Frankie
Put him in the curry
We broke him.
Well, I said those players with those coaches. Trying to play the German Press with Ronaldo and Fernandes in the team is idiotic. And Solskjaer didn't seem to have many tactics at all.
Maguire still seems to get picked for England but God knows how, he's lost all respect in this country from the fans, De Gea is a very decent keeper but I think I'd rather have one for the future like Sanchez who can play in the modern style and then we come to the fact that Lindelof has been exposed time and again by quite average sides, Wan-Bisaka has gone backwards, Dalot is TERRIBLE for a Premier League footballer and they seem to have ruined Varane. I wouldn't have any one of Matic, McTominay or Fred over Mwepu, Bissouma (yes I know he's left) and Caicedo, Pogba has skills but his attitude stinks and he plays maybe one game in ten properly and Mata is probably their equivalent of Lallana.
Ronaldo, meanwhile, scored 18 goals in the league and 24 all told in the season with the likes of what I've described above behind him and a coach who wanted him to play like some kind of Firmino. Remove those goals from their total and you'd pretty much have Leeds.
Remove that player and you have essentially the same team that ended up 2nd in 20/21, with Ole at the wheel. Yeah he scored 18 goals but how many did they lose out on as a team - and how many did they concede - due to having a player unwilling to put down the required amount of work?
It's not really the job of a five time Ballon D'Or winner to cover for the worst value midfield and defence among England's big clubs. Playing him and Fernandes (and Pogba when he's on his normal lazy one) in the same team is obviously nuts from a teamwork perspective but the idea that their drop down the table was all down to Ronaldo is over-simplified to say the least.
I pondered this when we played them. I don't think I would have taken any of their starting 11. Not to say they don't have better players but de Gea is the only one I could make a case for. Obviously a great keeper but now we are established in the PL, short termism isn't for us. We have a much younger Spanish international. Ronaldo wouldn't fit in our way of playing - no luxury passengers for us and I am in the camp that thinks Utd were worse with him. They tried to mould a team around him rather than fit him into their style. Mata is quality but we have our old head in Lallana. Bruno is similar to Ronaldo - not a team player.
And the rest of their 11 were just meh.
It really is the job of any player in Premier League to work hard for the team, or the team will suffer. The number of Ballon D'Ors does not matter in that regard. Juventus couldn't afford a luxuary player only doing things when he feels like it in his last season with them and United couldn't afford it last season. Of course not everything is down to Ronaldo but they looked a lot better in both in 19/20 when they ended up 3rd and in 20/21 when they came 2nd, both times with a team very similar to last season but with the exception of Ronaldo.
Yeah, he scores too many.Ronaldo wouldn't fit in our way of playing
yet Man U had twice the win rate with Ronaldo than without. https://www.planetfootball.com/quic...ith-and-without-cristiano-ronaldo-in-2021-22/
we could say either Ronaldo made the team worse, or Ronaldo made improved a team in decline. he didnt make other players play badly.
I do think he made other players play badly. Not necessarily his fault alone but a mainly a case of "lets go from being a team to just pass the ball to the supermegastar and see if it works".
In which way were they a team in decline? They finished 2nd, improving from 6th place in 18/19 and 3rd in 19/20, all with a fairly young team.
Manchester United were objectively a better team before they signed Cristiano Ronaldo.
Agree with all of that. It totally unbalanced them.
A team that is serious about winning major trophies at the highest level won’t sign him. Elite sides can’t afford to carry a Ronaldo anymore in the modern game, they need their forwards to offer more than he does.
But Chelsea have apparently held talks with his agent and Bayern are considering him as an option to replace Lewandowski.
Big clubs will always be interested in players who score goals at the highest level.
As if Potter would have a player who stands with his hands on his hips and sulks when things aren’t going well and doesn’t track back
As if he’d even agree to come here too!
And can help shift a tonne of shirtsBut Chelsea have apparently held talks with his agent and Bayern are considering him as an option to replace Lewandowski.
Big clubs will always be interested in players who score goals at the highest level.
But Chelsea have apparently held talks with his agent and Bayern are considering him as an option to replace Lewandowski.
Big clubs will always be interested in players who score goals at the highest level.
As if Potter would have a player who stands with his hands on his hips and sulks when things aren’t going well and doesn’t track back
As if he’d even agree to come here too!
He actually stood there with his hands on his hips laughing after we scored the third.
What manager would want a player who thinks it's a jolly good wheeze when they are being taken apart by #teamslikebrighton? He is a complete arse at a car crash of a club. Long may it continue.