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Serie A Thread - 2014/15 Season

Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

It should not be about selling shirts with Beckham on it gomito...it should be about age and ability...but then i'm getting old.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

Aboutreika18 said:
Looks like Gourcuff won't be returning in the summer then...:ROLL:
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i can't see gourcouff returning to milano in any case, abou.

#71, nice post. it's good to have some feedback from a regular liga sagres follower (who definitely knows ricardo much better than me ;) ) and i have to say i basically agree with everything u wrote.

as for miccoli, many times during his palermo experience, he mentioned what a great time he had in Lisboa. he also remarked how similar palermo and lisboa fans are, in terms of passion and kindness (and i can testify that aswell as i lived in portugal for a while years ago).
he said that he needs to feel this kind of "love" around him, in order to perform at his best.
technically he's great. i share your feelings about his carreer. and i can't help feeling he was a bit unlucky.... but than again, fiorentina, juve and benfica.... that's definitely not a low profile carreer ;))

stef, that article u posted was very interesting to read :)) it reflects pretty well my feelings about galliani's strategies
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

lo zio said:
i can't see gourcouff returning to milano in any case, abou
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I think he will return if we sold Seedorf. Plus, Milan I think will get any player that can help as they always suffer injury and desperately want the Scudetto for next term.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

Knowing our administration, Seedorf and Kaladze will remain to be starting players next season. Inzaghi and Favalli will still be around, and so will Oddo.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

I won't mind Inzaghi, He is satisfied with his sub role and still got it...
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

I think there is a down side to Milanello and the fantastic medical care that Milan has build up. The way players are observed and treated is unique but the down side is that Milan's team is getting too old. I have to admit that they are still reasonably succesfull with their "old" team but it makes them forget to search for young players...
I don't understand their transfer policy. I don't think that Ronaldinho and Beckham are appropriate players to buy for football reasons (they are for merchandising). I don't understand why Gourcuff did not play more and why they let him return to France. Gourcuff should have been loaned to an Italian club like Siena or Catania. Clubs that pose no treat to Milan but that are good enough to let Gourcuff grow accustomed to Italian football.
I also don't understand why Ancelloti never plays Flamini...Flamini was perhaps Arsenal's most important player, yet i have the impression that he's never had a fair chance in Milan...
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

#71 said:
I never rated Quaresma or Nani as a top player
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I think Nani has what it takes to become a Class player, I dont think he has the potential to hit Ronaldo's level but I do think he will reach a similar level to Simao who IMO is a World Class winger.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

gerd said:
Gourcuff should have been loaned to an Italian club like Siena or Catania. Clubs that pose no treat to Milan but that are good enough to let Gourcuff grow accustomed to Italian football.
I also don't understand why Ancelloti never plays Flamini...Flamini was perhaps Arsenal's most important player, yet i have the impression that he's never had a fair chance in Milan...
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There are two explanations for Flamini that I can give you:

A) Gattuso and Ambrosini are established and are very important for our team. They are assuring and are proven to work.

B) Pirlo - Ancelotti's greatest creation and achievement to date. Gattuso is out injured and we have a great passer/long baller in Beckham, but he insists that Pirlo starts, even in bad form. Same as last season. I would start Flamini over Pirlo if Beckham AND Seedorf are starting in the same team to offer the cover our defense can't handle and because of the strong offense we have.

About Gourcuff:

Its a complicated situation. Roma were the rumored club interested, so obviously we wouldn't loan him to them. In his first season, Seedorf and our midfield were too consistent - we won the CL.

Last season, Yoann played very little because of certain players that Ancelotti loves: Brocchi, Pirlo and Seedorf. All three were medicore last season, but to Ancelotti they are his first pick every time, he's not a manager that likes to grow players, he likes established talent. Pato and Kaka were large investments, so they immediately went in the squad.

Its sad that he won't come back, I really really liked him and was close to buying a Gourcuff jersey when he first joined. The only reason, like Zeem said, that Yoann might return is that if Seedorf is no longer a starter and that Beckham doesn't stay.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

I still have high hopes he will comeback. We will most probably promise him a starting place like we did with Borriello. I remember Borriello saying he doesn't want to return but then after playing 3 games with a team like Milan he said that it is the time of his life. I think it is the same situation between the two.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

Thanks Stef...
But what i don't understand is why Milan bought Flamini...if i was Flamini i would feel cheated.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

flamini does the same job gattuso does but is 6 or 7 years younger, it seems natural that he would at least be getting some games. i know gattuso fits into the setup easily but flamini cant fit in unless he gets games.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

YoungGun_UK said:
I think Nani has what it takes to become a Class player, I dont think he has the potential to hit Ronaldo's level but I do think he will reach a similar level to Simao who IMO is a World Class winger.
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He leveled up his game in England...but here in Portugal, despite being considered a talent when he left, he was far to be considered a GREAT player...people had doubts about he would develop since he couldn't even settle in Sporting...not for his talents, but mostly for his mentality..which own him a lot of disappointement by Sporting fans (he had difficult times). So, when he left for Manchester United for 25M € (?) a LOT of people thought it was too much for his value and potential (since it's risky to bet on a player who doesn't have great mentality...he can easily fall his career apart).

But then...he joined Manchester, and first match he plays he's running like hell to recover the ball, playing with his teamates, etc, like he never did in Sporting. And that was not Alex Ferguson job..it's just the crappy mentality from our players who don't give it all here, and go abroad and show us they just didn't wanted to.
Just like Ronaldo in Manchester vs Ronaldo in National Squad...he certainly knows how to play, we all watch Manchester United matches..then, on our squad he's just thinking about making a dribble for the camera, doesn't pass, wants to be the front cover on the newspaper next day...etc

About Nani becoming as good as Simão...I seriously doubt it. Simão is an huge player, very underated, that can turn a game around on his own..besides that he's a great leader and a brilliant set piece taker. He averaged something like 15-20 goals/season for Benfica as a winger. But he was way more than that..then he joined Atletico Madrid (fans were questioning why paying so much for him) and he's now a fans favourite.
I think Nani will never reach his level..my opinion. And don't think I biased..Simão came from Sporting Academy too ;)
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

Milan: Sendoros :( - Flamini :)

Inter: Ibrahimovic :) - Balotelli :(

Juventus: I don't whrie anything about i..I hae her..haah
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

Anyone know why Lazio persist in playing Muslera in goal instead of Carrizo ? I know Muslera is supposed to be a good prospect but he has looked shocking every time I've seen the boy play. Carizzo is a much more solid player and has looked good for River last year (with him they won the league without him they finished bottom)...
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

cfdh_edmundo said:
Anyone know why Lazio persist in playing Muslera in goal instead of Carrizo ? I know Muslera is supposed to be a good prospect but he has looked shocking every time I've seen the boy play. Carizzo is a much more solid player and has looked good for River last year (with him they won the league without him they finished bottom)...
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Carrizo 1st goalkeeper in France - Argentina...:ZZZ:
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

#71 with Quaresma in the EPL, right now maybe this is not the place but what exactly are your thoughts about him? I haven't followed him that much but I thought he was one of the most talented players in terms of dribbling, crossing, and speed, even more so than Ronaldo in some terms. The perfect winger. And he didn't seem to have too bad of a game mentality. But he hasn't been very succesful so far neither in Inter or Portugal NT I believe.
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

Its criminal how Carrick gets overlooked for the NT and no praise from other fans. Our most important player probably this season.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

YoungGun_UK said:
Its criminal how Carrick gets overlooked for the NT and no praise from other fans. Our most important player probably this season.
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It's funny because he is highly rated in Italy. I remember Gazzetta putting him in their 06/07 CL team of the season.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

Carrick is really a nice player indeed :))
what a cracking match that was!! another amazing display of tactical composure and personality by sir alex ferguson's guys (as probably most of us expected)... from a neutral point of view it was a great match.

anyhow i don't really have any time to write a post, so i'm just going to tell u about a phone call i had today.
i spent the whole day in cefalu with the missus (if u guys ever happen to be in sicily, don't miss cefalu... it's one of the most beautiful villages in italy)... an epic lunch in a little restaurant, a bit of sailing... a nice day far from any television....

so at 5 pm i called a friend to ask how the palermo catania derby ended and he told me.
"we lost 0-4. mascara scored with a running kick from midfield"

no need to say i burst into laughter, thinking he was joking.....
one hour later we came back home... i turned on the tv.. and...

:SHOCK:
:COAT:

after watching the match (i recorded it of course), here's my tactical report of the game...
:CRY:

and now, if u'll excuse me, i guess i'm going to get drunk :P:DRUNK:

edit:
oh, and btw roma is seriously tearing apart inter! :CONFUSE:
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

well you'd think, maybe in the cl when he doesnt actually have the best squad on the pitch doing it for him. hopefully. :))

inter as a team is very good although i didnt know they were having such defensive problems..i always thought they were pretty tight at the back. cambiasso playing as a centreback for the entire second half? with any luck their defense'll keep falling apart until they have to play united and we'll take them easily at old trafford.
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

Yah I saw the highlights of the Sicilian derby today, Ben and immediately thought of you and felt bad! :/ :p

This will be a day Catania fans will remember for awhile! Bresciano's red-card was probably a big factor though and the Mascara goal was crazy of course! Candidate for goal of the season for sure. Amelia didn't exactly have his best game.

Sampdoria attack with Pazzini and Cassano can cause problems for any team and this time it did for Milan who now have had a week to forget after getting eliminated by Werder and then this.

Inter-Roma finished 3-3!

p.s. What do you think of the ginger Italian? ;)
I don't think there's more than one in Serie A. Not that I've seen anyway.. so I'm not even gonna name him... you guys know who I'm talking about. ;)
For me he's a decent hardworking player. I liked him. But I don't know how he's doing this season.

We all know how Marco Di Vaio is doing this season though and it's good to see him rejuvanted! Reminds me at times of the old Di Vaio in Parma!

EDIT: As for Gourcuff, I'm glad to see he has so many other admirers here. He's one talented player for sure. Just needs the right 'confidence' instilled in him by the coach and an important role in the team. Something I'm not sure Milan or Carlo can offer him even next season, but whoever can, will have a very handy player. I personally would like to see him come back to Milan though and hopefully by this time next season, have established himself as a vital part of the team like Pato has but whether that'll happen or not.. we'll see....
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

PLF said:
Sampdoria attack with Pazzini and Cassano can cause problems for any team and this time it did for Milan who now have had a week to forget after getting eliminated by Werder and then this.
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Pazzini....5 games/5 goals:CONFUSE: It's a little bitter sweet for a Fiorentina fan. But I am happy for him.

PLF said:
p.s. What do you think of the ginger Italian? ;)
I don't think there's more than one in Serie A. Not that I've seen anyway.. so I'm not even gonna name him... you guys know who I'm talking about. ;)
For me he's a decent hardworking player. I liked him. But I don't know how he's doing this season.
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I take it you are speaking about Riise, since that comment followed the Roma v. Inter comment. If you are talking about Riise, I think he has actually had kind of a rough transition to Italy. Thought he would have more of an impact. He is still a defensive liability, and has shown skills in attack. I think it's the lack of Defensive ability that has him not starting every match.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

PLF said:
Yah I saw the highlights of the Sicilian derby today, Ben and immediately thought of you and felt bad! :/ :p
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:))
don't feel bad for me Sina. if i have to be completely honest, i had such a great sunday i couldn't care less about the palermo match (and that also explains why i didn't even go to the stadium in the first place).
i've been working like a mad in the past 2 weeks, and having an entire day away from any certificate of merger was already enough to make me smile like an idiot for the whole day. :D
plus it was a nice warm sunny day, cefalu was amazing, the sea was amazing, i also had the chance to spend some daytime with the missus....
i know that's not what a proper fan should say, but who cares about football after such a day!?! :))

as for samp's attack yeah pazzini and cassano form a great partnership indeed. as great as the miccoli - pazzini partnership would have been :(...
i really don't understand, palermo has been chasing pazzini for years, and now that he was on sale, we missed him.... what the f*ck!!
and that's the second big striker deal we miss, after we gave up on floccari this summer :BRICK:

concerning gourcouff, i would love to see him back in italy, but unfortunately i can't really see it happening. there is a "buy back clause" in the contract between milan and bordeaux (for about 15 millions, if i remember well) and i'm absolutely sure les girondins are going to take advantage of it. if they would pay those 15 millions, they could easily sell him to a top club for (at least) 5 millions more in just a few days, so what would be the point in letting him go back to milan for free?
besides i'm not even sure yoann wants to go back in milano.

finally as for the ginger u mentioned.... well u said redhead, italian and hardworker.... the first name that comes into my mind is biondini... i don't think he's talking about riise, jason.... as he said "italian"..... and he also said "decent" which basically writes off riise :P
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on this concern jason, it's not like "riise's lack of Defensive ability has him not starting every match"...at least imo... i would rather say that the only reason why he was allowed to get some starter's playtime so far is because tonetto (who is not as good as he was 3 years ago.... but who still is a better player than riise) is always injured.
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talking about biondini, jeez that guy has more stamina than gattuso!!!! :CONFUSE: . and it's not like he just runs like a mad with no purpose, as u can clearely see he's always well aware of what he's going on around him.
i feel he's that kind of player every coach could use.

however we also have to take into account that the whole cagliari system is a nice little clockwork, so it gets hard to tell where the players individual merits begin and where the coach merits end (just take a look at jeda, for instance... he has never been playing this good in his entire carreer before).

anyhow guys gotta go... no time to write anything more than that right now, as i'm already late and i gotta go back to work.
nice to see ya here Sina :BEER:
the conversation in this thread is always nice and stimulating (wich is the reason why i try to find 5 minutes to read and write in this thread every now and then), but i have to admit i kinda miss your posts and dominic's posts. :))
 
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Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

I was talking about Davide Biondini. ;)

You're right about Cagliari and how it may be hard to judge certain individual players' merits but Biondini first caught my eye (and not just because of his appearance :P ) a couple years back in Reggina I believe. Yah his stamina seems impressive as are his commitment, teamwork and work-rate. And the good thing is, on top of that, he has good enough other attributes to make him a very useful midfield player.

I believe he was part of U21 set-up for Italy at one point but never did quite enough to make the full step-up to senior squad. At least not yet. But hey... who knows what the future holds... he's still not old. Probably around 25 so maybe he will one day represent Italy. I wouldn't mind seeing that day! A ginger Italian! :D

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About Giampaolo, yah Palermo should've done all they could to bring him to Sicily. We all have known for years the boy has talent but he doesn't show it consistently enough and needed regular playing time and new-found confidence. Seems like he's got that now in Genoa. Glad to see that but Fiorentina will probably eventually regret that though now it would've been hard for them to keep him.... I wonder if the Florence club put in a buy-back clause....

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As for Yoann, I didn't know about the buy-option that Girondins have or how much that was. If that is the case, then yah they will probably take it cuz even if they don't have 15M lying around, they will probably gather it after some inevitable departures this season especially if club fails to make CL (Perhaps Cavenaghi will leave Bordeaux and join an Italian club. I can see that happening as well as him having some success as well. Sorta like Diego Milito perhaps.)

Does Gourcuff have happy memories of his time in Milan, well probably not too many but I don't know Ben... if a new coach was brought in... someone who believed in Yoann and re-assured him of his faith in him and made certain promises, I don't know too many players who would turn down AC Milan even if not off to the best first stint/start with them. But of course this is all lots of IFS and Buts and chances are, no one can assure Yoann that he'll play an important part should he come back to Milan, so yah he probably won't be keen to.

We'll just have to wait and see I guess....

It was a pleasure speaking to you and seeing everyone else here (The old faces as well as the new additions who are excellent as well). Glad to hear the horrible loss didn't dampen your mood too much. ;)
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

I think some of the referee decisions in favour of Inter are a joke. Its also fact that Inter haven't had a penalty conceded for almost exactly 1 year. It seems that every victory or match of theirs has controversy. Man Utd scared them shitless and brought them back down to earth.
 
Re: Serie A Thread - 2008/2009 Season

Milanista said:
Man Utd scared them shitless and brought them back down to earth.
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Still 0-0 is a good result for Inter and it may sound ridiculous but i think they can qualify...the longer Man Utd take to score, the bigger Inter's chances...and i also think that the first leg will be a boost for Julio Cesar's confidence. He was outstanding.
And Man Utd aren't exactly a scoring machine this season...(knowing Murphy's law and having said that, Man Utd will have a win like they had against As Roma).

It will sound preposterous to you and most Italians, but i hope Inter can win the CL.
 
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