08/01/11 - Sheffield United v. Aston Villa FA Cup

[LSF]

An objective report might also disclose that both had a good game, but alas, until we can get robots to do the reporting then we'll never get a truly objective report, will we? It doesn't matter what either player does, we know you hate them. And I don't think there are any Blades who are both unaware of our current plight or who would turn down better replacements.

I've said it before - if we can get better then get them. perhaps you'd like to go out and get them, being the expert in these matters? Why not saunter down to the nearest player tree and give it a shake? I do however suspect it's a bit more complexd that just wandering out and getting whoever you fancy whenever you want.

Thing is Shoreham, Pinchy speaks sense on occasions, but completely loses his marbles when the name Montgomery enters his head and all objectivity goes out of the window. There are some players i don't rate but if one of them has a decent game, i've no problem in acknowledging that, Pinchy's achilles heel is there for all to see

Deadbat, for all his efforts to be objective, suffers from Montyitis too

 

[shorehamview]

Thing is Shoreham, Pinchy speaks sense on occasions, but completely loses his marbles when the name Montgomery enters his head and all objectivity goes out of the window. There are some players i don't rate but if one of them has a decent game, i've no problem in acknowledging that, Pinchy's achilles heel is there for all to see

Deadbat, for all his efforts to be objective, suffers from Montyitis too

I like Monty. I don't think he's the greatest player at the club, and on the odd occasion he's plobably not the greatest player in his house, but he's not the Great Satan some would have us believe. The trouble is that as soon as you praise Monty Pinch et al get proper mardy. I'd readily accept a better replacement for Monty, just as I'd accept better replacements for ALL the players. But where do we get them from? Seriously, who and from where and how do we afford them?

Most fans of most clubs would happily see all of their squad go if better players came in their stead. But some posters think that a praise for Monty equals being perfectly happy with him and never ever wanting him replacing, and that's not true. Would I swap him for, say, a raincoat on a hatstand? No, don't be ridiculous. Would I swap him for Xavi or Iniesta? Of course I would, but you'll always get the idiots who say they'd rather have diptheria than Monty without giving it any serious thought.

 

[Bergen Blade]

Good report, agree with most of that.

Regarding tactics and playing style maybe this wasn't the right game to judge us, and our approach may be different against players who aren't so much better than ours individually. I thought we played very direct, and think that style was what gave us a lift in the second half. Personally I don't care for man marking, and hope it was a tactical move for this game that our players (midfielders in particular) were so focused on "their men". If it's Micky Adams way of doing things, similar to Warnock and Blackwell, I will be a bit disappointed.

If we're going to play direct I think we need a target man up there, and if Henderson isn't ready yet, we should be getting someone in. I quite liked Parrino, don't forget he was up against a very skilful winger, and it's not just his fault that we looked poorly organised in the first half.

I think Williamson is brilliant, but doesn't quite look match fit. I agree that Britton is a problem, and having both him and Monty in central midfield is something that we can't afford. Neither scores goals, neither makes assists or creative passes, and while Britton is tidy on the ball and has a good touch, most of his passes goes sideways and backwards. As we are lacking height overall, I see defensive midfield as a position where it would be useful and natural to have a strong, tall player protecting the back four and doing a job aerially in both boxes, Britton obviously isn't that type of player.

I think Bogdanovic did a lot of good things and maybe we should look to give him more playing time. I thought it would have made sense to switch him and Ward for periods, as there Ward's quick feet was a bit wasted against the even quicker Walker.

 

[alcoblade]

Good report, agree with most of that.

Regarding tactics and playing style maybe this wasn't the right game to judge us, and our approach may be different against players who aren't so much better than ours individually. I thought we played very direct, and think that style was what gave us a lift in the second half. Personally I don't care for man marking, and hope it was a tactical move for this game that our players (midfielders in particular) were so focused on "their men". If it's Micky Adams way of doing things, similar to Warnock and Blackwell, I will be a bit disappointed.

If we're going to play direct I think we need a target man up there, and if Henderson isn't ready yet, we should be getting someone in. I quite liked Parrino, don't forget he was up against a very skilful winger, and it's not just his fault that we looked poorly organised in the first half.

I think Williamson is brilliant, but doesn't quite look match fit. I agree that Britton is a problem, and having both him and Monty in central midfield is something that we can't afford. Neither scores goals, neither makes assists or creative passes, and while Britton is tidy on the ball and has a good touch, most of his passes goes sideways and backwards. As we are lacking height overall, I see defensive midfield as a position where it would be useful and natural to have a strong, tall player protecting the back four and doing a job aerially in both boxes, Britton obviously isn't that type of player.

I think Bogdanovic did a lot of good things and maybe we should look to give him more playing time. I thought it would have made sense to switch him and Ward for periods, as there Ward's quick feet was a bit wasted against the even quicker Walker.

I thought we were much more direct yet aimless against Donny. I thought yesterday was the way football should be played. To feet but forward quickly. None of it matters until we can build on solid foundations (the defence).

UTB

 

[Wards]

Funny how people see things differently as bar the first goal I thought Bartley was outstanding. Held the defence together really well and marshalled Agbonlahor brilliantly.

I also felt Parrino had a superb second half, can't remember Young or Downing getting a cross in. Be good to get someone in on the left side quickly - anyone know how long Jordan is out for?

 

[alcoblade]

Funny how people see things differently as bar the first goal I thought Bartley was outstanding. Held the defence together really well and marshalled Agbonlahor brilliantly.

I also felt Parrino had a superb second half, can't remember Young or Downing getting a cross in. Be good to get someone in on the left side quickly - anyone know how long Jordan is out for?

I wasn't convinced by Parrino against Donny, but he was superb in the 2nd half yesterday. Very impressive. Maybe it was a fluke, hopefully it's a player finding his feet after not a lot of football?

UTB

 

[WhiteHawk]

Who was it who attempted the overhead kick that was going in the bottom corner and why didn't they show it on the highlights last night?

 

[Foxy]

Who was it who attempted the overhead kick that was going in the bottom corner and why didn't they show it on the highlights last night?

It was Ertl

 

[JohnDenver]

Who was it who attempted the overhead kick that was going in the bottom corner and why didn't they show it on the highlights last night?

Ertl, believe it or not.

 

[shorehamview]

Who was it who attempted the overhead kick that was going in the bottom corner and why didn't they show it on the highlights last night?

Ertl, for the third time. ITV didn't how it because they're a bunch of suck-ups totally in thrall to the Big Clubs(TM Jim Rosenthal et al) so if it's not Man Utd or their ilk they don't give a shit.

 

[Rattly Noise]

Very disappointed by the 'highlights' on ITV. Looked like a completely different game, but there again many of our fans clearly seem to have watched something completely different to the rest of us.

Bloke that sits near me sits the whole match with his arms folded and a miserable look on his face. The moment there's a missed pass he springs to life, "useless United", "bloody rubbish", then sits down. No comment when there's a good move or shot on goal or where our keeper pulls off a brilliant save. He just doesn't see it.

I'm not one for rose tinted glasses but you've got to have balance and most of what I saw yesterday gave me hope for the future. The defence for me were at fault for the first two goals, but the third was just a different class. The rest of the time the defence gave a real battling performance, against let's not forget what is Premiership opposition. If Adams can sort out the mistakes then our future looks a lot more secure than it did a few weeks ago.

 

[Deadbat]

Parrino/Bartley

I wasn't convinced by Parrino against Donny, but he was superb in the 2nd half yesterday. Very impressive. Maybe it was a fluke, hopefully it's a player finding his feet after not a lot of football?

UTB

I thought both Bartley and Parrino has decent second halfs but it was too late! They were both badly cullpable for the goals and countless other attacks went down our right side where Young and others had too much time to get crosses in. Bartley also let Agbonlahor get in twice, once Simonsen saved and the other time the ball whizzed across the box. I am kind fo split on him. I keep hearing how he needs an experienced partner (not Nossy!) but in over a season we have had him now; he does not seem to be developing massively and is still making bad errors that lead to goals and is a soft touch to play against. He looks the part, tall, athletic and fast but if he wants to be a top defender he needs to cut out stupid mistakes and be difficult to beat.

I still think we need 3 or 4 defenders and fast as every week 1 or 2 are commiting stupid mistakes for goals.

Maybe Parrino and Bartley may make players eventually but we have not time to be the club who allows them to iron out their mistakes and rawness.

 

[SteelCity Blade]

I thought both Bartley and Parrino has decent second halfs but it was too late! They were both badly cullpable for the goals and countless other attacks went down our right side where Young and others had too much time to get crosses in. Bartley also let Agbonlahor get in twice, once Simonsen saved and the other time the ball whizzed across the box. I am kind fo split on him. I keep hearing how he needs an experienced partner (not Nossy!) but in over a season we have had him now; he does not seem to be developing massively and is still making bad errors that lead to goals and is a soft touch to play against. He looks the part, tall, athletic and fast but if he wants to be a top defender he needs to cut out stupid mistakes and be difficult to beat.

I still think we need 3 or 4 defenders and fast as every week 1 or 2 are commiting stupid mistakes for goals.

Maybe Parrino and Bartley may make players eventually but we have not time to be the club who allows them to iron out their mistakes and rawness.

I hear you on this db but you have to take into account how poor United have been as a team when you think about Kyle Bartley. The lad is still very young and is playing in a side lacking confidence and defending poorly right from the front. It's not like he's getting a lot of help and to be expected to lead the backline at his age is a massive burden. He has no chance of developing and working on his weaknesses in this side at the moment. His area of the pitch is far too exposed to counter attacks from our poor discipline through the middle.

Parrino looks like exactly what you would expect him to be.....a good footballer that needs a lot more exposure to English football. The lad is playing simply because we have no one else and he has acquitted himself relatively well under the circumstances. I cant fault him for the most part.....he's comfortable on the ball, wins his headers and puts in a shift. He got caught out on Saturday for the second goal but again, young and hasnt quite grasped the style/culture here yet.

 

[dkc Blade]

The full match is now available to download on another forum. Dunno if I am allowed to post the links here though.