He's shown good dribbling and crossing ability against the U23s. Overall, in senior football, he hasn't made much of an impact, but I can see why Herdman fast-tracked him into the senior team.
Plus, more first-team football = more development.
U23s - Manchester United vs Liverpool
- Thread starter RedMachine03
- Start date
Plus, more first-team football = more development.
McCann 3-5
Nice finish there
5-3 Mejbri with excellent play to set him up (McCann) with a class ball.
Jeepers the United keeper is awful. Missing Kovar already!
Can tell the team is incredibly immature as they are making crazy errors but the scoreline does not reflect the game.
McCann just scored as i was writing. 5-3 more fair
Can tell the team is incredibly immature as they are making crazy errors but the scoreline does not reflect the game.
McCann just scored as i was writing. 5-3 more fair
Mejbri will be great when he matures. He is showing some incredible vision
Comebacks on
McCann 5-3
They've stuck at it tonight. Soundly beaten by a more experienced team but they've kept playing their football at least.
They've stuck at it tonight. Soundly beaten by a more experienced team but they've kept playing their football at least.
Was it Svidersky who was involved in winning the ball again for that 3rd goal?
A typical problem particularly for United.
Plenty of posters calling for experienced reserves to go out in loan. Exit Kovar, Garner, Levitt et al
Add injuries to the likes of Laird, Devine, Galbraith, Taylor, Puigmal and the promotion of Mengi...
Thats nine players and then you basically need another new team. Not surprising you will get poor performances at the start.
Its what they learn, how quick they adapt and a long term approach.
Second half has seen a much better response.
Plenty of posters calling for experienced reserves to go out in loan. Exit Kovar, Garner, Levitt et al
Add injuries to the likes of Laird, Devine, Galbraith, Taylor, Puigmal and the promotion of Mengi...
Thats nine players and then you basically need another new team. Not surprising you will get poor performances at the start.
Its what they learn, how quick they adapt and a long term approach.
Second half has seen a much better response.
Yeah, I feel like nothing much has changed for the U23s/Reserves side over the past several years. I think the last time our Reserves/U23s were stable was when Warren Joyce was managing them back when we had McNair, Ekangamene, Rothwell, Pearson, etc. around.
Good post
5-3 flattering. Not sure why shoretire is not playing 18s football.
Happy for the response in the second half here. Mejbri night and day from half to half. Hugill a big talent for 16. Elanga tailed off in the second half, but was probably our best attacker. That Fish and Bernard partnership looks like it could be good.
Big learning experience for the lads against some far more experienced players.
Big learning experience for the lads against some far more experienced players.
We may have lost 5-3 with a terrible first-half performance, but that second half was encouraging. The players did themselves proud with that fightback, and we made Liverpool worried in the second half. For a team that's had a ton (and I mean a ton) of changes from last season, this has been quite encouraging.
Oh, and I'd really, really, REALLY want to see Martin Svidersky in DM for our U23s. He's been very good at applying pressure and winning the ball in the 2nd half.
Hugill should be promoted to U23. They need a CF like him. Assuming Galbraith, Puigmal and Laird aren't going on loan, with them back team should have more experience, quality as well as right players for right positions and then team should start getting results.
Still, encouraging 2nd half. Highlight of the match obviously Shoretire decking that twat.
Still, encouraging 2nd half. Highlight of the match obviously Shoretire decking that twat.
I prefer this to be honest. Those good enough for a loan should be loaned.
Let the younger lads move up and be challenged at u23s. Games like today will do wonders for the young lads like Mejbri, Shoretire, Hugill etc.
I'd rather lose games with talented 16 year olds than win the league with a team of steady 18-20 year olds who have no chance of making it here. Over the last decade we've tended to have too many players at u23 level that are really just there to fill team sheets.
Completely agree mate. A good learning curve for the lads against a better and more experienced team. The second half was much better and I'm sure the lads will be kicking themselves over the first half performance which ultimately cost us. But the second half performance was very heartening to see and I'm sure it'll spur us on for the season ahead.
Yea he was good tonight, but we weren’t exactly tough opponents. What I’ve seen of him at u23s he’s a decent/good player but not a great one. Which usually translates to about League One, maybe Championship level. Which depending on how we decide to line up that may sneak into the starting XI.
Tbf to him as well with his poor loan, he doesn’t seem the type to really suit the style of a lower Scottish side. Hopefully he can get a better loan soon.
His dad gave an interview a couple months back on a Canadian forum and they believe the club rate him and they want to keep him so I don’t think he’ll be moving permanently yet anyway.
Yeah they will hopefully iron out those kinks in the first half that showed when being pressed, they were all over the place. Weirdly going down to 10 each suited us no end, we started being able to control the possession and looked far more level headed.
Looking forward to see how these lot kick on!
Of course Liverpool would want to keep him around. I struggle to see how he'd even get involved in the first team, though. Maybe they're looking to loan him out a bit more to generate some more value.
Honestly, if he can make it to the Championship or even League One, I wouldn't mind for our national team. He'd still be a pretty decent player for us by those standards.
As weird as it is to say after conceding 5, I have to say again Fish and Bernard were quite good. Fish’s composite and maturity at such an age is remarkable. They’ve been unfortunate again in that they’ve been hung out to dry countless times but they’ve done really well through it.
I don't know how he can choose Bejger instead of Ercolani. The latter is more stable. However, none of them is a right-back. Getting tired of seeing Bejger there, and I'm guessing he agrees with that.
Awful first half. Good second half. They'll learn. Felt for Elanga at first, he deserved better. Great game from him.
Awful first half. Good second half. They'll learn. Felt for Elanga at first, he deserved better. Great game from him.
Ladies and Gentlemen I give you the 'real' Manchester United u23 team:
Henderson
Wan-Bissaka Tuanzebe Fosu-Mensah Dalot
Garner Levitt
Chong Rashford James
Greenwood
Bishop
Kovar
Laird
Williams
Devine
BERNARD
Mengi
Galbraith
Puigmal
Traore
Mellor
ELANGA
Henderson
Wan-Bissaka Tuanzebe Fosu-Mensah Dalot
Garner Levitt
Chong Rashford James
Greenwood
Bishop
Kovar
Laird
Williams
Devine
BERNARD
Mengi
Galbraith
Puigmal
Traore
Mellor
ELANGA
I know we are short of squad depth, but honestly what happen to our defensive coach?
Form the first team to the U18, we are terrible at defending. Being caught on ball watching, terrible offside trap, never switch position, losing the ball in dangerous area, etc..
From all of our coaching staff that I know, no one was a Defender.. or I might be wrong, Do we really have a coach that was a defender?
Form the first team to the U18, we are terrible at defending. Being caught on ball watching, terrible offside trap, never switch position, losing the ball in dangerous area, etc..
From all of our coaching staff that I know, no one was a Defender.. or I might be wrong, Do we really have a coach that was a defender?
Defending at youth levels has always been pretty hit and miss and that is understandable imo, nothing to do with how shit our first team defense is. Defenders usually mature later and especially for reserve teams it's very often that they change personnel, players go up to the first team or out on loan. Ideally you don't want them to concede 5 goals to your biggest rivals but let's hope they learn along the way.
That team could easily finish 17th in the Prem. Can’t see why you’ve stuck Dalot ahead of Williams though.
On a side note, wtf was that career ender by the Liverpool guy? Would be disgraceful in a blood and thunder PL game, let alone a reserves one.
Seems to be the norm in the 23s these last few years for some reason, there was an even worse tackle in the previous game against Leicester City.
Decided to compare the ages of everyone.
Liverpool starting XI average: 19 years and 4.5 months
Liverpool subs: 18 yrs, 10 months
United Starting XI avg: 18 years, 3 months
United subs: 18 yrs, 10.5 months
So on average we were about 1 year younger than them.
Liverpool starting XI average: 19 years and 4.5 months
Liverpool subs: 18 yrs, 10 months
United Starting XI avg: 18 years, 3 months
United subs: 18 yrs, 10.5 months
So on average we were about 1 year younger than them.
Feel like we need to play Hugill upfront from now on till Mellor is back. You can't expect Elanga to do everything by himself.
Only saw the first half but they did well to end up at 5-3. The first half was the mother of all thrash ins. Should have been about 10-0 by the time we scored 
From the individual prespective, yes it is understandable. But defending is not always individual skill, it's part of tactics, team work, and a system. All of that 5 goals were the failure of defending system.
For example the Iceland national team, they don't have any decent defender. But they have a great system that make them solid at the back. Even Pep's tika taka have a system that made a DM could be a CB.