It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas…

Marco, I agree with you in the fact that DDR needs to play BEHIND Pirlo, not alongside him. I said that earlier on this blog,too.

MAD, Gianfranco- I never said being in a commerial or on a video game cover makes you automatically a good player. Gian, you said before that DDR will never be a superstar. That was just my point for that, you dumbass. Read before you jump on someone. A decent player doesn’t make it into commercials and game covers, that’s all I’m saying. I was just refuting your point that he isn’t and will never be a superstar.

But Marco again, how does he have an attitude and not show up for 70% of the games? I wouldn’t say he has a bad attitude … He gets angry sometimes and does stupid stuff (i.e. McBride, all the yellow cards last season), but showing up for games??? You could argue that he was one of the only ones who showed up at Euro 2008, along with Buffon, Chiellini, and probably someone else I’m forgetting. But it’s true, it did seem like he was lost and unfocused yesterday. I mean, every player has a bad game once in awhile, not everyone is consistent throughout every single game. Give him a break. All I’m trying to say is some of the hate saying he should be thrown out or put on the bench is stupid. As for the formation I would like to see against Georgia:

———————BUFFON——————–
–DOSSENA–CANNAVARO–LEGROTTAGLIE–ZAMBROTTA–
———————-DDR———————-
—CAMORANESI——-A. PIRLO——-DI NATALE—
————–GILA———–TONI————–

I’d like to see maybe Del P slot in for Christmas while Christmas moves up and takes Toni’s spot because I’m that pissed at that guy for sucking that bad.

asem - please lower your tones. No need to call anyone a dumbass.

About De Rossi and Pirlo playing together, I reckon it’s best to keep Pirlo slightly decentered (possibly on the left). It forces opposing pressure onto one side, thus opening up spaces on the other for Camoranesi, Di Natale, Cassano, etc while not interfering too much with Pirlo’s playmaking functions. Also, it allows De Rossi’s defensive skills to be exploited at their utmost.

Posted from  United Kingdom

My B.
Yeah you’re right about that, that is why DDR has been playing next to Pirlo. so they off-center a little bit.
I know this is just my Roma love peeking through, but I’d like to see Aquilani get a shake out there as a sub for Pirlo.

I would like to see a 4-2-3-1 formation. In the Euro 2008 majority of the teams were using this formation. The players starting are only based on what players are currently on the team.
Buffon
Dossena—Cannavaro—Legrottaglie—Zambrotta
De Rossi—Pirlo
Camoranesi—Aquilani—Di Natale
Del Piero(if fit)

I couldn’t watch that game. I can’t believe Azzurri played that bad.

Posted from  Viet Nam

well kari…
They did.

John Silver, “ludicrous De Rossi criticisms (the best one has to be that a role player can’t carry a team when Cannavaro just won us the world cup. Further, I’d be hard pressed to call De Rossi a role player considering the multiplicity of tasks he can handle in the middle of the pitch).”
Well said.

I think this DDR hate has become a total drag and honestly quite shameful. I am not a blind fan of anyone by any means. But to level criticism and vitriol at someone using hypotheticals and statements not based on facts is ridiculous. I am one footie fan in a seemingly diminishing bunch who think that national loyalty is bigger than club loyalty. I do not agree with any club fans turning a blind eye to deem their player a superstar when facts do not support it. But if we want the future of the azurri to be bright, as it deserves to be, we have to nurture our up and coming stars. How are we judging DDR’s legacy already? That he will “never be a superstar, carry the team etc etc.” He is a star-in-the-making who may or may not live up to his potential. And he has not shown anything in his short azurri career to say that he does not deserve to wear the proud blue jersey. Yes, he needs to improve, but who doesnt (esp at the wise old age of 25 yrs)? And when has he shown “problems with his attitude”? Are we just making stuff up now to prove a point? I cant help but think that some of this back-and-forth hate between fans is just that- hate between fans, and hatred for each others players/idols is a corollary of that. Very much a chicken-and-egg problem.

I know very few, if anyone, will care- but can we treat all the players who may be the future pride of calcio and Azurri a little better? It is honestly quite embarassing to see anyone verbally bash up players, based on what seems to be a personal vendetta, and probably by someone who doesnt even watch a full season of that player’s performance in the league.
Just to conclude, I have to say that hearing someone say that a defensive player who cannot score goals can never carry a team, and is not a match winner - please do not insult everyone’s footballing intelligence. And this coming from an Italian footie fan!!!!
In fact, I want the 30 seconds of my life I spent reading that comment back. Seriously.

Posted from  United States

Optionio, no, I mean this- Austria doesn’t count because it was a pre-season summer friendly. 3 things wrong with that.

September 2006 (Euro 2008 qualifiers) France 3-1 Italy
September 2007 (Euro 2008 qualifiers) Italy 0-0 France

Comparing Euro games or WC games isn’t my point. Our season starts late and we’re in worse form than anyone in Europe, ignoring the injuries for a moment. We got hammered by France and then looked totally impotent against them last year. Relax. Everyone can start freaking out when our Azzurri has a few months under the belt of form and fitness and we’re drawing a blank. But Lippi has perfectly acceptable excuses.

Posted from  United States

Alessio, good point reminding everyone of the match fitness of azurri players. I wouldn’t panick yet- but I will if once the serie A season is truly under way, players have shown their form (or lack thereof), but Lippi starts ignoring form to pick players he is more comfortable with. I am sure he is not a cigar-smoking Raymond Domenech, so I would be shocked if it comes to that. I agree with you that calls for Balotelli, Giovinco etc. are premature and knee-jerk. They need to gain more maturity and prove themselves over a full season vs. quality opponents, or else they will bomb under the pressure on the international stage. Not good for the azurri or the player. Italian footie has never worked that way, and thank god for that.

Posted from  United States

alessio,

no dice. Lippi was the first one to say to the press and to his players that “i do not want to hear about the bad pitch, etc. … there are no excues”

what are his excuses? that we had injuries? there were certainly other options he could have chosen to cover for those injuries. before the game started i predicted there would be massive problems with the offense and midfield - because of whom he called up.

what are the excuses for having fielded Toni*, Gilardino*, played Pirlo* and De Rossi* where anyone watching series A football for at least the last year should know they do not function well, and fielding an out of form Cannavarro and Zambrotta along with Cassetti and Barzagli. many of these (*) are almost the same choices that Donadoni got sacked for.

i love Lippi but frankly was surprised by his player choices. it seems like several of his selections come out of his blind belief in some of these players without judging them based on their recent performances.

i loved the team and players fielded for the wc-2006 and they are fantastic players, but many are just not fit enough to keep up and Lippi needs to recognise this.

p.s. - i am not panicking because i just wrote about the same thing you did about the fitness of Azzurri players at this point in the season, but it is not just about fitness … it is about choosing the playes nad knowing where to effectively field them to get team cohesion.

remember, when Lippi started coaching the Azzurri he had just come of a successful stint at Juve. no he has gone over a year without any tactical tinkering. he needs to start observing and HE needs to find his form.

remember, when Lippi first started coaching the Azzurri (for the 2006 wc) he had just come of a successful stint at Juve. now he has gone over a year without any tactical tinkering. he needs to start observing and HE needs to find his form.

I think he means they shouldn’t have been fielded together.

Personally I think this is nonsensical. No two players are incapable of working together, it’s just a question of finding the right position for them to discover their alchemy. In the last game against France it was already starting to work as Pirlo was advanced towards the left and asked to play as De Rossi’s satellite, with remarkable success for both - they stopped treading on each other’s feet, and each was allowed to their job.

Either way, benching either would be a huge waste. We’d better have a rock-solid reason if we decide to do that, and with the world cup two years from now, I can’t for the life of me see any.

Posted from  United Kingdom

so, Nocerino has been called up to replace Gatusso. I am sure there will be disagreement, but I am happy about Lippi’s choice. At least, it seems to signal that he is prepared to move forward, not regress backwards. The last I really watched Nocerino for any length of time was at the Toulon tourney for the U21, and was impressed by his grit and persistence. Also saw him at Juve, and thought he was good. Even if he doesnt play, it will do him good to be with the senior team. Definitely one of the likely players to come good before WC2010.

Posted from  United States

also, i should add that Lippi, normally a master of how to arrange his line-up according to the team against which he will be playing, really failed to read Cyprus.

Cassetti is a great defender for raiding up the wings but he only works well with someone like De Rossi just in front of him to cover when the other team counters. Cyprus was heavy on the counter and he should never have been used. Cyprus was also very physical and, while i do not always think Gattuso should be on the field, he was the right choice for this game and probably should have started.

we maintained little possession and this was because of lack of cohesion.

where was Pirlo played? in the midfield or the front-line or as some sort of 3/4ista? he was lost.

Pirlo needs to be in the middle centre and as such he needs to have a flanking midfield that can create space around him so that he can operate as the incredible play-maker he is. he did not have this.

in addition, there was no connctivity between the midfield and the front line - passing was horrendous on the Italia side. this should be our strong suit - being able to move the ball around and exploit temporal holes in the opposition’s squad.

this was how both goals were scored (though the first was largely the result of a defensive error).

Aquilani along side DeRossi would improve this (centred in the back just in front of the rear gaurd - neither play well out on the flank). Put Pirlo in front of them and in the centre in a position where he can shift forward as a 3/4ist or back into mid-centre field. the two wingers would then play slightly up in front of Pirlo but out to the sides. No Toni, no Gilardino. Single striker at the point (problem is Italy do not have anyone who ideally fits this position - i know everyone will laugh, but Inzaghi is the one who would best fit that role, or dare i suggest Totti, but i belive he would not work well despite his amazing talent).

Actually gio, Aquilani has worked on the wings in Roma and with a measure of success.

I don’t like the craze that seems to be going around for the 4-2-3-1. I certainly don’t like the idea of putting Pirlo in the position of trequartista; with such a formation, that role requires a beast of a runner, which Pirlo never was and is becoming less and less with age. More importantly, I doubt that such a formation would work well with the Azzurri squad - we have players whose characteristics are simply too different than the Romans (no Totti, for instance, who is the fulcrum of the 4-2-3-1).

I’m not sure I can call an ideal formation at such early stages. Certainly the most difficult question is how to best exploit the midfield - fielding Pirlo, De Rossi and Aquilani at the same time would be gorgeous if they could all work together, but their roles are so similar that such a combination would risk crippling the rest of the team, or forcing other great players (say, Cassano) into atypical and ineffective positions.

We’ll see what happens against Georgia.

Posted from  United Kingdom

And yes, Nocerino seems like a good addition to the bench, if not to the squad. Now there’s a role player if I ever saw one.

Posted from  United Kingdom

Well someone is going to have to be the “heir to Gattuso” because Gattuso is injured -
“Gattuso was taking part in a friendly on Sunday at the Grasdica d’Isonzo training complex when he fell into the dug-outs and hit his wrist.

He was immediately taken for scans and he was diagnosed to have suffered multiple fractures and surgery was needed.”
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11854_4114399,00.html

Posted from  United States

And now it looks like Lippi is of the same mind as the commentators on this blog:
“Lippi has chosen to call up a replacement for the injured Gattuso in the form of Palermo’s ball-winner Antonio Nocerino.”

http://www.goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=853838

And Julian, I think you need to change the subject to “Its Beginning to Look a Lot Like a Casualty Ward.” I know it doesnt have the same witty musical tie-in but it is a bit more apt. Any bets on who the next one to go down will be?
So far the list is:
Amelia
Grosso
Gattuso
Gamberini

YIKES!

Posted from  United States

Giovinco should fire his agent/s..since he still only making €50,000/yr
.. and Juve are refusing to pay his Salary demands…….

This should have been resolved before the transfer date ended.
If Juve don’t want to give him €1m a year, because they have no faith in him……then sell they should sell him……

John s.

i respectfully disagree about Aquilani. I have seen evry Roma game but one since the second half of last year and many from the first half, as well as all the Azzurri games played since Aquilani has been fielded in blue.

please tell me one game where he worked well on the side and i will list 5 where he did not and another 10 where he was brilliant in the centre (when i say centre i am talking paired in the middle with de Rossi just in front of the back line in a 4-2-3-1).

the formation i indicated was not an overall ideal formation, rather an ideal formation if de Rossi and Aquilani were to be fielded

…and i do believe that that formation would have been far more effective than the one Lippi selected

i am not saying this is the ideal formation

many of my entries are being cut out as spam …
but if you go back to what i wrote earlier in the page, you will also see that

what i meant to suggest about Pirlo and DeRossi was not that they shouldn’t be fielded together; they are excellent choices, rather they need to be played in different positions. de Rossi is not good on the flank and Pirlo needs to be be given better protection from the rear and the offense needs to work harder to draw out the opponent’s mid-field in order to create more space around Pirlo for him to work his magic. this did not happen and Pirlo was lost.

if there is any proof that i am right about this it was the way that the Azzurri played against Cyprus.

Camoranesi just ran around like a chicken without a head and gave the ball away far too often. the passing that is so integral to maintaining space around Pirlo was sloppy and no one held possession. there was little connectivity between the back-field, the mid-field and the front line because the infrastructure for supporting our passing game was undermined by the key players not being in the proper positions. it was just like throwing a lot of talented players on the field that could not work because they could not make connections.

This Georgia game should and must be the last game for del Piero in Azzurri shirt and Cassano/Rossi/Balotelli must be groomed and integrated immediately..Del Piero is a Flop show with Azzurri, In euro 2008 he very well showe that he was finished goods in International football, against Romania, wewould have won by atleast 3 goals if Lippi had played Quagliarella or Dintale or Cassano from the start instead of Del Piero..Del piero is just blocking the place of young players, i repeat he is ineffective for azzurri..it is better he concentrate on Juventus and finish his career on high..even in world cup Del piero sucked big time in whatever chance he got and a big fuss is made about the goal he scored..in fact, it was a counter attack goal, and as i meantion it , Germany were all in Italian camp , Canna robs the ball, Totti passes it to Gila who cleverly draws the centre back and gives a lollypop to del Piero..
Del Piero must be kicked out by Lippi, albeit persuaded to retire gracefully..he cant give any extra options for the national team and he is one dimensional..he is finished goods

Posted from  Spain