2019-2020 Football / Calcio / Futbol / Fußball Thread

[Jaybee]

I don't follow close enough to really know, so is Dest an actual difference maker for the MNT? I gather that he's really good for a US player, but also it seems that he maybe wouldn't have even been in the starting 11 for De Oranje, so is he "good for an American" or "good period"?

[echappist]

Originally Posted by Jaybee

I don't follow close enough to really know, so is Dest an actual difference maker for the MNT? I gather that he's really good for a US player, but also it seems that he maybe wouldn't have even been in the starting 11 for De Oranje, so is he "good for an American" or "good period"?

Answer to your first question is: it's a more loaded question than it appears. Certain players operate best under certain systems. Dest is a modern outside back, tasked with offensive output and defense. He does the former quite well and the latter adequately, and he would be at home at any attack-minded side. If he were asked to play defense for most of the game, however, I'm not sure if he'd be as good (in the way ManU's AWB excelled last year at Crystal Palace). But then again, I doubt Trent Alexander-Arnold would shine as brightly, were he asked to play 80% of the game in his own half. With the past few classes of players in the youth rank, you'd expect the skill level to improve, which means the U.S. may be able to play a more attacking brand of football against more teams. Defensive awareness could always be taught; technicality is a bit more difficult to impart. I think he could do well, especially as he can play as a left back. Also not to be forgotten is that he's an Ajax academy grad, the academy steeped in the total football philosophy of Cruijff; so i'd think his positional sense can't be all that bad

As for how good he is, his market value is ~40th amongst players from his birth year, which means he's at least decent. He basically supplanted the right back that played much of Ajax's Champions League and Eredivise campaign and has made that spot his own (someone three years older and with market value of 15 Mil, as opposed to his 5.5 Mil). So in that regard, he's quite good, and didn't seem at all out of place in the Champions League group stage matches, not to mention that Ajax (with him playing most league matches) is currently in first place.

Of course, he's still quite young (few days shy of his 19th birthday), so there's still a lot of unknown, but if things turn out well (as in, no major injury, etc), he'd be quite good.

[echappist]

The U17 MNT seems to be underperforming a bit. Then again, not as bad as the Dutch U17, who got walloped not once, but twice (always found it odd that the land of Cruijff could be so inconsistent).

Surprise to find that Gio Reyna (yes, son of Claudio) is still playing U17. He actually is that young, a few days shy of his 17th birthday. Apparently tearing it up in the Bundesliga U19s, the last stepping stone before first team Bundesliga action. Some of the other kids look quite baby-faced in comparison.

While Pulisic may be the present Captain America, the name Reyna literally refers to royalty, and Claudio Reyna was the former Captain America. Would be glorious to have an attacking front four of Pulisic, Weah (another scion of football royalty), Reyna, and Sargent

[echappist]

How would Frankfurt fare against Tottenham?

Jest aside, Bayern seems to be in real trouble. They'll have to shoe-horn someone into the CB role for the next one or two Bundesliga games, and I really hope BVB can take advantage.

[wc1934]

Originally Posted by echappist

How would Frankfurt fare against Tottenham?

Jest aside, Bayern seems to be in real trouble. They'll have to shoe-horn someone into the CB role for the next one or two Bundesliga games, and I really hope BVB can take advantage.

Kovac is gone.

[martl]

Originally Posted by wc1934

Kovac is gone.

good riddance, godspeed

[echappist]

Herr Heynckes to the rescue yet again?

At this rate, he’s like the retired Roman general whom the consul/emperor repeatedly calls out of retirement to put out one last uprising...

[goonster]

Kovac: fired, in the end, for the unpardonable sin of being insufficiently deferential to Thomas Mueller.

Also, Bayern need a preemptive excuse, in case things go badly vs. Dortmund.

Incredible to me that this squad falls apart with the loss of Niklas Suele, the Hessian Phil Jones. Apparently, forgetting to have central defenders is a thing that big clubs do now.

[Gsinill]

Originally Posted by goonster

Kovac: fired, in the end, for the unpardonable sin of being insufficiently deferential to Thomas Mueller.

Goes beyond Müller:
Niko Kovac when asked if Bayern could play a similar type of football like Liverpool with high intensity and more pressing: "You need the right players for that. You can't drive at a speed of 200 km/h on the Autobahn with a car that can't go faster than 100 km/h."

Guess that did not go well with the team

[wc1934]

Kudos to Liverpool!

https://talksport.com/football/62497...lub-world-cup/

[goonster]

Originally Posted by Gsinill

Niko Kovac when asked if Bayern could play a similar type of football like Liverpool with high intensity and more pressing: "You need the right players for that. You can't drive at a speed of 200 km/h on the Autobahn with a car that can't go faster than 100 km/h."

It's a dumb question and an honest, but undiplomatic, answer. Putting the style first is stupid, because its the result that counts. Arriving at your destination at 100 km/h is better than going 200 km/h, getting lost and running out of gas. Only Liverpool are Liverpool. Would Lewandowski slot into the LFC front three? Probably not.

Kovac always had a better relationship with the press than with his bosses, but he also lost the dressing room completely, just in the last couple of weeks. He should do well elsewhere, but he's not a world class tactician, and he failed to impose his identity on the team.

Hoeness is not doing the club any favors right now, either. Undermining the manager, picking pointless fights with the DFB and generally putting himself in the foreground just when he is on his way out the door. The squad is in transition, currently in injury crisis, they need all the stability they can get.

[echappist]

Originally Posted by wc1934

Kudos to Liverpool!

https://talksport.com/football/62497...lub-world-cup/

i'm not sure if that is worthy of kudos though (as much as I find their Teutonic manager and cosmopolitan team generally likeable)...

btw, psyched for tomorrow? Chances of me getting much done tomorrow is about nil. Perhaps I should be thankful that all the interesting matches occur on one day of the week, so that I can be productive on the other day. I have no idea how they decided which groups to play on which day, as the matches on Wednesday are thoroughly insipid...

Originally Posted by goonster

Kovac: fired, in the end, for the unpardonable sin of being insufficiently deferential to Thomas Mueller.

Also, Bayern need a preemptive excuse, in case things go badly vs. Dortmund.

Incredible to me that this squad falls apart with the loss of Niklas Suele, the Hessian Phil Jones. Apparently, forgetting to have central defenders is a thing that big clubs do now.

Jones ought to consider himself lucky to be compared to Süle

and what do the said big clubs have in common?

[martl]

Originally Posted by echappist

Herr Heynckes to the rescue yet again?

At this rate, he’s like the retired Roman general whom the consul/emperor repeatedly calls out of retirement to put out one last uprising...

Heynckes jokes have been banned by the german joke police today around 11:00am.

Kovac gof fired because the team didn't show any sign of improvement or at least the development of a game idea for 18 months.

The injury streak amog defenders didn't help naturally*), along with Kovacs unfortunate remarks toward club legend Muller, the whole team (100km/h) and the fan base**), all within 3 weeks.
to further worsen things, the Frankfurt defeat was live on free national TV.

*) ironically, Bayern started the19/20 season with more top class defenders in the squad than any season before; Süle/Pavard/Boateng/Hernandez all can and did play CB at the highest level. Many seasons before that, Bayern had 2 CBs, 2FB, Rafinha and Martinez as only backups for 4 def positions

**) Kovac had stated that Frankfurt (his former team) had "the best supporters in the league" - while technically probably true, there are things you can think but not say as a coach. The fanbae had stood behind him in their majority until then.

The end was a bit self induced, he clearly was never the right man for the job. Whether he ever had any fighting chance is debatable, Rummenigge never wanted him.

PS: @goonster: Phil Jones? yeah, he's what, 11 stone and 6ft? Süle is 4 years younger, 15 stone 6ft5 and does 100m in 11sec. I don't really think they are on par potential-wise

[goonster]

Originally Posted by echappist

and what do the said big clubs have in common?

Pep left three years ago, this isn't on him. Or did you mean recent underachievement in the Champions League?

Selling Hummels (instead of Boateng), and not replacing him, raised eyebrows at the time.

[echappist]

Originally Posted by goonster

Pep left three years ago, this isn't on him. Or did you mean recent underachievement in the Champions League?

Selling Hummels (instead of Boateng), and not replacing him, raised eyebrows at the time.

i know it's technically not on Pep; i just can't pass up on taking a snipe at him... Such a sanctimonious git (on the pitch and off)

he was also the mad genius who installed Kimmich at central defense

the underachievement is true enough though

I think the Bayern board thought they pulled a fast one on BVB by getting a 30mil Eur fee for someone it perceived to be washed up and slow, but for all his faults Hummels lends a calming presence and whatever he lacks in speed, he (mostly) makes up with awareness and positioning.

Originally Posted by martl

Heynckes jokes have been banned by the german joke police today around 11:00am.

I'm trying really hard not to type a really hackneyed and trite retort