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Take this with a pinch of salt but I presume Ed this is what you mean by in line stick mate live the music …price is right I think
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Yep exactly Sean. To be fair though, the best defender in the world’s “lowlights” vid isn’t much better! This doesn’t even have the Arsenal mistake in either. My point with this isn’t that VVD is rubbish. Just that a video of edited clips can make anyone look poor
Whilst we’re on the topic of Van Dijk mistakes…pic.twitter.com/q7nXe9nUkx
— Jason (@UTD_Jason) July 15, 2020
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Ed, I did make other suggestions. Surely Utd would have the pulling power to attract Inter Milan players? Skiniar is one of the most highly rated CBs in world football. Diego Carlos from Sevilla, Ruben Dias from Benfica or Jonathan Tah from Leverkusen are others that Utd could surely attract.
Maguire is great for a low block team, one where the ball is in front of him most of the time and he can stick his big head on anything crossed in. But maybe Utd want to play as a low block team? Maybe that is the height of their ambition now? To frustrate the top teams an maybe nick a goal yet struggle against the rest?
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Threeps, consider this. None of those CBs you mentioned were considered good enough for City either. They were crying out for a Kompany replacement yet they could have got any of those you suggest, also. If they were as obvious signings as you make them out to be, they wouldn’t still be at those clubs would they?
Also, would you consider City a low block team? Guardiola wanted Maguire to replace Kompany. He said as much last week, just that he couldn’t afford him (which in itself is rich coming from the first billion pound assembled team in history). Do you think Pep was planning to frustrate teams with Maguire?
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I’m a big fan of Ake though so I’m still hoping that we get him in, assuming Bournemouth go down, and have him partner Maguire. I think we’ll be much more solid then. Not a fan of Lindelof and Bailly is far too injury prone. Can’t understand why Chelsea aren’t exercising their buy-back on Ake.
Nine, do you think he’ll be a Lampard target this summer? Seems a no brainer to me with the clause.
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Ed but he’s another defender that I think is over hyped.
Don’t get ake at all to be honest.
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Fans and pundits cried out for a Kompany replacement, not Pep. I’ve put this on the City page before that I believe Pep’s plan was always going to have Fernandinho at the back. He did it at Barca with Mascherano, and at Munich with both Alonso and Martinez. Maybe he has seen that that doesn’t work so well in the Premier League as even the low level teams will attack more than what he had in the past although he should know that by now.
We will never know what would have happened if Pep got Maguire. I know he said it but how serious were the links? If he really really wanted him I’m sure the Sheik could of found a spare 80m down the back of the sofa for him. So no I do not think City are a low block team, probably as far away from one as their is. I would of thought he saw him as a player that could bring the ball out of defence, like Stones but can actually defend, and that he short-commings (pace, turning ability) would be offset by those around them and the thought that no one dares to attack Pep’s teams (like in Spain and Germany).
Perhaps if Utd get a pacey CB next to him it could become a very good partnership. We have different views on him which is good, would be dull if everyone agreed! I agree with you that he gets signalled out because of his price tag, his nationality and probably the most significant who he plays for, which is all wrong (maybe apart from who he plays for!!).
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Very good points all round guys. Don’t take my long-winded, repetitive posts as me trying to discount anyone’s opinion or anything. You all make good points and, as Threeps says, we simply disagree and that’s always going to happen in football.
Saw this interesting article about Ake and I part of the article made me wonder if that was what Pep saw in Maguire. It highlights Ake’s poor aerial ability (won less than 50% of his aerial battles) whereas Maguire is generally >70%. Also, another article below highlighting Skriniar’s poor aerial ability potentially putting City off signing him.
The first relates to opposing teams often opting to hit long when presented with a high press, meaning that Ake would have to deal with aerial balls quite regularly.
That’s Maguire to a tee. Teams like City are always going to face a lot of aerial balls (as the opponent tries to beat the press) so winning duels is a big asset for any defender for them.
https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/mancity-nathan-ake-transfer-18510245
https://footballwhispers.com/blog/milan-skriniar-manchester-city/_____________________________
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Pep has paid 466m on defenders since he came to city and city still need a left back and centre back. That’s a crazy stat. He paid 50m for stones and he hasn’t improved one but. He’s actually gone backwards under pep
Ye very good discussion Ed. All good chum
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Sean…that will always happen…you take a risk on any player you buy irrespective of price that he will come out …just right. City have had a few failures recently. As to Maguire, I think Pep thought he may be able to improve him but my feelings are we have had a lucky let off. I never rated him and would rather have our youngsters in.Yes, we do need a LB and CB but I am reminded everytime that Pep does not play with CBs as we know them, Agree with him or not that is his style and nobody will change it, very much a case of creating chances and scoring goals that matter to him. There will be a few changes at City next season. DeGea…I feel sorry for the guy, he is a great keeper having a not so good time but all good players work through it. You have to wonder if he worries about what is in front of him as well. I would not panic over him, he will continue at his level next season
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ED….Ake…I think Pep would improve himand he is a mobile player in a not so good team at the moment, feel sorry for Bournemouth though if they go down, always tried to play football
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Test
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What happened to your post Mikus?
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I think my point on Maguire comes from being a Liverpool fan over our long barren period. Before you know it you start accepting more average players which are accepted because it’s said they are “needed”. This can be how top teams start decaying. Would Fergie have signed Maguire for that price? I don’t think he ever would. Then the argument comes that “needs must” but as I say, that’s where it becomes a slippery slope. When Liverpool were buying players in recent years from a position of mediocrity, they were targeting players in key positions of a very high quality from Mane to Salah to VVD to Alisson. And Klopp was prepared to wait for the right player rather than desperately bringing someone in. Even if Maguire does help Man Utd back into the CL, are they going to set the competition alight next season? What kinds of players are they going to target? And most importantly, what is their plan? As Threeps said, their strategy and system doesn’t seem coherent with the type of player Maguire is. The CL music may help to mask over such things, but it’s extremely easy to become a yo-yo CL club who end up standing still and not progressing as the target simply becomes “getting into the CL”.
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Remember, this is a key time for Utd. If they don’t land a league title within a few years that will be 10 years without a title. And 10 years then becomes 20 years, and so on as the clubs winning mentality keeps subsiding.
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Reposted above Ed but broken up into two. It disappeared after editing it. I find it helps if you break the post up after such things happen. Don’t know if anyone else has had such a problem.
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Ed, re Ake I think it was a mistake Chelsea letting him go and I think there remains interest from Chelsea along with a number of other Central Defenders.
Chelsea’s weakness is in the air which isn’t Ake’s greatest strength but if Chelsea signed a big dominant Keeper that might help solve that problem.
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Mikus, good points raised. I think Ferguson would have gone for him actually. See this. He was a big fan of buying players from within the league. So, assuming the reports are right that Ferguson championed his signing, that’s Mourinho, Pep and Ferguson who all wanted him to join “their” club. Not a bad list of managers!
Even if Maguire does help Man Utd back into the CL, are they going to set the competition alight next season? What kinds of players are they going to target? And most importantly, what is their plan?
As for this bit, it’s not only about getting in the CL and planning to win it straight away. Utd reportedly stand to lose around £75mil by not qualifying for the CL. That £75mil is, in effect, almost a Sancho type signing. So, it’s as much about bringing in more revenues which allow Utd to buil further and invest more into the squad as it is about “lighting up” the CL. You build bit by bit. You don’t/can’t build a PL/CL winning squad overnight from where Utd were last season.
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I’m really not sure who better than Maguire there was for United to sign at the time albeit they paid substantially over the odds anr I think the majority of United fans agree with that.
Every time this comes up nobody can come up with a player better than Maguire in his position and available at the time to United when they signed Maguire.
City at the time were under investigation by UEFA and were seemingly reluctant to overspend possibly because of that and their net spend over the last two seasons reflects that.
Of course the owners could have afforded him but owners can’t buy players.
I also think Pep is quite a responsible Manager and he won’t want City to pay over the odds for a player the same will apply to Chilwell both City and Chelsea allegedly want him but Leicester allegedly want £75m for him which is vastly overpriced and I don’t think either City or Chelsea will buy him at that price.
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If, rather, the question was “would Ferguson have signed him for Utd during his era?” the answer would be a resounding no. But that’s more due to the fact the pool of top quality CBs back then was much larger. Finding a good quality CB nowadays who has leadership qualities and can defend is a real challenge, as City can attest to. I’m not buying that a 35yr old Fernandinho was ever Pep’s long term Kompany replacement plan.
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