robsblubot

Adriano going to MLS at least pato can blame his recurring injuries.... Adriano however....

he does look like James Franco.... funny thing really is that we don't know squat about his game.

or James DeFranco a bit?!

Managers will focus on their tweaks and those minimal changes even though the manager before tried them all at different times. of course is a combination of factors, but multiple players getting into some sort of shape obviously helps a lot. On the last match kudos to fabregas and Costa for creating that moment of magic that won us the game. Great long ball and great first touch. the match changed after that ESP with the red so, I still expect some ups and downs in the near future-fab included.

opinion from someone who clearly has not been following Pato. Here's how much of a bet this is: his *brazilian* club, Corinthians loaned him off to Sao Paulo, rivals at that, where he was only OK. Sao Paulo was pretty much a non-contender in the last Brazileiro. At the end of the loan, Corinthians had NO interest in getting Pato back, because frankly he wasn't worth the money they had been paying him. So, can this deal work? Yeah sure! However, it is the craziest thing I've ever heard of. Falcao made some sense, but Pato makes no sense. Welcome Fiorella!

You are right: he's not better than Zouma. But it's like comparing apples and oranges. Zouma is a great chaser, but he's not very good with the ball at his feet. No, he's not a quack, but he's never going to technically dominate that area of the pitch - he will do that physically. Stones, however, is very technical and can do that via technique. That first pass from defense is very important as it starts our play and determines how quick our play can be. That's one of the reasons for my dislike for certain type of CM/DMs, but I digress. Finally, Stones would complement Zouma's game perfectly with the added plus that both are pacey, hence would finally be able to move our defense line up a bit. while we sometimes see the short term situation, the club must always think long-term. Stones, if signed, will indeed replace Terry. Maybe not this season, but perhaps next. Heck considering we are contenders for cups only, perhaps he can start right away.

Does Mikel go with him? If so, where do I sign? (btw I do know where to sign)

Not many national teams would consistently select squad players - Nigeria and Portugal are small enough that they do, but England would be a bit more reluctant in doing so, esp CB. I completely understand he doesn't want to lose his NT spot, but on the same token cannot understand why he's there to be begin with.

correct - start of season in Brazil and Pato will be completely unfit. Whcih makes this 6mo loan kinda bizarre.

Sorry but the excuses of average squad player do not fly anymore. Now as a starter, the bar is a lot higher. Decent long passer should no longer be enough. If we like Mikel as a starter now, then other players should get a free pass too, like your beloved Oscar. Hiddink, the magician turned our 10 year and one PL goal into a good starter for a top club. Come on... And I am the one making things up... Flamini is a lot better than Mikel at defending.... I mean a lot better! He has the intensity, the pace, and puts his foot out there to stop a run or even consistently foul players. Is he a bad player, yup! Perhaps, like you said, a worse footballer than Mikel. However, they both belong in the same tier market value wise - cheap. Mikel is very good with short passes especially when under little pressure. When under pressure his stats go down very fast. He just cannot hit those wonderful long balls when it matters, can he? You have to cite FA Cup matches, because in any remotely competitive match, such as the one against Arsenal, he was pretty unremarkable. I'd say he was having a very hard time until the red card, and was only decent afterwards, again, because he was under little pressure. To each his own - to me having Mikel as a starter is certainly part of the problem. Others seem to think otherwise. Just to list the actual problem here: we are not very good and cannot compete for silverware.

Same player for me though... If a bad player is on the roster for a long time he's bound to play eventually; that's why clubs should never keep bad players. When Alexis went pass Mikel, as if he weren't there, I remembered how much I dislike Mikel as a player. I honestly said WTF at that moment - as if actually surprised me - it shouldn't have. I have a really hard time finding anything Mikel does well. Passing? Nope. Either Fabregas is a great passer or Mikel is, because a technical gulf separates the two. Ever seen Mikel switch play with a long ball? I've seen him try. Defending? If jogging behind the line of play and letting players run past him - like folks acknowledge he does even when ?praising? him above - is defending, then I don't know what Zouma does. I couldn't decide who was worse Mikel or Flamini... both are technically inferior players. Mikel is stronger and Flamini tries harder... but boy painful to watch them pay football!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiorella_Mattheis patos girl Good signing! (just to be clear: I meant Fiorella, not Pato)

I don't disagree that there must be a middle ground, but at this moment, we may be just too much on the cheap for that too. either we are all full on it on the criticism to our players, or they are indeed insufficient and therefore tactics must Indeed focus on defense. we can't have it both ways.

I am obviously NOT talking about PL exclusively, mind you... there are no evertons in the CL. These midtable teams you mention ALSO do not compete in the CL against the richest clubs. They also do not compete against City do they? It may appear nonsense to you, but my TV only shows the richest clubs in the world playing CL finals over and over again... perhaps it's coincidence.

Wasn't he right though?! i mean, can we compete against the top sides with average players in certain positions and spending a fraction? have we been right asking for more possession and better overall play considering the club can't compete for the best players? was Jose right?

Wished to see Mikel go before Ramires, esp because Ramires is more useful in rotation/backup because he can fill in in a number of positions and roles. However, reports say Ramires is unhappy... unhappy about the lack of minutes, his form, or not starting? If for not starting, well, he should not be routinely starting games for us, which btw also applies to others who have been starting for us anyway... A bit torn on this one: happy that we are going to (potentially) improve on him, esp technically, but also unhappy that Ramires' career is pretty much over.

Fabregas had a good game, but since they lost a player so early, it's difficult to know how much that helped our midfield and team - certainly at least a little. On the defense side, I see Fabregas as weak as ever and players just run past him, because he's slow. However, He is very good with the ball at his feet - truly a great passer: he's got range, creativity, and you can actually see his entire range of passing in a 90 min match - not afrait to use it. It has little or nothing to do with the pivot (2 players). More with the team's balance and esp Fabregas himself; he has consistently played at a very high level next to Matic or even Ramires before, so blaming others for his deficiencies is silly. Fabregas is now better than he was a month ago, but his deficiencies are still there - for those who want to see them.

Indeed. Even Hiddink seems to do alright. On a different subject, it's really funny to see how people automatically make the link between correlation and causation - causality. I had a discussion with Henrique the other days and he said that it wasn't about the manager, but Jose had to leave. I can certainly see that certain players were fed up with him for one reason or another and have upped their performances since he left. However, my disagreement with him was on the *needing* part: if we have no ambitions this season, as it seems to be the case, Arsenal result won't fool me (against 10 men too), would keep Jose cause us to drop or eventually he would stabilize things as he seemed to be doing? Without empowering the players as we did by sacking Jose. I digress because that's not even the point I was going to make. Back to cause and consequence, the question is how much of the improvement is down to the individual, Hiddink, and how much is just good players getting in some sort of shape. Hiddink's last works are nothing to write home about.

Happy to beat the most disgusting team in the world with the most annoying manager ever! Sad that we don't get to play them again this season. The game was difficult when they had 11 players. Or passing was sloppier and they looked sharper. i disagree that there was a need for the red though. That's a very personal and consistent disagreement that I have with the pundits. They call a play correct - in this case a red - if the play could have led to a red as it did. My take is that removing a player from a team, with a red card, is so drastic and detrimental to the spectacle that if there is a slight possibility of not showing a red the ref should not show it. Diegos sublime first touch was key in driving the red card though. i will obviously take it.

And way too late in the transfer window - not allowing Everton time to find proper replacement.

Most people are missing the obvious ... That keeping ivanovic saves money - is yet another cheap move for a squad that is on the cheap side compared to the other top clubs. he's been playing at a decent good level and people are wrong to criticize him too much for Everton game. Their left side is usually very strong with baines and anyone would struggle with that - another player would certainly too. we failed to contain that side as a team. he was beaten some times by overlaps. Other times by early crosses, which is Baines' virtue and very difficult to contain. Of course he's on the decline as he loses the little pace he had. But the club does not seem capable of investing in multiple areas apparently.

Pedro is playing slightly below his valuation as a player - pretty much like the rest of the squad. hes just not that good. we can't compete with the top teams by acquiring decent/good players like Pedro. In the end, perhaps we have to play mourinho style to be able to compete - bc we just don't have the players for that.

Think not about money but what paid professional scouts and coaches see in a particular player... And what tier they belong... Big clubs drive valuations up by showing interest in certain players. not fashionable I know but football is business Our squad is already cheap enough. We can use more of the oscars and less of the mikels.

The other way around for me - as their market valuations would suggest.

With all the known caveats, like any other bet, it may actually work. He's young enough to get back to some sort of form - he just needs to keep him fitness in check: no injuries.