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***Official Soccer Discussion Thread*** (2 Viewers)

Should've been a penalty.

Zelalem through ball sets up Akpom who's fouled. Maybe a bit of a heavy touch from Zelalem but good vision.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Zelalem looked much more effective in the standard center mid role rather than attacking mid, IMO. He looked like he belonged out there today. :shrug:

 
So what is going on with Serie A these days? I dont see a whole lot of ambition out of the old powerhouses. Milan and Inter seem like shells of their former selves, both in terms of their ability to play winning football and attract top talent. Both missed out the Champions League. Neither seems willing to spend money to get back there anytime soon. And the San Siro is usually half empty (at least).

Whats going on? Just a down few seasons? A power shift to teams like Napoli and Roma? Or something else? I know corruption really took its toll on the League and was wondering if maybe the fans are fed up. Sure Juventus is as strong as ever (on paper anyway) but even they seem more like a selling club than a buying club these days. At the other end of the table, the bottom 7-8 teams have attendance levels as low as 5-10K per game.

Any Azzurri here (or others) to chime in?

 
Latest iteration of Official EPL squad:

De Gea, Gilks

Filipe Luis, Debuchy, P. Jones, Jagielka, S. Taylor

Hazard, Eriksen, Mirallas, Sigurdsson, Albrighton

Rooney, Lukaku, Dzeko

 
I dislike Alves as much as anyone, but he's a quality right back: tons of pace, good ball skills, can tackle decently, gets in good crossing position (although his crosses are often poor), and despite being a little #####, he hates to lose and his teammates probably like him. Definitely an upgrade for the vast majority of teams although if take Juanfran or Carvajal from la Liga right now.

 
Native said:
So what is going on with Serie A these days? I dont see a whole lot of ambition out of the old powerhouses. Milan and Inter seem like shells of their former selves, both in terms of their ability to play winning football and attract top talent. Both missed out the Champions League. Neither seems willing to spend money to get back there anytime soon. And the San Siro is usually half empty (at least).

Whats going on? Just a down few seasons? A power shift to teams like Napoli and Roma? Or something else? I know corruption really took its toll on the League and was wondering if maybe the fans are fed up. Sure Juventus is as strong as ever (on paper anyway) but even they seem more like a selling club than a buying club these days. At the other end of the table, the bottom 7-8 teams have attendance levels as low as 5-10K per game.

Any Azzurri here (or others) to chime in?
Click to expand...
I think FFP will be the end of the Italian league as a top league. There isn't the fan base there to economically(attendance, shirts, TV viewing) support them. I think I recall hearing that if you added up the population of Torin, Milan, Rome and Naples it wouldn't equal London. There just isn't the intake of money there to support dominate clubs, especially in the FFP era.

eta>

those Italian cities = 4.9M

London = 8.3M

ouch

 
Last edited by a moderator:
The Gator said:
Native said:
So what is going on with Serie A these days? I dont see a whole lot of ambition out of the old powerhouses. Milan and Inter seem like shells of their former selves, both in terms of their ability to play winning football and attract top talent. Both missed out the Champions League. Neither seems willing to spend money to get back there anytime soon. And the San Siro is usually half empty (at least).

Whats going on? Just a down few seasons? A power shift to teams like Napoli and Roma? Or something else? I know corruption really took its toll on the League and was wondering if maybe the fans are fed up. Sure Juventus is as strong as ever (on paper anyway) but even they seem more like a selling club than a buying club these days. At the other end of the table, the bottom 7-8 teams have attendance levels as low as 5-10K per game.

Any Azzurri here (or others) to chime in?
Click to expand...
I think FFP will be the end of the Italian league as a top league. There isn't the fan base there to economically(attendance, shirts, TV viewing) support them. I think I recall hearing that if you added up the population of Torin, Milan, Rome and Naples it wouldn't equal London. There just isn't the intake of money there to support dominate clubs, especially in the FFP era.

eta>

those Italian cities = 4.9M

London = 8.3M

ouch
Click to expand...
They've also done themselves no favors with their marketing/tv contracts abroad.

Interestingly, La Liga looks to be pooling their tv revenue/negotiations starting in 2016/7 in a bid to mimic the EPL's tv rights. Should take a little off Barca and RM, but help the tier just below them be more competitive.

 
[CROWD COUNT] Bolstered by a U.S. soccer record crowd of 109,318 for the Man. United-Real Madrid in Ann Arbor, Mich., a crowd of 69,3640 fans for Liverpool-AC Milan in Charlotte, a record for a match in North Carolina, and 48,765 fans for the San Jose-Seattle MLS game to open NFL 49ers' new Levi's Stadium, soccer outdrew baseball on Saturday.

The 10 MLS and Guinness International Champions Cup matches on Saturday averaged 36,317 compared with 34,179 for the 15 MLB matches. And it wasn't like it was an offnight for baseball. The two best-supported teams -- the Los Angeles Dodgers and St. Louis Cardinals -- were both at home.

Seven of the top 25 U.S. soccer crowds for the year were for matches that took place in the last week. And to cap the weekend, Portland set an NWSL attendance record on Sunday when a crowd of 19,123 watched the Thorns-Houston Dash match at Providence Park.
Click to expand...
 
NewlyRetired said:
Keane, Gonzo and Chad Marshal have been replaced by Bobby Boswell, Maurice Edu and Sean Franklin for the MLS All Star Game against Bayern.
Click to expand...
Jermaine Defoe has been replaced by Dom Dwyer due to injury.

Keane, Gonzo and Defoe are big losses for the MLSers in the hopes of keeping this under a double digit defeat against Bayern.

 
The Z Machine said:
I dislike Alves as much as anyone, but he's a quality right back: tons of pace, good ball skills, can tackle decently, gets in good crossing position (although his crosses are often poor), and despite being a little #####, he hates to lose and his teammates probably like him. Definitely an upgrade for the vast majority of teams although if take Juanfran or Carvajal from la Liga right now.
Click to expand...
He is a good right back if played as one. Unfortunately, he has been used almost exclusively as a right winger in recent years.

 
Slapdash said:
The Z Machine said:
I dislike Alves as much as anyone, but he's a quality right back: tons of pace, good ball skills, can tackle decently, gets in good crossing position (although his crosses are often poor), and despite being a little #####, he hates to lose and his teammates probably like him. Definitely an upgrade for the vast majority of teams although if take Juanfran or Carvajal from la Liga right now.
Click to expand...
He is a good right back if played as one. Unfortunately, he has been used almost exclusively as a right winger in recent years.
Click to expand...
That's where he wants to play. He played in the same place with Pep, with Vilanova, with Martino, and with Big Phil, who benched him for Maicon.

Again, watch that crazy Bale goal from the Copa last year, where Alves is not in the picture.

 
Sammy3469 said:
The Gator said:
Native said:
So what is going on with Serie A these days? I dont see a whole lot of ambition out of the old powerhouses. Milan and Inter seem like shells of their former selves, both in terms of their ability to play winning football and attract top talent. Both missed out the Champions League. Neither seems willing to spend money to get back there anytime soon. And the San Siro is usually half empty (at least).

Whats going on? Just a down few seasons? A power shift to teams like Napoli and Roma? Or something else? I know corruption really took its toll on the League and was wondering if maybe the fans are fed up. Sure Juventus is as strong as ever (on paper anyway) but even they seem more like a selling club than a buying club these days. At the other end of the table, the bottom 7-8 teams have attendance levels as low as 5-10K per game.

Any Azzurri here (or others) to chime in?
Click to expand...
I think FFP will be the end of the Italian league as a top league. There isn't the fan base there to economically(attendance, shirts, TV viewing) support them. I think I recall hearing that if you added up the population of Torin, Milan, Rome and Naples it wouldn't equal London. There just isn't the intake of money there to support dominate clubs, especially in the FFP era.

eta>

those Italian cities = 4.9M

London = 8.3M

ouch
Click to expand...
They've also done themselves no favors with their marketing/tv contracts abroad.

Interestingly, La Liga looks to be pooling their tv revenue/negotiations starting in 2016/7 in a bid to mimic the EPL's tv rights. Should take a little off Barca and RM, but help the tier just below them be more competitive.
Click to expand...
Get the eff out. Great news.

 
Good Posting Judge said:
Slapdash said:
The Z Machine said:
I dislike Alves as much as anyone, but he's a quality right back: tons of pace, good ball skills, can tackle decently, gets in good crossing position (although his crosses are often poor), and despite being a little #####, he hates to lose and his teammates probably like him. Definitely an upgrade for the vast majority of teams although if take Juanfran or Carvajal from la Liga right now.
Click to expand...
He is a good right back if played as one. Unfortunately, he has been used almost exclusively as a right winger in recent years.
Click to expand...
That's where he wants to play. He played in the same place with Pep, with Vilanova, with Martino, and with Big Phil, who benched him for Maicon.

Again, watch that crazy Bale goal from the Copa last year, where Alves is not in the picture.
Click to expand...
I don't think that players get THAT much say in where they want to be positionally. There are things called tactics, and players get pulled for not adhering to them. That might be an issue with Alves, but at the minimum, his manager is giving him the freedom to play as a winger for long stretches. it makes sense when your team has oodles of midfield possession, but if the player isn't hustling and the midfield can't hold on to the ball at will, then it's not a good spot for a right back to be in.

 
The Z Machine said:
Sammy3469 said:
The Gator said:
Native said:
So what is going on with Serie A these days? I dont see a whole lot of ambition out of the old powerhouses. Milan and Inter seem like shells of their former selves, both in terms of their ability to play winning football and attract top talent. Both missed out the Champions League. Neither seems willing to spend money to get back there anytime soon. And the San Siro is usually half empty (at least).

Whats going on? Just a down few seasons? A power shift to teams like Napoli and Roma? Or something else? I know corruption really took its toll on the League and was wondering if maybe the fans are fed up. Sure Juventus is as strong as ever (on paper anyway) but even they seem more like a selling club than a buying club these days. At the other end of the table, the bottom 7-8 teams have attendance levels as low as 5-10K per game.

Any Azzurri here (or others) to chime in?
Click to expand...
I think FFP will be the end of the Italian league as a top league. There isn't the fan base there to economically(attendance, shirts, TV viewing) support them. I think I recall hearing that if you added up the population of Torin, Milan, Rome and Naples it wouldn't equal London. There just isn't the intake of money there to support dominate clubs, especially in the FFP era.

eta>

those Italian cities = 4.9M

London = 8.3M

ouch
Click to expand...
They've also done themselves no favors with their marketing/tv contracts abroad.

Interestingly, La Liga looks to be pooling their tv revenue/negotiations starting in 2016/7 in a bid to mimic the EPL's tv rights. Should take a little off Barca and RM, but help the tier just below them be more competitive.
Click to expand...
Get the eff out. Great news.
Click to expand...
Here's the link:

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/apr/11/la-liga-television-rights-premier-league

Interestingly a different article notes how far Barca and RM are behind in marketing in the US compared to the EPL teams

 
It will be interesting to see if La Liga attendance problems (80% capacity vs 92% in PL, according to that linked article) will be improved once they spread around the TV money more equitably. You don't want an NFL-type system but a little more parity has to help.

I didn't know that La Liga didn't have parachute payments for relegated teams, either. Yikes. That's got to hurt competitiveness from top to bottom, too.

 
The Z Machine said:
Good Posting Judge said:
Slapdash said:
The Z Machine said:
I dislike Alves as much as anyone, but he's a quality right back: tons of pace, good ball skills, can tackle decently, gets in good crossing position (although his crosses are often poor), and despite being a little #####, he hates to lose and his teammates probably like him. Definitely an upgrade for the vast majority of teams although if take Juanfran or Carvajal from la Liga right now.
Click to expand...
He is a good right back if played as one. Unfortunately, he has been used almost exclusively as a right winger in recent years.
Click to expand...
That's where he wants to play. He played in the same place with Pep, with Vilanova, with Martino, and with Big Phil, who benched him for Maicon.

Again, watch that crazy Bale goal from the Copa last year, where Alves is not in the picture.
Click to expand...
I don't think that players get THAT much say in where they want to be positionally. There are things called tactics, and players get pulled for not adhering to them. That might be an issue with Alves, but at the minimum, his manager is giving him the freedom to play as a winger for long stretches. it makes sense when your team has oodles of midfield possession, but if the player isn't hustling and the midfield can't hold on to the ball at will, then it's not a good spot for a right back to be in.
Click to expand...
I used to feel on an island when I criticized Alves and now I feel like I'm kind of on an island when defending him. Alves didn't just become undisciplined in the past 18 months. He's the same type of player he was when he was arguably the second or third most important player on Barcelona. People just tend to comment on it now for two reasons (IMO).

First, without Puyols back to cover and with Pique not aging gracefully, Barca's CBs aren't as good at covering. Second, and more importantly, by signing another attacking fullback in Alba, Barca have one less guy to cover in the first place. In theory, Barca should always have four at the back at one time. Two CBs, Busquets, and one full back. Too often, Barca now has both fullbacks caught forward. I assume this is why Barca is considering going three at the back. Because that would give them a dedicated 3 + Busquets and give Alba and Cuardrado (I guess?) license to stay forward.

 
Ramsay Hunt Experience said:
The Z Machine said:
Good Posting Judge said:
Slapdash said:
The Z Machine said:
I dislike Alves as much as anyone, but he's a quality right back: tons of pace, good ball skills, can tackle decently, gets in good crossing position (although his crosses are often poor), and despite being a little #####, he hates to lose and his teammates probably like him. Definitely an upgrade for the vast majority of teams although if take Juanfran or Carvajal from la Liga right now.
Click to expand...
He is a good right back if played as one. Unfortunately, he has been used almost exclusively as a right winger in recent years.
Click to expand...
That's where he wants to play. He played in the same place with Pep, with Vilanova, with Martino, and with Big Phil, who benched him for Maicon.

Again, watch that crazy Bale goal from the Copa last year, where Alves is not in the picture.
Click to expand...
I don't think that players get THAT much say in where they want to be positionally. There are things called tactics, and players get pulled for not adhering to them. That might be an issue with Alves, but at the minimum, his manager is giving him the freedom to play as a winger for long stretches. it makes sense when your team has oodles of midfield possession, but if the player isn't hustling and the midfield can't hold on to the ball at will, then it's not a good spot for a right back to be in.
Click to expand...
I used to feel on an island when I criticized Alves and now I feel like I'm kind of on an island when defending him. Alves didn't just become undisciplined in the past 18 months. He's the same type of player he was when he was arguably the second or third most important player on Barcelona. People just tend to comment on it now for two reasons (IMO).

First, without Puyols back to cover and with Pique not aging gracefully, Barca's CBs aren't as good at covering. Second, and more importantly, by signing another attacking fullback in Alba, Barca have one less guy to cover in the first place. In theory, Barca should always have four at the back at one time. Two CBs, Busquets, and one full back. Too often, Barca now has both fullbacks caught forward. I assume this is why Barca is considering going three at the back. Because that would give them a dedicated 3 + Busquets and give Alba and Cuardrado (I guess?) license to stay forward.
Click to expand...
I think this is largely right. However, there was a deliberate tactical change in Pep's last year to push him up even higher in lieu of having a wide right forward. That has largely continued for a couple of years. It was particularly bad when Barcelona used a 4 man midfield + Messi as they have in many key matches.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
The odd thing with Alves is seeing Barca fans drumming him out of town, or is that just GPJ? How many cups did Barca win with him, a dozen or so?

 
Sammy3469 said:
The Z Machine said:
Sammy3469 said:
The Gator said:
Native said:
So what is going on with Serie A these days? I dont see a whole lot of ambition out of the old powerhouses. Milan and Inter seem like shells of their former selves, both in terms of their ability to play winning football and attract top talent. Both missed out the Champions League. Neither seems willing to spend money to get back there anytime soon. And the San Siro is usually half empty (at least).

Whats going on? Just a down few seasons? A power shift to teams like Napoli and Roma? Or something else? I know corruption really took its toll on the League and was wondering if maybe the fans are fed up. Sure Juventus is as strong as ever (on paper anyway) but even they seem more like a selling club than a buying club these days. At the other end of the table, the bottom 7-8 teams have attendance levels as low as 5-10K per game.

Any Azzurri here (or others) to chime in?
Click to expand...
I think FFP will be the end of the Italian league as a top league. There isn't the fan base there to economically(attendance, shirts, TV viewing) support them. I think I recall hearing that if you added up the population of Torin, Milan, Rome and Naples it wouldn't equal London. There just isn't the intake of money there to support dominate clubs, especially in the FFP era.

eta>

those Italian cities = 4.9M

London = 8.3M

ouch
Click to expand...
They've also done themselves no favors with their marketing/tv contracts abroad.

Interestingly, La Liga looks to be pooling their tv revenue/negotiations starting in 2016/7 in a bid to mimic the EPL's tv rights. Should take a little off Barca and RM, but help the tier just below them be more competitive.
Click to expand...
Get the eff out. Great news.
Click to expand...
Here's the link:

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/apr/11/la-liga-television-rights-premier-league

Interestingly a different article notes how far Barca and RM are behind in marketing in the US compared to the EPL teams
Click to expand...
Seems a very smart move by La Liga and Barca/RM if true.

 
CletiusMaximus said:
The odd thing with Alves is seeing Barca fans drumming him out of town, or is that just GPJ? How many cups did Barca win with him, a dozen or so?
Click to expand...
Agreed, but I think it is a vocal minority. Alves has been one of my favorite players to watch and I'll miss him. Despite all of the flak he gets lately, he also had some game winners last year.

 
Can't recall if this has been posted here - but ManU under a bit of pressure to make Champions League next season - 30% reduction in the Adidas deal ~£24Million less, if Man U fails to play in Champions league next season.

 
Slapdash said:
CletiusMaximus said:
The odd thing with Alves is seeing Barca fans drumming him out of town, or is that just GPJ? How many cups did Barca win with him, a dozen or so?
Click to expand...
Agreed, but I think it is a vocal minority. Alves has been one of my favorite players to watch and I'll miss him. Despite all of the flak he gets lately, he also had some game winners last year.
Click to expand...
I did a very scientific poll of looking at the Twitter comments under a tweet about him on /barcastuff, and it seemed pretty split 50-50.

I've gone on way too long about how bad he is, there's no point in going further. Proof's in the pudding.

 
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