He's no Phil Babb, but Ronaldo is still a cracking player
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- Thread starter EFCNIK
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He's no Phil Babb, but Ronaldo is still a cracking player
Eric Djemba-Djemba
Player Valuation: £60m
Been the best in the world in my eyes for a couple of years now mate.
His concept of possession based football is both slow and boring. Additionally, he has only succeeded with Xavi, Iniesta, and Messi in their primes.
You need to have a final ball to win. His teams actively don't have a final ball. They actively don't change things up when plan A is not working. This was all fine and good when he had the best team in world football by a mile, but it's being shown up now.
Compare to us against United. Pep would never have allowed his team to attack on the counter as we did.
The idea that he was the greatest manager in world football was always predicated that he made Barca, not that Barca made him.
Of course, this could be a problem with man-management and Bayern have taken their eyes off the prize since wrapping up the Bundesliga. And we shouldn't discount how f'ing good Real can be. But to be spanked like that at home? Doesn't speak to the best manager in the world.
Baines' left foot
Player Valuation: £90m
I'm pleased that Ronaldo is having a sustained period of being comprehensively better than Messi.
K
Krang
Guest
He's only hailed as some kind of football god by soccer am obsessed fuckwits sucking in every media hyped [Poor language removed] they can.
To anybody who watches a lot of football he's a very good manager, yeah he got lucky with what he inherited at Barcelona but all managers have some luck in the players they inherit either when they take over of what comes through the youth. Ferguson and the 92 fluke lot for one.
Yeah lots of credit to Heynckes for how Bayern played last year, but Guardiola was never going to take over and then suddenly adopt a new style. I don't know how involved he was with the Goetze transfer but he doesn't seem to fancy him, and i don't know if he had any targets of his own last summer or he just went with the squad he was given as they were already European champions. I'd imagine he'll know what he wants this summer though.
I wouldn't disregard him on this season, they've walked the German league and are in the German cup final, and came up short in the Champions league semi final. Hardly the poor season you're portraying on the back of 1 game.
toffeestillidie
Player Valuation: £35m
That's because United didn't sit back and defend in numbers, they inexplicably kept a pretty high line against us.
I didn't watch today's game but I can guess how Madrid played from the first leg, and you can't counterattack a team that doesn't commit numbers forward.
We wouldn't have been able to put 5 passed Arsenal and United if they went in looking for a draw.
K
Krang
Guest
They've been in 3rd gear since they won it, completely different starting lineups every game. It's obviously had a huge impact on their displays since.
HuddersfieldToffee
Player Valuation: £10m
It's been a chicken and egg situation. Guardiola started by playing a team that sat off after 5 seconds of pressing and allowed themselves to have some counter attacking situations, exploiting Messi, Eto'o and Henry's pace. But just as Fergie lost his way when he allowed Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez to brake up, Pep lost his way when he allowed Ibra to come in and Henry and Eto'o to leave. He lost that ability to play a combination of styles - he gained a plan B but lost his players who could play in a plan A, B, C, D and F. Also losing the powerful Toure hurt as well. Barca became predictable and Pep left them a worse side, lacking in height, power and strength that made them a JOY to watch in his sextuple year. As he's been more and more involved, his teams lose their way. There's a reason he kept playing 3-3-4s and 3-4-3s and 3-5-2s and 4-4-1-1s with Xavi as a holder with Busquets and 4-4-2s with Fabregas. There's also a reason he signed Cesc, to allow more invention and less la Masia hegemony in the Midfield.
With Bayern, their power was in the wings. Robben and Ribery are excellent and stretched the play, allowing more space for Kroos/Bastian etc etc. Now they don't have that because they play such a high line and they don't drop off, the midfielders have no space to run into and nothing to link with. Thiago has brought very little (albeit with Injury) and he has no domestic competition. It's no wonder his squad could beat a spirited United side, they hadn't played in a huge game all year. That was the biggest game in United's season.
He doesn't have a plan B, can't do it without an excellent squad (both times he inherited) and he hasn't performed at the really big games on several occasions (Chelsea SF, Inter SF, Tonight)
B
Big Fat Sam
Guest
Was pretty funny that, watching it in a massive beer hall in Munich. 
Eric Djemba-Djemba
Player Valuation: £60m
For Madrid in the CL Ronaldo's played 50 games, scoring 51 goals. Absolutely ridiculous.
hahahahaha, have that pep you boring tit
peteblue
Welcome back Wayne
Was pretty funny that, watching it in a massive beer hall in Munich.
*prays for Poland........
K
Krang
Guest
That was a brilliant tackle by Ramos when they were calling for a yellow card early 1st half, before the Alonso yellow.
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