Originally Posted by Eddie hunter:
“De Gea
Darmain
Smalling
Shaw
Schneiderlin
Schweinsteiger
Herrera
Carrick
Blind
Depay
Rooney
Martial
Mata
These are all players who have played brilliantly under different managers or were brilliant when we signed them, started well and got worse as they settled into the Van Gaal regime.
We either accept that they are all crap or we accept that they are underperforming.”
They are playing to a standard less than the sum of thier parts but I'm just not sure about how far this particular squad could go even under a decent manager.
The good:
Martial, Shaw, Smalling (mostly) and De Gea have been consistently good- excellent. And Blind has been so reliable that he stands out like a streaker on the pitch when he has bad games -
but he will always suffer from a lack of pace.
The Bad:
Schwiny and Carrick are past it for me. Fellani tries hard but lacks the true quality we need in CM. Rooney... I should really put him in the class below but the truth is if he never kicks a ball for United again, how many of us would see it as the loss it would have been even two years ago?
The Variable:
Darmain, Schneiderlin, Herrera, Mata and especially Depay have more to give. Possibly LVG's biggest failure is not getting the best out of those guys. But while we can't expect much from certain players due to age or simply not having the class we need, can it really all be LVG's fault that so much of our first team squad has been so lacklustre? I'm not saying he shouldn't go mind, I came round to that way of thinking long ago. But when I see the "good" players (and thinking about it, that includes the much-maligned Ashley Cole) doing their damndest I do wonder sometimes if players who often go missing for us like Schneiderlin have what it takes. One of the less obvious things I'm looking forward to when LVG goes is open player discussion on just exactly what has gone on this season. It could be a masterclass in how not to man-manage for any future OT boss.
Originally Posted by Jamesp84:
“We can't keep making 5 or 6 signings every summer. It does nothing for team spirit, cohesion or continuity.”
I think we just need four or five for
this summer and then we can more or less shut-up shop for a couple of seasons. We have good young first-team talent everywhere except midfield and centre-half. And with De Gea going, we will probably need to screen our goal a little better!
P.S Tony Kroos? Yes thanks very much.