Conor Gallagher

[Lemonade Money]

Agreed. I thought Maddison was exceptional in doing this at Old Trafford, and in having that ability, he ended up creating the patience and tempo around him to create an equalizer. I thought it was a really mature and effective appearance.

What part did he play in the equaliser? His aura?

 

[thfcsteff]

What part did he play in the equaliser? His aura?

For me, his calm on the ball and patience was drawing players to him and leaving space for others as soon as he came on. If I remember correctly, that was one of the more advanced positions Tonali found himself in all match, and at Old Trafford against 10 men I was glad to see it.

 

[stratnumberone]

For me, his calm on the ball and patience was drawing players to him and leaving space for others as soon as he came on. If I remember correctly, that was one of the more advanced positions Tonali found himself in all match, and at Old Trafford against 10 men I was glad to see it.

Some might argue that we were up against considerably more than 10 men at OT last week…..! It was deffo at least 11 though.

 

[thfcsteff]

Some might argue that we were up against considerably more than 10 men at OT last week…..! It was deffo at least 11 though.

Boom and well said. Yes indeed, of course WE were at 10 men...it's been a helluva week...

 

[BrentwoodSpur]

It sure if this will embed, but an interesting club take on Conor

https://www.tottenhamhotspur.com//spursplay/video/1035936

 

[Bullet]

I actually had a look at the heatmaps on here - https://www.whoscored.com/matches/1...-league-2026-2027-manchester-united-tottenham

It is a very "centre to left" heatmap for Conor, balanced by Bergval doing some great work on the right. When you add in Tonali you see a pretty decent coverage from our midfield, and even more confirmation that we did a lot of our best work in that centre left channel as a team.

Then when you add the fact that heatmaps normally represent touches, it also doesn't factor in where players are doing the unselfish running and closing down then it all looks favourable. Gallagher definitely looked all action to me. Tonali also caught my eye. Classy player.

The touches of the ball have a twist though.
Gallagher - 66 in 74 mins
Tonali - 79 in 79 mins
Bergval - 38 in 66 mins

Just shows how the 2 senior players managed to get way more touches than the young gun. That's food for thought for the manager.

I have a feeling RDZ will have some nice problems coming up with these players.

It's worth noting that in many of the earlier games this season, RDZ had Gallagher filling in at full back spaces when either full back pushed into midfield. So when Porro or Robertson or Gray or Udogie pushed on, someone (often Gallagher, sometimes Tonali) would cover for them.

So it is tricky to look at "average position heatmap" for roles like that. The average makes sense for a winger or striker, but for someone doing (covering) 2 roles it can look odd.

Last night's setup was different of course, we set up with 3 centre backs and with Gray and Robertson wide already, and only one real "midfielder" in Tonali. Those are RDZ's words.
Then in the pocket Maddison with Marmoush left and Kudus right. Those are RDZ's words. With Maddison having licence to drop deep and pick up the ball from the back 3.

So it was kind of 3 CBs, 2 wide, 1 mid, 3 pocket, 1 striker. But I don't think anyone is going to be calling it a 32131



Anyway, my point is, each #10 we have will play a completely different role. Gallagher and Maddison are complete opposites.

 

[Bullet]

Addendum: This is probably why Mateus Fernandes is not starting right now, the roles are quite complex and multi faceted and different players will be tasked differently even if they look like they have the same position on paper.
So perhaps MF is finding it complex to get locked in, he might be great at most aspects but keep forgetting to do a couple of things which we don't really notice/know about e.g. tracking players or covering when someone goes forward or whatever.

 

[thfcsteff]

Addendum: This is probably why Mateus Fernandes is not starting right now, the roles are quite complex and multi faceted and different players will be tasked differently even if they look like they have the same position on paper.
So perhaps MF is finding it complex to get locked in, he might be great at most aspects but keep forgetting to do a couple of things which we don't really notice/know about e.g. tracking players or covering when someone goes forward or whatever.

This feels like a really fair appraisal of the situation. We forget that it sometimes takes great players time to settle and find their way.