Greenwood what a talent!

I don’t think playing him there in cup games is rushing him. I just think Ole will give him more game time there next season as he sees him as a number 9. He won’t improve in that position unless he plays there. He can still play plenty of games on the right as well. Get Grealish and the attacking quality, and depth, in our squad will be one of the best in the league next season.

comment by Imran The King Khan (U10026)
posted 7 minutes ago
I don’t think playing him there in cup games is rushing him. I just think Ole will give him more game time there next season as he sees him as a number 9. He won’t improve in that position unless he plays there. He can still play plenty of games on the right as well. Get Grealish and the attacking quality, and depth, in our squad will be one of the best in the league next season.
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Why does he have to improve in that position though? Why can’t he continue to develop in the position he’s demonstrated he’s best suited to and is performing excellently in?

Because he’s going to be a striker for Manchester United.

2 quality strikes today. I don't think it can be said enough how impressive it is that both strikes were so pure but taken with different feet

comment by Imran The King Khan (U10026)
posted 2 hours, 17 minutes ago
Because he’s going to be a striker for Manchester United.
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Alright, Mystic Mohamed

Seems to be the view of everyone at the club. Including the man that picks him.

https://www.manutd.com/en/news/detail/greenwood-growing-into-the-real-deal-says-ole

Yeah, we’ll see. It’s quite a natural progression for a lot of players who start out as wide forwards.

It all depends on how their games develop I think, in what ways and how quickly.

Martial is knocking on 25 now, and is only just starting to look like a number nine. I’d bet money that he’d still look a better player if he was playing off the left rather than through the middle.

Ronaldo started as a different kind of wide forward to Greenwood, obviously, before ending up at number nine and that transition (maybe it was a bigger one) took a long time.

And I remember reading about LVG playing Arjen Robben up front for Holland and talking about how he could have been a number nine. But would he have been as valuable as a second striker through his career as he was perennially as a winger?

I’m rambling now (vinho tinto again ) but I guess the general point is we don’t really know what kind of player Mason is going to become yet, and right now, he’s a better wide forward than centreforward, so I’d be playing him there.

I also think number nines are bang out of fashion nowadays, and in a lot of top sides, the position doesn’t even exist most of the time.

But he’s been playing more out wide, and will do next season most likely. But clearly the idea is for him to move more centrally, and for him to do that he’ll need to play there, and I suspect he will do more next season than he has this one.

Don’t forget that Ighalo is only on loan until January. The way Greenwood has taken like a duck to water in the prem I’ve no doubt that he will usurp Ighalo as the club’s second choice striker, as well as one of the first option to replace Sancho on the right when we sign him.

I think you would have had more wins and hence more points had Ole played more attacking games before and played Greenwood more games instead Pereira or James. Bright future for him.