✍ Manuel Lanzini

[DublinDave]

He's played every ECL game so far.
In the Prem he's a good option to control a game for the last 15 munutes if we're 2 goals up or, if we're 1 goal down, given 15 minutes to set up or score a worldy.
That's where he is at the moment & he seems cool with that & so am I...

[westlondonhammer]

He's played every ECL game so far.
In the Prem he's a good option to control a game for the last 15 munutes if we're 2 goals up or, if we're 1 goal down, given 15 minutes to set up or score a worldy.
That's where he is at the moment & he seems cool with that & so am I...

For sure

Hes this seasons Noble (in his last season) by all intents and purposes

[MB]

9 goals, 5 assists in his last 60 appearances in all competitions for us since the start of last season. I just don't recognise this underperforming player that's of little use to the side anymore.

Yes he had a bad injury and took time to recover but he did get back to his old self as of last season and I've not seen signs of him rapidly deteriorating at 29yo to think he should barely be used now this season. He's not been injured and he hardly gets used even from the bench having been available for every single game this season and we now have the use of 5 Subs.

And people have answered your points.

I'm happy to chip in and buy you a Moyes Pinata so you can take ever more imaginative swipes at that if you like and save us all the bother?

[Colours never run]

No need to get funny about it, I've raised reasonable points about his absence from the Team and think it's worthy of discussion.

The only Pinata I want is of Sullivan as my voodoo doll of his has been well and truly worn out now.

[MB]

No need to get funny about it, I've raised reasonable points about his absence from the Team and think it's worthy of discussion.

Well just this week you've done Dawson, Downes, Ashby and now Lanzini. All fringe players who you think are being misused by Moyes. I am sure you can see why I'd think the "by Moyes" bit is the common theme here.

Discussion requires the recognition of both sides points and I'm not seeing that from you. I and others have answered your points in a reasonable way and you have not responded to them with anything other than general statements.

[D C]

Hard to come to conclusion on Lanzini’s current ability levels when he doesn’t get a look in so looks rusty and lacking match fitness when he does get minutes.

If we were flying people would trust the manager’s judgement but we’ve been awful so it’s no wonder people question if players like him, Fornals and Downes etc can really be worse than players playing way more

[S-H]

Lanzini has always been in and out of the side under Moyes, has he not?

Bit of a nothing to see here.

['stone hammer]

I wish we played a style of football that utilised his abilities a bit more.

I thought that's what we were trying to do this season. The signings of Aguerd, Paqueta and Scamacca with the aim of playing a more possession based, high press game. Hasn't gone well, of course.

But even then, Lanzini doesn't offer enough to warrant a start in the league. What he does offer is accurate, incisive passing, a decent finish and a tasty tackle. Enough for the early rounds of the cups at least.

[MB]

Hard to come to conclusion on Lanzini’s current ability levels when he doesn’t get a look in so looks rusty and lacking match fitness when he does get minutes.

If we were flying people would trust the manager’s judgement but we’ve been awful so it’s no wonder people question if players like him, Fornals and Downes etc can really be worse than players playing way more

But how long do you give them? Moyes was criticised for, we assume, trying to play Bowen and Soucek into form and at their best those two are far more impactful in the final third.

We are struggling to score and Lanzini, Fornals and Downes don’t have a record of helping significantly with that. Soucek, Bowen and Benrahma do. I guess we can add Cornet into that mix as well.

Bowen now looks back in form and based on the Everton game, Soucek may have been dropped. Moyes has gone another way rather than try and incorporate one or more of those three players. If you trust him when things are going well, why not when they aren’t?

[westlondonhammer]

Hard to come to conclusion on Lanzini’s current ability levels when he doesn’t get a look in so looks rusty and lacking match fitness when he does get minutes.

If we were flying people would trust the manager’s judgement but we’ve been awful so it’s no wonder people question if players like him, Fornals and Downes etc can really be worse than players playing way more

How is Lanzini doing in training? Hard for US to come to a conclusion but not hard for the coaching team to assess where he is right now seeing as they are professionals and with him every day.

Let's be honest, as much as we pretend to know what we're talking about, we don't see most of what goes on every day at the club and a lot of stuff that really matters. I'm not saying Lanzini is rubbish in training but he clearly isn't doing enough to justify selection in an underperforming attack.

The 'can't be worse' argument is only valid until we actually see things could be worse. Generally, they can be worse a lot of the time.

[Sticky]

The PL has moved on - even in the time since Manu has been here.

If you are not 6ft 4 - built like a lightweight boxer and able to do the 100m in under 8 seconds you are gonna struggle now.

It's all about athleticism rather than technique.

Shame.

[Burnley Hammer]

The PL has moved on - even in the time since Manu has been here.

If you are not 6ft 4 - built like a lightweight boxer and able to do the 100m in under 8 seconds you are gonna struggle now.

It's all about athleticism rather than technique.

Shame.

Almiron seems to be doing OK for Newcastle

['stone hammer]

Foden and Saka too

[prophet:marginal]

One more goal against the Spuds, that's all I ask
(OK, sure, in a final, to win it, if you must).

[Ozza]

From my memory Manu was one of the first names on the team sheet when Moyes was here first time, for all the reasons spoken about on here things have moved on….

Laying this on the manager with all the b*llocks on here at the moment is just another stick to beat him with or the latest selected battlefield.

It’s pretty tiresome

[Gsbgsb]

Lanzini’s remaining great strength is his vision and passing. Still one of the best at the club at seeing a run and making the pass to the runner. He has lost a lot of his zip and seems rarely now to threaten the box in or out of possession. Both likely a result of age plus injury.

Problem this year has been far too many of the players who, if he played, he could pass forward to have been either pretty stationary or running back towards where he would be. He needs targets (as do many) and we simply have failed to offer these in a progressive sense.

Possession football is pretty but ineffective if you do not have players going beyond the ball or making threatening runs and on a consistent basis we have had Bowen and little else.

[Mosterhammer]

Must have had a bust up with Moyes. Probably on his way back to river plate in the summer and Moyes being old and bitter wont play him. Had a good cameo last night as always. The most football intelligent player we have since Payet. Noble himself said playing with those two made him a better player. We are harder to defend against with him playing because he can pick a shot aswell.
He is just another evidence of Moyeses failings as a manager. Moyes doesnt have the balls to bench soucek cause he needs him to break up play. Not understanding that playing him results in us losing possession a lot more, with his inability to play a simple pass and to chose the right pass.
Moyes as Anton Ferdinand has pointed out isnt capable of playing a flair game, we are losing out big time and Lanzini most of all.

[Gsbgsb]

Not sure about falling outs etc. He has always indicated he would like to finish his career in Argentina. Thing is he is now far more a Paqueta than a 10 and as we have Paqueta he is less likely to play. We seem to have rightly binned off trying to play Paqueta in that 10 role. Simple fact is we have nobody ideally suited for it.

The problem this year has not been the defence or passing midfielders it has been that Bowen aside we have had poor movement from the strikers and attacking midfielders which is required to make a more possession based game work.

[WCpete]

Whether he can still play at the requisite level I think is probably irrelevant now. He's been with us for 8 years. Top level sides can't carry too many near decade long serving players without going stale. The cycle for refreshing squads is much shorter these days. He occupies a squad spot and he doesn't play apart from ECL games. It's time to give that place to someone else. I would let him go this summer with our deepest thanks and warmest regards, as others have said. I love Manu. He was one of the most exciting players we've signed in the last decade. He and Dimi playing together in 15/16 had me in fits of of delusions of grandeur. Alas, never to be. He wants to close things out with his boyhood club, the club he loves the most, and I would love to see him get his wish. He deserves that.

[Ozza]

Think I’m going to join the simple life people and blame Moyes for everything…..

Starting with the price of wood going up for the log burner…

Dull Scottish dinosaur ****