressure in tight areas.

If Ole wants Scott to play deep they need to work with him to show for the ball and improve his positioning. Against high pressing sides, Pogba should drop during the build up play to create an overload or the ball can be played wide to your pacy wide players.

I don't get this obsession with short passing build up play nowadays. Most teams don't execute this at a particularly high level and lack the technical players to maximize this phase of play.