Man Utd's best 11 and formation...

cournioni

There has been alot of debate among United fans as to what United's team and formation should be. SAF seems to be sticking to this "all new" 4-3-3 formation which has been in effect since he tried to accomodate Veron in the team. Personally, I don't think it is as effective as the 4-4-1-1 United have deployed over the years so the team I'm going for is...

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Van Der Sar

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Neville-Ferdinand--Silvestre-Heinze

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Keane

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Scholes

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Ronaldo

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Giggs

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Rooney

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v. Nistelrooy----

What would your preferred team and formation be? Answers on a postcard...

Jonny Arson

I'd go for the straight 4-4-2 in which we won so many trophies over the years. I'd go for the same lineup as PORNAPSTER but the current team has nothing on the team of 1999 and won't win a thing this season again.

wheres me jumpa

so many times in recent games we have lacked width. ronaldo is coming in field alot more this year. id much rather see a 4-4-2. we have the players for it so i dont see why not.

PHB

WE DO NOT HAVE THE PLAYERS FOR A 4-4-2

Keane and Scholes could not play in a 4-4-2, we'd get overrun, infact they have played it 4 times in the last 2 years in my memory, and we got overrun.
So its gona have to be Fletcher and Scholes or Fletcher and Keano
The latter doesn't give enough going forward, and the former doesn't protect enough.
If we had different players, I'd like to see a 4-4-2, but then again, if we had the midfielders for a 4-4-2, we'd totally rock at the 4-3-3.

The last good match Giggs had for United was against Arsenal last year.
He has been utter ****e since then.
When playing for his contract he was good, now he is ****e again.

We do not have two good enough wingers, or two fit enough CM's to play a 4-4-2, get over it

Jimi-Spandex

4-2-3-1

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VDS

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Nev----Rio----Sly----Gaby

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Feltcher---Keano----
Ronaldo--Rooney--Scholes (switch scholes for park or giggs)

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Ruud

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True it's not much different from the 433 that we do play but I'd prefer to have Rooney in a more central position, though it is more

Scholes for Park/giggs may suit the shape better, I'm also coming to the conclusion that, legend that he is, Scholes(in addition to keane) needs to make way. Not that we have anyone for him to make way for yet.

homerjay2005

how about this then?

Van der Sar
Neville Ferdinand Heinze O Shea
Keane

Ronaldo Fletcher Giggs

Rooney Van Nistelrooy

im not a fan of silvestre, and scholes aint been doing the business yet this year....the back 4, baring injuries, is rock solid and we wont concede that many goals this year.

we need 2 out and out strikers, depending on the way solskjaer returns(if he ever does), he could fit on there beside rudd with rooney dropping in behind them. im getting concerned with injuries, it makes our squad look very bare, having to put richardson left back against liverpool, may not be a good id. what happens if ferdinand/silvestre/o shea gets injured or sent off? we are in big trouble then.

Green_Martian

I would have to agree with PORNAPSTER,

I would go with the 4-4-1-1 as follows:

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Van Der Sar

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NBrown-Ferdinand--Silvestre-Heinze

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Keane

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Scholes

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Ronaldo

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Giggs

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Rooney

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v. Nistelrooy----

I would replace Neville with Brown though.......................

UTD play better when playing attacking football for as far as i remember UTD always played attacking football if they were winning or losing. I don't like this new style of play........everybody wants to play like Chelski now as they were successful last season

PHB

United have been playing 4-3-3 since the loss to Real Madrid in the CL in 2001.
We aren't copying Chelsea, we are copying Real

BaZmO*

Well so far in the PL they've gotten 10 points out of a possible 12. So it must be working.

Also, bear in mind tha last year the amount of points they finished with would've quite possibly won them the title on previous years.

I've said it plenty of times before, Utd. aren't necessarily getting worse, it's just that the likes of Chelsea and Arsenal are getting better. Although I'd worry about Arsenal this year.

B.

The Muppet

I always like united playing 4 4 2 with two wingers . Unfotunately as has already been pointed out our aging midfield does not permit us to play this formation any more . I think I would move keane into defence to try facilitate a 442 formation particulaly considering our growing injury list.

with that in mind my experimental team would be

....................Van der sar

J O Shea ........ Ferdinand ........ Keane ....... Sylvestre

.............. Smith .................Scholes

Ronaldo ........................................................... Giggs

...................................................Rooney
...............Ruud

Lemlin

I'm not sure about United's starting 11 but I feel the team would work alot better as a unit if Ferguson stopped messing round with player's positions.

If he wants a winger that can play behind his striker, then play Park or Ronaldo, not Rooney who is a striker himself.

If he wants a midfielder to replace Keano, then go and buy one, don't try to mould Smith.

And, on another note, he should buy players who are proven at an effective level, so that United don't end up with more Klebersons and Djemba-Djembas!

PHB

Djemba Djemba's record was pretty much identical to Essiens ya know.

bucks73

I have always preferred United playing a 4-4-2 formation. All the success since 1990 has come with 2 wingers playing and for me it makes for more attractive football. The team always looked a lot more balanced that it does now when two wingers played. Over the years United always had exciting wide players like Olsen, Strachan, Becks, Giggs, Kanchelskis and Milne (lol) and they should go back to it.

When I say 2 up front I would compare Rooney as a striker like Eric or Sheringham who likes to come deep.

Van Der Sar
Neville Rio OEIH Heinze
Ronaldo Keane Scholes Giggs
Rooney Ruud

Wouldnt mind seeing Richardson getting more games on the left to help him progress but Giggs would start if fit.

OEIH: Old Easter Island Head

deisedevil

Gkelly2002 wrote:

I would replace Neville with Brown though.......................

WHY???
Neville has been on Prem team of the year 2 years in a row and brown has been nothing short of pathetic!

Lemlin

Originally posted by PHB
Djemba Djemba's record was pretty much identical to Essiens ya know.

Oh right, did I miss the season where Djemba Djemba had some stunning games in Europe and was probably one of the best players in the Champions League?

Originally posted by bucks73
Wouldnt mind seeing Richardson getting more games on the left to help him progress but Giggs would start if fit.

United should definitely give Richardson his chance on the left this season. They'll only get another season or two out of Giggs. I'd say Ferguson is aiming at playing Ronaldo and Park as wingers if he's going to use anyone though.

PHB

Oh right, did I miss the season where Djemba Djemba had some stunning games in Europe and was probably one of the best players in the Champions League?

No, but I obviosuly missed last season.
Take a look at the Lyon PSV game last year and then tell me Essien was one of the best players in the CL.
The guy is ****ing impressive, but he is an impressive kid.
Bags of potential, but not there yet, as he has shown so far in a CHelsea shirt aswell btw.
Essien did fantastic in the French league, just like DD did.
DD was incredible for the season before he swapped, and I expected great thigns.
Unforuntately it didnt pan out.
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Btw, do you watch United play?
Fergie is aiming at Rooney and Ronaldo being wing forwards.
Park is a squad player.
Giggs doesnt play much anymore

Lemlin

Take a look at the Lyon PSV game last year and then tell me Essien was one of the best players in the CL.

One bad game doesn't knock a great season. Essien went into last year's Champions League a virtual unknown, and came out of it with one of the best reputations in Europe. Any manager would of had him in their team of the Champions League last season, even if he did have a poor game against PSV.

The guy is ****ing impressive, but he is an impressive kid.
Bags of potential, but not there yet, as he has shown so far in a CHelsea shirt aswell btw.
Essien did fantastic in the French league, just like DD did.
DD was incredible for the season before he swapped, and I expected great thigns.
Unforuntately it didnt pan out.

FFS, he's had about three games in a Chelsea shirt! Give the lad a chance, I think you're clutching at straws there. He's highly impressive and has bags of potential, meaning Chelsea have spent 32 million on the future. Just like United spent 27 million on Rooney for the future.

Essien is nothing like Djemba-Djemba though. Appearances in the French league aside, Essien has proved himself at the highest level of football in the World, the Champions League, whereas Djemba-Djemba proved himself in one of Europe's lower class leagues.

Btw, do you watch United play?
Fergie is aiming at Rooney and Ronaldo being wing forwards.
Park is a squad player.
Giggs doesnt play much anymore

If you read my posts above, you'd see that I think Ferguson is ruining United by playing players like Rooney and Smith out of position. Rooney shouldn't be playing wing forward, he's a striker, not a wing forward. As I said above, Park or Ronaldo are wing forwards.

In my mind, United should play Rooney up front with RVN with Ronaldo and Park as wingers. That's what I was pointing out above.

deisedevil

Lemlin wrote:

In my mind, United should play Rooney up front with RVN with Ronaldo and Park as wingers. That's what I was pointing out above.

I'm of the same opinion. Scholes and keane in the centre.

scuba steve

same here with me. Rooney was playing very deep at times against Villareal, maybe he was supposed to be but i think he can play better jus behind RVN up front with the crosses coming in the wings from Ronaldo and Park. scholes definitely in the centre with possibly Keane (or Keane in centre back, espically now that theyre short with Neville, Brown and Heinze all injured) And then Smith and Fletcher cover for the centre midfield.

Lemlin

United seem to lack width at the minute. Ferguson seems to be trying to copy the way Chelsea played last year - with Robben and Duff just behind Drogba.

Its clearly not working though. If he wants to play a lone striker up front then he should. Playing Rooney as a wing striker isn't going to work because he's a striker, albeit a striker who can drop deep.

Whereas Mourinho was willing to omit the players that it took to work that system, Sir Alex does not seem to be willing to. He doesn't seem to want to drop Van Nistelrooy or Rooney which he is going to have to do to accomodate that system.

He seems to have an abundance of strikers yet is playing with a system which utilises only one. Therefore he's trying to mould them into other positions. Next we'll be seeing Saha as centre back!

It just isn't going to work. Not when Chelsea can afford to go out and spend 30 million on one of the best players in the world in each position.

scuba steve

Thats very true