The Tactician
Well-known member
- Feb 18, 2013
- 1,052
Lots to unpack after the game, lots to be unhappy about re. the officiating. But I have rewatched the game and analysed it, and I want to focus on something else.
The performance today was first class. Brilliant chance creation, unlucky with the finishing (when you hit the post/crossbar I don't think you can say you're being especially wasteful), confident attacking play and a lot of assured defending - although there wasn't much to do. But there is a serious problem which is putting us at a huge disadvantage.
Jose Mourinho has made headlines following the spurs 'All or Nothing' documentary for his amusing comments about what it takes to win a football match.
https://youtu.be/i3xpiIjD6NI
After Brighton score to take a deserved lead, they continue to press forward. Nothing wrong with this. We have multiple players in their half as Solly March is dispossessed, and this the picture of the play at the time he loses the ball:
And between conceding the eventual freekick deep in our half, these are all the incidents where any Brighton player has to do the intelligent thing - and foul. A trip, a rugby tackle, a block... anything. The situation is clear, we are entirely exposed at the back. Make. The. Foul.
And now to the end of the game, which is contentious as to whether it was conducted in a lawful way etc. But regardless of this, the second they have an idea that Maupay may have extended his arm, what do the Manchester United players do? They surround the referee, they crowd him, they wave their arms and they insist the decision onto him. If they had not appealed, even if VAR had spotted the infraction, they may not have been minded to raise it as a clear and obvious error, especially as the on-field referee had already ended the game.
Unable to compete in terms of quality, they relied entirely on gamesmanship. They were awful, intelligent ****s. And they won the game because of that fact.
If we play as well as that, I don't want us to be deprived of the points and results we deserve because we are unwilling to 'play the game'. If we want to succeed, let's go all in. Let's do everything we can. Because the level of our performance, the quality of our play deserves it.
The performance today was first class. Brilliant chance creation, unlucky with the finishing (when you hit the post/crossbar I don't think you can say you're being especially wasteful), confident attacking play and a lot of assured defending - although there wasn't much to do. But there is a serious problem which is putting us at a huge disadvantage.
Jose Mourinho has made headlines following the spurs 'All or Nothing' documentary for his amusing comments about what it takes to win a football match.
https://youtu.be/i3xpiIjD6NI
After Brighton score to take a deserved lead, they continue to press forward. Nothing wrong with this. We have multiple players in their half as Solly March is dispossessed, and this the picture of the play at the time he loses the ball:
And between conceding the eventual freekick deep in our half, these are all the incidents where any Brighton player has to do the intelligent thing - and foul. A trip, a rugby tackle, a block... anything. The situation is clear, we are entirely exposed at the back. Make. The. Foul.
And now to the end of the game, which is contentious as to whether it was conducted in a lawful way etc. But regardless of this, the second they have an idea that Maupay may have extended his arm, what do the Manchester United players do? They surround the referee, they crowd him, they wave their arms and they insist the decision onto him. If they had not appealed, even if VAR had spotted the infraction, they may not have been minded to raise it as a clear and obvious error, especially as the on-field referee had already ended the game.
Unable to compete in terms of quality, they relied entirely on gamesmanship. They were awful, intelligent ****s. And they won the game because of that fact.
If we play as well as that, I don't want us to be deprived of the points and results we deserve because we are unwilling to 'play the game'. If we want to succeed, let's go all in. Let's do everything we can. Because the level of our performance, the quality of our play deserves it.
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