Will we score 50 league goals this season?

I have real doubts about this target, ridiculous though it may appear. The last few games, not only have we failed to score but it’s become somehow inconceivable that we will. I think the players feel like this, too. We need someone who can smash that perception and break the spell.
 
I know this is dipping into last season too, but it's now 31 Premier League appearances between Weghorst and Hojlund with zero goals.

Say what you want about Weghorst being shit, or Hojlund being raw, I still can't get my head around 0 out of 31 being possible for Manchester United forwards. It's an astonishing statistic, and a truly damning one towards Ten Hag.
 
I know this is dipping into last season too, but it's now 31 Premier League appearances between Weghorst and Hojlund with zero goals.

Say what you want about Weghorst being shit, or Hojlund being raw, I still can't get my head around 0 out of 31 being possible for Manchester United forwards. It's an astonishing statistic, and a truly damning one towards Ten Hag.

Now that's a crazy stat!

What makes it worse is that both of them very clearly tries/tried their best too!
 
Of all the damning stats Ten Hag has produced, the fact that we’re 18 games into his second league season and one – one! – team has scored less goals than us probably takes the cake. I genuinely cannot believe that has happened.
 
Of all the damning stats Ten Hag has produced, the fact that we’re 18 games into his second league season and one – one! – team has scored less goals than us probably takes the cake. I genuinely cannot believe that has happened.
Why which attacking signings were going to change that from last seasons poor attacking display?
 
Why which attacking signings were going to change that from last seasons poor attacking display?
As bad as our attacking football was last year, there were still 12 teams with less goals than us. This is mindbogglingly, impressively bad.
 
As bad as our attacking football was last year, there were still 12 teams with less goals than us. This is mindbogglingly, impressively bad.
Thats because Rashford saved us
 
I don't know if we'll make 50 goals. Doesn't feel like it right now. It's also up for debate as to whether we'll finish the season with a positive goal difference or not.
 
We look just as toothless as LVG had us looking. Something about possession based football, when it’s shit it’s reeaaaaally fecking bad.
 
Same as saving Haaland saved City. We still created chances for Rashford to score. What are you even arguing?
We didn’t create a lot for him. In a lot of games he created his own chances and scored goals he created himself. He also created a bunch for the team. His form saved us last season and it was obvious we were going go struggle this season in attack
 
We look just as toothless as LVG had us looking. Something about possession based football, when it’s shit it’s reeaaaaally fecking bad.
We had a finished Rooney up top… possession football sucks when you’re attacking players are useless
 
We didn’t create a lot for him. In a lot of games he created his own chances and scored goals he created himself. He also created a bunch for the team. His form saved us last season and it was obvious we were going go struggle this season in attack
Yes, but one team being worse at scoring goals than us is still pretty fecking hard to believe.

Also: Take away Rashford’s goals last season and we still have a better goals-to-games ratio than this season.
 
We look just as toothless as LVG had us looking. Something about possession based football, when it’s shit it’s reeaaaaally fecking bad.
When played correctly it’s great to watch. Arsenal for example play good stuff with possession. We don’t have a fluid attack like them though. And a functioning midfield
 
We had a finished Rooney up top… possession football sucks when you’re attacking players are useless
We had Rooney, Falcao, Van Persie, Chicarito, Welbeck, Martial, Rashford, with Di Maria, Nani, Valencia, Depay and Mata on the wings. He still couldn’t get them playing decent stuff.
 
We had Rooney, Falcao, Van Persie, Chicarito, Welbeck, Martial, Rashford, with Di Maria, Nani, Valencia, Depay and Mata on the wings. He still couldn’t get them playing decent stuff.
Martial and Rashford did well under him (probably the best we saw of them). Many of the others you mentioned were finished players either injured or on their way out of football but do carry on.

Fact is possession football demands top attacking players.
 
Martial and Rashford did well under him (probably the best we saw of them). Many of the others you mentioned were finished players either injured or on their way out of football but do carry on.

Fact is possession football demands top attacking players.
He fecked off the likes of Hernandez and Welbeck, to sign those finished players though? So I’m not sure what he was thinking there
 
I know this is dipping into last season too, but it's now 31 Premier League appearances between Weghorst and Hojlund with zero goals.

Say what you want about Weghorst being shit, or Hojlund being raw, I still can't get my head around 0 out of 31 being possible for Manchester United forwards. It's an astonishing statistic, and a truly damning one towards Ten Hag.

It just seems an odd thing to do. What's the point? Weghorst was a stop-gap that we pretty much all knew was not a good goal scorer.
 
He fecked off the likes of Hernandez and Welbeck, to sign those finished players though? So I’m not sure what he was thinking there
He signed Martial and Di Maria and Depay (2 didnt work our). The finished players being RVP, Hernandez, Mata, Valencia Rooney etc who you decided go mention
 
It just seems an odd thing to do. What's the point? Weghorst was a stop-gap that we pretty much all knew was not a good goal scorer

To highlight how few chances we create for our central forward and the problems we have tactically when it comes to that. Weghorst at least managed a couple at Burnley, would think a League One striker, or any combo of two of them would trouble the scoresheet at least once in 31 PL appearances in an attack that was remotely funtional.
 
There's a good chance if he didn't get injured Haaland would be level on goals with us
 
To highlight how few chances we create for our central forward and the problems we have tactically when it comes to that. Weghorst at least managed a couple at Burnley, would think a League One striker, or any combo of two of them would trouble the scoresheet at least once in 31 PL appearances in an attack that was remotely funtional.

Ah ok. I didn't get that at all. Yeah fair - we create feck all. How many times has Hojlund even had a chance to try to get on the end of?
 
No chance we hit 50 under current management and tactics. Could get a late surge if they get a new manager bounce
 
I had a big post written up and another thread to go but it's not like we need one so I'm gonna post in here instead.

It's clear Ten Hag is looking for a goalscorer. Unfortunately despite his purple patch, McTominay isn't the guy, and neither is Hojlund. It was worth an experiment at least.

But in the absence of anything better personnel wise, I'd like to see an increased tempo in the second half of games and in the opening exchanges. Do the same things we are already doing but tell the players to do them faster. Because that was basically how Alex Ferguson turned so many games around in Europe: told everyone to play quicker. No safety first possession, get the ball up and get it moving into the danger area as soon as possible - work from wide to the byline and that sort of thing. Play keep ball and patience once we are ahead but GET ahead, and score quickly. Sending players out and telling them to go all out in the first 15 minutes against Villa would be pretty much the only option at this point. We might get destroyed by a confident Villa but I don't know if it's the talent wrecking our team, OR the coaching, it all looks mental at this point. Get them believing they are Manchester United again, up the tempo, and they could get playing like the real Manchester United again sooner than you'd think.
 
The 7 teams above us have scored an average of 36.43 PL goals per team this season.

The next 6 teams below us have scored an average of 26.16 PL goals.

The bottom 6 teams in the PL have scored an average of 18.1 PL goals.

Utd have scored 18 PL goals


The next match, Villa at home on Boxing Day, marks the halfway point of the season.
If we carry on like this, Utd will be lucky to hit 40 goals, never mind 50.



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We're averaging 1.0 goals pr. game currently. We need to increase that average to 1.6 over the remaining 20 games to reach 50 league goals. Don't see where that improvement comes from.

Another question: What will our top scorer finish with this season? Will it be double digits?