Selling Fellaini was a mistake

Status
Not open for further replies.
Ekeke said:
Would explain why the team turned up each week and looked like they've never met each other before. Spends all his time posting on here instead of doing work on the training pitch
Click to expand...

Does google know something we don't, started typing Mourinho to find out where he was in 2007 and Mourinho Everton appeared, unless it's been in the news recently and i've just missed it, though would have thought newsnow would've picked up on it, and i'm on there all the time.

And in reply, yes it would.
 
Last edited:
Keeps It tidy said:
Having Fellaini on the pitch would have made it a lot easier for Thiago Silva, Kimpembe and Marquinhos.
Click to expand...

Keeps It tidy said:
Rashford's pace is why Kimpembe should have been sent off. PSG's CBs would much rather face an extremely limited target man(and is not really a striker) like Fellaini than the pace of someone like Rashford.
Click to expand...
You forgot that their CB used to train and deal with the likes of Neymar/Mbappe/Di Maria in every training session , i don't think Rashford/Martial/Lingard is much challenge compared which is just being proven on the pitch. Meanwhile dealing with Fellaini would be harder for them, look at Bonucci and Chiellini both struggled against Fellaini physicality , he single handedly change the game into our favor. Infact , most top defender would find it hard to deal with Fellaini, He is one of kind player ,taller than most CB , hardly outmuscled, very hard to beat in the air and good at shielding the ball. Selling him was a mistake, selling him without adequate mistake is a grave mistake, He is a tactical weapon that can impact the game immediately once he was subbed in, He is better than Mata, Alexis or Lukaku as sub or even as starter against technical side like PSG. Now we can only hope Mctominay/Fred/Pereira, can pull a miracle in second leg so at least we don't get embarrass in Paris.
 
Last edited:
Intilo said:
You forgot that their CB used to train and deal with the likes of Neymar/Mbappe/Di Maria in every training session , i don't think Rashford/Martial/Lingard is much challenge compared which just proven on the pitch. Meanwhile dealing with Fellaini would harder for them, look at Bonucci and Chiellini both struggled against Fellaini physicality which is the key for us to change the game into our favor. Infact , most top defender would find it hard to deal with Fellaini, He is one of kind player ,taller than most CB and very hard to beat in the air , rather than just reading the run of pacy player like Rashford. Selling him was a mistake, selling him without adequate mistake is a grave mistake, He is a tactical weapon that can impact the game immediately once he was subbed in, He is much better than Mata, Alexis or Lukaku as subs player. The problem is his wage was too high to be just a Plan B player. Now we can only hope Mctominay/Fred/Pereira, can pull a miracle in second leg so at least we aren't get embarrass in Paris.
Click to expand...

Very brave for your first post mate. But totally agree.
 
noodlehair said:
Maybe but I do think people are a bit harsh and quick to blame everything on players who are easy targets.

Particularly with Mata who's actually had some very good games for us this season and isn't a right winger. Sanchez has also never really been the type of player to be able to run in behind players and offer a counter attacking threat. We needed to change how we approached the game when we brought the pair of them on and we didn't. Our counter attacking threat was what was keeping PSG at bay and it's not the sort of threat Mata or Sanchez have ever been able to offer, even at their best.

I'm not being too critical of Ole as it's difficult when you have to swap things round at half time and are limited to what you can do. I just don't think it's really fair to criticise or slag off Mata and Sanchez for a second half where our weaknesses in other areas were horribly exposed. They are the type of player to thrive more when their team has lots of possession high up the pitch. The problem after half time was that we don't have the players against the likes of PSG to enable us to do that, and even when we could we were so open on the break it just wasn't worth the risk.
Click to expand...
Where does Mata and Sanchez play in our first 11.

Pogba plays best as an attacking mid, we need a new right mid .
This leaves no room for Mata or Sanchez .
 
M4nu4Life said:
Where does Mata and Sanchez play in our first 11.

Pogba plays best as an attacking mid, we need a new right mid .
This leaves no room for Mata or Sanchez .
Click to expand...

You have to adapt how you play to the players you have. Mata and Sanchez can't offer the same threat on the break as Lingard, Martial or Rashford.

Those three aren't going to be able to start every game so you need other options. If Mata and Sanchez leave who do you think we can realistically bring in who will be better?
 
Intilo said:
You forgot that their CB used to train and deal with the likes of Neymar/Mbappe/Di Maria in every training session , i don't think Rashford/Martial/Lingard is much challenge compared which just proven on the pitch. Meanwhile dealing with Fellaini would harder for them, look at Bonucci and Chiellini both struggled against Fellaini physicality which is the key for us to change the game into our favor. Infact , most top defender would find it hard to deal with Fellaini, He is one of kind player ,taller than most CB and very hard to beat in the air, good at shielding the ball , rather than just reading the run of pacy player like Rashford. Selling him was a mistake, selling him without adequate mistake is a grave mistake, He is a tactical weapon that can impact the game immediately once he was subbed in, He is better than Mata, Alexis or Lukaku as sub or even as starter against technical side like PSG. Now we can only hope Mctominay/Fred/Pereira, can pull a miracle in second leg so at least we don't get embarrass in Paris.
Click to expand...
If he was such a great tactical weapon, how come he ended up in China and not one of Europe’s big guns?
 
soapythecat said:
If he was such a great tactical weapon, how come he ended up in China and not one of Europe’s big guns?
Click to expand...
Wage. which European top club is going to give the same salary as what we gave to him ? We don't spend much in transfer but surely we overpaid lot of our players, Luke Shaw is 23, has done feck all but being paid more than Marcelo for example. Him being tactical weapon remains as fact , if we couldn't outplay opposition , it's better to use him instead of anyone else we currently have in our squad. Wage is also the problem why it's so difficult for us to remove deadwood.


Di Maria's angel said:
Our club is full of mistakes, hiring Moyes, hiring Jose (when he was past it), the numerous awful signings we've made, never addressing the obvious issues with the team. Heck, as much as I like Fellaini, signing him in the first place was a mistake and selling him in Jan was just as bad. He saved us against Juve (a team better than PSG) and scored the crucial goal in our final group stage match. Our play style without Fellaini is just as awful as our play style with Fellaini. We're still a long ball team, however, now we have no impact sub to make use of our pathetic and aimless crossing.
Click to expand...

Can't be more spot on.
 
Last edited:
Our club is full of mistakes, hiring Moyes, hiring Jose (when he was past it), the numerous awful signings we've made, never addressing the obvious issues with the team. Heck, as much as I like Fellaini, signing him in the first place was a mistake and selling him in Jan was just as bad. He saved us against Juve (a team better than PSG) and scored the crucial goal in our final group stage match. Our play style without Fellaini is just as awful as our play style with Fellaini. We're still a long ball team, however, now we have no impact sub to make use of our pathetic and aimless crossing.
 
M4nu4Life said:
Where does Mata and Sanchez play in our first 11.

Pogba plays best as an attacking mid, we need a new right mid .
This leaves no room for Mata or Sanchez .
Click to expand...
This is where we are all wrong including Pogba himself, He is best as a box to box player , a number 8 instead of 10 , which is what Mourinho and Deschamp see at him. Unlike Hazard, peak Mata, Messi , Griezmann , He isn't agile enough to get away from his marker, we saw how PSG man mark him and he is done for , i believe many teams will do the same next time on him. By playing deeper , he could dictate the game with his excellent long pass and view, drive forward with his strong surging run ,but it means he also have to be discipline and will have to do more defensive job which he didn't like to.
 
Don't think he had a place here long term, but getting rid of him in January without any form of replacement seemed a mistake, especially when Fred and Pereira don't seem to be any nearer the first team than when Mourinho was here.

I also heard £10m was the fee, whatever people think of the way he plays, he's worth far more than that. I think we're possibly the only club that have ever been fleeced by a team from the Chinese League
 
This thread is good reason why general forum posters should stick to the general.
 
It's like fans have gotten so used to mediocrity over the years that they relish it now, almost bathe in it. To the point they don't want anything to change, they want to retain all the players that are surplus to requirements, this forum genuinely is mind boggling at times, there will be a thread on Ashley Young next season and how we should of offered him a 3/4 year contract instead.
 
Intilo said:
You forgot that their CB used to train and deal with the likes of Neymar/Mbappe/Di Maria in every training session , i don't think Rashford/Martial/Lingard is much challenge compared which is just being proven on the pitch. Meanwhile dealing with Fellaini would be harder for them, look at Bonucci and Chiellini both struggled against Fellaini physicality , he single handedly change the game into our favor. Infact , most top defender would find it hard to deal with Fellaini, He is one of kind player ,taller than most CB , hardly outmuscled, very hard to beat in the air and good at shielding the ball. Selling him was a mistake, selling him without adequate mistake is a grave mistake, He is a tactical weapon that can impact the game immediately once he was subbed in, He is better than Mata, Alexis or Lukaku as sub or even as starter against technical side like PSG. Now we can only hope Mctominay/Fred/Pereira, can pull a miracle in second leg so at least we don't get embarrass in Paris.
Click to expand...

It’s time to take off the Fellaini wig and let go, he’s gone and for someone so dangerous and effective he played in a lot of games we lost and was dealt with easily by numerous opponents.

The odd game here and there where he was effective is all people want to remember and suddenly he is the answer to all our problems now he’s gone. He did his best but wasn’t good enough and any difference to our performance this season will be negligible.
 
crossy1686 said:
This thread honestly has me perplexed. I've never seen Stockholm Syndrome in real life until today.
Click to expand...

L1nk said:
It's like fans have gotten so used to mediocrity over the years that they relish it now, almost bathe in it. To the point they don't want anything to change, they want to retain all the players that are surplus to requirements, this forum genuinely is mind boggling at times, there will be a thread on Ashley Young next season and how we should of offered him a 3/4 year contract instead.
Click to expand...

As I posted earlier in this thread:

Fanatic 00237 said:
It’s true what they say, absence makes the heart grow fonder.
Click to expand...

I can't believe people are still running with this thread which sounded like a bit of jest when it started.

I don't recall Fellaini having any standout performance (starter or sub) under Mourinho within the last weeks prior to sacking. I felt he was largely anonymous in his recent appearances. I appreciated his effort while he was with us and didn't like the abuse thrown at him because he never picked himself to play, but I think it was way passed time to let him go (at least everyone agrees he never should have been brought here in the first place).

Fellaini shouldn't be part of any plan at a team like United. Letting him go is the first step in the right direction. Let's learn how to play without THAT Plan B, I'm sure we can and we will find something better.
 
L1nk said:
It's like fans have gotten so used to mediocrity over the years that they relish it now, almost bathe in it. To the point they don't want anything to change, they want to retain all the players that are surplus to requirements, this forum genuinely is mind boggling at times, there will be a thread on Ashley Young next season and how we should of offered him a 3/4 year contract instead.
Click to expand...
Some people just stick their head in the sand and refuse to face facts. Anyone with an ounce of sense can see we have a lot of poor players in the squad that need replacing, players that include Young, Jones and Mata. Yet when you go in to their respective threads there's always arguments being made that they are good enough. Can you really imagine us winning the league ahead of rampant City and Liverpool teams with Young and Phil Jones in the team? Or beating the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid to clinch our 4th CL trophy with Mata and Lukaku leading our attack? There's more chance of me starting my own asteroid mining company and becoming a trillionaire.
 
AndyJ1985 said:
Some people just stick their head in the sand and refuse to face facts. Anyone with an ounce of sense can see we have a lot of poor players in the squad that need replacing, players that include Young, Jones and Mata. Yet when you go in to their respective threads there's always arguments being made that they are good enough. Can you really imagine us winning the league ahead of rampant City and Liverpool teams with Young and Phil Jones in the team? Or beating the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid to clinch our 4th CL trophy with Mata and Lukaku leading our attack? There's more chance of me starting my own asteroid mining company and becoming a trillionaire.
Click to expand...


And yet many of those same people wanted to sell Pogba and Martial when their Portuguese master told them so. I think there's just a very subservient subset of our fans who like being told when to sit and not think too much. When master says sell Pogba, then they want to sell Pogba. When master gives oodles of playing time to dross, then they want to keep the dross.

They will readily submit to any dominant entity that happens to stroll along, and since Mourinho was more dominant than Ole, his voice is still law to them.
 
Fanatic 00237 said:
As I posted earlier in this thread:



I can't believe people are still running with this thread which sounded like a bit of jest when it started.

I don't recall Fellaini having any standout performance (starter or sub) under Mourinho within the last weeks prior to sacking. I felt he was largely anonymous in his recent appearances. I appreciated his effort while he was with us and didn't like the abuse thrown at him because he never picked himself to play, but I think it was way passed time to let him go (at least everyone agrees he never should have been brought here in the first place).

Fellaini shouldn't be part of any plan at a team like United. Letting him go is the first step in the right direction. Let's learn how to play without THAT Plan B, I'm sure we can and we will find something better.
Click to expand...

Not true, I wanted him at United after watching him play for Standard Liege and Belguim u21 team.
 
Signing Fellaini was a mistake. Selling him in January was a bigger mistake.
Yes it would be unpleasant to the eye and clumsy and awkward but that was what was needed against PSG the moment martial and Lingard went off.
People will mock but stick up fellaFel up top and put in the crosses for him and no team including psg is going to be comfortable.
We are getting a bit like the Arsenal of old now. No matter what try to play the way we want to play. They get found out against tougher opposition just like we were. Fellaini up front terrorises defenders.
Instead of Fellaini we had Mata and no one was scared of him or even was bothered about him.
 
I guess someone has to bump this thread today
 
Fellaini is not the only target man around and he is not even that good of a target man since he is not really a striker. PSG CBs know how to handle a target man.
 
Fellaini was a "comfort blanket" for incompetent managers. Classic case was when Jose moaned about not having Fellaini to bring on at the end of a game to cause some mayhem. His role was that the manager prayed to "keep it tight" till late in the game and then hoped that a few flailing elbows and a big, strong tank of a player with good ability at heading and chesting would help disrupt a defence. This is the classic "small team" mindset.

A big team should firstly have faith that their A-game will win it for them and if not, should rely on bringing on a fresh and pacy forward to play against tiring defenders; in theory and practice, this should work far better than the "lump it to the big man" tactic - as long as the attack and team are drilled well. Mou relied on Fellaini as the team was not drilled well enough to create openings at will and also because he simply set us up to play as "plucky underdogs" in most games - regardless of opponents.

Ole clearly sees it the other way - that if the tactics and team play are good enough, we'll not need to rely on the "lump it" tactic and that's worked well. It's time people accepted that the comfort blanket is not only not needed any more, but was going to be a drag and crutch that we actively needed to get rid of in an attempt to move on.
 
The way some posters here think of Fellaini as a savior / game changer you'd think he's Messi + Ronaldo combined. Weirdos.

He's come on plenty of times and don't absolutely jackshit as well.

We had plenty of success under Ferguson without ever relying on bringing on a big lump upfront to cause chaos. One would wonder how teams like City, Liverpool, Barca and Madrid have done well without having a Fellaini in their team.
 
Other big clubs don't resort to lumping it when they're in trouble, so why should we?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.