This is not an Ole in/out article but a few positives which I, and I think a few others are able to take from this season so far.
1. The Form of Rashford - The lad is having a great season, and has scored more goals in 200 appearances than Ronaldo. He won't be as good as the Portuguese legend but that is an encouraging stat.
2.The front three - changes from time to time with swaps between James and Mason, but which ever three plays they do show signs of a good understanding which eachother. With Tony, Marcus and Mason bagging 36 goals between them this season.
3. Scoring goals - We could use a few contributions from elsewhere on the pitch but we are scoring goals regularly again. we struggled with this earlier in the year when Martial was out. We are also doing this with a severe lack of creativity in Midfield, with Pogba missing for the majority of the season.
4. Form against the top sides - Should be no argument from most that our best performances and results this year have come against the "bigger" sides. The counter attack in these games has been really effective. Of course this doesn't mean that this will naturally continue, but if we can couple that with some creativity to beat the low block things will look be much brighter.
5. Identity forming - One of my most hated words in football 'identity'. Oft misused by pundits and fans alike after a poor performance to have a go at the manager. The fact is, our results and performances at times have not been good enough for a club of our stature. To say we completely lack an identity is false. We have a clear game plan to press teams that we expect to beat and to counter sides that will expect to have more possession, in general. This is also flexible throughout these game. Our identity is based around real pace and energy. We lack guile to open teams up and we are not consistent enough when it comes to the press, but it's there.
6. Development of young players - This one that that I will give Ole the utmost credit for. The handling of our younger players has been spot on, and one I'm happy to admit I was completely wrong about earlier this season. He has used Mason sparingly, even when we were crying out for a goalscorer when Martial was injured. I thought he should have thrown him in, but his strike rate for minutes he's played has been fantastic and he looks such a classy footballer. Ole has to take great credit for not heaping that pressure on him earlier this year, something perhaps Marcus suffered from earlier in his career. Williams has been a revelation at LB and again Ole has hooked him at the right times. He gets better every time I see him play. Other youngsters have been given opportunities, with a few still to impress but they will get further chances. All this points to a long term approach from the manager.
The positives
posted on 13/1/20
Still got nothing here Bla Bla
posted on 13/1/20
Yes we are in 5th, but that's more to do with how poor the league is. We are closer to 16th than 3rd points wise.
posted on 13/1/20
comment by Mason The King Greenwood (U10026)
posted 3 hours, 20 minutes ago
rosso, that’s a fair point about targets. But conversely, you shouldn’t always keep a manager for meeting targets if there’s a lack of faith in him and there are better alternatives that are open to the job.
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Strictly speaking, I think that’s fair enough.
However, if you’re sacking a manager who has managed to meet all of his targets, that says to me that both you haven’t set his targets high enough and that there’s an exceptional alternative available.
Right now, what I (very) firmly believe we need in managerial terms isn’t necessarily a tactical genius, a born winner and/or someone who will milk the absolute very best out of every player in his squad; it’s a) some facking stability and continuity, and b) someone (or a group of people) with a clear vision who can develop players and build and keep together a younger, hungry, and, most importantly, coherent squad.
I couldn’t give a flying monkey’s craphole if we finished in the top four this season, personally. It’s way, way down my list of priorities tbh.
posted on 13/1/20
comment by Mason The King Greenwood (U10026)
posted 2 hours, 37 minutes ago
You can underachieve, relative to the quality of your team, and still finish higher up the league than expected.
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The fack sort of mental gymnastics is this?
Surely expected league position is based on squad quality relative to others and under/over achieving is in line with that expectation.
posted on 13/1/20
it’s a) some facking stability and continuity, and b) someone (or a group of people) with a clear vision who can develop players and build and keep together a younger, hungry, and, most importantly, coherent squad.
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I understand the sentiment but that all sounds like a recipe for us to turn into Bournemouth while our rivals surge away into the distance
posted on 13/1/20
rosso yeah I think that’s fair. But keeping a coach you haven’t got faith in when there’s a better alternative won’t lead to the things you want.
Benched, does it really need explaining? Football isn’t just about your league position. If the quality and consistency of your performances isn’t in line with what you have at your disposal, that’s underachieving as far as I’m concerned. That’s literally about yourself as a club and what you are doing.
If, like has been the case in the past, and will do in the future, other clubs with better resources have had even bigger problems and have underachieved at an even bigger rate, it means you can finish higher than initial expectations.
This season is a decent example of this.
posted on 13/1/20
comment by Robb 2.0 - We need a qualified teacher, not a substitute like Ole (U22311)
posted 23 minutes ago
it’s a) some facking stability and continuity, and b) someone (or a group of people) with a clear vision who can develop players and build and keep together a younger, hungry, and, most importantly, coherent squad.
————
I understand the sentiment but that all sounds like a recipe for us to turn into Bournemouth while our rivals surge away into the distance
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Sorry; I thought you wanted overachievement? Bournemouth have had that in spades, haven’t they?
posted on 13/1/20
comment by rosso is done with this (U17054)
posted 23 minutes ago
comment by Robb 2.0 - We need a qualified teacher, not a substitute like Ole (U22311)
posted 23 minutes ago
it’s a) some facking stability and continuity, and b) someone (or a group of people) with a clear vision who can develop players and build and keep together a younger, hungry, and, most importantly, coherent squad.
————
I understand the sentiment but that all sounds like a recipe for us to turn into Bournemouth while our rivals surge away into the distance
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Sorry; I thought you wanted overachievement? Bournemouth have had that in spades, haven’t they?
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To an extent but have found their niche and stagnated
posted on 13/1/20
I’d say they’re almost as bad as us in the transfer market when you consider resources. £35m on facking Ibe and Solanke is some of the worst business you’ll see in the premier league.
posted on 13/1/20
comment by Mason The King Greenwood (U10026)
posted 1 hour, 4 minutes ago
I’d say they’re almost as bad as us in the transfer market when you consider resources. £35m on facking Ibe and Solanke is some of the worst business you’ll see in the premier league.
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Ha! Mostyn is a rank amateur compared to Ed.
He’s almost competent.