It was a very turgid affair. Sh!t on a stick.
comment by Robben #20 - Spirit > Ability (U1145)
posted 1 hour, 22 minutes ago
comment by Robb - Eli Roth filmed my death scene (U20351)
posted 1 minute ago
There was overhit passes, poor first touches and passes that went straight out of play. Not one shot on target in that first half.
It really wasn't great. There was very little quality on show
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You're wrong here Robb. There was great defensive quality on show
----------------------------------------------------------------------
this
comment by BerbaKing11 (U6256)
posted 1 hour, 37 minutes ago
Would have been interesting to see what would have happened if Rooney wasn't such an accommodating captain who has waited patiently for the team and other new arrivals to come to terms with Louis Van Gaal's new system, often to Rooney's detriment.
-----------------------------------------
Who cares about shots on target stats?
Smalling very nearly scored, Schneiderin would have put that in but for some clever defending from Toure. Same the other end when Rooney shuffled somebody out the way.
Mata was very nearly through but for great goalkeeping from Hart.
City had a couple of good chances first half which included some great blocks from the Utd defence.
Its not like there weren't the chances for goals. I was watching with a Villa and Forest fan, both of whom were also gripped.
The last 20 minutes were a let down, but up until that I felt it was a good 0-0.
"Who cares about shots on target stats?
Smalling very nearly scored"
Yes, from our only shot on target.
It wasn't sh-t but equally it really wasn't that great, compelling is a nice word to describe it but the truth is both managers set out not to lose which is always pretty frustrating to see, especially if you're the home side and your opponents are missing their 2 best attacking players.
The debate here is was it 'the best 45 minutes of PL football this season'.
It really wasn't. Miles away from such a claim
Robb
Do you have an understanding of the context from which Neville is speaking?
I don't agree with him, but I get exactly where he is coming from.
I think it's more the lack of quality of the chances that makes people think the ones that did happen were of better quality than they were. Smallings chance would have been rubbish keeping had it gone in.
I wouldn't call it compelling, nervy perhaps, which I suppose can contribute to some enjoying it
TBH I was mainly frustrated while also disgusted whenever I saw Jones' face.
"At a time when the Premier League is teetering with its co-efficient and facing the prospect of losing a team in the Champions League"
Just on this bit as I keep seeing it, we've actually moved up to second again. With Borussia looking out, there's no guarantee that Germany will overtake us. Italy, with Roma looking out as well (and being in Leverkeusens group), as well as being 10 points behind us, I really can't see it.
Melts
manfrombelmonty has a live thread on it that gets updated each week.
He still has the Germans ahead of us.
http://www.ja606.co.uk/articles/viewArticle/320414
Germany have outscored us so far this season (despite us 3-0 up against their CL teams)
We are suffering a fair bit from West Ham and Southampton.
Oh, and Italy are only 4 points behind us.
This season (which is for 17/18 CL) is not really the worry for me.
It is next season (for 18/19 CL) that is the problem, as we lose a 15 point season compared to Italy losing 11pts. That would actually put them ahead of us as things stand.
comment by meltonblue (U10617)
posted 2 hours, 19 minutes ago
"At a time when the Premier League is teetering with its co-efficient and facing the prospect of losing a team in the Champions League"
Just on this bit as I keep seeing it, we've actually moved up to second again. With Borussia looking out, there's no guarantee that Germany will overtake us. Italy, with Roma looking out as well (and being in Leverkeusens group), as well as being 10 points behind us, I really can't see it.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Meltn, I think you checked the season-end rankings instead of the current ones.
Season-end:
http://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert/uefa/data/method4/crank2015.html
Current:
http://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert/uefa/data/method4/crank2016.html
In fairness though, current counts for little, less so at this point with so many points yet to play for.
Here's a link to coefficient scores by country, so you can see how much each club is contributing and the country ranking in order for this season alone.
http://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert/uefa/data/method4/ccoef2016.html
It's quite telling that Norway are 4th and Liechtenstein 9th at this point in the season. They should be nowhere near come the end of the season.
And yes, I agree that the first half of yesterday's game was an interesting contest. There was a lot of negativity on DJ's live thread and I asked why people were only picking out the negatives.
I did find the football a lot less purposeful and the match a lot less interesting in the 2nd half, up until the last 10 or so minutes when I imagine fatigue meant there were more openings to exploit.
Yep I was IOAG, apologies all.
comment by Busby (U19985)
The last 20 minutes were a let down, but up until that I felt it was a good 0-0.
..............
that was the most exciting part of the game.
comment by manutd1982 (U6633)
posted 1 day, 2 hours ago
VC
Yeah I don't think it was bad, it was compelling if anything. We saw the strengths of an LVG side, organised and defensive which is ok at times but it did leave me frustrated and wanting more risks and attacking flair. But that has always been one of my biggest concerns with LVG.
________________
I no longer think this is down to LVG. The manager himself has complained that the players are passing too slowly and that they are passing sideways and backwards too often. He also told the players that they should shoot more from outside the box.
That does not sound to me like LVG is instructing the players to be boring and not take risks!
My biggest gripe about our style, whoever is to blame, is that not enough players burst forward when we attack and we usually have too few options in the box. There were times when a player would break forward and the only other red shirt in an attacking position was Rooney - and he had four blue shirts around him so the move broke down.
In the past we used to break in numbers - we would have a striker, a number ten, the winger on the opposite flank and even a CM all busting a gut to support the attack.
Nowadays the opposition has had time to regroup and reorganise by the time we get enough players forward to create anything.
I agree with Neville that both defences were solid but they were not really tested because neither side committed that many players forward at any given time. This had the dual effect of 1) causing attacking moves to fizzle out and 2) preventing either side from launching a counter-attack.
If you rely on a lone striker to create (or capitalise on a mistake) then that had to be Martial imo. In this sort of match he is wasted out wide.
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GN: "Best 45 minutes of Football this year"
Page 3 of 3
posted on 26/10/15
It was a very turgid affair. Sh!t on a stick.
posted on 26/10/15
comment by Robben #20 - Spirit > Ability (U1145)
posted 1 hour, 22 minutes ago
comment by Robb - Eli Roth filmed my death scene (U20351)
posted 1 minute ago
There was overhit passes, poor first touches and passes that went straight out of play. Not one shot on target in that first half.
It really wasn't great. There was very little quality on show
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You're wrong here Robb. There was great defensive quality on show
----------------------------------------------------------------------
this
posted on 26/10/15
comment by BerbaKing11 (U6256)
posted 1 hour, 37 minutes ago
Would have been interesting to see what would have happened if Rooney wasn't such an accommodating captain who has waited patiently for the team and other new arrivals to come to terms with Louis Van Gaal's new system, often to Rooney's detriment.
-----------------------------------------
posted on 26/10/15
Who cares about shots on target stats?
Smalling very nearly scored, Schneiderin would have put that in but for some clever defending from Toure. Same the other end when Rooney shuffled somebody out the way.
Mata was very nearly through but for great goalkeeping from Hart.
City had a couple of good chances first half which included some great blocks from the Utd defence.
Its not like there weren't the chances for goals. I was watching with a Villa and Forest fan, both of whom were also gripped.
The last 20 minutes were a let down, but up until that I felt it was a good 0-0.
posted on 26/10/15
"Who cares about shots on target stats?
Smalling very nearly scored"
Yes, from our only shot on target.
It wasn't sh-t but equally it really wasn't that great, compelling is a nice word to describe it but the truth is both managers set out not to lose which is always pretty frustrating to see, especially if you're the home side and your opponents are missing their 2 best attacking players.
posted on 26/10/15
The debate here is was it 'the best 45 minutes of PL football this season'.
It really wasn't. Miles away from such a claim
posted on 26/10/15
Robb
Do you have an understanding of the context from which Neville is speaking?
I don't agree with him, but I get exactly where he is coming from.
posted on 26/10/15
I think it's more the lack of quality of the chances that makes people think the ones that did happen were of better quality than they were. Smallings chance would have been rubbish keeping had it gone in.
I wouldn't call it compelling, nervy perhaps, which I suppose can contribute to some enjoying it
posted on 26/10/15
TBH I was mainly frustrated while also disgusted whenever I saw Jones' face.
posted on 26/10/15
"At a time when the Premier League is teetering with its co-efficient and facing the prospect of losing a team in the Champions League"
Just on this bit as I keep seeing it, we've actually moved up to second again. With Borussia looking out, there's no guarantee that Germany will overtake us. Italy, with Roma looking out as well (and being in Leverkeusens group), as well as being 10 points behind us, I really can't see it.
posted on 26/10/15
Melts
manfrombelmonty has a live thread on it that gets updated each week.
He still has the Germans ahead of us.
http://www.ja606.co.uk/articles/viewArticle/320414
posted on 26/10/15
Germany have outscored us so far this season (despite us 3-0 up against their CL teams)
We are suffering a fair bit from West Ham and Southampton.
posted on 26/10/15
Oh, and Italy are only 4 points behind us.
This season (which is for 17/18 CL) is not really the worry for me.
It is next season (for 18/19 CL) that is the problem, as we lose a 15 point season compared to Italy losing 11pts. That would actually put them ahead of us as things stand.
posted on 26/10/15
comment by meltonblue (U10617)
posted 2 hours, 19 minutes ago
"At a time when the Premier League is teetering with its co-efficient and facing the prospect of losing a team in the Champions League"
Just on this bit as I keep seeing it, we've actually moved up to second again. With Borussia looking out, there's no guarantee that Germany will overtake us. Italy, with Roma looking out as well (and being in Leverkeusens group), as well as being 10 points behind us, I really can't see it.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Meltn, I think you checked the season-end rankings instead of the current ones.
Season-end:
http://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert/uefa/data/method4/crank2015.html
Current:
http://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert/uefa/data/method4/crank2016.html
In fairness though, current counts for little, less so at this point with so many points yet to play for.
Here's a link to coefficient scores by country, so you can see how much each club is contributing and the country ranking in order for this season alone.
http://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert/uefa/data/method4/ccoef2016.html
It's quite telling that Norway are 4th and Liechtenstein 9th at this point in the season. They should be nowhere near come the end of the season.
posted on 26/10/15
And yes, I agree that the first half of yesterday's game was an interesting contest. There was a lot of negativity on DJ's live thread and I asked why people were only picking out the negatives.
I did find the football a lot less purposeful and the match a lot less interesting in the 2nd half, up until the last 10 or so minutes when I imagine fatigue meant there were more openings to exploit.
posted on 26/10/15
Yep I was IOAG, apologies all.
posted on 26/10/15
comment by Busby (U19985)
The last 20 minutes were a let down, but up until that I felt it was a good 0-0.
..............
that was the most exciting part of the game.
posted on 27/10/15
comment by manutd1982 (U6633)
posted 1 day, 2 hours ago
VC
Yeah I don't think it was bad, it was compelling if anything. We saw the strengths of an LVG side, organised and defensive which is ok at times but it did leave me frustrated and wanting more risks and attacking flair. But that has always been one of my biggest concerns with LVG.
________________
I no longer think this is down to LVG. The manager himself has complained that the players are passing too slowly and that they are passing sideways and backwards too often. He also told the players that they should shoot more from outside the box.
That does not sound to me like LVG is instructing the players to be boring and not take risks!
My biggest gripe about our style, whoever is to blame, is that not enough players burst forward when we attack and we usually have too few options in the box. There were times when a player would break forward and the only other red shirt in an attacking position was Rooney - and he had four blue shirts around him so the move broke down.
In the past we used to break in numbers - we would have a striker, a number ten, the winger on the opposite flank and even a CM all busting a gut to support the attack.
Nowadays the opposition has had time to regroup and reorganise by the time we get enough players forward to create anything.
I agree with Neville that both defences were solid but they were not really tested because neither side committed that many players forward at any given time. This had the dual effect of 1) causing attacking moves to fizzle out and 2) preventing either side from launching a counter-attack.
If you rely on a lone striker to create (or capitalise on a mistake) then that had to be Martial imo. In this sort of match he is wasted out wide.
Page 3 of 3