The TT Football Club

Ross K · Jul 8, 2010

Heard this morning something on the radio that slightly amazed me...

A caller rang in to say "Spain bored him to death'

...

I don't know... if ppl can't appreciate the industry, inventiveness, skill, character, solidness, creativity, etc that Spain brings... hmm... well, I'm gobsmacked...

I, for one, get so much more of a buzz watching Spain (or Barcelona) than watching these so called 'exciting', English, Prem. Lge sides the caller went on to mention...

"Come on Spain!... adios Holland!"...

Feña14 · Jul 8, 2010

Ross K said:
Heard this morning something on the radio that slightly amazed me...

A caller rang in to say "Spain bored him to death' ...

I don't know... if ppl can't appreciate the industry, inventiveness, skill, character, solidness, creativity, etc that Spain brings... hmm... well, I'm gobsmacked...

I, for one, get so much more of a buzz watching Spain (or Barcelona) than watching these so called 'exciting', English, Prem. Lge sides the caller went on to mention...

"Come on Spain!... adios Holland!"...

I can see where the caller was coming from. There's no doubt it's amazing and impressive what Spain do, but as a neutral, I like to see two teams going at it and enjoy both teams quality. Holland have some amazing players like Sneijder, Robben and van Persie, it will be a shame for me, as a neutral, if I don't get to see them do what they can on the biggest stage of all.

SempreSami · Jul 8, 2010

Ross K said:
Heard this morning something on the radio that slightly amazed me...

A caller rang in to say "Spain bored him to death' ...

I don't know... if ppl can't appreciate the industry, inventiveness, skill, character, solidness, creativity, etc that Spain brings... hmm... well, I'm gobsmacked...

I, for one, get so much more of a buzz watching Spain (or Barcelona) than watching these so called 'exciting', English, Prem. Lge sides the caller went on to mention...

"Come on Spain!... adios Holland!"...

I agree, pass and move ***** on kick and rush.

Ross K · Jul 10, 2010

^^^

Yep, well, we can leave these ppl to get a hard on at the prospect of being able to soon witness the likes Stoke City (OMG :shock: ) and Blackburn Rovers (OMG X 2

) and the rest of those practitioners of big, strong, fast players forever belting the ball up at some strapping, usually aggressive lad who excels at set peice headers and getting into fights in bars :wink: ...

Indeed... along with a few others, I'm rooting big-time for Spain!

Ross K · Jul 11, 2010

Fantastic!... so happy that Spain won!... OMG, how hideous were Holland with their thug tactics??!!... anyhow, justice has been done.... just a wonderful climax and deserved win for the 'pass masters' and, er, 'champions of the world'!...

NickC · Jul 11, 2010

Ross K said:
^^^

Yep, well, we can leave these ppl to get a hard on at the prospect of being able to soon witness the likes Stoke City (OMG :shock: ) and Blackburn Rovers (OMG X 2 ) and the rest of those practitioners of big, strong, fast players forever belting the ball up at some strapping, usually aggressive lad who excels at set peice headers and getting into fights in bars :wink: ...

You forgot to mention Big Sam. Everyone over the age of 45 I spoke to during my 10 day vacation in London seemed to be in love with the man. Why people love a practitioner of ugly, disgusting, boring and slow football is beyond me. I guess the English really appreciate the physical side of the game, eh?

PED · Jul 11, 2010

At least Spain came to play football. The dutch must have brought in big sam as a consultant for the game.

Yes, spain deserved to win, but I thought the Howard Webb did a really poor job. With an english ref, I thought he would let the game flow but that wasn't to be.

Having said that, De Jong and van Bommel really took it to the limits giving the ref no choice but to break out the cards early. The spainish did make a meal out of most of the challenges: would have been funny to see Iniesta booked for that swipe at van Bommel-he would haven't gotten a 2nd yellow for pulling off his shirt and then tossed from the game

I do wish Van de Vaart would have come on earlier but that wouldn't have made much of a difference given the gameplan Holland was playing. At least the 3rd place game was fun to watch: Germany was def my fav team to watch and I do believe Mueller would have made a difference against Spain. Next stop, Euro 2012, I think the Germans will take it.

Feña14 · Jul 11, 2010

PED said:
At least Spain came to play football. The dutch must have brought in big sam as a consultant for the game.

Yes, spain deserved to win, but I thought the Howard Webb did a really poor job. With an english ref, I thought he would let the game flow but that wasn't to be.

Having said that, De Jong and van Bommel really took it to the limits giving the ref no choice but to break out the cards early. The spainish did make a meal out of most of the challenges: would have been funny to see Iniesta booked for that swipe at van Bommel-he would haven't gotten a 2nd yellow for pulling off his shirt and then tossed from the game

I do wish Van de Vaart would have come on earlier but that wouldn't have made much of a difference given the gameplan Holland was playing. At least the 3rd place game was fun to watch: Germany was def my fav team to watch and I do believe Mueller would have made a difference against Spain. Next stop, Euro 2012, I think the Germans will take it.

I think he wanted to let the game flow, but when you have someone karate kicking an opponent in the chest, it does make it a bit difficlut!

I agree about Germany and 2012, when asked about them for this World Cup I said that they were far too young and the experience of tournament football would be great for them, meaing they would be ready in 4 years time. The win against England was about as good as I thought it would get for them, but to see them go on and put 4 past Argentina too, well that made me think they are ahead of schedule and 2012 looks a real possibility for them.

Ross K · Jul 11, 2010

Well, I felt Webb was placed under inordinately intense mega-pressure largely by Holland's Aussie rules-style, aggressive, thuggish 'performance' and don't blame him.

And at least justice was ultimately served by the 'right result'... if the Dutch had won, I think it would have been bad, bad news for football.

Iniesta, Xabi, Puyol, Navas, Ramos, Busquets, Cassillas, Pedro, etc... thank God it's these names that will forever be remembered as the 2010 World Cup winners!

BTW, I wish I was in Spain last night. The celebrations must have been insane!

Dilettante · Jul 12, 2010

I have to say Dutch team was disgraceful today and not only for the thug tactics (the karate kick to the chest was one of the worst tackles I've seen in recent times) but all the ref pressuring stuff, etc.

But what left me totally stunned, something you guys didn't comment but I've never seen before (and I've watched football for years): when the Dutch were supposed to return the ball to Spain, and they did it... shooting right to the goal and hoping Casillas was distracted! Casillas looked at the Dutch guy as if he wanted to kill him.

Even if I would been rooting for Holland (which I wasn't, but anyway) I couldn't defend this team after the cynical anti-football display of the final, wanting to convert a football game into a street fight.

What a difference with classy Germany. Those German guys ended the semifinal with 1 (one) yellow card and could have ended with none.

crosscourt · Jul 13, 2010

So who were your players of the tournament? Mine were Xabi Alonso, Robben and Schweinsteiger. Alonso has come back from a horrible injury to show what a really good player he is. When he was off form, Spain started misfiring. Robben was the outstanding player of the tournament, save for the whining and play acting. Schweinsteiger anchored Germany exceptionally well.

I would give an honourable mention to the Swiss and Greek goalkeepers.

PED · Jul 13, 2010

I'll go with Schweinsteiger, Forlan and Sneijder: particularly Schweinsteiger, his energy and work rate were solid-even though he did give it away a few times in the 3rd place game.

I rate Robben as well but thought that Sneijder played a bigger part in the Dutch run to the finals. I felt Robben did not make the most of those 2 gilt edge chances in the Final.

If Robben had played as well throughout the WC as he did in the Champions League(particularly against Fiorentina, we may well have had a different winner.

Wow, can't believe I forgot about Villa-producer of the vast majority of the Spanish goals

NickC · Jul 14, 2010

Chelsea is gonna sign Romelu Lukaku! Yes. Oh f*ck yes. While he's still raw, he was the top scorer in the Belgian league at age 15, and is like half a foot taller and 25 pounds heavier than Drogba, but with more speed, a better technical ability, and a absolutely wicked shot.

I for one, can't wait.

NickC · Jul 14, 2010

crosscourt said:
So who were your players of the tournament? Mine were Xabi Alonso, Robben and Schweinsteiger. Alonso has come back from a horrible injury to show what a really good player he is. When he was off form, Spain started misfiring. Robben was the outstanding player of the tournament, save for the whining and play acting. Schweinsteiger anchored Germany exceptionally well.

I would give an honourable mention to the Swiss and Greek goalkeepers.

Diego Forlan and Xabi Alonso.

Here are my top 10 young player nominations (in no particular order):

Ozil, Honda, Suarez, Bradley, Muller, Pedro, Busquets, Sanchez, Dos Santos, Gyan

SempreSami · Jul 14, 2010

NickC said:
Chelsea is gonna sign Romelu Lukaku! Yes. Oh f*ck yes. While he's still raw, he was the top scorer in the Belgian league at age 15, and is like half a foot taller and 25 pounds heavier than Drogba, but with more speed, a better technical ability, and a absolutely wicked shot.

I for one, can't wait.

He's 17 and this was probably foreseen months ago when he said Drogba is his hero or something.

Received a stats boost with the v3 FM2010 patch too, a blessing that.

Feña14 · Jul 14, 2010

NickC said:
Chelsea is gonna sign Romelu Lukaku! Yes. Oh f*ck yes. While he's still raw, he was the top scorer in the Belgian league at age 15, and is like half a foot taller and 25 pounds heavier than Drogba, but with more speed, a better technical ability, and a absolutely wicked shot.

I for one, can't wait.

Yeah, did you see the pics of him on a Chelsea tour wearing a Chelsea shirt? I think he's a much better player to go after than Torres. Why they want to spend £70 million on an overrated player who's injured more often than not is quite strange, we could get a great third striker, midfielder and creative player that we need for that price.

NickC · Jul 14, 2010

SempreSami said:
He's 17 and this was probably foreseen months ago when he said Drogba is his hero or something.

Received a stats boost with the v3 FM2010 patch too, a blessing that.

I snagged a copy of FM2010 when I was in London last week. My god that game is addictive. I've already put about 20 hours into it. Played it for 4 hours straight on the plane ride back to New York.

Feña14 said:
Yeah, did you see the pics of him on a Chelsea tour wearing a Chelsea shirt? I think he's a much better player to go after than Torres. Why they want to spend £70 million on an overrated player who's injured more often than not is quite strange, we could get a great third striker, midfielder and creative player that we need for that price.

We lost a ton of creativity this offseason - Belletti, Deco, Joe Cole (and possibly Ashley Cole?!), and Lampard can only do so much by himself! Which leads me to ask why the hell Roman has made Torres his top target? He's an over-glorified box striker who isn't extremely creative. Effective when healthy? Very. But creative? Not at all.

If he wants a striker, sign Lukaku who has a much bigger upside and is almost 10 years younger, and loan him back to Anderlecht for another season or have him split time between Chelsea's academy and Anderlecht's first team. It'll save him atleast 45 million as well.

That'll leave him money to spend money on where it really matters - a new outside back, a creative midfielder, and another holding midfielder for when Essien inevitably gets injured...again...and again. I think Marek Hamsik would come fairly cheap, Nicolas Otamendi would be decent and I also reckon Milos Krasic would be great. I bet Neven Subotic would also be quality, even though I despise him to no end. Taiye Taiwo would also be a decent signing I think, he's a good defender. I also wouldn't mind seeing Benzema on loan, or Hatem Ben Arfa. Hell, if Ashley Cole leaves we should try for Juan Manuel Vargas (or Mata!). Gorcuff? Landon Donovan? David Luiz? Eden Hazard? Why not? There's about a hundred players that are linked to Chelsea at the moment and we have no idea what Roman wants and no clue as to who Carlo has picked out to make a move for.

I'm just throwing whoever I can think of at the moment out there, for all we know there's been a bunch of moves made and noone is talking about it.

Feña14 · Jul 16, 2010

NickC said:
I snagged a copy of FM2010 when I was in London last week. My god that game is addictive. I've already put about 20 hours into it. Played it for 4 hours straight on the plane ride back to New York.

We lost a ton of creativity this offseason - Belletti, Deco, Joe Cole (and possibly Ashley Cole?!), and Lampard can only do so much by himself! Which leads me to ask why the hell Roman has made Torres his top target? He's an over-glorified box striker who isn't extremely creative. Effective when healthy? Very. But creative? Not at all.

If he wants a striker, sign Lukaku who has a much bigger upside and is almost 10 years younger, and loan him back to Anderlecht for another season or have him split time between Chelsea's academy and Anderlecht's first team. It'll save him atleast 45 million as well.

That'll leave him money to spend money on where it really matters - a new outside back, a creative midfielder, and another holding midfielder for when Essien inevitably gets injured...again...and again. I think Marek Hamsik would come fairly cheap, Nicolas Otamendi would be decent and I also reckon Milos Krasic would be great. I bet Neven Subotic would also be quality, even though I despise him to no end. Taiye Taiwo would also be a decent signing I think, he's a good defender. I also wouldn't mind seeing Benzema on loan, or Hatem Ben Arfa. Hell, if Ashley Cole leaves we should try for Juan Manuel Vargas (or Mata!). Gorcuff? Landon Donovan? David Luiz? Eden Hazard? Why not? There's about a hundred players that are linked to Chelsea at the moment and we have no idea what Roman wants and no clue as to who Carlo has picked out to make a move for.

I'm just throwing whoever I can think of at the moment out there, for all we know there's been a bunch of moves made and noone is talking about it.

Your guess is as good as mine! When you see quality young midfielders like Khedira being sold on the cheap and Chelsea don't even inquire, well I find it a bit strange anyway. The latest on the Torres front is a £30 Million bid + Alex, Kalou and Zhirkov :-|

Come on Man City! Where are you when we need you? Give Liverpool the £70 Million before he ends up in London!

Breaker · Jul 16, 2010

Feña14 said:
Your guess is as good as mine! When you see quality young midfielders like Khedira being sold on the cheap and Chelsea don't even inquire, well I find it a bit strange anyway. The latest on the Torres front is a £30 Million bid + Alex, Kalou and Zhirkov :-|

Come on Man City! Where are you when we need you? Give Liverpool the £70 Million before he ends up in London!

No no no no no no no!

We already have the original crock Santa Cruz there's no room for another one!

Dzeko, however, is going to be on his way soon enough hopefully which would be much better. than Torres.

Feña14 · Jul 16, 2010

Breaker said:
No no no no no no no!

We already have the original crock Santa Cruz there's no room for another one!

Dzeko, however, is going to be on his way soon enough hopefully which would be much better. than Torres.

I think that would be nice for Santa Cruz, having Torres to sit next to in the stands all season. You should come in for Hargreaves and Essien, too!

PED · Jul 16, 2010

Feña14 said:
I think that would be nice for Santa Cruz, having Torres to sit next to in the stands all season. You should come in for Hargreaves and Essien, too!

If you want, we can throw in Rosicky as well

Feña14 · Jul 16, 2010

PED said:
If you want, we can throw in Rosicky as well

Haha! Torres, Essien, Santa Cruz, Rosicky and Hargreaves.. the Man City 5-a-side team

NickC · Jul 16, 2010

Feña14 said:
Your guess is as good as mine! When you see quality young midfielders like Khedira being sold on the cheap and Chelsea don't even inquire, well I find it a bit strange anyway. The latest on the Torres front is a £30 Million bid + Alex, Kalou and Zhirkov :-|

Come on Man City! Where are you when we need you? Give Liverpool the £70 Million before he ends up in London!

Khedira went for 10 FRIGGIN MILLION!!! WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING ROMAN??? WHAT A F*KING JOKE!

But 30 mil plus Alex, Kalou and Zhirkov is a even bigger joke. Zhirkov is quality. Can't really say that about Kalou though - I never rated him.

But the fact that Real Madrid just got Sami Khedira for 10 million really pisses me off. We should see if they'll be willing to drop Van Der Vaart, he's really talented and would do well for Chelsea.

NickC · Jul 16, 2010

Feña14 said:
Haha! Torres, Essien, Santa Cruz, Rosicky and Hargreaves.. the Man City 5-a-side team

With all due respect the opposition would always win, that 5-a-side team would never suit up more than 1 at a time due to the fact that the whole team would always be injured.

Breaker · Jul 16, 2010

Captain can be..

Now known as..

Feña14 · Jul 16, 2010

NickC said:
Khedira went for 10 FRIGGIN MILLION!!! WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING ROMAN??? WHAT A F*KING JOKE!

But 30 mil plus Alex, Kalou and Zhirkov is a even bigger joke. Zhirkov is quality. Can't really say that about Kalou though - I never rated him.

But the fact that Real Madrid just got Sami Khedira for 10 million really pisses me off. We should see if they'll be willing to drop Van Der Vaart, he's really talented and would do well for Chelsea.

Yeah, i've heard prices ranging from £8-12 Million, whatever it is he went for it was a real bargain. As i've been saying, we play with 3 central midfielders and we only have 3 of them in the first team. Mikel is relatively average, Essien is one more big injury away from the scrap heap and Lampard is 32. Surely that's the major priority, not chasing around after Torres.

It's crazy to think we could of got Khedira and Moutinho, two quality, young midfielders who have both been sold this summer for under £20 Million for the pair.

The only two left out there who are possibilities are Meireles and Schweinsteiger (although I think his performances at the World Cup have put that one out of reach).

We play our first pre-season game tomorrow and the majority of the re-shaping of the team should of been done by now. To think we've lost Ballack, Deco and Belletti from midfield and not even put any bids in for replacements yet is seriously worrying.

NickC · Jul 16, 2010

Feña14 said:
Yeah, i've heard prices ranging from £8-12 Million, whatever it is he went for it was a real bargain. As i've been saying, we play with 3 central midfielders and we only have 3 of them in the first team. Mikel is relatively average, Essien is one more big injury away from the scrap heap and Lampard is 32. Surely that's the major priority, not chasing around after Torres.

It's crazy to think we could of got Khedira and Moutinho, two quality, young midfielders who have both been sold this summer for under £20 Million for the pair.

The only two left out there who are possibilities are Meireles and Schweinsteiger (although I think his performances at the World Cup have put that one out of reach).

We play our first pre-season game tomorrow and the majority of the re-shaping of the team should of been done by now. To think we've lost Ballack, Deco and Belletti from midfield and not even put any bids in for replacements yet is seriously worrying.

That's probably half of what another quality holding midfielder like Veloso or Mascherano would cost. What a joke. Can someone smack some sense into Roman and just force him into giving Carlo 80 million and just telling him to build a winning team?

Feña14 · Jul 16, 2010

NickC said:
That's probably half of what another quality holding midfielder like Veloso or Mascherano would cost. What a joke. Can someone smack some sense into Roman and just force him into giving Carlo 80 million and just telling him to build a winning team?

That's the thing, apparently they sat down with him and got him to draw up a list of players he wanted for next season.

It seems they aren't listening to him (especially when you consider he wanted to keep Ballack and Ballack wanted to stay) and Abramovich is just going out to buy whoever he wants.

NickC · Jul 16, 2010

Feña14 said:
That's the thing, apparently they sat down with him and got him to draw up a list of players he wanted for next season.

It seems they aren't listening to him (especially when you consider he wanted to keep Ballack and Ballack wanted to stay) and Abramovich is just going out to buy whoever he wants.

Roman should just fire Carlo and appoint himself manager. He seems to know who he wants in his team, so let's see it. This ******** has been going on for too long, and it's ruining a brilliant club and a brilliant manager and a brilliant team.

Feña14 · Jul 16, 2010

NickC said:
Roman should just fire Carlo and appoint himself manager. He seems to know who he wants in his team, so let's see it. This ******** has been going on for too long, and it's ruining a brilliant club and a brilliant manager and a brilliant team.

Maybe! Ancelotti has never really been allowed to choose his own players, which I think was one of the reasons Abramovich wanted him (along with his Champions League record). Ancelotti might not be too good at picking out players for all we know! Although i'm sure he couldnt be much worse than Abramovich

NickC · Jul 17, 2010

Feña14 said:
Maybe! Ancelotti has never really been allowed to choose his own players, which I think was one of the reasons Abramovich wanted him (along with his Champions League record). Ancelotti might not be too good at picking out players for all we know! Although i'm sure he couldnt be much worse than Abramovich

And now City have just signed Kolarov for only 15 million! Who the hell is going to replace Cashley when he signs for Madrid? Chelsea are becoming a sinking ship

Feña14 · Jul 17, 2010

NickC said:
And now City have just signed Kolarov for only 15 million! Who the hell is going to replace Cashley when he signs for Madrid? Chelsea are becoming a sinking ship

Zhirkov, Bertrand and Coentrao, fear not!

PED · Jul 17, 2010

Feña14 said:
That's the thing, apparently they sat down with him and got him to draw up a list of players he wanted for next season.

It seems they aren't listening to him (especially when you consider he wanted to keep Ballack and Ballack wanted to stay) and Abramovich is just going out to buy whoever he wants.

I agree with you. Red rom is like alot of my clients: the ones that meddle with their accounts do the worst. They never want to buy at a good value for the long run; they'd rather pay up once a player gets better. Why buy Keidera now for less than 10mil when you can pick him up for 25mil a few years down the road.

I know we've not won a trophy in awhile now, but it's pretty impressive what Wenger has done over the last few years in terms of development.

Just curious, but what do you guys think Cesc is really worth? I think 30mil is too low but 50 or 60 seems a bit inflated.

Feña14 · Jul 17, 2010

PED said:
I agree with you. Red rom is like alot of my clients: the ones that meddle with their accounts do the worst. They never want to buy at a good value for the long run; they'd rather pay up once a player gets better. Why buy Keidera now for less than 10mil when you can pick him up for 25mil a few years down the road.

I know we've not won a trophy in awhile now, but it's pretty impressive what Wenger has done over the last few years in terms of development.

Just curious, but what do you guys think Cesc is really worth? I think 30mil is too low but 50 or 60 seems a bit inflated.

Yeah, judging from Ancelotti's comments today he doesn't really want Torres all that much. Every year he has been in England he has played less and less so it makes no sense to go for him, hopefully that will be the end of it as you can't see Torres asking to join a team who's manager doesn't want him.

The friendly today was interesting, there was so many of the youngsters on display and they looked like they were very comfortable against Championship players. You'd think most of them are of Premier League standard, just not quite title winning quality at the moment. We had a 15 year old centre back who dealt with big journeymen strikers without any problems which was good to see.

As for Fabregas and the price, it depends who's buying him!

Looking at it based on what he has done and his skills he is probably worth around £30 Million, the fact it's Barcelona who want him and he is so important to Arsenal will no doubt push the price up an extra £10 Million probably. I'd say it was a good deal if Wenger would spend the money on a goalkeeper, centre back and experienced central midfielder. The fact Wenger wouldn't spend the money and it would just sit there means there wouldn't be much benefit to Arsenal.

PED · Jul 17, 2010

Feña14 said:
As for Fabregas and the price, it depends who's buying him! Looking at it based on what he has done and his skills he is probably worth around £30 Million, the fact it's Barcelona who want him and he is so important to Arsenal will no doubt push the price up an extra £10 Million probably. I'd say it was a good deal if Wenger would spend the money on a goalkeeper, centre back and experienced central midfielder. The fact Wenger wouldn't spend the money and it would just sit there means there wouldn't be much benefit to Arsenal.

True on so many levels. I think Cesc's age has to come into it as well which is why I think the price could be higher. Only a spanish team would pay that for him. I think he would be better off at Emirates and being THE man instead of "a" man at Barca.

That's the problem, Wenger would likely sit on the cash. The only time he's really splashed it has been mixed: Reyes (not good but started off well), Eduardo (not really his fault) and Arshavin (great skill but not very fit and hurt quite a bit: a slightly chunkier version of michael owen maybe...LOL)

I hope Van persie can get it back because he frankly did not look great at the WC. I 'd rather sell him depending on how the new boy (Chamukh) goes.

Feña14 · Jul 17, 2010

PED said:
True on so many levels. I think Cesc's age has to come into it as well which is why I think the price could be higher. Only a spanish team would pay that for him. I think he would be better off at Emirates and being THE man instead of "a" man at Barca.

That's the problem, Wenger would likely sit on the cash. The only time he's really splashed it has been mixed: Reyes (not good but started off well), Eduardo (not really his fault) and Arshavin (great skill but not very fit and hurt quite a bit: a slightly chunkier version of michael owen maybe...LOL)

I hope Van persie can get it back because he frankly did not look great at the WC. I 'd rather sell him depending on how the new boy (Chamukh) goes.

Yeah, age certainly will come into it. Villa went for fairly cheap when you consider he's a goal machine, but then when you think he's approaching 30 it makes more sense. Pedro's break through year has made it harder for Fabregas to get his move, i'm sure the plan was to move Iniesta up alongside Messi and Villa in the front 3 with Xavi, Fabregas and either Keita or Busquets holding. Pedro looks to of got the left wing position now though and they can't play without a holding midfielder, which would mean it would come down to a fight between Fabregas and Iniesta for the role alongside Xavi, if you can call it a fight

Iniesta wins that one hands down.

I'd like to see Chamakh and van Persie playing together, not sure if it will happen now Wenger has settled on his 4-3-3 formation, though. Before last season i'd of said van Persie would of been great roaming in from the wing to support a bigger striker, not sure that will happen after seeing how much he enjoyed playing through the middle and all the goals he scored when fit last season.

samprasvsfederer123 · Jul 21, 2010

just a random question here, um have any of you seen the new spain shirts, or bought one? some say 1909 and some say 1913 in the badge/crest, that is weird isnt it? the one many sell are 1913 while the one i bought and which i saw in the player's in the world cup says 1909, big company error probably?

NickC · Jul 21, 2010

Feña14 said:
Yeah, age certainly will come into it. Villa went for fairly cheap when you consider he's a goal machine, but then when you think he's approaching 30 it makes more sense. Pedro's break through year has made it harder for Fabregas to get his move, i'm sure the plan was to move Iniesta up alongside Messi and Villa in the front 3 with Xavi, Fabregas and either Keita or Busquets holding. Pedro looks to of got the left wing position now though and they can't play without a holding midfielder, which would mean it would come down to a fight between Fabregas and Iniesta for the role alongside Xavi, if you can call it a fight Iniesta wins that one hands down.

I'd like to see Chamakh and van Persie playing together, not sure if it will happen now Wenger has settled on his 4-3-3 formation, though. Before last season i'd of said van Persie would of been great roaming in from the wing to support a bigger striker, not sure that will happen after seeing how much he enjoyed playing through the middle and all the goals he scored when fit last season.

I think Arsenal are going to be great this season; now with Chamakh they have a really good striker to partner RVP and Wenger will be able to play Arshavin and Nasri alongside eachother as all-purpose attacking players, which could be amazing if Cesc plays in the center behind them. That is a frightening possibility. Now, all Arsenal needs to do is sign a ball-winning holding midfielder who will win the ball and pass it on, and then they might have a shot at some glory. Who do you guys think Arsenal should sign before the window closes?

My sources in here in the States are all whispering of a 10 million bid for Tim Howard, who is quality and is just entering his prime.

PED · Jul 21, 2010

NickC said:
Now, all Arsenal needs to do is sign a ball-winning holding midfielder who will win the ball and pass it on, and then they might have a shot at some glory.

Nick, I agree with all your points and especially the one above. The answer is that they never should have let Flammini go to AC Milan

That guy was a solid midlfield ankle breaker in the tradition of De Jong.

SempreSami · Jul 21, 2010

samprasvsfederer123 said:
just a random question here, um have any of you seen the new spain shirts, or bought one? some say 1909 and some say 1913 in the badge/crest, that is weird isnt it? the one many sell are 1913 while the one i bought and which i saw in the player's in the world cup says 1909, big company error probably?

Mine's the genuine article and it says 1909.

NickC · Jul 23, 2010

PED said:
Nick, I agree with all your points and especially the one above. The answer is that they never should have let Flammini go to AC Milan That guy was a solid midlfield ankle breaker in the tradition of De Jong.

That's true. But now I'm reading an article on FoxSoccer.com with the author saying that if he was Wenger, he would play Nasri and Fab alongside eachother (a la Xavi and Iniesta), supported by a holding mid, and allowing Chamakh and RVP to play alongside eachother, with Arshavin linking the midfield with the attack. That's probably what we'll see this season. If injuries happen, there's enough ability in that group to move around players to compensate for injury - Arsh can play wide, in front, or in the midfield, as can Nasri (he played a supporting striker role in his Marseilles days), RVP can play alone, much like Chamakh, and Cesc can play pretty much whereever the hell he wants. And then you've got Wilshire, who is talented enough to play anywhere in the midfield. And after that comes Rocisky, who can play anywhere in the midfield as well. Then Theo is there too who can (sometimes) make an impact off the bench due to his pace, and Vela who could come good this season. Arsenal have all the attacking tools they need to compete for success this season.

Eduardo is gone (what do you all think of that move? Good or bad?), so now Arsenal have some cash to spend. Their defense is A-OK, but a solid holder in midfield is still needed (the American in me says that Michael Bradley would be a perfect candidate!) and once that's done, they just need a keeper. If I was Wenger and wanted Premiership-proven, ball holding steel in the midfield, I'd test City's resolve with a bid for Vincent Kompany. I'd also have a look at Matias Fernandez and maybe ask Inter if they could loan Tiago Motta (that kid is a stud) and all that. Maybe test Roma's resolve and bid for De Rossi, as unlikely as it is. I also noticed that Taiye Taiwo's move to Atletico has stalled, perhaps Wenger could use him? I rate him highly, and he's still young. And finally, Wenger needs to buy Defour already, damnit.

Any thoughts?

PED · Jul 23, 2010

I think it was a bad break (literally) for Eduardo but he was fairly decent when he started a few years back but the leg break just finished him off. I hope he can get it going with his new team.

I like the formation you spoke about above, I'd love to see that setup with the gunners. I hope the defense can hold together. Surprised he brought back Sol but it's probably a locker room thing where they need some leadership.

I'd also love to see Kompany in the Emirates, he's a first class @$$ kicker.

On a side note, it's kind of funny to see some of the top new talent spurning the English teams and wanting to go to only Barca or Real. Kheidira appears to think he's going to Real.

Breaker · Jul 23, 2010

NickC said:
, I'd test City's resolve with a bid for Vincent Kompany.

Any thoughts?

AW HELLLLLL NO.

Kompany is still the number 1 signing City have made in my book. He's a leader, fantastic defender/midfielder, and gives his hardest every game which to be honest some in the squad do not do (I'm looking at you, Kolo). If they let him go, let alone to another club in England, I would lose it.

NickC · Jul 23, 2010

PED said:
I think it was a bad break (literally) for Eduardo but he was fairly decent when he started a few years back but the leg break just finished him off. I hope he can get it going with his new team.

I like the formation you spoke about above, I'd love to see that setup with the gunners. I hope the defense can hold together. Surprised he brought back Sol but it's probably a locker room thing where they need some leadership.

I'd also love to see Kompany in the Emirates, he's a first class @$$ kicker.

On a side note, it's kind of funny to see some of the top new talent spurning the English teams and wanting to go to only Barca or Real. Kheidira appears to think he's going to Real.

The only problem I personally can see arising with the formation I spoke about is the lack of true width from the get-go. The formation I described seems perfect for compressed play through the center, with no true wide players or wingers fitting in real well without harming the side's balance. The formation also doesn't allow for a player to exploit wide spaces without harming the flow of the ball through the midfield to the forwards. Ah, well, I guess that's what subs are for.

I also think that either one of the Diarra's would be great, maybe Wenger could convince Lass to give Arsenal another shot? Another thought, Maurice Edu (another Yank!) from Rangers could be a good signing, he's huge, good in the air, a genuine ass-kicker, young (24 or something like that) and can score occasionally. Plus he's done well these past two years at Rangers and has done well to establish himself physically in a league that's just as rough as the Premiership. Moreso, Arsne would be instantly loved by the entire USA.

Feña14 · Jul 23, 2010

PED said:
I think it was a bad break (literally) for Eduardo but he was fairly decent when he started a few years back but the leg break just finished him off. I hope he can get it going with his new team.

I like the formation you spoke about above, I'd love to see that setup with the gunners. I hope the defense can hold together. Surprised he brought back Sol but it's probably a locker room thing where they need some leadership.

I'd also love to see Kompany in the Emirates, he's a first class @$$ kicker.

On a side note, it's kind of funny to see some of the top new talent spurning the English teams and wanting to go to only Barca or Real. Kheidira appears to think he's going to Real.

All the buggers want to go to Real Madrid, how original! Every team has a different personality, with different qualities and goals to aim for. Yet you get these young players and they think it's the cool thing to go to Madrid. Watching them over the recent past they are a side with no personality at all, just a random bunch of hugely over-priced players who are only there so they can tell everyone they once played for Real Madrid.

When you think of all the great teams in Europe to play for, Real Madrid would be last on the list for me personally. Why go there when you could play under Ferguson in Manchester? Or go where no other Chelsea team has in 105 years under Ancelotti, or play for a team like Liverpool with it's fans etc.. You can totally understand players wanting to go to Barcelona and be a part of the amazing things that are happening there, but Real Madrid? It's such a dull choice. Like Benzema last year when he had the chance to go to Man Utd to learn from Ferguson and have great stability. Instead Real Madrid came in at the last minute and he bit their hand off, only to be screwed over by Raul who refused to help him or play with him and he now needs to look for a move to rebuild his career, says it all really.

NickC · Jul 23, 2010

Feña14 said:
When you think of all the great teams in Europe to play for, Real Madrid would be last on the list for me personally. Why go there when you could play under Ferguson in Manchester? Or go where no other Chelsea team has in 105 years under Ancelotti, or play for a team like Liverpool with it's fans etc.. You can totally understand players wanting to go to Barcelona and be a part of the amazing things that are happening there, but Real Madrid? It's such a dull choice. Like Benzema last year when he had the chance to go to Man Utd to learn from Ferguson and have great stability. Instead Real Madrid came in at the last minute and he bit their hand off, only to be screwed over by Raul who refused to help him or play with him and he now needs to look for a move to rebuild his career, says it all really.

Or you could go to Milan, Inter, Juve or Roma, and write your name in their history books alongside some of the greatest players to ever live, all of whom cut their teeth in Serie A! Or Barcelona with all their history as well as their history of developing raw talent into world-class ability! I guess the allure of 9 European Cups just is too much! And you forgot to mention Arsenal, with the best developer of talent the game has ever seen!

But Real Madrid? A graveyard for talent, IMO. No player has left Real Madrid a better player than they came in.

Feña14 · Jul 23, 2010

NickC said:
Or you could go to Milan, Inter, Juve or Roma, and write your name in their history books alongside some of the greatest players to ever live, all of whom cut their teeth in Serie A! Or Barcelona with all their history as well as their history of developing raw talent into world-class ability! I guess the allure of 9 European Cups just is too much! And you forgot to mention Arsenal, with the best developer of talent the game has ever seen!

But Real Madrid? A graveyard for talent, IMO. No player has left Real Madrid a better player than they came in.

That's true, Arsenal are very stabile and have one of the best developers of technical players around.

I can't see the attraction of Real Madrid at all, apart from getting to say you've played for them at one point.

Breaker · Jul 23, 2010

Feña14 said:
That's true, Arsenal are very stabile and have one of the best developers of technical players around.

I can't see the attraction of Real Madrid at all, apart from getting to say you've played for them at one point.

Well it's mainly players from Spanish speaking countries who go there, and they have more history for winning trophies than any club in the world (not to mention seemingly an unending bank account). Also the weather is much better than the English weather

.

On a side note RICHARDS gets the armband over Kompany in this friendly, surprising to me.

Feña14 · Jul 23, 2010

Breaker said:
Well it's mainly players from Spanish speaking countries who go there, and they have more history for winning trophies than any club in the world (not to mention seemingly an unending bank account). Also the weather is much better than the English weather .

On a side note RICHARDS gets the armband over Kompany in this friendly, surprising to me.

When Kaka went last year he said they were the only club he would consider leaving Milan for, look what's happened to him there

Just like how Benzema dropped Man Utd as quick as anything when they came in for him, was that really the best footballing decision? I wouldn't say so.

How did Man City get on? We lost to Ajax! They did put out their first team in preparation for the Champions League next week whilst we put out the reserves, but still, not a great start to my 21st birthday weekend

Breaker · Jul 23, 2010

Feña14 said:
When Kaka went last year he said they were the only club he would consider leaving Milan for, look what's happened to him there Just like how Benzema dropped Man Utd as quick as anything when they came in for him, was that really the best footballing decision? I wouldn't say so.

How did Man City get on? We lost to Ajax! They did put out their first team in preparation for the Champions League next week whilst we put out the reserves, but still, not a great start to my 21st birthday weekend

Who knows what these players are thinking, I've heard Robbie Keane say the same line about being a fan of Liverpool/Spurs/Celtic as a kid so obviously a few aren't the sharpest tools out there. More international fame comes from being a star at Madrid than any other club in the world I suppose so that could be a factor, it's not really smart but eh they're Real Madrid.

Lulz I saw that result apparently Turnbull had a shocker. City actually just started against Sporting, looking average so far. A lot of long ball up to the Brazilian wonder JO and Bellamy which isn't working so it's been about 10/90 in terms of possesion.. Good to see Hart back in goal though.

But most importantly of course happy birthday, maybe Chelsea will make it up to you during the actual season

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