WHY SAY ANYTHING?

 

Antonio Valencia:

He has never regained full confidence since breaking his leg against Rangers a few years ago. At one stage he was a marauding winger who was never afraid to take defenders on and beat them, usually with pace rather than trickery. Since recovering from his injury he has always either passed the ball or tried a cross instead of attempting to beat the full back. His crosses invariably hit the defender he doesn’t try to beat and either go out for a corner or possession is lost.

Sir Alex Ferguson was the first to think he may be a decent wingback. Louis van Gaal also played him in that position and Jose Mourinho as well. Well, not wishing to try and advise these three luminaries, but Valencia IS NOT a wingback. He CANNOT defend. He is regularly playing the opposition onside, and is a complete liability in his own area.

Verdict: Sell as soon as possible

Chris Smalling:

This is a player whose reputation has grown since arriving five years ago. This is mainly due to David De Gea who, single handedly, made manchester United’s defence seem like world beaters last season. Without De Gea the United defence would have been average at best. Average is not good enough and neither is Smalling.

Another one who is caught out of position far too often, he has a habit of charging forwards with the ball then passing it backwards, leaving himself exposed in the middle of the pitch! His tackles are often mistimed and his distribution is poor. He will quite often attempt a long ball which will end up out of play. Like Valencia he is a liability in his own penalty area, but more so, as he can never keep his hands off the opponents forwards and risks conceding a penalty two or three times EVERY game.

Verdict: Bring in another centre back then sell Smalling as soon as possible

Phil Jones:

He started his Manchester United career quite brightly but has been troubled with injuries for most of the last three years. At one stage it looked as though he could be a stalwart for years but this now does not seem likely. Another one with pretty poor positional sense and frequently mistimed tackles. Jose Mourinho may give him a little time because he is still only young and, who knows, an injury free run may see him return to his former self. I doubt it.

Verdict: Same comment as with Smalling

Jesse Lingard:

This guy has to be another of the most overrated players at Old Trafford. He occasionally scores a spectacular goal, in fact I can think of three, in the last season or so. This, however, is not enough at the top level and he brings absolutely nothing else to the game.

Operating just behind a front two, he will try to fire short passes around with whoever may be accompanying him in the midfield roles. He is not very good at it and United certainly have players far better suited for the position than him.

Also, away from the football, he has a very, very annoying habit of sticking his tongue out at every available opportunity!

Verdict: Sell as soon as possible

Ashley Young:

I can only remember him having one good game, against Arsenal in the 8-2 win, although I am sure there must have been others. He is another one who, due to his inability to play as an out and out winger, has been tried as a wing back. Again defends like a typical forward, giving away free kicks on a regular basis and, when he does get forward, his crosses are poor, so many drifting harmlessly out of play.

For me he was always a strange acquisition as I never really thought of him as a United player. The problem now is that a lot of United fans would agree with me. Surely it is only a matter of time before Jose Mourinho becomes one of the converts as well!

Verdict: Sell as soon as possible

Memphis Depay:

I don’t know how many more chances this kid is going to get! He has consistently under-performed when given the chance and was accused at one stage of being more interested in Bentleys and nightclubs than in football.

Similar to Young, he has had one good game that I can remember, which was in the Champion’s League against Bruges. Unlike Young, I don’t think he has had any more than that one. He is another to who Mourinho may be prepared to give a little time due to his age and he may yet come good. Again, I don’t think he has what it takes to play for United, hence my comment below.

Verdict: Sell as soon as possible

I am sure that regular readers of this excuse for an article will have different opinions. Why haven’t I included Fellaini, Rooney or Rojo, for example? The answer is simply because United don’t need to sell these players as quickly as the ones mentioned previously. Theyey are more versatile than others and can cover two or three positions. This does not mean that they don’t need to be sold, it just means that there is no urgency to do so.

Rooney, for example, should have been sold years ago when he still had some value. He wasn’t, so now there is no great rush, just don’t pick him!

(To see how many people agree with my six choices check out the poll to the left of this post)