Manchester United

I didn't see the game but from all accounts Pogba was boss - I was one of the doubters and I will say that it will take more than a performance in a home game against a Southampton side that lost Mane, Wanyama, and Pelle over the summer plus Koeman as well to convince me.A few more like that and I'll eat humble pie though.

Also, if Serie A is better quality than international football for France, shouldn't he look better when he's playing for France, not worse? ;)

Need a class defender at least.

I'm not a defender of Pobga (yet) but most players in the Euro had just come off a full domestic season, no break and straight into international  competition. Doubt anyone would have been at the top of their game.

Smalling is hardly world class, but as I mentioned earlier, as individuals they are OK but not as a unit.

All I know is that over the last couple of seasons I've seen him play in he Euros, friendlies for France, a few Champions League games and a few Serie A games and I've never seen why the hype is justified. Could be that I just happen to watch when he has off days. Or I make him have off days when I watch...

And the Euros came after a whole season of football without much rest, whereas now he'll be well rested and able to start peaking again soon.

So I wouldn't see Bailly with one of them two—personally I rate Smalling over Blind—as a bad option to be honest.

Both true, but Smalling improved playing alongside Blind.

Perhaps I am too critical of Smalling, although I have to admit that I watch him like a hawk as I have never been a big fan. Lots of people think he is great.

No, sorry I missed it.

To be clear, the winky face was only about that last bit. The first paragraph was serious

I gathered that.   You don't have to be an  expert to see the difference in the players from last season to this season, and it is down to JM.

He knows what needs to be done as he has been there many times. The players have the confidence in him and quite frankly so do I.

The problem is that every game will be a cup final now and I expect as do most Utd fans that we will win 75% of our games.

I don't like Man Utd though.

But I love Zlatan too.

This season makes me feel very conflicted.

Very interested in your first sentence. Many years ago a mate ( who is a Chelsea supporter, and JM was the Chelsea coach)  ) asked me what I thought of JM. I replied that I  liked him and I thought that the way he acted was not like he really is. The comparison I made was look at Muhammad Ali- It was all mouth.

The fact that you don't like MU is OK as there are 600 million people that do. :)

Sadly 599,000,000 have never been to Old Trafford. Although I did hear recently that a few million dropped United in favour of Chelsea when they were winning the league and another mill went to Man City. Leicester also picked up an extra 200,000 new life long fans too. ;)

Shame as the United fans whom were there since the 60's and that awesome Busby team and have stayed there are totally respected. he glory hunters not. Without going to Google I could name most of the team that played in the 76 FA Cup final loss to Southampton.

Stephney, Brian Greenhoff, Jimmy Greenhoff, Martin Buchan,  Jimmy Nicholl, Stuart Pearson, Lou Macari, Gordon Hill, Steve Coppell Just off the top of my head.Who could ever forget that Pearson banner?? "Jesus saves but Pearson nets the rebound" - absolute classic.

That's ridiculous. Some kid born in NZ who is really into football, should be able to support ManU or any other team with passion, and not be told they aren't actually a fan because they haven't been to the home ground for a game. 

Maybe they will make it a goal in their life, but they don't end up making a lot of money, and they never make it - what then? 

That means they aren't a fan? 

Even if they've been getting up at 3am their whole life and living every minute, supporting their club buying shirts and merchandise or whatever, hell they might even take a lead role in the NZ chapter of their supporters club, but they still aint a proper fan because they haven't been to the home ground? 

That's just bogus mate. 

So much this!

I'm not from Liverpool, only been a few times and never been to a game at Anfield but anyone who says I'm not a real fan can do one.

Up every weekend, often a trip into the city to watch. Spent a ton of money on merch, pay membership fees every year, support through the good times (the old days) and the bad (current) but NEVER, EVER give up that support even if we were playing League 2!

I have a tenuous link with LFC which made me a fan, but a fan I will always be. I can't stand United, but if their success got another kid into watching football, to wanting to play and wear a Premier League shirt, to invest time in them, then who is anyone else to judge them?

Crap. Double post!

+1

My Dad was never really into sport, got that from my Mum's side of the family. Couldn't afford Sky growing up and had no football ties in the family. The only time I, as a child, was exposed to top level football was staying the occasional weekend at my grandparents (whom had Sky) where I always hoped football would be on overnight. These odd weekends were my only influence from professional football and at the time Sky really only played Manchester United, or at least those were the only games little old me would recognise.

The circumstances arise from United's success, so in a way you could argue that I am a glory hunter. In reality their success meant they were the team I was exposed to since as long as I can remember.

What paulm is saying is completely spot on. I've never been to Old Trafford, England or even Europe. (Though I intend to very soon!). But since I discovered streaming I've tried to watch absolutely every match I possibly can. Over the last 7 years or so I've probably missed 5 games live, which I would've watched a replay of later.

To argue that I am not a real fan is bollocks and really ticks me off, and the elitism of supporting a small club making you a "real" fan is also complete bollocks. Most people (my generation) I know who support a small club woke up one day and decided they were a fan simply to be different.

If you don't have any personal connection or family ties to a club in England though, how is just picking a small team at random to be different any worse than following one of the big teams because you were exposed to them when you were young? As long as you grow to genuinely care about the team then what does it matter why you supported them in the first place? It would be a sad world if the only teams which got support outside their local areas were the handful of mega-brand super clubs simply because they get more media coverage 

I began supporting United due to the way they played back in the late 90s - early 00s; get the ball down the flanks, get balls into the box and score plenty of goals (kinda liked how the old Stoke used to play tbf). Also the fact that they were always in the game til the final whistle was something I endeavored to replicate and aspired to in my football. 

I actually hope the past few seasons of failure show other people that the fan base is not just those on the successful team bandwagon. 

Define personal connection?

I'd hazard a guess that plenty of people will define their team selection as a personal connection, if not at the beginning, then later. 

20legend for example, sounds to me like a pretty personal connection for him. It may not have been the first time he saw a game at his grandparents, but it sure as hell is now. 

I just think that liking a team for any reason is essentially arbitrary so I don't like judgement calls like calling people glory hunters or saying they only like a team to be different.

I actually supported Man Utd when I was a kid because they were the only team I knew anything about but as a teenager I went off them for a variety of reasons. Now they annoy me because a segment of their fanbase is really sanctimonious about the Utd way and not buying success and stuff like that. Plus the global branding stuff (international noodle partners etc) just seems distasteful to me, and I dislike their big stars from my lifetime (Beckham, Giggs, C Ronaldo, Rooney). 

I actually don't feel emotionally connected to any EPL club, there's certain teams I favour and ones I don't like but I'm a long way from calling myself a fan of any of them.

I should've explained myself further. I simply mean that most people I know who claim to support a small club like it's some elite badge of pride just woke up one morning and decided it. Then come season end I've watched more of their team's games than they have.

If they really wanted to pick a small team to be different they should go non-league and support Farsley Celtic or something

Is he right or wrong ?

I think you'll find if people support a smaller, lower league team it will be because of a strong connection and they will often support that team and a top flight team. As well as LFC, I support Dover AFC currently 4th in the Varanama Conference (3W, 1D, 1L) as I was born there and lived there until I was 10. Others I know support a small team because of their OE (I also keep an eye on AFC Wimbledon after living there for 12 months in 2001 when the whole AFC W'don/MK Dons stuff kicked off). 

Bold call to say the best, but he is definitely performing at a higher level than he has in the past. Alves, Carvajal, Azpilicueta, Lahm all spring to mind ahead of him. But there is plenty more of the season to come and Valencia is looking a lot better.

I was given a Shoot!! magazine in 1982, and Man U were the team in the main poster......the secondary team was Dundee, so thank fudge they weren't swapped over......

Watched a clip of Ryan Giggs when I was 11 years old ( circa 19 years ago ) and thought he was the bees knees, so started supporting United, sometimes the way you began is as simple as that :)

I'm also lucky that I spent two years in the UK and managed to attend three United games in that time. One being Champions League game against Bayern Munich @ OT where we drew 1-1. Still curse Welbeck for trying to chip Neuer when 1v1 in that game....

The greatest though was being there for SAFs final home game against Swansea, where we were also presented with the Premier League trophy at the end of the match, unreal feeling :)

It wasn't this pic, but this cracks me up.....look at all the old electronic goods....the thing that looks like a computer probably cost the equivalent of a house in inner-city Auckland....still, this is all brand new stuff in Azerbaijan....."hey Alexei, look at my brand new boom box....now I am like the Boy George, yes!"..."oh Sergei, you will surely win the hairy hand of Olga now"

yep, the Shoot mags back then  were excellent. I can see and feel your point. They were a big influence on NZ born football fans in the 70s'. At one stage through second hand shops, I had from the first issue through to 1989, everyone except 3 issues. I still have a few but I should have kept the lot. Gordon Hill had a column in it. Andy Bremner and Gerry Francis and Danny McGrain & Grieg from Glasgow Rangers.

This win back then - then started watching the Sunday morning Midnight/1am games on TV - to long ago for ..

Best was literally on fire that night. 

Well it wasn't physically. He ran the show in that game. Best at his very Best.

As was John Aston.