4-2-3-1 and Pogba in a two

And two of those games, we were played off the park in. Excuses aside, are you happy with how this team is playing at the minute? Wolves in the cup? Watford? Wolves (beyond the first 20 minutes) in the league? Barca at home with no shots on target and only one chance at home? West Ham yesterday? That's just our last 5 games. We weren't exactly playing well when winning games before that.
Injuries and suspensions don't excuse the inability to pass the ball to a teammate.

But again, if that's the standard of football you expect and are happy with, then enjoy mediocrity. We really should be aiming for so much better imo

We most certainly weren't more than equal to Liverpool before the injuries. They were all over us in the first 20 minutes. Injuries didn't cost us against PSG either. Them being able to pass the ball through our midfield like it wasn't there is what was the problem.

But again, there's nothing to worry about, is there? The standard we hope for is to turn up, not roll over and produce the occasional good 20 minutes of football

Of course Ole is aiming for and all the fans are hoping for better than the last five games. Nobody would be happy with yesterday's performance, including the manager and the players.

Do you really think Ole and those involved on the pitch will be satisfied with their showing this weekend?

And did you notice that I wrote the OP?!

There is, however, acknowledging a poor run of performances and seeing them in a wider and deeper context, and then there is applying a doom and gloom tunnel vision, ignoring any and all of the positives, and wailing that the sky is falling in.

My perspective is based far more on performances than results. Hence why I've said it's continued for 3 months now. And I don't blame it on Solskjaer either. There is just too much of a culture in this squad of doing the bare minimum and hoping to get by. And that culture existed long before Ole came in.

It's why I get annoyed when I see players who have regressed and passively contribute to our decline get bew contracts. How can we hope to progress if we keep the players who have far too readily been a part of and accepted the gradual fall away from the top?

We haven't reached the heady heights of Oles first few months recently but since he's been here he's kept pace with Liverpool and City who we all accept as being better and further ahead in their development.

I think some serious fitness work over the summer will make a massive difference. That, coupled with shrewd, signings, will make us much more competitive next season IMO.

comment by Diafol Better (U2462)
posted 55 minutes ago
We haven't reached the heady heights of Oles first few months recently but since he's been here he's kept pace with Liverpool and City who we all accept as being better and further ahead in their development.

I think some serious fitness work over the summer will make a massive difference. That, coupled with shrewd, signings, will make us much more competitive next season IMO.
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Agree.

Three quality signings in the right positions and the right preseason from a training and fitness perspective might make a huge difference across next season.

merrysupersteve seems to be seeing things in the extremes today. There's an acre of middle ground between thinking 'absolute dross for three months' is going a bit far and claiming 'there's nothing to worry about, is there?'

If you watched United at home you will know it has been absolute dross recently, for whatever reasons and excuses you come up with. We make average PL teams look like world beaters for large periods of the games mainly in the second half. We cant string 3 passes together and constantly give them the ball back and they keep coming at us and we have no answer. We dont compete enough in the middle of the park and the one to one battles, never win any of the bits and defensively we are shocking at times. West Ham second half showed us all this and more... just like watford did. Players are hiding and our so called stella players such as Pogba go missing. How you can build a team around this fella is beyond me. He needs to see videos of Robson Keano and Buchan. McT and shaw seems to be our most competitive players recently FFS...

which brings me to Ole...

I think Ole is the right kind of manger for United this time (lets face it we have tried everything else) Hes an ex (Fergie) player who understands the Club, the supporters and the mood of Reds in Manchester and what the United Way involves and knows what it takes to succeed as a player at United and win trophies. But he needs a DoF and time.

Ole has to shuffle the pack atm of players he has been dealt with by the cancer, Jose. he has done so well so far that CL qualification which seemed impossible last Christmas is back on for United and unfairly he will be judged in his ability to get it over the line in the next few weeks but I dont think we have the players in the squad who have the spunk for this fight, which is now becoming evident. All this talk of tiredness and injury infruriates me. I don't see Liverpool Spurs Arsenal and City moaning about regular fixtures. they just get on with it and deliver. I am sure Ole will be ruthless in the summer with a clear out of the time wasters and bring his type of players who want to play for United our way over the next couple of years

Liverpool go 2-0 up vs Chelsea. We are light years away from their level which is quite frankly, shocking

I'm sorry but fitness and fatigue have to be a consideration when we literally went from the least amount of running to the most amount, that has inevitably slowed down. These players need a good preseason with the manager. Although I do agree there are some players in this squad who aren't good enough: Sanchez, Young, Jones, Rojo to name a few.

Having said that, some people are getting a bit hysterical about our current form. We are very much a work in progress, arguably the real work (transfer business) hasn't started yet. Ole has had to work with what he's got which is someone else's squad, the man needs time but to get us competing for top 4 after the Jose meltdown.

Another note, I don't believe we will compete for the title next and it will be another fight for top 4. We have been left so far behind these last few years that it will take several windows to get us back to where we feel we belong. And not all the players we need will be available in one window. Patience is needed.

comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 21 hours, 3 minutes ago
comment by Greg- (U1192)
posted 8 minutes ago
Everyone's going a bit OTT aren't they
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Yes they are.
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It’s quite funny. When he was winning it was ‘give ole the job, he’s the new saf’, now that we have hit a bit of poor form ‘should have gone for poch’.