+1 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/cool.gif)

come on, i wouldnt go that far. their relationship is purely carnal. judging by zees physique i take it he's the receiver (IMG:style_emoticons/default/tongue.gif)

This post has been edited by Habitant: Mar 16 2009, 06:57 PM

Moderators can you please start a thread..


Galaxy vs Milan!!!! July 19th Tickets are on sale lagalaxy.com.. I got my tickets just wanted to spread the good news.

*yawn*

I can see now how we made the Beckham deal go through (IMG:style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif)

It's ok. Off season right?

For ****'s sake!! Galaxy-Milan?

What exactly are we doing? are we really going to go all the way to America to play with.. Galaxy?

In two years, we've gone from CL champs to slumming it with MLS teams. How the mighty have fallen.

What's with the serious over reaction?? There are no objections raised when Madrid go to Japan in off season? Yeesh. So yes, it's probably a money thing, but so what? Not like we're going mid-week before a league match.

yea seriously it's a summer tour. Milan, with all their stars, particularly media darling ronaldinho (la=mexico=ronaldinho fans) coming to play the La Galaxy, with Becks playing against Milan..will be hyped up so much by the media it will serve only to raise the profile of the club ever so slightly here..hell chelsea tours all the time, as does barca. In fact i saw chelsea at stanford university a few summers ago. It was Shev's first few games for chelsea, and he certainly stank it up when i saw him =)

plus well sh!t, i'm not missing this opportunity, i'm definitely going to be there, and i've never seen milan play before in person. i'm heartbroken that maldini won't be there, but i can't wait to be able to say "I've seen Kaka, Ronaldinho, Pato, Pirlo, Gattuso, etc play"

Oh yeah...(IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Chelsea was the club I was looking for. Not sure if Madrid still tour Japan, after the end of the Galatico era.

Thing is, it's in July so it'll be very early in the preseason training -- who's actually going to play?(IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Perhaps 1 or 2 significant players but I'd expect to see next year's equivalent of the Uru-kids, Darmian, etc. too.

So, is somoene going to open the match thread?(IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Don't think there's any need 10ie. Put it up in the calendar, we'll open a thread for it around July.

@han: I don't know. While I can't disagree with you completely, I still feel that we've been seriously handicapped by injuries. See the thing is you've talked about Inter's hiccups, Juve's terrible start etc. Now I believe that every team has that in a season. So did Milan. The difference is, anytime we looked like making a proper rally for it, someone would get injured. We were never in a position of full strength to really make a comeback.

Sandro has been a HUGE miss. Rino was red-hot when he went out. Flamini has only recently begun to exert himself on the team, and started playing that role we thought he would at the beginning of tghe season. Borriello was actually pretty key for us, till he went out. Pato had to play lone striker for some time till Pippo came back in.

I don't think we've actually lost more than say 6-7 points MAX coz of iffy substitutions. Then again, you can't say directly that X sub was the reason for a loss, unless the X sub scored an own goal, but I get what you mean anyway.

I think the injuries totally screwed up our team rotation. I think there was no underlying stability coz of that. I also think that because of that our players were often tired and playing when not fully fit.

To which there is an argument, that why don't we try Cardaccio/Viudez or Darmian or anyone of those other players who never get a look in.

I don't have a counter-argument. I've always maintained that Carlo is not the best coach for youth, since he's a tactician primarily. Also I've been talking for some time about how Carlo needs a proper assistant coach. Not some guy like Tassotti who's more of a sidekick.(I love Tassotti, but c'mon we need someone with a great track record like Ten Cate). All I can say is when we hype all these youngsters, it's mostly coz we're sick of seeing the same guys have their same weaknesses exposed. So we want a change. But we've never seen these youngsters a lot. Not like we watch training videos or anything. Perhaps, they might have a huge set of gaps that might make us even more susceptible. A case in point would be I dunno...David Bentley. Or Vargas for the Viola. Thhey both looked like solid purchases, but have so far sucked @ss.


I know that I'm considered a blind Carlo supporter, a tag I don't mind in the least. But I only speak up when I feel he's been accused unfairly of stuff. I think with our injury situation, a 2nd place position would be about par for the course, and I do believe that we're on track for it. It's really not easy tactics wise to come up with something new when vital positions like DM, CB, or KAKA (yup that's a position! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) ) are always affected.

As for Carlo:

1. He ain't good for youth. He's a tactician. He wants players who are smart enough to get tactics and play them. He doesn't give a rat's @ss about how many step overs you can do, and how good your first touch is, if as a CM you're not tracking back to cut space (for instance). As far as he's concerned, you work your way up the food chain to get a free role. Pato had to go through it, and he did. The boy put his head down and worked hard, and I seriously think Pato is in Carlo's good books now. I think this is where Yoann and Gila went wrong.

2. He has little say on transfers in the club. Only on tactics. He can say, I want a DM and talk about Emerson. He gets Brocchi. He can talk about an AM to complement Kaka and talk about Ribery. They will get him R80. That's the way it works. You can't blame the management coz unlike Moratti, they're not going to go into debt coz their coach's got the hots for some guy. No...Carlo doesn't talk back. Maybe he understands the financial situation. I kinda think it's a sign of affection for the club that he doesn't pack his bags and leave when he didn't get things done his way.

3. He's not a drillmaster. Nope. This is something that I feel is a big gap in his coaching. Our team while tactically sound is not a well drilled regiment, like something Mourinho would put out. Which is why when a team like Man U comes to the Siro, and the boys are sharp, we kick their butts. But when a team like Reggina comes by, we are not motivated enough, and so are caught napping. If they were drilled properly, what needed to be done would be like muscle memory.

4. Playing favourites. I don't completely agree he 'plays' favourites. But yes he does have his favourites. Seedorf is one. But you have heard him talk about Seedorf so highly. I think there's a lot of mutual respect there. Carlo considers Zee a leader on the field. His go-to-guy along with Maldini and Kaka in that line-up to pull Milan out of any situation. I think Zee has delivered enough times for his loyalty and importance to be beyond question. Tactically though, I think Zee has been marooned a bit. He wants to play treqqie, yet he's been accomodated in a position and style of play which suits Kaka/a mobile AM. Usually in Milan, the offensive tactics are centred around Kaka's strengths (not without reason)...and Zee is always the person doing the heavy lugging. He's the unglamorous player. Either the junction player. Or the fellow who has to fall back and help the midfield with defending etc. So obviously, you don't see him show up like we know he can.

I think Zee in a formation like this

------------------Pippo---------------
-----Pato-------------------Rossi-----
-----------------Zee-------------------


would be more effective than

------Pato-------Pippo---------
-----------Zee-----------------


In Italy, I think opposing teams know what Zee can do. They're onto him pretty quickly. It's not quite the same in Europe, where teams in a bid to attack, don't really have enough players to stifle Zee, Pirlo AND Kaka. This means Zee can turn it on, as he likes it, while still playing that 'junction role'.

But of course, that's the way I see it, and you guys might have a different view.


Sorry, didn't mean to take it OT, but I was afraid han would feel bad if I didn't reply with a monster. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)


@Bluey: LMAO at your Destiny comment Dozer!! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/droolsmiley.gif) I'm the Jerry to your Ben, the Beavis to your Butthead, the Lennon to your McCartney, the Perry to your Tyler, the Pana to your Porty.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/tongue.gif)

This post has been edited by Jack Sparrow: Mar 17 2009, 12:55 PM

versing Napoli away next match... this is where we start losing.. right?