A whole lot of nothing: Manchester United's 2018/2019 season.

I’ve written before about a cavalry coming over the hills to save Manchester United. Sadly, whatever kind of cavalry there was, was snuffed out in a similar way to a horseback charge in a recent Game of Thrones episode.

And like those torches, this season, which quickly turned into a endless dark abyss, was turned around for a brief moments of hope, before once again, poor planning and poor-to-embarrassing performances led to the season being snuffed out.

Now, let’s move on from the Game of Thrones comparisons and get on with what I’m here to do. Look at what went wrong and then put forward a solution or plan for the coming season. While, you may disagree with a lot of what I’m saying, it’s still probably more thought out than the clubs current plan of stumbling around in the darkness worrying more about how much money you’ve got in your wallet, than the giant stomping its way towards you.

The year that was:

The season was very much like a gluten-free sandwich. An interesting and exciting middle, stuck in between two large pieces of something so bland and uninspiring that you just want it over with. Bar the brief period between mid-December and mid-March, when United offered up entertaining performances and an unbeaten run, with the result in Paris proving to be the undeniable highlight of the season. But apart from that, all we were treated to was slow, pedestrian football, that proved to be toothless and easy to counter. This, combined with lazy performances, player tantrums and shambolic displays will be how this season is remembered.

What this season showed, especially during the tougher times, was that a lot of these players struggle to adapt and look to others to get them out of the hole that they have dug for themselves by rolling over and letting the opposition dominate the game. Simply put, they seem to lack any level of mental strength.

Tactically, the team has played very narrowly in the oppositions half. This is a common issue with inverted wingers and fullbacks not getting forward enough in support. Our play was funnelled through the middle, creating bottle necks where the opposition could easily manage our attacks. Then, when the team did use the wings, it was nearly always down the left side, which would create a significant imbalance in the team. This was no doubt due to Pogba favouring that side, but also because Martial, Rashford and Lingard would invariably drift to that side, leaving the right side ineffective offensively and exposed defensively. Mourinho did try and rectify this, with his interest in Ivan Perisic during the summer of 2018, but was knocked back by the club hierachy. Perisic would have offered a hard working wideman, comfortable on the right which would have brought much needed balance to the team.

Next Season:

Next season, needs to be approached with a set of achievable targets and realise the level where we currently are. We are not going to challenge for the Premier League, we have slipped so far, that now, top 4 is what we are aiming for and quite frankly, what we should be aiming for. This will likely affect the level of players will come to us.

The team needs to get back to a consistent performance level, with the League being the priority. Our squad isn’t head and shoulders above the majority of the other teams in the Europa League like it was when we won it back in 2017, so getting back into the Champions League via the Europa League, isn’t as sure a thing as it was back then.

But the biggest target/goal that the management team need to hit, is to improve the mental strength of the team and stop them downing tools or not even turning up to games. This, above all else, would significantly improve the chances of the team outworking the opposition and maybe just, possibly, get back to winning games.

Tactics:

Last season, I’m pretty sure that we saw United employ most of the commonly used formations. It was the early diamond formation (4-1-2-1-2) formation that got Solskjaer the most success. However, going forward, I don’t think that this is the formation that best suits the team. Because, as previously mentioned, it funnels the team into the middle of the pitch and puts a large amount of emphasis on the fullbacks providing all of the width, which often ends with the front four or five players, at least this season, being easily marked.

Relying on width from your defenders, could work, but it would be better suited by deploying a back three (3-5-2) and relieving some of the defensive responsibility from the full/wing backs and pushing them forward more consistently, so that the opposition defence is stretched more often throughout the game, causing the oppositions midfield to drop deeper to compensate.

But this would rely on two clinical centre forwards being deployed, something that United don’t have in the first team at the moment.

The formation I suspect we will see next year is a 4-3-3, due to both it’s offensive and defensive flexibility and it’s ability to stretch teams, when wingers keep their width and are supported by energetic full backs. But also, it offers enough bodies in midfield to both control the game and get forward in support of the lone centre forward.

Recruitment:

Now, the area that year after year spawns endless twitter posts and articles. The transfer activity of Manchester United.

We’ll start with the departures, as of writing Herrera and Valencia have confirmed they are leaving. It looks as though Juan Mata and Matteo Darmian will leave when there contracts expire in the summer.

As for who should be sold, there could be any number of parameters applied to this squad . But quite simply, we’ve got to the stage where it comes down to whether or not a player is capable of performing at the level required.

By category:

Goalkeepers: No departures.

Defenders: Smalling, Jones, Young and Rojo.

Midfielders: Matic and Lingard.

Attackers: Sanchez, Lukaku and one of Martial or Rashford on loan.

So yeah, a lot of the first team could be gotten rid of and I don’t think that there are many who could complain. There are some that could have ended up on this list, but didn’t get enough game time. Also, all players out on loan have been kept.

While not all of these players could be replaced externally as the cost would be prohibitive, especially as a number of players who could have generated a fee if sold, had their contract not been allowed to run down and leave for nothing, there are still enough players from the u23’s who could move up and  take the place of those that aren’t.

Positions:

Centre Back:

Lindelof has established himself as the one centre back who is capable of playing in this team, able to defend and also play, or carry the ball forward. So, one of the first additions must be someone to partner him. With Tuanzebe coming back off a successful season, an experienced addition is needed so that long term Tuanzebe can transition into being a first team player. So long as he continues to develop.

While there are a number of options out there, the player who I would go for is Toby Alderweireld. He was linked with United last year, but went nowhere due to disagreements between Mourinho and Woodward allegedly. At 30 years of age, he would hopefully be able to come and establish a dependable relationship with Lindelof, whilst also bringing some much needed experience in the short term.

Right Back:

Right back has long been an issue for the club, with makeshift solutions deployed from as long ago as Louis Van Gaal’s second season. While Diogo Dalot was bought for the future, he has struggled to feature and is much better going forward than he is defending, opening up once again the need for someone who can come in with some experience and ability, who will take the burden off Dalot so that he can develop over the next season or two.

So once again, I’d go Belgian, this time Thomas Meunier of PSG as a first choice, a versatile right back as capable going forward as he is defending. He’d also bring in title winning experience, something that has largely been lost from this current squad.

Midfielder:

The midfield and the recruitment needed there could get very complicated, depending on whether Paul Pogba stays. I for one, want him to stay and to have a team of players that are closer to his level built around him. Not for him, but around him. So, if we stays I’ll outline one option and if he stays, I’ll outline a second option, but both of these options will feel the effect of not being in the Champions League next year.

Both of these options rely on Fred playing as the most defensively minded of the three midfielders.

Pogba stays. We shouldn’t be buying midielders who compliment him, we should be buying great players who are dangerous and effective in their own right. Which is why I’d go for Ivan Rakitic, with the signing of De Jong and the emergence of Arthur, he may actually be available. He’s a complete midfielder who is comfortable on the ball, can help to dictate tempo and covers a lot of ground. He was on a lot of United wishlist’s when he was at Sevilla, but wisely chose Barcelona and went on to win a host of league titles and cups. If he would step down, and it is a step down, to United is another thing.

If Pogba goes you need to bring in two imposing midfielders who can get up and down the pitch, control the game and score. Easier said than done. So, if he goes, the one plus would that you’d probably get a fair bit of money for Pogba, which should be reinvested into the squad and Pogba’s direct replacement. So, hopefully, we’d have Rakitic as one of the two further forward midfielders, in a role similar to the one he currently occupies at Barcelona and then alongside him, I’d hope on bringing in Thiago Alcantara from Bayern, he’s the one midfielder I’d happily chuck silly amounts of money at in an utterly desperate plea to get him here. He is world class and in his prime, which makes it unlikely, probably the most unlikely of all the options I’ll put forward.

But Thiago would bring something we have needed for years, a midfielder who can dictate the pace of a game and can play the killer pass and open up a deep and well organized defence and again, would bring a winning attitude and experience of playing in high pressure games and being mentally capable of coping with them.

Wingers:

Wingers. Proper Wingers, who can go either side and can cross the ball and score are a dying art. The majority of teams play with inverted wingers, usually quick forwards who weren’t good enough to cut it through the middle. So, all that, plus being happy not to play in the Champions League for a year (hopefully), means we aren’t looking for much at all.

We’ve been linked with Jadon Sancho, but that currently looks like an expensive pipedream with us having no Champions League football to offer.. Alternatively, there is the Bayern Munich pair of Douglas Costa and Kingsley Coman, but with them going through a rebuild as well, it could be hard to pry them away.

So, if I’m going to go for someone for the right wing it would be Kingsley Coman, the big snag is that he’s at Bayern and could be difficult to pry away as he undoubtedly has the potential to become a real world beater. Capable of playing on both wings and beating players at will.

In the likely event of not being to able to get Coman, I’d go for another player who plays his trade in the Bundesliga, Julian Brandt of Bayer Leverkusen.

On the left wing, I’d go for a natural left footer, once again from the Bundesliga, in Bayer Leverkusen’s Leon Bailey. Quick and able to cross, like the hopeful arrival of Coman (or Brandt) on the other side, he’d be able to stretch the defence both in terms of width and pace, freeing up more space centrally for the midfield to work.

The ideal for the left wing would be Ousmane Dembele of Barcelona, but unless they suddenly need to raise a ton of cash to fund the De Jong transfer as well as potentially ones for Greizmann and De Ligt, that transfer would be nigh on impossible.

Centre Forward:

Another player who was linked with United previously, a few years ago during the summer of 2017, when we were reportedly “interested” in three different forwards and ended up signing Romelu Lukaku. But this summer, I’d bring in Andrea Belotti, still of Torino, who are on course to finish around the same place in Serie A as we have in the Premier League. He’s suffered some minor injuries which have limited his game time. But in the last two seasons, playing in a team that isn’t as stacked with talent, Belotti scored 30 in 72, whereas Lukaku scored 28 in 69 (I’ve only counted league and domestic cup competitions to make it as equal as possible).

Belotti may not be in highest level of centre forwards like Lewandowski, Suarez, Aguero or Kane, but he is a forward who is comfortable in the box and can score all kinds of goals. Something we quite honestly, don’t have.

What this would hopefully set up is a team comfortable on the ball and also uses the full width of the pitch to stretch the opposition, allowing for spaces in key areas. Whether the club adequately backs Solskjaer is a completely different matter. They have been known to balk at investing in players that they don’t feel are worth it, even though they have repeatedly shown a significant lack of football.

The time for a cavalry charge has long passed. What we need now is a whole new army.

The Best Films of 2018

It's that time of year, months after everyone else, when I take up two minutes of your time to tell you what were the best seven films of the past year.

Here goes.

7. Black Panther

Writer: Ryan Coogler and Joe Robert Cole

Director: Ryan Coogler

6. First Reformed

Writer: Paul Schrader

Director: Paul Schrader

5. Leave No Trace

Writer: Debra Granik and Anne Rosellini.

Director: Debra Granik

4. Annihilation

Writer: Alex Garland

Director: Alex Garland

3. Cold War

Writer: Pawel Pawlikowski (story and screenplay), Janus Glowacki (screenplay) and Pitor Borkowski (screenplay)

Director: Pawel Pawlikowski

2. Blindspotting

Writer: Rafael Casal and Daveed Diggs

Director: Carlos Lopez Estrada

            

1. Destroyer

Writer: Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi

Director: Karyn Kusama

The Best Films of 2017

It’s that time of the year, where I belatedly weigh in on the films that everyone has long ago ranked and moved on from. Like last year, no comments, just the title, writer and director so you can go in as cold as possible.

Enjoy.

7. The Death of Stalin

Writer: Armando Iannucci (written by), David Schneider (written by), Ian Martin (written by), Fabien Nury & Thierry Robin (comic book)

Director: Armando Iannucci

6. IT

Writer: Chase Palmer (screenplay), Cary Fukunaga (screenplay), Gary Dauberman (screenplay) and Stephen King (novel)

Director: Andy Muschietti

5. Call Me By Your Name

Writer: James Ivory (screenplay), Andre Aciman (novel)

Director: Luca Guadagnino

4. City of Ghosts

Director: Matthew Heineman

3. Get Out

Writer: Jordan Peele

Director: Jordan Peele

2. Dunkirk

Writer: Christopher Nolan

Director: Christopher Nolan

1. Blade Runner 2049

Writer: Hampton Fancher (story & screenplay), Michael Green (screenplay) and Philip K Dick (character from original novel)

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Guilty by Association: A case for Man of Steel

With the release of Wonder Woman, the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) has finally delivered its first great film, rightly receiving both critical praise and (at this early stage) serious commercial success, which will hopefully result in at least one sequel. Wonder Woman proved to be the perfect answer to the missteps of both Batman V Superman and Suicide Squad and will hopefully guide the DCEU going forward.

There have been four DCEU films so far. Wonder Woman; an undoubted home run and one of the best comic book films out there. Batman V Superman; a trilogy of films condensed into a tonally chaotic mess that has Batman using guns. Suicide Squad; the lesser of 2016’s two evils and Man of Steel; the film you don’t remember correctly.

But don’t worry, you are not alone.

“Man of Steel is a bumpy ride for sure. But there's no way to stay blind to its wonders.” Peter Travers – Rolling Stone

Because quite simply, Man of Steel is nowhere near as bad as you think it is, if anything, it is guilty by association. Which is being associated with Batman V Superman. It may not belong among the genres greats, but does not deserve the derision it receives.

Before we get to the negative, lets talk about the positive and the parts of the film that worked unequivocally, as the later far outweighs the former.

Krypton. Oh, how that sequence just works, yes there are few strange zoom shots of Jor-El flying a giant dragon/butterfly creature, but other than that, it just gets it right. The film treats Krypton seriously and instantly introduces the smaller character stakes (Jor-El trying to save his son) and the bigger, world stakes (Jor-El trying to save his planet) and continues to ramp them up, right until the final shot. Russell Crowe and Michael Shannon bring their characters to life in such interesting ways that they instil their relationship and the world with so much history, that when he catch up with them later, interacting with Superman, it feels like a direct continuation of Kryptons final moments.

“The casting is impeccable, beginning with Cavill as an uncommonly brooding but refreshingly deep Superman. The script doesn't give him much to say, but it doesn't need to.”  Peter Howell – Toronto Star

While I’ve touched on Crowe and Shannon and what they brought to the film, it’s hard to find a cast member who didn’t deliver in Man of Steel. Like Batman Begins and Superman: The Movie, all of the roles are filed with top level actors and they all bring an immediate history to their roles, especially Kevin Costner, who draws on similar fatherly characters he has played in the past, but brings in a confusion and doubt that we rarely in him as he struggles to come to terms with keeping his son safe, but also helping him become the man he could be.

“[Cavill is] a superb choice for someone who needs to convincingly convey innate modesty, occasional confusion and eventual strength.” Kenneth Turan – LA Times

Henry Cavill takes over the iconic suit, but is the first person since Christopher Reeve to play the character on screen in a different way. This Superman isn’t instantly sure of himself and has doubts over who he is and what he can be. Cavill plays it with frustrated restraint of someone who knows physically what he can do, but knows that he has to keep it secret even though he can’t help but help the people he comes across. Its only when we see him in the suit that he begins to see the man both his fathers hoped he would become, a man sure in his beliefs and someone who wants to do good.

“David S. Goyer's screenplay benefits from Goyer's ambitious script structure, a thing of interwoven flashbacks and memory-triggered leaps into Superman's past.” Michael Phillips – Chicago Tribune

Like the best origin films, it focuses on its central character and keeps the plot under control and Man of Steel does that. After the Kryptonian prologue, the first half of the film follows Clark/Kal-El through the years, much like Batman Begins did with Bruve Wayne, from painful formative moments in childhood, to later points in time closer to he will become where the character discovers important information about himself that inform who he is (The Kryptonian ship in Man of Steel and the League of Shadows training in Batman Begins). The second half then focuses on the threat from Zod and his army as we finally get to see the hero cut loose, for good or bad and discover what he is capable of.

“There’s very little humor or joy in this Superman story.”  Richard Roeper – Chicago Sun Times

The central criticisms that were raised against Man of Steel from its release up to know were, the level and depiction of the destruction during the finale and how Superman didn’t save as many people as he should have and the lack of fun and joy in a story about a character who traditionally has belonged on the brighter side of hero spectrum.

“The crowd at a "Man of Steel" preview the other night exited the theater not excited, not chatty, but quiet, vaguely shellshocked. Was it the ridiculously loud volume levels? Or the pounding inflicted by the most protracted action sequences? Or both?” Michael Phillips – Chicago Tribune

The criticism of the finale is one I can understand as Zack Synder approached the battle between Superman and Zod in a “realistic” way. Buildings collapsed, people died and everything was coated in a ghostly concrete dust, no doubt calling on images and memories from 9/11 and warzones around the globe. For some this imagery could be too much and while it wasn’t upsetting for myself, it would be stupid and cold-hearted to not see that some people could be affected by it. It was no doubt intended, but was it intended to deliberately offend and upset? No. It stayed true to the tone of the world and the story it took place in.

Let’s not forget that the final confrontation is two near-invincible beings knocking twelve bells out of each other in the middle of a densely populated city, where one of the near-invincible beings has made it clear that he is going to kill a lot of innocent people, making them suffer along the way, unless the other near-invincible being stops him. Zod, by this point has lost everything, has nothing to lose and wants to punish Superman as much as he can by hurting the people he has adopted as his own, choosing them over the Kryptonian people. 

Superman is left in a no win situation, no doubt deliberately engineered by Zod, he can either save the people from crumbling remains of Metropolis after the failed terraforming, or go after Zod, the tangible, immediate threat. Unsurprisingly, Superman Zod, without much attention given to the people of Metropolis. While this isn’t a complete misstep, it was a missed opportunity to show off Superman’s full potential. But the fight shows us that this is all new to him, where an when an experienced Superman would have acted differently. The moment that stands out the most for me is the fuel truck that he easily floats over, allowing it to crash into a building. It would have taken nothing for Superman to stop it, but he chooses to avoid it, focusing on himself and Zod, causing needless destruction and putting lives at risk. Even an inexperienced Superman wouldn’t have made this decision, in this moment, he is angry and wants to stop Zod and it would have, at least to me, felt more natural for him to use it as a weapon. But also, this is only second real fight Superman has been in and it is against a much smarter tactician in Zod. Superman making mistakes and learning from them was something that we would have seen looked at and explored in a sequel I’m sure. If we had gotten one that is.

Timing didn’t help this style of finale, a year earlier The Avengers had used a very similar style of climax, where the number of civilian casualties is meant to be dramatically lower, there are several scenes that show The Avengers saving civilians from the alien invaders. I don’t remember seeing any innocents being hurt, never mind killed during The Avengers finale, but in Man of Steel there is undeniably a high body count as the gods do battle in the skies above. I’m not arguing for against either one, both of them fit the tone of the story that has come before and feels like a natural progression and culmination of those stories.

As I mentioned before and what was an important thematic element for the film is that Superman is till coming to terms with who he is and understanding what he is truly capable of. From his discovery of the Kryptonian ship through to the end of the battle in Metropolis, a matter of days pass and while he has tested his powers, he has never been tested on a scale anywhere near what he experiences in the second half of Man of Steel.

Putting the timescale into perspective, within days of finally discovering who you are, an army of your own people turn up and threaten the planet and people that have taken you in and where you have made your choice. Every question you ever wanted to ask to better understand yourself could be answered. Also, there are moments of joy and fun and upbeat, they are just used moderately, in keeping with the tone of the story. Clark learning to fly as his father talks to him (also one of the greatest Superman moments in a film), is a scene steeped in it. Then final scenes where Clark tells Martha that he knows what he is going to do with his life and where we, the audience finally get the feeling that Clark knows who he is and where he belongs.

But in between those moments, is a man trying to come to terms with what he is and who he is, while the fate of the world depends upon the decisions he makes. Realistically, not a situation conducive to a story over flowing with joyful moments, it is a story of inner struggle (and yes, “Gods” knocking each other about) and self-discovery.

I won’t be so blind as to say that nothing could have been done differently or changed for the better, there are few that I regularly think of when Man of Steel pops into my head. I’d have liked to have seen the Superman and Lois scene in the interrogation room go on longer, the hand held style at points didn’t work for me, although that isn’t specific to Man of Steel, it is just a style that I find is very hard to make work. Although it did give Man of Steel a visual style that sets it apart from the rest of the genre. Finally, the finally, for me would have been stronger, if it was a bit shorter, but also if there was more of Henry Cavill and Michael Shannon fighting practically during the finale. I realise with these characters, some aspects just couldn’t have been done, but for me the best parts of the fight is when we get up close and personal with Zod and Superman (like the construction site and the train station).

I’ll drop into spoiler territory for this paragraph. But the way that Superman stops the fight came in for a bit flack, although that was mainly from people arguing “Superman would never kill”, or “Superman wouldn’t do that”. But this is a new Superman in a new world and the threat that he and humanity face is unique, spectacularly aggressive and near unstoppable. The prior battle has shown us what destruction Zod can and will cause and faced with the situation at the end, between Zod and innocents. Superman makes the only choice he could. Zod knew what he was doing, he created the situation, Superman was running out of time and options and made the choice he felt he had to.

Where the character would have gone after he comes to terms with effectively killed off the last his species was a great weight, thread to explore and dive in to in the next film. But it never truly found out the effect this had on Superman and that is perhaps the true cost of getting Batman V Superman, for all the early hype and people exalting that we would finally see the two greatest superheroes meet and fight on the big screen, was that we were denied a true sequel to Man of Steel. 

While Batman V Superman may have touched on, or used part of these questions or ideas in its film, that was such a wide array of directions they could go in and consequences and developments that could be explored. The ones that were used, but all to sparingly or prematurely dropped was the Senate/House hearings, the developing relationship between Lois and Clark and the world in general adjusting to having a god amongst them. But also, they could looked at the potential religious angle to Superman appearing and the forming of a church or belief structure devoted to him, how world leaders and politicians would respond to a powerful force they can’t control. Hopefully, one day we will get a sequel that puts Superman front and centre again, it may be the upcoming Justice League, but I’m not holding out much hope.

Superman, also wasn’t a financial failure, it made around $668m worldwide, which isn’t bad for a reboot of a character that needed  bringing into the modern world. Batman Begins by comparison made $374m and Iron Man $585m, although they both received more critical praise than Man of Steel, $668m surely shouldn’t have been that bad of a performance to cause Warner Bros. to panic and press the Batman button.

Ultimately, what we got from Batman V Superman was a trilogy of films (Man of Steel 2, a rebooted Batman film and then a Batman/Superman film) which has kneecapped the Man of Steel series and gave us a portrayal of Batman that was closer to The Punisher than Batman. Although, it did give us Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman and that is something to be truly thankful for.

Hopefully, the Wonder Woman team will be given the time, patience and support that The Dark Knight team were given and allowed to make at least one more film that focuses on Diana and her world, it’s rich enough and unique enough to do that, without trying to jam in any other Justice League characters.

So go and see Wonder Woman, if you’ve seen it already, go see it again and let the people in charge know that we want another Wonder Woman film that puts her front and centre. Then, go and watch Man of Steel again. You’ll be surprised.

The Best Films of 2016

From now on, I'll be keeping it short. I probably don't do the films any favours by trying to describe in a paragraph. In what ultimately comes down to me telling you how good they are. 

Just go and see them.

7. Hell of High Water

Writer: Taylor Sheridan

Director: David Mackenzie

6. Midnight Special

Writer/Director: Jeff Nicholls

5. Hunt for the Wilderpeople

Writer: Taika Waitit, Te Arepa Kahi and Barry Crump (novel)

Director: Taika Waititi

4. Suburra

Writer: Giancarlo De Calato, Carlo Bonini, Sandro Petraglia and Stefano Rulli

Director: Stefano Solima

3. Moonlight
Writer: Barry Jenkins (screenplay) and Tarell Alvin McCraney (story)
Director: Barry Jenkins

2. Tower

Director: Keith Maitland

1. A War

Writer/Director: Tobias Lindholm



Note. Originally, Moana occupied the seventh spot. However, this was before I'd managed to catch up with some of that years award season films. 

Another (expensive) cavalry charge

The season is over. The Dutchman has gone; the man from Portugal is in. There’s another trophy in the cabinet and (most) of the contract problems are being resolved quickly and positively. But now that the inevitable as happened, there are just as many questions for Manchester United fans now, as there were two or three weeks ago. There just seems to be a feeling of optimism around the club, one that has been absent for the past few years.

For me, Mourinho is going to be judged on his transfer dealings and his style of play. Trophies will come; they invariably do wherever he has managed. I just can’t stand to sit through another season of the team playing as quickly as continents drift, or hopefully knocking in 80+ crosses.

Give most Man Utd fans a list of positions that need addressing and it will probably be the following that pop up, albeit in a different order of priority. Centre back, right winger, centre forward and a central midfielder. That’s the order in which I’d focus the clubs attention this transfer window.

So, in the spirit of transfer window bullshit and “sport journalists” making up rumours for page views, I’ve put together a few suggestions for how I’d attack the window.

Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo have both tried and failed to nail down a spot in the centre of defence, so much so that Daley Blind, a defensive midfielder converted into a centre back, not without some success, if we are being fair, by Louis Van Gaal, replaced them. But they both need moving on and a new, specialist centre back brought into partner Chris Smalling. Yes, we have already bought Eric Bailly, but I still think we will need a top centre back to come and tighten up the defence immediately.

First up is Athletic Bilbao’s Aymeric Laporte. Despite a season ending injury, that has ruled him out of the European Championships, he is still a man in high demand due to his recovery (apparently) going much quicker than was first believed. Laporte is a true defender, the kind that the back four Van Gaal started to build, but never managed to finish. Darmian, Smalling and Shaw were the pieces are three quarters of United’s next great back four. If United are able to bring Laporte in and are willing to be patient, then we could see the start of a great defensive unit.

Also, he is a Jorge Mendes man. Which will certainly help United’s chances if Mourinho wants him in.

Raphael Varane could, theoretically be a Manchester United player, but Phil Jones was signed and Varane moves to Real Madrid, where he has been criminally placed behind Sergio Ramos and Pepe in the last few years. Varane had a great World Cup in Brazil, where he really announced himself on the world stage, coming across as a young Rio Ferdinand with his reading of the game and being very comfortable on the ball.

Of the two, I’d lean towards Varane, yes it is a bit of a gamble with regards to his injury, although it isn’t as serious as Laportes, but he just seems to be someone who bring that balance to this back four (five with David De Gea) for the next five years, by being comfortable on the ball and commanding both on the ground and in the air.

Juan Mata and Jesse Lingard have done well to fill a void that was blatantly obvious from the start of the season. Both offered different aspects of what is needed from a wide man, but neither one is the complete package. Lingard offers the speed and defensive responsibility, while Mata offers the creativity and superior finishing.

The first option I’ll put forward is Marco Reus, the man we enquired about back in the summer of 2015, but decided against starting negotiations for 60m, looking back at the season he had and the difference he could have made. Basically, making it into the Champions League, that figure, which may have gone down just as easily as it could have gone up, looks like an absolute steal, even with his injury troubles.

Reus, who is capable of playing wide right, wide left, behind the main striker and even up top, is a player whose core skills and strengths were those that were so sorely missed in countless games for United last year. Especially when most attacks came down the left, through Anthony Martial, Reus would have offered a similar level of threat and increased out attacking options, stretching the defence both with his movement with the ball and without it. Also, his ability from dead balls would have probably seen fewer opportunities wasted, as they were with Memphis and Wayne Rooney.

Riyad Mahrez has just had the best season of his entire career with Leicester City and while he has stated he is happy to stay at the club, no one would bat an eyelid if he left for a more traditional “big team”. If he came to United, he’d offer the right side something it has been sorely lacking, someone unafraid to take on their man and drive the team forward. He is also one of the few wingers in the league at the moment that is just as effective on the right side as he is the left side. He would also add a natural balance to Martial, who comes inside from the left, where Mahrez would come in onto his stronger left foot from the right.

While it’s a close one, I’m going to go for Reus. Yes, there is the always the injury fear, but is seems to me that too often he has played before he fully recovered from an injury and as a result has then spent more time recovering from a recurrence of that injury. But he has the experience of playing at the highest level and has also been a consistent performer for Dortmund for the last four years and is that consistency which tips the scales in his favour.

Louis Van Gaal cut too quickly in the centre forward position during the summer, didn’t bring anyone in and then finally claimed that Fellaini could play there. No he can’t and he never did. Luckily Marcus Rashford took the opportunity that fell his way and isn’t letting go. He finished the season as the first choice no.9, but with Mourinho in charge, it’s unlikely he will start every game, or be expected to shoulder so much of the goal scoring burden (most likely along with Martial).

This is the only position I won’t put forward two options as in the last few days, there have been so many stories linking Zlatan Ibrahimovic to United, none of which have been denied, that it just seems nailed on to be a done. All they have to do is wait for June to end, Zlatan and his agent to pocket a loyalty bonus from PSG and then he’ll (more than likely) sign with United.

Zlatan works for numerous reasons, firstly, he is undoubtedly a world-class player who will inspire those around him to rise a level or two and really push themselves. Secondly, his style of play has never been based around speed; it has always been about reading the game and being good in relatively small spaces. Finally, he’s 34, which means the maximum amount of seasons we are going to get out of him is two, which works out well for Rashford and Martial, who will be roughly 20 and 22 by that point and will have played nearly three seasons of Premier League football each, so they’ll be fully used to demands of the league and ready to take all of the pressure that will be lumped onto them.

Central Midfield was for about five years a position Manchester United needed to invest in, but never did. It was seven years between signing Ander Herrera in 2014 and Owen Hargreaves and Anderson in 2007. For any club not to invest in one area of the team for so long was criminal. There is however, one giant elephant in the room, one that would have negated a lot of the frustration about United’s midfield. Paul Pogba and how United lost one of the best box-to-box midfielders of a generation.

Let’s start with Paul Pogba, because the stories and reports are everywhere and most of Europe’s elite would take him in a heartbeat. In the years he has been at Juventus, he has learnt under some of the modern games best midfielders and been able to grow into one of the best in the game at the moment and at such a young age, any club would pretty solve most of their midfield problems for the next seven to ten years.

Anyone who has watched either Sevilla or Poland recently will recognise just how much of a beast Grzegorz Krychowiak is, he is the legs and power in their midfield and isn’t afraid to break forward and unleash a bullet of a shot from distance. At twenty-six, he’s only going to get better and is unlikely, given his size, pace and power, to affected by the increased physicality in the Premier League.

Leon Goretzka is another box to box midfielder and someone who could, if he develops over the next two or three years, could be come one of the best in Europe. His physicality would prove he would have no trouble adapting to the Premier League, although the difference in that side of the game isn’t that big and he is technically very good, so would have no trouble dealing with the, at times manic nature of midfield battles in the Premier League, where time is at a premium and every second on the ball is fought for.

While the popular vote would undoubtedly be for Pogba, I am inclined to pick Krychowiak, not just because he has attributes that would suit the Premier League, but I also see him forming a solid, strong and very mobile understanding with Morgan Schneiderlin and Ander Herrera, a combination that could be a part of the first team for the next five or six years.

Now, I’ll drop a quick list of how I hope we’d line up, with these signings brought in.

GK – David De Gea

DR – Matteo Darmian

DL – Luke Shaw

DC – Chris Smalling

DC – Raphael Varane

DM – Morgan Schneiderlin

CM – Ander Herrera

CM – Grzegorz Krychowiak

RW – Marco Reus

LW – Anthony Martial

ST – Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Yeah, I know there’s no Wayne Rooney or Marcus Rashford in this team. Rooney, I’m sorry, but I don’t see how he fits in anywhere now, nor if he plays is he the best player in that position the club have. Rashford would rotate in and out with the other front three named here.

I’m not going to go into who should be sold or released, instead we’ll move onto the most important thing for Mourinho or any manager. The style of play. Moyes, if we are being totally honest, never produced the turgid, treacle pouring out of a tin style of football that Van Gaal did. It was the more results that did for Moyes, whereas with Van Gaal, the football was terrible and downright frustrating to watch.

One of the key aspects Mourinho has to improve upon is the speed in which the ball is moved from the back to the front, at times it was as if the players were scared to go route one. I’m no advocate of constantly knocking it long and hoping for the best, but if you bypass your midfield and the oppositions quickly and get the ball to Martial or Rashford, then you dramatically increase your chances of scoring. Martial one on one with most full backs is going to be successful more often than not.

After that, we need to bring back a balance to how we attack, side to side, patient probing may work some of the time, but you have to let both your wingers (a problem that needs solving) be free to attack their full back again and again.

Most teams now are well drilled in how they defend against us. Compact and keep the ball in front of them, this was because we never ran at our men, with the exception of Martial obviously, but attacking one side with one winger and no real overlap will only offer so much success.

Basically, every United fan and I just want to see our team have a go at teams for the whole game, not just the first fifteen minutes then give up and run out of ideas. Old Trafford used to be a ground where teams would turn up and already have lost in their minds, now they turn up with a genuine belief they’re going to win. This idea is one that needs to be remedied and the status quo reinstated quickly.

The Best Films of 2015

The Stuies 2015

Late as usual with my best of the year, but with a limited choice of cinemas (that’s this little part of North Yorkshire for you) and having a toddler, yet again I’ve had to wait to catch a few films on Blu-Ray, DVD or online.

As usual, it covers releases pretty much from Oscar ceremony to Oscar ceremony, but because of home video release schedule, I don’t get around to watching some till later and this year, there were some great films I had to wait till late March to catch up with.

So here, goes, my top 7 films of 2015.

7. White God

Simplified as like Rise of Planet of the Apes but with Dogs, this films show a remarkable restraint and maturity in showing animal abuse and using it as a metaphor for the all things we as species have created, not fully understood and then unleashed on the world with out a thought of care for the responsibility we have. The lead dogs, give better performances than a lot of the leading human performances this year, yes anthropomorphising helps us relate to the dogs that little bit more, but these dogs manage to say as much with the tilt of their head as some actors do with a convoluted monologue.

Essentially, this film shows just how much of a sad, horrible and shitty species we are, by showing us just how badly we treat each other and the world around us.

Director: Kornel Mundruczo

Writer: Kornel Mundruczo, Viktoria Petranyl and Kata Weber

6. Winters Sleep

I’ll preface this selection with this. I know this premiered at last years Cannes, but I never saw it in theatres, hence its inclusion here. That and for a film that is essentially, three hours of conversations between people in a remote Turkish town,  is completely gripping. On the Blu-Ray cover, the film refers to “series of magnificent set pieces”, these aren’t action based sequences, or anything close to it. They are, as previously mentioned, long discussions/conversations/arguments, but brilliantly written, framed and acted and are more exhilarating than most action sequences anyway.

This films digs into the variety of relationships we have in our lives and how they control us and affect how we live. It tackles the repetitiveness and stages of marriage from the initial excitement, to the jaded caring we have for the other person no matter what, the need to protect and keep our family close even if they drive us crazy at times, these are just some of the great things Winters Sleep does.

Not afraid of a long shot, take or scene, Ceylan is confident enough in the material and the skill of his crew and actors to let the moments breath and give them time to bring the film and their darkly comic existences to life. Another gem from a true contemporary master of cinema, just don’t be put off by the run time and you’re in for a great experience.

Director: Nuri Bilge Ceylan

Writer: Nuri Bilge Ceylan and Ebru Ceylan

5. What We Do In The Shadows

Another film about vampires, werewolves and zombies, just what we need right? Well in the case of Shadows, yeah it is. This film brilliantly satirises everything about the modern interpretations of the characters, whilst almost paying homage to the classics. Peter is a great nod to Nosferatu. While a lot of comedies often set up the big laughs or physical moments, Shadows works towards being funny with every moment, even the serious ones are drenched in it’s bizarre and self-aware sense of humour. I’m reluctant to go into any details about this, for fear of giving something away, as every scene is start to finish, hilarious and one of the best comedies of the last two or three decades.

Director: Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi

Writer: Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi

4. Sicario

One of the toughest and meanest films made since William Friedkins Sorcerer (seek it out by the way), Sicario is a film about the modern war on drugs along the US-Mexico border, where it highlights the idea of the US becoming just as ruthless and cruel as the cartels they are fighting. Kate (Blunt) is an FBI agent who volunteers for an inter-agency task force designed at combating the cartels, but soon it becomes clear that the US are up to things just as shady and morally opaque as their enemy.

The cinematography of Roger Deakins is an absolute wonder here, we are watching a true master at work. As far as I’m concerned, he was robbed (again) of the Oscar, no single shot this year has had the effect that “That Shot” has had on me. In case you’re unsure, it’s the one towards the end, as the team walk in the desert at sunset. It’s so good, that Sicario could have made it onto the list based on those ten seconds alone, but the rest of the film presents a mature and complicated look at a war that has been going on for decades now and shows no real sign of abating soon.

Director: Denis Villeneuve           

Writer: Taylor Sheridan

3. Carol

Mesmerizing. Beautiful. Two words that easily describe Carol, a story about two women in 1950’s New York, who after a chance meeting in a toy store, become close friends amid the overbearing and controlling efforts, or the attempted controlling efforts of the men in their lives. Plot wise, it’s relatively straight forward, but in the construction of the characters, it’s the polar opposite, vastly complex and fully realised, both the lead characters, Carol (Cate Blanchett) and Therese (Rooney Mara) are so vivid that it is a pleasure to spend time with them and watch as their relationship develops amid the constraints of the time.

Director: Todd Haynes

Writer: Phyllis Nagy (screenplay) and Patricia Highsmith (novel)

2. Inside Out

It’s the story of five emotions, inside an eleven-year-old girls head. With some film makers or studios, that could quite easily turn in to a complete disaster, but with Pixar, it becomes one of the best films of the year and probably one of the studios best films to date. Inside Out gives us everything we need to know about the world and how the emotions work in the first ten minutes that it really gets the film off to flying start. It’s use of colours for the different emotions and how it calls back on simultaneously vividly specific memories, but also general ones we can all remember or understand deeply invests us in Riley (the eleven year old) and care about what happens to her.

It took five years to make this film and it’s clear to see why, the level of detail, ideas and understanding of the mind and emotions on show here has made it into an important film for parents and people who work with children, as it breaks down ideas, often complex ones, into simple, entertaining ones that everyone can comprehend. The way the dream factory works and the idea and construction of the different personality islands are moments of joyful genius.

Director: Pete Docter and Ronnie Del Carmen (co-director)

Writer: Pete Docter (story and screenplay), Ronnie Del Carmen (story), Meg LeFauve (screenplay) and Josh Cooley (screenplay)

1.     Spotlight

Never have I left a cinema and been torn in two different directions at almost the exact same time. With Spotlight it was the joy and excitement of seeing one of the most accomplished films of the year, but also the blinding rage of the subject matter.

Tom McCarthy (also directing) and Josh Singer, expertly navigate a complex issue and time period, juggling various storylines, or lines of investigation, to really give us as much of this whole story as possible.

Easily the best journalist or newspaper film since All The Presidents Men, Spotlight is so engaging and entrancing because of the way it is told. McCarthy keeps the flashy directorial moments to a minimum, the only real one being a long tracking shot between two houses. I won’t spoil the reason for the walk, but it gives the investigation an even greater importance to one member of the Spotlight team. Instead, McCarthy gives the actors the space to bring the characters and the story to life.

It’s not the easiest subject matter, but Spotlight is quite easily the best film of 2015.

Director: Tom McCarthy

Writer: Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy