Matteo Darmian

RED wrote:Rafael's a certified goner, unfortunately.

Highly doubt we'll get another RB in now. Darmian and Valencia should do (even though I dislike Val as a RB).

Vlad the Impaler wrote:

RED wrote:Rafael's a certified goner, unfortunately.

Highly doubt we'll get another RB in now. Darmian and Valencia should do (even though I dislike Val as a RB).

Ok, probably we won't buy another RB, but for sure there is a conflict between what you said earlier about Valencia and what you say right now.

If we aim to win trophies we must have a decent RB to replace Darmian in case of something, with better defensive attributes. United fans here consider Valencia a mistake at the RB. Ok, I can understand this. But you can't just say now that Valencia "should do".

LvG made himself clear the Valencia will be an option for the RB position and yes, we won't go for another RB. Anyway, who else could be a great deal for this position? In the past, I rated De Sciglio a lot, thought he is one of the world's biggest talents with "that special something", but now I haven't seen him much since I was busy with a lot of stuff.

We've always had two decent RBs with Ferguson. Even if their pref position wasn't at right back. Remember Brown, O'Shea, even Rafael.

You already know my opinion, I like Valencia and maybe I am biased, but I think he is doing good at RB. Anyway, Darmian looks promising and should be the main option for us in the future.

RED wrote:If it were up to me, I'd have Rafael over Valencia any day of the week. But for whatever reason, LVG just doesn't like or rate Rafa, so we're stuck with Valencia as 2nd choice RB.

Darmian has been brought in to the squad to fill the void of RB depth. Would I love for us to have a better 2nd choice RB other than Valencia? Of course, but we have more pressing issues to solve now, mainly a CB and a striker. And judging from LVG's latest interview, an attacking option  is  our prime focus as of now.

B-Mac wrote:Matteo

permanently staple Valencia's ass to the bench pls

the moment he came off Valencia was caught out twice in a row

.@DarmianOfficial: MotM vs Malta, Rating 8.28, Tackles 3, Interceptions 4, Dribbles 3, Key passes 1 @azzurri

DARMIAN ALREADY PROVING POPULAR AT UNITED

"No-one wants to grow up and be a Gary Neville."

So Jamie Carragher once commented on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football. The former Liverpool defender was making the point that full-back is one of the less glamorous positions and, as Neville played behind David Beckham on the right flank, it is easy to appreciate why the Anfield stalwart said it.

However, Manchester United fans have always respected and admired the players who've nailed down those cornerstone roles in the back four. Denis Irwin remains a hugely popular figure – at a recent school visit as part of his work with the club’s Foundation, one of the teachers was visibly tongue-tied and star-struck at meeting his idol.

You could go further back to Shay Brennan or consider recent examples such as Patrice Evra and Rafael, whose infectious personalities, not to mention their passionate performances, ensured they were genuine crowd favourites.

Matteo Darmian is more in the mould of Irwin, Neville and Brennan – that much is obvious by watching him play but it becomes even clearer when you sit down to talk to the modest Italian. "I am maybe a little bit shy," he confesses in an interview conducted in his native tongue as he continues taking English lessons in order to pick up the language.

Clearly relaxed when able to express himself fully, his opening answer on growing up in Legnano, near Milan, is a lengthy one, always a good sign for any interview. He spoke to us about his career journey to Old Trafford, his idols and his personality, in addition to the late call-up to Italy’s squad ahead of last year’s World Cup finals.

Darmian’s parents, assisted by his first club AC Milan, ensured he completed his studies and that's reflected now in his intelligence and down-to-earth character. When we meet again, along with our interpreter Giuliana Giacomini, he is warm with his greetings and appears eager to discover when the interview will be published. During his second chat, for the MUDSA (Manchester United Disabled Supporters Association) magazine, he is asked about the differences between Serie A and the Barclays Premier League and suggests debates around incidents during games rumble on in Italy but they quickly pass in England.

We should be thankful, then, that the defender was otherwise engaged when live television coverage of United’s first away game of the season at Aston Villa showed replay after replay of his tussle with Micah Richards. It became one of the most talked-about incidents of the 90 minutes, with the pair having an exchange before grappling as a corner came into the box, when Richards appealed in vain for a penalty.

The Villa skipper, who often appeared to be a sporting opponent during his time with Manchester City, acknowledged in a post-match interview it was the sort of jostling that is commonplace these days but suggestions that Darmian was trying to wind him up still lingered. The Reds' new right-back was happy to tell his side of the story.

"With Micah, it was said I tried to distract him at the corner and I saw a video came out where they were saying I was pointing to his face to put him off," said the United man. "However, it was because he had a cut on his face and I was trying to tell him it was bleeding. That is what it was all about.

“The journalists jumped on the incident a bit but, at the end of the game, we shook hands and it was all fine. I certainly never called him soft if he thought that!”

What was impressive was the way Darmian offered his hand to his rival when their paths next met on the field. We know Italians are traditionally ruthless defenders and tight markers – another point we put to the player – and perhaps every United supporter expected this from an Azzurri international.

Yet it was just as pleasing to see him respect his opponent and show this human side in the heat of battle. Maybe I am old-fashioned but it was then that I felt assured Darmian had the qualities to become a proper Manchester United player. I may not be alone. There is something about our no.36 that is already striking a chord with supporters. He may still be living in a hotel – “I am deciding whether to get a house in the centre or outside of the city” – but he has adapted seamlessly to a major change on a whole host of levels. So much so that he is one of ManUtd.com's three contenders for August’s Player of the Month award.

Ask him about the big matches coming up after international duty representing his country and he will tell you: "Every player wants to play all the games but, above all, the big ones like Liverpool, Manchester City and Arsenal. I am sure these are the matches the fans wait for more anxiously but we’ve simply got to concentrate game by game on all our opponents, not just the top sides, and play our best."

Level-headed and focused. Exactly the sort of response you would have expected from Gary Neville during his time at United, even if he may have allowed himself a little extra comment about the visit of the Merseysiders and his Sky sparring partner Carragher. Some of us yearn for the consistency offered by Neville and Irwin, those seven-out-of-10 performances week in and week out, and we all hope this is what our latest Italian import will provide. The early signs are certainly encouraging in this respect, even if we are only six games into what we hope will be a lengthy career at the club.

Furthermore, maybe schoolchildren will grow up wanting to be Matteo Darmian to disprove Carragher’s theory about full-backs. When popping into the Megastore at Old Trafford this week, the gentleman ahead of me in the queue was purchasing a black shirt for his son. "Which name do you want?" asked the staff member behind the counter. "Darmian" came the instant response.

S wrote:Seems he's fallen off the radar since that great first month or so he had ? How good has he been so far

Hapless_Hans wrote:He has flopped.

Our board knows best tbh.

Hapless_Hans wrote:Your Varela kid looked great against Wolfsburg tbh, as wrong as this sentence sounds.