Soccer thread 07/08

fsquid · Post by **fsquid** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 3:40 pm

davet010 wrote:Hamann is just a stopgap - I'd back Corluka and Michael Johnson against Mascherano and Lucas any day of the week.

Oh, and squid - pictures of a certain night in Munich are always at my disposal...

I'll send you pictures from Switzerland if you want me to.

davet010 · Post by **davet010** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 4:09 pm

That's very kind, but I'll be getting ready for City's European adventures.

BTW, what's this Lucas Podolski character like ?

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 4:55 pm

fsquid wrote:
They showed Capello at the match, on that performance I think he's more likely to pick Drew Talbot for England than Peter Crouch.
Drew Talbot is KING! I'll never foget his goal is Cardiff.

That makes two of us, then. Took your time bringing that one up, mate

As is tradition, Pools are being linked with Michael Bridges, as we are every transfer window regardless of his age, his tendency to break easily and his being in Australia on a whacking great wage.

fsquid · Post by **fsquid** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 5:26 pm

davet010 wrote:That's very kind, but I'll be getting ready for City's European adventures.

BTW, what's this Lucas Podolski character like ?

He hasn't lived up to expectation in Munchen. He's good, but with Klose and Toni up front, he isn't getting that many games. He's probably be good at City if that's the rumour.

davet010 · Post by **davet010** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 7:16 pm

If we had them 2 up front, we'd be banging on the door of the top 3.

10spro · Post by **10spro** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 7:41 pm

Liverpool owners will have a meeting tomorrow to discuss among other issues the future of Rafa. He's enjoyed hero status among Liverpool fans for much of his reign but he's looking rather weak now especially after the tie with Luton.

N. Anelka's bids has been rejected for now. Bad news for Chelsea fans.

dougb · Post by **dougb** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 8:51 pm

10spro wrote:Liverpool owners will have a meeting tomorrow to discuss among other issues the future of Rafa. He's enjoyed hero status among Liverpool fans for much of his reign but he's looking rather weak now especially after the tie with Luton.

N. Anelka's bids has been rejected for now. Bad news for Chelsea fans.

They'd be nuts to get rid of him, but he might be off soon if he doesn't get the transfer money he wants. As Macca put it who else would they choose as Manager? I can't see any candidates and can't imagine Mourinho would move to the club unless he had the resources that were provided to him at Chelsea ( and I doubt that the ownership would go for that).

These days there's way too little patience on team performance. I think the ownership have to be up front with Rafa on what he can expect in terms of resources, and what they expect in terms of team performance. There are a few donkeys in the lineup but part of managing is improving player performance.

I think it read that somewhere in my Player Manager docs!

Best wishes,

Doug

10spro · Post by **10spro** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 9:15 pm

Personally, I think Rafa is a keeper but the lack of domestic titles doesn't go unnoticed. Again securing the services of Mascherano is a must IMO before spending someplace else. His price is a bit high but if they can get rid of Kuyt and Babel, then it's another story.

Mourinho has been linked now to be a possible succesor in Bayern as Kaiser F. Beckenbauer prefers a dude with International experience, but I still think his days ahead are focused in AC Milan.

RobVarak · Post by **RobVarak** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 11:46 pm

double post

RobVarak · Post by **RobVarak** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 11:49 pm

This is ridiculous! Rick Parry already cleared the air, and the trip was an already-scheduled date regarding the new stadium. They're going to break the transfer fee record for a defender in signing this Slovakian kid, so it's obvious that the purse strings are not pulled tight.

I agree that Benitez is justifiably under more scrutiny, but the day-to-day soap opera is blown way out of proportion and results in speculation that becomes silly.

I don't even begin to understand the criticism of Babel. He's a kid, he's shown flashes of excellence despite being played outside his favored position and they just bought the guy! Kuyt is another story. I do need to give props to PK, who sent me a PM way back when Rafa signed Kuyt saying that he was a workhorse who wouldnt' finish consistently in the EPL. It's with great sadness that I bestow said kudos, however

RobVarak · Post by **RobVarak** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 12:34 pm

Dave,

Congrats on dodging the Djibril Cisse bullet

fsquid · Post by **fsquid** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 12:56 pm

Everton has put in a 2 million pound bid for the injured Frankie Simek.

davet010 · Post by **davet010** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 3:13 pm

RobVarak wrote:Dave,

Congrats on dodging the Djibril Cisse bullet

I take it you've not seen the unstoppable goal machines that are Georgios Samaras and Emile Mpenza then ?

Samaras was the reason that no one would ever trust Pearce with money again, as we spunked £6m on an unproven 20 yr old from a second rate league. For some bizarre reason City seem to be contemplating a return to the European power that is Heerenveen for a Brazilian called Alonso Alves.

Other players which seem to be on the blue radar include a winger called Mancini from Roma, who is top quality apparently, and this Podolski chap from Bayern initially on loan til the end of the season.

RobVarak · Post by **RobVarak** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 5:04 pm

davet010 wrote:
RobVarak wrote:Dave,

Congrats on dodging the Djibril Cisse bullet
I take it you've not seen the unstoppable goal machines that are Georgios Samaras and Emile Mpenza then ?

Samaras was the reason that no one would ever trust Pearce with money again, as we spunked £6m on an unproven 20 yr old from a second rate league. For some bizarre reason City seem to be contemplating a return to the European power that is Heerenveen for a Brazilian called Alonso Alves.

Other players which seem to be on the blue radar include a winger called Mancini from Roma, who is top quality apparently, and this Podolski chap from Bayern initially on loan til the end of the season.

Cisse is just more of the same. No player is more fun to watch between the penalty areas, but the minute he enters the box it's the Dead Zone. His pace and athleticism are breathtaking, and matched only by his ability to make Dirk Kuyt seem a clinical finisher.

OTOH, he is one of the few athletes about whom I can say I have genuine admiration. That guy busted his tail to come back from some catastrophic leg injuries. I give him credit for that at least.

Mancini is a stud.

JRod · Post by **JRod** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 5:24 pm

Could Liverpool's problems be solved by playing a player they already have. Peter Crouch might not be a true goal scored but his ability and size, I think would complement Torres extremely well.

Rafa hates crouch for some reason.

RobVarak · Post by **RobVarak** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 6:01 pm

JRod wrote:Could Liverpool's problems be solved by playing a player they already have. Peter Crouch might not be a true goal scored but his ability and size, I think would complement Torres extremely well.

Rafa hates crouch for some reason.

I mentioned this earlier in the thread, but I think the problem isn't Crouch but rather the inability of his mates to do anything with him but knock 30-yard balls at his noggin. He's a better player with the ball of his feet. Some of his best moments at LFC have come when he's worked beautiful 1-2's with Gerrard. He'd be excellent if allowed to drop off behind Torres and was given the ball at his feet. I cited it as one of Benitez's failures that he has not been able to use Crouch correctly, but it may be that he decided the only way to prevent them from using Crouch only as a target is to put him on the bench. Either way, it's a shame.

JRod · Post by **JRod** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 6:46 pm

RobVarak wrote:
JRod wrote:Could Liverpool's problems be solved by playing a player they already have. Peter Crouch might not be a true goal scored but his ability and size, I think would complement Torres extremely well.

Rafa hates crouch for some reason.
I mentioned this earlier in the thread, but I think the problem isn't Crouch but rather the inability of his mates to do anything with him but knock 30-yard balls at his noggin. He's a better player with the ball of his feet. Some of his best moments at LFC have come when he's worked beautiful 1-2's with Gerrard. He'd be excellent if allowed to drop off behind Torres and was given the ball at his feet. I cited it as one of Benitez's failures that he has not been able to use Crouch correctly, but it may be that he decided the only way to prevent them from using Crouch only as a target is to put him on the bench. Either way, it's a shame.

I know you talked about it, but without Gillette and Hicks giving Rafa more money, I think the solution is to sell Kuyt. Use Voronin as the 3rd striker and maybe find a young promising striker as the 4th. Play Torres and Crouch and even if the long ball comes, I think the shear nature of his height would benefit the team.

Ya, blame the inadequate use of Crouch on Rafa.

I just don't see how Liverpool moves up, without spending more money, which won't happen until the summer or he plays some irregulars. Other than that the only option is to fire Rafa and bring in someone else. What other options are there for this club.

fsquid · Post by **fsquid** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 8:37 am

MLS turns down an 800 thousand pound bid for Taylor Twellman from PNE

fsquid · Post by **fsquid** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 2:03 pm

Big Sam is gone from Newcastle.

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 2:18 pm

fsquid wrote:Big Sam is gone from Newcastle.

Good riddance. Chaos reigns supreme on Tyneside -- what else is new?

Big question is whether Shearer will be recruited as the white knight to ride in and save the day.

Take care,
PK

davet010 · Post by **davet010** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 2:51 pm

Shearer has no coaching experience, has the charisma and personality of a wet haddock, and judging by his punditry attempts on BBC has no tactical understanding of the game either.

His international profile is all but zero, and Newcastle's European scouting network won't make up for that. He's widely loathed within the English game as well.

So sign away, Ashley you publicity-hungry buffoon...that'll be one less club for City to have to get more points than on the way to Europe.

Odd timing too unless they have someone lined up - clearly Ashley didn't want to give Allardyce extra money, but there's only 3 weeks to go til the transfer window shuts.

RobVarak · Post by **RobVarak** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 3:16 pm

Why hire Shearer when you have the inexplicably unemployed Steve McClaren twiddling his thumbs??

davet010 · Post by **davet010** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 3:40 pm

ooo, harsh.

Maybe they are hoping for Rafa ?

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 3:58 pm

davet010 wrote:ooo, harsh.

Maybe they are hoping for Rafa ?

Rafa should be interested. Newcastle is a MASSIVE CLUB, after all.

Take care,
PK

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 5:52 pm

It makes bugger all difference who they hire - until the supporters find a way of managing the club themselves (and I suppose the Shearer idea is as close as they'll get, so it makes a twisted kind of sense), whoever comes in has ten games of guaranteed non-improvement before the Newcastle 'faithful' are baying for his blood. You might as well give me the job - and with my track record ('Football Manager 2008, Hartlepool United - 11 consecutive defeats, establishing new club record') I might yet get the bloody thing. As for the timing of the sacking...well, they must have someone else pretty much installed, otherwise it makes precisely no sense.