₦airaland Forum

coded01: Honestly, ronaldinho dazzled us then...


Make I no lie, I like that style then with Ronaldinho leading the pack...



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKjy0-wNvuU


But it's gradually changing with Xavi gone, you are still welcome bro...

I missed him really! I just hope Neymar can remind us of those days soonest.

ddippset: http://babb.telegraph.co.uk/2014/07/lionel-messi-completely-deserved-to-win-the-golden-ball-because-he-was-brilliant-at-the-world-cup/




SOME COLD HARD FACTS!

Nice one bro! But take it or leave it, they will never admit.

[quote author=Mcleo007

Don't mind the losers comparing his impact at the WC to Robben and Muller, while forgeting that Messi unlike the others played the AMF role. The closest contestant probably would have been Hames Rodriguez who lifted his country in the absence of the prolific Falcao. Robben played as a striker in a 2 man partnership with RVP while Muller had an interchanging role with Klose upfront as well. In which case, while Messi is the creator of goals/opportunities to score (which indeed he did), the other two are recipients of the balls and have an easier task to score.

Yesterday evening, i found myself in the company of some ignorant mofos who were still reeling on the golden ball ish. They brought up all sort of excuses to discredit Messi being worthy of the accolade. One even said, "Messi didn't sweat on the field like Robben... you no see as Robben de always ginger for ball", and i was like what the faackkk! Another claimed Thomas Muller scored 5 goals and was a handful for the Brazilians to cope with Imagine when a professional team is lined with a secondary school football team; what result would you expect? In theory, the German squad at the world cup is superior to every other team, and against a Brazilian team bereft of their two keyplayers were expected to progress- chances were put at 35-65. A team that lost Reus early on, lost Khedira at the last minute to the final game, and didnt finch! That tells the quality of the squad.

In defence of Messi:
1. Let it be clear to all, Messi did not play the role of striker, nor the false 9 he's accustomed to at club level. For the national team, he played as the only offensve midfielder (AMF)- No. 10 in a rigid formation of 4-2-3-1

2. Goals for Argentina was 8; Messi scored 4.

3. All of Messi's goals were scored in the
group stage. Now, since when has it been a standard of measure to dissociate the importance of group stage activities in a tournament in another to ascertain the overall impact an individual put to the evolvement or otherwise of his team? After all, even the much praised Robben scored all three of his goals at the group stage as well; Muller scored just one more goal during the KO. Some teams peak/gel as a tournament progresses while others decline. Every game played in a tournament is as important as the next that is yet to be played. Every outcome influences the other game and results yet to come. It's a short tourney not a league cycle.

4. 3 of the goals scored by Messi were self-worked with exception of the first goal against Nigeria which was a rebound (a typical goal often scored by midfielders). The goals against Bosnia, Nigeria(the free kick) and Iran are class acts.

5. For a player in his position, an offensive midfileder, Messi made the most interception. The stats are there, and even the Big mouthed one, Moanrhino attested to that when he said, "Messi sacrificed himself for the team."

6. People compare Messi's impact at this world cup to Maradonna in 86. Now, that's laughable. Its like those secondary school debates on the topic, "our fore-fathers lived better lives than us". Comparing historic events that occurred over different timelines is erroneous. The proponents upon which the events can be verified are not empirical.

7. Mascherano and Romero may have been the most decisive players in the semi-final game, but had Messi not bailed them through the group stages, through the second round with his incisive pass that led to goal, would they have featured in the semis at all? No! This is not to discredit Masche or Romero, but to counter the poster claims that tend to rubbish Messi's overall impact on the account of both players' heroics on the night.

8. Messi created the most goal scoring chances in the entire tournament. Is it his fault that those chances weren't converted?

9. Had Argentina won the world cup, with Messi playing 'absolutely nothing of worth', and was given the award; would same people come out to castigate him?

10. Maradonna and Zidane scored in the KO stages of the 1986 and 2006 WCs respectively which were decisive for their teams to march on; is that fact a sufficient reason to discredit the goals scored by Messi at the group stages in 2014?

In all, I don't expect any one who doesn't agree with me to quote or make reference to what ive written here; i will not reply. This is the last i'll say on the issue. [/quote]God bless you bro! But, the fact remains that no matter what and how well you put it, they will never agree not because they don't know the fact(truth), but because it's just Messi. I asked one of them this question today "if Ronaldo had played in the final and lost with same performance as Messi, would you have objected being giving the golden ball?" my friend could not answer me. So it's just obvious what they are in form or better still they should asnwer why none of them said anything before the final as they were all praying for Argentina to fail for them to have a say. Okay let's agree that the golden ball should have been giving to Nuer maybe they will let the boy be.

ddippset: wait a minute, where is ronaldo? i havent heard his name in a long while.

Ronaldo? You would have heard his praises everywhere if he had reached the semis! Just wait till when another balon d'or is at the corner, then friends here will start campaigning for him.

I really hail and respect my fellow cules who devote their time and energy dragging issues with the haters who in my opinion will never agree and succumb to glaring facts. One would wonder where they all were when Argentina were winning. It's just obvious they were all waiting for a time like this.many of them didn't allow us rest when Barca were not doing fine only to disappear
Into the thin air when we needed them to give us some explanations when their teams were crushed. Take it or leave it, Messi is just up there with the greats or maybe we should agree that James,muller,Roben et are all beter players than Messi if they will allow us rest. Forca Barca!

Mcleo007: Don't go there Bro... he was the Xavi/Iniesta of Argentina. Higuain can't even score to save his own life. Then the coach is not tactically sound. Rojo was the weak link in the defense in the closing period, he should have operated a 5 man defense moving Demichelis to support at the left. Rather, his subs like always was for position to position..

Don't get me wrong bro! Messi had to play the role of Xavi/Iniesta, much reason he could not venture forward as expected and had to give the final passes to the idiots. If argentina could have a player to do the stuff from the middle of the park and Messi being the recipient of the final passes rather than the supplier, it would have been a different ball game entirely. So we are on same page.

A40: Loool how on earth did Messi deserve the Golden Ball. This phuckery na highest

yes he deserved it! He was the reason why the dutch could not go past them because Sneider could not play his game as he had to keep an eye on Messi. He followed him everywhere he went and the only two times he failed to, Messi had two most dangerous run which the palacio and co could not utilise. He was the link between the defence and the toothless forwards. Had he a fine midfielder who could hold on to the ball well and has an eye for a final pass, the world would have seen the best of Leo.#he must have missed Xavi!

Messi went to the world cup with wrong forwards#Higuain, Aguero......

Higuain cost Argentina the world cup! Sad!!!

.....and it's over! no world cup for Messi, so sad!

What a clear foul on Higuain by Nuer!

ddippset: One thing I've learnt in this world cup, never play mascherano at central defence!

Lesson for Barca crew; always play a player in his natural position! Masch the hero!

Leo all the way! Go go go Messi! No one needs the world cup more than u!

ddippset: he's the one o! I would sign that boy before even thinking about suarez.

waoh, what a player! I can't wait to seem him in d very fine jersy,

Are we talking about this Colombia Cuadrado? If yes, what are we still waiting for? Sooooo goo to be back here!

dmcdad: Pelé claims Zidane was a better player than Messi

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Pelé won't leave Messi alone, ever!

You dey mind that man? It's no more Neymar but Zidane. He just admires the guy called Messi as I have never heard him talk about CR7.

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philfearon: This piece has really made my day! Enjoy reading..
http://www.whoscored.com/Articles/Z6Fr77iphEyWBojhJ6MGg

Nice write up. It's so intresting seeing Batra taking his rightful position in the team. If he continues with his form, I don't see anything stoping him from going to the world cup come next year!

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yourangel: I am not an expert in football analysis like most our Cule brothers on this thread. You could describe me as a layman or at best, a football enthusiast. That notwithstanding, I think Valdes is right. If you carefully analyse his words, you would notice that the premise has an underlying caveat; "For me, Barca will always depend on him because he is the best in the world". Barca will always be Messi-dependent as long

as Messi continues to play at the top of his game. Once he slows down, that dependence would wane.

Alejandro Sabella, the national team coach of Argentina once opined that it would be impossible in this world for any team to have a player like Messi and not be dependent on him. I don't see any problems in the club being Messi-dependent. The problem is how to take that dependence out of the way if Messi is not playing or having a good game. There should be a plan B or C which would create an environment for other team members to step up their games when Messi is not playing at his best, or not playing at all.

Dependence on a talented individual in a team's setting is a natural phenomenon which occurs whenever you find a rare gem or genius around. Imagine having Albert Einstein on this thread and we are all working together to solve one very complex mathematical problem. Do you think Seun's eyes would be on me? No way! He would focus on Einstein, because he's the genius among the team members. Even we, the remaining members of the team would give him the freedom to take the centre stage, afterall, we are talking about Albert Einstein here. I tell you this bro, Messi is like the Albert Einstein of football. Who wouldn't depend on Einstein to solve his mathematical or classical physics problem for him? So, it's natural for any team to depend on Messi. Barca is not an exception to this.

Meanwhile, if Messi's injury woes persist and he no longer performs at his best, naturally Barca would gradually release him and remove their dependence because he would no longer be deemed reliable and dependable. But, as long as Messi continues to dazzle the world the way he currently does, any team on Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Mercury, etc, would naturally depend on him. This is what I think bro.

Bro you got it allright! No team in the world would have Messi and would not depend on him.
Even the so called assumed 'alliens' that came to watch Bayern match the other day would depend on king Leo if he plays for them...lol

.....Just here enjoying all the comments from great minds!

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yourangel: Brother Paul (abi na brother John....lol), the truth is that Messi already paid his dues before he got severely injured. Before now, he already won us the Liga, kept us in the CL to the semi-finals and qualified Argentina for the WC. His injury of last weekend has nothing to do with what he's achieved this year. He's done enough to be a worthy recipient of the award. You can't just 'reward' others because the contest should be interesting. Messi has clearly been the best player in the world in the last five years (it's only messi haters that disagree with this obvious fact). What has Ibrahimovic done this year that Messi hasn't done? Ribery, CR and Ibra could not automatically qualify their respective national teams for the WC. All three will have to go through play-offs to qualify. Messi already did that for Argentina. Ribery won the treble with Bayern, but was he their best player? No. They won as a great team with no particular individual as the team's shining star as in Messi, CR and Ibra in their respective teams.

I agree completely with you that others also deserve the award. However, Messi still deserves it as well. I would gladly accept whoever wins it this year, but I would be happier if Leo comes home with it . Cheers bro!

I don't care whoever gets the award as long as it's not Ronaldo! Ronaldo getting it would make him and his fans think he is better when it's obvious he's always second best. If Messi does'nt get it then giv it to Mikel....lol ...rather than CR7. Quick recovery king of world football!

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logica: Let me break it down to you; football at this level has a science. This is not secondary school stuff.

I will use Puyol as an example (or even Abidal). I have studied the movement of these 2 guys especially around the box. Their techniques are flawless, and that is why it would be hard for you to see Puyi or Abi conceded own goals. They could deflect a shot in the net, but not reflexively stick out a foot or leg to push the


ball in their own net. When I speak of positional play, it's like this: Before Puyi proceeds to go towards an opponent to tackle or make a challenge, he swivels his head around with his locks flying in the hair then he goes. In that split second, he has a picture of his position and others relative to him (both his teammates and opponents) and can project a good guess where they will all be by the time he makes the challenge. In short, Puyi would not have stuck out his foot like Pique did; and he would not have been positioned the same way or in the same location Pique was. And if he was exactly in Pique's position, he would have used his superior positional judgement to figure that he had 3 of his teammates behind him, as well as the goalkeeper to pick up the cross. No rash movements when you are that close to the goal.

Hmmmm but Pique is not Puyol, there can only be one Puyil.lol that's just on a lighter mood, you are right though!

Good game and good performance from the boyz. I'm happy Messi scored. I wouldnt blame Pique for the goal twas pure accidental. Neymar broke my heart for not scoring what would have been a trademark and Tv goal from such a great run!

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philfearon: You are very very right bro.....Bartra's time will surely come...........I guess i was angry with that decision earlier on shaa...But all well and good...
Lest i forget,History repeated itself again like i earlier foretold...Our new boy{Neymar} scored on the eve of our rival coaches{Ancelloti} first El classico,just like his predecessors{Movic,Villa} in our home ground.....and we won...

I so much like that post when i saw it, and when Neymar scored, your were the first person that came to my mind. Welldone!

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philfearon: Yeah bro,i understand your point,but all this people u said started out even younger,and even played more!! Its all about Faith...
Pedro,Busquets,Pique:were all products of faith from Pep...Yaya Toure who had to give way 4 Busquets is a great player,and stil is...Marquez who gave way 4 Pique,same tin....its all about faith....
Pique would not have felt all that bad if he missed the El classico once...He's been playin it 4rm day one!!
Remember,Iniesta played the 2006 UCL final,and he was 20yrs then......its faith and trust...Bartra was just not trusted,thats the simple truth.....

You are right but don't forget Iniesta was dissapointed for not starting the match ahead of Deco just because the coach could afford to bench his. Star players then. And besides, it was easy for all the guys that left because they are not Spaniard. I just believe Batra's time will come soonest. I trust and believe in him.

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philfearon: The said it that he will drop either of Iniesta or Xavi...So,checking with recent stats,i concluded that Iniesta will be the one....
Fabregas did exactly what the coach had in mind,or didnt u c that immediately he was subbed,the midfield battle got even? In that game,Fabregas was deployed to play underground role....
Talking of Pique,like i said,Pique did me proud,he tried...If he can improve on

performances like this,i will be in the heavens.......But my point is,Bartra would have outplayed him,just like he has been outplaying him this season......If at all you do play ball,you will realise what it feels like to Miss a high profile match,after u must have tried your best to partake in it....
And yeah,i would love him to leave,i dont tink there is any faith in him...He only started playing more cuz of Injury to other players...I hate it when sweet and great players like him are not appreciated...a 22yr old boy is not a kid...Bartra,Varane,Marquinhos,they all play similarly,but Bartra is the one being under-appreciated......

Bro, I quite understand your points. But I want you to remember that Barca is a club where the younger players, no matter how good they are must wait for their perfect time. If u could remember, Xavi almost left for milan Because of a certain Pep. He chose to wait for his time and he's regarded by many including me as the greatest CM ever. Same for Iniesta when Deco et all were in barca but he stayed put and today he's a legend. Thiago is a worthy starter any day but the senior players are also spanish who can't just be sold anyhow. Remember guily, Dihno have to pave way for Messi, Deco,Edmilson and co have to go for iniesta and Yaya for Busquet all because they are not spanish. Batra has to contend with Puyol and Pique who are spanish and must learn to wait for his time. I see him become the next Puyol bu he must retire puyol first.so, just be patient with the club!

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philfearon: Eat which words? Or didnt u see that what i said happened? Bartra would have been better......Pique tried very well though,but Bartra would have been better........
Now,someone should nt blame Bartra if he decides to leave next Year.....I do not want him to sign that contract extention again...Its clear that the coach doesnt really have faith in him,and more ill-treatments of this kind are still in the offing...........

So Batra may leave because he didn't play Classico? Batra is good and he's fast growing to whom we want him to be . But you have to understand that if he had played the match and probably had a bad day which is not impossible, the whole world would ask Tata questions why he should leave a more experienced Pique on the bench. Same goes to your take on having Gas play ahead of Iniesta just because he's not scoring nor assisting. Who had a better game among them? I think Iniesta did. Bro, no coach will ever leave his best players on the bench in such a crucial match.

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logica: Thank you o. I was wondering why Iniesta and Pique were being praised. That cross you mentioned; did you see where both Pique and Mascherano were? Jezuz! Zero defensive positional acumen. And yeah, Iniesta's passing was just off. There were so many through passes he couldn't make that would have let Alves or Neymar loose. And yes, he was the culprit in that chance Ronaldo had which Valdes parried over the bar.


It was a balanced game and we were lucky. I take the win anyway. But it could have gone either way.

They were being praised because they performed better than those calling for their heads had expected. I was surprised some guys even wished Iniesta had started on the bench. Which coach in the world would dare try that just because he's not scoring nor assisting? If Messi is having a poor form at goal and Pedro is scoring would you wish messi be benched for Pedro in a match of such magnitude? So funny cules are fast forgeting who Iniesta is!

..... And Pique played, Iniesta played and we won the match! Welldone guys.

I still don't see Iniesta start on the bench. No coach will ever try that when he's not injured. U don't bench your best players in a match of such magnitude just because he is under-performing. Who says he can't raise his game and win us the match? And besides, i think the issue is that he has not been able to really combine well with neymar because of their similar role. I will play Iniesta ahead of Gas any day.

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sapien: Valdes

Puyol - Pique - Mascherano - Adriano.

Busquets

Xavi - Fabregas

Alves- Messi- Ne
This is my preferred formation for tomorrow.











Carles Puyol should be drafted to the right back to cover sluggish Pique's back. Since Alves would always stray forward, he should be deployed in the right side of attack.

Pep Guardiola deployed Puyol at right back and Alves at right side of attack against Pellegrini's Madrid in 2009/10 season second leg match at the Bernabeu to curb the efficiency of C.Penaldo. It worked perfectly and Barca triumphed at the capital.

Meanwhile, Andres Iniesta should be dropped to the bench; he has been off-colour of late.
Good formation! But which coach in the world would dare drop a player like Iniesta on the bench in a game of such magnitude? Forget about being off-colour, every coach will want to make his best players happy and droping Iniesta on d bench would do him no good.

dmcdad: I strongly doubt that....

Madrid can't stop scoring from the spot while the refs keep waving play on to geniue fouls on our players expecially Meymar. I am afraid we may get to see a repeat of such come this weekend as Pepe and co will be doing their usual assignment. I prayer Neymar leaves the field with his legs.

Madrid and Refs this season! Will El-classico be free and fair?