Manchester United

Yea as soon as Uni commitments ease off a bit, ill see what I can come up with. Stats is fun haha

I also think that RVP will play less than the other two, and Rooney as captain will play the most. LVG places huge importance on his captain. Mata and Di Maria will only play together when needing to break down defensively minded teams, one may be sacrificed in bigger games

Good letter on F365 with a theory on the team list make-up;

Getting Bored...So I'll Do Exactly The Same
I'm getting very bored with the "how will LVG fit all his new baubles into his / any system" discussion. There's no guarantee that he'll stick with 3-5-2 but he seems stubborn enough to do so. That in mind:

GK - De Gea
CB - Evans, Jones, Rojo
WB - Rafael, Shaw
CM - Herrera, Di Maria, Mata
CF - Rooney, Falco
RVP - 3rd choice CF
Blind - Cover for Herrera / Shaw

Simples. 3 mobile defenders, check. Two attacking wing backs, check. Combative midfielder, check. Midfielder with ability to beat a man and break the lines, check. Creative midfielder to play strikers in behind, check. Two world class finishers to put chances away, check. Improved options given injury (or recognising RVP is unable to play every game through the season), check.

The point of having 3 centre backs is that you don't need as much defensive cover in midfield meaning you have more scope for creativity further up the pitch. Saying that, Mata would probably make way for Blind against last year's top 6.

Oh, and I'm not saying this is the ideal, a guarantee of a top 4 finish or even a good way to go, but it makes sense to me.
Chris N (would still have liked another CB though) MUFC

433
De Gea
Rafa Jones Blind Rojo
Carrick Mata Herrera
Falcao Rooney Di Maria

Pretty good, but Shaw will be there, so it might be Carrick to miss out.

Blind wont play CB and Falcao wont be on the wing. Shaw should be playing. 
I am just happy that we have 14/15 top class players. LVG has good problems and can be flexible with team selection and formation

4-2-3-1
-----------De Gea
Rafa Jones Rojo/Evans Shaw
--- Carrick/Blind - Herrera
Di Maria -- Rooney -- Mata
----------RVP/ Falcao

It is obviously difficult as the term "top class" can mean different things to different people, but I think that 14/15 top class players is pushing it a little bit.  For my mind, you could classify the following as top class:

* De Gea (just about)

* Rojo (really only getting on the list because he is an Argentine international and has cost a fair bit of money - completely unproven to premier league and could go either way)

* Blind (as above, but coming through the dutch ranks tends to make it easier to adapt to the premier league than south americans, so I think he will be very good.  Is also lovely to look at, and that never hurt anyone in the patented "Frankie Mac Top Class O'Ranker")

* Di Maria

* Rooney (although I am personally not convinced and last night did nothing to help)

* Mata

* RVP

* Falcao

That is about 8 at a push.  For the others;

Shaw isn't yet, although maybe. Equally, this has potential to be a terrible signing - any young kid who turns up to their first pre-season overweight and not fit enough at a club like Manchester United is going to be a worry

Herrera is about 15th in the list of spanish midfielders - if you are that far away from the national team then you cannot be classified as "top class"

Januzaj has a fucking stupid name and will not play enough this season which will ultimately stunt his development

Carrick is too old and injury prone

Johnny Evans is, well, Johnny Evans

Smalling, Young, Valencia, Anderson, Fellani, etc are not "top class". No amount of bias or vodka will ever change that fact.

Thinking about this a bit more I think we need clearer definitions for phrases such as "world class" and "top class".  I hate the way that any half decent player (specifically England international ones) get the "world class" tag.

For me, it should be as follows:

World class - you are the best player in your position in the world.  If they picked the world XI to play against Mars (which would be managed by LVG of course), only the starters have the right to be called "world class"

Top Class - in the top 2 or 3 in your position in your league.  

Top top class?

nah, that is anyone who is being signed (or tapped up) by lovable ol' Arry

World class for me means something completely different. World class just means that you are good enough to play anywhere in the world. If you are good enough to play for one of the top teams in any league then you are world class.

Top top top class?

so that means that Chris Smalling is world class.  Joe Allen is world class.  Julian Faubert was world class (when he went from West Ham to Real Madrid on loan).

Is it possible we will field a team without an Englishman in the not too distant future - say Jones, Evans, Carrick, Rooney are not #1 in their position and/or injured. 

Spain

Brazil NornIron Dutch Argentina

Spain Spain Belgium

Dutch Columbia Argentina

Yea its possible, but its no difference from previous years. Only 8 'homegrown' players are needed in any 25-man squad. Shows more about the state of the English team than United.

12/13 Season
Spain
Brazil Serbia NthIre France
Ecuador Brazil Scotland Portugal
Netherlands Mexico

Bring back the Fergi Babes.

Just for the Utd haters regarding the big spending.

We have 12 homegrown players in our 24-man senior squad that were born before 1st January 1993..

Liverpool have 9 and City and Arsenal have 8 and Chelsea 3. 

7 of the 12 homegrown players came through the Utd Academy which refutes all the bullshit about Utd not looking after the youth.

Cleverly being one.

Sadly over the last 3 or 4 years, United lost a few youth of decent quality to other teams. Chris Eagles springs to mind. I wonder how far he would have gone when surrounded by quality but he went to Burnley. No offence to Burnley but Ronaldo was still at united and anyone would learn something from him. I am not being smart with this. Just an interesting debate.

Because then you must ask, if English players don't get time to develop why can foreign players? Obviously they develop at there home clubs. So why can't someone develop at a team in England outside of the big four or five?

I think its important mentioning Ravel Morrison here as well. Great talent but had a terrible attitude and probably doesn't know what's best for him. But of cause he could all prove us wrong... perhaps the problem isn't the club or the coaches its the players?

Ravel could go on and have great success, in much the same way that Danny Meehan did

I can't believe how quiet it is on all the EPL threads. Teams that should have won did not, others who thought they would win and did not. Lets hope that we get the 3 points tonight and close the gap.

'thissing' your first sentence in particular... tis oddly quiet round here

I'm hoping your new guys having first game stinkers and we get what would only be our 2nd ever win at Old T. Having said that on the QPR forum I live on, I predicted to do their usual. break an unwanted record and hammer us 5-0 just to spoil my mood.

Close enough LG!

It's amazing how good someone like Mata looked when he has good players around him in midfield instead of Cleverly/Fletcher.

Blind is exactly what United needed. He showed his class today and with him sitting in front of the back four it gives the other players more freedom.. 

Great formation today as well.. Puts everyone in comfortable positions. Might need some wide midfielders against the decent teams but I was very pleased with the game today

The major difference for me as opposed to last season was Utd were enjoyable to watch. Sure I would rather play ugly and win, but  too many games last season were rubbish to watch and I admit that I really was not enjoying most of them.

Last night was a massive difference because we had players that for once were quality.

Rafael had as good a game as he has ever had- full of running and commitment. Rojo was also excellent.Blind was the best player as he won the ball well  and moved it quickly without trying to be fancy. Herrera,Mata and Di Maria were also outstanding. RVP was probably the only player that was not quite up to his best. Major problem at the back earlier on for De Gea but overall I think Utd  supporters can look forward to a pretty good season.

friggen soft goals but spectacular ones. Hill is not a left back nor Premiership quality. The sooner Harry Redknapp realises this, the better. We have two young left backs that leave him in their wake but you all know Redknapp. If he can play a team with the average age of 34, he'll do it! Green has a mare of a first half. I heard that the QPR team showed up at the United door looking for autographs before the kick off. If they had fought like Burnley instead of giving away too much respect, it might have been different. Having said that, once this United team really Gel, it could be quite frieghtening for other teams!

Shock horror! Rio blames Moyes' ban on scoffing chips the night before a game as the reason for Man U's dud season.

see latest on www.stuff.co.nz

The guy is a clown. He should have left  more than 2 years ago.

Who played left wing back against QPR? Or was it a back four?

I didn't see the game but I've been interested in seeing how van gaal lines them up on the pitch

It was a 4-4-2 diamond with Rojo on the left. Good analysis by the BBC (

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/29201077)

I heard on the Football Weekly pod that no team has EVER spent more on transfers than United have done in a single calendar year.

Quite the statement Utd have made...

That's probably true but what you have to remember is just how high football transfer inflation is.

False dawn.

5-3 to Leicester after United being 3-1 up. Can't wait to get home and watch this one.

Can't deal.