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LIVE BLOG: West Ham vs United

  • February 8, 2015

Daniel Stapleton

Follow @danstapleton89 on Twitter.

STATS: How is Rooney keeping Herrera out of the team?
LvG: My players showed great spirit

464 Comments

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ashtheking February 9, 2015
Dan

Line up may work but I am damn sure if LVG adopts that fans will still complain. First complain will be why not mata, then next complain where is youth development, thirdly why does falcao deserve chance but not Wilson or rvp. Mate , it's not that easy. It's important we play as a team first. We defend as a team but we attack as individuals.
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Mirainashe February 9, 2015
Dannysoya

I agree with u there. Van Gaal is hindering the players from natural expression. I think he is one of those that believe in the technical side of football more than its "natural" side. He wants players to use intelligence more than instinct and to combine this with their natural ability. It's good for Dutch trained players but for those not in the Total Football school it can be a nightmare to learn. Daley Blind will be breezing through the games like Carrick a player whose game is more technical than natural. Players like Rooney,Falcao,Di Maria will be in hell because they have to exorcise their natural and instinctive traits. It's a serious problem
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Dan Young February 9, 2015
line up comes down to the fact falcao, di maria, young, rooney, herrera and blind all close down the opposition up the field. alot of pace, directness and tempo.

mata left out cause -

shots - 14 [1 every 105.1 mins]
conversion rate - 28%
chance creation - 23 [1 every 64 mins]
goals contributed (goals + assists) - 7 [1 every 210 minutes]

rvp stats much worse then falcaos infront of goal, although i do still want rvp and mata etc to still play a part. just my first 11 going by on field performance and playing style that would by my first 11 to get us top four
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Mirainashe February 9, 2015
Dan Young

Shots and goals are not the primary trait of central midfielders. That's the big problem in football. Everyone thinks goals are the only important thing. Balance is more important than anything else. When you get goal scoring exploits of the likes of Zidane Iniesta Xavi Carrick Alonso and Modric then tell me Rooney is a better midfielder because of shots and goals
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Dan Young February 9, 2015
mirainashe - agreed. but considering our biggest issue right now is a lack of chances created and goals scored then herrera brings the exact same to the midfield as rooney. like i said i want both, in a midfield 3 with carrick or blind joining them in an attacking 4-3-3 formation. if rooney fails then bring mata in for him. both are more then capable of playing that position if we dont congest the opposition box like we have been doing all season
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Mirainashe February 9, 2015
Also Herrera has played less minutes and a lot as a sub than Rooney. He is bound to create less. However he is unlikely to lose possession in midfield like Rooney. He is more dynamic with his final third passing than Rooney because if you look at most of his assists they have come from passes through the middle to the strikers. We all know Rooney will look for Valencia everytime. He can't play those passes through the middle so we become so predictable. Check the previous article by Scott questioning why Rooney plays in midfield. It uses stats that are relevant for midfielders to show exactly why Rooney is taking us back everytime he plays in midfield
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Mirainashe February 9, 2015
Rooney should play upfront. Anything else is an unhealthy compromise. I want Mata to be the first name on the team sheet but Rooney unfortunately starts no matter what so I'd rather Rooney plays behind the strikers and for proper midfielders to play in the three man midfield. It's a much better political compromise since Rooney Falcao and RvP play no matter what.
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Sparkz February 9, 2015
When it comes to Rooney, there's one aspect that gets overlooked.

Whatever position he plays in - up top, Number 10, midfield, Left back - he has a unique presence on the pitch. People won't like admitting it, but he has that X factor personality which means our chances of winning games increase by 20% if he's in the lineup.

Go back 12 or 13 years. Roy Keane was still a fine player but he didn't have the legs to play in a 2 man midfield anymore. What did Fergie do? He changed his whole system to accomodate him (extra body in midfield). Because his presence and influence was that impactful on the team.

Rooney is the same. Personally I don't rate him in midfield, but I also understand it's a long term process. if LVG is hell bent on turning him into a centre mid, it aint gonna happen in the space of 2 months. He's done this before with many players, changinf their positions.
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Marko Maric February 9, 2015
Spanish media really dont like Bale
http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/gareth-bale-slammed-disaster-spanish-5131845
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Sparkz February 9, 2015
Rooney, Falcao and RVP are in their late 20's or early 30's and none of them are super quick. Throw in the fact that Blind or Carrick will always be our DM - and that means there are only 2 spots left in the front 6.

That has to go to quick guys i.e. Herrera and Di Maria. Otherwise our attacking is geriatric as fuck.
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Dan Young February 9, 2015
sparkz - all the foreign players that come to the club all praise rooney.

also try to name a footballer to compare rooney to. i'd go for bobby charlton and paul gascoigne. not many out there like him nowadays. he can do as good a job up top or in midfield. which is why i would put him at the top of a 3 man midfield in an attacking 4-3-3. get the best out of all of his abilities.
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Sparkz February 9, 2015
Yep the foreign lads and the young players all seem to have a lot of respect for Rooney and follow his example a lot. Similar I think to the way the Class of 92 felt about Cantona in the mid 90's.
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demoniclsayer February 9, 2015
Well, I had to say his passion for football is something that makes others respect him.
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Robin_Rolle February 9, 2015
Sparks spot on 20% better! X factor=Xman. SAF talk of his presence even at 18 he pushed CR7 to become a team player. Almost to a man who ever he plays with love him as a teammate !! National side , hi early Everton sides and all the MU players! For people who never played a team sport, or won on any level will never get it! A winner plane and simple.
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