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Post by Deleted on Aug 20, 2014 8:17:45 GMT
I really hope LvG identified Rojo as a great addition to his defense setup and not as a acquisition born out of desperation, but can't for the life of me understand why didn't we go for proven players in his system like De Vrij and Blind. Instead we got a guy with a serious attitude, capable of producing career threatening injuries and a disciplinary record of one yellow in every two matches or so. De Vrij's cost was also at least half of what we will pay for Rojo ... I really hope the lad eventually turns out good for us, but something tells me that wont be the case. you've just named two dutch players that LVG knows very well who have no more pedigree than Rojo. He probably doesn't rate want them. |
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Post by ZlattackRed on Aug 20, 2014 8:22:52 GMT
I just get a feeling that Rojo will turn a corner under LvG. The world will hear more about this lad in the future for sure - for the right reasons.
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Post by ratbag on Aug 20, 2014 9:10:06 GMT
This from ESPN...sorry it is long but it's worth a read...
From criticism in the national team to becoming the second most expensive Argentine defender in history," ran a rather unwieldy headline on the sports website of La Nación after Marcos Rojo's 20-million-euro move to Manchester United was agreed on Tuesday night.
After first breaking into the Estudiantes de La Plata first team in 2008, Rojo flourished under Alejandro Sabella's management the following season. Playing at centre-back, the youngster showed promise. He was part of the squad -- coming on as a late substitute -- that almost beat Barcelona in the 2009 Club World Cup final, and by December 2010 he had earned himself a move to Spartak Moscow.
Summarising his performances during his year and a half in Moscow is an easy task even for those who don't watch the Russian league regularly because, perhaps struggling to adapt, he played just 23 matches during that spell. A move to Portuguese giants Sporting Lisbon followed in mid-2012, where he soon got more regular football.
However, come the first half of 2014, Rojo was still near universally criticised in Argentina. Sabella had, by then, been made manager of the national team, and with a paucity of options for the No. 3 shirt, Rojo was his favoured figure to play left-back, a position he'd filled in at during his first season with Sporting. Pre-tournament, most who penned preview pieces had him marked down as the side's weak link.
And yet things turned out differently. He didn't exactly become the next Juan Pablo Sorin or Silvio Marzolini overnight, but Rojo did well enough to be the only Argentine named in the World Cup FIFA best XI, and his performances at left-back quickly shut up his critics.
Of course, visibility is a wonderful thing for a footballer looking to impress the fans of his home nation, and a lack of it is what Rojo perhaps suffered from pre-World Cup, at least over the last year. Argentines are not, by and large, big on watching foreign leagues, but there is a certain amount of attention paid to the "big" European competitions in England, Spain, Italy and to a lesser extent France and Germany.
These leagues are clearly miles above the rest in terms of appeal. But Portugal? The odd match gets televised, but with no regularity, and (like the other European leagues) always on subscription TV. It's no surprise, bearing this in mind, that most Argentines were totally unaware of Rojo's improvement over last season. A manager as attentive as Sabella, it's probably safe to say, would have been an exception.
Because he did improve. ESPN FC's own European football expert Andy Brassell insists that Rojo "was absolutely awful in his first season at Sporting [the worst season in the club's history], but very good during the last campaign, which was a big surprise." Portuguese football blogger Ben Shave added: "I didn't expect much when he arrived but he formed a good partnership with Mauricio, kept the errors to a minimum and was generally something of a leader in a pretty inexperienced defence."
Crucially for Manchester United, that improvement came with Rojo playing for the most part in central defence, not -- as most United fans will have seen him during the World Cup -- at left-back. Certainly it is likely that he will mostly feature centrally for United in Louis van Gaal's 3-5-2, not least because of the large sum they've already spent on Luke Shaw at left wing-back. Van Gaal was known to want a left-footed centre-back to add to the squad -- missing out on Barcelona bound Thomas Vermaelen -- and now he's finally got one.
Marcos Rojo is a much-needed purchase for Manchester United.
So what will Rojo bring to the table at United? For one thing, confidence stepping out of defence with the ball, and for that matter the confidence in his technical ability to come up with some unorthodox solutions at times. It might be an extreme example, but not many defenders are happy to clear the ball out of their own box with a rabona, as Rojo did during Argentina's opening World Cup match against Bosnia-Herzegovina.
He also has pace in abundance, and that might prove very useful. At times, Rojo's positioning can be suspect and, as he's joining a team with a young defence learning a new system, his athleticism could come in handy if he needs to bail himself or teammates out of a tight spot.
The down side is an aggression he doesn't always manage to rein in. He's not a dirty player, but can be overenthusiastic in the tackle; it's no coincidence he was the only Argentine to pick up a suspension during this year's World Cup (for the quarterfinal against Belgium.) In Argentina, that's a trait that doesn't tend to be coached out of young defenders; Van Gaal might have to give it a go now.
And there's another important point about Rojo's signing: his relationship with the boss. Perhaps his happiest moments as a player have come under Sabella (early on at Estudiantes, and recently for Argentina). In no small part, that's because Sabella knows him well, but it's also because Sabella constructs a system and gives precise instructions to his players to get the best out of each individual -- a trait Van Gaal shares.
Is Rojo an upgrade on Chris Smalling, Jonny Evans or Phil Jones? Probably not. But neither is he a downgrade, and therein lies the point: if United are to play three at the back, an extra centre-back is an absolute necessity. An upgrade would be nice, but as they struggle to find one, United will settle for a similar standard to those already in the squad, especially given the fitness issues in defence (his ability to cover at wing back might prove handy, too). If Rojo can flourish under van Gaal's guidance, he could well turn into a shrewd purchase.
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Post by Bestie on Aug 20, 2014 9:14:53 GMT
Pace, at centre back? I would never have thought of that.
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makedon
United Reserve Player
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Post by makedon on Aug 20, 2014 10:08:26 GMT
I really hope LvG identified Rojo as a great addition to his defense setup and not as a acquisition born out of desperation, but can't for the life of me understand why didn't we go for proven players in his system like De Vrij and Blind. Instead we got a guy with a serious attitude, capable of producing career threatening injuries and a disciplinary record of one yellow in every two matches or so. De Vrij's cost was also at least half of what we will pay for Rojo ... I really hope the lad eventually turns out good for us, but something tells me that wont be the case. you've just named two dutch players that LVG knows very well who have no more pedigree than Rojo. He probably doesn't rate want them. Either he truly doesn't rate them which i really doubt, or managed to miss out on De Vrij, just like we did for Vermaelen (for good maybe but thats besides the point) because we have a completely useless CEO who kept saying "Don't worry Louis, we have unlimited budget" until the players got fed up and went elsewhere. |
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Post by Bestie on Aug 20, 2014 10:28:36 GMT
Like ...
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Post by redcase on Aug 20, 2014 10:31:11 GMT
Cant help but feel there was far better options out there than Rojo.... There definitely are. We just can't get them. |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 20, 2014 10:33:00 GMT
I can't say I've seen anything of him other than the World Cup, and he will do me just fine based on that. Pace, Power, Nasty. Lets give him some time before we make a form and opinion that we feel already is better than LvG's
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Post by ratbag on Aug 20, 2014 10:36:36 GMT
I can't say I've seen anything of him other than the World Cup, and he will do me just fine based on that. Pace, Power, Nasty. Lets give him some time before we make a form an opinion that we feel already is better than LvG's Agreed...let's hang fire on slaughtering the poor guy before he's kicked a ball for us...I'm hoping and praying that LvG has seen a lot more of him than we have and actually wants him... |
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Post by aussiegraham (Ret.) on Aug 20, 2014 11:33:47 GMT
I remember cringing with embarrassment when Evra played in his early games. Give the guy time before slaughtering him
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Post by LukeWilson10 on Aug 20, 2014 11:54:05 GMT
To me this is a positive step in the transfer market, United are a team that buys players and adopts them into World Class Players. This doesnt seem the case lately, theres no investment in the future for a transfer market and instead United are spending millions on players who are proven. We used to buy players who we coached and learned the "UNITED" way, the likes or Ronaldo, Vidic, Evra... this young lad might have an attitude problem but thats maybe what we need on the pitch, a little aggression or will to get a result.
I do agree we do need an experienced centre back to settle the pack but lets look at young lads who we can adopt in these types of positions rather than a World Class player who only wants to play striker as thats where his played in the past. Blind and De Vjril were in a Netherlands team which i think Van Gaal will admit was poor, quality wise wasnt great but grinded out results. De Vjril and Blind are both unproven as well and could be good additions but are on level playing field when it comes to experience,
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Post by NR7 on Aug 20, 2014 11:57:23 GMT
We missed out on TV(thank fuck for that) since Wenger wanted Smalling in a swap deal when we are already running short on CBs.
It's not implausible that LVG didn't think De Vrij is an improvement on what we already have. Don't merely go by his WC performances. He was stripped of captaincy and dropped owing to poor form. FWIW I think we should have got him. Blind's best position is DM by all accounts and not an either or with Rojo.
Signings out of the blue like Vida, Evra and Pea have worked wonders for us. Not aimed at anyone but I trust LVG much more than armchair experts. Let's all give the lad a chance before writing him off already.
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Post by LukeWilson10 on Aug 20, 2014 12:04:26 GMT
Need to look in the younger market and create a team of players who want to play for United, create the team round the players we have now. Keep the spine and create around that. Jones > Mata > Januazji > Rooney
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Post by johnboy14 on Aug 20, 2014 12:21:20 GMT
Cant help but feel there was far better options out there than Rojo.... I tend to agree, all he did in the world cup was tan the other full backs backside, the quality of our signings isn't getting any better. We are settling for what we can get not what we should get. He may turn out to be a revelation buts always question marks with any of our signings at the minute. |
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Post by himstien on Aug 29, 2014 4:41:45 GMT
Hummels should be possible. Heard ManU have inquired about Varane's availability. Else Vlaar over Vermaelen. ManU... Sorry!!! ManUtd.. Forgot in hurry! y sincere apologies... |
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