₦airaland Forum

chusks:
na c.baba dey put fear 4 una body like dis so? Una go here am dat day, lol

honeric01:
Suarez should be back by then?

Johnnny:
But with CR7 banging in hatricks like this?

I dey fear o, seriously

Mcleo007:
You can take the hippopotamus from the swap, but can't take the swamp away from it.

Mcleo007:
I think you're right. Watching Alexis in arsenal reeks of pity. Dude has spiralled downwards and fast.. Can't even take on a single player in a one-on-one like before. Such a shame!

Debroslink:
It's a big shame on both Sanchez and Ozil who were at the top of their careers with Messi and Ronaldo respectively to drop so low to the class of Welbeck.

ddippset:
so its simply. enriquee must pull his ears, he must be ordered not to go past the centre circle. let munir or pedro operate on that left wing.

honeric01:
Is Alves actually slow?

who's the slowest, Alves, Montoya or Douglas?

ddippset:
i loved that defence line of alvez, pique, bartra and mathieus. (i have always had the opinion that one of alvez or alba had to make way)

dmcdad:
Our next game, the 8th would be a tricky tire as the newly promoted Eibar are more of a pain in the ass than one had envisioned. But then, its gonna be in the Camp Nuo, so anything other than a victory for Barca would be total failure. The 9th tire? El-Classico! Its gonna be difficult to play the Classico without conceding.

Let's keep our fingers crossed.

dmcdad:
Barcelona are the first team in Liga history not to concede in the first 7 games of the season.

Nice one!
Visca el Barca!

dmcdad: Lol... Pedro your guy.

dmcdad: I can bet he won't start. And personally, I won't start him. Well, we will definitely see what it turns out to be.

dmcdad: If Ibra were to be available for that match, Lucho would have started Piqué ahead of Masche to compensate for the lack of height of Masche and to be able to stand a better chance against PSG (in terms of height) with Ibra and Cavani very tall players, not to mention Luis, Marquinhos, and the likes of others who are tall players.

He (Lucho) sacrificed height for speed since Ibra was absent. I would say it was a poor decision on his part going by the conditions in place because he didn't consider other players aside Ibra who are tall too albeit not as tall as Ibra. Cavani is tall. And so is Luis, Marquinhos, Moura-Pastore-Veratti (not really sure about them though).

Anyway, like I stated before, we need to have varying tactics and strategies for different games. You can't play Granada this same way and expect it to work the same way against Madrid. I can bet it that in the Classico, Carlo would most certainly play a double-pivot to compensate for the absence of the veteran "Alonso". Why would he do that? Because Barca ain't Cordoba, Villareal or even Sociedad. He would alter his approach to better suit his team and to counter the approach of his opposition (Barca in this case). This is what I expect also when we play the big boys. Infact, to counter Madrid's plan as regards taking us on the break with just a few of our players at the back, I would play a double pivot of Masch-Busi. In this case, Masche especially would help to shield the backline while Busi does his normal job of breaking play and helping out in attack more with some forward passes. Added to this two would be Rakitić-Xavi or Iniesta, while we play two men up front in Neymessis.

Depending on the outcome of the game, it can later be altered with the inclusion of Luis suárez later on in the game(I'm very sure he won't be a starter in that match).

Lucho, what we need is tactical variation with less predictability.

dmcdad: Busi suits the tiki-taka system well more than anyone. If we are to alter that system, I feel there is need also to alter the personnel that are much clinched to the system. If we are to take a more direct approach, Masche would be the man no doubt about that. But if we are to stick with tiki-taka as it were, then Masche displacing Busi would almost be impossible (at least for now).
Nice one!

I see no reasons why we can't create variant tactics as the game demands. Against a team like Madrid and the likes of Chelsea, Athletico and maybe City, I would play Masche in DM (irrespective of who else plays). Having someone like him to shield the back two (cause we don't have back four as our full backs are actual wingers in the real world) would really make a lot of sense and would bring abiut shield and steel to our backline.

Imagine the prospect of playing Masche in front of Bartra-Mathieu or Piqué-Mathieu. It gives an added assurance that the backline is as safe as being in heaven.

philfearon: You are correct Bro.....
Mascherano should go fight out his place with Busquets.....I just hope Enrique won't go the way of Martino...

homesteady: Just admit cable, madrid thread is as boring as watching a sleeping man!
Okay let me pity your thread and give you guys what to discuss there -
among all the top clubs in Europe, madrid has the worst defence, what should be done before Neymar, Suarez and Messi come and wreck havoc in Santiago bernabeau

homesteady: that boring thread? how many times do you people even talk about your madrid on the thread sef? once in a while! You guys prefer coming to our thread to talk about Messi!

dmcdad: I was wondering if he really watched the match. Iniesta played rubbish! Forget about the 1-2 with Messi, he played absolute nonsense. Dang! I was hoping he would be subbed off for Xavi so Rakitić (even though not in the game like the rest of em) could mark.

cisse7575: from the poll to the front are all flop, except Messi and iniesta

eyoniggar: Whatever may have gone wrong tonight, I really dont know, defensive flaws being exposed at this level? Plus I wouldnt really mind if anyone can rate alves's performance tonight?

dmcdad: Brilliant pass from Dani, but I would give it to Xavi there...

dmcdad: Ney of course.

ddippset: lol. i see usbcable spying on us as usual! oga go ya thread na!

mcdreeezy: This pic might exaggerate a little but it's not far from the truth... Penaldo fans won't agree tho

You know it's Baba when you see somethin like this

dmcdad: Mehn, I am sometimes seriously pissed with the comparisons and all. No doubt, Ronaldo is a great player and I can't take that away from him. But comparing him with Messi? Since I have been watching football, I have not seen any player that is man-marked and zone-marked as Messi (infact, the football world needs to invemt some better marking strategies to express or describe how Messi is marked). Teams change their entire strategy just because of this guy.

Abeg, who don watch match wey two people mark Ronaldo? Whereas to say that two players mark Messi would be an understatement. He always got like 3 or more markers on him. I swear! If Ronaldo is marked half as Messi is always marked day-in-day-out, his goals would be only penalties and nothing more.

Messi is in a league of his own. No one can be like Baba. No hating, but Ronaldo is far from Messi albeit he is a great and classy player himself. And if not for Messi, he would be the undisputed champion.

ddippset: luis enrique, luis enrique, luis enrique. this rotation policy of yours will kill us finish! iniesta isnt doing enough; the guy is about 30 and he isnt a strong person by nature, neymar needs to be more of a team player( i get the impression because he has scored a couple of goals, he wants to steal the lime light from messi; the guy never releases the ball in time, he wants to do all the dazzles and leg overs and make all the shots on goal, he needs to chill messi is still the boss). i pity messi; nobody does the mid field magic anymore, messi has to drop to mid field every time to create things. he wont have goals this year. pedro; never reliable! he runs and runs and runs, and at the end of the day, he does nothing.

kfykdot: You ppl should continue MESSI αϞ∂ RONALDO ishhhhh!!!Fact is that they get paid when i̶̲̥̅̊n̶̲̥̅̊ g̶̲̥̅̊Ơ̴̴͡.̮Ơ̴̴̴͡d̲̅ form or not.I don't know why some ☀f U̶̲̥̅̊ keep using panadol F̶̲̥̅̊o̶̲̥̅̊я̣̣̥ them.


Barcelona's forwards fail as the Catalans draw
blank versus Malaga
September 24, 2014 9:22:36 PM PDT
By Francesc Tomas
Barcelona were only able to draw 0-0 with Malaga at La
Rosaleda in matchday five of La Liga. The Catalans
enjoyed 67 percent of possession, created 10 goal-
scoring chances and attempted five shots, but,
shockingly, none of them were on target.
As usual, Barca managed to control the game but
struggled to break their rival's defence on this occasion
due to lack of speed in their final third. Luis Enrique's
men were forced to dig deeper than in any other game
since the Asturian took over as manager in the summer
and, regrettably, didn't create as many clear chances as
their opponents despite having an overwhelming share
of possession.
Barcelona are still sitting at the top of the table after
adding just one point to their tally but are now tied with
Sevilla at 13 points each. Sure, the Blaugranas are still
unbeaten and managed to secure their fifth consecutive
clean sheet, but not winning at Malaga could be
interpreted as a missed opportunity when looking back
once the season is over.
Player Ratings:
(G) Claudio Bravo, 6 -- After being picked for every
league match so far, it seems clear the Chilean
international has jumped ahead of Marc Andre Ter
Stegen in the manager's pecking order -- a surprising
turn of events if we consider that sporting director
Andoni Zubizarreta spent more than 18 months
researching the goalkeeping market and famously
opted for the 22-year-old German as the club's future
No. 1. Bravo's fantastic save after 70 minutes proved
the manager right, however, and enabled his team to
avoid defeat.
(D) Douglas Pereira, 4 -- Made his debut after his
surprising move from Sao Paulo in the late stages of
the summer transfer window. A clumsy performance,
to say the least. While his speed could be an asset in
the future, both his defending and crossing when
joining into attacking positions were disappointing. Still
don't understand why he was selected ahead of Martin
Montoya and Adriano if the manager's intention was to
rest Dani Alves.
(D) Marc Bartra, 7 (man of the match) -- Spirited
display from a player who continues to improve
rapidly. Despite not having enjoyed that much playing
time lately, he seems full of confidence in his own
abilities. He recovered an impressive 12 balls and was
even close to scoring twice, but his headers just weren't
as accurate as he would have hoped for. A true
contender for a regular starting spot if he can keep his
impressive momentum going.
(D) Gerard Pique, 6 -- He returned to Enrique's lineup
after frustratingly watching the team's 0-5 win at
Levante from the bench. The 27-year-old Catalan
defender, who has been linked with a return to
Manchester United in recent days, was consistently
solid and kept his rivals at bay thanks to his positioning
and aerial ability. Fortunately, it looks like being forced
to compete for every single minute of playing time has
increased his motivation to return to his best as soon
as possible.
(D) Jordi Alba, 7 -- Another combative display from the
relentless Catalan left-back. Pushed into attacking
positions constantly, combining especially well when
overlapping Andres Iniesta. His crossing was generally
accurate, but, unfortunately, none of his attacking
teammates were quick enough to get on the end of it.
(M) Sergio Busquets, 6 -- Gave the Catalans' midfield
much-needed stability, often connecting well with those
around him when in possession. The eight balls he
recovered stopped Malaga from making easy
counterattacking transitions, which could have been
potentially dangerous.
- Enrique: Barcelona still need lots of hard work
- Report: Weligton clutches Lionel Messi's throat
during match
(M) Andres Iniesta, 5 -- Barca's captain didn't seem
comfortable at any point during the game and, like the
rest of his attacking teammates, failed to add that
much-needed extra gear. His passing was far too
predictable and, as a result, not a big enough challenge
for Malaga to defend against.
(M) Ivan Rakitic, 5 -- Completed his least effective
game since joining the Blaugranas. While his defensive
work was as admirable as ever, his passing should have
been more incisive at times, especially against such an
ultra-defensive formation.
(F) Neymar Jr., 5 -- The Brazilian wasn't able to build
on his very positive performances of late, as he was
rarely able to find enough spaces to run into. He did
work hard up and down the left flank but kept knocking
his head against Malaga's well-organised wall.
(F) Pedro Rodriguez, 5 -- Included in the starting lineup
ahead of youngster Munir El Haddadi for a second
consecutive game. He made several runs into space but
lacked accuracy when giving that crucial final pass
which, ultimately, makes the difference at professional
level. His clumsy fall when trying to dribble himself
inside the area pretty much sums up his forgettable
performance.
(F) Lionel Messi, 6 -- Well contained by the Malaga
defence. Often forced to dropping far too deep into his
own midfield in order to get involved, which caused
him to be further away from the position in which he
can be truly unstoppable. An extremely quiet game by
his standards, as shows the fact that he was able to
attempt only two shots which, unfortunately, went wide.
Substitutes:
(F) Munir El Haddadi, 5 -- Came on for Neymar much
earlier than most would have expected (64 minutes),
and found it difficult to create any gaps within the
Albiceleste back line.
(F) Sandro Ramirez, 6 -- Introduced at the expense of
Pedro (64 minutes). Added that extra mobility the team
was lacking but lacked clarity when on the ball. His first
touch was too heavy at times.
(F) Adriano Correia, N/A -- Replaced Douglas (73
minutes) but failed to make much of an impact at either
end of the pitch.
The Quote -- "It was our hardest game so far because
our opponents got so much right. We lacked accuracy
over the final metres. The result was never in danger,
and neither did we suffer much. We needed to be more
patient, we lost the ball too much by attacking too
directly. It wasn't a great game for us. We were missing
several parts of our game that we usually have. If we
can get Messi involved in the game, we'll always be
more dangerous." -- Luis Enrique