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Perhaps. Though on 86 minutes it was a big ask for him to influence the outcome..........Scholes and Fletcher were both on bookings so this could have been a factor, though Fergie did choose Gibson ahead of Carrick which has to be taken as a positive from an Irish perspective.
ok, this has been bugging me for a little while, so I'm just going to go out and say it, and then see what people think.
Is Gibson's continued presence in the United squad due to actual talent, or to the circumstances currently surrounding the club?
In the (very recent) past, when Ferguson identified a weakness in the squad - due to a decline in the ability of a player, or the availability of a suitable replacement - he had the money to go out and strengthen the playing staff with the best and brightest available from across the globe. Following the takeover of the Glazers, and the leveraging of debt against the club, the amount of money available for both transfer fees and wages has decreased significantly. Thus, Sir Alex is unable to replace existing squad players with superior players, leading to extended playing careers of personnel who can still perform admirably, but are clearly past their prime (Scholes, Giggs, Neville, etc). Facing this restricted ability in the transfer market, players from the youth teams have been given their chance whereas in years past, it would have been new acquisitions that would be filling these roles. Macheda, De Laet, Gibson, and the Da Silva twins have all had significant spells in the first team in the past two seasons. Up until that debate raged whether or not Wes Brown or John O'Shea was the last player to be promoted from within Old Trafford to the senior team.
So the question remains, is the presence of these players in the Manchester United playing squad due to actual talent, or the circumstance of not being able to buy superior players?b
I'm no expert now, but I'd imagine its down to both a bit. Obviously if he was Man Utds number 1 choice centre midfielder I'd imagine they would instantly snap up a replacement for him, as I don't think anyone could argue he is not good enough to be a regular for one of the top top teams in the world. However, Sir Alex Ferguson seems to think he is a suitable back up which would indicate he has at least a bit of ability. United are a big club and Ferguson is arguably the best manager in the world, so I'm sure if he thought Gibson wasn't up to the task he wouldn't throw him on every now and then.
Hopefully he has a future at United, Darren Fletcher was a very late bloomer and he is now one of their most important players, so a similar result and I'd be happy :-P
i think we all know darron has it in him.. he just needs to grow a pair and take hold of games more.. well know what fergie thinks of him by whether hes there or not next year but looks like next season there will be a lot less games for scholes,giggs and Neville so he may hold on to him out of necessity
I think the Sky commentators got it spot on, Darron was brought on with a few mins to go for one reason, his striking ability. He has a great strike on him and with long balls been played into the chelsea box in the dying mins, it may have dropped to him to fire one home, worth a go. Dont think anyone can say Darron was brought on for any other reason really. Next year is a big year for him, with the likes of Giggs and Scholes likely to feature less and less he will need to step up to the mark to stay at the club.
Starts in champions league for man utd tonight against bayern
gibson and rafael in. rooney with a miraculous recovery.
fergie throws the dice...
go on gibo!!!
Biggest game of his club career so far, come on Darron
I don't know about this...
This has complicated my viewing aspirations for tonight.
Only one word for it, WOW!! Out with the old and in with the new. Come on Daz, tonights the night to step up!!
good luck Gibson! Hope he scores a screamer.
Best of luck Darron.
I've never seen Gibson play well with Carrick in the team. They always seem to get into the same positions and try to do the same things.
i reckon carrick will be sitting pretty deep. fletcher and gibo will be tasked with tearing up and down the park
hopefully he does great.
Seconded.Quote:
Originally Posted by Razors left peg
Best of luck to the lad. Hope he has a good'un.
You beauty!
get in!
boo ya!
:D
I hardly had time to sit down but he sticks it in the back of the net.
Lovely clean strike
Good man gibs. Keep it up now get MOM
he's had a smashing first half.
playing very far up the pitch and is working his socks off.
united making things hard for themselves as usual
Who I am to question Ferguson (soon to be british ambassador to Germany, pause and await the next war) but with the benifit of hindsight I would have left Darron on as he might have had an opportunity to have a potshot or two.
This managment stuff is easy with hindsight.
I'm still wary about Gibson. There's been so much talk about him that I don't think he's deserving of it all. He's a bit of a luxury to be honest. I'd love to see him succeed and think he obviously has a fine shot. I just don't think that he has that drive that's the making of a top class player.
Who does he play alongside in an Irish midfield?
McCarthy, Meyler, Whelan, Andrews are all better bets now, and in the future.
Decent goal and ok first half but fairly anonymous (as usual imo) after the break.
I'm still not convinced about Gibson despite the fleetingly good first half performance tonight.
Holding on to the idea that because Darren Fletcher came good after a long period of mediocrity means that Gibson will come good is a bit flimsy to be honest. James McCarthy has done more in one season in his all round play than Gibson has in the last two-three years of this hype. I feel that Gibson just doesn't have that "fire in the belly" or drive that sets the better players apart. He's more likely to go the way of McPhail than Andrews, more Berbatov than Rooney.
I think he's a luxury that Ireland are never going to be able to get the best out of.
Just who does he play alongside in midfield for Ireland that doesn't leave us lacking in a department whether that be defensive stability or attacking mobility?
Hard not to be anonymous when you're chasing the ball the entire time. Unlucky the referee ran across his path when Nani cut it back to him.
Was George Hamilton asleep for Gibson's goal.The ball was in the back of the net for about 10 seconds before he reaised it was a goal?
Commentary was delayed.
There was a sound delay on my Sky box anyway. A good couple of seconds. I restarted it and it was fine.Quote:
Originally Posted by Cuyahoga
Gibson seems a bit lazy or something at times? There was definitely moments when he passed it in the middle of the park and could have burst forward to receive a return but just resumed walking instead. That's the way it looked to me anyhow.
To asses Gibson you have to look at the team performance. He is not the type to grab a game. He functions fine when everything is buzzing around him. Up until his midfield partner Carrick gifted a goal, I thought he was foot perfect. A player gets set off, the whole team play as if they need a an extra second, the touch and passing is poor, Gibson is going to look as clumsy as the rest of them. They would have needed an experienced player in the middle to control the game. I thought he was much better than Carrick and just as good if not better than Fletcher, but I don't know if that says much.
That chance for his second, if only - those type of chances in such games are career defining.
Well, I think he had a good game, but he had the potential to become a legend tonight with that late opportunity.
I think he just needs a run of games to get established. I thought Carrick had an absolute nightmare and didn't do Gibson or any of his teammates any favours.
I think Carrick took one for the team by staying the hole and not venturing forward, but I thought he was culpable for both goals and generally offered very little. For the first though, he should never have been competing with Olic - it was a complete mismatch. You have to ask why Ferdinand or, more likely, Vidic didn't pick up his run.
I think Carrick is too slow for this level of football, and Gibson would do well to avoid falling into the same trap. To be fair, he looks to have really quick feet and his decision-making will surely improve with practice (Carrick hasn't really progressed much since breaking through for West Ham).
ok i have a rules question i was born in the usa but have an irish passport if i was good enough would i be able to play for the north? since they can play for us can we play for them? like for example would robbie kean be able to play for the north? (if he had not already played for the roi)
It depends on when your grandparents were born. My grandmother was born in Cork in 1921, before partition, so I would be eligible to play for the North were I so inclined.
Gibson on current status would be a bit of a luxury player for us. I dont think we can employ him in CM alongside Whelan or Andrews or whoever. Perhaps would could play him wide right or more so just off the striker akin to the role played with Rooney last night.
That was Gibson's best performance for Man Utd by a mile. When we've seen him in other Prem games, he comes across as bit a tad slow and not knowing exactly what to sometimes. But he did not look not out of place last night and showed a much better level of concentration and focus out and was the best of the Man Utd midfield trio. He also looked a lot quicker and more mobile than I've seen him be for a while which suggests he's working hard behind the scenes to get himself up to par.
I think Carrick is in the Fergie doghouse after a few very poor performances recently and Gibson will get a few chances in Man Utd's last 5 games. I also think that Fergie will be out to get a new midfielder in the summer and that one of Carrick and Gibson will go. So maybe Gibson's future will be decided on how he will perform in the few chances he'll get.
I think Gibson is closer to the dugout that the doghouse.
I'm not convinced about Gibson, yet. Whoever above said he was a luxury is spot on IMO. He isn't the kind of a midfielder who can run the game. His passing/vision isn't the best and he seems to lose the ball an awful lot. He hits a good strike, makes a few good runs and pops up at the edge of the box a lot in good positions, but he isn't going to grab a game by the scruff of the neck and thats exactly where United lost the game last night. He and Fletcher are similar players who need a water carrier playing beside them to do the donkey work and more importantly, control the tempo of a match. When the game started going against United their midfield went completely AWOL and they couldn't get the ball.
That said, he is developing as a player and Ferguson seems keen on him, so the more big matches he plays the better for Ireland.