The current squad with a new manager

[cyril C]

If the hierarchy really does favour a more dominant brand of football it seems to me quite obvious that Bruno at #10 is far from ideal, but then again, the same hierarchy caved into his demands without the slightest need to do so. So maybe the hierarchy isn't as on it as we'd like to think.

A few people keep suggesting three at the back, but we neither have the wing backs, and it removes our best attacking players (Garnacho and Amad). I'd love to see us going forward with a 433 formation utilising Casemiro as a box to box midfielder with any of Mainoo/Eriksen/Mount as the ball carrier/creator, covered by Ugarte shielding the defense. I think this will immediately translate to better ball retention, better defensive shape, though of course it may lead to less chance creation, which is really where the style of play comes in which is a head coach's responsibility.

I'd also hope for much quicker passing / fewer touches in our build up, which obviously requires better team movement. Every time Maguire is playing I count how many times he touches the ball before he passes and how long he holds onto the ball, and it is creeping into Martinez' game too.

What do people want to see under a new temporary manager?

I for one still favour performances over results, working on perfecting a style of play over pragmatism, so I hope there is actually a coherent vision within the footballing structure.

ETH is, perhaps the worst manager that I have seen beside Moyes. LVG may be boring, but we had a team and a style of play. Mourhino may be poisonous but we had the most tactical and discipline team ever. Ole 1st season may be simplistic but effective, 2nd season lost his plot. This team, under ETH, play like a pub team without teamwork, always relying on individual talent. How can you blame players 3 season down the road?

Back to the thread. Can anyone pick up the mess and turnaround with existing squad. Always, anyone with experience and talent.

Tuchel won CL with the same Chelsea squad. Even Spurs manager, after losing Kane, with little new addition, can utilise existing squad. I am not saying Spurs manager is very good because I hate manager that ignore defense, but his player development certainly get my attention.

 

[mardika]

SAF would have loved Bruno, thats 1 thing for sure. He loved a maverick, hero's type of player and he would find him a place (my bet is as second striker). Bruno has had his worst seasons under Ten Hag just like majority of our forward, beggar believe considering hes allowed to spend close to 200m just to fix front line alone.

 

[bosnian_red]

What I would like to see is us phasing out Bruno (from being a key player) and into being just another part of the squad. So either he fits into a cohesive system, or he doesn't and isn't a key player.

The main issue with Ten Hag isn't so much the positions he is using players in, or the hierarchy in who is starter vs sub. It's a lack of flexibility, no adapting to opposition tactics. A poor system that asks too much of our players and doesn't give them a platform to succeed. No changing things when things aren't working. Not direct enough, not attacking enough, but also an absolute travesty as a team defensive shape.

In terms of what I'd like to see, it's a mix. Either we get a Spanish coach in who can implement a proper 433 and we build towards that, or we just go to a more basic 4-4-2 shape for this season and not go all out with this suicidal but disjointed press that we're doing and get some shape back in ourselves while having enough attacking threat. There are many ways to play football and it doesn't all have to be Pep style. Sure it's not going to be what builds us to being an elite side, but for this season to get us back to being a good team that can get in the CL, I don't see why not. I'd also like to see our CB's with De Ligt next to Yoro eventually instead of Martinez, but we'll see for that.

Rashford - Zirkzee
Garnacho - Mainoo - Ugarte - Dalot
Shaw - Martinez - De Ligt - Mazraoui
Onana

Hojlund - Bruno
Mount - Eriksen - Casemiro - Amad
Malacia - Maguire - Yoro - Dalot/Mazraoui
Altay​

Of course this assumes that Malacia and Shaw will at some point play football again, so we'll see. But I'd like to see it happen and us to go for a more SAF style 4-4-2.

 

[Woziak]

An 'all firing' Rashford is a myth. Spurs wouldn't carry such a lazy player in their line up.

They have in many previous incarnations and yet still they have won what 1 league cup in 24 years, please Even an ETH United side has won 2 domestic trophies and he gave them a bye to a CL final by his lunatic tactics for Ajax, he has form but Comparing spurs to United because of one result where the players downed tools is ludicrous, in those 24/25 years United have won multiple trophies and even in our most barren spell in last 12 years have still won 2 Fa Cups, 2 League cups, 1 Europa League and only stopped by a second on penalties.

When Spurs win trophies I’ll take them seriously, right now United are currently 10-15th on current form and ETH is the problem so we must sack him to move forward, he’s simply not good enough and to save this season, INEOS have to own up to their mistake and make a change.