The Return of the Absentees
By: Isaiah | April 2nd, 2008The big news coming out of La Masia today seems to be the return of Deco and Ronaldinho to full training. Kevin has already expressed his opinion on the matter in the comments of the previous post, but I’d like to take a moment to discuss this situation, among other things.
First, the idea of Deco returning: I’m hecka excited, as 10-year old Bay Area kids say. It’s not necessarily that Deco is going to change the face of the game completely with stunning displays like those of old, but more that we are returning to health and getting back all of the options that have been gone for what seems like months. Deco provides another attacking options that would allow Rijkaard to push Marquez and Toure into the middle together if it came down to that while still maintaining some forward momentum (think Xavi out for Marquez; Deco on for Bojan or some such). It’s just another option and Deco’s varied abilities in the attacking third are going to be welcome additions to the squad, I’m sure. His return also opens up the the possibilities for a 4-4-2 diamond formation involving two of Henry, Bojan, and Eto’o, which could work out quite well.
Then there’s Ronaldinho. Like Kevin, I am not exactly sure what to think about his potential return, but unlike Kevin, were I in the stands of the Camp Nou that day (seated in the nose bleeds, no doubt), I would no more boo Ronnie than I would Deco. Perhaps I am too willing to forgive, but I want to see Ronaldinho prosper. I put this down to wanting the club to succeed, foremost, but also when Ronnie is on, Ronnie is the greatest player in the world to watch. It’s the smile, the obvious happiness, and the grace with which he approaches the game that made him the adored symbol of the world game for the past few years. While Messi has been better this year, he doesn’t play with the joy that Ronnie has always been known for and though that is his simple, unassuming style (and man, they are opposites personality-wise) and I have to say that I love watching a happy Ronnie play more than I like watching anyone else in the world. So, instead of booing him, I would cheer my friggin’ lungs out and probably pass out from lack of breathing. Yeah!
While this is exciting, a little blurb that appeared in the rag Sport also caught my eye. The title of this one paragraph article is “Toure cannot keep playing.” While more an opinion piece than anything, it certainly got the wheels turning in this noggin o’ mine. Should we rest Toure for Getafe and let Marquez start? It seems the judicious thing to do, just in case we need Toure’s presence on the field against Schalke next Wednesday a little more. Our defense is booked solid with yellows, so we need to be on our toes (and perhaps Thuram should play for Milito, just in case) and having the freshest possible SuperYaya out there might be the best option. The man is struggling with this hernia (according to ESPN’s commentary yesterday) or slipped disc (according to some other sources I can’t remember right now) or whatever it is and not having to play this weekend might be good for the club in the long rung. We do need to win this game, though, just to get some of our style and swagger back, but I think Marquez can handle the job. We were bested by Geta 2-0 way back on November 10 in the away match with a starting lineup that was lacking in Samuel Eto’o (but had both Ronaldinho and Messi). I’ll discuss this more in the preview to be posted Friday, of course, but suffice to say that I am of the opinion that Toure should start on the bench against Getafe. My man-crush demands that I afford him the opportunity to recover as well as possible so that he can rip the legs off of Cristian Pander and company on Wednesday. Toure smash!
In other, fantastic news, Messi returns to Barcelona today to complete his recovery program. I’ve always sort of wondered why players go home for this sort of thing, but I’m sure they know what they’re doing. Or at least know more than I do, which is nothing. How the Buenos Aires air could be better for your than Barcelona’s, I don’t know, but maybe it’s got something to do with being out of the spotlight and keeping out of the way of teammates. I don’t know. Maybe he just likes to see old friends…
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John, I really have little problem with RM players, generally, but there’s just something about Raul that gets under my skin. I could imagine Eto’o getting under the skin of someone who dislikes Barcelona, of course, but I love him for all the reason you love Raul. Ballbeav makes a good point about how he’s just in the right place at the right time, which is obviously a skill, but he just doesn’t seem to be a skillful player. He comes off as very workmanlike, very positional (which is, actually, how I try to play because I have the foot skills of a three-legged donkey), but doesn’t look to be able to beat anyone off the dribble. And he makes me angry with that thumb thing.
And he reminds of Jeter. Which is offense enough.
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Oh, shit! Jeter? really? Okay, I’m begining to understand. But I think your evaluation of Raul is of his present day form, not his past. Back in the day, if you would have made the claim that Raul didn’t have ball skill, you would have been laughed out of the pub. But this, again, is the whole reason I brought my favorite player into this forum: When Raul began to lose his touch, along with his favor amongst Madridistas (similar with what’s happening with Ronaldinho and the cules) he worked his ass off to get back in the game, and even after spending the better part of two seasons on the bench or out of position, he kept trying and eventually made it back as a starter. Ronaldinho should either take notes on this, or start sending his agent’s business cards to Italy and England (as if everyone there doesn’t already have them).
p.s. Did you happen to see Raul’s goal against Sevilla last week? That isn’t skill?
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Oh, and thanks Kevin (kxevin? Evil twin? X-men version of Kevin? Anyone?), for seeing it (the Raul question) from my point of view. And it’s mighty nice of you guys to debate this, rather than just boo me away - for which I couldn’t, honestly, blame you.
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See, John? We’re all grownup and stuff. Kxevin came from thinking that Txiki was a very cool name, probably because of that “x” lurking in there.
And it’s only at the Camp Nou that people with Evil Empire shirts are ejected from the stadium.
Oh, and the way that Eto’o runs into the net and snatches up the ball after he scores drives me up a wall, too. But he has the right clothing on, so….you know.
It’s sounding more and more like we screwed the pooch on the Garay deal. Word is we agreed to a 5-year deal, got everything worked out, then said “Never mind.” Racing is offering him to a certain white-clad side, probably in retaliation. Not sure why we wouldn’t want him in the side, truth be told.
Word is that we will be making four “major” signings over the summer, and that Alves is one of them. Presumably, there will be a host of “minor” signings as well, eh?
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I’m just glad that Real turned Sami our way. The best striker in the world - bar none. A goal every 1.4 games… Not in a ten game stretch, not in half a season but in over 100 games. Not as lucky there were we?
Raul was in the Atletico youth setup until Jesus Gil disbanded it? Funny decision that too. Raul jumped ship and the rest is history. Impressive stats and a successful career but I can’t say I like himPosted from
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I guess I’ll join in on the Raul discussion. To keep it brief, I’ll (unfortunately) say that I do admire him in many ways. He’s an amazing, inspirational player (much like Puyol, as someone already pointed out), an outstanding work ethic, and a very respectable person. I hate the fact that he plays for Madrid, and everything that he’s done for them, but I’m sure all you RM fans think the same of Puyol.
Alves will be an amazing buy, if it ends up happening. I can still see del Nido coming in and sying he wants another 50 million euros or something crazy like that. Who do you guys think that the next 3 signings should be? Personally, I think that Samir Nasri from Marseille would be brilliant cover for Deco/Ronnie. He is only 19 or 20, and as well as being a brilliant attacking mid, he can play on the wing, and can also play great defensively (A bit of an Iniesta, I guess).
And Kevin, the tx in Txiki apparently makes a “ch” sound, making the name “cheeky”. So does that mean we should pronounce you as Chevin?
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I think the next three signings should be lahm, alves, and Micah Richards (Richards is a great strech of the imagination, but then again were a rich club). we need a new back line. or at least new energy put into our back line. lately or at least most this year our defense has played like thugs…”cant beat them, foul em” Honestly i expect more from a team like Barca. Yes we are known for our ATTACKING ability, but their has been no mention of our DEFENSE. Honestly how many times have you guys held your breath because a single striker made a run at 2-3 of our defenders? I got ten fingers and ten toes, so i guess i cant count that high
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Exactly, Jake.
As for our next three signings, I would keep on raiding Sevilla after Alves, going for Diego Capel (rumor is still that he’s going on the block, and we’re in the running). I also like Lahm and Xabi Alonso, who I think will work better in La Liga. And with the change from the Ronaldinho sale, I’d grab Didier Drogba to give us that big, physical striker to play long ball against English sides in the Champions League.
I’m still not sure why we pulled the plug on Garay, unless something better is coming down the pike. Great defender and young, with a definite scoring knack.
I still think that this will be the charm for Alves. How long can a team keep screwing a player over who wants to leave?
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So, to be clear on this, Kevin: you’d be in favor of a galactico approach?
While I know the connotations are there from RM, I don’t mean to have you react negatively to that statement merely because it’s associated with Darth Vader and company. You’re advocating buying Alves, Diego Capel, and Didier Drogba — all are huge names, even Capel, whose name is far smaller than the other two. But you list our best players as Messi, Bojan, and Iniesta, right? None of those players were brought into the squad via transfers and certainly not the mega-transfers you’re suggesting.
I disagree with becoming the new Real Madrid simply because we didn’t win a championship this year or last year. Barring catastrophe we’ll at least be in the semis of the Champions League, we’ll probably end up in the top two of the league (hope spring eternal for a title!), and we made it to the semis of the Copa del Rey. So why do we need wholesale changes? Our defense is getting knocked right now, but we’re still tied for second best defensive record in the league (albeit with 3 other teams) and we are tied for the best home record in the league.
Let our players gel a little bit more — most players don’t settle in for a full year. I know I’ve made the mistake of poo-pooing Henry’s contributions before he’s had the time to properly fit in and I’m going to try to stop. I know we’re frustrated as a group, that we all want to see Barcelona win not just the league, but also the double; let’s at least wait until the end of the season before demanding transfers or creating lists of players we think should replace our current players. Continuity is important among players, as well as the coaching staff.
Finish this season strong, then we look to the future. For now, while having Dani Alves in blaugrana brings a smile to my face, I think it best to allow the current roster to do its thing. We’re going to win some more games this year and probably in fantastic style. So keep your head up, as Tupac would say.
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Good call on Tupac, Isaiah, he’s a true culer. “Wars come and go, but my soldiers stay eternal.” Barca brings up through the ranks, and players who came through the youth squad are blaugrana for life. Messi, Puyol, Iniesta, Xavi, Valdes, now Bojan and Gio (well, maybe not for life, Gio), soon Gai Assulin and Thiago.
Like Larm said, Barca has got tons of talent up front, the front office needs to concentrate this offseason on the back line. With all the possession this team holds, they need to focus on shutting down counter attacks. They need to bring in speed, speed, pace, and speed. Names don’t matter, playing with passion does. Alves is an awesome start.
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saw the news today that ronnie pulled a muscle in training and is out for 6 weeks. so we probably wont see him again this year and now it certainly is due to an injury — or at least they named something specific.
but, the great news is that messi is coming along well. he wont play until he is 100% but he says he can almost asssure that he would be ready for the semifinals of the CL, should we make it. woo woo!
diego capel is great and he causes us problems, and he is a form barca youth team player, but i dont think we should sign him. he can be stopped — did you see the RM match last weekend? he was almost invisible. but we do need someone on the right back. even if zamby stayed, hesgetting old and you need someone to compete with him. oleguer is not it, though i like him. i would like someone to play on the right back that is young and has something to prove. the trick i see, and this is what madrid fell into with the galacticos, is big teams want to sign proven, pedigreed players. but these players come with egos and maybe have ‘proven’ themselves to a point where they dont think they need to anymore, and they dont run as hard or want to suffer as much. they arrive with their egos and unwillingness to suffer. maybe alves can still suffer, maybe he will feel too comfy once he gets to barca, i dont know.
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I don’t know about Galacticos, but I know that I’m a fan of getting great players, and addressing weaknesses. The defense is pretty easy, once you find someone to press Puyol, and get someone for the right wing. That will suddenly solve all of the out-of-position scrambles, and tighten things up considerably. right now, Yaya has to cover someone he shouldn’t, which puts Abidal out, which puts Puyol out, which means Milito has to foul, etc, etc. The defense is an easy fix.
The offense is a bigger concern to me, not as much because of scoring goals as much as ball control. When we get into trouble, it’s because players lose the ball at bad spots. Look at the first half of the Betis match. First half=ball control=no worries for the defense. Second half=laziness=woes galore for the defense. No defense in the world can cope with a strong, fast player with ball skills running full-tilt at it. La Liga has more of those types of player than any other league in the world. So stop the bleeding at the midfield.
We’re 90% of the way there with Yaya, and an in-position Abidal (there goes that coaching thing again). An addition or two means that we’re rock solid.
Now, for the offense. We try to pass the ball into the net too often. So if a team floods the midfield or plays us tight, we’re done because we have no attacking versatility. If you pack the midfield, you need to be able to leak a player or two out the back and give them a long pass to loosen up the midfield. There isn’t a striker in the world right now who takes the pass, deals with defenders and gets killer shots off better than Drogba. And he will definitely be available this summer, and would definitely consider Barca. So why not?
I think that star players is a matter of management more than players and their egos. The Galacticos failed because those players weren’t exactly at the peak of their respective powers (Zidane) or one-dimensional (Beckham). Not true of Alves or Drogba.
A good manager is going to have to make players understand that they will, or will not be playing for the good of the team. Right now, with injuries and the like, we have one exceptional side, rather than the two you need to compete on the three prongs that a true elite team has to compete.
Yes, it will mean that some folks will be coming off the bench. That’s where management and “eyes on the prize” come in. What team that wins a double or treble ever hears complaints about playing time? The players are too busy counting bonus bucks.
The biggest problem with signing superstars is they’re usually available once they’re past their “sell by” date. That is, their best years are behind them. The question becomes is what they have left good enough? It would be with Henry if he were being used right. He isn’t. He’s forced to fit into a system that doesn’t suit his strengths. He tries to adapt, struggles a bit and suddenly, he’s a bad signing/sucks/etc.
A good manager would say “We have this weapon, let’s figure out how to use it.”
If we can pass the ball into the net when we need to, or play long ball when we need to, we would be an incredible team. Right now, everyone is saying that the “Barca style” is ball control, nibbling away and darting, crowd-thrilling runs. No doubt.
I say that the “Barca style” should be put the ball in the net any way that you can. If that means Alves, lacing a cross-pitch pass to Drogba, who takes it in the box, shakes off a defender and drills in a goal, so be it. Messi and Iniesta can do their thing the next time we get the ball back.
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And as I said about Ronaldinho. He’s done for us this year, and period. If they want to say he’s pulled a muscle, let them go right ahead. Everyone knows that’s hogwash. Sounds more like whatever efforts were made at striking a rapprochement didn’t work, and he’s outta here.
Great news about Messi. We should take care of business with Schalke at home, then worry about getting up to full-strength for what will in reality be the Champions League final, just played over two legs.
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apparently messi said he wouldlove to play a few minutes against schalke, since he feels fine. but he probably wont.
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Messi is the man, who lives and breathes “mes que un club.” Usually, when a player returns to his club, he’s pretty much ready for action. And with the resurgence of Krkic, I’m even more optimistic than usual. We’ll need help in the league, but I think we’re going to get it.
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just please tell me no long balls , kevin. thats not why ive been watching barca all these years. i want a short passing game, and attacking. dont make me become an arsenal fan. im happy to suffer on the counterattacks, and im certainly happy to not have a drogba. dont like him and i have seen him standing around way too much, with a shitty look on his face. hes a clinical finisher and he turns well, but hes not my pick.
anyways id rather wait to have this talk until the season is over.
we *will* win silverware.Posted from
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Kevin, the culers are not going to take the long ball. If they see the ball sailing over Messi’s head, they are going to get unhappy, fast, not matter how effective. That’s just part of “mes que un club”, culers stick by certain principles no matter what, and beautiful football is high on the list of principles.
This is a sad end to the Ronnie era if it is the end. Reminds me of the end of the Rivaldo era, I hope Ronnie doesn’t carry the bitterness Rivaldo seems to. The three R’s have been the most fun players to watch since I’ve been a Barca fan.
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For the record: The idea of Dani Alves at Barcelona scares the shit out of me.
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John: Muhahahahahahaaaaa!
ballbeav and Colin, I know that the fans aren’t going to take to long ball. And I’m not advocating a steady diet of long ball. I am saying that when teams pack the midfield and we can’t play our beautiful game, we still have to win, instead of drawing. If even a few of those early-season draws were wins instead, think where we’d be right now?
And ballbeav mentions Arsenal, and they’re a great example. They can,and prefer to play the beautiful, passing game. But they can also score off set pieces (Toure, Gallas, Adebayor, Flamini). They can also score from long-ball feeds to Adebayor or Van Persie. I’m just calling for that same kind of versatility. I know that people see “long ball” and think “Uh, oh….” in contemplation of a steady diet of pitch-long, Beckhamesque passes. No way. I LOVE the beautiful game, and we play it more beautifully than anyone else.
Problem is right now, that’s ALL that we can play. Versatility is what makes long-term championship sides. Not sure how John feels about it, but I’d be willing to bet that the majority of Evil Empire fans wouldn’t trade last season’s championship for a prettier style. Yes, Capello was chucked for the ugliness. Schuster is prettier, but not by a ton. They aren’t as pretty as we are, but they are seven points ahead of us.
I’m just sayin’, is all.
And the Ronaldinho injury sounds a lot more specific this time ’round. Bummer. Even for me.
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kxevin didnt say explicitly that he would accept the long ball, but he did essentially say — winning above style. id rather win slightly less of the time and still play beautiful football. the english equivalent would be — arsenal vs liverpool. if i were an arsenal fan, i would not accept playing like liverpool even if i could win slightly more games.
hopefully footballing justice will be served and arsenal will go through, by the way.
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Since you asked, Chevie, I was okay with the grit of last season’s finish because it made the title race exciting - one of the most exciting finishes in years in la liga. But if I could alter things a bit this season, I’d (honestly) be fine if Madrid were trailing the top by a handful, but playing the beautiful game like no other club. It’s the same thing that must make being a Sevilla fan so rewarding: yeah, they’re far behind the pack in points, but just watch those guys play!
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It’s official, then. It goes from Kxevin to Justwinbaby!
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I don’t think buying Dani Alves is a galactico approach. He is the best rightback in the world but has been Uber-loyal to Sevilla for four years and has no problem with ego. He is young and is still improving and has Puyol’s workrate.
Drogba is a different story. Replacing a “past-it” 28yr old with a 30yr old who is at his peak? I’m sorry but I don’t get it. Surely we have to think a little more long term. We have already bought Henry 2yrs too late.Posted from
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I think that Drogba’s game is age-proof, a lot like that of Ronaldo at AC Milan. Look at the effect his old ass has. If all a striker has to do is take a lovely pass, turn and score, it makes a difference. Henry’s game is predicated in part on his serious, serious pace. He still has it, but not like he once did. Used correctly, he’s still very formidable.
I’d say Drogba has at least two very productive seasons in him. He would feast in La Liga. But he will go wherever Mourinho goes, bank on that.
Right on about Alves. Man, I hope the folks at Sevilla don’t get all goofy on us with the transfer fee.
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Isaiah I completely agree with you. Barça needs to stick with the cantera, scouting and one or two galaticos that’s it. Last year’s policy bringing all these big guns really unbalanced the team. That said, this summer is going to be one of the best transfer seasons ever. I really am chomping at the bit.
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