Another Drab Performance

Mancini, Mancini, Mancini.. Your "proven" way of defensive soccer does not work. Getting players behind the ball all the time. Having no service for David Silva and Edin Dzeko. Playing Yaya Toure out of position among other things.

I watched the Chelsea and Manchester City game, I understand that the game is being played in Stamford Bridge and you want to start defending the game first. However with the money that is being spent at Eastlands, the fans and owners want an attacking brand of football. There is no reason why this should not be happening.

I could count about three players who had adequate games in the circumstance. Unfortunately there are all defensive players (De Jong, Kompany, and Lescott). Dzeko didn't have the proper service and David Silva didn't have the correct movement of his players around him. It is frustrating to those that are in the side that they can't do more.

Bringing on attacking players once you have to chase the game isn't the correct option. Waiting until 10 minutes left in the match to bring on attacking options rarely gives you results. Meanwhile, Chelsea becomes proactive and brings on attacking players while they are still in the 0-0 stalemate. Drogba supplies the free kick for David Luiz to score on. Ancelotti out-coached Mancini on that front.

Carlos Tevez could have been a big difference to this game. Dzeko doesn't seem to me to be able to put the team on his back and carry them through a game. He needs proper service to score goals. Tevez makes most things out of absolutely nothing. I can't blame Mancini for that because Tevez couldn't play due to an injury.

I understand punishing Balotelli for getting a needless red card in their Europa League tie on Thursday. He can still turn the game on its head given the starting opportunities. Granted, they run the rest of him becoming hot-headed and getting another red-card but I think these are some of the chances that needed to be made to become a top four side.

I don't know if a top-four finish will be able to save Roberto Mancini. They peaked too early this season and I do not think that he has the respect of the players on the team. Players aren't going to believe in their manager if their manager doesn't believe in the ability of the team to win.

Then again, what manager out there will be able to maximize City's potential???

Analyzing Manchester City and Barcelona

I am currently taking this course in Soccer Scouting and Operations. One of my assignments was to discussion in detail two clubs from different countries. Compare and Contrast the teams, the leagues, and what would you do to change teams without making any transfers.


"I chose to describe the English Premier League's Manchester City and the Spanish La Liga leaders Barcelona.

Manchester City was founded in 1880. They currently play their football in the English Premier League. City is in third place behind Manchester United and Arsenal respectively. Their manager is Roberto Mancini, an Italian coach who formely managed Inter Milan. Their history is not the greatest. Their last trophy came in the League Cup in 1976.

However with the new ownership of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan and their influx of money. The Citizens have been able to buy top players like Carlos Tevez, Yaya and Kolo Toure, David Silva, and Mario Balotelli among others. Their aims are to qualify for the Champions League and eventually win the English Premier League.

Their main rival is Manchester United. In recent history, United has gotten on the better end of these derby matches but City has closed the gap competitively against them.

Barcelona is currently leading the Spanish La Liga. They are currently seven points ahead of Real Madrid. They are coached by Barca legend, Pep Guardiola. Barca is lead by some of the best players in the game with Xavi, Iniesta, Messi, and David Villa. They have a high powered offense that could score in the drop of a dime.

Their recenty history has been good. Winning the La Liga several of times and also winning the Champions League twice in the last decade. They also have legendary players like Johan Cruyff, Romario, Ronaldo, Hristo Stoickhov, and Ronaldinho.

Comparing Styles of Play
Manchester City uses a combination of English football and Italian football due to their manager Roberto Mancini. They sometimes boom the ball up field to their tall striker, Edin Dzeko. When they get into big games, they crawl into a defensive shell and pin all their hopes on Carlos Tevez, he is one of the best lone-wolf strikers in the game today.

Barcelona on the other hand, plays free-flowing attacking style of football. They pass and move until they are able to unlock the opposition defence. Barca makes the matches look like practice with their constant movement. They also smother teams when the they have the ball. They pressure all over the field so they can get the ball in a better position so they can score more goals.

The Leagues.
The EPL is a rough and tough league. It is very rapid fire. Most of the better teams are able to get the ball on the ground and start passing around. The worse off teams often try to boom the ball forward and hope for the best. They often bully teams rather than play football.

The La Liga is a bit more calm and relaxed. Most if not all of the teams like playing the ball short and keep it on the ground. That is why Barca and Real Madrid are so good because they have better players that play that high quality football.

Weather.
In England, the weather is often cold in the winter and mild in the late summer and early spring months. That is why brute force is used because playing short in sometmies icy pitches aren't helpful for the leading clubs.

Spain is a much more Mediterranean climate which is much more warmer than in England. So they can play their brand of passing football and individual players can shine in that style.

What I would change:
What I would do for Manchester City is play with a 4-3-3 formation that would have two defensive midfielders and David Silva has the playmaker who is a part of that three man midfielder. I would like my chances with a Tevez, Dzeko, Balotelli three man attack, when healthy. Balotelli is experienced at playing on the wing and him and Tevez would be comfortable cutting the ball inside and getting their own shots.

What can you really change from this Barcelona lineup? They are almost perfect. The only thing I would change is shelf the 3-5-2 lineup for good. They played this lineup against Valencia on Wednesday and almost got punished for it in the first 25 minutes of that game. The three back was never comfortable, so if I could change anything on that team is that I'd never play that lineup ever again."

Still a Supporter

My loyalty to the Spanish Side Valencia CF has been tested in the last couple of years. With first not being able to pay their players on time, them getting into debt due to a proposed new Stadium being built and obvious the constant speculations of David Villa and David Silva leaving the side for greener pastures.

The day that I haven't been looking forward to has happened. Villa went to Barcelona and David Silva took his talents to Manchester. I told myself time after time that I would revoke my supporters card (I don't really have one) but I think that I am going to stand pat on this one. We obviously haven't bought the players with the same caliber as Villa and Silva but we have some experienced players on our side with the addition of a few talented up-comers that will make for an interesting season.

We still have Mata, Pablo, and Ever Banega among others. Also signings of Roberto Soldado, Tino Costa, Sofiane Feghouli, and Mehmet Topal to at least fill in some of the gaps that were lost. I am intrigue with these group of players and how they will adapt to each others styles of play

I have faith in all these players and I believe that our side will be very good over time. Now I don't think we are Spanish La Liga Champions. Barcelona and Real Madrid are a far ways away from us at this point in time but I am sure we are going to shock some people. I can't wait for the Champions League, especially with us not having to go through the preliminary stages. We will give every team everything we've got.

A year ago, I would have probably given up on Unai Emery's side and said, I am going to jump on one of these bandwagons but whatever happens this year, I am going to stand by this team in their endeavors. I cannot wait for this season to start. It is Christmas all over again.

Hopefully my words don't bite the team in their asses....

Can we skip passed January 2010 please!!/ Landon Donovan's loan to Everton and his resigning to Everton

I've beent trying to avoid the topic of seeing David Villa and David Silva leaving Valencia in the winter. I've been thinking of ways to figure out how to keep them. I just figured it out. I'm going to attempt to make sure that the new year doesn't happen. I know what you're saying: "Dre, what the hell you're talking about?" Listen okay. I know this is a hard mission and I know that I'm going to have to find a spaceship, and I know that I'm going to have to figure out the impossible mission of making the world stop rotating.

However I'm desperate to keep these two gems and I know that the transfer window is closed so no one can get these two until January 2010 at the earliest. And Valencia for some reason has been shopping them two around. If I can't get the world to skip past January at least keep these two players until the end of the season and hopefully we can make it to the Champions League next season so the debt could be eased and we can buy more players and build our club around Ever Banega, Mata, and others.

(Where in the hell am I going to find a spaceship)



I've been listening to the talk of Landon Donovan and what they make of his contract extension for the LA Galaxy that will keep him for life basically, also making that loan signing to Everton. And people have been saying that the MLS doesn't want to let go of their prize asset. Also it is a mistake for him to not try to make a big European deal. In his contract it says that he can make any loan deal for the winter and spring that he wants. I know exactly what Donovan is doing.

The reason why MLS signed this contract is just in the case that he does really well with Everton, then they are going to try to sell him for a high contract which more than likely Everton won't go with because he's going towards the older side of his career and he won't be worth all the money.

Donovan is doing this more for sporting reasons. He probably realize that this will be the last World Cup that he'll be in peak condition because once 2014 comes along he'll probably either no longer be in contention or he'll slow down and his performances won't match the ones when he was younger. I'll give him credit he realizes that he needs to have World-Class football before South Africa to help his country get the best chance of making it past the group stages. He cannot get this playing with the Galaxy for a couple of months. He'll be able to get better training in the four to five months in England than he would get in Los Angeles in a full year. So it is pretty ingenious that he decides to go to Merseyside and try to ply his trade in England.

This next year will be an interesting year. The World Cup is coming up, of course all the club competitions will be coming to a close, and it will be interesting where my two favorite players will eventually go. Hopefully they'll wait until July 2010 to make their decision. I just hope that they decide to play Champions League football with my club. hehehe

Great Start, Great Start

The good thing about ESPN in New Zealand is that they have the Serie A and the Spanish La Liga. Tonight I was able to watch my favorite club Valencia go up against Sevilla in the Mestalla. To tell you the truth, the groundskeeper needs to work on the pitch because there were way too many patchy areas. It looked like the pitch is in mid-season condition unlike the pristine conditions it should be in. (I guess that's what happens when you don't have money). This game was a good early examination to see if Valencia will be able to mount some sort of challenge for a Champions League spot. I'm not dismissing the title but Barcelona and Real Madrid are on a planet on their own. So getting a third place finish and getting that Champions League money will be important especially with keeping key players and such.

You would think in a game where David Villa was average that it would be a long night. However many other players stepped in tonight and did pretty well. Ever Banega had a very good game in the heart of the midfield. Mata was causing Konko, Sevilla's right fullback, lots of problems. Pablo on the other side was dangerous also. The game was flowing nicely with nice passing from both teams however everything broke down in the final third. Alexis and Dealbert impressed me at center defense. Frustrating Luis Fabiano and Frederic Kanoute who both seemed disinterested in the game. Especially with Kanoute getting two yellows in the first half and leaving Sevilla with 10 men.

That was the difference in the game because when even it was just going back and forth but nothing was happening. However in the second half Valencia dominated much to my delight. Mata scoring two minutes after the starting of the second half. And the fluid movement of the team's front six was nice to see and a promise of something special this season (I know I might be jumping the gun a bit). Pablo Hernandez scored 10 minutes from the end to finish off the game in Sevilla's eyes. Banega was in the heart of both moves. Dribbling across the edge of the box and laying it off to Mata. In the second goal, he dashed through three players and struck a firm outside-foot pass to Pablo who finished with a first time chip over Palop.

The new signings were pretty good. I've already said that Dealbert was impressive in his first run out. He was sure-foot on just about every tackle and header against the taller Kanoute and Fabiano. I couldn't really point at any time that he made a mistake. He was solid. Bruno was okay. Tommy Smyth, the ESPN commentator, was loving him because he had grit, but he left me wondering with his touches often going out of play and didn't really get forward as he needed to. He did have to deal with Jesus Navas which is a pretty tough task for any left fullback. Then again, I didn't really have much expectations of Bruno to begin with so maybe I'm being rough on him. When Jeremy Mathieu came on for Bruno, I thought he was much better than Bruno. Got forward often and actually quiet down Navas a lot for the second half. He did make some mistakes towards the end of the game but I'll forgive him for that. In my opinion, he should be the starting option at the left fullback position. Bruno just didn't cut it for me.

I think Unai Emery has got this time on the right track right now. I'm sure David Villa will be better in the next game. I don't think that I even needed to say that because he's world-class and will probably bang in 20 goals this season. Hopefully Mata, Pablo, and David Silva can bag about 30 between them. And Emery giving Banega more freedom in that central area of the midfield will make teams nervous when they go against Los Che. It's still early and we'll see what will unravel in the rest of this season. A run in the Europa League and a top four finish will make me a happy person.

The Nonsense III: Valencia- so you don't pay your players?

Warning to the casual reader: This is a footy(soccer) post, so if you have no desire of reading anymore than you should probably stop and I will try to be as clear as I possibly can. My B

The team I started supporting when they made two consecutive Champions League finals with the likes of Santiago Canziares, Gaizka Mendieta, and Claudio Lopez (who actually plays in the MLS with the Kansas City Wizards). It was a new and hip team to support for me, I didn't want to jump on the Man Utd bandwagon like everybody else did. None offense to them, I can't blame any of them because that's the team that we saw in the late 90s in the US since soccer wasn't shown predominantly during that time. Well that's not what I want to talk about anyways. I want to discuss the current situation here with Los Che. They are so far in debt that they aren't able to pay their players weekly wages. It's kinda strange that David Villa isn't getting paid his wages when he is one of the best strikers in the world right now.

The current credit crunch is hurting this club more than others. And then when you add the fact that they were trying to build a new Mestalla stadium it only amplifies the problems that this club has. Midway through February I read in goal.com that the club couldn't pay their players the weekly wages that they've earned. In an earlier post I said that I didn't think that they should sell star players like David Villa and David Silva but now it looks more than likely especially for the survival of this club that they should sell these key players. There will be an empty portion of my heart when they leave. And I have to follow my lil nigs Silva to where he goes when I play fifa because he drops ridiculous bombs on that game (yeah I brought up my 360). I think the club can survive without these two stars, it will be a rebuilding process and we shouldn't worry about making the Champions League for the next couple of years. We still have quality players coming up from the ranks. Mata, Manuel Fernandes, Pablo, Alexis, and Maduro for a few can hold down the ship for the team if we decide to sell both of our star players. My honest opinion I think if we make the Champions League this year, we should sell one, scrap the new stadium plans and just go with what we got. If disaster strikes and we miss out on a CL spot then more than likely both of them go. The pessimistic side of me says that both will go and that will be sad for me.

What is even more impressive about what the squad is doing, they are actually continuing to play while they aren't being paid. That's incredible. If I'm not being paid then what incentive do I have of going out there and playing the game? I mean these guys have already been paid real well to begin with but when you know the check isn't coming in then some guys end up turning off and not playing at all. Villa and Silva are still out there playing and they aren't doing what most premier league players would do, even players like Craig Bellamy, who plays for Manchester City now, would go on a temper tantrum to get out of his former club of West Ham and his money was still coming in. No telling what would happen if he didn't get a check at all. So I'll give it up to the players in that regard, However...

Now they are still playing but the performances have been subpar at best. It really looks like they don't really care. I know its easy for me to say sitting on my couch but the performances of earlier this season aren't matching with these. I can think that there's a correlation between what's going on with the club at the moment. They'll tell us that they will continue to play and they should be respected for that but I mean it doesn't matter how hard they play. What happens when they miss practice? You can't fine someone who you aren't paying. What you are going to fine with taking away their lunch privileges?? "If I can't eat, I'ma whoop somebody's ass" I feel bad for Unai Emery, the manager of the team, how can he motivate these guys? Now I know they should play for the love of the game but they have busted their asses to get where they're at and these players should be getting paid because they earned the right to play at the highest level. Now they are treated as Sunday league players, "there might be food after the game but we aren't sure.... Sorry (sarcasm)"

Hopefully the situation doesn't go to Adminstration or whatever the equivalent is in Spain (Adminstration is when any business gets to the point where it is no longer viable financially,the owners as a last resort can call in administrators.) because I don't know if I can handle one of my favorite teams going to the second division and being docked 10 points. I'm sure things will work out with these guys and they'll be back to where they belong. They may have to make some significant changes but the manager we have is qualified enough to hold the club's players together. Hey Vicente Soriano (the club's chairman), you won't give the boys per diem money.

Frustration Part 1

This is a two part series. This first one isn't anything about me. It is more about the frustration of watching Valencia loses to the club I hate the most Real Madrid 1-0 on Saturday. I watched the game multiple times so I could shit on the players that I wanted to and what not but I will try to be mild on my assessment because the fact of the matter is that we did not play a bad game at all. Until we went down to ten-men (due to Renan's poor clearing) because of Marchena getting a second yellow, we were dominating possession and getting some clear chances. Manuel Fernandes has a bright future. He shows very good close control and he can get out of situations so silky and smooth. However he is not able to show the control in front of goal that it is needed for him to be a world-class player at the moment. Albeda and Baraja didn't do too much for me. Baraja had a threatening header but they were not too controlling in the midfield and didn't do anything that caught my eye. Del Horno had a torrid time with Robben today. I don't know why he looked confused of why he was getting subbed out of the game. I mean most of the time I felt like he was a cone that the dutchman was going around. However after two consecutive games I've seen him in (Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League and Valencia last Saturday), I must say that Arjen Robben, when healthy, is one of the best natural wingers in the game. Except for the fact that he is a bit greedy in front of goal which might rub his teammates the wrong way. He was very influential in Real's victory. Especially with his splitting run to dish a pass to Higuain who took the shot beautifully with his outside of the foot.

Now I know I am not a Joaquin fan or anything but he had a lively start to the game and he was actually doing pretty well. But for whatever reason, he faded as the game progressed and it was pretty hard for anyone to get going after going down a man. David Villa was dangerous in the first half but not as dangerous as he should have been. For some reason he kept on taking the ball too wide and giving himself no angle for quality shots. He did test Casillas but I don't think it was enough to make him sweat. David Silva needs to hurry and get match-field so we can have another quality player on the field to help Villa out. I could tell that he did not look on form as of now. I think I left some players out but I don't want to re-watch it anymore to figure it out.

I was listening to the match commentary and they were saying that the credit crunch is hurting Valencia right now and there is a possibility that they need to sell their top players like David Villa and Silva to make sure that they can break even or be close to it. I don't think that they should do that because if this club makes the Champions League then the money would be able to come in and sure maybe in January you can sell off some players like Zigic and maybe even sell Del Horno to a lower La Liga club because I don't think he is Valencia quality anymore. Moretti is a way better player then Del Horno. Also if you want to sell a top player, let Joaquin go and give more minutes to Vicente who does pretty well for himself or insert David Silva back in the lineup when he becomes match fit. I don't think it would be plausible to give up David Silva and David Villa then think that you are going to challenge for a Champions League spot. If I had to give up one sad to say that I would have to give up David Silva, because Villa is a once in a lifetime player and you cannot find strikers nowadays like him. Mata is growing to become a great player in himself and he can easily replace Silva but who is going to replace Villa? Morientes? Although he is a good player he is getting older and I don't think that he could take on the load that Villa is able to.

Alright Part 1 is over. I'll probably be back later on today to talk about part 2. As for now I am going to take a nap and waste some more time. Cause I know that I need to.

I''m going to try and keep my excitment in

Valencia, THAT'S WHAT'S UP!!

Okay come down drizzle, it's only a couple of games in the season, but this is what I want to see from Los Che. They've won three out of their first four and except for David Silva's injury which will keep him out for a while. We are seeing some very encouraging things from this team. Especially with their ambitions of getting back into the Champions League by keeping the likes of David Silva and David Villa over the summer. We are finding out that they are also others who are stepping up their game like Mata and Alexis who are becoming exciting young players. Now I don't want to be over excited or curse them or anything but I like the way Unai Emery has brought this side along with a mixture of youth and experience that will help this team along. At first I was skeptical seeing us get wiped off the map by Real Madrid in the Spanish Supercup while they were two men down but now seeing results this term(since I don't have GolTV anymore sooo upset about that)I like the way things are going so far and I hope for the best the rest of the season