Winter Mercato

Originally Posted by drucurl

YOUR theory is ridiculous because it presupposes that there are no players out there worthy of displacing the ones we have currently

I'm telling you there is no player worthy of displacing Ronaldo in Milan !

Now, give me the 20 bucks you promised me for saying this.

dru..come on man...Henry will walk into Rijkaards line up, or the Dutchman will have to coach elsewhere...that is a no brainer.

We could do with Aguero, but will prob get Pato...apart from that, all we need is a LB, and our transfer mkt can be finished, if I take a pragmatic look at it.

Originally Posted by Tony29.

Dev, it's a good post that you wrote, but in this case i don't entirely agree. To become a super power on every front, you need not only 1-2 big signings, but you need 3 or 4 more decent players...

I think we're going to have to agree to disagree on this one Tony. I think Milan has a lot of quality on the bench, but when the squad is decimated like it was last season, it looks a lot weaker. 1-2 signings doesn't mean the side gets stronger but the bench doesn't, as those who may have been regular starters (Janku and Gila for example) will play squad roles thus adding depth to the bench.

The Milan of 2005 was argubly the best of Carlo's era from a technical standpoint, but that squad wasn't without flaws. In the two sides you listed, Maldini playing at LB was a bit of a waste of his ability, as he wasn't capable of playing there regularly, though Stam was also injured a lot during the season (hence, weakening the side). In that midfield, Gattuso wasn't playing with as much bite as he had been in previous seasons, Pirlo wasn't at his best and tbh, Seedorf wasn't much different (just as inconsistent as last season, just he didn't have such long spells of good and bad form). The Attack was good back then, better than now (until we find out who the new purchases are).

The second team back then wasn't particularly better than now imo, the defence was weaker if I'm honest as in CB we now have Bonera and Kaladze/Maldini, rather than Simic and Billy (who was still good, but definately ageing then). Pancaro was a first team player back then due to injuries during that season and did a great job and Kaladze wasn't playing half as well as he did when moved to CB. The midfield looks strong, but bear in mind Ambro was constantly injured (whilst in the past half year has finally recovered and is showing the form he promised back in '99), whilst Rui was really on his last legs at Milan, very rarely by that point able to make the great influence we might hope for. Dhorasoo is the one player I'm a little disappointed we let go, as imo he was better than both Vogel and Brocchi, but then again I believe it was his wish. Serginho actually wasn't as influencial back then as he was a season later when moved to LB (playing his best season yet). The attack was weaker as Pippo was constantly injured (like Ambro he's fully recovered now) and Crespo was a starter.

Now, if we consider the two new signings I propose Milan make, the squad for the upcoming season looks something like this:

------------Dida------------
oddo---Nesta--Maldini/Kala--new LB
--Ambro/Rino----Pirlo----Ambro/Seedorf/Gourcuff
----------Kaka---------------
---------------New signing----
---------R99------------------


----------Kalac--------------
Cafu---Bonera-Kala/Maldini/Favalli--Janku/Serginho/Favalli
---Ambro/Gourcuff-Brocchi-Gourcuff/Seedorf/Ambro/janku--
---------Gourcuff/Seedorf--------
---------------Gourcuff/Seedorf/Serginho---
---------Gila/Pippo--------------

As you can probably see, the squad would greater offer opportunities for rotation than probably ever before. Though some players like Seedorf or Maldini may not be able to perform every game, they have shown they can perform quite superbly when used slightly more sparingly (Maldini was our best defender last season until the injuries flared up from overplaying towards the end, whilst Seedorf only needed the odd break every few weeks and was able to perform stunningly).

I agree Dida isn't as good as he used to be, but he's shown he can still perform more than admirably, and that's enough as Milan never looked to rely to heavily on keepers. I agree Oddo is a step back from Cafu, but I'd propose a world class LB (ideally Zambro), which would return the balance of the past. As for Maldini, he can still play as well as he did back in 2005 as long as he's not overused. He doesn't have Stam now, but he does still have Kala and Bonera to back him up, both excellent defenders.

Simic was never for me a great backup player since 2004, and as mentioned I think overall the defence now is actually stronger through the squad, though the first team defence back then was probably better. The midfield now I'd say is similar. I think a player like Dhorasoo was superb, whilst Rui imo wasn't as influential as in the past, but still able to do a good job. Now, I think Pirlo and Rino's form have improved, but the big bonuses now are Ambro and Gourcuff. It's been years that Milan fans have waited for a fully fit and performing Ambro, and he really is one of the best around when playing, as he's proven many times he a clutch player. Gourcuff is the unknown element for me, a quality player, but hard to guess if he can make the step up and really improve the squad.

The attack should get a new signing, so we can't compare the two yet. However, I think at the least we can get Ronaldo back to being as good as Sheva at his best (and I won't be surprised if he does better), and if you add the new star signing, with Gila and Pippo backing them up, I don't think it looks all that bad compared to 2005 (ps - Oliveira is gone).

I really believe one star for LB and one star for attack is all we really need to be complete, because of the potential rotation mentioned above (you can make two VERY strong lineups with that squad). A strong DM would be a pleasant bonus, but not necessary.

edit: Almost forgot what I consider as possibly the most important element. Back in 2005 the squad was technically superb as I said, but mentally pretty weak. Suffering from the set back of Deportivo and also over-confidence/lack of motivation, it was critical to the lack of successes of the side. As much as last season was a nightmare, in this respect it's done wonders to the squad, as not only has confidence come back (after the "revenge" against Liverpool), but also there is a great deal of hunger to do more now. The mentality of the current squad is far better. Last but not least, for many key players (Kaka and Pirlo more than anyone), the summer has finally been one where they can rest, unlike the previous 4-5 years. Physically, I think the side should be at it's strongest next season, unlike the previous years.

Berlusconi on Pato from acmilan.com: “He’s a player we are following and we consider him of great value. Even though he is only 17 years old, we believe that we can invest in the player, like we did for example for Gourcuff who in France is considered the only real heir to Zidane. If we decide to buy Pato right now, his arrival would exclude any other arrival, in fact we don’t want to create too much dualism considering we already have a big squad in my opinion.”

As many of us have predicted, Pato will probably be brought in January so that we can get another world-class Non-EU striker. After ruling out Eto'o, Dinho and Sheva I don't see any promising Non-EU strikers out there (that are available).

Originally Posted by Warro Bantan

dru..come on man...Henry will walk into Rijkaards line up, or the Dutchman will have to coach elsewhere...that is a no brainer.

We could do with Aguero, but will prob get Pato...apart from that, all we need is a LB, and our transfer mkt can be finished, if I take a pragmatic look at it.

I think if Frank refuses to play Henry the club will hang him upside down, its a bit like us splashing out 16 Mill on a 29 yo and then decide he isnt in the starting line up.

We can forget Augerro, do you guys remember show much a.madrid paid for him? To top it all off he is not even Euro proven, a big risk if you ask me. There were so many young Argentines that impressed me in the U-20 WC, wouldnt it be great if we had first option on all of them?

Originally Posted by Tony29.

I'm telling you there is no player worthy of displacing Ronaldo in Milan !

Now, give me the 20 bucks you promised me for saying this.

the cheque's in the mail

Ej Tony, how about you guys take both Moralez and Aguero and leave us Banega? I'll gladly accept that one. In my mind both Moralez and Aguero were exeptional but I couldn't help but be amazed at Banega's creativity and work in the midfield. Every single good attack went through his feet for Argentina. I was amazed by him.....he will surely be one of the best in the CM in the upcomming years.

Originally Posted by Warro Bantan

peters, though the transfer mkt isnt over, I will concede defeat with regard to our bet re R10 and Etoo.

If Berlu himself can make the strong definitive statements that he has, then it really means that we wont get them..but we will get someone.

bah i knew it all along ... its just big-mouth administration and frenzy press that makes us write 200+ pages about nothing, drolling all over it. Maybe thats better in the end anyway, we could get him next year way cheaper (r10). Since i prolly won the bet i'm entitled to your services as a guide if i ever come to the shiny side of america. Dope included

i also think henry's gonna taste some bench this year. Many people, including much of cules with brains still remember what he's like and how happy they were that they didnt sign that cry-baby last year after the CL final. Now after one year of mostly being injured they got him hehe... and only good performances will guarantee him starting 11 and maybe a place before messi, etoo or dinho in cules heart.

On the other hand rijkaard is all about rotation, he cant coach otherwise (for me his tactics are on a pretty low lvl anyway). Even dinho was put on 'forced vacation' this year for 2 games in a row i think. So the fantastic 4 wont play together much i think, specially not if/after they loose one or 2 games with that setting.

i just want Pato and Lahm,with them we would be complete.

Originally Posted by nefremo

Ej Tony, how about you guys take both Moralez and Aguero and leave us Banega? I'll gladly accept that one. In my mind both Moralez and Aguero were exeptional but I couldn't help but be amazed at Banega's creativity and work in the midfield. Every single good attack went through his feet for Argentina. I was amazed by him.....he will surely be one of the best in the CM in the upcomming years.

Nope, you had your chance with Banega senior ( aka Redondo ) but you've missed it. This one's ours !

Does he remind You of Redondo or it's only me ?

And Gilattack, i think you're from Argentina. Don't you think Moralez is really, REALLY, similar to el Burrito Even physically and with the way they play ? (although Ortega was better dribbler)
Also, if you're from Argentina, could you list some players, younger, 18-23 years old players, who weren't playing in u20 but can become big ?

Originally Posted by Warro Bantan

dru..come on man...Henry will walk into Rijkaards line up, or the Dutchman will have to coach elsewhere...that is a no brainer.

We could do with Aguero, but will prob get Pato...apart from that, all we need is a LB, and our transfer mkt can be finished, if I take a pragmatic look at it.

Rijkaard is stubborn not stupid....if Eto'o is banging them in (the goals that is ) and Titty isn't ...guess who might ride some pine

Originally Posted by drucurl

Rijkaard is stubborn not stupid....if Eto'o is banging them in (the goals that is ) and Titty isn't ...guess who might ride some pine

Men, you never give so much money for a player to have him in the bench. They will probably play with the four of them and Eto'o with Henry in front.

Originally Posted by Giorgos

Men, you never give so much money for a player to have him in the bench. They will probably play with the four of them and Eto'o with Henry in front.

Its not about the money,in fact they didnt pay him that much...Chelskey paid more for Sheva,and I`m positive that henry`s contribution to barca will be much more than his...

So its not about the money its about that you`re not supposed to keep Henry benched,same as CHelskey did with Sheva(though he was useless individually) however the was a good team player, Didn`t Drogba flourish since Sheva`s arrival.

Originally Posted by Jim_UK

We shouldn't be trying to fit square pegs in round holes. Gourcuff is not and never will be a good choice for a defensive midfielder. I find this suggestion made by our management laughable.

Our managment have never said he is a defensive midfielder. they said he can play a role in midfield.

Yea, he reminds me or Redondo as well. That's the first player I thought of when I saw him play. To be honest, I don't think he lost a single ball (maybe a couple but I can't recall ) in the final and it's not like he wasn't under pressure as the Czechs were putting pressure on him expecially in the second half. Surprizingly I haven't read anything about him, as if nobody is interested or maybe I am not checking the right sources. Any news if someone is interested in him?