I mean they have been playing during this run. A lot has to do with the return of Carrick as the shield but it can't be denied they have played well. I saw today on the Sutherland free kick that DDG had to make the save. A attacked drifted off the wall and in between the wall and the man Rojo/Jones were marking and was free. I thought Rojo should have moved to body the drifter and Jones should have fronted the man he was marking. So they don't give me total confidence. Anyway, if these are now first choice where does that leave Smalling, Bailly and Blind?
A fair question, but Bailly is a significant upgrade from Rojo. However, it's a moot point for now as Eric attends to NT duty in January. Rojo has sported a couple of two-footed tackles and misdirected the clearance header back to a dangerous position. He's done a great job overall but he's not in the same class as Bailly IMHO. But does Bailly partner Jones or Rojo or even Smalling? I'd say Jones but maybe not. And don't forget that Lindelof appears to be all but a done deal.
They (along with DDG behind and Carrick in front) have worked well as a unit considering. Significant also that Blind often not played as FB (as he drops off too much which makes it harder to keep a defensive line). Defending they look to have been told to keep it simple, occassionally just put it into crowd for throw in rather than play. In possession they have clearly been told to just give it to Carrick/full backs. Suits Mou style for addressing pressing. They both have a very low floor and only modest ceiling. Under LVG & what he wanted they looked worse, but the no-nonsense approach suits them & Mou. Bailly if not for injury / ACN would have gone straight back in I am sure. Not so sure on Smalls, think Mou adopting if it aint broke policy. Smalls has higher ceiling, but Mou wants no nonsense - eg would Rojo/Jones have allowed first Chelsea goal (Pepe) or just cleared it? Carrick important - similar to Kante @ Leicester and how that has affected their CBs as a unit.
Gates, Lindelof will come in so that at the end of the season, Rojo can be sold and Blind will move into DM to give Carrick some more rest.
The Jones & Rojo pairing works defensively because they adopt the KISS approach but their limited play hinders the rest of the team as they often sit too deep. It is also not a pairing Mourinho would traditionally adopt. However it is working for now and given our issues we need to retain the partnership for as long as possible.
For now they are. Whatever gets us through for now. But I'd still buy at least one, maybe two CB's before this time next year.
Still plenty of time to see how things will evolve going forward. Bailly will be gone for a while and I'm curious to see where the current partnership of Jones and Rojo are. I'm rooting for them, but things can change: loss of form, injuries, what have you. Bailly when he plays because of his ability to get involved more in the team's overall play, does provide another dimension, not just to the backline, but in the team's play in general. The main advantage with the current partnership is that, if nothing else, it provides Jose with some reliable options, which is not a bad thing. The team will be involved in a lot of games going forward, so bodies will be needed anyway and everyone will be needed at one point or another. Jones and Rojo's current form will have the added benefit to allow for Lindelof, if he does come in, to be brought along at his own pace.
I am not able to recall when this pairing started.But for the moment it is working. But hey are not without their fault. Rojo's clearance which led to Sunderland goal a case in point. Once both smalling and shaw are fully fit, JM needs to test them all with different pairings to find the optimal one.
I would assume a mod (well RvN since he's only one we got left at this juncture) could step in and correct the thread title. Not trying to be a grammar nazi or anything of the sort, but it really makes no sense at all and just looks plain ridiculous as it currently appears...
Also wondering if they have played against any of the top 5 this season. Anyway, the real test will come against city and pool. Sent from my LG-D802T using Tapatalk
There will be more than enough games coming up between the league and all cup competitions United are in for Jose to play everyone and try different things. Rojo and Jones may not be the team's definitive tandem for the long term, but they've pretty much been trusted together since the Chelsea game and have worked for the most part. And they were the partnership that contributed in slowing Arsenal down at OT and if it weren't for a blatant shove of Kos to Jones in the box, they would have kept a clean sheet against them. We'll see how they hold up eventually, but I love the fact that Jose has options at his disposal and can mix things up, when/if need be.
I expect Lindelof to be a part of the whole, another option for Jose this year as he acclimatizes himself with the team and the Prem. Next season is when I expect him to really start staking his claim. Also, it will be very interesting where and how Jose intends to use him as well, meaning it's very conveivable he could be seeing lots of time at RB. TBD to be honest.
When has Jose showed any inclination to play Blind in midfield this season? As much as I personally would love to see it, I think it extremely unlikely, except in case of a real emergency. Blind will continue to be an option primarily at LB now that there will be 4-5 legit options at CB. As far as Lindelof is concerned, he will be an option at CB, just as he may be one at RB. After all, Jose's affinity for FBs with size is nothing new and Lindelof could fit the bill long term, especially with Valencia not being a long term solution himself.
it is pure theory. But we need to replace Carrick and unless we make a purchase, there are only so many options within the squad
There are only so many options but I'm very confident that Jose will look in the market for a guy to replace Carrick long term as soon as this summer (even if as expected, Carrick is offered another year extension). As I've made clear for a long time around these parts, I'm a proponent of playing Blind in midfield in Carrick's role, especially given the pieces we currently have. The problem still remains that Jose doesn't seem to share that opinion unfortunately. There were more than enough chances for him to do so far this season, yet he never chose to do so. I think it pretty much explains the lay of his thoughts on the subject.
Not really. Mike was not ready at the start of the season, then Shaw. When all were healthy maybe but that hasn't been as often.
As mentioned, I would love to see it and who knows? Perhaps, it will happen, but I think it very unlikely, considering what we've seen so far and what appears to be in Jose's plans in terms of transfer targets...
Good to know! It's hard to know what Jose will do in the summer. Seems to me Rojo has bought himself new life at OT, but who knows? It does seem reasonable to believe that one of Jones, Rojo and Smalling will be deemed surplus to requirements. I like the idea of Blind as a Carrick understudy and I'm a bit disappointed we haven't seen that yet. Instead, we've been treated to Fellaini as our destroyer, but he's been destroying the wrong side! We have an FA Cup match coming up soon, and although we want to win this cup this first match would be an excellent opportunity to make a few tweaks. Let's not forget about TFM, the boy/beast. Where does his destiny lie?
well i could change the title but i'm not sure why we even needed a thread to discuss it. that said, to be fair i don't think we had a 2016/17 thread like we usually do. not a big deal anyway. not bothered about the title. unless the masses really want to change it