United (H) - Sun 15th Dec, 16:30 | PL | Pre-Match Thread

[ComfySeats]

In their prime?

Micah Richards in the 1-6 was leagues better than zaba ever was, and I love zaba. I think that performance was certainly better attacking-wise than anything walker has ever done but didn't have to do as much defending - for nostalgia, ignoring his punditry, I go 1-6-richards.

Dias and a fully fit stones is probably the best partnership we ever had given the stability alongside the insane attacking variable with stones in the champions league season.

And ake. Best defender we have ever fielded at leftback. Gvardiol on his day is getting there but give me Ake over kolarov, gvardiol, clichy, Mendy, garrido, ball, sylvinho, Delph, zinchenko, etc.

It might be nostalgia to be fair on my part.

 

[Yue Wollongong]

I will go with

Ortaga
Nunes Walker Dias Gvadol
Gundo Kova
KDB
Silva (or/sub with Foden) Doku(or/sub with Jack)
Haaland​

 

[Elliot houghton]

Apparently Samuel Luckhurst has leaked United’s starting XI on Facebook:

Onana, Maguire, De Ligt, Martinez, Mazraoui, Ugarte, Fernandes, Dalot, Mount, Amad, Hojlund

Looks very central minded surprised as our biggest weakness right now is definitely in the full back positions good though hopefully they will be less of a threat on the counter

 

[makinghistory]

IF we turn up I can only see a straightforward win. On the other hand..............

 

[Gesario]

Given how screwed we are at LB is either Ben Thatcher or Michael Ball available for this one?
Come on city smash the cnuts

Or Bobby a McDonald He would smash the cnuts

 

[paulsimpson]

Grealish in the middle. He normally turns up against these and if he’s more central with Doku playing off him on the left we’ll really benefit from his engine in the middle. If kovacic can also play we can leave Gundo out and we’ll be infinitely more mobile with a couple that can carry the ball forward. If Kev is fit he has to start and if Foden is fit I’d drop him in behind Haaland.

Christ knows what he’ll do at the back but with Rico suspended and Ake and Stones still out Walker is nailed on to start.

We won’t really play with a back 4 as one usually steps into midfield, so I’d be tempted to play a 3 and have the extra body in midfield to hopefully make us less easy to run through and with it actually being a midfielder we’re less likely to get caught in possession.

Ortega
Walker Dias Gvardiol
Kovacic
Bernardo Kev Grealish Doku
Foden
Haaland

Ortega comes back in because I do think he’s a better shot stopper and he’s definitely better 1 on 1 than Ederson.

Grealish in more of a free role, like against forest and Haaland coming deep to receive the ball which should allow him to release Doku and bring Foden into the game with a little more grass in front of him to play into.

They want us to play how we have been doing, slow, compact high up the pitch and pedestrian in midfield. If we do that we’ll be on the end of another 4 nil because whilst they’re utter shite, they’ll knock it over the top and lord fish finger of Stretford and that spotty twat they have up front alongside basin head will not believe their luck.

Listen to me, Pep and we’ll shit em.

That's not a bad side but aren't we a little bit light in the Centre of Defence as Gvardiol will be on the left side / Left back with only Dias in the centre? Of course with more bodies in midfield and with us having much of the possession it might just work. It's going to be interesting to see what Pep does.

 

[paulsimpson]

Looks very central minded surprised as our biggest weakness right now is definitely in the full back positions good though hopefully they will be less of a threat on the counter

That United team looks as if they'll come to sit back, soak up any pressure,then break once they get possession themselves. That's how Amorim beat City a few weeks ago in Lisbon

 

[SWPISHOME]

W13 D 7 L8 against the worse Rag side in 40 years.

It's Manchester Derbies, Alot of the time form goes out the window.

We've beaten them with Keegan, Pearce and Sven, Alot of those games we absolutely battered them.

Those days we hadn't a pot to piss in, We had teams made of of numerous loan players and players bought for next to nothing.

The Rags teams over the last 10 years still spent more money than anybody there had squads worth over a billion a quid, It's not like it's a fairytale story that they beat us now and again. Yes they have been shit, But we've had far worse teams absolutely battering them in the past.

It happens.

 

[David White]

That's not a bad side but aren't we a little bit light in the Centre of Defence as Gvardiol will be on the left side / Left back with only Dias in the centre? Of course with more bodies in midfield and with us having much of the possession it might just work. It's going to be interesting to see what Pep does.

Yeah I get that mate, definitely a bit light but we’re going to have the majority of the ball and with a heftier midfield the defence shouldn’t be exposed, especially with Kovacic in there.

Definitely will be interesting to see what Pep does, although if I’m honest I expect us to line up the same way we did on Wednesday with a swap for Rico.

 

[jrb]

Give Andy Morrison a pair of boots.