----------------------VDS--------------------- Rafael-----Smalling-------Vidic-------Evra Fletcher----Carrick-------Scholes-----Nani -------------Berbatov-----Rooney------ Not ideal with Fletcher out wide, but our hand is forced with Valencia and Park out and Bebe and Obertan not up to the job. Not a fan of 433, especially against weaker opposition. Unfortunately, I've got a feeling that's what we'll go this afternoon, with Gibson in there somewhere.
I'd prefer to see Fabio given a run on the left if he's fit, with Nani on the right. But I have a feeling we'll see Giggs after he missed out against Marseille.
Its all well and good saying Bebe and Obertan are 'not up to the job' but they will not improve without regular first team football. Personally, I reserve judgement on both. I'm not going to judge their outings where the whole team has been rotated. They have both shown glimpses of potential but neither looks that confident yet - which is understandable. I've seen some of the youtube clips of Bebe and it reminds me of Anderson. Of course I bear in mind he is playing against lower grade opposition but he pops up in different areas of the pitch and displays strength and speed in abundance. His volleyed goal in the reserves also testifies to a player who has potential. When we signed Anderson we all saw the clips and thought we had signed a wildly skilful attacking midfielder - only to see him often deployed in a defensive midfield position. The player himself said that Fergie wanted to develop other areas of his game and i'm guessing that the same approach is being used on Bebe. Instead of letting him roam like he used to, his focus is now on positioning, tactical awareness and curbing his previous tendencies. I doubt he even speaks English and as such, it could take a few seasons before we see the best of Bebe.
Fletcher won't be able to stay on the wing, he'll see Carrick making awful mistakes and he's going to want to drift in. That leaves our right wing empty.
I mean - how long and how many games did it take the 'penny to drop' with Nani? I seem to recall many fans were ready to ship him out before he turned the corner. All he needed was one or two games to boost his confidence and a sustained run in the side without fear of being hauled off. Look at him now.
I reserve judgement on Bebe, cos I still don't think he's up to the physical fitness level needed to compete in the PL, but Obertan has been with us for over 18 months, played over 25 games, and showed very little potential or skill. He could get develop further, but I wouldn't be surprised if SAF runs out of patience with him...
Bebe's actually made 7 appearances and scored 2 goals, I don't think that's to bad for him. I wonder why SAF didn't loan out Obertan in the January transfer window, he certainly needs more game time. As you all know, settling into a new country isn't that easy. You'll need to learn the language and adapt to many more things. I honestly think Bebe's finding it hard to settle down, everything around him is new to him. Around a year ago, he was on the streets playing football. I'm wouldn't be shocked if he was sent out on loan next season.
Swarbs I can see Fergie running out of patience without ever really giving him a proper chance. He started off really well and linked up well with fellow countryman Evra. I don't think it is fair to drop him in for fleeting appearances and expect a great performance, nor to stick him in a team with 10 other rotated players and expect anything. The fear of making mistakes when he does get an opportunity is crippling his confidence. You can see it in Gibson too. He knows that anything less than outstanding - will mean his number being held up on the sidelines. I felt sorry for Gibson making way for Scholes against Marseilles when it really should have been Carrick coming off. We've seen Rafael thrown in the proverbial deep-end and the steep learning curve he's been on, but surely we all agree that he is better and more experienced for it despite it leading to us being down to 10 men for crucial games against Bayern and Spurs? Without offering the same opportunity and assurance to Obertan and Bebe (and Gibson too) I dont think we will see the best of them.
How much time did Tosic get? He was an established Serbian international with a promising reputation yet he was shipped on.
Are you referring to Tosic? Clearly is a better player than Obertan but only got a handful of games compared to Gab. What's going on?
With regard to his Utd career, you are totally right. With regard to reports from europe and footage of him playing, he was a good in fact very good player. From what was known of Tosic to what we see in Obertan the mind boggles.
No, i'm simply saying that we wont know their true capabilities while they are shipped into the team for fleeting appearances and benched for weeks on end. Fletcher, Nani and Berbatov had their doubters and fans who wanted to see them sold - and all have all benefited and improved from sustained first team games. Confidence is so important to get the best out of players. We wouldn't have signed them if they were not talented or not had potential.
