vs. FC København (N) (EL) 10/08/20 20:00 BST

[kstandhand]

Aug 11, 2020 5:36:23 GMT juanveron said:

Maybe I’m clutching at straws here, but I noticed our run of positive football ended when Shaw got injured.. what are the chances that this decline in form has anything to do with him?

Somehow Shaw getting injured happend along with Bruno losing some of his sharpness and Rashford doing his best to finish like Lingard.

Rather alarmingly,our win % is higher with Shaw than without him.

[Stew]

Aug 11, 2020 5:36:23 GMT juanveron said:

Maybe I’m clutching at straws here, but I noticed our run of positive football ended when Shaw got injured.. what are the chances that this decline in form has anything to do with him?

Somehow Shaw getting injured happend along with Bruno losing some of his sharpness and Rashford doing his best to finish like Lingard.

Shaw gets forward well. Not as well as Robertson but well. Williams is a good player but he’s right footed and tends to check back and it stalls momentum. AWB is sensational at defending but he has to develop his crossing. We miss Shaw quite a bit. Rashford particularly misses him I think.

[Sméagol]

[Rustin Cohle]

The author seems to severely underrate Sancho, but they're right about us needing a lot more than just him.

www.football365.com/news/opinion-man-utd-copenhagen-europa-league-jadon-sancho-bruno-fernandes

Forget Sancho…Man Utd must sort foundations before building

SPOILER: Click to show

Manchester United seem to recede whenever one of their first-choice midfielders doesn’t play. That’s to be expected in the sense that losing any individual of that calibre will always disrupt a team, but the sheer level of discomfort suffered is always a surprise.

As it was against FC Copenhagen, who were handed the initiative early on during this Europa League oddity in Cologne, and became an increasing nuisance as the evening wore on. United eventually prevailed, by a single Bruno Fernandes penalty to nil, but behind the uneven shot tallies and possession figures lay a worryingly even game which could have swung in the favour of the Danes several times.

Maybe it should have done? In fact, had Copenhagen’s attacking players not been quite so timid in front of goal, they might have scored two or three times. Yes, United have advanced, but not with any sort of authority or control.

It’s hard not to ascribe that to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. United probably arrived in Germany on something less than a mission, with Champions League qualification already assured and the need to perform significantly reduced. But was all of this evening’s vulnerability created by a lack of focus? That’s a stretch. It seemed more likely a structural issue, and the kind of situation United periodically encounter whenever they suffer any mild disruption or discomfort.

As an aside, how much do United actually want Jadon Sancho? They’re determined to own him, that’s clear, and they’re presumably very keen on announcing him across their social media channels, but what about after that, when Sancho’s time on the pitch comes at the expense of someone else?

At the end of a particularly pulseless first half, Mason Greenwood’s finish for his disallowed goal was cause for thought. His impact over the past few months has been such that United should be falling over themselves in an attempt to keep his path to the first team clear.

Maybe Greenwood will become a better player than Sancho. Maybe he won’t. Either way, the difference between them will likely be negligible, implying that United are already set in that position. At the very least, they have other, more urgent priorities which this saga is directing focus away from.

So, do they want Sancho, or do they just want to sign him? Because there is a difference and, again, this could be one of those times when a more experienced recruiting specialist – a director of football – might put a steadying arm on Ed Woodward’s shoulder and point him and his £100m towards Europe’s best centre-half or defensive midfielder.

The first half in Cologne suggested that would be the better course of action. Ten minutes into the second half, Greenwood again came closest to breaking the deadlock, drilling against the post from 20 yards. It was a chance he created himself, a goal which arrived almost from nowhere. Really? Sancho is a lovely player, truly world class, but how can anyone at United not be so enraptured by Greenwood’s potential as to think this negotiation with Borussia Dortmund is better off being someone else problem.

From the very impressive, to the less so. Twice in five minutes United’s midfield was caught out of position, and twice – again – more composure might have produced a couple of goals. As was the case on 65 minutes, when Rasmus Falk fooled Fred and Williams on the near touchline, sashayed into the box and created a clear chance from which Yesterday’s Bryan Oviedo should have done much, much better.

In response, United hit the post just often enough to create a distraction and, very late on, Anthony Martial brought a terrific save from goalkeeper Karl-Johan Johnsson, but those were chances foraged rather than created, and it had long been obvious that Solskjaer’s players had given up on their systems and turned to their star power instead.

The attacking mechanic in this team is fine. It’s what happens behind them which needs improving upon. The concerns are over control, rhythm, and ensuring that players like Fernandes and Marcus Rashford, Paul Pogba and Greenwood are receiving possession at the right time and in the right positions. It’s also important that this new wave of offensive energy doesn’t come at the expense of the team’s overall security. And it often did on Monday night, against a very limited opponent.

Perhaps there were excuses in the heat or the fatigue which has accumulated over the past two months. Some of these United players have very obviously been run dry and that, of course, was exacerbated by a motivated opponent, energised by a big opportunity in front of captive television audience.

United survived that challenge. They deserve credit for that, even if they were ultimately reliant on a hysterically generous penalty decision to advance. Still, there was little reassurance in this victory. It was a reminder that this remains a team with obvious flaws and one which possibly isn’t built on the sturdiest foundations or connected with the very best wiring.

There are some cornerstones missing. There are a few stages of progress which need to come before Sancho, if they even need him at all.

[Carbon]

Aug 11, 2020 8:31:10 GMT Sméagol said:

Is Zeca a United fan?

[Bestie]

Aug 11, 2020 8:50:52 GMT Carbon said:

Aug 11, 2020 8:31:10 GMT Sméagol said:

Is Zeca a United fan?

Must be.

[Sméagol]

Aug 11, 2020 8:50:52 GMT Carbon said:

Aug 11, 2020 8:31:10 GMT Sméagol said:

Is Zeca a United fan?

Think so.

[Karma]

Aug 10, 2020 22:32:37 GMT Rustin Cohle said:

I wouldn’t have brought Mata on for Greenwood, but once he was on I thought he did well.

Greenwood faded but how Rashford stayed on as long as he did was baffling.

He was gash.

He’s been poor since the restart.

[Deleted]

Aug 10, 2020 22:04:23 GMT dazjoe said:

Aug 10, 2020 22:02:28 GMT Chris said:

3 semi finals this season. Good going that. Need to make 1 count.

It's funny that finish 3rd and make semi's in all 3 cups, with one still going so could win it, would make it sound like a pretty good season that most of us would have taken at the start of the season, in all reality it's been largely a shit show with the odd highlight.

Three SFs are The New Treble

[Reduntildeath]

Aug 10, 2020 23:03:35 GMT Stew said:

Aug 10, 2020 22:59:35 GMT Reduntildeath said:

MOTM apparently,fully deserved.

He almost saved the penalty. Which Bruno launched like a surface to air missile. Preposterous performance.

Yep, some goalies, have one or two games in them where they’ve absolutely unbeatable, the top ones just have more of them. 
He was brilliant last night.
Also commentators said that their manager ( Stale Solbakken ) ,thanks Google has a cardiac arrest in which he stopped breathing for 7 minutes! 
The camera kept flicking over to him last night, he looked as though he could of had another during the game ,as he seemed to spend most of his time yelling/looking really,really angry throughout! 

[Reduntildeath]

Aug 11, 2020 10:07:35 GMT Reduntildeath said:

Aug 10, 2020 23:03:35 GMT Stew said:

He almost saved the penalty. Which Bruno launched like a surface to air missile. Preposterous performance.

Yep, some goalies, have one or two games in them where they’ve absolutely unbeatable, the top ones just have more of them. 
He was brilliant last night.
Also commentators said that their manager ( Stale Solbakken ) ,thanks Google! had a cardiac arrest, in which his heart stopped for 7 minutes or so! 
The camera kept flicking over to him last night, he looked as though he could of had another during the game ,as he seemed to spend most of his time yelling/looking really,really angry throughout! 

[Deleted]

Shout out to Mata aswell and Ole for making a change everyone thought was bizarre. It proves big or small Mata still has a role to play at the club. Absolutely love the guy and he played his part last night.

[Kamilo]

Missed most of regular time. How did Fred play?

[Stew]

Aug 11, 2020 15:46:56 GMT Kamilo said:

Missed most of regular time. How did Fred play?

He played well. He gave the ball away in a dangerous position once but apart from that was sharp, made his tackles and passed it well. Neither himself or Bailly deserved to come off really. Matic started slowly but grew into it.

[Deleted]

Aug 11, 2020 15:46:56 GMT Kamilo said:

Missed most of regular time. How did Fred play?

Thought he played well. Was unfortunate to be taken off 2bh. Played the role well. Seen a few people saying hes not good enough. Find that complete bollocks.