The only place to be

It's a point I first raised so you're probably addressing me. The question I asked was whether he tried to block it, whether his head moved towards it. It's a recurring point about his effort and commitment to the cause. I disagree with your characterisation of it and think he actually moves away from the ball and Torres does the same.

That's fair enough and you won't get an argument with me about players' loyalty nowadays but I just don't see it happening based on everything I know about Alonso, especially if Liverpool come in for him. Modric hasn't established himself in that Madrid team and they may choose to go in another direction which makes him a more likely option for us.

Over a 'fan' like you. :lol2:

I'm sorry you took it that way, but the idea of Alonso joining Chelsea is a bit far-fetched. Modric just seems far more likely to me considering our past relationship with him.

Xabi Alonso.... :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2: I should add more laughs from all the Scousers laughing at that notion. Ain't going to happen.....and yes, Rafa yadda yadda yadda.....ain't going to happen.

So you criticised him based on a 'theory' of how we might play next season, and the players we might sign?

Any discussion about his game today has to factor in the abject midfield performance put in by United today. Southampton showed on Saturday how to disrupt Mikel but none of the United players pressured him at all.

Good point, but he seemed happy enough to come here not too long ago and there's no Alonso here. He's still made 39 appearances this season too so it's not been that bad for him.

Categorising supporters of this club as haters is a tad insulting (but not surprising). Saying 'fuck them' is taking the piss. I've notice you pop up in this thread, make a silly comment and add nothing to the discussion. Stick to that in future.

So you know the role he's going to have in the team before we've appointed a manager? Oh and he'll be passing to Cavani too? Are you sure you're not confusing real life with Football Manager?

To push for the league we need at least one new midfielder, in the mould of Modric. He's proven in this league and might be available which puts him ahead of the likes of Moutinho and Benat in my opinion. Then we need a new striking option, although I'd be inclined to go for someone who can be third-choice and also contribute on the wings. That could be Moses. Beyond that it's mainly buying for the future, although if a top-class CB did become available then we should move for him but that's an issue we might have a year to solve. Then there's the likes of Shaw. But we need to appoint a manager first and he needs to assess the squad.

Massively unfair criticism of Mata. Even if you don't intend to criticise him, your comments are complete bollocks. He is our main goalscorer this season and he's carried this team for the last two seasons. 50th assist today and you've got the balls to say he shoots too much?

Wasn't that great a performance, but once again I'm left wondering how United are so far ahead in the league when they're really not that good a team.Once again their midfield was fairly anonymous and on another day we could have absolutely battered them. Nice to see us playing with a proper striker again and though we were solid enough even after losing Cole. Rami was his hard-working self and Hazard, Mata and Oscar showed flashes of magic, but it wasn't a vintage performance by any means. Got the result though and another day out to Wembley. :blue scalf:

Chalobah is better than Mikel already.

Wait a minute.....have you ever actually seen Mikel play? That would explain so much.

I don't think anyone forgets what he can do theoretically, but he seems to have problems doing it for the first-team. Leif has also mentioned problems with his character and his tendency to let his head drop. Players like Chalobah and Loftus-Cheek play with their chest out which is why people are reminded of Ballack - Josh lets his shoulders slump and his head dip. That doesn't bode well for him.

Yesterday's free kick - does he try to put his head in the way?

John O'Shea was the player I was thinking about - 393 appearances for United. I think their problem was they sold him before he was 29 - that's the magic age, as evidenced by his world class performances since leaving.

So they just leave? You realise they have contracts and aren't massive cunts don't you? Well with that type of support from loyal fans like you it's definitely not going to work. I'm not asking for a whole team of homegrown players, but I would like to see Chalobah, Courtois, Lukaku, De Bruyne and a couple of others given a shot. Because you'll never win anything with kids right? How the fuck is that a 'best case scenario'? :lol2:

Can't disagree. We would stand to lose money. Again, can't disagree. We wouldn't become a small club overnight though. We need the tourists and the overseas fans to buy our shit but they aren't the priority in my view. They never will be because they aren't what I equate supporting Chelsea with - they're figures on a balance sheet. I will always place an emphasis on the people in the stadium who get behind the team and have done for many years. I'm not going to apologise for that. That's certainly a possibility but we've seen Roman be more restrained over the last couple of years and I would hope that would continue. People like to characterise him as 'crazy' or naive ayetnd nothing I've heard or read comes close to that. I think the problem is that we might just use these youngsters for cup games rather than trust them in league matches. They're young players and they will make mistakes but you have to stick by them when they do. We have this bizarre notion that youngsters have to be 100% ready which is completely absurd. No-one is ever 100% ready and you have to be prepared for slip-ups along the way. It's the way they bounce back that will determine their success or failure. I followed Chelsea to Tromso - it's never shit in my opinion. I think we're capable of both but the league has to be the most important. Fair enough.

Fair points. We need overseas fans to buy our t-shirts but that isn't the be all and end all of football. Because you can't win anything with kids? Which top players would leave by the way? I agree that we need a playmaker and a third striker but spending £50 million on a striker doesn't guarantee results. I have faith in our scouting system to find us the players we need and we don't need to be in the CL to get them all. I think we can win the league with just the addition of a DLP. I think we need a defender and a third striker but I honestly don't think this squad is that far away from being a top, top team. The key addition will be a manager and hopefully that will be Jose. If he doesn't want to come because we're not a Champions League team then he's not the man we thought he was and it will be his loss. We are on the cusp of great things at this club and we just need the impetus to have faith and take a chance. Missing out on the Champions League for one season (which isn't that long in a lifetime of supporting a club) whilst building something that will outlive us all is not the worst thing in the world. I think those who think it is are probably younger fans in all honesty, and that's not a sleight just an observation.

Thank you.

These are actually pertinent points. Whatever happens, we need to make changes but I don't know if we do that if we maintain the status quo. Make no mistake, the ideal situation is that we qualify for the CL and make the right adjustments but I have reservations whether we'll do that. Missing out on the CL for a year would force us to do that whilst also giving us some breathing space to do so. If we can continue the progress we've made whilst achieving a top four finish then that would be ideal. Ultimately though, I don't think it would be the worst thing in the world if we missed out. The club would still be there, the loyal supporters would still turn up and every other week we'd get to go to see the greatest team in the world play. That's what football is to supporters and as long as that still exists, then we're very lucky fans.

A good point. Hummels is a great player but he does like to bring the ball out when we need someone who's a bit more utilitarian and basic.