Serie A Thread - 2014/15 Season

Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Stef,
I'm a Spurs fan. So it's a team i know quite well, since i watch them every week.
Yesterday Spurs were extremely poor. Like i predicted, the 0-1 result of the away leg was actually not that good a result because it suffocated Spurs. They never really were able to impose themselves and IMO that is not because Milan were good. Spurs were bad.

In the CL Redknapp tend to play with Crouch upfront and this is not a good thing for the team. It's not that Crouch is not a good player (he is nothing special, but a decent good player), but with him upfront there is no variation in Spurs's game...I also think that it never was the intention of "giving" or "letting" the ball to Milan...that could have been suicidal (after all Milan did have the chances to score the winner).

I have the impression Milan is buying the wrong players: Robinho, Ibrahimovic (and yes he can be a fabulous player), Ronaldinho, Beckham, the Dutch CF who now plays for Schalke and even Cassano...they are all players who've seen it all...the hunger and the desire to win has faded for that kind of players...

Milan need to buy young upcoming players, the stars of tomorrow (Merkel could be one) and not yesterday's stars...but what will Milan buy...they will buy a player like Higuain, another very good player who relatively failed in a big club (this is only an example, but this seems to be the type of player Milan is buying lately) or maybe (more likely) Kaka. As good as Kaka was for them, that would not be a good idea IMO...
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Gerd, I don't agree about Cassano. His last 3 years have been phenomenal. He's proven to be decisive for us since joining. He has some ridiculous stat of like 6 assists in 8 games.

I also disagree that Spurs were so poor and Milan don't really deserve much credit. In the first half, Spurs saw a lot of the ball and were pressing very high. They were trying to win the game in the first 20 minutes. Then Milan slowly got more and more calm and began to pass it around faster - this is when they started playing it long to Crouch. They just couldn't get out any more, so Harry clearly went for a super defensive approach. I find it so ironic that the English press were claiming Milan were abnormally young and attacking, which is a total load of bollocks considering United and Arsenal played super defensive at the Nou Camp in recent years and 2 nights ago.

I agree that Ibra and Robinho were mediocre buys, but Beckham was a good signing and Ronnie was purely for economical terms. We were in a financial dip, which seems to have cleared now thanks to the financial input Becks and Ronnie brought to the club. We've signed players like Emanuelson, Boateng, Didac (he's gone AWOL) and Cassano - players with speed and are all under 28, and all under 15m... so you have to give credit to our new strategy. We also have Abate who's been really good this year and Merkel who's slowly being integrated this year... he's just 19 from Kazakhstan.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Was a good performance but I was surprised at how dominant you were and yet never really upped the tempo and went for it, the last 15 minutes was the same as the first 15.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Stef, did you noticed how many bad passes Spurs had yesterday? Much, much more than usually.
About Cassano: i'm not saying he is a bad player...i'm well aware that he has been phenomenal the last years. But a team with Ibrahimovic, Robinho and Cassano....three huge ego's...that is way too much in one team.
Apart from that i'm not overwhelmed by Pato...maybe he is very good in Serie A, but in Europe he never was anything special IMO.

I all honesty, since i only see Milan in the CL i'm not the best placed person to assess them...
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

gerd said:
Apart from that i'm not overwhelmed by Pato...maybe he is very good in Serie A, but in Europe he never was anything special IMO.
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Come on mate. He is a 21 year old player with 8-9 CL games under his belt. Not all as a starter and 2 of them as a 17 year old against Arsenal back in 2008. Judging him like Ibra who has never done anything is not right. I'd give Pato another 3-4 years before he reaches top level unless he keeps getting bombarded by injuries.

I liked Pato yesterday. He had great chances and created a magical one. He has the speed and technical skills to become the best player in the world. Just needs to work on his confidence and having Ibra on the team is not helping that.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

pato is quite simply a MONSTER. on the same level of balotelli. the kid has been cursed with injuries over the last 2 years, and yet he managed to achieve a 0.5 goal per matches ratio... this data would already speak for itself.... when u consider than he didn't even play as a starter in several occasions.... it becomes even more impressive.
he's got everything to become one of the greatests forwards on the planet. his acceleration is absolutely brutal, is ball control is phenomenal (especially in tight spaces), he's confident and he's got a very good positioning. and he scores. a lot!
he would be a star everywhere; in italy, in spain, in england... everywhere. :))
milanista said:
I agree that Ibra and Robinho were mediocre buys
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:CONFUSE: :CONFUSE::SHOCK:
u think ibra was a mediocre signing???!!! i gotta say i didn't see that coming!
u got yourself one of the 5 greatests offensive players in europe... for only 24 million euros! he's had an unbelievable impact on milan ever since his very first game. he has scored 19 goals in 35 games this season.... he's the player with most assists in serie a right now (11).
that was one of the best signings of the last few years.... in europe!
u're a hard man to please stef, aren't u? :P
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

I am Ben. I'm not a fan of players like Ibra. Milan has never really been a team that signed 'pricks' in football. I was a little harsh - yes, Ibra is doing well in Serie A, but I don't like that sort of game plan that requires him to be on the field and on form for us be effective. I've never been a fan of him and think he's good if he was the one the team relied on, but we have so much more quality than to become that kind of team.

He's the kind of player that is frustrating, which is exactly the kind I dislike. Pippo was like this in his first 2 years at Milan - out of 20 chances, he scored 5. Ibra does this thing where he stops the ball and spends an extra second on it every single time, especially when its something like 3 vs 3. He also does this predictable move where he fakes to the left then cuts inside - again, he does it every single time and has been doing it since the Inter days. He does silly things that end up in us losing possession.

The thing I like best about him is his professionalism in terms of concentration and composure, but other than that, he's just so frustrating to have, especially if he's our primary bomber. In the past we were quick on the counter attack with Sheva or Kaka, or even Tomasson (:LOL:). These days it seems like we don't really score on the break unless we're already winning by a big margin, this is why I think Pato is being wasted. I want to see Pato-Cassano up front. We rarely cross and score through headers, so I want to see what happens if we play a fast ground passing game. In fact, I can imagine Ibra working well if Allegri encouraged our strikers to play like that rather than leave one up there on his own. It seems to always be either Pato or Cassano playing - I want Robinho benched to see how that works out, or Ibra benched once in a while.

I think Ibra and Robinho are good players, but I think we could've signed someone else too, or even stuck with Borriello (when he was on the field last year, he offered so much to every part of play).

And yes Ben, I'm always very critical of Milan, especially transfers and player performance. I'm also a very big critic in terms of player loyalties and behaviour. To my eyes, Ibra will always be an icon for Inter, so I'll find it hard to ever 'love' him. Pato and Thiago Silva, on the other hand, I consider to be on their way to become mini-bandieri of the team. You can tell in interviews that they love the club, especially Pato last week calling his teammates brothers. The kid joined when he was 16. And when Seedorf was crying last night, it just made me remember how great a player he was and how players like him aren't as common anymore.
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

That was a good and nice post stef. I totally agree with you on Ibrahimovic.

Ben, i'm sorry but never really impressed me in Europe (not even yesterday where he was one of the better Milan players).

But like i already said unfortunately i never see Serie A football, i'm not the person who is best placed to judge players of Italian teams.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Milanista said:
Especially Pato last week calling his teammates brothers
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Exactly mate and the fact that we benched him for a while and even considered selling him just to satisfy Mr. Ibrahimovic who prefers Cassano and Robinho just makes me angry.

Anyway, I think we found an essential part of our future midfield in Boateng. Obviously injured(he will miss the game against Bari) and had a great game.

And how about Roma? Roma can still send Borriello back right? :LOL: What a cry baby.
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Pato can become the world's best forward. He's got incredible talent and potential.

Gerd, you don't get any SErie A coverage in Belgium? That's odd. And it sucks! :/
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Seedorf is a true gentleman. I've seen him a couple of times as pundit on BBC: he is a class act. Much better than the likes of Shearer, Hansen and Lawrenson...
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Agree about Ibrahimovic, he's a great forward but I don't think its a good idea to rely on him as your "main man" and regarding Pato, remember Cristiano Ronaldo didn't score a goal in the CL until he was 22 or 23, how many has he got now?!

Could Cassano not be a trequartista (along with another) and return to your Xmas tree formation?
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Gerd, will u stop apologizing every time u have a different opinion than mine! whenever u say "sorry ben, but i got to disagree..." u make me feel guilty! :P
Milanista said:
I am Ben. I'm not a fan of players like Ibra. Milan has never really been a team that signed 'pricks' in football. I was a little harsh - yes, Ibra is doing well in Serie A, but I don't like that sort of game plan that requires him to be on the field and on form for us be effective. I've never been a fan of him and think he's good if he was the one the team relied on, but we have so much more quality than to become that kind of team.
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u weren't harsh, stef. ibra most likely is a prick. personally i can't stand him. and there's no question that, as a fan i would get much more attached to a class act like seedorf..... but that's not really the most important thing imo. some of the greatests football players in history were pricks. (maradona being the most classc example). but we're not judjing "sympathy" here. the question here is "is ibra a good signing for 24 millions?". given what he's done so far in milan, i'd say he's been an amazing signing.

ibra is one of those very few players on the planet who can change the shape of a team just by himself. teams tend to rely on this sort of players, no matter how many other quality players they have, precisely because theese players are so special.

as for him wasting several scoring chances, that's absolutely normal because, unlike what most people tend to think, ibra is not a cf. he is a seconda punta by all means (just like di natale). the thing is he scores so many goals and tends to become the fulcrum of the team to such an extent that people end up considering him a cf (just like di natale).... but he isn't. and as soon as u consider him a seconda punta, his scoring ratio becomes just sensational.
ever since he left juventus, he's never scored less than 20 goals.... and for a seconda punta (whose main asset is not scoring goals but setting up scoring chances) this is an unbelievable ammount of goals.

however i gotta say, i kinda enjoy the huge lack of recognition ibra gets all over europe. there are lots of less talented and less succesful players in europe (who couldn't even dream to reach ibra's level) who get far more praise than him.... and since, like probably most of us here, i can't stand him, i find it quite hilarious and refreshing :DD
milanista said:
These days it seems like we don't really score on the break unless we're already winning by a big margin, this is why I think Pato is being wasted. I want to see Pato-Cassano up front. We rarely cross and score through headers, so I want to see what happens if we play a fast ground passing game. In fact, I can imagine Ibra working well if Allegri encouraged our strikers to play like that rather than leave one up there on his own. It seems to always be either Pato or Cassano playing - I want Robinho benched to see how that works out, or Ibra benched once in a while.
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yeah that would be interesting to see indeed. and probably we will. as u pointed out, ibra desperately needs some rest.
u also might have a point about him and pato being incompatible.
Younggun said:
Could Cassano not be a trequartista (along with another) and return to your Xmas tree formation?
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well he has focused himself much more on providing assist than on scoring ever since he moved to milan, so yeah i guess it could happen. but allegri has found quite a nice balance with boateng playing like an "unusual trequartista", behind 2 forwards (ibra and cassano\pato), so i guess that'll be their gameplan (when all players are available).
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Hahhaha I'm fully with Ben on this whole Ibra thing.

1. He's an AMAZING player! The guy is very special! I don't care what he's shown so far in CL or not, anybody watching him as early as his Ajax days can tell you this guy is one of the world's best attackers. No denying that. And I would say he's been a GREAT signing so I wouldn't call him an 'average' one but of course I understand Stefano's reasons for not liking him. Who does? lol probably only his parents.

2. I HATE the prick and he's got SO much attitude and ego that it's GREAT to see he doesn't get the recognition he craves and honestly deserves so badly. It's refreshing and it's always fun to see him pissed off! :D
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

I'm sorry Ben, i will not apologize again (oops) :COOL:

I don't agree with your last post PLF: basically what you are saying is that although Zlatan never has proven himself at the pinnacle of football (CL), he still is one of the best players...that is a contradictio in terminis. It is by proving himself at the highest level that a player provesd he is one of the best players.

Alfonso Alves was fantastic in Holland, butr he never proved himself elsewhere (this is just an example, i know Ibrahimovic is much better than Alves). To me Ibrahimovic will never be a top player until he has proven himself in the CL. At the moment he is just one step away from the top and it seems he will never be able to take that last step. The reason is not talent but mentality.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

gerd said:
I don't agree with your last post PLF: basically what you are saying is that although Zlatan never has proven himself at the pinnacle of football (CL), he still is one of the best players...that is a contradictio in terminis. It is by proving himself at the highest level that a player provesd he is one of the best players.
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the thing is Gerd, zlatan HAS proven himself in champions league several times. some of his best performances over the last few years were on the champions league stage (with both inter and barça shirt).
infact very few forwards in europe (and i really mean "very few") have scored and provided assists in champions league as much as he did. i don't have time to look for numbers right now, but i'm quite sure of what i'm saying and a quick visit to wikipedia could easily prove my point..... however a little excerpt from a post i wrote in the chelsea thread a few weeks ago might come handy here.
me said:
and btw the whole point that he doesn' score in CL is a myth. he scored plenty of goals in CL. infact he's scored a lot more than fernando torres himself (ever since he joined liverpool fernando scored 8 goals in champions league, while, in the very same period ibra scored 14 goals... almost twice as much).
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but, for some weird reason, people seem to focus much more on his few mediocre performances in CL than on his several great performances.

and btw, i don't really consider CL as the biggest stage in football... it's certainly the most fancy (due to champoions league visibility).... but top domestic leagues (epl, liga, bundi, serie a, ligue 1) very often offer a much more challenging scenario to perform on.... and therefore a much more reliable source for players' judjment.
but that's just my opinion, of course. :))
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Zlatan scored twice for Barca against Arsenal in the CL last year. He also scored the winner for the Classico against Real.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

gerd said:
At the moment he is just one step away from the top and it seems he will never be able to take that last step. The reason is not talent but mentality.
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If he takes that step, he will be the best player on the planet, apart from Messi of course. Seriously, any striker would dream of his technical and physical abilities. I have yet to see him lose a physical battle, he is an awesome passer for a striker, and he can be really fast for a guy his size if he wants to.

I agree his mentality is shit. He is not like Inzaghi or Villa who is always making forward runs waiting for that one pass that goes through. He just stands there outside the box but that is the player he is but I got to say I admire him keeping his top form for almost 5 years now. He may be going slow now due to fatigue but let's not forget what he did and the praise he got in the first half of the season.

And yeah the CL thing can be misleading. Take Klose for example, his stats at the pinnacle of pinnacle of football(WC) is that of a LEGEND but domestically and even at the CL Ibra has done better over the last 4 years.

Anyway, Del Neri's fate might be decided today and according to Gazzetta Lippi might replace. Tbh I never liked the fact that a coach sticks to a certain formation. I don't think it works in big teams and Juve didn't have the right resources, especially the fullbacks and strikers.
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Gerd, Ben took the words out of my mouth.

I meant that I don't care that Zlatan has never set the stage on fire in CL football and amaze people who don't watch him regularly (like you) in CL. He's certainly done well enough. I don't think his performances in CL have been poor.

His performances for Sweden at International stage if anything have been poorer and that could be a better argument for the side you're taking. In CL, he's had very good performances as well as many mediocre ones.

Also, I will say what Ben and I have repeatedly mentioned throughout the years. A great player should be judged by CONSISTENCY! And as great as CL football is, it's a CUP tournament with only a few matches.

I think it's more important to perform at top level like EPL or Serie A or La Liga whatever, in 38 games than in 7 matches or so... in those matches you might be great or not... depending on injury, fatigue, many other things. I STILL hear what you're saying though and agree that a great player like Messi should and WILL perform in all. Nonetheless, overall I think it's better to judge a player over 5 seasons with 30 matches or so each season than on 20 matches or so which is what CL football is more like.

Anyway, enough about this prick though. As far as I'm concerned, the less people give him credit, the better! :D His head is already WAY too big!
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Anyone read about the proposed plans to create a young Azzurri team to play in Serie B? Sounds very interesting.

I also think Prandelli is right about Serie A needing a reserve league like in England so that youngsters and reserves can get some football.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

How is he going to make that happen? Sacchi and Albertini in on it too.

What about the teams they belong to?
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

Yeah wondering the same thing.

p.s. It's now been awhile since Balotelli joined Man City and man even Mancini is fed up with him!

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11959_6819359,00.html

This is not the first time he's aggravated the boss. He's doing it on a consistent basis instead of scoring goals and helping team with his wonderful ability on a consistent basis.

Mancini the man who gave him his debut, and confidence and about the only manager we thought might get along with this spoiled brat, but after sulking at him for being substituted, bad attitude in training and lazy in games, and getting stupid red-cards like this in a situation where you were already up against it, even Mancini who is his biggest fan is frustrated.

Yes, Mario CAN become an absolutely MONSTER one day. But that's an IF and a BIG IF. Until that day comes, if it ever comes, Inter and Moratti will feel great about the $30 Million they received for him.

Potential means nothing. His current attitude is so bad, it makes him not that good a player. Which is a real shame because even forgetting potential, his ability right now is so good that when he's 'normal' and not being a complete idiot which rarely happens, you can see just how dangerous he is! After all how helpful to your team can you be if you score 1 out of 20 for 'teamwork', and 'effort' etc. ? That's right, not very much useful at all. And definitely nowhere near 30 million.

I thought Mancini would be able to work with him and help him develop his huge potential but unfortunately even Roberto seems to be having big problems with it! :/

EDIT: Here's the beautiful unnecessary act lol. Fucking up your whole team for no reason and dashing their European hopes with a silly move like that. "Stupidity of the highest order... " lol as the commentator says. :LMAO:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4V3_FAXQcwU&feature=player_embedded
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

I wonder if he is not going to be another Cassano that will only reveal hitself and show his skills and not his attitude at 27/28. A shame that this kid has no brain.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2010/11 Season

I thought moving him out of Italy would allow him the chance to slowly sort himself out but nothings changed really.

I think its inevitable he'll remain this way unless he has a MASSIVE character change. Shame as his record at City is impressive.

EDIT: Just seen this...:LOL: :LMAO: Words can't describe Mario.

YouTube - Balotelli v. Bib
 
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