robsblubot

Yeah because all teams go all out against Brazil. Same against Chelsea.

this is all relative. To me the best performer has been Lionel Messi because of how poor Argentina has been, and how decisive Messi has been for them. This goes back to Maradona vs Pele, and how we Brazilians always value the goal scorer vs the playmaker; it has worked quite well for us, but it is certainly debatable. Maradona was a genius, but as a Brazilian, Messi is not that far esp considering how often he scores.

It's Colombia. I know it's confusing though. It's really silly to compare players when the teams are facing completely different opponents. Neymar and Oscar also have far less freedom on the pitch than other players. Timing is also a factor: how would you rate Oscar in November 2013? Or Neymar, aside from his Brazil appearances? It's all so very relative. James Roadriguez may yet join a top EPL side and then flop like many good players have. I'm not saying it will happen, but that we just don't yet know. The grass is always greener...

He certainly deserves yet another ban. However then they might as well bring Italy back, because this Uruguayan side doesn't deserve to play in the KO stage without him. I would rather watch Italy play than Uruguay without Suarez.

Not even the best English player I've seen. That would have to be Paul Gascoigne and by a very wide margin. Beckham was an excellent player, but never top 10 for me.

The most overrated player of all time for me is Ronaldinho. With David Beckham as a close second.

Many players underperformed at the critical moment: in defense, middle, and of course, attack. So many points lost at home against shitty teams for example. Next season will be a key for many players. Not that will be labeled bad or anything like that, but reckon Jose may want to improve on them to grab some silverware... if he's still the manager at the end of the season.

Let's try it again, even with the matching numbers so the chronology is perfect! DO you see the problem with #2 ?! We don't have David Luiz #4 and #5 just yet, but your #2's cannot be right! Torres: 1. Liverpool signs Torres for 20m 2. Torres was great for Liverpool for many seasons 3. We buy Torres for 50m 4. He's been awful for us (according to many) 5. We cannot sell Torres for 10m unless we pay his wages Torres LOST (a lot of) value at Chelsea! 1. We buy David Luiz for 21m + Matic (say 25m) 2. According to you he was awful 3. We sell David Luiz for 50m making him the most expensive defender ever. David Luiz INCREASED (really doubled!) his value at Chelsea!

Chronologically your post makes no sense whatsoever. Because of your claim that he's been a flop for us.

that was not the point though, but rather that his value increased. Fans are not paid to do proper research, crunch numbers... we only do the fun part of the "job." Besides Jose himself priced DL at 35M - hardly a fire sale. I was responding to the comparison with Torres situation - couldn't be any more distinct. --- http://america.aljazeera.com/blogs/worldcup/2014/6/21/more-defenders-havemeantmoregoalsandotherworldcupconundrums.html Good read even if you don't agree with most if not all of it. It really goes into Total Football, even if unintentionally. Again, I don't believe that there is only one way of wining in football - I've actually seen completely different styles do it. And once again, I'm going to recomment the book soccernomics (Simon Kuper et al.), which is must read for fans of the game.

^^ Care to point out which facts I got wrong? Chronologically: Torres: 1. Torres was great for Liverpool for many seasons 2. We buy Torres for 50m 3. He's been awful for us (according to many) 4. We cannot sell Torres for 10m unless we pay his wages Torres LOST (a lot of) value at Chelsea! 1. We buy David Luiz for 21m + Matic (say 25m) 2. According to you he's awful 3. We sell David Luiz for 50m making him the most expensive defender ever. David Luiz INCREASED (really doubled!) his value at Chelsea!

Speak for yourself man. I've been reading a lot about DL's hair lately. I'm going to answer it, by saying that's really a question for Scolari, Guardiola, Barca, and PSG. Why don't they care about his concentration issues? I can only guess (honestly) they believe they can circumvent that by other means (teamwork/tactics/cover). Be assured that if Luiz flops completely at PSG and is sold for 10m to everton I will be the first one here stating the obvious. However, some say he has already flopped for us and was still sold for 50m. That's really tough to grok. Likewise if Mikel hits his head and starts performing like Pirlo or Modric, and Barca signs him for 30M, I will also be on here stating the obvious, that I was wrong. Won't lose a minute of my sleep either way though.

Torres CANNOT BE SOLD (at least not for 50m) = FACT Carrol sold for peanuts by liverpool = FACT DAVID LUIZ WAS EXTREMELY WELL SOLD (for a lot more than we paid) = FACT David Luiz, after being named here the worst defender on earth by some luminaries around here, sold for 50M making him the most expensive defender ever = FACT So, not only do you guys have a problem with facts, but also timing?! Do you understand that this deal took place AFTER he's been, according to you, the worse defender on earth (liability, etc)?! It's like if Bayern, Barca, and PSG were battling off to sign Torres or Carrol right now - do you see that happening?! If you cannot see the difference, then I'm so sorry.

Fair enough, but just don't rate Ronaldo in tight spaces. Big games are played in tight spaces and I feel Messi can do that while Ronaldo can't. Bale is also younger, so I guess we shall see. Agree that Jaglielka isn't comparable to John terry. I also think Gary is a lot better than Jaglielka and both missed the leadership of a JT. After all there is a reason Gary plays for us and Jaglielka for Everton. Concerning England, not that sure the defenders were that much to blame. It's really not the defenders' job to watch a player like Suarez, but the midfield. Midfield that was nowhere to be found most of the time, leaving the defense exposed, especially mister Gerrard.

Great players win you matches... That's what Eden did today.

no dude, they are opinions. David Luiz sold for 50M = FACT David Luiz bought for 21m + Matic = FACT Brain farts, bad decision making, never world class = OPINION I for one have a hard time taking these opinions seriously, when considering the facts listed above.

Have to agree with the others here: really disappointed by his attitude both on and off the pitch.

no, I never said player's valuations are that precise. Just that they ought to be taken into account, because they will never be that "off" either. Had PSG not been in the picture and DL would've been sold for 35m, which is hardly cheap for a defender. We bought him for 21M + Matic! So it's also not a one time thing either. Now, I am NOT the one here who chooses to ignore all these facts. I've said over and over that PSG as the new rich has to overpay to acquire players... was it any different with City or even us before? Just for the record, I'm not a big fan of Ronaldo and think Bale isn't t that far behind him (higher ceiling too). Messi (who's a genius) doesn't even have a price tag on him. ------- Anyway David Luiz is gone and got us a lot of cash in return. Shouldn't we be talking about Gary here though? How does he fare against other low block defenders? Top of my head, Terry is still better; Godin is better as well; then you have players who are comfortable with both high and low blocks, like Kompany and Sergio Ramos. Though I feel Kompany is more comfortable in a low block. There aren't that many players of his type, who are much superior than Cahill.

We shall see. I think David Luiz is far more proven than any those you mention. Torres is really a completely different subject with very little to do with DL. Fair enough. Now we finally go into opinions again: to me DL virtues are defensive indeed! The high block he does IS BETTER than a low block! Why? Because in my view, with a good delivery, like the one which allowed Victor to beat Luiz or the one which allowed Balotelli to beat Cahill, the defenders will very often get beaten; that's how goals are scored. So, if you can stop an attack higher on the pitch, you may be preventing the delivery itself. Again, this is a personal opinion, and some very famous coaches prefer a different approach, ours included. I don't claim to know better; just that there are many ways to win, because I've seen many very different winning sides. Gary is a good defender. Not world class and I don't see him ever becoming a target for another top club, unless at the end of his contract for ex. What really concerns me is that we don't have any defender who can play in a high block. Haven't seen Zouma though. Reckon you gotta have the option, even if not your preferred way of playing, for those games where you gotta pressure from the get go.

You keep repeating this absolutely ridiculous statement based on nothing other than your very personal opinion. There is really nothing to discuss about this. It is indeed widely accepted PSG overpaid for David Luiz. However, by how much? Chelsea priced him at 35m, so of course they overpaid to get him because they had to! Given a choice, DL would prob go to Barca or Bayern. Now if you think Barca, Bayern, and PSG were after David Luiz because of his hair, that's a again, a pretty fantastic view of the very professional world of football - especially the players market. The only pundits who don't rate Luiz are English. DL makes "a mistake" and a member of this forum goes on and on how that was a mistake and all. Then Cahill makes a similar "mistake" for England... not a peep... (neither were mistakes to me BTW). So, I assume you must be surprised how Brazil doesn't seem to concede goals, even though they play with 2 attacking fullbacks and Paulinho in front of him, not to mention glorious QPR GK behind. Ah I forgot it's the perfect 1m83cm giant Thiago Silva who always covers for DL. OK dude, we shall see. Just don't be surprised if PSG are much stronger next season in the CL, because money does buy quality.

" Luiz has more awesome hair." That's a ridiculous stament. So, you are saying PSG paid 50m for his hair. You know it's not the owner right? that they have scouts, agents, coaches who are paid to research and get the data on stuff like this? Yeah yeah everybody is an idiot, except Chelsea fans who think Gary is the best defender in the world. Never seen any reports about any team after Gary, and he'd be awful at Barca; they need high blocking defenders. (this is an opinion)

So where did you "check"? You have a serious problem with facts vs opinion: the fact is PSG did pay 50m while your "opinion" is that he's not worth 50m. Barca offer was gong to be 35M (also not a fact but some reports), so PSG had to outbid them. So, why hasn't Gary gotten any offer ever? Why isn't any top side after him?

Pretty bad performance so far. Thought MIkel wasn't that great against Bosnia. Emenike was fantastic though; pace, power and the final touch.

Last time I checked PSG is from France, Bayer is from Germany, and Barcelona from Spain.

I guess he just did. The players market spoke earlier, but people here don't understand the language.