This is the line that every player that wants a raise will say, no?
The search for an attacking midfielder!
- Thread starter Walters_19_MuFc
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This is the line that every player that wants a raise will say, no?
Olmo is just FM player.
Could have sworn that he exists in real life too.
You started your post with Son is the best winger available.
Olmo is probably the only one available in January, but it will not be cheap.
Interesting, would be lethal is Sancho were up for it.
That's certainly another option. A deeplying playmaker in the mould of Jorginho, Verratti, Thiago, etc would be nice.
Silly season time is near..
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/foo...uno-Fernandes-Sporting-Lisbon-strong-interest
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/foo...uno-Fernandes-Sporting-Lisbon-strong-interest
We don't need an attacking midfielder right now. Pogba should playe higher up the pitch when he comes back. With him there we'd still have Lingard Pereira Mata and Gomes as bench options. The most important position is a center midfielder. I'd rather have one of our AMs injure than any of Mcctominay or Fred who are the only two center midfielders we have
We can worry about AM once Pogba is sold at last
We can worry about AM once Pogba is sold at last
Havertz was playing first team football at 17 for Leverkusen which made him the youngest debutant in the clubs history. And it was natural the hype was gonna build there after.
Zaniolo on the other hand was released by Fiorentina in 2016 and joined Virtus Entella in SerieB and did well at the SerieB club before being spotted by Inter Milan and subsequently joined the Nerazurri in 2017 where he hardly played first team football. Things changed when Roma sold Nainggollan to Inter and signed Zaniolo as part of the deal in 2018 which brought Zaniolo and his talent to the wider European audience.
Sancho definitely does give the vibes that he could play both flanks and even as a #10. His technical ability is superb and has superb awareness/vision/passing in the final third, which makes him a potentially very good option to occupy the role of the #10 IMO.
But how are they physically you would say? to play a #10 in the EPL is to play vs big and strong men, I'm saying this after watching James was just moved of the ball in the Tottenham game.
Fred was unavailable for the first two pre-season games, that is all. He was used as a sub in the other four pre-season games and then wasn’t selected for the squad at all once the league games started until Pogba was out, where he was put on the bench and Matic started. There was ample opportunity to get him into the side and match fit before he has done - if that had been Solksjaer’s intention, his preference, then it would have happened.
It is abundantly clear that Solskjaer began the season with Pogba and McTominay as his first choice midfield pairing in a 4-2-3-1 - Matic and Fred were both readily available for the opening fixture and throughout the initial run of games. Fred started his first game in the Europa League alongside the other backup/ rotation options.
I’m not sure which facts you find contradictory to this? I’m also not sure in what way we shall ‘see who’s right’ - what happens moving forward doesn’t change how the season started.
The consensus now seems to be that Pogba should/ will play in place of the current starting no.10, with Fred and McTominay maintaining their place in the lineup. I can certainly understand, and wouldn’t disagree with, the ‘should’ at this moment in time. I don’t think it’s a given that that’s how Solskjaer will see it though - it’s all up in the air. He evidently preferred Pogba in the deeper role before the injury trouble but it’s also clear that in his absence Fred has established himself in the team.
Physically they're very strong for young players with both standing at 6'2 and 6'3 respectively. Zaniolo in that regard is very strong and physically powerful already so would suit the prem just fine. Havertz wouldn't have any issue in that regard either IMO.
Did you actually read what I was replying to? As yep already covered that part.
Clear to whom? When has he given his opinion? Or when did you ask him. Club were looking to purchase a midfielder, but failed to do so. So i's not clear it's all opinion.
When the manager has the players he wants available and in form, then obviously we end up with his view on how he intends to team to play. Fred missing vital fitness training prior to the summer tour would in my opinion obviously have affected team selections.
It's all opinion until we get to see what happens. As for how he saw United's midfield, we were fully intent on signing a midfielder and for whatever reason failed to do so.
and Sancho? he looks kinda light.
I think you're possibly over thinking the phyicality aspect in the #10 role. Maddison plays in such a role for Leicester and wouldn't be described as a physically strong player. Talent trumps physicality IMO.
Sancho doesn't play as a 10, he's a LW/RW.
Anyway his acceleration and balance are his key attributes, doesn't rely on strength.
The athletic have actually been pretty shite on rumours, even Ornstein has lost his Oracle like status.
Yeah it was a pretty underwhelming article from Laure Whitwell in The Athletic.
Basically said the club were desperate for Jan signings and that we are targetting a striker and two midfielders.
But the only two targets mentioned (Maddison and Haaland) are unlikely to move anytime soon.
Didn't say who the other midfielder was.
Basically said the club were desperate for Jan signings and that we are targetting a striker and two midfielders.
But the only two targets mentioned (Maddison and Haaland) are unlikely to move anytime soon.
Didn't say who the other midfielder was.
Do David Silva and Chelsea's Mata look big and strong to you?
Career injury record: ---------------- Lost ------
Age ------------------- number --- Days -- Matches
30 --- Gareth Bale -------- 27 --- 576 --- 104
28 --- James Rodríguez ---- 26 --- 481 ---- 80
26 --- Paul Pogba ---------- 7 --- 241 ---- 45
27 --- Isco --------------- 11 --- 147 ---- 26
27 --- Christian Eriksen --- 4 ---- 83 ---- 17
25 --- Bruno Fernandes ----- 2 ---- 10 ----- 2
Source: transfermarkt
Age ------------------- number --- Days -- Matches
30 --- Gareth Bale -------- 27 --- 576 --- 104
28 --- James Rodríguez ---- 26 --- 481 ---- 80
26 --- Paul Pogba ---------- 7 --- 241 ---- 45
27 --- Isco --------------- 11 --- 147 ---- 26
27 --- Christian Eriksen --- 4 ---- 83 ---- 17
25 --- Bruno Fernandes ----- 2 ---- 10 ----- 2
Source: transfermarkt
I'd take Bruno, Maddison, or Grealish. Any one of those three would help us, and are better than what we currently have.
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What are people's thoughts on Dwight McNeil, apparently he was rejected by Utd as a kid because they weren't impressed by his set pieces. Personally I was impressed with him against Spurs on Sat and wouldn't see it as another Pogba situation because his career never got off the ground at Utd.
McNeil is a very good player, he's not the quickest but has enough close control to compensate his movement and good technique in distributing the ball. Also I think it's a shame that David Brooks is injured because when fit he's for me the best young winger in the league. I've been saying Brooks over Sancho for a few months now. Sancho is obviously the better talent but Brooks with the right development will be ridiculous. Brooks / James and Rashford in the forward wide positions is a good balance.
Agreed. Been reading this thread and wondering why people want to push Pogba up. His strengths lie in his passing and breaking from deep. He’s not as good at short quick passing around the edge of the box, he takes too long on the ball and concedes possession too easily.
I don't know about him playing AM but his best position is definitely higher up the pitch as a left CM. He said it himself and proved it when Ole first came back. He offers goals and assists playing more forward and besides would you rather have Pogba displace Fred and disrupt Fred's growing partnership with Mctominay or should he replace Lingard. Very easy choice for me.
We don't need an attacking midfielder right now since Pogba is coming back. DM or CM should be priority in January. We're already stacked in AM with Pogba Lingard Gomes Mata and Pereira. Now compare that to our DM or CM depth.
Also when i say Pogba should play AM I don't mean as a classic no.10 but more of a free role with Mcctominay and Fred behind him and I'm sure this is what Ole would do as well
Also when i say Pogba should play AM I don't mean as a classic no.10 but more of a free role with Mcctominay and Fred behind him and I'm sure this is what Ole would do as well
You haven’t covered it at all. Fred was with the rest of the team
If that is what Solskjaer would do it would have been done.
Pogba has been playing deeper. Gomes doesn’t play. So it’s more like Lingard, Mata and Pereira for attacking midfield. I would say all of Fred, Pogba and McTominay are better options in the midfield two than any of the three of them are at no.10
As a left sided cm and slightly forward is fine, that’s where he played for Juventus. But as a pure number 10 as being bandied around here I don’t agree with
Not in Australia he wasn't. So yeah I had it covered.
You really think Ole prefers Pogba in a deeper role after he personally put him in a free role at first where Pogba played so well in. You really think Ole after seeing Fred and Mcctominay dominate the top 6 he would then replace one of them for Pogba.
Anyways Ole has actually said in a press conference that Pogba's plays his best further up the pitch but that he's also capable of playing in other positions if needed. And right now where Pogba is needed is the AM role. I'd be surprised if Ole doesn't play him there when he returns
Haaland, Sancho and one of Havertz/Odergaard/Grealish/Maddison and we are set. We need squad depth - currently I look at our bench and there’s nobody to change things
I know that Solskjaer chose to play him deeper in midfield from the start of the season when he could have played McTominay and Fred there. That makes it impossible to say with any confidence that Pogba will be brought back in in place of Pereira/ Lingard when he returns from injury. I wouldn’t be surprised either way. Until he actually does play Pogba as the most advanced midfielder, he has to be considered as one of the options deeper in midfield. As things stand, Lingard and Pereira are battling for the no.10 role.
I had elaborated on that sentence a bit but something went wrong, so apologies for that.
Which DM or CM do you think is obtainable in January just out of interest?
The thing about signing a DM whether it's in the winter or summer is that there are not many world class DMs for any club to sign. Off the top of my head I can mention only Neves, Partey and Ndidi and that's it. The rest are basically just gems or potential eg Berg, Sangare etc.
That said, I'd go for Marc Roca in January. Deep lying playmaker with 36m release clause. Ole has said several times that he doesn't want us to be just a counter attacking team and how we need to keep possession and control games. Roca can help with this.
I'd also be fine with Allan who is a very hard working box to box midfielder. He and Mctominay in a double pivot would work
Or we can do some forward planning and look to recruit now. why wait until Pogba is sold to buy? Surely better to get someone in, especially as we lack any real quality in the AM position
We know Pogba is leaving, its a matter of when.
The bench options arent good enough anyway, we need to sign an AM AND a CM as a priority.
Limit the game times of Periera/Lingard/Mata and have some competition/rotation with McTom & Fred.
Matic and Pogba shouldn't come into the thinking of our long term plans at all.
When Pogba is fit, i agree he is the best option as our #10, but he's not a natural 10 really, issue is we lack creativity. He can come back in, but its a stop gap until he's out the door i'm afraid.
Yeah I get you but none of the no.10s I'm guessing Maddison or Grealish we're targeting will be available. So we should probably use Pogba as the stop gap in the 10 role. On the other hand there are a some good DMs that could be gotten in January - Allan, Doucoure, Berge, Roca, Bielik, Lobotka, etc
We need a dribbler, and someone who can score. Dani Olmo just scored a worldie. What a player he looks