Marco Reus

[Chelsea? 892]

So how do we know that Ronaldo/Messi are the two best players in the world. What's the point of Ballon dor then since according to you there's no way of knowing messi is a better footballer than Kompany for example.

You can compare players who play different positions imo, there's a thing called output and consistency factoring in talent level, consistency and reliability, impact etc i,.e is that defender better at defending than Neymar is at attacking?. if your answer is yes then that defender is the better player because he does his primary job better than the attacker in question carries out his own primary objectives and al round game.

I doubt anyone with a fully functioning brain would disagree that Cech is a better player than Marko marin for example why because Cech is a proven world class GK while the German is just bang average and mediocre at his job.

well if you believe in the saying that "a good offense beats a good defense any day", then I would say Ronaldo is better than Neur. Also you have to consider how important the position is: would you rather have the best GK or the best CF?

[lionsden 4,689]

well if you believe in the saying that "a good offense beats a good defense any day", then I would say Ronaldo is better than Neur. Also you have to consider how important the position is: would you rather have the best GK or the best CF?

I agree that fans in general have the tendency to favour attackers over defenders however the reason why I don't think Neuer is better than Ronaldo (I can only speak for myself anyway) is because the Portuguese performs at a higher level and on a more consistent basis than the German. Now if the comparison was between Dino Zoff/Schmeicel/Khan/Buffoon (prime) and Ronaldo then it becomes far more interesting debate.

As for what position is more important, that depends on the tactics and philosophy of the team. for an attacking and creative team, the best GK/defender is more beneficial see Arsenal while a team that's built on defence and struggles to create chances and break down opposition defence would benefit more from the best CF/attacker.

With that said, I still firmly believe players from different positions can be compared with objective criteria : the level and consistency of their performances. It's not rocket science to deduce that Neuer performs at a higher level than Balotelli, is it? unless you want to make it more complicated than it actually is.

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

So how do we know that Ronaldo/Messi are the two best players in the world. What's the point of Ballon dor then since according to you there's no way of knowing messi is a better footballer than Kompany for example.

You can compare players who play different positions imo, there's a thing called output and consistency factoring in talent level, consistency and reliability, impact etc i,.e is that defender better at defending than Neymar is at attacking?. if your answer is yes then that defender is the better player because he does his primary job better than the attacker in question carries out his own primary objectives and al round game.

I doubt anyone with a fully functioning brain would disagree that Cech is a better player than Marko marin for example. why because Cech is a proven world class GK while the German is just bang average and mediocre as an attacker.

Ballon d or has their own criteria to decide who is the best player, by comparing every player in every position by stats with performance index or something.

What I mean is in here, especially in this Reus thread case, I just want to see player in the same position as Reus as a comparison, because then we could compare their stats, style of play, performance and so on in fair condition.

If we trying to compare players with different position, most part will come out from personal opinion. For example, if I have a mindset that Reus is the best player, I could say he is better than Alaba, Cahill, Terry, Neueur, James, Neymar, Oscar, etc. But then people will disagree with me, and will have their own opinion, for example they think Alaba is the best player, Terry their best player and so on.

That will be pointless discussion imo, cause it never reach one point, and no proof.

[OhForAGreavsie 6,067]

gundogan?????? When was the last time he took field!!! In what world is gundogan or alcantara better than iniesta???

Last Wednesday.

To be fair, he hasn't been great since his return Understandably rusty I'd say.

[OhForAGreavsie 6,067]

Can't believe some would genuinely say no to Reus at £19m because they're scared for the PL... Incredible.

I wouldn't even say we're that dominant. Not our fault City keep slipping against teams they should be beating. United will be back next season with smart spending - Arsenal are still in the mix of they sort a few things out...

You seriously can't rest on your laurels because you're on top. That's how decline starts.

[lionsden 4,689]

Ballon d or has their own criteria to decide who is the best player, by comparing every player in every position by stats with performance index or something.

What I mean is in here, especially in this Reus thread case, I just want to see player in the same position as Reus as a comparison, because then we could compare their stats, style of play, performance and so on in fair condition.

If we trying to compare players with different position, most part will come out from personal opinion. For example, if I have a mindset that Reus is the best player, I could say he is better than Alaba, Cahill, Terry, Neueur, James, Neymar, Oscar, etc. But then people will disagree with me, and will have their own opinion, for example they think Alaba is the best player, Terry their best player and so on.

That will be pointless discussion imo, cause it never reach one point, and no proof.

Ok fair enough.

[OhForAGreavsie 6,067]

That's my gripe with the story. Jose I think has vested something in Andre, I think he will give him time.

I'm not sure that's Jose's style, I think he'll review his opinions when required. For example, he all but promised Chalobah a place in the squad this season but had the good sense not to be trapped by those injudicious comments and sent the young man back out on loan instead. In any case, Jose only rubber-stamped the deal for Schurrle, he didn't initiate it, so maybe he isn't all that invested in Andre anyway.

I like Andre. If the role of squad player would satisfy him he'd be a great man to have around, but I suspect it wouldn't satisfy him and I also suspect that Jose cannot offer him more than that. Therefore, if this swap really does interest BVB, I'd expect it to interest Schurrle also.

[Chelsea Legend 11 4,062]

If I recall correctly Arsenal were 9 points above City this time last year. This season is far from over. Write off Manchester City at your own peril. They still have arguably the best squad in the Premier League, we're just more balanced, more in form and better managed. Not only that they bullied us at Etihad and were quite clearly the better side. We couldn't retain possession and our 'world-class' players couldn't handle their presence and physicality. They are a formiddable outfit on paper and there was a stage last season where no one could get within four goals of them for a period of about 6 weeks. They were dubbed as the strongest Premier League side in history by TalkSport and the competition was becoming 'unfair' because of their utter domination. A week later we went to Etihad and knocked them off and it derailed their season somewhat. All it will take is for us to lose an easy game or draw a couple and they're right back in it. Two bad weeks of football could make the start of our season a distant memory. There is still a long way to go until we've bagged this title.

Also the signing of Reus will not make us invincible. It will assist us in the premiership and furthermore Europe, but it will no way in hell create a gap similar to the Bundesliga or Ligue 1. Manchester United will spend another 150 million quid next transfer window and will keep buying world class players until their title window opens up again. They can afford to do that and FIFA will want them to become successful again because they simply generate the highest revenue in the Premier League when they're up. Manchester City already have a strong squad and are by no means short on cash. They can afford to tweak their squad over the summer as well and will be up there yet again. Arsenal have shown the past two years they have the power and money to draw in elite players and with a bit of luck with injuries they will challenge on all fronts. I don't rate Liverpool that highly at the moment but their young players are undeniably talented and if they all stick together who knows what shit they could pull out of their ass. On top of that they have a proud history and that in itself will attract world class players. Then there is Everton, Tottenham and Southampton who are always going to be there abouts - bridging the gap between the strongest clubs and the not so strong. The Premier League is a solid system. The amount of history and money in the biggest five clubs will ensure that no one club can break away from the rest, not for a substantial amount of time anyway. Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich will ensure that if one club gets too strong it will lose some of their players eventually. It's the circle of life in football. We need to grab Reus while we can and run away with it because we are not as far ahead as you may think.

Nowhere did I say the title race is over. You keep talking about City like we have to play them every week, we don't, Its about the league itself and I don't see a need to add Reus just because he may be available.

This has more to do with keeping the playing field competitive, by January there stands to be a good chance we're out of sight so why are we looking to buy another player of World Class talent? if the summer comes and a need opens up then we can look to buy him but at current its just a luxury buy or a high stakes game of keep away.

[Chelsea Legend 11 4,062]

I'm not gonna go back and forth with you guys about this, I can understand why you would want Reus he's a fantastic player for cheap. I opened by saying I know I'm likely the only one who would rather we develop our own players and if a need arises then go into the market. We're undefeated, coming off the back of a year we finished 4 pts from the title and in the semis of the Champions League. We signed Remy, Costa, Drogba Fab, Luis, Zouma, Salah and Matic. We are already a much better team than the team that came so close last year.

This isn't cocky, we have the only real Premier League manager who knows how to win, that already puts so many teams at a disadvantage. What I'd like to see happen is for the market to stay competitive and reasonable. That's all.

[didierforever 7,349]

so when are we looking to buy him? this winter?

cos that would mean sacrificing our CL ambitions.

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

How if we do the swap and then loaned back each other, would they still eligible to play at CL?

[Joker10 946]

Can't believe some would genuinely say no to Reus at £19m because they're scared for the PL... Incredible.

I wouldn't even say we're that dominant. Not our fault City keep slipping against teams they should be beating. United will be back next season with smart spending - Arsenal are still in the mix of they sort a few things out...

You seriously can't rest on your laurels because you're on top. That's how decline starts.

I absloutely have no sympathy for any EPL sides. In fact the EPL has declined, mainly due to lack of a great side or sides. As we all remember when Roman bought Chelsea, we won 2 straight titles. It forced and challanged Liverpool, Arsenal, and United to be great and overthrow us from the top. In that period EPL became the best league in the world, and would have reguarly two to three sides with legit shot at CL and at the very least would go very far in the tournement. In recent years, we are the only club that actually is a threat in the European stage. The PL have become complacent due to the drop off at the very top, it lacks a dominent side.

Obviously another reason for the league complacent is due to money, this league is too rich for its own good. The product on the pitch does not match the increase of revenues of this league. PL is a marketing monster.

It is quite amazing that Atletico Madrid and Dortmund have a lower revenues stream then mid table teams in the PL. So i don't feel sorry for the rest of the PL clubs either, they can compete too but they need to be creative. Prime example is Southampton, look what they have done after the fire sale they had in the summer. How many other clubs would have hired someone like Koeman and the signing they made. Most PL sides keep hiring the same crap managers like Steve Bruce, Big Sam, Warnock, etc. They are doing nothing good with the money, just doing the same old uncreative shit.

Sorry for going off topic, but saying we shouldn't sign Reus because it would make the league uncompetitve is a pretty bad argument.

[OhForAGreavsie 6,067]

...Sorry for going off topic, but saying we shouldn't sign Reus because it would make the league uncompetitve is a pretty bad argument.

In any case, sounds to me like an absolutely compelling argument for why we should want to sign Reus.

[OhForAGreavsie 6,067]

How if we do the swap and then loaned back each other, would they still eligible to play at CL?

Yes.

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

Yes.

Sounds like a good idea then

Everybody wins