We Are The Reds

Match Day!
It seems so long since the last game.






Come On United!


I'll be on the train to Linz just before kick off so I won't be able to watch the game tomorrow but I look forward to checking the jamboree as the game progresses.

Given that we are Kryptonite to MC Petrodollars, this should be a routine win to us - but we have chopped and changed the side so much over the past 6 weeks, I'm not sure that we can go on past form.

Cut off the service to McLaren though - if he is even playing - and we should be OK.

Warland and Isa at CB is going to make things hard for us.

I imagine Lopez and Kitto either side of them will need to sit back a bit perhaps.

Tunnicliffe and Yull in front will have a lot of defensive work today.

Up against it but form has been decent of late.

COYR!!

Intriguing game. They’ve lost a very useful playmaker in Sahki but still have Aslan. And Nabbout is back to stir things up. And then there’s the Vidmar factor. Looks like a score draw to me.

I feel we lose too much with Isa at CB. I don’t like it at all. Would prefer Javi there with Bova at RB. Maybe Kikianis gets a go there?
Whatever, an unsettled back four sitting in front of a GK who’s been out for 2 years unsettles me.

That said, we looked chaotic for the first 20 minutes against Sydney then were on fire. Anything could happen. It’s Football innit!


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We'll get it done. We've defeated Melbourne City three times from three on a full moon, which falls tomorrow in the wee hours. Close enough? Let's see.

We are still in the change rooms.

Poor start.

Annoying losing momentum by having a week off, thanks to WU's incompetence.

We've settled now and starting to get our passing going.

Come on United!

Once we'd blown the cobwebs out I thought we had a decent half. Pity we had already conceded in that time.

Curtis Good really highlighting the value of a quality CB so far.

Better team for 70 mins but no end product. Frustrating result.

Just finished watching (had a clash with work so couldn’t watch live).

We are down to the bare bones of a team. And Popovic going to South Korea is a big loss.

But despite the fact that we were very wasteful in possession and misplaced so many passes, we still created the best two scoring opportunities of the game, in Ibusuki’s header and Irankunda’s one on one. And Halloran’s opportunity at the end of Irankunda’s run in the first half was also a one on one with the keeper.

HAving slept on it, a few reflections on the game.
As you said Otto, it really looked like a patchwork and disjointed team. All 3 lines were quite ineffective but in particular our midfield besides Yull was extremely poor, HT subs made it even worse and moving Isa to CB made it more obvious.
Defence was ok but honesty soeaking, City looked like scoring on multiple occasions in the first 20mins and we still look quite unstable back there with no consistent pairings all season.
Forwards were also quite poor, many poor decisions and though Halloren and Clough offered very little, felt like Nestor was the only hope at times and he tried to do too much as a result. Hiro looked on form so very disappointing we could not create any chances for him.

As for the subs, as has happened a bit this season, they made us worse. Alagich was poor, Duzel I just dont see what he offers and Jovaanvic without Hiro next to him leaves us looking impotent.

Losing Bernardo, Popovic and Toure now out for 6 weeks (from the original 4) looks to have dented belief and it just feels like anytime we get some momentum, we then have more squad disruption. I felt sorry for the players last night, they are trying but it is obvious we lack experience and quality.

Thought Bovalina was yet again impressive, Isa pretty solid and Nestor tried very hard without success but not much else besides them. Kitto, Tunnicliffe, Warland, Clough and Halloren for me were quite disapointing and as senior players, did not offer much at all.

It is feeling that as the season goes on, we are drifiting further from the top 6 teams and very much into the middle pack.
Just my opinion on things!

Well that was just two bang average teams going through the motions.
The apathy on the pitch has been reflected in the Matchday Jamboree feed getting one page of comments. My frustration with the game was primarily the inconsistency of the team and the application of poor coaching decisions. That’s why I didn’t comment during the game. Why was Tunnicliffe substituted? Was it because of his tirade against team mates for poor passing?
I didn’t renew my membership this year (member since 2008/9) because of the apathy shown by the club in the the recruitment market. I understand what the club are trying achieve but they really are pushing loyalty too far. This season’s attendances at Coopers have outstripped all expectations. The Club is in a good financial position. But I can see fans drifting away when good players aren’t replaced with similar quality. Especially as the conveyor belt of offloading young talent is in full swing.
I can see this season stagnating, so onto 2024/25.
The team needs to offload Javi, Isiais and Hiro through retirement. Kitto, Halloran, Tunnicliffe need to go because they have nothing special to offer. Nestor’s off and probably quickly followed by Gauchi. So we’re left with Delianov, Bovalina, Van derSaag, Warland, Carvhallo, Barnett, Yull, Musa Toure, Duzell and Jovanovic and Madahna plus NPL quality filler. The Club need to get the chequebook out sooner rather than later as the above players will not make a championship team. If CCM can consistently find quality players with less cash than anybody else, why can’t United?
Rant over