Possibly. Not looked at any stats, but if his role is to anchor the midfield then there’s a good chance he covers less than Fred who presses all over.
He just seems a bit more composed to me.
Yves Bissouma / Signs for Spurs
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He just seems a bit more composed to me.
I hear you. It would be nice to have a sitting dm breaking it up and moving it on especially in the big matches. He looked ok under our half press yesterday but we usually give teams a pretty easy way out until it gets into Bruno or Fred territory. I must watch more of him before the season ends.
Him behind Pognandes and maybe we're on to something.
He's excellent, his reading of the game last night was great - anticipated a lot of our passes and made the interception pretty much as soon as it left the boot of our players.
Very intelligent player who was calm in possession, strong and good on the ball.
Very intelligent player who was calm in possession, strong and good on the ball.
You really want to keep Pogba? Get rid of him and we’re onto something.
Wh
Why wouldn't I want to keep one of our best players? We have hoardes of players who just can't play, get rid of them first.
Is he always this calm and composed?
He looked excellent yesterday. Has he been consistent this season?
Super cool again last night. Looks unflappable.
Yeah his style is very calm and laidback whenever I watch him, he's very imposing & intelligent without the need to run around manically. He reads the game well enough to get into good positions. I think he would be the perfect DM for us at a realistic price of around £40-45m,
Kessie would be cheaper and I think has more about him. Although Bissouma is PL-tested which is not to be sniffed at.
I didn't see anything that suggested he was the right fit for us. Tidy but didn't look as if he would kick us on another level, I think he'd just add another body which isn't necessarily the main problem we have.
Also I don't see what the natural partnership is unless Pogba stays and also stays fits and performs consistently. Bissouma and McTominay/Fred doesn't look right to me.
Also I don't see what the natural partnership is unless Pogba stays and also stays fits and performs consistently. Bissouma and McTominay/Fred doesn't look right to me.
Yeah Bissouma’s really comfortable when being pressed. Excellent first touch and dribbling without ever really getting phased by what’s going on around him.
My only hesitation about him is the lack of physicality or authority compared to players like Rice or Ndidi.
In that midfield Bissouma would be asked to do a huge amount of defensive work. To such an extent that I’m not sure Ole would trust them as a 3 in the bigger games and would probably still look to bring in Fred. I think people’s hopes would be that Rice or Ndidi could do that job alone.
But it might just be a reality of trying to use Pogba in a pivot system against better teams; it requires another midfielder to help Pogba out defensively, no matter who the CDM is. Even for France when they line up with Kante and Pogba in a two they play Rabiot (or previously Matuidi) in a defensive LM role to help out the midfield.
Yeah, get rid of the best player. Great idea.
We’re fecked then if he’s our best player. Does next to nothing most games other than give the ball away. Flashes of brilliance and that’s it. We need a consistent, reliable player in there.
Jury is still out on Bissouma, especially as it translates to playing in a different team. He didn't have a difficult time yesterday against United who were pedestrian like in the first half but then he couldn't really impact the game when United were thoroughly on top in the 2nd half. Plus he's surrounded by two central defenders immediately behind him and a wingback to his right.
Not sure about his talent in the attacking half of the pitch and what he's capable of when he's asked to support an attack while staying disciplined defensively.
It's a massive step for him going from one end of the table to the other and what will be asked of him will be different all things considered if United were to sign him. How's his attitude and mentality?
One thing United need are more characters with requisite quality. AWB has good quality, not the best, but he's a mute on the pitch and has shown to go into a shell when shit hits the fan.
Not sure about his talent in the attacking half of the pitch and what he's capable of when he's asked to support an attack while staying disciplined defensively.
It's a massive step for him going from one end of the table to the other and what will be asked of him will be different all things considered if United were to sign him. How's his attitude and mentality?
One thing United need are more characters with requisite quality. AWB has good quality, not the best, but he's a mute on the pitch and has shown to go into a shell when shit hits the fan.
It’s a fair point. It’s hard to get a gauge on this just watching the matches as a casual neutral compared to an actual Brighton fan who knows the players more personally. I wouldn’t say he was a major talker from that perspective though, which would be a negative for the type of CDM we’d want. From a technical and attacking point of view I think Bissouma would thrive at a bigger club though.
But that attitude is one of the major strengths of Rice for example. Excellent leadership qualities (basically West Ham captain at 22 in Noble’s absence) with the type of mentality that helps impose himself on games and the dressing room.
I rate Bissouma higher to be honest. Kessie was decent against us in the first leg against Milan but in the second leg when we went into second gear, he couldn't live with our current midfield (of course you can't win on your own).
I didn't necessarily see anything special about him apart from being busy and his goal that never was. In addition, he's not a DM
He’s more box to box but I think he has the discipline to know when to hang back and cover defensively. Alternatively, if one or both of pogba and Bruno are getting man marked, he has enough ability in him to affect play by getting in the ball. He’s built like a tank too so physicality won’t trouble him one bit, coming to England.
Kessie was much more impressive at Old Trafford than Bissouma was yesterday. He ran that game with his passing and willingness to get on the ball, albeit we didn't lay a glove on them which makes it harder to interpret. Also clearly they are playing in very different teams which is another variable.
Kessie seemed to do something that I have not seen from our guys that often in terms of his playmaking. While not being deficient in getting forward too on occasion suggesting some adaptability in role.
I think there's a lot of overlap in Bissouma's talents with the guys we have. It's not just about having a nice touch to beat a press that we're missing, and it's certainly not energy or somebody that can get up and down the pitch. It's that consistent player available to build up play, having the positional and tactical awareness to do it and then the quality too.
Obviously a one game comparison is kind of meaningless and one would hope our scouts have dozens of reports on guys like this that are available and of the right sort of age and experience profile.
Kessie seemed to do something that I have not seen from our guys that often in terms of his playmaking. While not being deficient in getting forward too on occasion suggesting some adaptability in role.
I think there's a lot of overlap in Bissouma's talents with the guys we have. It's not just about having a nice touch to beat a press that we're missing, and it's certainly not energy or somebody that can get up and down the pitch. It's that consistent player available to build up play, having the positional and tactical awareness to do it and then the quality too.
Obviously a one game comparison is kind of meaningless and one would hope our scouts have dozens of reports on guys like this that are available and of the right sort of age and experience profile.
I would love to see us sign him. I think he's got the right mix of athleticism and skill on the ball to make that DM position his own, and allow Pogba and Fernandes to Flourish in front of him. Would be a clear upgrade on Matic and it seems like he can be had for a reasonable price. Keep Pogba, add him, Milenkovic, and a finished product striker, and we will be looking strong through the spine of the team. Think it can be done too as the financial side of that package is doable (especially considering possible player sales).
Yeah good post, my feelings exactly on the bolded.
I do like Bissouma but I've had that feeling you described a few times now that he shares the same attributes our existing players do and lacks the same attributes to play the role to the required level.
It's pointless us throwing money at players who are too similar to what we already have. No teams have money to throw around at the moment. It's vital we improve the areas of weakness in the team and DM is a key area for us imo.
I think that’s a good assessment on the whole but I‘d just caveat the comparison in performances at Old Trafford with the point that, as you say yourself, one was playing for AC Milan while the other was playing for Brighton.
But also more pertinently, the players they were up against. That was basically our strongest XI last night while Kessie was playing a midfield consisting of Matic and McTominay with Dan James on the wing and Martial up top. It’s a minor quibble though - I’m just being picky because I’m a Bissouma cheerleader.
I think Kessie would be an excellent purchase given his contract situation. Seems physically built for the league as well.
I'd prefer him to Rice
On the other hand he plays in a team playing some sort of progressive football, which would be a good fit for us if we finally makes things happen and refine our off the ball play and apply more pressing.
Perhaps yeah. Theres also anguissa at fulham and berge at sheff utd who might fit our bill and will be a lot more ‘gettable’ than names like Rice and Ndidi. I’m interested to see what 15 months of covid does to transfer market - whether clubs will keep it tight or spend against projected revenues with an end in sight here. Added factor of a big international tournament in there which never helps
Consistent reliable players don’t win leagues on their own. We need more Bruno / Pogba type players who often give the ball away because they’re trying something different (whilst having the ability to pull off something special). This is how we get through defensive teams.
Ideally, Rice would be the perfect DM signing. Apart from having all the required skills for the role, he's a badly missed leader in this team.
Next, I would suggest Ndidi from how he's performed since he came to the Pl.
Unfortunately, both Rice and Ndidi look unattainable.
Bissouma, on the other hand, looks like a perfect option; very similar game to NDidi, with great composure on the ball. What impresses me is his speed; he seems to be always alert to danger. In a better team, he could develop into a top-class DM, far better at the moment than Fred, with the potential to get to the next level.
Next, I would suggest Ndidi from how he's performed since he came to the Pl.
Unfortunately, both Rice and Ndidi look unattainable.
Bissouma, on the other hand, looks like a perfect option; very similar game to NDidi, with great composure on the ball. What impresses me is his speed; he seems to be always alert to danger. In a better team, he could develop into a top-class DM, far better at the moment than Fred, with the potential to get to the next level.
Strikes me as a risky purchase. Not guaranteed he can do it at a big club. Seems to be confusion that he is a defensive mid or a rice alternative too
He and Anguissa are interesting outsiders to look at.
He would be my defensive midfield signing. A very good player who can get even better if given a bigger platform.
Very true, but while Milan are improved they are still some way off, over the course of the second leg that became clear. The fact they're loaning a player like Dalot and giving experience to our third choice right back is indicative of where they are at in terms of the quality within that squad and the process they're going through in terms of getting younger players in and improving them. So yes, a better team than Brighton but not one that should be expected to dominate at OT unless we play poorly and/or certain areas of their team perform exceptionally on the day, and I think we saw a bit of both.
I take the point about the midfield composition. Matic is looking extremely poor at the moment and is probably our easiest midfielder to play against as he sits off and doesn't really put pressure on his opposite number, leaving his partners a lot to do.
I do think Bissouma catches the eye and is surely bound for bigger things, it's mainly the style of player that I'm not sure is for us. But maybe other people have watched him a lot more than I have and identify something else to his play. I just can't imagine him and Fred/McTominay working to reduce some of our weaknesses, and even if we say that the idea is to complement a staying Pogba, we still have to acknowledge his injury issues, inconsistency and be realistic about the partnerships we'll see over a full season.
Apart from freelance journalist, "branding specialist", and possible United fan: Jonathan Shrager
According to press rumors: Arsenal and Leicester are both after him. No good rumors of any United interest.
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Was very good tonight! Strong as an ox and good with the ball as well.
Very positive, neat and aggressive player.
Solid again today. I do like him and if he's available at reasonable price he would be interesting option. I'm not convinced he's an upgrade though. Brighton play decent football so hes at least at a good place for development
Good baller, this lad.
I would end the Pogba saga by selling him, sell Fred, Pereira and Lingard, let Matic and Mata leave for free.
Latest quote for Neves is 30 mil, Bissouma probably for 35mil. I would get both Neves and Bissouma, and get Grealish.
Midfield for 21-22:
Neves, Bissouma, McTominay, VdB, Bruno, Grealish.
Garner on loan in the premier league.
but hey, we all know none of this will happen
Latest quote for Neves is 30 mil, Bissouma probably for 35mil. I would get both Neves and Bissouma, and get Grealish.
Midfield for 21-22:
Neves, Bissouma, McTominay, VdB, Bruno, Grealish.
Garner on loan in the premier league.
but hey, we all know none of this will happen
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