The old Man Utd Thread

[Nicky]

Most likely, Gabzy

[Bleeders]

Clattenberg opened the door. We let them in.

Shocking defending, absolutely abhorrent

[feltmonkey]

Blackett not strong enough there, but he was clearly fouled again.

What are we doing? You don't see defensive performances this bad very often even at pub level. 3 at the back or 4 it doesn't seem to matter.

[Gabe]

Blackett not strong enough there, but he was clearly fouled again.

What are we doing? You don't see defensive performances this bad very often even at pub level. 3 at the back or 4 it doesn't seem to matter.

If you watched the Liverpool game last night, could you let our defence know when you find out the answer?

[Liamness]

So we're still not very good then.

Incredible how easily we've been broken against time and time again. From a winning position, we've shipped four goals and got a player sent off. Something incredibly wrong here. I doubt Leicester would've got back into it without the dodgy pen, but leaving such gigantic gaps for them to run into has hardly helped either.

[Majora]

What a ridiculous game this has been

[paddyo]

Really bizarre game, as well as defending badly we havent created anything much in the 2nd half, especially when di maria went off

[feltmonkey]

If Schlup was capable of making a correct decision there would have been more goals.

[Bleeders]

Obvious that decision left its mark on the team, but to capitulate in such a fashion is unacceptable.

[Gabzy]

If Schlup was capable of making a correct decision there would have been more goals.

And if clattenburg was capable of making one, there would've been less goals.

[feltmonkey]

Yes, but Bleeders is right - however ridiculous the penalty was, we should not have folded like that. After the pen went in we were still 3-2 up.

[paddyo]

At least it was more entertaining than watching utd under moyes!!

[phresh]

Some pretty woeful defending throughout and even without the non penalty I think we'd have struggled to win that. Feel a bit for Blackett, if he'd have gone down when Vardy nudged him he'd have got a free kick and wouldn't have put himself in the position that got him the red card. Bit of naivety that he'll learn from hopefully.

[Liamness]

Let's just watch this over and over again and try to forget anything else happened.

[Gabe]

Obvious that decision left its mark on the team, but to capitulate in such a fashion is unacceptable.

Yeah, this is it really. All teams get shocking decisions against them, sometimes at key moments, but these highly-trained professionals should be able to compose themselves and get over it quickly enough - not make them fall apart completely.

[Willow]

I think it was the penalty and Cambiasso 1-2 punch.

[Bleeders]

Blackett and Rojo were horrendously out of position many times, but we need to defend better than that. Vardy got away with most things during the match, I still can't fathom how the first penalty was given.

We'll improve though but we have to buy a quality CB in January.

[sith]

Where do you even start? Clattenburg gave them renewed energy when they'd almost given up. But there is simply no excuse to capitulate the way we did. I said last week we'd take some beatings but I wasn't expecting it from Leicester. Blackett is fucking garbage, simply not good enough right now. Evans looks injured and Blackett suspended, now what?

This was the chance to create some momentum and gain some ground on Liverpool and Arsenal and we fucking blew it. Sigh.

[feltmonkey]

pretty funny interview with Vardy - claiming he outstrengthed Rafael, "shoulder to shoulder" and that Rafael then retaliated to take him down! i know he's hardly going to say, "i fouled him and then took a dive" but still that's bare-faced bullshit.

[toythatkills]

Where do you even start? Clattenburg gave them renewed energy when they'd almost given up. But there is simply no excuse to capitulate the way we did. I said last week we'd take some beatings but I wasn't expecting it from Leicester. Blackett is fucking garbage, simply not good enough right now. Evans looks injured and Blackett suspended, now what?

This was the chance to create some momentum and gain some ground on Liverpool and Arsenal and we fucking blew it. Sigh.

You're only a point behind Liverpool

[Bleeders]

Yeah, it was a barge on Rafael, to suggest anything else is disingenuous. But agree with Sith, we'll take some beatings this season, but LVG will get it right.

14 players left, 6 came in. We'll get there.

[feltmonkey]

yeah, but i worry about the personnel at the back. Rojo doesn't exactly look like the answer, he was at fault for the fourth goal, leaving Mata exposed. Smalling should have cleared the third. Blackett was obviously terrible for the fifth, and looks too easy to catch in possession generally. we don't have any really good defenders in the team at all.

[Liamness]

Our left hand side of Blackett and Rojo looked quite shaky. Rojo looks makeshift in the position and was often caught too high, or unaware of what was going on behind him. Blackett went to cover that area and ended up leaving gaps himself. Blind actually didn't do a great job of shielding the defence either, which was disappointing. When Leicester broke, he usually pressed rather than staying behind the ball and shutting off the space. He was under little to no pressure against QPR so this was his first real test, I expect he will improve, Carrick is apparently a few weeks away still so he will have to.

[Majora]

Obviously our defence is garbage but I'm dismayed at how Rooney seems to have become the invincible player in the squad, that we never leave out or sub, when he's clearly the least talented out of him Mata, Di Maria, Van Persie and Falcao. I thought Van Gaal would have had more balls than to anoint him before the season even started and put him in an undroppable position.

But yeah, back to the defence. What a heap of shit. Blackett looks awful. Rojo doesn't look much better. Evans will forever be perpetually injured and liable to make at least one absolute howler per game. Jones and Smalling blow hot and cold and are always injured. Rafael looked like he was becoming a more accomplished, rounded player a couple of seasons ago but seems to have regressed back to his petulant/rash old self. He too is always injured. Van Gaal doesn't seem to fancy Shaw, for whatever reason.

Going to be a fascinating season but Van Gaal, for all his self-assurance, must be pretty taken aback by how things have gone so far.

[bowser123]

That's hard on Blind, Liam.

I thought Herrera was playing very, very advanced so often Blind was left on his own to do all the work and was over run.

Obviously the defending in general is a shambles but this team STILL has no leadership or captaincy. Where was the calming influence that slows the game, takes the venom out when the opposition are in the ascendancy.

Rooney can scream his head off all he wants when the third goal goes in but it's ineffectual because a) he created pressure by losing possession around our box b) was shit in general himself so isn't leading by example.

I also think the game is totally different if the officials make the correct decisions. We enter half time 2 nil up after the cross for the first is correctly given as a goal kick, that De Leat is sent off for three bookable offences not long after. The inconsistency in allowing Di Maria to be barged over in that incident where he hurt his wrist, the way he allows the assault on Rafael then gives a foul by Rafael is incredible.

[Naysonymous]

Yep.

[Baring]

Phone on silent(sleeping baby) what's it about?

[Naysonymous]

It's that song Manchester United fans used to sing about Manchester City.

[Mercury]

I was wondering where Carrick would play when he returned but he can just slot in as our first choice CB.

Anyone know why Shaw isn't playing? Still not fit or Van Gaal doesn't rate him?

Who else just knew Rafael was going to give away a penalty after the foul wasn't given? I love the little fella but he can be a massive liability sometimes.

[feltmonkey]

He didn't actually foul the guy though. He looked like he was going to but before he had a chance to lay a finger on him, Varny had flung himself on the ground, and Clattenberg had blown up.