robsblubot

there is no fault. We were playing another quality side - not to mention just as expensive. Drawing or even losing was always a possibility unless you were delusional like some around here are. However, hazard was poor for me. Just like the other players in attack. If opposition being physical, like psg are, is going to be a problem for hazard and our players then we are sure fucked!

thoight he was great! Scored a crucial goal out of nowhere and was under far more pressure than silva was later (tired players). Opinions are opinions - ppl value different things in players. Though there is something factually incorrect in your post: matic joined jan 14 so luiz was the dm playing until then AND played alongside matic afterwards, again, in the tough matches. Our record in those games last season was almost perfect (better than this). I was talking to a colleague before the game and told him: out of psg players there was one in particular I did not want to have a good game, but he did. These moments define the great players not step overs or hitting row Z.

how can we move our players forward without exposing our cbs who are very slow? It's all connected - if the attackers move up without the defense line following suit, we incur into the same problem: too much distance between the lines which makes difficult keeping possession. Our current crop of players work well in this system. Not sure it's actually possible to change it without changing the players.

Once again we compare an established player against a youngster, only this time directly. Those who think this is a ridiculous dilemma, and it is, please remember we do this all the time around here. Answer is both. One for start and Kane to rotate. Kane is a lot better than remy for me.

Unfortunately good fortune has pushed Blanc to do the obvious (wish could go back in time and whack Scolari with the same magic wand): luiz made their midfield a lot better which in turn made them a lot more robust. He's just a better player than motta. I watched their game against Monaco - the one they tied - and the dominance was incredible. Psg were able to keep possession well and win every second ball.

That's a sensible assumption: that salah lacked something in training which made jose give up on him. The caveat remains that salah is awful young and the other players you've mentioned as far older and playing at the top of their game. But then again, I don't think jose is very good developing youngsters. It demands patience which is something he simply does not possess.

he was pretty good to be honest. Cahill had a really hard time handling Kane. Contrary to a lot o people here, I don't think much of Tottenham and Kane was pretty much one of the few good players they've got. Kane has everything, including technique; that's the difference between him and other players mentioned. Soldado is only technique, negredo just power and some pace, Loriente just power. What I see is that Kane has power, technique and, some pace for a guy of his build. Too soon to declare the genuine article, but someone to keep an eye on and if the opportunity arises...

Easiest MOtM ever! John Terry!

Are you kidding me?! without someone called didier we would have lost all the same. Mikel did a good job defending along with the defense line, but the midfield (mikel included) did very poorly on ball possession and counters. Mata had a terrible game for example. But then we were playing Bertrand as a left winger.

He played one game as a cb this season you say, perhaps that's the reason he didn't do too well. Because I remembed Iva doing very well as a cb a couple of seasons back.Other points fair enough but I never said to dismiss his mistakes, but that he's been unfairly criticized for making them - not the same.

agreed The player in the squad most inapt for the DM position. I'd ever prefer John Terry there who despite no longer being as quick can distribute play. Are we really proposing that the guy who has the most trouble in a high defense line, who backs off forever, is to play in midfield? something he's never done before?! Wow! I don't even mind him as a defender, though a very simple one.

Sorry are you saying that moving up and down the pitch does not take a toll on the player? And that the fact hes instructed by his manager to attack and has to think about ways to get into attacking positions constantly CANT possibly negatively affect his VERY proven defensive abilities?The idea that he can defend as a CB, but forgets how to do that when in RB position sounds a bit crazy to me.

I think I alreayd made my point so we are running in circles as we tend do do around here. For me, and me alone, Ivanovic is unfairly criticized. His FOCUS (not merely positioning) is attacking because that's his posture on the pitch and the manager seems to be content with that. Now, if you think players can do both (defend and attack) seamlessly, then I will just have to disagree. And also disagree on defending deep as well. As we have already established (did you not write that?) that he bombs forward, he is often coming back to defense. Unless he can magically appear deep in defense after sprinting forward.

I also dont disagree that he switches off - Kompany switches off too and so does Hummels (not even going into quirkier CBs - who shall not be named). The more proactive they are, more mistakes and bad judgement calls they make. Low defense line reduces the spaces behind them and makes judgement calls easier to make: do I intercept or prevent run/chase? As they (the CBs) join the midfield and help keep possession, judgement calls become more difficult. Smart runs, like you mentioned Lampard did, create chances. Anecdotally, Ive learned a lot playing Ultimate (aka football-frisbee) here in the US. In football/soccer we are used to play more in possession (though professionals know better). In ultimate you learn to play without the frisbee and beat your marker(s) with smart runs and change of directions. You can take a step ahead and combine with other players (shielding the run swapping position, etc) which is done a lot in Basketball too. Point being is that Ivanovic is a bit on the slow side even as a CB. As a FB he is definitely slow. Thats something Jose certainly understands and adapts, which having ZOuma on the right side may address actually. Iva will get beat again and he will make these mistakes again. He will always be vulnerable by the way that right side is setup. Its also about the way we are using him. Its fair to criticize him, but in the same criticism people say he bombs forward - we agree instructed by Jose. Well, that also makes him more vulnerable.

Heh just watched the game - as bad as their defense was (they are not very good) it was still a collective poor performance. Even when mertesacker makes the judgmental mistake (and I do understand why he made it - his teammates were not winning tackles) the guys around him did not cover for him.I just enjoy seeing arsenal lose so much...something wrong with me. Btw Monaco has a cm worth keeping an eye on - a guy capable o rotating Matic and start along as well.

I do disagree. The first part of my post addressed the fabled switching off that all non-English and usually superior defenders suffer from. I am a firm believer that it is impossible to defend a well placed ball (cross, through etc). The defenders in the box are reacting and as good as they may be at reading the plays, the atrackers can always improvise. So it's not that I disagree that some defenders switch off they certainly do (Iva included), but that it does not matter as much when defending as a tem is concerned.

Reports of his coming as Adidas were pretty off to be honest. Kudos for brand loyalty.Concerning salah vs cuadrado, the exchange makes no sense to me esp because salah is a lot younger. Difficult to know what the laches did not see in salah - perhaps not improving the way they expected him to.

I keep hearing of this lack of concentration which usually comes from England supporters and ironically I think the English team is awful in defense. And it has little to do with concentration but IMO characteristics - just listen to some pundits and you will understand it: hard to defend when your cbs or FBs sit in front of the gk and can/want only hit row Z, but I digress.You and I don't know what Ivanovic is instructed to do before each match, so you are making a lot of assumptions and I suspect they are wrong based on the evidence We have. if jose were indeed telling Him to keep position and Iva would bomb forward Jose would have dropped him in a heartbeat. Is it not safe to assume that Iva has been doing what Jose instructs him to do?

I honestly think you are all fucking crazy around here... Ivanovic is a top player and we are lucky to have him. He is a very good rounded player and a master with set pieces. Is there any other player in the world who is more of a threat in set piece situations? Like it or not, set pieces win games and titles.

exactly! Ironically, many here complain about Oscar general contribution in open play and yet I was never impressed by our former #8 general contribution. Never thought Lampard was particularly quick, defended well enough, or linked up play for an AM. He was a player who won games by scoring goals in key moments. He always struggled for England because they expected him to be a creative source, and he never could - neither could Gerrard. Jose on Lampard,

Agreed He was only behind hazard up front. Fab and costa were well below their normal. This is when having a small squad may hurt us.

Something is off with Oscar as he is clearly not as fit as he was At the start of the season. Not even talking about assists or creativity but workrate itself - he used to do more and used to actually enjoy himself in those big away matches. Once again we will not get the info - not the type of stuff clubs will disclose as it may give a competitive advantage to the opposition.

"Handball not deliberate" and it doesn't matter one bit whether it was deliberate or not - hands stretched out blocking a shot should always get a call.

He was the worst AM on the pitch - need to up his game big time.

nah it's not just you. Though some players are off-limits, while others are fair game, some even clowns.