Banter 2009/2010

We need to get rid of some of the has beens, Dinho is worth roughly 15-20 mil, and we need to try to get that much. Dida is not worth his wages and needs to be dumped. Oddo has limited worth, as do many of our old players. We need to buy a few players in January, some combo of Cassano, Vdv, Rafina, Hernanes, etc

Before this season started, I had mentioned once that we would finish 6th. I still believe that.

this mess isnt a surprise, we could all have seen it coming 3/4 years ago. our mercato's were already weird back then. Leo out isnt the solution!! hiring van basten would make it even worse!

Originally Posted by Filipéz 182

I dont think Rafa would want to join us, this team isnt capable of winning anything + the ""key"" players are getting worse every year... we havent reached our lowest point yet!

Benitez joined Liverpool in 2004 didn't he? Liverpool were pretty poor back then, don't forget that even the year after they finished 5th in the Premier League. And it's not like Benitez wasn't well known at that time, he had won La Liga and the UEFA cup.

Guys you have to stop thinking that we will sign players , Pirlofanusa your players mentioned are great but do you honestly think we will sign any of them I know we will not. Our MGT is happy spending nothing and signing average players (GOOCH) which is funny seeing as they are so accounts driven with the HUGE salarys our overratted players earn the tiny gate revenue and no money from champions league we will lose so much money its not even funny.

All we needed was 2 players in 05 2 in 06 1 in 07 1 in 08 and 1 in 09 and we would of been in such a better position and financially it was so easy to do but we still need 7 players just cant see us spending 100 mil now in 1 year it would of been easier to spend 100 mill over 4 or 5 years.....Icompetance is king , write that one down Silvio.

Hopefully, Atalanta will defeat us comprehensively. I want to see Berlusconi and Galliani completely humiliated. They have no business being at this great club. Corrupt losers.

I'm a firm supporter of Leo and havent given up on him yet, but if there is any way we can get Hiddink.........

Strasser and Albertazzi need to be given a chance to play with the first team, as well as Zigoni. At least they will play hard. In January we need to try to recall Paloschi and Astori. Di Gennaro should return from injury soon, and he should play when he gets the chance. "Big club expectations" dont really exist now because we are in such disaray. This makes a perfect time to get the young players some experience. They all have talent, have desire, and can run.

In hindsight, why in the world did we dump the two Uraguayans? they were both young, had talent, and cost virtually no money to have on the squad. Viduez has looked good in the U-20 WC. why cut them? it doesnt make any sense.

Originally Posted by Christian

Benitez joined Liverpool in 2004 didn't he? Liverpool were pretty poor back then, don't forget that even the year after they finished 5th in the Premier League. And it's not like Benitez wasn't well known at that time, he had won La Liga and the UEFA cup.

He did got a rising star in Gerrard, and new players in Xabi and Garcia, Baros and others

Originally Posted by hitmannq8

I'm a firm supporter of Leo and havent given up on him yet, but if there is any way we can get Hiddink.........

Hiddink has always worked on the theory of having players in extremely good physical shape. I don't think this squad is suited to his needs.

come on guys how you can blame Leo, no doubt a good coach can make a team but you can only make a team having good players already in squad

There are two (and more) in management and quite a few players who are more to blame for this mess than Leonardo.

lol seeing how you guys bash Leonardo shows that Galliani and Berlusconi have indeed succeeded in creating a scapegoat.

Leonardo asked for Cissokho, Hernanes and Dzeko during the summer. Now, how many of those players did he get? So, how can any of you blame him for anything?

He had ideas, he needed new players to implement those ideas but was left with crap. Now he has to improvise with crap.

What has happened to Borriello? Is he officially dead? I mean seriously, this guy goes out again at the beginning of the season and we hear nothing. He is worse than Robben I thought he'd be back right now but you can't get any news on teh guy.

Anyone got any word on Nesta's injury he picked up last game? Will he be good to go or was his sub precautionary?

There is no one particular person to blame (except Berlusconi), because in my book, even Galliani would do things differently if he was given the freedom.

Leonardo perhaps has the makings of a good coach, but he seems to be a tad too stubborn in his ways, and too hopeful that players (i.e. Jankulovski) will actually turn up when called upon.

Leonardo should have learned Janku should never be a FB, ever, ever ever again. I would have rather seen Oddo and Zambro on the right and left, than see Janku making our left side the weak side that we had worked so hard to improve.

Carlo realized that he wasn't going to get any fast players, and he realized what he had. That's why he played the 4-3-2-1, and that's what we have to play. Inzaghi not scoring (and he should have had at least 1 goal last night) means that he is a drain on a team that has trouble with work rate.

Teams are not technically better than us, they are just trying to out-hustle us. And guess what? It's working.

He should use Favalli more, Favalli gives me more confidence than Kaladze at CB, and Favalli gives me more confidence than Janku at LB. Yes, he's 37 but he performs, and that's all I care about.

The team is playing bad, and it will continue to play bad until the attack can be sorted, because like Leonardo said, this team is designed for the attack to do well, which will make all the other tactics work. And I see his logic, and I also agree that if our strikers are consistent, are actually a threat, that makes everyone's job easier, and then you can field Janku at LB.

Leonardo has to take responsibility here. He is the manager, that is his job. This team may be old, but it does not have a sudden lack of quality to lose to Zurich, to get run over by Bari, just because Kaka left. Are you seriously trying to say that, because Kaka left we are being overrun? C'mon.

Last year we had the Serie A's second best defense, and that was with a line of:

Zambro--Favalli--Maldini--Janku

Shouldn't Abate/Oddo--Nesta--Thiago Silva--Zambro be an upgrade, or at least the same?

Honestly, so far, the defense has been pretty solid, excepting the grand mistakes of both Oddo (against Udinese) and Kaladze (Zurich). But this is where managerial know-how comes in.

Here's the real issue, and this is where perhaps the Kaka issue comes up: we were also the most powerful attack last year. Kaka had 16 goals (5 penalties). However, we also had (Season totals) Pato with 18, Inzaghi 16, Ronaldinho with 10, hell Ambro had 8 and Seedorf 7 last year.

Here is our grand problem: the attack. We were scoring goals left and right because Carlo realized that the way to best work things out with this squad was to make sure that we could overcome what we lacked in athleticism (read: speed) with numbers and the right tactics.

Leonardo needs to get a stable lineup first, and so far the only players he relies upon is Nesta, Storari, and Pirlo and Seedorf to a certain extent. He thinks Inzaghi is just going to bail him out, but that's not going to happen.

Leonardo needs to play:

-------------Storari
--Abate---Nesta--Thiago Silva--Zambro
---Gattuso---Pirlo---Flamini
------Seedorf-----Dinho
-------------Pato

This will give us stability, and help us play to our best potential. There is a reason why last year, even with Kaka, we did not play a 4-3-1-2, it's because even with Kaka, the other players are not going to be able to cope with the sort of work load required when you field Kaka (who does not have a very good work rate either, ps). This is less about Kaka being gone (I wish he was still here, believe me) and more about Leonardo needing to stop putting on the field what looks good in his head and what has actually shown results.

PS: Look at this goal. It is against Lecce, a relegation team, and Kaka was not even involved in the play. Gattuso hits it long to Pato, who with a bit of defender error, actually does something with the ball. Ronaldinho is there to run inside and score an important goal. Here's the question: Why can't we do that anymore? It's not about Kaka or no Kaka, but it's something that Leonardo needs to figure out, fast.