Crystal Palace (a) - (PL) - 5/3/18 - 20:00 K. O

[Deleted]

More of this fight please.

[ratbag]

Mar 5, 2018 23:27:50 GMT . said:

Mar 5, 2018 22:29:35 GMT ratbag said:

Long story short...

I arrived in Abu Dhabi a couple of hours ago...

Got to the hotel and two things are o with the obvious...there is a twat of an arab (no racialism) who is talking interminably with the guy on reception...the bar (tv) is closed...I know that the hotel across the road will be showing the match...

so I leave my stuff and walk to the other hotel...we are 1-0 down as I walk in and as I get my beer and 2-0 down before I sit down...shit...

A 'lady' at the bar with a 'client' empathises with me but I say - not a problem, time for the big come back - and then it happens...

I cannot say how wonderful it feels to watch us do what we did...reminiscent of Fergie's best...

Really proud of the lads and the way we didn't give up...slightly squiffy but oh so fucking happy...

How much did she charge you, btw?

Only 500 Dirhams!!!

As if I would know...

Struggling to be awake today though...

[juanveron]

Mar 5, 2018 22:20:12 GMT fergiegiveusawave said:

Nev and Carragher are right about Sanchez. He's been poor since joining and was awful tonight, if it was Rashford, Martial or even Mata performing that bad they'd be dropped.

Needs to up his game significantly.

At this point it actually seems like signing him did more bad than good. He’s a wonderful player, no doubt about that, but it just makes no sense that we signed him to play in the one position we were well covered at, dropping Martial who was on fire at the time.

[Reduntildeath]

Well I fucked up massively didn’t I ?😩

[Sméagol]

[Rustin Cohle]

[Rustin Cohle]

Mar 6, 2018 7:31:50 GMT Sméagol said:

oh fuck off

[caino]

what a mental game. I honestly cant believe how badly we started and how bad some of our players were.

Pogba needs to sort his head out. pissed off with him and his lack of effort. always looks like hes running in 3rd gear.

Sanchez was shocking, what has happened to him ? no better than Miki at the moment. also looks like he hasn't got that initial burst of pace anymore which is worrying

lindelof.. still hoping there is a defender in there somewhere. when is Bailly or Rojo fit ?

super Dave saves the day once again. we have had some unbelievable keepers but hes the pick of the bunch for me now. week after week he saves us.

Big Rom works his socks off every game for us and hes the one changing games for us now. what we bought him for and its paying off. some massive goals and assists for us recently. he always gives his all and as much as he isn't the finished article he deserves to be a united player and I hope he carries on scoring. now for the biggest one against the shite on Saturday

[Tatty]

Football. Bloody hell!

Woke an extremely jet-lagged Mrs, next doors toddler and had the nurse opposite my flat knocking on my door for waking her up celebrating Matic’s winner!!

[Rustin Cohle]

www.football365.com/news/f365-says-pogba-again-put-in-the-shade-by-matic

F365 Says: Matic carries passenger Pogba at Palace


An injury-time winner to cap a come-from-behind 3-2 victory away at Crystal Palace may well deflect some of the criticism that was heading Manchester United’s way. But Jose Mourinho won’t be so blinded by Nemanja Matic’s stunning late strike that he will have forgotten just how wretched his team were for long periods at Selhurst Park. And squarely in the firing line will stand his two biggest stars.

Alexis Sanchez, in his eighth appearance for United, toiled after reverting to his preferred role on the left after a dalliance with the right flank during last week’s win over Chelsea. The Chilean frustrated, but at least he gave the impression of recognising his ineffectiveness. Paul Pogba, on the other hand, continued to bait Mourinho with a performance that eroded further the theory that the manager is most to blame for his record signing’s struggles.

Mourinho and everyone else is still waiting for Pogba to prove a point after being dropped at Sevilla less than a fortnight ago. But his performance, especially in the opening hour at Selhurst Park, suggests he believes it was already made during last week’s win over Chelsea. Against a Palace side scrapping for their lives, he reverted to the meandering, careless, ill-disciplined liability that Mourinho finally lost patience with last month.

The midfielder set the tone for his first-half by spending the first few moments of play dressing himself. Despite having more than enough time before kick-off, Pogba was more concerned by putting his gloves on rather than defending a Palace throw-in in United’s defensive third.

Shortly after, in exactly the same area with fingers presumably now toasty warm, Pogba attempted to return Ashley Young’s throw by letting the ball bounce off his thigh. It never got close to reaching its target and Pogba had to chase and slide in to concede a corner. From that set-piece, he failed to get close enough to James Tomkins to deny the Palace centre-half a volley at goal from the centre of the box. It was a shambolic start and it got worse.

Palace’s opener when it came in the 11th minute again highlighted the infuriating facets of Pogba’s game. The £89million man attempted a 70-yard Hail Mary pass from deep that was never a viable option. After launching the ball upfield as the deepest of United’s outfield players and giving posession back to Palace, Pogba trotted forward, apparently oblivious to the Eagles attack now gaining momentum. Six team-mates passed the midfielder as they retreated but the record signing failed to, or refused, to react. Still there was time to make a contribution as Christian Benteke moved along the defensive line but Pogba remained uninterested while Andros Townsend lashed in a deflected opening goal.

Pogba never made it out of first gear during a first-half that he was certainly not the lone culprit in the United XI. Indeed, between them, the left-sided trio of Pogba, Sanchez and Young conspired to give possession away 44 times in 45 minutes.

But, just as he craves, there is a greater focus on Pogba. However, with that profile comes expectation. The opening 45 minutes gave plenty more weight to the theory that Pogba believes he can have one without the other.

Pogba’s poor form has led to more fingers being pointed at Mourinho than the player himself, but the point has long since passed for the France star to take some personal responsibility.

He was supposedly stifled alongside Matic at the base of Mourinho’s midfield, with a deeper role not granting Pogba the freedom he apparently needs to express himself. After the Tottenham and Newcastle defeats, Mourinho moved to a 4-3-3, with Pogba on the left of Matic, and Scott McTominay providing yet more cover.

This is apparently Pogba’s best position and Mourinho has created a midfield around him that should offer him the platform to perform. Not only is he failing to have an impact going forward, he remains, as Jamie Carragher put it, ‘a liability’ defensively.

Even of the most creative talents, Mourinho has expectations of how each player contributes when United don’t have the ball. If Pogba was performing miracles in attack, his half-hearted efforts when the ball is not at his feet are unlikely to be tolerated and the manager was absolutely right to sit the former Juventus star on his backside at Sevilla.

Perhaps that impression of apathy is gleaned from his long-legged style, but Pogba possesses the physical attributes to effect United’s defensive approach in a far more positive manner than he does at present. Mourinho certainly expects a contribution at either end, given Matic is largely kept on a leash in front of the centre-halves.

“For me, box to box means box to box,” the manager said when discussing Pogba’s position recently. “It means you have to defend well, have the physical conditions to go to the other box, where you have to be good at scoring, creating, heading and then, when your team loses the ball, you have to go to the other box.

“Now people say a box to box has to play free of defensive duties. That is not box to box – that is a box in the box and stay in that box!”

That message has presumably been relayed in no uncertain terms to Pogba. After the Palace trip, it needs reinforcing ahead of a spell that will make or break United’s season.

Ian Watson

[Sméagol]

[Deleted]

Mar 5, 2018 22:29:35 GMT ratbag said:

Long story short...

I arrived in Abu Dhabi a couple of hours ago...

Got to the hotel and two things are o with the obvious...there is a twat of an arab (no racialism) who is talking interminably with the guy on reception...the bar (tv) is closed...I know that the hotel across the road will be showing the match...

so I leave my stuff and walk to the other hotel...we are 1-0 down as I walk in and as I get my beer and 2-0 down before I sit down...shit...

A 'lady' at the bar with a 'client' empathises with me but I say - not a problem, time for the big come back - and then it happens...

I cannot say how wonderful it feels to watch us do what we did...reminiscent of Fergie's best...

Really proud of the lads and the way we didn't give up...slightly squiffy but oh so fucking happy...

What are you trying to say?

[Deleted]

Mar 5, 2018 22:42:35 GMT Sméagol said:

Imagine he gets a ban after Pep got away with basically assault and going tits at the ref the other day

[CaajScot]

Mar 6, 2018 9:36:13 GMT Carbon said:

Mar 5, 2018 22:29:35 GMT ratbag said:

Long story short...

I arrived in Abu Dhabi a couple of hours ago...

Got to the hotel and two things are o with the obvious...there is a twat of an arab (no racialism) who is talking interminably with the guy on reception...the bar (tv) is closed...I know that the hotel across the road will be showing the match...

so I leave my stuff and walk to the other hotel...we are 1-0 down as I walk in and as I get my beer and 2-0 down before I sit down...shit...

A 'lady' at the bar with a 'client' empathises with me but I say - not a problem, time for the big come back - and then it happens...

I cannot say how wonderful it feels to watch us do what we did...reminiscent of Fergie's best...

Really proud of the lads and the way we didn't give up...slightly squiffy but oh so fucking happy...

What are you trying to say?

He got pissed as a newt? 

[Karma]

Mar 6, 2018 4:39:13 GMT @jimmyjojojunior said:

More of this fight please.

That's probably the best part of it. The mentality that seemed to have left with Fergie.

Let's see if Palace put in that level of performance against Chelsea, I doubt it somehow.