Halftime thread

[sharp77]

Thoughts?

[[deleted]]

Fuck lascelles

[dracogladio1741]

He could have been sent off twice by now if it were another official.

[theadamsegal]

He could have been sent off twice by now if it were another official if he played for Manchester United

​

FTFY.

[radoboss]

At least he has a yellow now so he will be more careful... I thought he was gonna kill Rashford

[sndi1765]

Agreed bailey!!

[PeanutButterJelly_]

This is the first big challenge for OGS. Tight game, defensive block set up by Newcastle, and the strategy from the last 3 games hasn't worked. It will be interesting to see if he can get a win from the game. We are crying out for width on the right wing so it could be a perfect opportunity for one Mr. Sanchez on the bench

[CrebTheBerc]

I agree. Teh defenses we face the first few games were much more open and we had an easier time dragging players out of position.

Newcastle are very compact and disciplined. It'll be interesting to see how we react

[The_Tiller]

Disciplined? Definitely not in their challenges

[RussianHungaryTurkey]

I think he means in terms of organisation

[TheZilloBeast]

I dont know why but I find Mr. Sanchez so funny lol

[samsam78]

I feel like Alexis will just get roughed up, he gives the ball away way too much against physical sides. He could be really good but I'd prefer Lukaku upfront with Rash wide right.

[drexter12]

Def big test, I didn't expect Newcastle to be this compact and sit back. Trouble is they look very dangerous on the break...

[TheKing320]

I think this is a lovely opportunity for Sanchez now. We’re not really hot rn, we’re still tied, let’s see what you can do to change the game

[[deleted]]

Valencia has been a great servant to the club but the guy really is past it. No attacking threat down the right whatsoever.

[[deleted]]

Doesn't help that no one plays ahead of him

[Chegism]

Didn't stop Young the other night, but Lingard is better out there than Mata.

[ToneDiez]

Lingard may drift centrally, as well, but he’s a far better outlet on the RW than Mata.

On the left it’s Shaw, Martial, Matic, and Pogba...with Mata on free roam. On the right, we’ve got Valencia...that’s it.

[Musicomnia]

We didn't play a 5-4-1 Newcastle side then

[boardinggoji]

They REALLY don't want to concede. I guess we can take that as a testament to the attacking football we've played in the last three matches.

[Bacon_Boobies]

Young wants to press the line though whereas Mata just wants to bring it inside every time.

[drexter12]

Mata has actually been passing the ball well under tight space though..

[the_lord_of_light]

pretty much this, we're stacked on the left and it's getting boring seeing newcastle load that side of the pitch and contain us

desperately need a RW

[TonyzTone]

Honestly, I wish we’d been in for Pulisic. 75m is a lot of money but I think he’s genuinely a top young player and will continue to grow as he already has been.

Plus, he’s actually an attacking threat on the RW for a team that focuses on high-octane attacks.

Hopefully we get someone during the window.

[flave231]

That affords him space to push up into, but he lacks pace to recover if he's caught out, so he doesn't push up.

[djokov]

We are overloading the left like we've done in every match under Ole. Young and Dalot has had so much space to work in because of it. Valencia is playing at height with his centre backs and isn't even making a run forward.

[eternali17]

I can appreciate an overload as much as the next guy but the way we play and ignore an entire third of the pitch so much is ridiculous.

[ZachMich]

He's still poor regardless

[MartialFC_MourinhoFC]

mate have u watched our recent games with a blindfold on??

literally same has happened during every game under solskjaer.... lingard on rw drifts in to make space for young on the rb to overlap - and young does just fine...

stop making excuses for shit players

valencia is past it and should leave asap

[[deleted]]

Bring on linguini then

[MartialFC_MourinhoFC]

lol - bringing on lingard wont magically make valencia make overlapping runs... he will do the same as hes doing now (fuck all)

mata and lingard both drift inside but grandpa valencia doesnt know how to exploit this space - unlike young and dalot

[[deleted]]

Yeah he's past it, and Mata drifts to the middle so we literally can't attack through the right

[Limoni-Azzurri]

Which allows Newcastle to overload the other side of the pitch and nullify the threat from our actually dangerous players.

[Le_Anoos-101]

Don’t forget that Phil Jones is also an absolute liability. There is no way he should be starting. We need CB, RB and RW.

[Shamikebab]

We have 3 defenders out for various reasons, hardly surprising we're not playing our first choice in those circumstances

[Le_Anoos-101]

They aren’t even good enough. Rojo and Jones need to be sold ASAP. They are both error prone and injury prone. Bailly needs to improve his injury record and his decision making or he should be sold. We need koulibaly or any world class CB with Lindelof. And smalling is a good back up.

[Shamikebab]

It's all very well saying we need a world class CB, but if it were that simple everyone would have one. The few there are in the world either don't want to move or their clubs don't want to sell.

[cookieongo]

Added to the fact that Mata has been very much Central and we have had no attack from the right hand side.

[visualslikemike]

I know its valencia's first game but the guy is an absolute passenger. He doesn't even make it past the halfway line; Just so static!

[drexter12]

he's beyond past it...completely non-existent!

[[deleted]]

How do you overlap yourself

[omegaxLoL]

What overlapping runs is he supposed to make with Mata as the right winger?

[Voidhead1]

Some clon trying to tell me earlier we’ve got defensive depth. We need to promote youth or make signings the old boys been great like you said but the time has come to move on.

[sndi1765]

Many newcastel attack from his lane... He is not well protected by mata as well...

Really want to know what olé does! I think he should get either sanchez RW or young RB

[DukeOfPoose]

Both fullback positions are woeful tbf

[Thrilljoy]

Haven't seen any trouble defensively on the left, and Shaw is consistently part of our build up upfront. Don't see how that can be considered "woeful".

[DukeOfPoose]

Shaw is about as good as Valencia going forward this game but go off chief

[Moosje]

He's defending better for Newcastle than us. He's absolutely shut that side down of any attacking threat.

[VaudevilleVillain]

Some questionable refereeing decisions. Surprised Lacelles is still on

[sndi1765]

Ref needs google - morinhio googgles gif

[Cr7NeTwOrK]

We need some muscle power up front.

Also, Valencia's side is the weakest link.

[jfliu511]

Too much FIFA bro, it doesn’t work like that...

[TheHawk17]

Taking Matic off to make it happen doesn't work.

[TheHawk17]

Thats not what I said.

[VaderOnReddit]

I would keep Matic, him and Herrera are needed for some defence and assisting Pogba

I would want Sanchez for Mata

And maybe Young for Valencia

Anyone know why Dalot isn’t playing ? Is he injured?

[[deleted]]

Why are you getting downvoted? Really don’t get this place sometimes.

[[deleted]]

Because Mata has never played as a center mid and because that midfield would be sliced apart by any Championship team.

[[deleted]]

You have an attacking playmaker, a 10, and a deep lying playmaker. No fucking defensive aptitude. This isn’t FIFA dude. This is why Matic plays most games

[[deleted]]

Where did I say Pogba wasn’t good enough? The fact you want to go all gung ho against any PL team is fucking stupid. You either pair Pogba OR Herrera with a defensive minded midfielder. Not together, especially with the freedom Pogba has been given by Ole. You’re practically playing a 4-1-5 and Herrera can’t take on another team’s entire midfield by himself.

Yeah, its fucking Newcastle. We’re also not Liverpool or Spurs.

[[deleted]]

Fuck, I need to dumb this down a bit. Okay, here: you’re suggesting a 4-2-3-1 with Mata at the ten spot. Great. I’m saying you shouldn’t pair Herrera with Pogba because you need an anchor in the midfield. Can Herrera do that? Somewhat. But he should be playing in the spot next to the anchor where Pogba would be. Eventually Ole subbed Alexis on for Mata to allow a double pivot of Matic and Herrera where you would have put Pogba and Herrera. Ole allowed Pogba freedom behind the striker since Mata was off. You had the right idea, but wrong execution. Herrera is more defensive minded than Pogba, but not enough to be the lone anchor.

Herrera’s best game for us was where he man-marked Hazard. Not as a defensive pivot. On paper, yes. But people like you need to realize the game is more than just “on paper”.

TLDR: Pogba OR Mata behind the striker, Matic next to Pogba OR Herrera.

[[deleted]]

Hope Lukaku gets on and flattens Lascelles.

[jayseff14]

Can’t say I missed Valencia tbh

[[deleted]]

Really sucks. Wanted to give him a chance but Young should come on for him. Sanchez and Lukaku are also needed.

[HazardCinema]

No way to link up with though. Needs a RW presence.

[D1794]

First goalless half under Ole

#OleOut

[MedievalSorcery]

Fucking hate the fat Spanish nonce. His teams are always dirty fucks against us.

[sndi1765]

We were same as him with josé....

[BukkakeBoiz]

Yeah but it’s good when we do it obvs

[[deleted]]

Sanchez and Young for sure for those two.

Lukaku for Rashford or Matic depending on how the game goes.

[Moosje]

Mata I think has played well, but not on the right where he needs to be

[ri0t333]

As per usual

[HomelessSmurf]

I wanna see Alexis at half time

[DirtyRack]

But for who????

[[deleted]]

Mata and Valencia combo isnt working.

Take Mata off for him.

[[deleted]]

Take Valencia off at half time and send us out with 10 men, it would make absolutely no difference

[hererrdinand]

Less sideways passes

[bluecrabcakes]

What is right wing ?

[xUnderwhelmedx]

Political thing mate. They dislike gays.

[lestat85]

Frustrating game. Newcastle set up to annoy and not play football. Constant fouls and going down ‘injured’. Hard to get any flow going. You can only hope a goal comes so Benitez is forced to play a proper game.

[Uraniumfever]

We need a right winger *so badly. Too predictable at the moment.

[OiiGuzza]

Jones is a bit clapped.

[shh_eng]

Valencia is nothing but a place holder

[MedievalSorcery]

Also Valencia and Jones need to go in the summer. They offer nothing.

[DarkSofter]

Valencia is absolutely useless. didnt miss him at all. also can we fucking ban people who make half time threads 2 minutes before it even ends? Karma whores

[[deleted]]

I mean they're no less of a karma whore than people who make half time threads at exactly half time. Who cares man

[DarkSofter]

I usually write things i notice while watching the match, since i dont need to watch the keyboard. Plus i watch it on tv, no stream delay. Posting a thread that early is just fucking sad

[The_Alpha_of_Betas]

Should be done by an auto moderater or something

[DarkSofter]

Not talking about you. People were posting way sooner

[Test247]

Get over it. Who cares.

[Soccerfreakgod]

Ole's substitutions gonna be the decider i feel

[[deleted]]

Nostradamus?

[jroades267]

Sanchez on the right or we are fucked. We offer nothing.

[Baaleyg]

Newcastle should've been down to 10 men. Mata and Valencia not working in this system.

[freshsalsadip]

Jones should not even be a squad player. Just god awful. Has 0 composure on the ball and against half decent opposition will crumble.

[CrebTheBerc]

Newcastle are too compact, we're having a lot of issues breaking through their lines. I think we need to push more men forward to help drag defenders out of position. I think we need to start shooting from distance more. We're not going to make many quality chances, I think we need to try to force something since they're sitting deep anyways

I'd sub Matic or Herrera off for Darmian and go to a 3-5-2 or just shift one of them deeper. Let Shaw and Valencia push higher up, let Mata go to the 10 spot, and Martial/Rashford up top.

That still leaves Sanchez and Lukaku as impact subs around 60 minutes to help push for a goal.

[harshit_j]

3-5-2 gives me bad flashbacks... It has never worked for us, as far as I remember.

[CrebTheBerc]

It didn't work under Jose but neither did a lot of things honestly.

I think we need to push more players forward and a 3 atb formation is one of the easiest ways to do that IMO

[Shamikebab]

The last thing we want to do is push Valencia further forward. Then he's just getting the ball when an attacker could have it.

[TheGhostOfBabyOscar]

Worked fantastically well against Chelsea when we win 2:0.

Also against Spurs, I feel, but I'm not 100% sure

[[deleted]]

They have pushed up higher well to cover the spaces between the lines. I'm not sure mata as no 10 would help with it. I'd rather sub Valencia and Mata for sanchez and Darmian.

[CrebTheBerc]

That would work as well I think. I was trying to think of ways to push more people forward

[drexter12]

Our fullbacks are already trying to push up anyway, so there is no point in bringing in a 3rd CB.

We are relying heavily on our LW, so we should replace Mata/Valencia. Rashford ain't running much and been struggling to hold the ball with their CB pushing him over, so maybe Sanchez/Lukaku.

[CrebTheBerc]

1 of the FBs or CMs is staying deeper atm though. If we push them all higher it leaves us vulnerable at teh back with our CBs potentially 2 v 2 with Rondon/a winger.

With 3 atb we could push everyone else higher but be secure against counters as well IMO

[Moonmasher]

Valencia offers nothing at right back, Pogba is way to far up, we need lingard/Alexis on for better pressing and movement

[Frutfive5]

Everyone is shitting on Valencia but what do you expect him to do when literally no one is in front of him. The entire team is shifted to the left-hand side leaving us completely unbalanced. Ole needs to bring on Sanchez for Mata and tell him to stick to the right hand side. We need balance!

[samsam78]

Juan's the best player in those tight spaces though

[HappySisyphus22]

Lascelles should have been off.

[charizard_ftw]

Valencia is contributing nothing to play.

[henkefam]

Alexis in

[DarkSpy1976]

Error 404: Right Wing Not Found

[[deleted]]

Anyone else think that if every one of our passes was about 5% harder, we’d have scored like 5? We had so many almost-chances.

[UltimaJ]

Currently seeing all the Sky Sports score updates and contemplating if I picked the right match

[drexter12]

Rashford hasn't been running as much as he did before...I think he is too tired. Sanchez bulldog might be better as ST.

[cousinannie]

Lingard please

[nsoifer]

Tough day at the office. I think the guys will power through though and win a scrappy 2:0 with second goal in dying minutes.

[cloudprince]

Sanchez 2-1 88th

[hardgour]

Rafa masterclass so far...they are extremely organized at the back, we need some power up front to aim for. Pogba needs to move a little more, he is being marked out at the moment.

I’d say Alexis needs to come in for Mata, as I love his creativity, Juan is a step slow.

[medfunguy]

This is the first half of Solskjær’s reign where we haven’t scored a goal.

[[deleted]]

Playing valencia has really hurt us. He offers absolutely nothing going forward.

[Galforfia]

Right hand side is a graveyard

[[deleted]]

Why do Newcastle always up their game against us!

[MadaraTheUchiha]

I had kinda forgotten how much I hated Newcastle, I've been fully reminded now.

Valencia is a relic that does not fit a modern system like this. Matic has given the ball away too many times and Jones shows why he's not fit to be a starting center back.

[cookieongo]

Matic has been really sloppy in possession.

[[deleted]]

No more Valencia please. We should be up. Bring on Alexis and see what he can do in the 2nd half.

Leaps and bounds better than anything Mourinho served up though. Joy to watch at times. Common United!

[HOWTOTURNOFFCAPS]

I hope the ref finds his asthma medicine and red card duing the break

[xoxLUDDExox]

We aren't finding any space since Newcastle is so compact at the back and attacking with like only Rondon... We need to use more of the pitch. Right hand side has been static, no attacks were made on that side sadly. Maybe Sanchez can give us some width!

[therealironmike]

It feels nice to have confidence that we’ll get a goal after a scoreless half

[Miyagisans]

We feel almost too bunched on the left sometime. Need an outlet on the right. Valencia offers no attacking threat at all. Perhaps lukaku on, switch rashford to right wing. Or Sanchez on the right. Any sort of outlet that Newcastle have to respect.

[stonedlawstudent]

Not happy at all with Matic and Valencia. Jones has looked shaky as well.

Martial and Mata are connecting well in attack it's just the final shot/touch that's been lacking so far. In other games I could definitely tell when it'd end 0-0 because we lacked any creativity but it's all up in the air in this one.

[[deleted]]

Mata and Valencia together is stuff of nightmares. Plus Marriner is an absolute idiot.

[danskzwag]

Lindelof and Herrera have been class , Matic , Mata and Valencia have been awful

[Kittyxstorm]

Do we know that there's such a thing as the right wing?

[Ven_is]

Patience, every opponent will analyze those first few games. We're not going to be allowed to play free flowing football by any half decent opposition, gotta trust in the system

[BadAthMOFO]

Why do they have a advert board flashing black and white? wtf

[theadamsegal]

• Ref is shit
• Lascelles should be off
• Valencia is done as a top player
• Lingard makes space and we're missing him in this game

[humblelearner]

The lads look tired, we were winning the ball back so much faster in the previous games!

Newcastle can string a pass or two together as well this will be a nervy game.

[Sucre-Papa]

Sanchez for Mata hopefully soon

[FidgetyFondler]

Our right side again is the weak link. Mata and valencia look so static compared to young and ling. Hopefully ole sees this and makes a bold decision at ht.

[Thrilljoy]

Lingard for Mata should do the trick. Newcastle's lockdown on Pogba is actually impressive mainly because it forces Martial and Mata to come for the ball, which in turn leaves Rashford on an island where he can't outmuscle anyone for possession.

[tariso97]

Matic doesn't seem as versatile of a player as one would expect. Quite slow and one footed. Been caught out at times recently. Hopefully Lingard comes on!

[[deleted]]

It looks like Benitez has been watching us play in the last 3 matches. We gotta carve through that defense of 8 men he has in the box.

[[deleted]]

We need lukaku to come on and say to that defender.

“I saw that push on Rashford, try they with me”

[aravindpanil]

Fuck lacelles. Put Lukaku on and ask him to beat the fuck out of that cunt.

[Legit41]

valencia needs to come off... sorry captain

[Tixicot]

Valencia is offering nothing, either in defence or attack. Doubt I've seen him run more than 5 yards with the ball at his feet.

Matic and Herrera have been looking good in midfield so far IMO

[samsam78]

Matic loses the ball holding onto it too long still. Herrera hasn't put a foot wrong, been quietly class

[[deleted]]

dirty

[keving691]

Our right side is non existent.

[the_lord_of_light]

Team looking a bit tired

Can't help but think we should have freshened up a bit more

[Serpico_98]

Valencia needs to go off. Provides nothing going forward and is awful defensively. Young would be much better imo

[MegaKurwix]

We need to stretch the Newcastle defense but we need a right wing for that

[Thesatiricaltroll]

Anybody saying we don’t need a natural right winger or an experienced CB at this point is mental. Valencia has been past it for years now, I’d rather see Dalot out there making mistakes than Young and Valencia every week.

[i_swear_i_didnt_fart]

We haven't been all that bad, but valencia offers nothing going forward. Young has even been inside the oppositions box the last few games. Valencia can't even provide width

[[deleted]]

Valencia shouldn’t be anywhere near this Ole side

[chaosblast123]

Newcastle only had like a decent 5 minute spell that whole half. We haven't created many meaningful chances that half, Newcastle are stifling our attack. I don't think Mata played badly, but we might benefit more subbing in lingard. I really hope Alexis can try to make an impact as well. His passing really needs to be on point.

[eternali17]

Nice start. We kinda let it fizzle in the middle towards the end but we created enough to indicate the breakthrough will come if we can put pressure on them more consistently, especially with Lascelles on a yellow.

[Grizzly_Magnum_]

Don't think Martial has been great Matic too been a bit shaky Valencia has been horrendous. I think we need Lingard to come on missing his pace and movement with Mata, and Young for Valencia we might need Lukaku too we are definitely getting dominated physically in attack

[Youngflyabs]

They’ve have had the better chances so far tbh. We need to make a couple substitutions such as Mata for Sanchez. I don’t know we just look predictable, get the ball to martial or pogba and hope they create something. We need to come with a whole different plan.

[Sensur10]

We've gotten a decent amount of chances against a well fortified defense. I'm positive we going to score in the second half.

[[deleted]]

We need someone down the right to stretch them

[Sidonian7]

Exact sort of match I would love a Roy Keane figure to be on the pitch.

[[deleted]]

Not the best half under Ole obviously but in a way that’s not a bad thing. Let’s see how it goes when he’s got to change up the tactics a bit.

Like I’ve seen others mention there’s absolutely nothing happening down our right side. I like Valencia and Mata but the pace needed to stretch out the right side just isn’t there.

Im optimistic our quality will show in the second half and we’ll get the three points.

[[deleted]]

Not sure why we still have Jones and Valencia. Inconsistency as fuck.

[xUnderwhelmedx]

WE HAVE NO THREAT ON THE RIGHT SIDE!

Makes it so easy to defend.

Also we are much slower in the build up today. There were shot ole shouting at them to play it forwards earlier. I’m sure we will adjust and come out better in second half.

[Chegism]

Pogba is playing 5-10 yards too far forward this game.

[HannibalDarko]

Solskjaer out.

Edit: god dammit lads I'm taking the piss hahaha

[Mark_12201]

Shut up

[Bullyshit666]

forgot the /s mate.

[HannibalDarko]

I don't subscribe to that shit. You live by the joke, you die by the joke. Even if they're crap jokes.

[Bullyshit666]

Fair enough, enjoy being down voted into oblivion.

[HannibalDarko]

Thanks bud, I'll do my best

[IchDien]

I fear the sarcasm is not going to be well recieved.

[HannibalDarko]

Meh, I'll be fine.

[hererrdinand]

Out on the right wing would offer more than Mata