₦airaland Forum

coogar:
mata was a beast that season!
he was miles better than silva & that was mata's debut season at chelsea. thank feck he's now a red devil.

Your stat states otherwise. Silva was far better.

How did we allow a player like Modric to leave the EPL? Plus Bale? Next time Man United should do it like Bayern Munich.

Shirley07:
You said we need 3 defenders and then, proceeded to mention Hummel, Godin and Strootman. So, what was I supposed to think?
As a matter of fact, we don't even need Strootman in midfield nor 'defence'.

Reason.

Karleb:
I've seriously got a question?

How exactly did Sterling missed that goal? As in, all he needed to do was to lift the ball a little higher or he should have just shot immediately after the first dribble.

Two things. DDG made it hard for him by not falling. DDG did like he was going down but he allowed Sterling to beat him, then he chase after him like a defender.

Second thing was Sterling did have a back up plan for what he wanted to do. He expected DDG to fall, and DDG did not fall. Sterling was shocked DDG recovered to prevent him clear access to the net. If Sterling knew his plan was to beat the goal keeper, he should have rounded him fast by touching the ball diagonally to the left twice (left-forward, left-forward) before hitting into empty net.

coogar:
a defender that made 84% pass completion, bagged a needless yellow card because of his lack of positional sense & lost a tackle can't be better than carrick that did more in those categories - carrick bagged no card, the only defender that wasn't cautioned on the night.

salute to carrick, please!

okay. All are our players. Carrick did well.

My worry is how the selection will be when everyone is fit. But that's Gaal's headache. Let me relax and enjoy.

coogar:
whoscored rating is hopeless.....
no one takes it seriously - jones didn't even complete 90 mins so how can he be rated per game to his peers that saw liverpool's surge after balotelli came on.

whoscored rating is for rêtards - until they start judging per minute - they have the most misleading rating system in the world. carrick played better than any of our defenders & passing stat is the biggest attribute of a defenfer. any defenfer that cannot make up to 90% passing accuracy in the most pressure-free zone shouldn't even be earning a living at OT.

Jones played for 88 mins. He did marvelously well when Balotelli came on.

His departure should even count negatively for him, not positively.

'3. United's makeshift wingbacks are getting it - While United were totally ordinary and this game was more about Liverpool's mistakes (and De Gea's brilliance) than anything the Red Devils' outfield players did well, there was one huge positive: the attacking play of United's wingbacks. It's not totally surprising that a pair of converted wingers can contribute offensively from these positions, but Valencia and Young were especially good going forward in this game. They made great decisions and their crossing was superb.'
http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2014/12/14/7389629/manchester-united-liverpool-2014-epl-final-score-result

This is where I see Rafael having a problem. Valencia and Young have been very good. Val has been involved in our winning streak. He could have had two assists today if RVP did not miss from close range.

coogar:
jones was useless
he was only slightly better than evans. however, it's his first game after many weeks so he could be excused. jones passing stats was a disgrace - he recovered the ball only 5 times & had 80% tackle success.

carrick had 90% passing stat, carrick made 9 ball recoveries and had 100% tackle success. his calming influence in the backline & his positioning to prevent danger helped us immensely today. evans was just shambolic for the whole 90 mins.

100% tackle for Carrick. But he made only three tackles.

Pass accuracy. How can you use that to rate defenders? It depends on the situations and the oppositions. However, when you put Jones vs Evans you see a wide gap. Jones 83%, Evans 70%.

The match I saw today, Jones did very well. No bias. He dealt with threats high up the pitch and recover well into centre vack to block for Carrick.



Whoscored rating:

Jones 7.9
Carrick 7.11
Evans 6.37.

coogar:
to think carrick - a makeshift defender was our best defender today just tells you everything you need to know. van gaal should move jones, evans & smalling to crystal palace. we need 3 fit defenders. hummels, godin & strootman will do this january.

roma are out of champions league - strootman has no excuses now than to join us.

I think Jones did better than Carrick. Jones did woefully once against Sterling, and everything else was fine. It was hard to get past him and he made a nice killer tackle to prevent Sterling from shooting when he was already clear.


Carrick tried though, but I have not seen a CB having one clearance in a match for us. Our CBs usually have the top clearance, but today it was Jones, RVP, Rooney and Val. This meant the forward were cautious that our CB needed protection. Normally, Smalling gets the highest clearances.

But I agree that our defenders should stay fit.

Mata's case is dicey. He might have an average game or even a bad game, then he scores. All of a sudden it seemed he had a magnificent game. Until Mata's 2nd goal gave us some level of comfort, he (Mata), Fellaini and Wilson were three players not really in the game. Fellaini was basically due to his passing to opposition or even 'winning' the ball for them.

chrisley024:
Wow! 3 goals with clean sheet. Missed the game cos I went for a program.

How was the game? Individual and team performance?

Many chances from both side, we made ours count while they couldn't take theirs courtesy of DDG.

Just a little better performance than our game at Southampton. Liverpool started better than us. We were trying to break their play, and we weren't comfortable on the ball in the opening minutes. However, Valencia did well to escape his markers on the right to open up a big space in front of him. Then he gave an assist to Rooney who scored just inside the box.

Liverpool played continued their pressure after the goal. But Mata scored a header from Young's cross 5 mins before the break. Second half was a big better. Evans could have ruined it when he gifted Sterling a free ball, but DDG saved marvelously from one vs one even though Sterling had plenty of time and a million and one options. Liverpool mounted their pressure as we packed the bus while hoping to finish them on the counter. But for lack of pace of Mata and Fellaini, our counter did not work. On another occasion, Rooney's left foot let him down to making it 3-0.

Finally, RVP scored (see gif). Then, a coulple of more chances for both sides, with Liverpool having the clearer chances. DDG stood tall.

Wrote in a hurry. I wan go out now.


Formation

3- Jones, Carrick, Evans,
4- Val, Fellaini, Rooney, Young
1- Mata
2- RVP, Wilson

I think Fellaini should be given a match rest to see if his concentration can improve.

If Gaal kept faith with 3-5-2, Rafael would not be a starter.

When Di Maria returns, how are we going to line up?

Injury is the only reason everyone is happy for now. As good as Herrera is, he stays on the bench.

tess1:
LVG should be starting Falcao since he said he is fit to start today instead of starting Wilson. Falcao needs a run of games to get to the rythm of the league.

They should start him against Villa. He can not be as poor as Wilson. Wilson should be the substitute.

Our defence is a great worry. We still have not got a stable starting back. Val and Young were given a new role.

DDG was not just the MOTM, he was also a hero for us.

Fellaini was poor in first half but did well in latter part of the game.

Falcao has to start playing matches, whether for team B or C or U21 or U-18 I dont care. He will never be match fit if he continues like this. His vision is there but the fitness to execute it is lacking. He also gets bullied off the ball because of his lack of fitness.

Wilson did not offer anything today. He played like a real young player.

Nice to have Phil Jones back. I thought he did okay. Again, he got the highest interception in the game by a mile.

Good to see us consolidating in top four. Kudos!

MaziOmenuko:
We can readjust our target for this season: let's give the title a hot-chase and see what comes out of it.

I am not raising my target. However, I welcome a bonus from the team.

Odunharry:
next villa,newcastl,spurs

your count down has been 'working'

Can we go to 4-3-3 now?

Can we survive this without a red card? The ref might want to punish us to compensate for Mata's. Goal.

I think it's a diamond midfied.

....... Carrick
Fellaini.........Mata
.......Rooney.






Louis van Gaal:
"My plan you shall see on the pitch. I have to change at the last moment because Marcos Rojo was injured in training so I have to change my line-up again.
"Radamel Falcao is fit to start. We need James Wilson in this match because of his speed. Liverpool are now in trouble but by beating us they can be in heaven. That is football."

Injury is too much. When are we going to have stability?

SailorXY:
Herrera & Rojo? another injury concern apparently

I wonder what happened to Rojo.

Here’s the United XI to face Liverpool: David De Gea, Valencia, Phil Jones, Evans, Ashley Young, Michael Carrick, Marouane Fellaini, Juan Mata, Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie, Wilson.

Subs: Lindegaard, Blackett, McNair, Fletcher, Ander Herrera, Januzaj, Falcao

coogar:
2.30pm(naija time)

Waz ur take on alleged Chelsea bid for strootman?

Marouane Fellaini is not a Manchester United player according to former first team coach, Rene Meulensteen.

The midfielder has shown his best form at Old Trafford in the past couple of months and seems to be winning of a majority of the support after a torrid first season under David Moyes.

Fellaini has also bagged his first two goals for the club during his spell in the team but Meulensteen says the 27-year-old doesn't fit the playing style demanded of a Manchester United player.

“Juan Mata’s a good player and so are Ander Herrera, Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie and Michael Carrick. It's about circulating the ball. That’s one of the reasons why I think Marouane Fellaini is not a United player. I don’t think he has that attribute in him, that constant circulating the ball."

[Source: thepeoplesperson.com]

Chelsea make €38m Strootman bid
Chelsea have made a €38m bid for Kevin Strootman. The midfielder has been targeted by Manchester United who could match or even attempt to improve on the Blues' offer.
-goal.com

Van Gaal keen to loan Januzaj out in January
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal wants to send Adnan Januzaj out on loan in the January transfer window to game more playing time. Real Sociedad, Inter and Napoli are all interested in the youngster. -goal.com

United want Cuadrado in January
Italian reports suggest Manchester United have again upped their interest in Colombian winger Juan Cuadrado. It is said that Louis van Gaal wants to sign the Fiorentina wide-man in the winter transfer window. goal.com

joeace2020:
Almost 50 injuries.. so much for athleticism

As for me, it only meant that our players were not really physically fit. That was why Bilbao could come to Old Trafford to run us around. They were quicker and faster. In recent years, our players struggled to keep pace with fast playing sides like Tottenham, Everton and Newcastle.

Whether Gaal is doing it too much, I can't tell sha.

Nihilist:
You mean this managerial failure has the gall to slag off LVG?

Maybe if Renee had actually listened to LVG, 2 different clubs would not have sacked him in less than 3 months after hiring.

I think Renee can move on from SAF's philosophy.

joeace2020:
hes really stubborn and arrogant in an annoying way. Keeps playing the 3-5-2, over working players on the training ground n on d field, forcing the young guys into the team too early and making us take 2steps forward, 1 step backwards with our play

May be I like this aspect. Our players should be very athletic.

On the eve of the most famous fixture in the English football calendar, Rene Meulensteen is worrying about the “identity crisis” of his old club Manchester United, who host Liverpool on Sunday.
“I find it a big surprise that Van Gaal has not managed yet to make the team play better,’ we are nearly at Christmas now and look at the performances. I still don’t see a flow, a rhythm. They win five on the spin but they were absolutely pummelled at Arsenal and should have lost against Southampton.
“He will blow up at some point. That’s part of his make-up. Remember these words. If I’m speaking to you, I’m exchanging information over what I feel passionate about but I don’t lecture you. I’m not preaching to you. If you go and sit with Van Gaal, you’ll come out thinking ‘I’m 12 years old’. He will speak to you as if you have no clue. He will look at you and be thinking ‘what are you asking me?
"I’m Louis van Gaal’. He’s not my cup of tea. It’s one of the reasons I quite like Ronald (Koeman) as a person - he doesn’t preach or lecture people like the other guy does.
“I said to Ryan Giggs ‘I’m so glad you’re staying at the club in this role because you’re the one holding on to this life-line to the Ferguson era but I’m telling you it’s going to be the most difficult three years ahead of you.’ The lifeline is the connection to Ferguson, and what Ryan grew up with, the DNA that Ferguson put in the club. If Giggs leaves the club, that’s it, done, gone, forget it, he’s the last one holding on to it. It would be a very sad moment.”

.

Louis Van Gaal has warned Brendan Rodgers he now has the measure of the Premier League.
Reds boss Rodgers claimed before the season started that his managerial rival at Old Trafford might struggle to adapt to the competitive nature and strength in depth of the English top flight.
But when the pair meet tomorrow, with Manchester United third in the table and Liverpool ninth, Van Gaal would appear to be having the last laugh.
“I think the Premier League isn’t so easy but I knew that in advance, I also now have the experience because every game we have to play against clubs at the bottom, they are very difficult to beat.
“We’ve managed to win our last five matches despite our list of injuries and I’m pleased by that.
“I think what he said at that moment was the truth and I have experienced that, that way also. The big difference between the Premier League and where I have worked before is the high rhythm of the game.
“I think here also every club has a player who can decide the match and that’s not so much the case in Germany, Spain or the Netherlands.”
[Source: Mirror]


.......


The reason it remains the most difficult and competitive league.

tana4gud:
. My broda 4rm anoda Mother

Lovely!