Glory Glory Man United! (Part II)
Player assessment (in alphabetical order):
Blackett – He is a young defender with good prospects.
Although he made some silly errors in his first few games, he will make a good
squad player.
Blind – Impressive at the world cup. He can play in multiple
positions and “do a job”. Add some steel next to him and he will be a different
player altogether.
Carrick – He is top player with good range of passing. I
would like to see him play more freely. Much like Blind, he would prefer a
solid player next to him.
De Gea – Been the best player over the last couple of years.
Made lot of pundits eat humble pie. It is strange to see him being linked with
Real considering his Atletico connections. If we want to challenge for top
honours and show intent, we need to keep him.
Di Maria – ADM has puzzled me. He is more of a creator than
a natural finisher. I think he has been played out of position. If we build our
attack around him, it could lead to a goal fest next season.
Evans – He was a good fringe player with Rio and Vidic in
the team. He has the odd mistake in him especially in big matches. I think his
days are numbered in our team. He will be shipped out like
O’Shea and Brown.
Falcao – It has not worked out for him and I don’t see us
making the deal permanent. I don’t doubt his quality, maybe he will take
another season to come back to full fitness. Maybe a smaller club with limited
ambitions will be a good career move for him.
Fellaini – I always thought he was a good option to have in
the team due to his height and hold up play. There is no right or wrong way to
play football. If necessary we can always go long to him. His propensity to be
clumsy and give away needless fouls irritates the life out of me.
Herrera – He has been an impressive signing. He is very
solid with his tackles and work rate. He also has goals in him. How LVG rotates
ADM, Herrera, Januzaj, Mata will be interesting to see?
Januzaj – He has regressed this season. I found him to be
very selfish in and around the box. He can earn that right when he is at the
same level as Ronaldo, Messi, Neymar, Robben or Suarez which he is currently
not. Not sure where his mind is because he tries to do too much on the flanks
and does not always take the right option. Still very young and can be
developed.
Jones – The problem with Jones is that he always sees the
danger a fraction late and appears “desperate and clumsy” with his tackles. The
sad part is that it leads to booking and injuries. With the wealth of talent in
the team, I don’t see him playing in midfield. He could be the next casualty
after Evans.
Mata – When Mata has played, he has looked good. He is
brilliant with the ball at his feet, but not without it. When Chelsea sold him,
I thought it was going to be the “Cantona moment with Leeds”. One knows how
good Schnederlein is when Wanyama does the dirty work for him. One knows how
brilliant Fabregas is when Matic takes care of opposition runners. Let’s see who
LVG brings to Old Trafford and that will determine Mata’s fate.
McNair – He is another impressive youngster and we should
give credit LVG for bringing him into the first team. Sure to play more games in
the future.
Rojo – He has looked shaky at times and other times very
solid. Not the most convincing of signings. He has played World Cup, so cannot
doubt his ability. Maybe he can turn in solid performances in his second year.
Rooney – One really cannot fault him. He did a job in
midfield and now he is banging in the goals as a striker. I think it is best he
stays up front for us.
Shaw – The most disappointing signing so far. I have not
seen the speed or the output in terms of crossing ability. He gets injured so very
often. A big question mark and a defining season coming up for him.
Smalling – The best defender we have at the moment. He has
all the skills to be a leader and is good with the ball at his feet. A future
captain if he keeps his head in the right place.
Valencia – He is probably the second most improved player. I
think as a player he is a manager’s dream. He is like Ivanovic from Chelsea - ready
to run through brick walls for the team. Ready to do any job asked of him. My only advice would be to attack a bit more
from the flanks.
Van Persie – World cup and injuries means a troubled season
for Robin. I will give him another year, nothing more nothing less. See if he
can team up with Rooney and recreate some magic like before.
Wilson – He runs all day and is a consummate finisher. If
Rooney, RVP stay and we bring another 20 goal striker then he can be a good
back up for domestic competitions.
Young – He is the most improved player under LVG. I thought
his career was over for he had become a shadow of the Watford player a decade
earlier. His work rate and ability fits perfectly into LVG’s plans and I can
see him get better.
The rest:
Rafael, Amos, Valdes, Pereira and others have not played at
all or played very little in the first team for me to comment.
Other notable mentions:
Hernandez – Why would anybody want to sell Chicharito? He
may not be the most gifted player, but knows his way in and around the box. The
guy is in the top ten strikers of premier league in terms of minutes to goal
ratio. He is someone who can get a goal out of nothing. He was and is a good
alternative on the bench, quiet and unassuming; unlike a Mancunian we sold to a
London club.
Nani – Is he a spent force? Can we take his form of
Portuguese league seriously? Yes and No respectively. There are some players
who look very good in great teams. Take him out of the team and he is shadow of
his former self. Evra was another case. He looked world class when he had CR7
to terrorise defenders in front of him. Once CR7 left for los blancos, we started
seeing chinks in his defence.
Pogba – The kid looks the real deal. If Jose can buy back
Matic from Benfica, why not us? Surely there will a hefty price to pay, but he
could be the steel our midfield is missing.
Wishlist – Solid (Thiago) Silva, Rolls Royce Raphael
(Varane), The beast (Christian) Benteke, Strong (Kevin) Strootman, Powerful
(Paul) Pogba.
I’d like to believe that as fans of
Manchester United, we are different from the rest. We are more patient with our
players and manager; we have tremendous faith in the club. Above all, we have hope.
Hope that the glory days will return to the Theatre of Dreams. Remember, hope
is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies (The
Shawshank Redemption, huh?).
What do you think of my assessment of LVG and the players? Feel
free to comment.
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