Just how good is David Luiz?

[Tomo 21,751]

People will point to a few odd mistakes but at the end of the day i can more than forgive them for what i believe he has brought to the team as a whole since his £21m move from Benfica.

November - January our play was so laboured and predictable it was honestly laughable but since David Luiz came in imo there was improvement, Liverpool was a shocking match until Luiz came on and in Luiz's 20 minutes we looked more like scoring than we did in the previous 70, had we turne that game around we'd still be talking today about that cameo.

Fulham the next week he was the bright spark, commanding in defence and attack and i still believe the pen should not have been given, then in the Everton and Copenhagen (both) match without Luiz we looked really poor and out of ideas. Ive never seen a more entertaining display by a centre half then with Luiz against both United and City, there is no 2 ways about it without him we would not have broken either side down.

Our April premier performances to me were pretty decent and bar the Stoke game Luiz did really well and played with flair, however in the 2 CL ties with Manchester United we missed him big time, our display's in both legs just fell short of shameful.

Luiz has also got a lot of flack for his first minute mistake that let Hernandez in at Old Trafford and while i was and still am a Carlo fan the way he scapegoated Luiz was a joke, but i thought he was outstanding after that a lot of players head's would drop but he put a more than respectable display in for the rest of half. Also IMO the Newcastle and Everton games were a new low for the season, both those games gave me a horrific taste in my mouth and also highlighted just how important Luiz now is to our side, our first 2 performances (bar the second half at Stoke) again have highlighted that to me Luiz is a must play if fit.

All in all the guy has been a breath of fresh air to this football club since his January move and is now one of our most vital players and i still believe give it a couple of years and he will be the best centre half on this planet.

[Bir_CFC 3,455]

You don't need to write one line to back up that statement, let alone a paragraph.

[manpe 10,861]

He is an exciting player alright... Can't wait to see him in action again. He has scored against Man United, that makes him a legend already

[DYC. 7,542]

You gotta love how the David Luiz-loving took a huge drop after he made some mistakes. From world-class CB claims to let's play him at RB or DM.

David Luiz is a very talented player, and I absolutely love his ball-playing skills, but he needs to grow up (experience). Whether he'll be the best CB in the game, I have no clue. Don't understand how one can make such claims. But I do think he'll become a class defender.

[Madmax 9,219]

Needs to cut out the mistakes from his game, no doubt about it. Otherwise the excellent ball-playing skills and flair he brings will become the very aspect of his game he will get beaten with.

[Naked Mole Rat 437]

He's just a bit clumsy, but I'm sure he'll become a top defender in the near future.

[Duppy Conqueror 1,533]

i think he could be great...i see him as being a diamond for us..just needs to polish up what should be his primary role in the team., keeping forwards quiet.!

i`m sure he will get to be a better defender in time..needs to calm down a bit more at times and watch those wreckless challenges. he could have been sent off atleast once and in fairness,he should have really in that home game against Man U. he looked great going forward in that game,but we need to remember he`s supposed to be a CB.

i got high hopes for him ,i just don`t want us relying too much on him by selling more solid players just yet because i don`t think Luiz is quite ready to be the rock at the back for us at this stage of his career. maybe in a few months he will have sorted out the wrinkles. .

[lionsden 4,689]

DL is a similar player to Vermaleen. Defenders with superior technical ability (by the average defender's standard) but shaky defensively and prone to committing errors at the back. He still has a long way to go.

[The Big Drog 1,110]

I hate the suggestions of playing him at RB or DM, he is a centre back and an exceptional one at that. His speed, strenght, technical ability and reading of the game are top notch, he is a stunning young player and a potentially world class centre back.

[LDN Blue 7,903]

Put it this way..

He should be Brazil's first choice CB next to Thiago Silva, had Menez not had some love-affair with out of form Lucio. And that is a big claim to make. I think he is our next Carvalho (LOL love how people deny this now). He's made mistakes, and he'll learn from those as he plays more. Experience is vital and unfortunately he hasn't got to play that much for us under Villas-Boas because of Copa America, fatigue and now an injury.

Only time will tell if he lives up to his potential.

P.S. Also agree with people rubbishing the claim he should play at DM or RB. It's well known the central areas (CF & CB) are the most risky to play youngsters, but if United can fit Phil Jones in there, of course we can make David Luiz a permanent member in that back line.

[Kojo 4,676]

Luiz is great, I even saw a thread in the arsenal forum and the topic creator said he makes Vermaelen look average. The Man City match everyone on here gave him a 10, and that's really rare on this forum. And yes, we then had 2 weeks off to take us out of form, just do we cud play Stoke And get smashed. Luiz struggled and we needed Alex for that match.

But after that he wasn't playin top level for the rest of the season and was being very clumsy and even gave away an unecessary penalty against the brummies. But hopefully his rest done him good. And I hope we can see the great David Luiz we had last season when we first bought him.

[BLionheart 516]

I have always laughed at people who thought Alex or Iva are better than Luiz , They are great defenders but Luiz for me is on another level , the lad simply has got it all , his pace , superb reading of the game and technical ability will always make him a better defender , let away his offensive contribution and ball distribution .....

Also Luiz is the perfect partner for JT , as JT needs a pacy defender who is a good reader of the game a la carvahlo .

About the lack of experience claims , yes he needs to get more experience but who doesn't ?? people tend to look to much into it , for instance if Luiz was the man who lost the ball instead of Alex against west brom people would have said : see , Inexperienced .

I can only find one weakness in his game and that is in one on one situation , he doesn't have that perfect timing of when to put a foot in which sometimes ends up with a foul or him being beaten .

[Waterfall 893]

I think Ivanovic is the better defender at the moment. Luiz can give us a different dimension, but he just has to learn that he can't and doesn't have to win every ball. Once he learns that, sky's the limit.

[HRiver 1,512]

I also think that Ivanovic, for now, is better and more experienced for the CB role. Luiz has got great skills and he is excellent when he has the ball in his feet. When he doesn't have the ball though, sometimes he makes some silly mistakes. But he's still young and he will no doubt improve.

[manpe 10,861]

He's 24 Damn I thought he was younger