The Squad planning thread

With Guehi and Semenyo, 2 players that are in their prime ages and pretty robust, the squad looks incredibly healthy now, genuinely cant see us having many incoming in the summer

Anderson will be the priority, which I agree with the a RB given Pep (and most of us) dont fancy Lewis as a RB

Assume Stones, Bernardo & Ortega wont be renewed, but also assume Trafford will want a move...maybe Ortega renews and just enjoys being 2nd choice again. Bertinelli probbaly gets renewed, if not its not hard gettin a 3rd choice. Then id want us to move on Kovacic and Ake at a minimum

1. Donnarumma
2. Ortega / New GK
3. Bertinelli / New 3rd choice
4. Nunes
5. New RB
6. Khushanov
7.. Dias
8.. Gvardiol
9. Guehi
10. RAN
11. NOR
12. Lewis
13. Rodri
14. Nico
15. Anderson
16. Semenyo
17. Cherki
18. Foden
19. Doku
20. Savinho
21. Haaland
22. Marmoush

I make that 22 with Anderson and a new RB, all 8 HG spots used up. Doubt we see Reis or Bah next season as they'd be 5th choice, maybe Alleyne takes the spot
 
Cobwebcat said:
Why does everyone assume Trafford will go. He hasn’t ever said he wants to leave. It’s just a guess.
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Pisses me off when everyone says he’s off. Absolutely no reason for us to let him go. He’s well paid and under contract and will play in all the domestic cup ties and possibly the odd European too.
 
We are weak as piss in midfield, it is extremely necessary that we get this right in summer.
Rodri was totally overrun on Saturday.
We need energy and strength in there.
The PL seems like it’s becoming more physical than technical, probably because there’s a huge lack of world class technical players who can open up defences, along with the fact that most teams use a low block.
Only my opinion, but players like Lewis and Bobb and to a lesser extent Foden, are easily knocked off the ball and struggle against more physical players.

I’ll probably get hammered for this post now.
 
Cobwebcat said:
Why does everyone assume Trafford will go. He hasn’t ever said he wants to leave. It’s just a guess.
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Well yea, of course its a guess. But this is a forum you're allowed to guess, what's the point if we dont

Think the factors for leaving is pretty substantial

When he joined he had Ederson infrot of him, a 33 year old player constantly linked away who's contract was up in a year

Started the first 3 games... then we bought a world class Donnarumma, whos only 26 and hes been relegated to the bench

Hes 23, he isn't getting around Donnarumma maybe for a few years (ok he could but Donnarumma is literally world class) he had Newcastle so champions league teams after him, also he wants to be Englands #1 once Pickford goes. Hes going to go head to head with Henderson, and Henderson plays week in week out

So yea, maybe he stays, but its not exactly a stretch to say he may want to move... like he has done already
 
yellamcfc said:
We are weak as piss in midfield, it is extremely necessary that we get this right in summer.
Rodri was totally overrun on Saturday.
We need energy and strength in there.
The PL seems like it’s becoming more physical than technical, probably because there’s a huge lack of world class technical players who can open up defences, along with the fact that most teams use a low block.
Only my opinion, but players like Lewis and Bobb and to a lesser extent Foden, are easily knocked off the ball and struggle against more physical players.

I’ll probably get hammered for this post now.
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Lot of sense to this. Rodri might need to drop in as a cb eventually if his fizz isn’t there in the knees any more.

I’d still go break the bank for that guimares fella at the toon. Him and nico would go well together. We need a horrible bastard that can get all over the pitch. Andersen next best
 
handsofstone said:
With Guehi and Semenyo, 2 players that are in their prime ages and pretty robust, the squad looks incredibly healthy now, genuinely cant see us having many incoming in the summer

Anderson will be the priority, which I agree with the a RB given Pep (and most of us) dont fancy Lewis as a RB

Assume Stones, Bernardo & Ortega wont be renewed, but also assume Trafford will want a move...maybe Ortega renews and just enjoys being 2nd choice again. Bertinelli probbaly gets renewed, if not its not hard gettin a 3rd choice. Then id want us to move on Kovacic and Ake at a minimum

1. Donnarumma
2. Ortega / New GK
3. Bertinelli / New 3rd choice
4. Nunes
5. New RB
6. Khushanov
7.. Dias
8.. Gvardiol
9. Guehi
10. RAN
11. NOR
12. Lewis
13. Rodri
14. Nico
15. Anderson
16. Semenyo
17. Cherki
18. Foden
19. Doku
20. Savinho
21. Haaland
22. Marmoush

I make that 22 with Anderson and a new RB, all 8 HG spots used up. Doubt we see Reis or Bah next season as they'd be 5th choice, maybe Alleyne takes the spot
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Think maybe a couple of surprises / and not so leave in summer. Sav? Rodri sign new contract? Or he will be off.

Think we will see Reis as he can play RB too. What about Etcheveri etc. He might take Savs spot
 
Cheadle_hulmeBlue said:
I’m trying not to compare, but when you look at a lot of our recent signings - last 3/4 years. I do think there has been a drop in quality. I don’t think a lot of these players would get near our treble side

We signed players with potential previously, but I’m not seeing the same quality
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Huge drop in quality.
 
aguerooo93 said:
ofc he wants out. he's too good to be a second keeper
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In that case, should we brace ourselves for Gonzalez, Marmoush, and Ait-Nouri leaving? Should Guehi even bother unpacking?

Ι appreciate that people can make the argument for goalkeepers being exceptional, but we’ve clearly decided on having a larger squad with quality in depth, so presumably everyone in the squad is aware of what that entails.
 
Anderson for sure, but then not much else, maybe a young high potential RB.

But I don't think its fully necessary to have 2 wide fullbacks, I think 1 wide fullback and 1 wide winger works.

1768868737807.png
I like the look of this 4231 which can either tilt the RB wide right (Nunes, or all the first named players), or alternatively tilts the LB wide left (RAN, all the second named players).

Almost all of these players could play in another spot. Lewis is a back up in a few spots.

That squad looks complete and competitive to me, with room to get some younger players in when injuries eventually happen like Mfuni and Mukasa.
 
WallyA said:
Anderson for sure, but then not much else, maybe a young high potential RB.

But I don't think its fully necessary to have 2 wide fullbacks, I think 1 wide fullback and 1 wide winger works.

View attachment 181031
I like the look of this 4231 which can either tilt the RB wide right (Nunes, or all the first named players), or alternatively tilts the LB wide left (RAN, all the second named players).

Almost all of these players could play in another spot. Lewis is a back up in a few spots.

That squad looks complete and competitive to me, with room to get some younger players in when injuries eventually happen like Mfuni and Mukasa.
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We play far to open at the min. Need to be robust and hard to break down. Build a solid base again and the attacking side will take care of itself.

Might not see it until next season tho.
 
yellamcfc said:
Rodri was totally overrun on Saturday.
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I don't really put this on Rodri at all. And I'm not having a go at Pep either, but watching it back it felt pretty clear what was happening. By half time, Bruno had already dropped into that pocket behind Rodri four or five times, and every time he did, it caused us problems. The space both in front of Rodri and behind him was exactly where United hurt us, and he was basically left trying to cover two roles at once.

That was made worse by the high line and the lack of pace in the full back areas. United were set up to counter, and once they got past the first press, there was just nothing protecting the back four. Rodri was constantly scrambling, trying to put out fires that shouldn't really exist if the team was balanced properly.

We also didn't have full backs who could really pin their wingers back or give us extra bodies in key areas. Instead of forcing United to defend, their wide players were able to stay high and ready to break, which just stretched us even more and made everything feel risky.
It's one of those games where a small tweak might have helped. Having Khusanov at right back or NOR dropping in alongside Rodri out of possession, could have taken some of the load off him. Even starting NOR next to Rodri and using more athletic full backs might have given us a bit more control and protection.

In the end, it didn’t feel like an individual issue. It felt structural. Rodri was exposed, the back four weren't protected, and United played exactly into those spaces. When that happens, even your best players end up looking like they're chasing the game rather than controlling it.

People can criticise individual players as much as they like, but I don't see think it was about one or two performances - it was a collective issue. The way we set up ended up isolating Haaland, Semenyo and Doku, leaving them feeding off scraps, while at the other end it offered no real protection to Rodri or the defence.

The distances between the lines were too big, the structure was stretched, and when possession turned over there was no platform to either counter press or slow the game down. Our forwards were disconnected from midfield, and our midfield was overloaded and exposed. That’s not on individuals - that's a structural problem from the management.

Haaland was often left wrestling with centre backs with no support around him. Foden was anonymous. Semenyo and Doku were asked to hold width and run channels, but without runners close to them, full backs pinning the opposition back or direct passes for them to get in behind Utd, they were easy to contain. When attacks broke down, the lack of compactness structurally meant United could break straight through the middle, leaving Rodri trying to cover impossible amounts of space and the back line defending on the turn.
 
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handsofstone said:
With Guehi and Semenyo, 2 players that are in their prime ages and pretty robust, the squad looks incredibly healthy now, genuinely cant see us having many incoming in the summer

Anderson will be the priority, which I agree with the a RB given Pep (and most of us) dont fancy Lewis as a RB

Assume Stones, Bernardo & Ortega wont be renewed, but also assume Trafford will want a move...maybe Ortega renews and just enjoys being 2nd choice again. Bertinelli probbaly gets renewed, if not its not hard gettin a 3rd choice. Then id want us to move on Kovacic and Ake at a minimum

1. Donnarumma
2. Ortega / New GK
3. Bertinelli / New 3rd choice
4. Nunes
5. New RB
6. Khushanov
7.. Dias
8.. Gvardiol
9. Guehi
10. RAN
11. NOR
12. Lewis
13. Rodri
14. Nico
15. Anderson
16. Semenyo
17. Cherki
18. Foden
19. Doku
20. Savinho
21. Haaland
22. Marmoush

I make that 22 with Anderson and a new RB, all 8 HG spots used up. Doubt we see Reis or Bah next season as they'd be 5th choice, maybe Alleyne takes the spot
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is it me or i don't see Reijnders ?
 
Cheadle_hulmeBlue said:
I’m trying not to compare, but when you look at a lot of our recent signings - last 3/4 years. I do think there has been a drop in quality. I don’t think a lot of these players would get near our treble side

We signed players with potential previously, but I’m not seeing the same quality
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For me, it feels like the balance just isn’t right across the squad. More that than pointing at individuals and saying they aren’t good enough.
If you look at who we’ve signed since winning the treble - Gvardiol, Doku, Kovacic, Nunes, Savinho, Nico G, Marmoush, Khusanov, Reis, Reijnders , Cherki, Trafford, Ait-Nouri, Donnarumma, Semenyo, Guehi - I’d say they could all very easily have a place in a title-winning squad, individually. But there are too few standouts - too few very top-drawer players who can come in, deliver performances straight away, elevate the team, and lead those other players to major trophies.
Out of that list, I would say only Donnarumma came in immediately as a ‘key’ player that improved what we had. Maybe Gvardiol, but he was still young when signed. Cherki has outrageous quality, but he’s nothing like a leader (yet).
At our best under Pep, we had maybe a handful of lesser/potential-type players. Now it’s the greater part of the squad.
Feels like we just need an injection of real, top-level quality. If we want to revamp the midfield, target the very best midfielders in the world. Don’t aim for players who might be there in 2-3 years.
Easier said than done, of course. But it surely must be the ambition, if we’re serious about keeping the position we’ve worked so hard to get ourselves into.
 
Stoned Rose said:
Huge drop in quality.
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I tend to agree with you. The five most influential players for me have been David Silva, Vincent Kompany, Kevin DeBruyne. Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho. Not only were the exceptional players, they ran through brick walls and genuinely loved the club. Replacing that quality with that type of mindset extremely difficult..
 
We're over half way through the season and 10 first-team players have played fewer than 1,000 minutes each. We don't need to buy too many more players, but we certainly need to get more minutes into players. The more 'basketball' the football becomes, the more players need to be used, otherwise we're just going to burn some players out for seasons to come.
 
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