We seem to have stumbled across our best line up/formation

[Jim Smith 2,325]

Too late and it’s basically the one that has served us so well in the past.

discuss.

on the one hand gives optimism for next season. On the other suggests we’ve made an utter hash of this campaign departing from a formation that suits our players and not playing several of those who did well last season. Frustrating as I feel we are very close to being good enough and have probably shout ourselves in the foot. 

[Fiery Zac 1,066]

We came across our best formation with a fit and firing Idah supporting Pukki which took away responsibility from our very limited midfield. However that won't be a popular opinion as it isn't Farkeball.

In the championship today's formation could storm the league as it will create and mistakes won't go so easily punished. But, although it seems very short in supply, I credit Smith with doing what he could with a limited squad by playing to our basic strengths of Idahs pace and power, Rashicas pace and skill and feeding Pukki higher up the pitch (whilst doing our best to ignore the midfield altogether).

I agree we're not far short of being competitive in the league. A DM or two and a genuine Buendia replacement to create, and we'd give most teams a game. But replacing Skipp and Buendia was always going to be tough. Shame we didn't even really try though.

[Petriix 2,847]

I may have been a little vociferous about this in the past. We totally destroyed our season by ripping up the system and trying to play a 4-3-3.

People kept telling me that a) our previous system was too open for the Premier League - despite the way we'd adapted it to be more balanced; and b) our current players didn't have the ability to play this system.

I'll maintain until I'm blue in the face that we'd have comfortably survived if we'd just had the belief to stick with our philosophy (and never tried to accommodate Gilmour). Brentford did exactly that.

[Jim Smith 2,325]

14 minutes ago, Petriix said:

I may have been a little vociferous about this in the past. We totally destroyed our season by ripping up the system and trying to play a 4-3-3.

People kept telling me that a) our previous system was too open for the Premier League - despite the way we'd adapted it to be more balanced; and b) our current players didn't have the ability to play this system.

I'll maintain until I'm blue in the face that we'd have comfortably survived if we'd just had the belief to stick with our philosophy (and never tried to accommodate Gilmour). Brentford did exactly that.

I agree. Two proper holding mids in the 2 and a better CB than Gibson and we would have done much better in my view. 

[canarybubbles 1,924]

'Stumbled' is the word. Smith tried formation after formation (with the same players on the whole) and finally seemed to find one which worked in the Burnley game. I was delighted to see the unchanged team sheet before the game - I thought Smith had realised that he had struck lucky and was going to stick to the team who beat Burnley.

But then when it was necessary to make changes, Smith reverted to type - Gilmour and Placheta, two players who had failed on every occasion they had played for us (and there were many). Can anyone deny that this was the moment when the game swung in MU's favour?

We are going nowhere with Smith. He is mediocre at best.

[canarydan23 4,060]

It is somewhat annoying that plenty of fans were calling for this formation way before Christmas. Smith’s failure to even try it until now, despite trying all manner of other setups, has proved catastrophic. We're left wondering what might have been.

[Kingston Yellow 220]

55 minutes ago, canarybubbles said:

'Stumbled' is the word. Smith tried formation after formation (with the same players on the whole) and finally seemed to find one which worked in the Burnley game. I was delighted to see the unchanged team sheet before the game - I thought Smith had realised that he had struck lucky and was going to stick to the team who beat Burnley.

But then when it was necessary to make changes, Smith reverted to type - Gilmour and Placheta, two players who had failed on every occasion they had played for us (and there were many). Can anyone deny that this was the moment when the game swung in MU's favour?

We are going nowhere with Smith. He is mediocre at best.

It’s pretty obvious, Smith has been under pressure to play Gilmour. At least, I can only hope that I’m right on that. I simply can’t understand why he brought Gilmour on today. He is nowhere near the first 15 of a team scrapping at the foot of the league.

Edited April 16, 2022 by Kingston Yellow

[hogesar 9,705]

32 minutes ago, canarydan23 said:

It is somewhat annoying that plenty of fans were calling for this formation way before Christmas. Smith’s failure to even try it until now, despite trying all manner of other setups, has proved catastrophic. We're left wondering what might have been.

But Farke deviated away from it from the outset of this season, so it was clearly a club / recruitment team decision.

[canarybubbles 1,924]

10 minutes ago, hogesar said:

But Farke deviated away from it from the outset of this season, so it was clearly a club / recruitment team decision.

Yes he did, and personally I don't think he should have. But in the current set-up a Sporting Director outranks a coach.

[Christoph Stiepermann 1,138]

I honestly think that even if we found the right formation and combination of players from the start of the year the difference would be that we'd maybe have 5 more points and instead of being doomed would be in with a chance of staying up but we wouldn't be safe by any stretch. The idea that if we'd found the right team out of this lot of players would mean we'd be comfortably safe is not realistic imo, we might have 5 or 6 more points but it wouldn't have got us 30 plus points by now because even with a fair wind we're just not good enough in both boxes and our midfield is Championship standard no matter what combination of players we go with. 

To have made a big difference and gotten us to safety we'd have needed one attacking player in the Raphinia/Saint-Maximin class, two solid holding midfielders who can do that job well and hold onto the ball under pressure, one more CB who doesn't make mistakes to play alongside Hanley and a decent No.10 at least as good as Cantwell at his best in 19/20. If we had all that we would probably stay up but shuffling our current pack would never have been enough even accounting for injuries. 

Edited April 16, 2022 by Christoph Stiepermann

[Mason 47 1,388]

We actually played this formation with almost the same players (swapping Williams, Hanley and Aarons for Dimi, Omo and Byram) in our win away at Brentford. I thought at the time PLM made a big difference being closer to Pukki and Dowell looked good, if maybe lacking the speed.

I'll always have a nagging feeling in the back of my mind that someway, somehow we do have a side that could have done it this year.