John Lundstram was seen as a player that was a bit of a scapegoat last season as we did rarely seem to win when he played. He came in when Coutts got injured and although a different type of player completely; there was a drop off and that is why we signed Leonard and Evans. None of the three really allowed us to have the same control of midfield that we had enjoyed and Fleck often had to play out of his skin to compensate for very ordinary performances from this trio. With Coutts not fit still; Lundstram started the season but was poor in two opening day defeats. He still lacked mobility, pace and ball retention to be part of a two (with one in front). Norwood came in and he was mostly sub after this and even some games he was not in the 18 with Coutts coming back. He did well when he came on against Villa, with a few crunching tackles on Grealish and then actually was solid in a win at Brentford. He did then play at Reading but was taken off at half time and never started again after this only having the occasional cameo from the bench right at the end of games.

He played in the cup game against Barnet and like many of the others, did not impose himself. We saw the odd elements of him in brief sub games after this and then actually some said he may have been a better option than Coutts but that says more about his lack of impact than Lundstram. However, to be fair to Lunny he did actually help us see out a few of the games as the season finished and was back involved again. He actually played well in the game at Stoke offering a physical presence to break up the opponents play.

Still has another year on his deal but he has shown he is not good enough consistently for the top end of the Championship to play regularly so not sure how he would cope with an even bigger jump. When he plays the drop off is noticeable in this area. People may saw I am scapegoating him but I can only go on what I see. I am still after 2 seasons not sure what his strengths are. He gives it away quite a lot, is quite weak for a big lad and cannot get up and down the pitch. I would be looking to see if we can move him on this summer but lower Champ / League One is about his level and be hard to shift being on decent wages I would think and with Coutts leaving may stay around for a bit until reinforcements are brought in.

Grade C- (Last season C)


Ryan Leonard Wilder had chased him forever and finally got his man in January the previous season but he was never a regular and indeed played his best few games at right centre back. When in midfield he looked a bit lost and technically he struggled with the higher standard of play. He seemed a bit of a ratter type but another like Evans that lacked the sheer physicality, mobility or athleticism needed for a midfielder at the top end of the Championship. He began this season on the bench, which is where he spent much of it last season when he joined United. He did come on at QPR and helped see out the win and had one good run also in that game. He also came on and did well against Norwich and gave us some bite. I felt he was starting to make a bit of an impact after a poor start to his United career but with Norwood moving in and Coutts coming back.

I would have preferred him to stay to Lundstram actually as we do/did not have a player of his type but Millwall offered United over a million and United decided as with the Evans deal, to bank the money and move on. He seemed to do ok at Millwall and assisted on a goal against us and scored a few others. Their fans liked him and he was captain for some games as they did well in the cup. However, the league form for Millwall was wretched and they were embroiled in a relegation scrap but did stay up. He did play quite well in the final period of the game at the Lane but got away with a late foul which led to the leveller.

Leonard maybe was more suited to Millwall’s scrappy and direct approach and he lacked the technique to quite fit in with United’s more measured approach. Another like Evans, Holmes, Wilson etc of the January window of 2018 that did not quite come off despite Wilder being a huge fan. Maybe United moved on in ability and progress quicker than imagined and thus we needed a better calibre of player.

Grade C- (Last season C)

Ben Woodburn When we signed him, we allegedly beat off interest from Aston Villa and others to get him. Seen as a real talent and shown flashes of potential mainly for Wales, most fans were delighted with this signing. A Brooks type player and his replacement in many ways. He actually only started one game for us against Norwich and was replaced at half time I believe. He had another start against Hull in the League Cup but was ineffective in both games. He had a number of other sub appearances also. He actually did well at Boro when he came on and looked promising as he ran with the ball and showed some good skill. However, I felt in most other games, he looked physically weak, lacked awareness and was miles off the pace of competitive football. He looked a player that had been playing u23/reserve level for the last few seasons. He was brushed off the ball too easily, his first touch was poor and he did not seem to know where to go positionally. He often lost it in key areas and we saw none of the dribbling, shooting and attacking prowess we had seen in his showings for Wales.

In short, he looked a bit lost and not ready for professional football at this level. Some Liverpool players asked why he was not being used but when given chances he did not do it at all. Wilder will have seen him in training also and as the season went on, he was used less and less and then was not even on the bench. He had a few injuries but I was not surprised when he went back. It is telling that no one else has come in for him although strangely he ended up back on the bench in the epic Champions League win for Liverpool over Barcelona due to a number of injuries. Could not make our bench but made Liverpool’s! I saw him play for Wales the other week and he showed flashes again and scored but he had a long way to go if he wants to make it. Like James Wilson we had the year before, his reputation at a big club means nothing if you do not put the work in and prove you deserve game time even at a lower level. He is still young and maybe the experience at the Lane may help him moving forward as if/when he goes on loan again or even moves on from Liverpool for good, he has to do the basics (hard work, pressing, ball retention) before he can show some of the skill he may have.

Grade E- (Last season NA)

Kieran Dowell was a player we chased last summer but went for Woodburn in the end. Eventually we signed him in January. He had experienced a mixed time at Forest doing well to start the season but then when Karanka came in, he ended up out of the team. Forest fans said he had some ability but would also drift out of games and was quite weak. Their opinions ended up being spot on. He came in and did ok in a few games (Norwich, Villa and West Brom) and made a few goals and scored a crucial one at the Hawthorns and another in the final game.

Could run with the ball a bit and quite mobile. However, the shooting and dribbling that people had cited, we never really saw. He got hooked at half time in quite a few games and recall him freezing a bit in the big game at Hillsborough. He played left wing back a few times and did better against Reading than at Preston where a quick winger caused him some problems. He was then more of a peripheral player after this but still did a job when he was called on and scored a goal at Stoke; although we ended up just noticing more when Duff was out as there was quite a drop off. Still, he was there as competition in bits and pieces. We also got a song out of having him too with ‘Dowell, D….D….D….Dowell’ (Paul Johnson song – Get Get Down) booming out in pubs and even himself singing it at the end of season celebrations. Unless Everton let him move on and he may be a decent lad to have around as cover, not sure he is quite Premier League standard; he was not quite top end Championship really. We only can have two loans so expect he will go back to Everton and then probably end up on loan again back in the Championship.

Important signing though and offered far more than Woodburn and provided some competition and cover. Also scored a ***** goal and a few assists and came in and played a few roles. Seemed to love being here and probably be quite sad not to be back.

Grade B- (Last season NA)